California To Impose Internet Tax – Amazon Shuts Down California Retailers

June 29, 2011 · Posted in Business · Comment

Today I received the following email from the Amazon Associates Team:

Hello,

For well over a decade, the Amazon Associates Program has worked with thousands of California residents. Unfortunately, a potential new law that may be signed by Governor Brown compels us to terminate this program for California-based participants. It specifically imposes the collection of taxes from consumers on sales by online retailers – including but not limited to those referred by California-based marketing affiliates like you – even if those retailers have no physical presence in the state.

We oppose this bill because it is unconstitutional and counterproductive. It is supported by big-box retailers, most of which are based outside California, that seek to harm the affiliate advertising programs of their competitors. Similar legislation in other states has led to job and income losses, and little, if any, new tax revenue. We deeply regret that we must take this action.

As a result, we will terminate contracts with all California residents that are participants in the Amazon Associates Program as of the date (if any) that the California law becomes effective. We will send a follow-up notice to you confirming the termination date if the California law is enacted. In the event that the California law does not become effective before September 30, 2011, we withdraw this notice. As of the termination date, California residents will no longer receive advertising fees for sales referred to Amazon.com [ http://www.amazon.com/ ], Endless.com [ http://www.endless.com/ ], MYHABIT.COM [ http://www.myhabit.com/ ] or SmallParts.com [ http://www.smallparts.com/ ]. Please be assured that all qualifying advertising fees earned on or before the termination date will be processed and paid in full in accordance with the regular payment schedule.

You are receiving this email because our records indicate that you are a resident of California. If you are not currently a resident of California, or if you are relocating to another state in the near future, you can manage the details of your Associates account here [ https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/network/your-account/payee-info.html ]. And if you relocate to another state in the near future please contact us [ https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/contact?subject=&ie=UTF8 ] for reinstatement into the Amazon Associates Program.

To avoid confusion, we would like to clarify that this development will only impact our ability to offer the Associates Program to California residents and will not affect their ability to purchase from Amazon.com [ http://www.amazon.com/ ], Endless.com [ http://www.endless.com/ ], MYHABIT.COM [ http://www.myhabit.com/ ] or SmallParts.com [ http://www.smallparts.com/ ].

We have enjoyed working with you and other California-based participants in the Amazon Associates Program and, if this situation is rectified, would very much welcome the opportunity to re-open our Associates Program to California residents. We are also working on alternative ways to help California residents monetize their websites and we will be sure to contact you when these become available.

Regards,

The Amazon Associates Team

The government is a group of people that aggressively extorts money from a defenseless and largely disarmed majority. They use it to protect and cement the privileged position of established and campaign-financing organizations who fear competition from those annoying, small, and dynamic entrepreneurs who push down prices.

In the process it always cripples commerce to one degree or another. So long as the tax livestock remains productive and obedient, such occurrences can be shrugged off as regrettable but “necessary” collateral damage.

I submit the letter above as yet another piece of evidence in the long list of items that corroborate this thesis.

Tags: california, california internet tax, california tax, internet tax

Celebrity Memorabilia Auction in Beverly Hills Achieves Record Prices

December 6, 2010 · Posted in Business · 1 Comment

Once again I spent a weekend with one of our clients, Julien’s Auctions, supporting our auction software during the Icons & Idols sale in Beverly Hills, California.

You can look up the results for Icons and Idols (Fri,Sa) and the Johnny Cash sale (Sun) online.

Here are some press statements about this weekend’s sale:

From Rolling Stone:

A single glove worn by Michael Jackson on his Bad tour sold for $330,000 on Saturday.

The glove drew the highest price at the “Icons and Idols” auction, held at Julien’s Auctions in Beverly Hills. Other Jackson items that were sold include a signed jacket and a fedora he wore onstage, which went for $96,000 and $72,000 respectively. A costume made for Jackson’s pet chimp Bubbles was also reportedly up for auction, but it is unknown whether it sold.

… actually, it is known. It sold for $11,250.

Th AP writes Johnny Cash jumpsuit brings $50,000 at auction:

“The Man in Black” was dressed in blue as he rehearsed for a 1969 concert at San Quentin.

The embroidered blue jumpsuit that Johnny Cash wore to practice caused a bidding war during a memorabilia auction Sunday, bringing in nearly 10 times what was expected.

