Kit Menkin's Leasing News

                   Www.leasingnews.org   Wednesday, July 31, 2002

  Accurate, fair and unbiased news for the equipment Leasing Industry

( posted daily at www.leasingnews.org and sent by e-mail by subscription

     with the Day in American History signature .)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Consumer Confidence Falls Nine Points in July

 

The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index -- which declined in June -- tumbled further in July. The Index now stands at 97.1 (1985=100), down sharply from 106.3 last month. The Present Situation Index fell to 99.2, down from 104.9. The Expectations Index fell to 95.7, down from 107.2 last month.

 

The Consumer Confidence Survey is based on a representative sample of 5,000 U.S. households. The monthly survey is conducted for The Conference Board by NFO WorldGroup, a member of The Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE: IPG).

 

"The erosion in consumer confidence represents a significant deterioration in consumer attitudes," says Lynn Franco, Director of The Conference Board's Consumer Research Center. "The continued decline in the value of stock market portfolios, coupled with ongoing reports of corporate scandals, have taken a toll on consumer confidence. The continued decline in the Present Situation Index suggests that consumers would tend to curb their spending in the absence of offsetting incentives."

 

Consumer confidence is now at its lowest level since February of this year. And while the current reading is not alarming by historical standards, a continued slide could very well jeopardize the economic recovery.

 

Consumer Expectations Decline

 

Consumers' expectations for the next six months have soured. Those expecting business conditions to deteriorate increased from 7.1 percent to 9.2 percent. Those anticipating an improvement in the months ahead fell from 23.7 percent to 20.9 percent.

 

The employment outlook also slid in July. The percent of consumers expecting fewer jobs to become available in the next six months increased from 14.3 percent to 17.1 percent. The percent of consumers expecting more jobs to become available declined from 20.4 percent to 17.3 percent. About 19.5 percent of consumers expect their incomes to rise over the next six months, down from 20.9 percent last month.

 

Consumers' assessment of the present situation was less favorable in July. Those rating current conditions as "bad" climbed from 19.5 percent to 22.1 percent. Those rating current business conditions as "good," however, increased slightly from 19.9 percent to 20.1 percent. Consumers reporting jobs were "hard to get" rose from 23.2 percent to 24.0 percent. Those claiming jobs were plentiful fell from 20.1 percent to 18.8 percent.

 

Source: The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index -- July 2002.

 

For more information contact:

Lynn Franco

Tel: (1) 212 339 0344

E-mail:lynn.franco@conference-board.org

 

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Economic Growth Slowed Sharply in the 2nd Quarter

 

The nation's gross domestic product expanded by just 1.1 percent, and revised figures show that the recent recession was deeper than was thought.

 

Stock market reacts accordingly. Those in the leasing business have

known this a long time.

 

 

 

By KENNETH N. GILPIN, New York Times

 

 

The pace of economic growth slowed markedly in the second quarter, the government reported today, and revised figures show that the recession that began in March of last year was twice as deep as originally estimated.

 

According to preliminary figures from the Commerce Department, the nation's gross domestic product expanded by 1.1 percent in the spring quarter, the slowest pace since the third quarter of last year.

 

Most economists had been projecting that the economy grew at an annualized rate of 2 to 2.5 percent during the second quarter.

 

A big jump in imports and a slowdown in spending by federal, state and local governments were unanticipated drags on the economy during the period, economists said.

 

The slew of revised economic numbers provided by the Commerce Department included a surprising drop in its estimate of first-quarter growth. Instead of expanding at a 6.1 percent rate, the economy grew 5 percent, the government said.

 

"I was as surprised by the downward revision in first-quarter growth as anything else," said David Resler, chief economist at Nomura Securities International.

 

The numbers did not sit particularly well on Wall Street.

 

Stock futures prices, which were moving higher before the numbers were released at 8:30 Eastern time this morning, reversed themselves afterwards. And the leading market indexes slumped after the stock market opened 9:30 a.m.

