Bloomberg (October 10)
“Sony, Sharp and Panasonic now have a combined market capitalization of about $29 billion, compared with Sony’s peak valuation of about $120 billion in 1999. Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s market capitalization is $596 billion and Samsung’s is $175 billion.” Japan’s electronics makers seem to be following in the footsteps of Detroit’s automakers. They haven’t kept up with changing markets and are being left behind with higher costs and shrinking market share. “Having the most-advanced technology—once a key strength of Japanese manufacturers—matters less as consumers increasingly pay attention to content, apps and user-friendliness rather than hardware specifications.”
Economist (October 9)
As the U.S. presidential election heats up, the media is awash in party-related statistics. The Economist reports that since 1929, “America’s stockmarket has gained more under Democratic than Republican presidents” with Democratic administrations presiding over a 460% increase in nominal share prices versus 100% for Republican administrations. In terms of cumulative returns, the results are even starker. The Democrats scored 300% versus the Republican’s 0%.
Tags: Democrat, Election, Presidents, Republican, Share prices, U.S.
