Catching up on my journal and the international news as we rest in our hotel and hearing of the continued fall of the Dow Jones index to nearly 1700 with US underwriters praying in vein that the UK BP issue is called off as they would lose a packet. Shevardnadze and Shultz are going to meet again and US commentators hope that there will be a Gorbachev/Reagan Summit in the US in Nov/Dec. An early start to the temperate day, with clouds and sunny periods allowing us to enjoy the start of a three-day Disneyland Pass and a long day of rides with ‘Star Tours’ being the highlight. By 6.00pm, the three children were in bed and asleep and, within half an hour, Di and I had joined them, after an enjoyable, but very tiring day.
We all slept off and on during the night, but got a fair rest, all things considered. Woke up at about 5am local time and the children bathed whilst Diana finished the unpacking and I wrote up my journal for yesterday. Scanned the local news on radio and TV. The main international story is of the collapse of the Dollar, which is sliding. It seems that the International Louvre Accord (where nations support the relative levels of currency at a pegged rate) has collapsed along with it, as all central banks are doing is to slow the dollar’s fall to new low levels. The Dow Jones index finished at yesterday’s levels after a mini roller coaster. The feeling here is that if it falls below 1700, it could go all the way down to 800. Failing that, there might be a steady recovery back up to 3500 or more. The Americans are worried about the UK BP issue and Treasury Secretary, James Baker, has been lobbying the UK government to put it off. Because of local underwriting rules, the four US investment banks underwriting the issue could not spread the load amongst other institutions and so stand to lose a packet.
I could not find out what happened in the UK stock exchange yesterday, but London Gold was up. The other US story is about the East/West arms talks and chance of a Summit. Now that Shevardnadze and Shultz are going to meet again, US commentators hope that there will be a Gorbachev/Reagan Summit in the US in Nov/Dec, and another next spring in the USSR, to maximise the administration’s image for the Presidential Elections. If the first summit could not take place by February, all bets could be off, as the USSR Premier would be unwelcome during the US Presidential Elections. The outcome of these is still an open match, with several candidates still running for both Republican and Democratic party candidacy. By 6.45am, we were dressed and out of our rooms, wondering around the hotel. Then I put my passport and money in a hotel deposit box, before we drove off to have breakfast at Coco’s. Di had wanted to have the meal at a past favourite venue – Sambos, near the Disneyland Hotel, but these unfeeling locals have turned it into a pizza parlour in the intervening years. We cruised around in the car to get to know the neighbourhood, but no shops were yet open. There had been torrential rain this morning – just like home! Back to our Ibis hotel room for half an hour, whilst Debbie and I wrote up our journals, then all off in the car together to Disneyland. We parked in the huge car park and walked in and bought 3 day tickets for all of us to use on separate days this week. A long day of rides – some scary and sickening, others scenic and stimulating. Highlight of the day was ‘Star Tours’, which seemed to be a space trip on a flight simulator, which is by far the best ride in Disneyland. The day punctuated with plenty of stops for refreshing drinks and meals and snacks. The weather was quite temperate today, after the rain. The humidity had dropped, leaving the air clear, but clouds and sunny periods kept the weather to (what in England) would be considered a nice day. Tea of hamburgers for the kids (sea food salad for me) from a ‘Drive Through’ restaurant and we took these back to our hotel rooms to eat. By 6.00pm, the three children were in bed and asleep and, within half an hour, Di and I had joined them, after an enjoyable, but very tiring day. News was of a recovery on Wall Street, but Tokyo & Hong Kong were sharply down and London up a little. No news yet of the BP share issue, which is sure to go ahead according to UK opinion, but the Americans seem convinced it will be called off and they are soon to get a rude awakening.