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Tuesday, March 19, 2002 www.leasingnews.org Independent, unbiased and fair news about the Leasing Industry -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Headlines---- The Fed to Raise Rates, Not Today, but Soon Finova Year-End Net Loss $1.14 Billion/$1.8 Billion CIT Announces Fixed Income Conference Call 3pm EST Telemark for Sale----$700 Million Portfolio Tuesday---Odds and Ends Streamlined Sales Tax Project MicroFinancial Inc. Announces Quarterly Dividend VoiceXML Planet 2002 Conference & Expo ### Denotes Press Release The Fed to Raise Rates, Not Today, but Soon By Martin Crutsinger ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON – The Federal Reserve is likely to take an initial step toward higher interest rates at its meeting today, citing recent optimistic comments by Chairman Alan Greenspan. These analysts don't believe the Fed will actually raise rates at today’s meeting, but they are looking for the central bank's public statement to send a strong signal that future rate increases are on the way. The reason for this view? The economy, which slipped into a recession for the first time in a decade last year, has started 2002 with a surprising amount of strength. "There is no question that the rebound has been stronger and is coming much earlier than many of us anticipated," said Sung Won Sohn, chief economist at Wells Fargo in Minneapolis. The original view was that the recession, which began in March 2001, would be followed by an anemic rebound, at least in the early going, because there was very little pent-up demand from consumers, who kept spending with abandon during last year's downturn. But now economists have a different scenario – strength in the early months will come from a sharp turnaround in business spending to restock empty store shelves after a record decline in inventories late last year. "We could have a blowout first quarter," said David Wyss, chief economist at Standard & Poor's in New York. Merrill Lynch chief economist Bruce Steinberg forecast that economic growth in the current quarter could be at a sizzling 5 percent to 6 percent annual rate, a remarkable change from the third quarter when the economy was contracting at an annual rate of 1.3 percent. In the fourth quarter, the gross domestic product rose at a weak 1.4 percent rate. Greenspan signed onto the "recession's over" camp March 7, when he told Congress that "the recent evidence increasingly suggests that an economic expansion is already well under way." Greenspan is likely to expound on those views today when he and the other members of the Federal Open Market Committee gather to review interest rate policies. The FOMC last changed rates at its December meeting when it cut the federal funds rate for an 11th time, pushing it down to a 40-year low of 1.75 percent. The Fed's aggressive credit easing has pushed banks' prime rate, the benchmark for millions of consumer and business loans, down to 4.75 percent, the lowest level since 1965. The Fed left rates unchanged at their first meeting of this year on Jan. 29-30, and private economists are predicting a similar outcome this time around with one importance difference. With the increased signs of recovery, economists expect the Fed to switch the forward-looking portion of its statement from one tilted toward economic weakness to a neutral stance in which the balance of risks, in the Fed's view, is equally split between possible weakness and possible rising inflation pressures. Such a switch would put markets on notice to expect rate increases down the road as the recovery gathers momentum and the central bank begins to worry about inflation threats. Sohn said the Fed could start raising rates as soon as its next meeting on May 7, especially if the unemployment rate continues to fall. However, other analysts said the Fed is likely to wait until the following meeting, on June 25-26, to actually start raising rates. "Inflation pressures remain quite muted so the Fed will have some time before feeling the need to raise rates," said Lynn Reaser, chief economist at Banc of America Capital Management. Reaser said she believed the central bank would only gradually raise rates for the rest of the year, pushing the funds rate up in quarter-point moves to 3 percent by the end of the year. Others state it will not be until August. In anticipation of Fed credit tightening, financial markets have already started pushing long-term rates higher. The 30-year mortgage rate, which dropped to a 30-year low of 6.45 percent last November, edged above the 7 percent level last week. Economists believe mortgage rates will head gradually higher for the rest of the year. Reaser said that 30-year mortgages will likely be around 7.5 percent by December, up only a half-point from where they are now. "Mortgage rates will be above their lows of last year but still low enough to accommodate a generally healthy housing market,' Reaser said Finova Year-End Net Loss $1.14 Billion/$1.8 Billion For the four months ended December 31, 2001, Finova
