The market, she says, will be driven by fundamentals such as earnings and relative valuations rather than price momentum. Xerox announced second-quarter profits that met the Street's lowered expectations even though sales fell short. It's yet another in a long string of disappointments from the photocopier maker, which has been hurt by accounting and reorganization woes. It doesn't look like it's going to get any bright for the company either. CEO Paul Allaire, who took office after previous top dog Rich Thoman was ousted in May, said earnings in the second half would fall below 1999's earnings.
Management expects increased competition in the industry to drive car prices lower.
Over the past several months, the company has been able to partially negate higher oil prices with strong sales. Spain's largest telecom, Telefonica announced today the Cesar Alierta, the former chairman of the tobacco giant Altadis, will take over as chairman. Juan Villalonga, the former chairman resigned earlier in the day after pressure from the Spanish government to step down. The new guy apparently has better political connections than the outgoing guy, who was given the ax following accusations of insider trading. Microsoft vs. the World, or at least the Justice Department, has begun yet another round in what seems like an endless case.