Friday, 31 October 2008
Nouriel Roubini: I fear the worst is yet to come
As stock markets headed off a cliff again last week, closely followed by currencies, and as meltdown threatened entire countries such as Hungary and Iceland, one voice was in demand above all others to steer us through the gloom: that of Dr Doom.
For years Dr Doom toiled in relative obscurity as a New York University economics professor under his alias, Nouriel Roubini. But after making a series of uncannily accurate predictions about the global meltdown, Roubini has become the prophet of his age, jetting around the world dispensing his advice and latest prognostications to politicians and businessmen desperate to know what happens next – and for any answer to the crisis.
While the economic sun was shining, most other economists scoffed at Roubini and his predictions of imminent disaster. They dismissed his warnings that the sub-prime mortgage disaster would trigger a financial meltdown. They could not quite believe his view that the US mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would collapse, and that the investment banks would be crushed as the world headed for a long recession.
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For years Dr Doom toiled in relative obscurity as a New York University economics professor under his alias, Nouriel Roubini. But after making a series of uncannily accurate predictions about the global meltdown, Roubini has become the prophet of his age, jetting around the world dispensing his advice and latest prognostications to politicians and businessmen desperate to know what happens next – and for any answer to the crisis.
While the economic sun was shining, most other economists scoffed at Roubini and his predictions of imminent disaster. They dismissed his warnings that the sub-prime mortgage disaster would trigger a financial meltdown. They could not quite believe his view that the US mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would collapse, and that the investment banks would be crushed as the world headed for a long recession.
more ...
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Tuesday, 28 October 2008
UK Recession Stories
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7675903.stm
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Monday, 27 October 2008
Sunday, 26 October 2008
Friday, 24 October 2008
79,511 homes were lost to foreclosure in California for the three months that ended Sept. 30, a 228% increase over the same period a year earlier
The number of people losing their homes in California hit a record high of nearly 80,000 in the last three months, but a new state law appears to be dramatically slowing the foreclosure process -- at least for now.
Loan default notices, the first step toward foreclosure, fell to 94,240 for the three months that ended Sept. 30. That's down sharply from the record 121,673 for the previous quarter, according to research firm MDA DataQuick.
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Thursday, 23 October 2008
Wednesday, 22 October 2008
Pensions have billions in toxic assets
Pension funds across Europe, Asia and North America stand to lose hundreds of billions of dollars from investment in so-called "toxic" assets.
Concern is also growing that clients of European private banks have also been left holding tainted mortgage-backed assets, potentially triggering a wave of litigation.
The International Monetary Fund has estimated that worldwide losses from structured products such as collateralised debt and loan obligations, asset-backed securities, commercial paper-backed securities and structured investment vehicles will hit $945bn (£546bn, €705bn), with some private estimates far higher still.
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Concern is also growing that clients of European private banks have also been left holding tainted mortgage-backed assets, potentially triggering a wave of litigation.
The International Monetary Fund has estimated that worldwide losses from structured products such as collateralised debt and loan obligations, asset-backed securities, commercial paper-backed securities and structured investment vehicles will hit $945bn (£546bn, €705bn), with some private estimates far higher still.
more ...
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Tuesday, 21 October 2008
Monday, 20 October 2008
Sarah Palin Church Video: JESUS, GIVE US A PIPELINE !
Alaska will be the refuge in the 'end of days' ??? This is a nut job church !!!
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Sunday, 19 October 2008
CNN Glen Beck: Money supply is out of control - Inflation Tsunami ?
Glenn Beck: It is getting out of control 1/2
Glenn Beck: It is getting out of control 2/2
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US house prices need to fall 43.5% from their peak to return to their post war trend price
Saturday, 18 October 2008
Obama '08 Rap
Obama '08 - Vote For Hope from MC Yogi on Vimeo.
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Friday, 17 October 2008
Thursday, 16 October 2008
Tuesday, 14 October 2008
Monday, 13 October 2008
Friday, 10 October 2008
Have shares hit rock bottom ? Is now the time to buy ?
"No one rings a bell at the bottom of a bear market," goes the old stock market adage.
Well, someone did at the bottom of the last bear market - and the unusual conditions that prompted that call have recently recurred. So have we just seen the low point of the current turmoil, and is now the time to pile back into equities?