 

Late this morning, the Dow Jones industrial average was trading down 114.36 points, or 1.3 percent, to 8,565.67. The broader Standard & Poor's 500-stock index was down 9.74 points, or 1.1 percent, to 893.04. And the technology-weighted Nasdaq composite index was down 30.15 points, or 2.2 percent, to 1,314.04.

 

Bond prices rose, and their yields, which move in the opposite direction, dropped. By late morning, the yield on the Treasury's benchmark 10-year note had fallen to 4.51 percent from 4.59 percent late Tuesday.

 

The revised figures for 2001 now show that instead of contracting for just the third quarter, the economy actually shrank — although modestly — for three straight quarters.

 

The new figures show that the economy contracted by 0.6 percent in last year's first quarter, by 1.6 percent in the second quarter and by 0.3 percent in the third quarter.

 

Weaker spending by consumers, which accounts for about two-thirds of all economic activity, and bigger cuts in business investment were the primary reasons behind the weaker numbers for the first and second quarter of last year.

 

At the same time, the government now said growth in last year's fourth quarter was stronger than previously estimated, with gross domestic product rising at a 2.7 percent annual rate, a full percentage point higher than previously reported.

 

Based on the revisions, the drop in output during the recession was 0.6 percent, twice as big as previously thought.

 

Even with the revision, the downturn still matches the mildest recession on record, the 1969-1970 slump, when gross domestic product also fell by 0.6 percent.

 

"This is still a pretty punk recession, but it looks more like a traditional recession now," said Bruce Steinberg, chief economist at Merrill Lynch & Company.

 

Despite the slowdown in second-quarter growth, Mr. Steinberg said today's numbers did not alter his expectations about how the economy would perform over the balance of the year.

 

"Growth in the second quarter was weak, but that doesn't imply that second-half growth will be weak," he said.

 

Mr. Steinberg said he expected gross domestic product to expand at a 3.5 percent rate over the final six months of the year.

 

Based on the numbers provided today, the economy grew at an average rate of 3 percent during the first half of 2002.

 

As always, much will depend on consumers, who in the second quarter restrained their purchases.

 

Consumer spending rose 1.9 percent during the second quarter, the slowest pace since the third quarter of last year, and down from the 3.1 percent growth rate in the first quarter.

 

Data from the Commerce Department show that consumers spent more on durable goods like cars and appliances in the second quarter but spent less on nondurable items like food and clothes than they did in the first three months of the year.

 

But economists said that going forward it was unlikely that government spending, which fell during the second quarter, and the trade sector, which showed a surge in imports, would be drags on the economy.

 

Imports jumped 29 percent during the second quarter, a surge Mr. Resler of Nomura Securities said might have been a result of worries about a possible strike by dock workers on the West Coast.

 

The rise in imports overwhelmed a healthy 15.2 percent rise in exports.

 

The bigger trade deficit subtracted 1.77 percentage points from gross domestic product in the second quarter, compared with a reduction of 0.75 percentage points in the first three months of the year.

 

Looking for positives in the second-quarter numbers, economists pointed to the first rise in investment in new equipment and software in nearly two years. Such spending rose at a 2.9 percent rate in the second quarter.

 

And businesses, which have been paring inventories for five quarters, actually began rebuilding stocks during the second quarter.

 

"One of the hopeful things is that we have now completed this inventory adjustment," Mr. Resler said. `Now, any improvement in demand is likely to raise production."

 

Economists said the numbers were not likely to spur the Federal Reserve Board to reassess its current stance on monetary policy. At this point, they said, the Fed is not likely to lower short-term interest rates, which are already at their lowest levels in four decades. The Fed's policy makers are scheduled to meet on Aug. 13.

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Republic Leasing of South Carolina Cuts Over 100 Brokers

 

May 31,2002  Leasing News

 

“We are very happy to have Rich with us, “Dwight Galloway, CEO and very popular

leasing executive said. “ We hope to soon have all of the team, as well as all the other tools, necessary to build an excellent funding source for the next decade.

