Macro chatter: Greece could get alimony in euro breakup

Need to know:
If Greece does break up with the euro zone, it can expect a $63 billion alimony payment.

While European officials would really like Greece to play by the rules of its bailout and stay in the euro zone, they’re planning for an amicable divorce just in case things don’t work out, Reuters said. The money would be aimed at easing the pain of a Grexit.

Greece expects to run out of cash in a couple of months. Fellow euro zone members are worried about what that could do to their own economies, so they just might be willing to play along with EU and IMF to pave the way for a friendlier split. 

Want to know:
Facebook’s been public for less than a week, and it’s already gotten itself sued. This of course just tops off what’s been a really tough week for a company that just held a hackathon to celebrate raising $16 billion.

Facebook’s shareholders are suing the company and its lead underwriter Morgan Stanley for allegedly hiding weakened growth forecasts ahead of the Facebook IPO. Shareholders claim Facebook told underwriters to lower their forecasts for the company and that those underwriters disclosed that information only to preferred clients.

While the Facebook saga has taken some of the spotlight off of JPMorgan, shareholders have dragged it into the Facebook mess as well. It and Goldman Sachs also are among the underwriters being sued.

Facebook’s stock price is down nearly 20 percent since its IPO Friday. That isn’t unusual for an tech IPO, but combined with Facebook’s trouble monetizing mobile, unproven business model, it’s got some investors really worried.

Dull but important:
Greece may be causing a lot of trouble around the world, but it has managed to help bring the price of crude oil futures below $90 a barrel for the first time since November.

Greece is only factor in the decline. US oil supplies are at a 22-year high, China’s demand for oil is slowing down alongside its growth and the world isn’t as worried about supply disruptions because of Iran.

Just becuase:
Macy's, the retailer behind New York's iconic Thanksgiving Day parade, is getting into the e-commerce business in China.

Macy's has invested $15 million in the online retail company VIPStore Co. The deal allows Macy's to sell luxury goods over the web in China.

Neiman Marcus and J. Crew have made similar deals in hopes of profiting from Chinese demand for luxury goods and designer items.  

Strange but true: 
Have you ever wondered what a Motel 6 room costs?

The answer, at least for the Blackstone Group, is about $25,000, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The private equity firm made a deal to buy the parent company of the Motel 6 chain for nearly $2 billion. That works out to about $25,000 per room.