Links of the day

Exchange Rates ‘Do Not Reflect Economic Fundamentals’...a Morgan Stanley analyst believes that "The euro is 12% overvalued in real terms"...

Japan Goes to AA...Claus Vistesen analyzes the validity of S & P's debt upgrade...

When Analysts Don't Talk to Management..."an analyst at Banc of America Securities...dares to rate companies without meeting with corporate management"...this "research is likely to get read much more by BofA's individual retail clients – the kind of people for whom his market knowledge and expertise has a lot of value when it's applied on a stock-by-stock basis like this"...

Tap water is becoming trendy...Slate says "there is a sort of reverse snob appeal in shunning bottled water. Restaurants like Chez Panisse are telling their customers that they prize the Earth—and their customers' values—more than their own profits"...check the link for the good Dr. Seuss reference...

Data points regarding consumer spending...Mish talks about automakers' problems and connection to housing crunch..."U.S. auto industry sales have dropped far below expectations for April, a Ford Motor Co. executive said on Friday as rival General Motors Corp. rolled out an incentive program intended to boost crucial month-end sales.

"This month is terrible," Ford chief sales analyst George Pipas said in an interview. "We are not even close to where we expected to be in April"..."GM is offering lower-interest financing to customers with weaker credit ratings through this weekend in an effort to boost sales for April, sources familiar with the sales plan said on Friday. GM will offer reduced interest rates to customers whose credit is assessed at two of its lower rating levels on all brands except Saab, the sources said"...Mish calls that like it is: "smack in the face of a subprime lending fiasco, GM is desperate enough to boost sales by lowering finance charges to customers with weak credit ratings. This is as foolish as it is desperate."

Meanwhile, "Hundreds of thousands of motorists in financially beleaguered Michigan have downgraded their auto insurance -- a money-saving gamble that could leave them without a ride if their vehicle is stolen or smacked by another car.

The latest available data shows that nearly 300,000 comprehensive policies were dropped from 2000 to 2004 -- a trend that has continued, some large insurers say"...