Word: benchmarking
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There is, of course, no formal Cognoscenti Caucus. But Labor Day is a rough benchmark, as the candidates move from backers' auditions to full-fledged Broadway tryouts. The cast in both parties seems set; only Democratic Congresswoman Pat Schroeder of Colorado is waiting in the wings actively considering a late entry. The candidates (eight Democrats, with Schroeder, and six Republicans) have had months to master their lines, crafting glib answers to almost every conceivable question and perfecting a sincere this-is-who-I-am stump speech. The early-bird voters in Iowa and New Hampshire for the most part have...
Escalating interest rates could easily stall the economic expansion, and there are signs that more hikes are on the horizon. Last week several leading banks boosted their benchmark prime lending rates to corporate customers from 8% to 8.25%, the second time in two weeks that the key rate has risen. The housing industry is particularly vulnerable to high interest rates because home sales depend on available and affordable mortgages. But no sector of the economy will remain unscathed if rates keep rising...
...This is our music. In our minds, it was the Beatles or no one." After some ticklish negotiations and two large payments, it was the Beatles singing and playing for Nike-Air shoes. No getting around it: Nike has brought the current craze for rock commercials to a benchmark and made a bit of pop history as well...
...unquestionably the best movie ever made about golf. The cast--including spiritualist Bill Murray, the ever-anal Ted Knight, and Rodney Danger-field--more than make up for the lame and tedious teen-love subplot. And the turd-in-the-swimming pool scene will undoubtedly serve as a humour benchmark for years to come...
...cautious and circumspect breed, bankers are rarely surprising. Last week, though, U.S. lenders managed to startle some of the most seasoned financial experts. The first jolt came when Citibank and Chase Manhattan hiked their benchmark prime rate on loans to commercial customers from 7.5% to 7.75%, its first rise in nearly three years. Several major banks soon followed suit. Two days later, seven leading banks had announced that they would take the serious step of reclassifying their loans to Brazil to a "nonperforming" status. That means that the banks' books will no longer maintain the fiction that Brazil is still...