weekend update Jan 20, 2008

Jan 20,2008—For much of the world, the US is now on sale at discount prices... Foreign investors are buying aggressively, taking advantage of American duress and a weak dollar to snap up what many see as bargains, while making inroads to the world’s largest market. Last year, foreign investors poured a record $414 billion into securing stakes in American companies, factories and other properties through private deals and purchases of publicly traded stocks ... That was up 90% from the previous year and more than double the average for the last decade. .. During the first two weeks of this year, foreign businesses agreed to invest another $22.6 billion for stakes in American companies... NYT, A1