The suit was expected to sell for $5,000, but was eventually claimed for $50,000 by a collector from Belgium, said Darren Julien, president and CEO of Julien’s Auctions in Beverly Hills. He would not name the buyer.

The auction of 321 lots sold for over $700,000, nearly twice what was expected, Julien said Monday.

The late country singer was photographed in the suit giving a concert photographer “The Finger.”

That photo was used in a 1998 Billboard magazine ad purchased by Cash’s record company to sarcastically thank Nashville and country radio after he received a best country album Grammy for “Unchained.”

“Johnny Cash is highly collectible. He’s got global appeal, especially for a country artist. He was the first country music artist who was collectible. He set the standard,” Julien said.

An international group of fans, collectors and investors took part in the auction, by phone or in person, he said.

A poster announcing Cash’s performance at the prison sold for $25,000, a 1968 passport for $21,875 and a Martin guitar for $50,000.

A shirt made by Nudie Cohn and worn by Cash when he was grand marshal of the American Bicentennial Grand Parade in 1976 brought in $31,250 and a pair of Cash’s knee-high boots sold for $21,875.

Cash died in 2003 of complications from diabetes.

Because he performed at prison so often and led a rather rowdy life early in his career, many people believed he served time in prison. He did not, although he battled drug addiction over the years and received a suspended jail sentence in 1965 on a misdemeanor narcotics charge in Texas.

Here are some details on the lot, in case you are interested.

Well, why am I writing all this? To show you that one thing’s for sure: The one group of people who are well and alive and thriving in this financial crisis are the super-duper rich. And they are surely doing their part in driving up prices in investments left and right, be it commodities or be it celebrity memorabilia.

Tags: celebrity auction

Julien’s Celebrity Auction Achieves Record Results

June 28, 2010 · Posted in Business · 1 Comment

This will be a little bit of an off-topic post.

The past five days I was busy in Las Vegas, supporting Julien’s Auctions run their live sales via JuliensLive.com, which is powered 100% by my company’s auction software which I conceptualized together with my business partners and which was implemented and is constantly being refined and improved by our brilliant and dedicated team of developers.

Among other things, Michael Jackson’s crystal glove sold for over $190,000, his Beat It jacket changed owners for over $130,000 and Marylin Monroe’s chest X-rays (!!) sold for over $45,000.

The sale was a huge success and has shown the world how well we are able to support live auctions in real time while people from all over the world participate and how superior our thin client bidding application is to comparable bidding applications that require people to install heavy plugins.

Here are some news articles about the sale.

Michael Jackson Glove Fetches $190,000 At Auction:

One of Michael Jackson’s crystal-studded gloves has fetched $190,000 at auction.

The glove, worn during the singer’s Victory Tour in 1984, was the star lot during the sale at Julien’s Auctions in Las Vegas.

Other items included a worn pair of Jackson’s loafers, which sold for $90,000. A stage jacket, expected to raise $6,000, sold for $120,000.

“It just shows you Michael Jackson is the most sought after and most collectible celebrity of all time. It was just phenomenal,” auction owner Darren Julien told the Las Vegas Review Journal..

“People flew in from Asia, Russia, all over. Now that he’s gone, we now realise the true legend we lost.”

The auction coincided with the first anniversary of the star’s death on June 25 last year.

Marilyn Monroe’s Chest X-Rays Sell for $45,000:

A set of three of Marilyn Monroe’s chest X-rays from 1954 have sold for $45,000 at a movie memorabilia auction in Las Vegas. The X-rays had a $3,000 pre-estimate before the Planet Hollywood auction took place.

The pictures of Monroe’s chest and pelvis were bought by two anonymous bidders at the event, which was presented by Julien’s Auctions. The frontal shot was bought for $25,000 by one bidder, while the pelvic and side chest shot were sold at $10,000 each to another bidder.

President and CEO of Julien’s Auctions, Darren Julien, said, “[the x-ray] was taken around the time she was believed to be pregnant and rumor has it that she had a miscarriage.” The x-ray was taken at the Cedars of Lebanon Hospital.

Other items that were sold included a chair from Monroe’s final photo shoot ($3,000), Kate Winslet’s earrings from Titanic ($25,000), Audrey Hepburn’s dress from Funny Face ($56,250) and Michael Jackson’s crystal-studded gloves ($190,000).