The clever stock-watchers who got it right last time, in March 2003, reasoned that equities had become too cheap when they spotted that the income produced by investing in shares - the "yield" - had overtaken the returns from government bonds.
Why is this unusual? Bonds pay a fixed rate of return and have relatively little scope for capital growth compared with shares. Those who buy shares, by contrast, expect the income to rise over the years (along with the share price itself) and can therefore be content with a lower initial return. So to buy shares and immediately get a better income than from bonds sounds like a great deal.
Investors in 2003 agreed. They calculated that if shares had fallen far enough to push the yield so high, they had fallen too far and were clearly undervalued. The stock market started to rise, ushering in a bull market that ended only with the arrival of the credit crisis last year.
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Well, someone did at the bottom of the last bear market - and the unusual conditions that prompted that call have recently recurred. So have we just seen the low point of the current turmoil, and is now the time to pile back into equities?
The clever stock-watchers who got it right last time, in March 2003, reasoned that equities had become too cheap when they spotted that the income produced by investing in shares - the "yield" - had overtaken the returns from government bonds.
Why is this unusual? Bonds pay a fixed rate of return and have relatively little scope for capital growth compared with shares. Those who buy shares, by contrast, expect the income to rise over the years (along with the share price itself) and can therefore be content with a lower initial return. So to buy shares and immediately get a better income than from bonds sounds like a great deal.
Investors in 2003 agreed. They calculated that if shares had fallen far enough to push the yield so high, they had fallen too far and were clearly undervalued. The stock market started to rise, ushering in a bull market that ended only with the arrival of the credit crisis last year.
more ...
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Thursday, 9 October 2008
Barack is running away with it ! 11% lead
http://www.gallup.com/poll/111040/Gallup-Daily-Obamas-Lead-Over-McCain-Expands.aspx
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US Mortgage Reset Chart
Still lots of pain coming in US housing ! How many of these houses will be in negative equity (and thus unable to refinance at a competitive rate) when reset time comes ?
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UK Town hall millions may be lost in Iceland
Dozens of local councils risk losing hundreds of millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money held in Iceland’s stricken banks. Town halls across the country may have to raise council tax and cut services as the repercussions of the collapse of the Icelandic economy broadened into a diplomatic row with Britain.
Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, pledged yesterday to make good all losses suffered by the 300,000 British savers caught by the collapse of Icesave, the online bank that went into receivership on Tuesday. The move will cost the Treasury about £4.5 billion — and carried an implicit pledge from Mr Darling that he would do the same if other banks collapsed. The Government also seized control of the British arm of Iceland’s Kaupthing bank because it could not honour its obligations to customers.
Mr Darling expressed incredulity that Reykjavik was cold-shouldering British investors. “The Icelandic Government have told me, believe it or not, they have no intention of honouring their obligations,” he said. Britain started legal action yesterday in an effort to recover money belonging to Icesave customers.
The Government used anti-terrorism powers to freeze an estimated £4 billion of British financial assets in Landsbanki, Icesave’s parent bank. A spokesman for the Treasury said that the 2001 Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act was invoked as a “precautionary measure”.
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Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, pledged yesterday to make good all losses suffered by the 300,000 British savers caught by the collapse of Icesave, the online bank that went into receivership on Tuesday. The move will cost the Treasury about £4.5 billion — and carried an implicit pledge from Mr Darling that he would do the same if other banks collapsed. The Government also seized control of the British arm of Iceland’s Kaupthing bank because it could not honour its obligations to customers.
Mr Darling expressed incredulity that Reykjavik was cold-shouldering British investors. “The Icelandic Government have told me, believe it or not, they have no intention of honouring their obligations,” he said. Britain started legal action yesterday in an effort to recover money belonging to Icesave customers.
The Government used anti-terrorism powers to freeze an estimated £4 billion of British financial assets in Landsbanki, Icesave’s parent bank. A spokesman for the Treasury said that the 2001 Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act was invoked as a “precautionary measure”.
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Wednesday, 8 October 2008
Six Central banks cut interest rates
Six central banks - including the Bank of England - have cut their interest rates by half a percentage point.
The UK rate move - which had not been expected until Thursday - puts the interest rate at 4.5% from 5%.
The US Federal Reserve has cut rates from 2% to 1.5% and the European Central Bank (ECB) trimmed its rate from 4.25% to 3.75%.