 

Republic Leasing Company, a NetBank company, (NTBK, Nasdaq) formally announced that Rich Viola has joined the Republic team as Director of Administration.  Viola has eighteen years of outstanding success in the broker funding industry, including positions as VP of Finance for Colonial Pacific and Textron Financial Capital, and President/COO of FNF Capital. He will be working with Charles Randall, President and Dwight Galloway, CEO to help continue the growth and profitability of the small/mid ticket funding source as they take advantage of the relationship with their new parent NetBank. 

 

Galloway indicated that, “Rich’s tremendous knowledge and experience will enhance our ability to achieve our goal of unsurpassed service to the broker community. We are assembling a team of leasing professionals that, with the help of NetBank, will provide the products and long range reliability brokers need in a funding source. We are committed to forging partnerships with quality broker/lessors who value our fourteen years of dedication and understanding of their needs.”

 

“We are looking to do things better, faster, and cheaper, “ he said. “Our parent has given

us great opportunities with cost of funds and support. We have always supported the

broker community. We want to do better and Viola has experience and abilities

that he will add to our efforts.”

 

Accordingly, Viola is from New York, but lived in Oregon and the latest, Denver, Colorado. He has moved his family to South Carolina. Dwight Galloway says

the weather is great, except for hot summers ( but then, many of us don’t mind

the warm evenings to sit outside with our family and friends).

 

“This is great to have him on our team, “ Galloway said. “For fourteen years, we have

picked the best deals, and maybe Viola can teach us a few things. Maybe we can

make less mistakes and do more business, more efficiently, and really perform better

for the broker community.”

 

Dwight Galloway dgalloway@rlclsg.com

 

------ 

 

July 26, 2002  from Republic Leasing

 

Kit Menkin

American Leasing

P.O.Box 682

348 Mathew Street

Santa Clara, Ca. 95052

 

Dear Kit:

 

We have recently completed one of our regularly scheduled evaluations of broker/lessor relationships.  These reviews include, among other analyses, comparisons of efficiency ratios like submissions to approvals, approvals to fundings, submissions to funding, portfolio performance, time spent relative to volume and ease of doing business to republic and industry averages. To ensure that we are able to continue to provide excellent service to our broker/lessors, we need to periodically reclassify some broker/lessors to inactive status.

 

In reviewing these statistics for your company, we have determined that the overall relationship between your company and Republic is not profitable for us. We are changing your broker/lessor status to inactive which means that we will not be accepting any new credit submissions from you, effective August 1,2002. We will, however, honor all outstanding approvals issued to you until their natural expiration.

 

Please know that we understand that as a borker/lessor, you have funding relationships with many other fine sources and that those relationships may necessitate your concentrating more of your business with those sources. We’re confident that you understand that we also must concentrate our resources on those relationships where we feel that efficiencies realized will help to ensure our longevity in serving the borker/lessor community.

 

We have enjoyed our relationship with you and wish you well in your business.

 

Sincerely, Dwight Galloway, CEO

                  Charles Randall, President

 

P.S. Kit, I know we were not much assistance to you.  I imagine you will be a full-time

publisher soon anyone!

 

 

( There were over 100 “brokers” we were told who received such a letter. Mr. Galloway also called many on the telephone personally, as he did with Kit Menkin at American Leasing Leasing, who received this letter.  Many other companies have “volume” requirements. AT&T, Colonial Pacific, Nations Credit, among others have had this criteria; however, in this dwindling availability to independent brokers, it appears Superbrokers may be the only avenue for the “small” brokerage operation.

 

Reader’s Reaction:

 

 

I have confirmed RICH VIOLA has assumed a significant position at Republic.

3 brokers I know got the bump.  Funny thing is these brokers were accepted

by Rich and on board with FNF (his former employer).  I do not totally

understand why Republic has gone this route but it certainly is not the Republic I know.  They seemed to me to be conservative and have always liked to stick with the "bread and

butter".

 

Rich Viola is known for only chasing the bigger brokers.  Republic has also

had a lot of success with "niche" brokers/lessors.  For example, LPI (of

Lease Pro Fame) with their medical/cash program.  It is a slick program and

LPI seems to have done well with it.  Anyway, mergers are almost always a

challenge.