(the Reorganized Company) recorded a net loss of $1.14 billion. The
net loss included a $777.5 million charge to increase reserves for
credit losses and charges of $281.6 million recorded to reflect further
deterioration in value of its off-lease and other owned assets For the twelve months ended December 31, 2001, including
four months of the Reorganized Company and eight months of the Predecessor
Company, the Company's net loss totaled $1.8 billion The FINOVA Group Inc. and its filing subsidiaries listed
assets of $12.5 billion and liabilities of $11.4 billion, primarily
in bank and publicly traded debt securities. _______________________________________________________ ### #######################
################## CIT Announces Fixed Income Conference Call
LIVINGSTON, N.J., / -- CIT Group Inc. announced it will host a fixed income conference call on today at 3:00 PM (EST). CIT expects the call will cover a variety of topics, including its progress in separation from Tyco International Ltd. and its outlook for the current fiscal quarter. The call may be accessed in three ways: -- At the following website: http://investor.cit.com/medialist.cfm. A replay of the call will be available approximately 90 minutes following the conclusion of the call through March 20, 2002 at the same website. -- By telephone dial-in with the capability to participate in the question and answer portion of the call. The telephone dial-in number for the participants in the U.S. is: 888-276-0005. The telephone dial-in number for the participants in International locations is: 612-332-0345. Due to capacity limitations on the part of our teleconference service provider, the number of lines available is limited. If these lines have reached their limit, investors will need to call the "listen-only" number provided below. -- By telephone dial-in to participate in a "listen-only" mode. The telephone dial-in number for the participants in the U.S. is: 800-260-0719. The telephone dial-in number for the participants in International locations is: 651-291-3810. The participants' code for all callers is 632071. Investors who do not intend to ask questions should dial this number directly. The replay is scheduled to be available at 6:30 PM on March 19, 2002 until 11:59 PM on March 20, 2002. The dial-in numbers for the replay are as follows: U.S. 800-475-6701. International: 320-365-3844. The replay access code for all callers is: 632068. The Company's website (www.cit.com) contains information regarding the products and services offered by CIT and its historical financial performance. About CIT: The CIT family of companies are subsidiaries of Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC, LSE: TYI, BSX: TYC). CIT is a leading, global source of financing and leasing capital and an advisor for companies in more than 30 industries. Managing $50 billion in assets across a diversified portfolio, CIT is the trusted financial engine empowering many of today's industry leaders and emerging businesses, offering vendor, equipment, commercial, factoring, consumer and structured financing capabilities. Founded in 1908, CIT operates extensively in the United States and Canada with strategic locations in Europe, Latin and South America, and the Pacific Rim. For more information on CIT, visit the Web site at www.cit.com. #### #################################
############ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Telemark for Sale----$700 Million Portfolio As a former Telmark employee who was downsized in anticipation of the company being sold, I would like to make you aware of the sale of Temlark to the highest bidder by it's parent, Agway. You can find out more on the Agway website at www.agway.com ( name with
held ) “Beginning as a small agricultural leasing company
started by Agway in 1964, Telmark has evolved into a national lease
financing source for farming, forestry, construction and other rural
businesses. “With a lease portfolio now totaling more than
$700 million, Telmark's growth is dependent on ready access to capital.
Today, Telmark dividends to Agway are limited so that Telmark retains
its earnings to support its natural growth and to optimize its ability
to attract debt capital. This approach has been appropriate to date
and would be for the near-term future if Agway were to keep Telmark.
Given Telmark's size, however, its potential for future growth would
be better with an owner that can more readily access capital markets
(in particular, the equity capital markets) than Agway can as a cooperative.
“Telmark has a strong history of earnings growth
and is considered an extremely attractive business in an industry
that continues to consolidate around large financial companies. The
sale of Telmark is designed to allow Agway to maximize its value in
Telmark by converting this asset into cash, which can be directly
applied to restructuring Agway's capital and reducing long-term debt.
It would also enable Telmark to continue to grow and prosper. We have
engaged the investment banking firm Goldman Sachs & Co. to assist
us finding an appropriate buyer for Telmark. Donald P. Cardarelli From their website: Telmark is based in Syracuse, NY serving
the leasing and financing needs of 20,000 farmers, related agricultural
businesses and numerous segments of the commercial business marketplace.
We are a subsidiary of the cooperative Agway
Inc. We offer lease financing for equipment,
buildings and vehicles within the contiguous 48 states. Our District
Managers offer personalized service at your home or place of business
to meet your lease financing needs. We continue to expand our network
of District Managers in order to serve our growing customer base.
Through Telmark Express, we develop
sales finance relationships with distributors and dealers in the United
States and Canada through a combination of direct sales financing
and our own on-site service. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tuesday---Odds and Ends Permit me to take advantage of a typo. The first doomed sports stadium was the Hartford
Civic Center, which collapsed at 4:15 AM on January 18, 1978 under
the weight of a heavy snow accumulation.
The building was empty and no one was hurt. A few hours earlier thousands of hockey fans were in attendance. Regards, Barry "Blue Pencil" Reitman baldguy@keystoneleasing.com --- Kind of like looking for Waldo... Hahaha..... Where
can they be. Kit please correct the spelling of my last name.
Thanks.. More to follow...!!!! Richard A. Galtelli BancPartners of Texas, Inc. 1550 Waters Ridge Drive Lewisville, TX 75057 rag@acsitx.com 972-221-7335 Fax
972-219-0223 ---- I started receiving your newsletter several weeks ago.
I am amazed at the "cutting edge info" you have access to.
I have been in the senior level recruiting for Leasing for six years and I am learning
more/quicker than other sources. I
very much appreciate your letter. Your letter is the first thing I read every morning. Dave Lakes Dave Lakes & Associates 812-597-0380 davelakes@ashton-group.net David Lakes (317) 842-4055 Voice/Fax Effective March 3, 2002 the phone will be 812-597-0380 ( Thank you.
Glad you didn’t mention any typo’s. Editor ) --- Jim Merrilees What a deal? Clyde Cady invited Jim Merrilees to the
MAEL Golf Tournament, paying his way, fees, including dinner and wine. Leasing News has learned that Merrilees has
a 14 handicap---Cady said he played like a “4” player. Not being a golfer, I don’t understand the significance.
Perhaps to understand this better, if you are a golfer, let
Leasing News know your handicap. -------- Why is the United Association of Equipment Leasing
so out of line with its dues for Funders....??? Even the Equipment
Leasing Association isn't that expensive. Maybe someone should look
at revenue sharing with brokers and others instead of putting all
the burden on the Funders. Lose a few and your revenue is going to
drop dramatically...its probably already happened. Sincerely, Deborah J. Monosson President BOSTON FINANCIAL & EQUITY CORPORATION 20 Overland Street Boston MA 02215 617-267-2900 Tel 617-437-7601 ( You are comparing the lowest rung of the funder’s
fees. ELA is not only the largest leasing association, but also the highest
membership fees for larger companies. It’s a “fair share”
scale. Editor ) ____ Telephone Conversation CIT Caller: I
received the AOL email, but I don’t think you should send me any more at my main address. I found out they are reading my e-mail. I confirmed it with... They are really paranoid. Editor: Okay, we won’t talk by email any more.
You can also always read our news on the web. CIT Caller: I know about GE, but I was told it was
GMAC buying another division. Editor: I heard it was Ford. CIT Caller: They don’t tell us anything. They
are monitoring everything. Editor: There are some formalities, but it is going
to happen fast; within a month. CIT Caller: A month is like a year to me now. No one
to talk to (long pause.). I really feel left out of this.
