Thursday April 27 2017 Housing and Economic stories

TOP STORIES:            

I’m in Awe of How Fast Brick-and-Mortar Retail is Melting Down - (www.wolfstreet.com) Mall traffic is sagging. Department store sales have been in decline since 2001. Most retailers are loaded up with debt. Many have been losing money. Now they’re running out of options. Store closings numbered in the thousands last year. This year they promise to get much worse. “Zombie malls” have become reality, their vast parking lots rented to car dealers to store their excess vehicle inventory. But ecommerce sales are booming, including online sales by some brick-and-mortar retailers, such as Walmart and Macy’s. Over-indebted retailers are notoriously difficult to restructure and many end up being liquidated. Unsecured creditors, such as suppliers and junior bond holders, are often left out in the cold. Even secured creditors can end up holding the bag.

Wayfair Tumbles After Amazon Launches Furniture Seller Program - (www.zerohedge.com) It looks like another 'retailer' is about to be 'Amazon'-ed. Wayfair - the retail household goods seller - is tumbling this morning after Amazon reportedly pitches a new furniture seller program. Additionally, not helping the stocks, Citron's Andrew Left goes negative on the stock, comparing the company's controls to Madoff. As FurnitureToday reports, Speaking to about 40 retailer members of the Furniture Marketing Group buying group here, Amazon representatives in the furniture category said the e-commerce giant hopes to launch the new “Unified Delivery with Services” change to its platform late in the third quarter. Under the plan, furniture sellers, such as stores, won’t be required to sell nationwide. The retailers will set their own pricing that can change with the services an Amazon customer chooses. White glove delivery (to a dry room) is the bare minimum service requirement — no drop-off at the door — but retailers can offer additional services, including delivery to the customers’ “room of choice,” set-up and haul away.

Canadian Housing Optimism Hits Record Amid Curbs on Toronto - (www.bloomberg.com) Optimism about home prices reached an all-time high in Canada just as policy makers stepped in to curb runaway prices in the country’s largest city. The share of respondents in the weekly Bloomberg Nanos Canadian Confidence Index who see home prices rising in the next six months climbed to 48.5 percent, the most in records back to mid-2008. The overall confidence index reached 59.1, the highest since March and exceeding the 12-month average of 57.4. “Bullish sentiment on real estate in Canada continues to drive consumer confidence,” said Nanos Research Group Chairman Nik Nanos. Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne and her Finance Minister Charles Sousa introduced a 15 percent foreign buyers tax in the Greater Toronto Area on Thursday, and said the province would allow Mayor John Tory to charge a vacant property levy. Similar moves in Vancouver last year helped slow rapid gains.

Retailers Are Going Bankrupt at a Record Pace - (www.bloomberg.com) Retailers are filing for bankruptcy at a record rate as they try to cope with the rapid acceleration of online shopping. In a little over three months, 14 chains have announced they will seek court protection, according to an analysis by S&P Global Market Intelligence, almost surpassing all of 2016. Few retail segments have proven immune as discount shoe-sellers, outdoor goods shops, and consumer electronics retailers have all found themselves headed for reorganization. Meanwhile, America’s retailers are closing stores faster than ever as they try to eliminate a glut of space and shift more business to the web. S&P blamed retailer financial struggles on their inability to adapt to rising pressure from e-commerce. Urban Outfitters Chief Executive Officer Richard Hayne said as much on a conference call with analysts last month. There are just too many stores, especially those that sell clothing, he said.

The Fund Is Over EXCLUSIVE: Clinton Foundation Loses Chief Fundraiser – (www.dailycaller.com) The Clinton Foundation quietly parted ways with its top fundraiser “earlier this year,” the foundation’s spokesman told The Daily Caller News Foundation’s Investigative Group, while knowledgeable outsiders questioned why she was ever hired in the first place. Danielle Stilz, whose official title since 2015 was chief development officer, is still listed on the foundation’s website, and the foundation has yet to publicly acknowledge the change in personnel. Stilz, who now has the odd distinction of being at the center of two federal corruption investigations, also served from 2005 to 2007 as chief fundraiser for former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich. The boyish-looking Democrat who is more popularly known as “Blago” is now serving a 14-year federal prison sentence on corruption charges, including 11 counts related to his attempt to sell then-President-elect Barack Obama’s former seat in the Senate.

OTHER STORIES:

Equity markets, euro rally in wake of French election - (www.reuters.com)
Trump pushes Democrats on border wall as government shutdown looms - (www.reuters.com)
Fed Model Says `Neutral' Interest Rate Dips Back to Zero: Chart - (www.bloomberg.com)

The Electric Car Revolution Now Faces Its Biggest Test - (www.bloomberg.com)

France faces national fight over global order - (www.ft.com)

Cheaper Mortgages Could Spur Housing Market - (www.wsj.com)