I was just reading the Canadian Business magazine article about SNC Lavelin and it’s Libyan scandal. I know very little to nothing about this company. But based on the magazine article its international operations are complex. It seems clear that some of its top employees in were involved in bribes in Libya and there were connections to Ghadaffi. While the company has terminated a few employees and distanced itself from (itself?) this story is not over. Personally I would stay away from this stock. I would say also that over the past few years watching the SNC chairman Gwyn Morgan on BNN and Lang and O’Leary he impresses me not at all. He seems too smooth, even too well groomed for my taste, (looks like an actor or something to me, that’s just my impression) and is perhaps infatuated with himself. I don’t know his history at EnCana and its predecessor which I think (from memory) was Alberta Energy ltd. EnCana came from a merger of Alberta Energy and Pan Canadian Energy and I think Gwyn came from the Alberta Energy side. Maybe he is highly competent. I don’t know.
Markets held up well today after the Fed extended its “Operation Twist” whereby it would sell short term bonds and buy longer term bonds which would push long term interest rates down even further (or hold them down).
Tonight there are indications that the market will decline tomorrow. (Futures are down slightly)