In fact, I feel trapped. They won’t
let anyone talk to anyone. Editor: Okay, we won’t talk by email anymore. I am sorry about that. CIT Caller: I’ve been here **** years and never
have seen it like this. Please don’t call me or email me,
unless you hear something. I’d appreciate it. Streamlined Sales Tax Project—Dennis Brown The Streamlined Sales Tax Project meeting next month will run from 8:30 AM on Thursday, April 11, until approximately 1:00 pm on Friday, April 12. Delegates to Implementing States will begin at about 2:00 pm on Friday and run until later afternoon on Saturday, April 13. These meetings are at the Hyatt Regency in Dearborn, Michigan. The deadline for making hotel reservations is Friday, March 22. To make your reservations, call the hotel directly at 313-593-1234; make sure to ask for a room in the FTA Streamlined Sales Tax block. The room rate is $109 single and $134 double. The hotel is located near Detroit Metro Airport. Contrary to earlier reports, the hotel does not run a shuttle to and from the airport and a taxi will cost about $22. Also, please remember to register for the meeting. The registration fee is $160 for the Streamlined Sales Tax Project and $130 for the Implementing States meeting ($270 for both meetings). You can register online at http://www.taxexchange.org/meet/0402sales.taf Dennis Brown DBROWN@ELAMAIL.COM ### #########################
############### MicroFinancial Inc. Announces Quarterly Dividend
WALTHAM, Mass--The Board of Directors of MicroFinancial Inc. (NYSE: MFI) voted to pay a dividend of $0.05 per common share, payable on or before April 15, 2002 to holders of record of MFI common stock as of March 29, 2002. "This is the twenty-eighth consecutive quarterly dividend since we started paying dividends in July of 1995," says Richard Latour, President, COO and CFO. "We are proud of our long-term track record of earnings and dividend payouts. During our more 15 years of operations we have seen good economic and adverse economic environments, times of tight capital markets and periods of very high liquidity in the economy. MFI has prospered in all of these times," adds Mr. Latour. MicroFinancial Inc. (NYSE: MFI), headquartered in Waltham, MA, and with additional locations in Herndon, VA, Woburn, MA, and Newark, CA, is a financial intermediary specializing in leasing and financing for products in the $500 to $10,000 range. The company has been in operation since 1986 and has been profitable each year since 1987. ### ######################### ########################### VoiceXML Planet 2002 Conference & Expo Don't miss VoiceXML Planet 2002 Conference & Expo
this Wednesday through Friday, March 20-22nd, in San Jose!
The first focused event of its kind, VoiceXML Planet
2002 Conference & Expo is the premier VoiceXML
trade show and conference for business and technology leaders
who are looking for strategic, technical and market
opportunities in the emerging interactive voice applications and services market. For more information
and to register today visit http://events.internet.com/vxml/spring02. Join us this week in San Jose and gain a competitive
insight into VoiceXML standards and technologies and
how they are being used to collaborate, innovate and reshape
the business landscape through interactive speech applications. VoiceXML Planet 2002 Conference & Expo will contain
professional training and in-depth strategy sessions
led by industry experts in the form of business and technical
tracks. Keynoting the event is Stuart Patterson, CEO of Speechworks
and Nigel Beck, Director of IBM Voice Systems. Other industry leading speakers from leading companies including
Microsoft, IBM, Lucent Technologies, Sun Microsystems,
Oracle, Cisco Systems, Intel, Hewlett Packard, Motorola, VoiceGenie,
BeVocal, AGENCY.com and more. The exhibition hall will highlight products and service
vendors and give you the information you need to evaluate
your implementation options. By attending the VoiceXML Planet Conference you will: * Receive invaluable instruction from technology experts
and business
leaders that you can leverage for building and deploying
interactive speech recognition applications * Collaborate with developers and industry leaders
on the prospects
of leveraging existing Internet technologies
such as content
management, J2EE and Microsoft .NET based application
server platforms. * Be able to develop intuitive application interfaces
for employees,
consumers and partners. * Comprehend the strategic and technical information
needed to create
a competitive advantage in your respective industry on
the emerging voice Web. For more information and the complete agenda please
visit http://events.internet.com/vxml/spring02. To register today please contact Allison Alessio at
registration@internet.com or call (203) 662-2857. VoiceXML Planet Conference & Expo is sponsored
by The Ferrum Group, Real Soft, VoiceGenie and VoiceXMLPlanet.com
and produced by INT Media Group. |
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