The Rep Index Compiled by John KadorThe Rep Index Compiled by John Kador
Smart decisions are based on more than government statistics, agency reports, news releases, interest rates and stock quotes. We¹ve selected a few fascinating statistics below that illuminate the markets, the world of financial services and big business.
October 5, 2007
1. Number of manhole covers stolen from the streets of Beijing in 2006: 24,000
2. Increase in value since 2005 of The Barclays base metals index, which tracks the prices of copper, aluminum, lead, tin and zinc: 95 percent
3. Hours of operation at the New York Stock Exchange at its inception in 1887: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday, and two hours on Saturday.
4. Percentage of workers who believe they can perform their boss’ job better than their current manager: 73 percent
5. Number of months in 2007 in which sales of new homes have increased over the previous month: 2
6. Percentage change in sales of new homes on the West coast June 2006 to July 2007: 22.4 percent
7. On the East Coast: -24.3 percent
8. Number of consecutive months the UBS/Gallup Index of Investor Optimism declined from June to August 2007: 3
9. Percentage of 3,000 Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) users surveyed who couldn’t recite their home phone numbers: 25 percent
10. Percentage of people over 50 who memorize family birthdays: 87 percent
11. People under 30 who do: 40 percent
12. Number of negative news stories about U.S. corporations in major newspapers worldwide in 2006: 10,131
13. Number of patent lawsuits filed in 2006: 2,700
14. Taser International’s record in winning product liability lawsuits generated by its line of stun guns: 52-0
15. Percentage of members on the boards of publicly traded organizations in Norway who are women: 26.6 percent
16. In the U.S.: 13.6 percent
17. Major U.S. city with the highest percentage of bicycle commuters: Portland, Ore.
18. Guaranteed paid vacation days and paid holidays in Finland: 39 days
19. In the U.S.: 0
20. Increase in U.S. book sales from 2005 to 2006: 6.5 percent
21. Percentage of increase not attributed to sales of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: 0.05 percent
22. Rank of New Jersey, Alaska, and Mississippi (respectively) by median income: 1, 7, and 50.
23. Percentage of solved cases of identity theft in which the victim and the perpetrator were acquainted: 52 percent
24. Average wait to see a dermatologist to remove a suspicious-looking mole in the US: 38 days
25. Average wait to see an orthopedist for a knee injury: 17 days
Sources: 1-2 The China Daily; 3 Morningstar; 4 Korn/Ferry International; 5-7 Commerce Department; 8 UBS/ Gallup Index of Investor Optimism; 9-11 Trinity College, Dublin; 12 Institute for Crisis Management; 13 Federal Judicial Caseload Statistics; 14 Business 2.0; 15-16 Center for Corporate Diversity, Norway; 17 U.S. Census Bureau; 18-19 Center for Economic and Policy Research; 20-21 Publishers Study Group; 22 U.S. Census; 23 Javelin Strategy and Research; 24 University of California at San Francisco; 25 Merritt, Hawkins & Associates
