Tag Archives: Economy

Post Holdings Losing 35 Percent Of Eggs To Avian Flu

Post Holdings announced that a third company-owned chicken farm in Nebraska has been infected with avian flu.  The infection means that the company has lost 35 percent of their egg crop.

The company, which makes Raisin Bran and other well known cereals, said they are still working on the financial impact of the major loss.  The loss is so significant that the situation is being declared a “force majeure event” that will allow the company to get out contract obligations for egg deliveries because of an event out of their control.

The outbreak continues to spread throughout the midwest.  Nebraska Department of Agriculture officials confirmed another poultry farm infected with over 3 million hens in Knox County. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety said three more turkey flocks have been infected with the flu.  Iowa’s Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship reported one new infection in a county with three other outbreaks.

The outbreak has caused at least one tradition to be suspended.  The Indiana Board of Animal Health has said that all bird shows at county fairs and the state fair will be prohibited until the outbreak ends.

“We are very concerned about bird health,” said Denise Derrer, a spokeswoman for the Indiana Board of Animal Health. “This decision wasn’t done lightly, and it wasn’t a knee-jerk reaction to a single backyard flock.”

The total number of deaths from the virus has been 40 million birds.

Family Christian Stores Cancels Bankruptcy Plans

Family Christian Stores, the largest Christian bookstore in the U.S., announced they are withdrawing their bankruptcy plans and will keep stores open.

The move was done to save the jobs of their 4,000 employees.

“The stewards of the ministry have done this out of love for the mission of Family Christian,” Chuck Bengochea, president and CEO of FCS, said in a press release. “We believe that this will help to satisfy certain objections of the Creditors Committee and the U.S. Trustees. This action will lead more quickly to a successful outcome in which we can continue to serve our customers and glorify God. Day-to-day operations at Family Christian Stores will continue as usual.”

The company had filed for bankruptcy in February because of $97 million owed to banks.

Rick Jackson, owner of FCS, says that it was previous owners who brought in the debt.  Jackson bought the stores in 2012 and turned them into a non-profit.

“The previous owners had so much debt that when the stores went down, they had enough to take care of themselves, but they couldn’t pay for the debt,” Jackson told The Christian Post last month while on the set of Giving Films’ first project, “90 Minutes in Heaven.”

“So we took it on; we were too positive thinking, and tectonic trends — people going online not going to brick and mortar stores — brought sales down 10 to 20 percent, just like Borders,” he added.

France To Step Up Monitoring of Terrorism Financing

French officials have announced they will increase monitoring of cash payments and small bank accounts in an attempt to stop the funding of homegrown terrorists.

Finance Minister Michel Sapin said that after the Islamic terrorist attacks that killed 17 people it was necessary to “fight against the use of cash and anonymity in the French economy.”

“It’s a terrorism that is low cost to carry out but has major impact,” Sapin told a news conference. “This low-cost terrorism feeds on fraud, money laundering and petty trafficking.”

The biggest change is that French account holders will not be allowed to make deposits of more than 1,000 euro in cash, down from 3,000 euro.  Foreign visitors had a higher cap of 15,000 euro but that will be cut to 10,000.  This is done for the benefit of tourism.

The government will also require anyone trying to exchange more than 1,000 euros in cash into other currencies to show an identity card.  And if more than 10,000 euros are transferred the government will be notified.

Family Christian Stores Files Bankruptcy

The nation’s largest Christian bookstore chain specializing in Bibles, books, music and church supplies has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Family Christian Stores, the Grand Rapids, Michigan based non-profit company has 266 stores across 36 states.  FCS employs around 4,000 employees.  Corporate officials say that they don’t anticipate closing stores or laying off employees.

“We strive to serve God in all that we do and trust His guidance in all our decisions, especially this very important one,” stated FCS president and CEO Chuck Bengochea. “We have carefully and prayerfully considered every option. This action allows us to stay in business and continue to serve our customers, our associates, our vendors and charities around the world.”

FCS had bought itself back from private equity owners in 2012 with a pledge to donate 100 percent of profits to “widows and orphans.”

FCS released a statement regarding the restructuring:

Through a newly formed subsidiary, Family Christian Ministries will serve as the lead bidder for the Section 363 sale process, putting forward a plan that acquires the streamlined organization’s assets and maintains operation of the chain’s 267 stores in 36 states, as well as its e-commerce site www.familychristian.com. Family Christian Stores is asking the court for a schedule to complete the sale process in about 60 days.

After the judge approves the sale, we’ll be immediately cash-flow positive and profitable. This process is similar to the one taken by the automobile and airline industries in recent years. We see this as the start of a fresh new day for Family Christian Stores and look forward to delighting our customers for many years to come.

Among our next steps are to make various capital improvements to our stores, as well as invest in an expanded product line and implement a new retail strategy that will enable us to better serve our customers.

Croatia Dissolves All Debt For Poor

Poor residents of Croatia is going to breathe easier on Monday when the government cancels all debt.