The unprecedented step is aimed at steadying a faltering global economy and slumping stock markets.
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The UK rate move - which had not been expected until Thursday - puts the interest rate at 4.5% from 5%.
The US Federal Reserve has cut rates from 2% to 1.5% and the European Central Bank (ECB) trimmed its rate from 4.25% to 3.75%.
The unprecedented step is aimed at steadying a faltering global economy and slumping stock markets.
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UKs Top Banks Part-Nationalised
Chancellor Alistair Darling today launched a drastic rescue of Britain's high street banks in move designed to head off a cataclysmic failure of confidence by announcing a part-nationalisation plan with £50 billion of taxpayers' money.
He said there will also be extra help from the Bank of England to ensure that the banks have enough cash to run their day-to-day activities to help reassure savers and kickstart the paralysed credit markets.
The Bank of England will make available at least £200 billion to banks under the Special Liquidity Scheme.
Seven banks and Britain's biggest building society have signed up for as much as £50 billion of additional finance from the government in exchange for the taxpayer taking preference shares, ordinary shares or permanent interest bearing shares (PIBS)
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He said there will also be extra help from the Bank of England to ensure that the banks have enough cash to run their day-to-day activities to help reassure savers and kickstart the paralysed credit markets.
The Bank of England will make available at least £200 billion to banks under the Special Liquidity Scheme.
Seven banks and Britain's biggest building society have signed up for as much as £50 billion of additional finance from the government in exchange for the taxpayer taking preference shares, ordinary shares or permanent interest bearing shares (PIBS)
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Tuesday, 7 October 2008
America's $53 trillion debt problem
The nation's real tab, on the other hand, amounted to $53 trillion as of the end of the last fiscal year. That was the sum of our public debt; accrued civilian and military retirement benefits; unfunded, promised Social Security and Medicare benefits; and other financial obligations -- all according to the government's most recent financial statement of September 30, 2007.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/10/06/walker.bailout/
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Iceland government takes control of Landsbanki: UK Icesave deposits unprotected
The Financial Services Authority this afternoon drafted in Ernst & Young (E&Y) as emergency administrators of Landsbanki’s UK operations in a bid to protect retail depositors and British financial stability.
However, a spokeswoman for E&Y said the move will not protect the deposits of the 300,000 customers of Icesave, the internet savings bank that is owned by Landsbanki, who found their accounts frozen this morning after Iceland’s financial regulator took control of the country's second largest bank.
Customers of Heritage, Landsbanki's UK subsidiary will, however, be protected, according to E&Y.
The Icelandic Government has dismissed Landsbanki's board and put the institution into receivership.
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However, a spokeswoman for E&Y said the move will not protect the deposits of the 300,000 customers of Icesave, the internet savings bank that is owned by Landsbanki, who found their accounts frozen this morning after Iceland’s financial regulator took control of the country's second largest bank.
Customers of Heritage, Landsbanki's UK subsidiary will, however, be protected, according to E&Y.
The Icelandic Government has dismissed Landsbanki's board and put the institution into receivership.
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UK: 1 in 3 graduates not repaying student loans
A third of students who started university since fees were introduced in 1998 are earning too little to make repayments on their loans, ministers have admitted.
Nearly 400,000 graduates have not made repayments on their loans up to seven years after they graduated because they are not yet earning above the £15,000 threshold. It comes amid concerns that graduates now face the toughest time in a generation as firms cut down on recruitment in the credit crunch.
Students leaders are warning that the promise of cheap loans to pay for fees has all but evaporated, with the RPI, the rate of inflation, running at 4.8%.
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U.S. could recover in spring, economists says
Three weeks ago, economists surveyed by a leading trade association said the U.S. economy would recover from the current recession in the second quarter of next year, assuming the credit squeeze in global financial markets improved gradually.
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Pakistan facing bankruptcy
Efforts to defer payment for 100,000 barrels of oil supplied every day by Saudi Arabia have not yet yielded results, while the government has also failed to raise loans on favourable terms from "friendly countries".
Mr Zardari told the Wall Street Journal that Pakistan needed a bail out worth $100 billion from the international community.