 

 When Dwight and Charles reassured brokers, lease programs would

only get better, most people probably thought that if anyone will pull it

off positively it is Dwight and Charles.  The next few months will be

interesting.  I look forward to your posts on the subject.

 

P Bruck

Security Funding Services.

paulv@leaseapp.com

 

Although I am simply not a high volume guy with ANY funding source,

Keystone's relationship with Republic Leasing of South Carolina flourishes.

 

 (Maybe they just like my accent.)  I am not aware of any other

broker/lessors being put on the inactive list except for serious funding inefficiencies.

 

 In a market where so many funding sources have dropped out, it is prudent to winnow broker relationships to those who are sending a good ratio of approvable applications, and actually funding a reasonable portion of approvals.  That is the only way to continue to offer responsive service to those who do.

 

 Republic remains a super funding source with which to work.

 

Barry Reitman

baldguy@keystoneleasing.com

 

---

 

We were shocked yesterday to be one of the brokers "shut off for lack of

consistent volume" . Republic Leasing of S.C. has always had a policy of not

having volume requirements. I'm disappointed in their new found and

un-announced policies. I'm just glad in a way that we not singled out. At

least I know it wasn't US.

As always, keep up the GREAT work!!!

 

don't sign me. It's nobody's business who we have or no longer have.

 

Name With Held

 

(Disclaimer:  Leasingnews.org is a non-profit corporation with no assets, no money, doesn’t pay anyone, lives on “donations” (to this date, all from Kit Menkin.)It refers no business to funders, brokers, or dealers and goes out of its way not to have a conflict of interest with any source. It turns down lease applicants, vendor applicants, or any

remuneration for its services, including the settlement of disputes.  It has an “advisory board” and policy as posted on its website.

 

 American Leasing is a “limited partnership” with Christopher “Kit” Menkin the “managing” partner. It derives no business, referral or otherwise, from Leasing

News.  It is a separate entity with separate address, bank account, and has

no business relationship with Leasing News. American Leasing has

a website, has been in business for 31 years, and Kit Menkin has been a partner

with eight successful partnerships over the years.  The company is basically a lessor

collecting lease payments, insurance, personal property taxes, doing collections

and repossessions with local bank lines, lines of credit at two “national banks,” and a warehouse line at Merrill-Lynch, but does broker leases, and has “brokered” to Advanta, Centerpoint, Financial Pacific, Marlin, Manifest, among others. The overwhelming majority of business is within one-hour driving time of the office.  We personally sign almost all the leases in person (there are instances of using UPS ).

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

 

Feds Round Up Alleged Internet Scammers

 

By Beth Cox

 

Nineteen civil and criminal law enforcement actions were announced Tuesday by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies against scamsters in the Midwest and West who allegedly bilked Internet users out of amounts running into the millions of dollars.

 

Agencies involved include the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, as well as 10 state attorneys general and 11 other state and local law enforcement agencies.

 

Scams targeted included securities fraud, auction fraud perpetrated at both eBay and Yahoo, and one of those common "make money at home stuffing envelopes" deals that was promoted via spam and Web site advertising.

 

A "discount" Web services operation also was targeted, accused of cramming unauthorized charges onto consumers' credit cards for supposed "excess bandwidth" use.

 

"Scams on the Internet spread very quickly," said J. Howard Beales, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. "That's why the FTC and our partners are moving aggressively to shut these schemes down."

 

One conviction was announced, a Missouri case involving Phillip Chapman and Amanda Warren. Chapman was sentenced May 17 to 12 years in prison and Warren was sentenced June 28 to 12 years in prison for, among other things, Internet auction fraud (7 years for stealing by deceit -- charges related to Internet auction fraud -- and 5 years for bad check charges).

