Wednesday, October 08, 2008

Another one bites the dust...

Well, not exactly, but I sure have been conditioned to think that way after hearing news like this:
Insurance stocks plunged Wednesday after MetLife annouced it would be raising capital, cutting jobs and withdrew its 2008 earnings guidance due to the dramatic downturn in the world financial markets.

In an effort to provide some semblance of certainty to nervous investors, MetLife (nyse: MET - news - people ) pre-annouced its third-quarter results, which it said will be hurt by a drop in investment income and fees due to the turmoil in the global financial markets.  [More]
Metlife had reportedly been in merger negotiations with The Hartford, without success.  What I do know is my local Metlife ag loan rep has stopped taking loan applications.

This is how the credit crunch will affect us - by narrowing our choice of lenders.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Does this mean that farmland prices will stabilize, or possibly decline? Unthinkable!
I see your bio has been updated to include Aaron and a bit more acres. Congratulations!!!

John Phipps said...

anon:

Thanks. I have no idea on farmland - where is money going to go? But I do think we have seen the biggest percentage increases this year.

Anonymous said...

Farm sale yesterday in Lancaster County Pennsylvania on a small 34 acre tract with a house was sold yesterday and arguably (IMHO) was sold at 66% of what it would have bought in July.