"If I can't pay my own oil bill, how am I going to increase my police?" he asked. "The oil companies are asking me to pay $135 [per barrel] of oil and at the same time they want me to keep the world peaceful and Pakistan peaceful."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/financialcrisis/3147266/Pakistan-facing-bankruptcy.html
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Financial crisis: London stock exchange suffers worst fall in history
Share prices on the FTSE 100 index fell by 391 points - almost eight per cent - on Monday, as the turmoil gripping financial markets intensified. The London fall was the biggest points drop in history and the largest percentage drop since the stock market crash of 1987. It was mirrored by sharp falls in Paris, Frankfurt and New York.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell as much as 800 points during the session, slipping below the key psychological level of 10,000 for the first time since 2004.
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The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell as much as 800 points during the session, slipping below the key psychological level of 10,000 for the first time since 2004.
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UK Treasury may take £50bn stake to shore up high-street banks
A £40-50 billion taxpayer-funded life-belt for high street banks is being considered by ministers as a last resort.
The Government could end up with sizeable stakes in Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds TSB and HBOS by injecting fresh capital into them in return for preference shares.
The idea would be to beef up the banks’ balance sheets while partly protecting taxpayers by taking a type of share that gives priority over ordinary shareholders.
Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, is understood to see the scheme as a last resort if other measures fail to restore confidence and bank shares continue to plunge. But in the Commons yesterday, he gave warning about the danger of rushing forward with a scheme before the details were properly worked out.
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The Government could end up with sizeable stakes in Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds TSB and HBOS by injecting fresh capital into them in return for preference shares.
The idea would be to beef up the banks’ balance sheets while partly protecting taxpayers by taking a type of share that gives priority over ordinary shareholders.
Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, is understood to see the scheme as a last resort if other measures fail to restore confidence and bank shares continue to plunge. But in the Commons yesterday, he gave warning about the danger of rushing forward with a scheme before the details were properly worked out.
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Monday, 6 October 2008
US Recession now certain, economists say
Even before the latest squeeze in the credit markets, the U.S. economy had slipped into what could be a relatively lengthy recession, economists say.
The latest data, covering activity in August and September, make it all but certain that the academic economists will eventually declare that the economy is in a recession.
The big economic forecasting firms are in the process of updating their forecasts following the release of key data on consumer spending. While the final numbers aren't available yet, forecasters say it doesn't look good.
The economy seems to be on the "edge of the abyss," said Joel Prakken, chairman of Macroeconomic Advisers
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The latest data, covering activity in August and September, make it all but certain that the academic economists will eventually declare that the economy is in a recession.
The big economic forecasting firms are in the process of updating their forecasts following the release of key data on consumer spending. While the final numbers aren't available yet, forecasters say it doesn't look good.
The economy seems to be on the "edge of the abyss," said Joel Prakken, chairman of Macroeconomic Advisers
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Goldman is getting the best of the credit crisis
Not often do you regard a company whose stock is about 50% off its 52-week high as a success story.
But a success is exactly what Goldman Sachs Group Inc.is shaping up to be at this stage of the credit crisis. If we were to begin the long journey back to stability today, Goldman would undoubtedly emerge even more powerful than before.
Did anyone expect another outcome?
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But a success is exactly what Goldman Sachs Group Inc.is shaping up to be at this stage of the credit crisis. If we were to begin the long journey back to stability today, Goldman would undoubtedly emerge even more powerful than before.
Did anyone expect another outcome?
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In 1988 Mary lacked money to fly home to Norway – Barack saved her
Although she explained the situation to the man behind the counter, he showed no signs of mercy.
-I started to cry, tears were pouring down my face and I had no idea what to do. Then I heard a gentle and friendly voice behind me saying, That’s OK, I’ll pay for her.
Mary turned around to see a tall man whom she had never seen before.
-He had a gentle and kind voice that was still firm and decisive. The first thing I thought was, Who is this man?
http://leishacamden.blogspot.com/2008/10/not-that-it-matters.html
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Sunday, 5 October 2008
Credit crunch: A sickness in the heart of Britain
It started with distant banks and poor homeowners in America. But now the financial turmoil that has raced around the world threatens to inflict a deep recession on Britain. Lives will change as jobs and savings are swept away. And few are prepared to predict how long the crisis will last. By Heather Stewart, Ruth Sunderland, Lisa Bachelor and Zoe Wood
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/oct/05/creditcrunch.marketturmoil2
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/oct/05/creditcrunch.marketturmoil2
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Brief History of Recessions
The anxiety we feel about rising prices, plummeting home values and a weak dollar is real. But perhaps we should take comfort in the fact that, historically, recessions are relatively short and they're usually followed by long periods of prosperity.