 

The FTC said that the envelope stuffing scam required consumers to pay $40 in exchange for the defendants' promise to provide sales letters and pre-stamped, pre-addressed envelopes. Consumers were told they would earn two dollars for every envelope they stuffed. One of the sites was called Stuffingforcash.com. Other defendants include National Home Employment Services.

 

Consumers who sent their money didn't receive envelopes. If they received anything -- and many didn't -- they got materials urging them to solicit self-addressed envelopes from third parties and forward them to the defendants. At the request of the FTC, a U.S. district court judge prohibited the defendants, including Stuffingforcash and a host of individuals in the Illinois area, from engaging in further deceptive practices and froze their assets, pending trial.

 

In the Web services case, the FTC alleged that the defendant, Brian Kruchten, doing business as Page Creators in Minnesota, put unauthorized charges onto consumers' credit cards. At the FTC's request, a district court froze the defendant's assets. Kruchten agreed to a settlement that bars him and his companies from billing consumers without their authorization and from representing that consumers are obligated to pay for any Internet service they did not authorize.

 

The settlement also bars Kruchten, for five years, from owning or controlling any business that handles consumer credit or debit card transactions, unless he first obtains a performance bond of $100,000.

 

Another case involved Stephen Alan Pierce, individually and Rapid Fire Swing Trading and The Chart Traders, the FTC said. The complaint alleged solicitation fraud in the sale of trading recommendation services over the Internet

 

Full list here, including one for claiming to clear up credit

and adjust bad debts: http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2002/07/mwnetforcecaselist.htm

 

 

 

August 6^th---Tempe, Arizona Get Together

 

  CIT employees invited, too---Everyone Invited

 

 

Our 4th Annual Arizona Regional United Association of Equipment Leasing Funders - Brokers get-together is coming up next week on Tuesday, August 6th, 6:00 PM, at McDuffy's Sports Bar, Tempe, AZ.

 

Please remind your readers to fax (602) 395-0663 or email irv@leasecor.com their reservation to my attention as soon as possible. This event, sponsored by the Arizona Region, is open to all funders, brokers, and service providers to the leasing community.

 

Membership is not required - all are welcome. In between watching the Arizona Diamondbacks take on the Atlanta Braves on large screen TV's,  we'll have plenty of time to discuss marketing ideas and to network with funders and brokers. $5.00 cover charge includes appetizers, beer, pizza, etc.

 

Special thanks to Santa Barbara Bank & Trust, Standard Professional Services, and Bank Of The West, for their support.

 

 See you on the 6th!

 

 

Irv Ellis, CLP       

LeaseCor, Inc.

346 West Frier Drive

Phoenix, AZ  85021

(800) 444-6424

(602) 395-0463

(602) 395-0663  fax

irv@leasecor.com

 

 

################### ###################################################

Putzmeister America Signs with eMarket Capital

 

eMarket Capital to Create Equipment Financing Program

 to Streamline Putzmeister’s Sales Process

 

(King of Prussia, PA– eMarket Capital, Inc.

(www.emarketcapital.com) announced today that Putzmeister America will use

the company's online financing platform to streamline its equipment sales

process.  eMarket Capital is a Web-based service that uses a patent-pending

bidding process to facilitate the leasing of capital equipment for

manufacturers’ customers nationwide.

 

"We expect our partnership with eMarket Capital to contribute to

Putzmeister’s growth," said Tom Teubel, Putzmeister America’s Vice President

of Sales and Marketing.  "eMarket Capital's service will provide our sales

representatives, dealers and customers across the country with access to more

financing options and up-to-date deal information – valuable assets indeed,"

Teubel continued.

 

Based in Sturtevant, Wisconsin, Putzmeister America is the North American

division of Putzmeister AG, one of the world’s leading heavy equipment

manufacturers. The company specializes in producing concrete and material

placing equipment for the construction industry.

 

"Putzmeister’s selection of eMarket Capital further validates the necessity

of our service today to the industry’s major equipment manufacturers," said

Dean Stolberg, eMarket Capital's Vice President of Business Development. 

"Putzmeister and its customers will see immediate benefits from this

partnership."

