From the desk of Bob Meyer…12/11/07


Trade Exchange Bartering Grows In Singapore

This year the BarterXchange brokerage saw its membership rise by 47% to 250 members. Transactions through the Singapore-based exchange topped $2.5 million, compared to $1.4 million last year.

Ozone Barter, another trade exchange located in Singapore, has a current customer user base of 300 members…more than triple last year’s count. Trade volume is approaching $1 million, up from $180,000 last year.

U.S. Mayors Concerned About Real Estate Recession

The U.S. Conference of Mayors issued a report on what they consider the worst U.S. housing recession in 16 years. They contend that property values will be driven down by $1.2 trillion next year and therefore will slash tax revenues by more than $6.6 billion. Many mayors expect the 2007/2008 real estate crisis will go down in the record books as the worst ever in U.S. history.

ITEX New England Trade Fair Slated

ITEX of New England will hold its Holiday Trade Fair on Sunday, December 16, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.. Location for the event is 707 Main Street, Monroe, CT.

For further information call (888) 294-6393.

McDonald’s Eyes Breakfast Crowd

McDonald’s Corp. wants all its 14,000 U.S. restaurants to open by 5 a.m., as Americans increasingly buy breakfast earlier. Presently, 75% or their stores open that early. The new goal is part of a broader plan to increase average-annual sales by $400,000 at each outlet, to an average of about $2.4 million per U.S. location by 2009.

Molokai Restaurant Owner True Trader

Kualapu’s Cookhouse on the Island of Molokai accepts cash or checks—but no credit cards. They also offer diners an option…one can barter directly with the restaurant, a meal for some time in the kitchen washing dishes.


Investment Fund Manager Sees Grim Outlook For Hedge Funds

Jeremy Grantham helped found GMO, an investment firm with $153 billion in clients’ assets. He often takes a dim view of the markets, writing cautious commentary on economic bubbles, risky assets, and stock run-ups headed for a correction.

“Today”, Grantham says, “I have a feeling that I’m watching a very slow-motion train wreck.” He expects that in five years, at least one major bank will have failed and nearly half the hedge funds and a substantial percentage of today’s private-equity firms will cease to exist.

Plant Closure Provides Barter Site For Laid-Off Employees

When Cequent Towing Products closed a plant in Huntsville, Ontario, laying off 163 workers, it set-up an employment resource center to help those laid-off. The center includes a web site for assisting employees with job search support, writing resumes, and government applications such as Employment Insurance. The web site (www.hiddenhitchsupport.com) also has a section where employees can barter for services.

Google Partners With States

Google is indexing information from state governments in its on-going quest to have the entire world indexed. Florida is the 6th state to partner with Google for its official web properties. As part of the deal, information is indexed from multiple state databases (like the Department of Environmental Protection), making it more easily available via web search.

The search giant has inked similar deals with Arizona, California, Michigan, Utah and Virginia.

“From The Desk” is the first section of the Tuesday Barter Report. To read the entire Tuesday Barter Report see: TUESDAY

Our blog contains 63 postings of “Top Resources,” check it out: RESOURCES

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 12th, 2007 at 7:47 pm and is filed under Industry News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.