The move by the government is aimed to “kickstart the nation’s economy”

Any citizen earning under $184 U.S. dollars a month, rent their property and unable to pay off debts will get up to $5,146 wiped away.  Power companies, loan brokers, banks and phone companies are part of the businesses that will have to swallow the losses.

“We are doing all we can to make people’s lives easier in this protracted and strenuous crisis and give them a chance for a fresh start,” Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic said in a press conference.

Officials estimate that 60,000 Croatians will be receiving debt relief under the plan.  The action will cost creditors as much as $309 million U.S. according to estimates.

Croatia has been suffering from a massive recession for seven years.

OPEC Leader Vows To Not Cut Output

The de facto leader of OPEC has told the press production of oil will not be reduced even if the prices fall to $20 a barrel.

Ali al-Naimi, Saudi Arabia’s Oil Minister, is basically telling the world that the group is now focused on maintaining their market share in light of the U.S. shale oil boom.

“It is not in the interest of OPEC producers to cut their production, whatever the price is,” al-Naimi told the Middle East Economic Survey. “Whether it goes down to $20, $40, $50, $60, it is irrelevant.”

The most shocking comment from the man who is considered one of the most influential figures on the oil market was that the world may never see $100 a barrel oil again.

“We have entered a scary time for the oil market and for the next several years we are going to be dealing with a lot of volatility,” Jamie Webster, oil analyst with IHS Energy told the Financial Times. “Just about everything will be touched by this.”

Oil prices have tumbled almost 50 percent since June because of both a huge supply gain from U.S. shale output along with decreased demand in Europe and Asia.  The market dove more than a dollar after the comments from al-Naimi.

OPEC had been well known for cutting production when oil prices fall in an attempt to keep up profit margins.  When the U.S. was in the midst of recession in 2008, OPEC cut production to raise prices to make it harder on the U.S. during the economic downturn.

OPEC Collapsing Says Bank of America

The world’s oil market is o the verge of collapse according to experts at Bank of America.

The bank warned that the OPEC oil cartel has essentially collapsed and that prices will fall below $50 dollars a barrel.  The weakest oil producers will be run from the industry and power will consolidate into a handful of producers.

“The consequences are profound and long-lasting,“ bank commodity chief Francisco Blanch told the London Daily Telegraph.

The move could drive many American oil producers out of the business.  At least 15 percent are unable to cover costs at the current oil price level and experts say that when prices fall below $55 a barrel over half the American producers will be forced to shut down.

The benefit then comes to middle east powerhouses such as Saudi Arabia which have large cash reserves that can help them weather a prolonged decline in oil prices.

Bank of America’s competitor Citibank has posted an opposite view, saying American shale oil producers can withstand as low as $40 a barrel.

China Now World’s Largest Economy

For the first time since Ulysses S. Grant was president, the United States is no longer the largest economy in the world.

The United States slipped to number 2 in the latest numbers released by the International Monetary Fund on the world economic situation.  The U.S. fell to $17.4 trillion in “real economic output” while China climbed to $17.6 trillion.

The report says that China accounts for 16.5% of the world economy while the U.S. now accounts for 16.3%.

The report is causing massive geopolitical ripples.  The decline of a country in terms of economic dominance is usually closely followed by a decline of power and importance on the world stage.

The decline of U.S. economic power could mean the days of the U.S. being a superpower are ending.

Oil Prices Tumbling; Global Economy Slowing

World oil prices are continuing a downhill slide amid fears the world economy is slowing and could go back into recession.

Brent crude oil fell to near four-year lows and the US standard, West Texas Intermediate, lost more than a dollar.  Brent has lost almost 28 percent of its value since June.

The slide comes as economic news makes it appear the world is facing another slowdown or possible recession.  China’s consumer inflation fell to a five-year low this week and prices for U.S. producers fell for the first time in a year.

Also, US crude oil inventories rose at a level almost four times higher than previously estimated by analysts.

The news led to downward rallies on Wall Street with the Dow losing hundreds.

World leaders from oil producing countries are calling for emergency meetings to try and stop the slide in oil prices.    The International Energy Agency is cutting predictions for oil growth in 2015 as a result of the recent conditions.

Ebola Devastating West African Economies

West Africa already had some of the poorest nations in the world.  Now, experts are saying the Ebola outbreak is driving so much business and commerce away from the region it endangers some of the nations.

African Development Bank head Donald Kaberuka said that the economic growth of most of the infected countries has already been slashed 4% and could increase the longer the outbreak is uncontained.

“Revenues are down, foreign exchange levels are down, markets are not functioning, airlines are not coming in, projects are being canceled, business people have left – that is very, very damaging,” Kaberuka told Reuters.

Kaberuka said that most of the countries involved have total GDP each year of around $6 billion U.S. dollars, so they’ve already been impacted around $240 million U.S.

Sierra Leone and Liberia have fragile economies after years of civil war.