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Moody's has lowered the rating on $21.9 billion of outstanding State of California General Obligation bonds to A2 (with a stable outlook) from A1, and assigns this rating to the state's upcoming $900 million general obligation bond sale. In addition, we have lowered the rating on $5.5 billion in lease revenue bonds from A2 to A3. These rating actions reflect the magnitude of the imbalance between the state's revenues and expenditures, and the expectation the state will not be able to sufficiently address the imbalance in the upcoming fiscal year _ given the inherent obstacles to reaching consensus on solutions...

Opinion NEW YORK, Aug 19, 2002 -- Moody's has downgraded the state of North Carolina's General Obligation rating to Aa1, from Aaa, affecting $3.5 billion of long-term debt. The rating change reflects the state's continued budget pressure, its reliance on non-recurring revenues, and its weakened balance sheet. The task of restoring structural budget balance and rebuilding reserves faces political and economic obstacles. The state is considering actions which over time could help to restore fiscal stability and rebuild reserves. Future rating considerations will take into account the state's economic and fiscal progress and the impact on future financial results. The...

 Weekday Commentary from Jim Puplava Home Still Looks Like a Bear Market for the S&P Gold & Silver Breakout The Week in Graphs  Tuesday's Market Scoreboard  March 26, 2002  Dow Industrials 71.69 10,353.36  Dow Utilities 1.54 302.22  Dow Transports 58.14 2875.37  S & P 500 6.62 1138.49  Nasdaq 11.68 1824.17  US Dollar to Yen   132.905  US Dollar to Euro   .8772  Gold 0.9 296.8  Silver .005 4.585  Oil .37 25.36  CRB Index .15 203.52  Natural Gas .015 3.472 All market indexes Storm Watch Geopolitical News in Focus Energy Resource Page Precious Metals           Storm...