 

For Putzmeister, eMarket Capital’s service will consolidate the entire

equipment financing process for both the manufacturer and the customer.  The

manufacturer will provide customers with a quick and easy means to financing

its purchases; the customer will have access to the information necessary to

compare terms and choose the deal that best fits his business’s needs. 

 

"It's a win-win situation for all parties involved in the transaction," said

eMarket Capital’s Stolberg.

 

Most high-ticket equipment sales still involve a lot of personal selling. 

eMarket Capital backs up the ease and convenience of its online application

process with outstanding customer service.  Real people work directly with

manufacturers and their customers to ensure that deals close smoothly.  While

the transactional information is Internet-based, the entire process can be

done off-line via fax.  eMarket Capital makes it easy for the customer,

manufacturer and the distributor to secure the best deal in a manner suited

to their business process and preference.

 

How eMarket Capital Works

 

eMarket Capital provides private-label leasing services that help

manufacturers like Putzmeister close more deals by making financing available

to their customers. eMarket Capital establishes a customized financing Web

site for each participating manufacturer.  Each Web site is operated under

the manufacturer's brand name and includes a limited number of lenders who

are experienced in equipment financing and who collectively can cater to a

broad range of credit risks and types.

 

Customers fill out a single on-line or off-line application, and through

eMarket Capital's patent-pending Web-based process, receive offers from

qualified lenders.  Offers are submitted to the customer in a format that

simplifies the process by making an "apples-to-apples" comparison.  Lenders

pay a below-market origination fee only when they complete a deal through one

of the Web sites.

 

The service targets capital equipment purchases from $5,000 to $5 million.

Transactions in this range represent over 50 percent of the overall market,

which analysts expect to grow 5 to 8 percent a year.

 

For more information about eMarket Capital, go to the company's Web site at

www.eMarketCapital.com, or telephone 800-994-4369 or 610-354-8820.

eMarket Capital creates and maintains web-based private-label financing

services for major equipment manufacturers.  The company is not a lender or

broker, but serves as an intermediary for the manufacturer, the customer and

multiple lenders.

 

 

 

###  ################################################################

 

Corrections: 

 

1810: The third U.S. Census recorded a population of 7,239,881, an increase of 1,931,398 over 1800.  Black population rose by 481,361 to 1,378,110.  Of

this total, 186,746 were free citizens, a group omitted in the 1800. 

186,746 is the “correction.”  This is significant in many aspects.  19% of the population

was “Black.”  13 ½% were “free” citizens.  It would soon happen that slave trading

and importing would be imposed, as happened with all “minorities” through the

next two centuries. This was an economic development.  As important, the changes

in attitude toward “free” and “slave”, between the North and the South, between

the economics of “slave labor” and “paid labor” were developing, but here, the

census had already made the distinction. There was a difference to be counted

in being  a “free black citizen” or “ slave.”  The country had noticed a difference.

The census was to bring this not only to the government attentions, but the public

as well.  The division between North and South on the question of slavery was becoming clear-cut.  In 1802, all states north of the Mason-Dixon line, except for New Jersey, had passed anti-slavery laws or measures for gradual emancipation. 1810 was a major

turning point in American history.

 

---- 

 

 

Hey Kit

I've seen Buddy Guy perform within the last couple of

years or so.  He looked like he got old, but he sure

didn't look like in his 90s. (Birth date 1903?) He was

born this date in 1936.

 

Jim Fleming

nationalbusinesscredit@yahoo.com

 

(You are correct, 1936. Sorry for the typo.)

 

--- 

 ( another typo in the previous day American Day in History—it was no profess but

     progress.)

 

1864-Both the Democratic and Republican Convention were looming ahead. The presidential election while the Civil War was being fought posed special problems. in the North, there was considerable dissatisfaction with the progress being made in defeating the Confederacy, so President Abraham Lincoln did not think his chances of reelection were good.

 

Kit--- 

 

all time low on valuable content...(yesterday’s leasing news).

 

Please do not quote me as the note was to you not your readers.