I recommend you take a look at the results yourself by browsing through them.

The next sale will be in October in Macau where among other things the black crystal glove will be sold which Michael Jackson was wearing at his wedding.

Tags: auction, juliens

Fannie Mae Receives Another $8.5 Billion Bailout – Promises “No End in Sight”

May 10, 2010 · Posted in Business · Comment

After Freddie, it’s now Fannie’s move to loot the taxpayer once more:

Fannie Mae has again asked taxpayers for more money — this time $8.4 billion — after reporting another steep loss for the first quarter. The taxpayer bill for rescuing Fannie and its sibling Freddie Mac has grown to $145 billion — and the final tally could be much higher.

The rescue of Fannie and Freddie is turning out to be one of the most expensive aftereffects of the financial meltdown, and Fannie Mae’s first-quarter financial report on Monday made clear that there is no end in sight.

“The losses are not going to stop” soon, said Anthony Sanders, a finance professor at George Mason University, who warns that the housing market is likely to turn sharply downward again later this year.

Late last year, the Obama administration pledged to cover unlimited losses through 2012 for Fannie and Freddie, lifting an earlier cap of $400 billion. And with the housing market still on shaky ground, Obama administration officials say it is still too early to draft any proposals to reform the two companies or the broader housing finance system.

Republicans, on the other hand, argue the sweeping financial overhaul currently before Congress is incomplete without a plan for Fannie and Freddie. They propose amending the legislation to transform Fannie and Freddie into private companies with no government subsidies, or shut them down completely

… it’s always too early for “change”, isn’t it? :)

Tags: bailout, fannie mae

Freddie Mac Asks for Another $10 Billion Bailout

May 7, 2010 · Posted in Business · Comment

Since whatever Freddie Mac is doing is so essential to all our lives they are asking for another $10 billion in extorted money:

Troubled US government-backed mortgage firm Freddie Mac on Wednesday asked for an additional 10.6 billion dollars from the Treasury Department to cover losses.

Announcing a 6.7 billion dollar loss in the first quarter, Freddie Mac said it would need the new funding by June 30 this year.

The Washington-based company has already received more than 50 billion dollars in taxpayers cash to cover losses from toxic assets.

It also warned that further demands would be on the way.

“Freddie Mac expects to request additional draws,” it said in a statement.

“The size and timing of such draws will be determined by a variety of factors that could adversely affect the company’s net worth.”

Yeah … so I’ll opt out of that program if you don’t mind? Yeap, I’d like to not contribute any money to this corrupt company out of my pocket. I’d prefer to keep at least that portion.

That’s right, I’m basically opting out of this one, the one with the fat cat executives with political connections getting stupidly rich for nothing I ever asked for … yea exactly that one. I’m checking “no” on it. Hope you don’t mind?

Oh, sorry, I forgot that I have no choice in the matter, forgot you’ll throw me into a cell if I disagree. Nevermind …

Tags: bailout, freddie mac

Apple Upsets Developer Communnity

April 9, 2010 · Posted in Business · Comment

From the Adobe blog: Apple Slaps Developers In The Face:

By now you have surely heard about the new iPhone 4.0 SDK language that appears to make creating applications in any non-Apple-approved languages a violation of terms. Obviously Adobe is looking into this wording carefully so I will not comment any further until there is an official conclusion.

[Sentence regarding Apple's intentions redacted at request from Adobe]. This has nothing to do whatsoever with bringing the Flash player to Apple’s devices. That is a separate discussion entirely. What they are saying is that they won’t allow applications onto their marketplace solely because of what language was originally used to create them. This is a frightening move that has no rational defense other than wanting tyrannical control over developers and more importantly, wanting to use developers as pawns in their crusade against Adobe. This does not just affect Adobe but also other technologies like Unity3D.

I am positive that there are a large number of Apple employees that strongly disagree with this latest move. Any real developer would not in good conscience be able to support this. The trouble is that we will never hear their discontent because Apple employees are forbidden from blogging, posting to social networks, or other things that we at companies with an open culture take for granted.

Adobe and Apple has had a long relationship and each has helped the other get where they are today. The fact that Apple would make such a hostile and despicable move like this clearly shows the difference between our two companies. All we want is to provide creative professionals an avenue to deploy their work to as many devices as possible. We are not looking to kill anything or anyone. This would be like us putting something in our SDK to make it impossible for 3rd-party editors like FDT to work with our platform. I can tell you that we wouldn’t even think or consider something like that.