That's the core message of this interactive chart tracking the past 60 years of U.S. business cycles, as determined by the National Bureau of Economic Research's Business Cycle Dating Committee. Imagine seven economists discussing what small percentage changes in real income and wholesale production mean, and you've got a sense of the Business Cycle Dating Committee. These seven people are the somewhat-official arbiters of recessions.
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That's the core message of this interactive chart tracking the past 60 years of U.S. business cycles, as determined by the National Bureau of Economic Research's Business Cycle Dating Committee. Imagine seven economists discussing what small percentage changes in real income and wholesale production mean, and you've got a sense of the Business Cycle Dating Committee. These seven people are the somewhat-official arbiters of recessions.
more ...
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Another major European financial institution is teetering on the brink
Another major European financial institution is teetering on the brink of collapse after a banking consortium withdrew from rescue talks.
Germany's second-largest mortgage lender, Hypo Real Estate, said a bail-out deal had fallen apart.
Correspondents say its failure will put further strain on financial institutions in other countries.
The news came as EU leaders at a Paris summit stopped short of offering a US-style rescue plan to banks.
Hypo Real Estate, which has large amounts of bad debt, has suffered from the credit squeeze in international markets.
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Germany's second-largest mortgage lender, Hypo Real Estate, said a bail-out deal had fallen apart.
Correspondents say its failure will put further strain on financial institutions in other countries.
The news came as EU leaders at a Paris summit stopped short of offering a US-style rescue plan to banks.
Hypo Real Estate, which has large amounts of bad debt, has suffered from the credit squeeze in international markets.
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Ten properties you could buy with your credit card
With money tight and the mortgage market shrinking fast, Times Money has put together a list of ten British properties - from flats to a four-bedroom townhouse - that would-be homeowners can buy outright for the price of a typical deposit, starting at £15,000.
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Britain spirals into recession
Britain is fast heading into recession this winter despite Washington’s $700 billion deal to bail out America’s banks, say economic forecasters.
This weekend economists cut growth predictions, warning that Britain faces a long and deep recession with unemployment rising by up to 1m.
Gloom over the economic impact of the banking crisis has intensified, with economists warning that the credit crunch is hitting hard because many parts of the financial system have stopped functioning.
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This weekend economists cut growth predictions, warning that Britain faces a long and deep recession with unemployment rising by up to 1m.
Gloom over the economic impact of the banking crisis has intensified, with economists warning that the credit crunch is hitting hard because many parts of the financial system have stopped functioning.
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Crack house sells for $1.75 on eBay
http://www.mlive.com/saginawnews/news/index.ssf/2008/09/abandoned_saginaw_home_sells_f.html
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Arnold Schwarzenegger has warned that California may need an emergency loan of up to $7 billion (£3.9 billion) from the federal government
In a letter sent on Thursday to Henry Paulson, the US Treasury Secretary, Mr Schwarzenegger, California's governor, made clear that his state was running out of money because its usual borrowing channels had suddenly closed.
He made clear there would be grave consequences for the ability of American states to keep providing basic services if the $700 billion Wall Street bailout plan is not passed by the US House of Representatives.
That even America's richest and most populous state should face such severe financial problems illustrates the extent to which credit markets have seized up in the two weeks since the failure of the investment bank Lehman Brothers.
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Saturday, 4 October 2008
The $700 billion rescue plan approved in the U.S. won't fix the core problem with the nation's ailing financial institutions
Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson has correctly identified the quandary: Lots of shaky banks and insurance companies are showing strangely high values for assets that aren't worth squat in the market. Many need more capital and can't raise it. And he's right in saying the outlook is grim if we don't get this fixed.
What's stunning is how little the taxpayers would get in return for their money under Paulson's package, and how illusory much of the banks' newly minted capital would be.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&refer=columnist_weil&sid=aMaWyNFImi4o
It is like trying to sell a house in an emergency. If you had to sell your home tomorrow you might not get much for it. But, if you could wait until the market is moving again, you could get a better price.