 

I see your dilemma on the history section, truthfully I stopped getting to

the bottom some time ago. With all the other e-mail we get I do try to put

the effort in to see if there is something worthwhile, but more and more I

am disappointed. A re-print of general headlines in not really "Leasing

News" to me. But, the day I un-subscribe is the day something valuable will

show up, so on I go

 

Have a good day.

 

( name with held )

 

I almost did not send out Leasing News yesterday, one of the reasons it was late.

Last week there was a day I did not send it out, but then I get complaints from

those who did not get the signature “A Day in American History.”  I write these

myself over the weekend. They take about three to four hour each, sometimes more,

as I find myself doing more research as dates and information are often conflicting.

There also is the news briefs, a new feature, for those who want more current business

news or who may not see it in their area ( not everyone reads the New York Times or

Washington Post or Chicago Tribune or Boston Globe or San Diego Tribune Union

or Dallas Star or Kansas City Star or Drudge Report or Internetnews.com or

the associations news, to name just a few.  I don’t have a robot that does this. It

is part of the gathering of news. I always quote the source of the story, if you note ).  Plus it seems readers like the sports news, so I try and choose a story that would not be on the national wire, but local---and to those out of the area, would never see.

 

I also am always working on “advance rentals” complaints or other complaints, and

believe me have a half dozen going all the time.  Most of them are resolved, where

the broker or funder returns the money.  When they do, the complaint has been satisfied,

so there is no posting or story.

 

Again, I would like to say you don’t read everything in your “paper” newspaper,

and I would expect the same here.  I have three or four “bad news” stories I am

working on, but to tell you the truth, I get tired of writing them.  It depresses me, too.

 

To those on the East Coast, I apologize for being late, instead of first in the morning.

I can’t control the news.  I just don’t want to print “press releases.”  Sorry.  Hopefully

tomorrow will be back as a “Morning Edition.”  Hopefully you will find something

that is of interest to you, and I hope gives you a better day.

 

Kit Menkin

 

(P.S.  I appreciate the feedback. Please keep  it coming. )

 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Chicago 2003 - Plan to Be There!

 

The 2003 National Association of Equipment Leasing Brokers Annual Convention will be held next March 20th through the 23rd in Chicago at the Hyatt Regency in Oak Brook, Illinois.

 

 The agenda promises to have something for everyone, like funder seminars and roundtable discussions. Since March is too cold to play a round of golf, we’re going to plan a social event that everyone will want to attend.

 

 The conference committee will be meeting during the coming months to gather our ideas to make the conference a spectacular event.

 

 Your suggestions and comments are welcome. You can contact Shari Lipski, Conference Chairperson at slipski@edwinsigel.com or to see the event site you can log on at www.oakbrook.hyatt.com

 

_______________________________________________________________________

 

News Briefs----

 

 

Comdisco BK Emergence Approved

Technology and finance firm Comdisco said it expects to emerge from bankruptcy during the week of Aug. 12 following approval of its reorganization plan by a federal judge, creditors and shareholders.

 

-- 

 

Merrill Banker Had Many Direct Ties to Enron

Enron is struggling to emerge from bankruptcy, and its ties with Schuyler Tilney, a managing director at Merrill Lynch, have placed Mr. Tilney at center stage in Washington.

 

-- 

 

 

Justice probes accounting at AOL Time Warner

NEW YORK (AP) The Justice Department is investigating accounting practices at AOL Time Warner Inc. The media giant is already being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

-- 

 

Microsoft, AT&T Wireless to announce deal, sources say

SEATTLE (AP) Microsoft Corp. and AT&T Wireless planned to announce Wednesday that they will begin offering new wireless services to business customers, sources said.

--

 

Amid deepening economic crisis, Uruguay calls banking holiday

MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (AP) Uruguay ordered its banks closed Tuesday in an attempt to stanch the flow of capital in the midst of a growing financial crisis.

 

--

 

 

Former Cisco executive pleads guilty to fraud

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) A former Cisco Systems Inc. executive pleaded guilty Tuesday to charges he diverted about $50 million of Cisco-owned stock and company funds into personal accounts in the Bahamas.