Many of Adobe’s supporters have mentioned that we should discontinue the Creative Suite products on OS X as a form of retaliation. Again, this is something that Adobe would never consider in a million years. We are not looking to abuse our loyal users and make them pawns for the sake of trying to hurt another company. What is clear is that Apple most definitely would do that sort of thing as is evidenced by their recent behavior.

Personally I will not be giving Apple another cent of my money until there is a leadership change over there. I’ve already moved most of my book, music, and video purchases to Amazon and I will continue to look elsewhere. Now, I want to be clear that I am not suggesting you do the same and I’m also not trying to organize some kind of boycott. Me deciding not to give money to Apple is not going to do anything to their bottom line. But this is equivalent to me walking into Macy’s to buy a new wallet and the salesperson spits in my face. Chances are I won’t be buying my wallets at Macy’s anymore, no matter how much I like them.

Now let me put aside my role as an official representative of Adobe for a moment as I would look to make it clear what is going through my mind at the moment. Go screw yourself Apple.

Now the only thing that needs to happen to turn this whole thing into a complete mess is for the government to get involved in order to “prove” to us once again why we so badly need them. I guess this is to small a case to become an antitrust issue, just thinkin’ out loud here …

Tags: apple, flash

Commercial Mortgage Backed Security Delinquencies Hit Record High

March 6, 2010 · Posted in Business · Comment

On Mish’s blog I cam across the latest Realpoint Delinquency Report:

In January 2010, the delinquent unpaid balance for CMBS increased by another $4.3 billion, up to $45.94 billion from $41.64 billion a month prior. The overall delinquent unpaid balance is up 326% from one-year ago (when only $10.79 billion of delinquent unpaid balance was reported for January 2009), and is now over 20 times the low point of $2.21 billion in March 2007. The distressed 90+-day, Foreclosure and REO categories grew in aggregate for the 25th straight month – up by $7.42 billion (28%) from the previous month and over $27.95 billion (508%) in the past year (up from only $5.51 billion in January 2009). This included a substantial jump in 90+-day delinquency in January 2010.

Other concerns / dynamics within the CMBS deals we are monitoring which may affect the overall
delinquency rate due to current credit market conditions in 2010 include:

Balloon default risk is growing rapidly from highly seasoned CMBS transactions as loans are unable to payoff as scheduled. In many cases, collateral properties that have otherwise generated adequate / stable cash flow results are not able to refinance their balloon payment at maturity, due mostly to a lack of refinance proceeds availability. This scenario has added to loans with distressed collateral performance in today’s credit climate.

Some five-year and seven-year balloon maturity risk is also on the horizon for more recent vintage pools from 2003 through 2005 where little no amortization has taken place due to interest-only payment requirements. Within this area of concern, large floating rate loan refinance and balloon default risk continues to grow, as many of such large loans are secured by un-stabilized or transitional properties that are soon to reach their final maturity extensions (if they have not done so already), or fail to meet debt service or cash flow covenants necessary to exercise in-place extension options.

Aggressive pro-forma underwriting was the norm on loans originated for 2005 through 2008 vintage transactions, many with debt service / interest reserves required at-issuance. The balance of such reserves is declining more rapidly than originally anticipated, and many are close to default or transfer to special servicing (if not already there). Exacerbating such concern is the large unpaid balance related to loans underwritten with DSCRs between 1.10 and 1.25 as any decline in performance in today’s market could cause an inability to meet debt service requirements. This is especially evident with the partial-term interest-only loans that will begin to amortize in the near future, or those that have recently converted.

Declined commercial real estate values and diminished equity in collateral properties may prompt more struggling borrowers with marginal collateral performance to walk away from properties.

A cautious outlook for the hotel sector remains as many sizeable hotel loans from 2005-2008 vintage pools have reported poor or declined results in 2009 (especially on the luxury side) or were transferred to special servicing for imminent default and / or debt relief. Many properties have had to significantly lower rates to maintain an acceptable level of occupancy across the country and in some cases have experienced severely distressed net cash flow performance as a result. Our expectations are that even more of these loans may be asking for debt relief in the near future and may ultimately default if a resolution is not reached.

