NEW YORK, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Prudential Securities, the brokerage arm of Prudential Financial Inc. (NYSE:PRU - news), on Wednesday named Ed Yardeni as its new chief investment strategist, ending a search of more than four months. Yardeni replaces Greg Smith, who said in November he was leaving the firm at the end of last year. Yardeni, who comes over from Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown, will start his new job on April 22. Yardeni made news in the months prior to Jan. 1, 2000 by being the most outspoken pessimist heading into the new year. Yardeni in August 1999 said there was a 70 percent chance that Y2K complications would spark a global recession. At the time, Yardeni acknowledged he was the only top economist or Wall Street investment strategist to forecast a recession. Complications from Y2K never disrupted the U.S. economy, which fell into recession in 2001.

Yahoo!

§ This is a riot. His prediction came true but it
wasn't Y2K.

-- Anonymous, February 21, 2002

Answers

I remember him from way back when, but is it he, or you, asserting this isn't a y2k induced recession?

-- Anonymous, February 21, 2002

To clarify. The writer of the article claimed
that the recession was not Y2K related. I on
the other hand have no doubt that Yardeni and
my prediction of a Y2K induced recession has
been fullfilled. I will point out that Yardeni
did cop out at the last minute and said everything's
going to be all right. I expect at least another
3 years before all the Y2K wrinkles get pressed out.

-- Anonymous, February 22, 2002