But what if the problem is not that banks are being forced to value their assets at too low a price, but that they are sitting on massive losses that reflect a collapse in the value of their securities?
If that is the case, then the Treasury’s bailout may not be enough. Some reliable estimates suggest that the losses in the US financial system – at core, reflecting the scale of the downturn in the housing market – may be more than $1 trillion. If the Treasury is buying those bad assets at a little above their current value, it will not be providing anywhere near enough capital for banks, who will still be sitting on massive losses.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/gerard_baker/article4842926.ece
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Panic of 1873 model for the current economic crisis ?
As a historian who works on the 19th century, I have been reading my newspaper with a considerable sense of dread. While many commentators on the recent mortgage and banking crisis have drawn parallels to the Great Depression of 1929, that comparison is not particularly apt. Two years ago, I began research on the Panic of 1873, an event of some interest to my colleagues in American business and labor history but probably unknown to everyone else. But as I turn the crank on the microfilm reader, I have been hearing weird echoes of recent events.
http://chronicle.com/temp/reprint.php?id=477k3d8mh2wmtpc4b6h07p4hy9z83x18
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Unprecedented debt and no jobs for the class of 2008
The class of 2008 faces unprecedented levels of debt and is struggling to find jobs as the credit crunch takes hold.
Students who graduated from university this summer have apparently never have had it so bad. Many borrowed tens of thousands of pounds in student loans on the assumption that they would walk into well-paid employment.
But graduate recruitment has been suspended or reduced by some companies as they struggle to stay afloat. Rather than taking their first step on to the career ladder, graduates are instead moving back in with their parents and accruing interest on debts as they look for work.
One graduate from the London School of Economics said: “I thought after I got a masters degree from a world-renowned school that I would have an easier time finding a job. I was wrong.”
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Students who graduated from university this summer have apparently never have had it so bad. Many borrowed tens of thousands of pounds in student loans on the assumption that they would walk into well-paid employment.
But graduate recruitment has been suspended or reduced by some companies as they struggle to stay afloat. Rather than taking their first step on to the career ladder, graduates are instead moving back in with their parents and accruing interest on debts as they look for work.
One graduate from the London School of Economics said: “I thought after I got a masters degree from a world-renowned school that I would have an easier time finding a job. I was wrong.”
more ...
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Friday, 3 October 2008
The Great Man - Warren Buffett on the Crisis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warren_Buffett
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Sarah Palin vs Joe Biden
Sarah Palin last night winked into the camera, confidently sprinkled around the folksy wisdom of a self-declared "Washington outsider", and just about held her own in an eagerly-anticipated debate against Joe Biden.
The Republican vice-presidential nominee declared her intentions from the outset, greeting her Democratic rival by saying: "Hi, nice to meet you, can I call you Joe?" Dressed in black, Mrs Palin went on to blithely declare "I may not answer the questions the way you or the moderator want to hear."
Often she did not even try. Instead, she pivoted out of difficult issues into home-spun anecdotes designed to connect with voters and, perhaps, conceal her lack of detailed knowledge. Asked about the economy, she replied: "Go to a kids' soccer game on Saturday and turn to any parent there on the sideline and ask them, 'How are you feeling about the economy? And I'll betcha you're going to hear some fear in that parent's voice’."
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The Republican vice-presidential nominee declared her intentions from the outset, greeting her Democratic rival by saying: "Hi, nice to meet you, can I call you Joe?" Dressed in black, Mrs Palin went on to blithely declare "I may not answer the questions the way you or the moderator want to hear."
Often she did not even try. Instead, she pivoted out of difficult issues into home-spun anecdotes designed to connect with voters and, perhaps, conceal her lack of detailed knowledge. Asked about the economy, she replied: "Go to a kids' soccer game on Saturday and turn to any parent there on the sideline and ask them, 'How are you feeling about the economy? And I'll betcha you're going to hear some fear in that parent's voice’."
more ...
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Peter Schiff On The Economy, Gold, and the Coming Collapse of the Dollar
more schiff videos
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Schiff
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Thursday, 2 October 2008
Are we at the market bottom ? Time for the bulls to come back ?
Anthony Bolton, London’s best-known stockpicker, said yesterday that he had never seen retailing and media shares looking so cheap and that he had begun to put his own money into the equity market at the height of the current financial crisis.