Continued weakening in retail performance may lead to increased loan defaults as we have not yet experienced the full affect of retailer consolidation, closings and possible bankruptcy (i.e. many loans secured by collateral with troubled retailers as an active anchor).

Layoffs, bankruptcies and downsizing have impacted office vacancies across most MSAs, including historically strong markets like New York City, and this trend is expected to continue.

External factors mitigating risk include indications that credit liquidity is showing signs of improvement via foreign investors, and public REIT’s are showing the ability to restructure balance sheet debt. Political and governmental focus on job creation in 2010 along with increased support of mid-tier community banks to ease the credit crunch and stimulate lending may affect the overall commercial real estate markets as a whole.

On the other hand, as three new issue deals closed in late 2009 and more new issuance is expected to come to market in 2010, some of the delinquency growth we have experienced in the trailing 12-months may yet be offset somewhat by any new issuance’s speed to market in 2010.

In addition, liquidations of severely distressed defaulted loans picked up speed in the latter half of
2009, while modifications and forbearance at the loan level continue to be discussed between
borrowers and special servicers that may also result in a delinquency “leveling-off” period.

Special servicing needs have had a huge increase over the past year. We are about one year into Commercial Property Crunchtime and it seems to be gaining steam.

The impact of CMBS TALF which runs out by the end of this month has of course been negligible. All in all, about $9.8 billion have been settled since its inception, according to the NY Fed’s TALF announcements.

Tags: cmbs, cmbs delinquencies, commercial real estate

CIT Files For Bankruptcy; Taxpayers Lose $2.3 Billion

November 14, 2009 · Posted in Business · Comment

The New York Times writes:

Three months ago, the CIT Group barely averted what it considered to be a ruinous bankruptcy filing that would likely have put the 101-year-old lender out of business.

On Sunday afternoon, the company filed for Chapter 11 — but under a so-called prepackaged bankruptcy plan that will enable it to emerge from court protection by the end of the year, under the control of its debtholders. (Read the filing after the jump.)

The filing, made in a federal court in Manhattan, will still mean much pain for many parties, beginning with taxpayers. CIT received $2.3 billion in government aid last year, a bailout that came in the form of preferred stock. That will almost certainly be wiped out in the bankruptcy process, the first realized loss in the government’s rescue of the financial system.

While several firms that have received bailout money, including Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, have repaid the government, others — including the American International Group, General Motors and Chrysler — are expected to lead to losses.

CIT’s filing will test whether a financial company can survive the Chapter 11 process. Bankruptcy has long been considered a death knell for lenders, whose very existence depends on the confidence of its creditors and customers. The company’s struggles have been watched with interest and trepidation by analysts and the thousands of small and midsize businesses that borrow from CIT.

CIT was the nation’s largest provider of what is known as factoring, a type of lending used heavily by retailers. The company has spent months trying to reassure its clients that it will remain open for business as stores ramp up for the holiday season. Relatively few other companies serve as factors, and among them are other embattled lenders like GMAC.

The filing on Sunday capped months of efforts by CIT to stay alive. After being denied another bailout by the federal government, the company bargained with its creditors over a restructuring plan that would keep it operating and cut $10 billion in unsecured debt.

“The decision to proceed with our plan of reorganization will allow CIT to continue to provide funding to our small business and middle market customers, two sectors that remain vitally important to the U.S. economy,” Jeffrey M. Peek, CIT’s outgoing chairman and chief executive, said in a statement. “This market-based solution allows CIT to enter into the reorganization process well-prepared and positioned for a swift emergence.”

While CIT had hoped to stay out of bankruptcy court through a bond exchange offer, that plan failed to win enough support from bondholders, the company said in a statement.

With $71 billion in assets and nearly $65 billion in liabilities, CIT is among the largest corporate bankruptcies on record, though it is dwarfed by the likes of Lehman Brothers and Washington Mutual. The company said in its bankruptcy petition that it had $800 million in bonds maturing from Sunday through Tuesday.

CIT said that only its holding company would file for bankruptcy, and that most of its important operating subsidiaries, including its Utah bank, would continue to operate normally.

Mr. Peek, the architect of its push to grow beyond its sleepy industrial-lending roots into a major new financial player, will step down by the end of the year. People briefed on the matter said the search for his replacement was continuing and ultimately remained up to the company’s new board of directors.

