Xavier University announced last week the installation of the nation’s first pizza ATM. The $55,000 machine’s capacity is 300 medium-sized pies a day, with orders taking three minutes from refrigerator to cardboard box serving. Preparation for the dining hall staff consisted of “40 hours of training each from a French chef.” Besides restoring our faith…
Call it an ironic twist. An actor named David Harbour, portraying Achilles in Shakespeare’s “Troilus and Cressida” in Central Park last week, ruptured his Achilles tendon in a fight scene. Mr. Harbour later tweeted, “I’m so method.” No word whether critics considered his final performance a stretch. Speaking of drama, the Fed elected not to…
The setting was Arlington Park, a storied horse racing venue about a forty-five minute Uber ride northwest of Chicago. We had just lost $50 on a “sure thing” in the 5th race, though we should have been suspicious with a horse named Diminishing Return. The summer gathering there was hosted by one of the leaders…
Luis Polonia, the former outfielder for nine major league baseball teams in the 1990’s, once observed of the late Yankees owner, George Steinbrenner: “He’s only interested in one thing. And I don’t know what that one thing is.” We recalled Mr. Polonia’s pronouncement last week as we surveyed lenders on the state of the middle…
“What’s the most depressing holiday?” Suspecting a joke, we hesitated before answering our friend’s query at a backyard barbecue last Saturday. “July 4th,” he said without waiting. Really? “It means the summer is almost over,” he finished glumly. For credit market participants, the year’s too-swift passage also signals 2016’s halfway point – time to reflect…
The onset of renewed market volatility last week reminded credit participants that exogenous events do impact prices and new issuance, though to differing degrees. Broadly syndicated loan and high-yield bond markets both saw price declines in secondary trading. But new junk issuance slowed to a crawl after the Brexit vote, while loan activity continued uninterrupted. This…
“Thank God for the Electoral College.” Thus the co-head of a major credit trading desk put a brave face on the US political outlook after last week’s stunning Brexit vote. And while the wisdom of our Founding Fathers may shield us from a similar upheaval in the direct popular vote for President, there’s no guarantee…
By the time you read this, the UK will be voting on its long-awaited referendum on whether or not to leave the EU. Polls show the contest too close to call. Whether “Remain” or “Leave” prevails, the Brexit outcome will undoubtedly impact international politics and the global economy for years to come. Despite turmoil in the…
In what was described as a series of events in which “several things went wrong,” a 230-foot long replica of Noah’s Ark plowed into a Norwegian patrol boat last week. The collision cut a gaping hole in the side of the bible boat, leaving the owner distraught. “It’s an awful dream, to have an accident…
Last week’s disappointing employment report was another brushback pitch to the Fed as it hopes to hike rates sometime this summer. While some economists worried that diminished job creation could foretell a slowing in US GDP, others pointed to real wage growth, better consuming spending, and improved housing starts. We have noted before the Fed’s…