 

---

 

Judge tells PG&E a trial will decide if it can collect $8.1 billion in rates

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) A federal judge ruled that California's largest utility has a legal basis for its claim that state regulators improperly refused to raise customer electric rates to cover soaring power costs during the state's energy crisis.

 

--- 

 

MediaNews Group set to take over The Salt Lake Tribune

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) The Salt Lake Tribune is set to change hands Thursday, the latest development in a saga that's featured religious acrimony and charges of greed and opportunism.

 

--- 

 

If you think July was slow or "topsy-turvy," it appears August

may be worse.  Hang on, Sloopy.

 

http://easycall.net/midi/hangonsloopy.mid

 

===

 

Chiefs' Coach Describes His Team Practice as Horse (manure.)

The Kansas City Star

 

RIVER FALLS, Wis. - Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil was not pleased with his team's effort in Tuesday morning's practice.

 

"We were horse (manure)," Vermeil said. "We coached horse (manure) and we practiced horse (manure). Other than that, it was a pretty good day."

 

Quarterback Trent Green was excused from practice to be with his wife's family in Indiana, so Todd Collins had an opportunity to work with the first-team offense.

 

And for the second straight practice, Collins didn't exactly distinguish himself.

 

Besides an impressive long touchdown pass from Joe Germaine to Reggie Jones however, there weren't many offensive highlights. Defensively, tackle John Browning, who is coming off a serious knee injury, had his second consecutive strong practice.

 

In an end-of-practice kicking drill, Morten Andersen showed that he still has a strong leg, nailing a pair of 48-yard kicks.

 

 

 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

                How to Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Make Changes

 

E-Mail.  You may subscribe by using the contact form at LeasingNews.org or by contacting me directly at kitmenkin@leasingnews.org.

          If you change your e-mail address, please don’t forget to notify me.  If mail

comes back more than a few times, we will delete the mailing address ( usually

every five days .)

         If you would like to be deleted, the list is kept under your first and last name or

how you asked to be listed ( not your URL ).  Either use the contact form or

e-mail directly. Changes are made daily, including additions, corrections,

and removal when the right information is provided.

         There is a trend for Spam programs for workstations and networks. In addition,

some companies block their employees from receiving news from us.  If you

have stopped receiving Leasing News, it may be due to being blacklisted.

 

You can correct this by using another e-mail address.  If a “Spam” issue,  on your workstation, you will need to “delete us” from your filter. Most programs allow

you to make exceptions to what the program considers “Spam.” If done by your carrier, you will need to contact your carrier or the “relay carrier” to allow our e-mail.  It is our experience, once named, we cannot contact you , meaning we can’t tell you that our mail is being rejected. Your carrier will make changes when contacted by the subscriber,

not by us.

    If we are being block, go to www.leasingnews.org.  Each edition is normally posted to the website ( www.leasingnews.org ) at 12pm, PDT. The e-mail is sent out very

early in the morning.

 

 

Policy Statement

 

Policy Statement---Nothing is sent out that is not "fair." Always unbiased

reporting. Fairness always. If it is questionable, we will ask the writer's

permission to quote them. We will print information without attribution, but

feel as long as we do not name the person who sent it, we can use the

information.

 

Any information we think is suspicious, we try to have if

substantiated first by at least two reliable people. We will not purposely

send out "negative" news.

 

We prefer "positive" news. We have no "axe" to grind or are not paid or seek or accept

any remuneration for product or promotion. We do not Spam anyone. To be

added to the mailing list, you must request it. We do not send anything

about our company or personal e-mail or jokes to the leasing news list. We

do not share our mailing list with anyone. We try not to send more than one

report a day, if at that, unless an "alert."

 

We follow Internet  Netiquette at all times. Our sole purpose is to provide communication to  improve our profession. We reserve the right to deny sending the newsletter

when requested. We reserve the right to edit or delete an opinion that is

not in good taste or is outright derogatory.

Leasingnews.org