Mr Bolton, president for investments at Fidelity International, said that the UK stock market seemed to be at or near the bottom and he had become much more optimistic in the past two weeks. “Shares [in some sectors] are as cheap as I’ve seen them in my lifetime,” he said, citing consumer cyclical sectors such as retailing and media as particular bargains.
After pausing several years in adding to his stock market investments, he said he had put fresh personal money into Fidelity equity funds two weeks ago and on Monday – the day the US bank bailout plan was derailed. “For the first time in a couple of years, in the last few weeks I’ve started to feel optimistic,” he said.
more ...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Bolton
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Highly leveraged hedge funds are blowing up
The Lehman Brothers bankruptcy was like a silent underwater depth charge exploding in a sea of hedge fud companies. Judging from the FT account above and from the volatility in global markets, it is only a matter of time before the dead bodies start floating to the surface.
http://www.creditwritedowns.com/2008/10/hedge-funds.html
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Gordon Brown is a big fat liar - says there are no sub-prime loans in the UK!
http://blogs.ft.com/westminster/2008/10/gordon-brown-believes-there-are-no-sub-prime-loans-in-the-uk/
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Manufacturing Contracts in UK and US
Manufacturing in the U.S. contracted in September at the fastest pace since the last recession as the credit crisis spread beyond Wall Street.
The Institute for Supply Management's factory index dropped to 43.5, the lowest level since October 2001 and below economists' forecasts, the Tempe, Arizona-based group reported today. A reading of 50 is the dividing line between expansion and contraction.
more ...
The UK's manufacturing sector shrank in September at the fastest rate for 17 years, a survey has suggested.
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply's purchasing managers' index fell to 41 last month, its lowest reading since records began in 1992.
Any reading below 50 indicates a contraction. Domestic demand was particularly weak with clients cancelling orders.
The survey is likely to add to fears that the UK is entering a recession
more ...
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Check out the rest of this blog here.
The Institute for Supply Management's factory index dropped to 43.5, the lowest level since October 2001 and below economists' forecasts, the Tempe, Arizona-based group reported today. A reading of 50 is the dividing line between expansion and contraction.
more ...
The UK's manufacturing sector shrank in September at the fastest rate for 17 years, a survey has suggested.
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply's purchasing managers' index fell to 41 last month, its lowest reading since records began in 1992.
Any reading below 50 indicates a contraction. Domestic demand was particularly weak with clients cancelling orders.
The survey is likely to add to fears that the UK is entering a recession
more ...
------------------------
Check out the rest of this blog here.
Panicked UK savers are moving billions of pounds from high street banks into accounts that guarantee their deposits
The few banks that guarantee 100 per cent of their customers' savings have seen a significant surge in the number of people opening accounts in recent days.
In the wake of the enforced nationalisation of Bradford & Bingley and Northern Rock, the emergency takeover of HBOS and a series of banking failures in Europe and America, consumers are seeking security for their money.
Currently, only the first £35,000 of a saver's deposits are protected. Gordon Brown has promised to increase this to £50,000, but this new limit is unlikely to come in for several weeks.
The Irish government meanwhile, has moved to guarantee, for the next two years, all customers' money deposited into one of the six big Irish banks – including those with branches in Britain.
more ...
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Check out the rest of this blog here.
In the wake of the enforced nationalisation of Bradford & Bingley and Northern Rock, the emergency takeover of HBOS and a series of banking failures in Europe and America, consumers are seeking security for their money.
Currently, only the first £35,000 of a saver's deposits are protected. Gordon Brown has promised to increase this to £50,000, but this new limit is unlikely to come in for several weeks.
The Irish government meanwhile, has moved to guarantee, for the next two years, all customers' money deposited into one of the six big Irish banks – including those with branches in Britain.
more ...
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Check out the rest of this blog here.
UK house prices falling fast
UK house prices have fallen for an 11th consecutive month, dropping by 1.7% in September, according to the Nationwide.
The lender recorded a 12.4% annual drop in prices, pushing the cost of the average UK home down to £161,797, more than £20,000 less than a year ago.
more ...
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Wednesday, 1 October 2008
G Edward Griffin - Creature From Jekyll Island A Second Look at the Federal Reserve
Is this why the dollar is crumbling ???
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G._Edward_Griffin
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G._Edward_Griffin
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Check out the rest of this blog here.
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