Bondholders will receive about 70 cents on the dollar through the prepackaged bankruptcy, though the company warned that investors could receive as little as 6 cents on the dollar in the alternative, a free-fall bankruptcy that lacked a preapproved reorganization plan.

Last month, CIT unveiled its debt-exchange offer, which would have let bondholders tender their holdings for new, longer-dated bonds and preferred stock. But it also began soliciting votes for the prepackaged bankruptcy option. Under federal bankruptcy law, approval of such a plan requires the support of more than 51 percent of the number of creditors voting and more than two-thirds of the dollar value of those bonds.

CIT said in a statement that holders of about 85 percent of its $30 billion in bond debt participated in the voting. Those investors voted almost unanimously to support the prepackaged bankruptcy plan.

Last week, the company secured several important agreements to aid its prepackaged bankruptcy plan. It obtained a $4.5 billion loan from several investors, including bondholders who lent it $3 billion in the summer. It also reached an accord with Goldman Sachs that would preserve a $2.13 billion loan even through bankruptcy protection, while paying only a portion of a $1 billion termination fee.

CIT also ended a fight with the investor Carl Icahn, who had offered to pay bondholders 60 cents on the dollar if they rejected the company’s prepackaged bankruptcy offering. Mr. Icahn instead offered a $1 billion loan, although people close to CIT said the company did not expect to use the financing.

The company will be represented in bankruptcy by the investment bank Evercore Partners, the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and the turnaround consulting firm FTI Consulting.

The most important piece of information to get out of this: This is the first honest and outright example of how TARP taxpayer money is beginning to evaporate.

Tags: bailout, bankruptcy, cit, tarp

Cash for Clunkers Runs Out, Carmakers Immediately Feel the Slump

October 1, 2009 · Posted in Business · Comment

A few days ago I pointed out :

Once existing stimulus programs and credit expansion attempts subside, there won’t be much left to pick up the slack. The consumer won’t be able to go back to business as usual unless he goes through a long period of reduced consumption, deleveraging, and savings …

Now we are seeing this in action as Ford Sept. sales fall 5.1 percent:

Chrysler Group LLC and Ford Motor Co. said Thursday their September sales fell, revealing a tough hangover from this summer’s Cash for Clunkers buying spree.

Ford and other automakers got a big lift in July and August from clunkers, which spurred sales of nearly 700,000 new cars and trucks. The government program’s big discounts lured in many customers who otherwise would have waited until later in the year to walk into dealerships.

Now automakers are starting to feel the effect. Ford sales of cars and light truck fell 5.1 percent from a year ago to 114,241. The decline followed two straight months of rising sales.

Chrysler said it sold 62,197 vehicles last month, off 42 percent in the same month last year.

Cash for Clunkers and summertime production cuts kept inventories of popular models low during the month, but even so, Chrysler predicted its market share will rise 0.8 percentage points from August levels. The company increased factory output to replenish supplies.

“While we had some bright spots in September, it was still a challenging sales environment for the industry,” Peter Fong, CEO of the Chrysler brand, said in a statement.

Sales of Ford’s popular F-series trucks rose 3.5 percent, while sales of the new 2010 Taurus sedan increased more than 60 percent.

The September results fell 37.2 percent from August totals, which were boosted by the government’s Cash for Clunkers program. Two of Ford’s vehicles — the Focus and Escape — were top sellers in the program that ran during July and August and offered big discounts to buyers.

Sales of the Focus fell 64.1 percent from August, when Ford sold 25,547 of the small, fuel efficient cars. The company sold 9,182 in September.

The Escape crossover posted a month-over-month sales decline of 58.5 percent, with Ford selling 8,692 of the vehicles last month, compared to 20,933 August sales.

The Dearborn, Mich.-based automaker was the first of the automakers to release its monthly U.S. sales numbers on Thursday. Other automakers are expected to follow later in the day.

Volvo, which Ford intends to sell, posted a 16.3 percent increase.

Automakers sold a combined 1.3 million vehicles in August for a seasonally adjusted sales rate, or SAAR, of 14.1 million. Many analysts expect a SAAR of 9.3 million for September.

Shares of Ford fell 7 cents to $7.14 in midday trading.

The past 2 months were a lofty basis for some of the carmakers’ future earnings estimates. Expect those to be revised downward big time as reality kicks in.

Tags: auto sales, carmakers, cash for clunkers, chrysler, Ford