The Morning Rant: Minimalist Edition

There is nothing remotely troubling about corporations raising money on the debt markets. It's smart financial planning in many cases, doesn't dilute the stock price like issuing more shares, and with a steady revenue stream the cost of the money raised is easily managed. And it benefits the economy by providing a reasonable return that is quite safe. Who wouldn't trust Boeing to keep building and selling great planes?

Except when a corporation HAS to raise money on the debt markets because they are running out of cash, because their products suck and the airline industry is becoming suspicious of the conspicuous lack of quality control in their design and production.

That's when it becomes troubling.

Boeing taps debt market to raise $10 billion

Boeing on Monday tapped debt markets to raise $10 billion, after the U.S. planemaker burned $3.93 billion in free cash during the first quarter following slowing production of its best-selling jet, sources familiar with the matter said.

Boeing's credit rating hovered above "junk" status last week from rating agencies as the planemaker tries to recover from a crisis that began in January after a midair blowout of a cabin panel door plug on a nearly new 737 MAX 9.

Investors and analysts have said Boeing could tap bond markets to get ahead of more than $12 billion in combined debt coming due in 2025 and 2026.

Boeing has lost its way, just like many American corporations that value a progressive, Woke, "Just" culture over the old cultures of competence and great products that drove American manufacturing for 100 years. Every time Boeing hires a software engineer because of his/her/its skin color or sexuality, it degrades its brand and endangers its customers. Every time Boeing pushes its engineers to focus on projects that maximize the illusion of carbon-neutral travel, it injures its stockholders and employees by foregoing advances in the reality-based transportation field. Every time it cuts engineering and production budgets and increases lobbying and advertising and DEI and financial auditing budgets, it starves its core competency and feeds the very thing that is destroying a 108 year old company.

*Happily stolen from Buck Throckmorton, and the graphic is from commenter "Dr_No"

[Crossposted at CutJibNewsletter]

posted by CBD at 11:00 AM

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