Due to Hurricane Sanday and power outages, Weekly Recap of Nov 1, 2012 will not be posted.

Thank you for your patience.

“The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” —F. Scott Fitzgerald

1. GE Refinances to Counteract ‘fiscal cliff’ fears — according to FT, General Electric (GE) has refinanced $5B worth of bonds that mature in February just in case Barack Obama or Mitt Romney are unable to avert the fiscal cliff. “If it’s choppy, we are prepared,” CFO Keith Sherin said.
2. Home values rise most since 2006 — the Zillow Home Value Index rose 1.3% on quarter to $153,800 in Q3, representing the biggest rise since Q1 2006, although the recovery is uneven across America due to differences in foreclosure conditions and employment.
3. Companies Are Sitting on More Cash Than Ever Before — amid a lackluster earning season that has featured many companies missing sales expectations, cash balances have swelled 14 percent and are on track toward $1.5 trillion for the Standard & Poor’s 500, according to JPMorgan. Both levels would be historic highs.

The week ahead — Economic data from Econoday.com: