Willem Buiter has a characteristically colorful post, “Time for comrade Paulson to pull the plug on the Fannie and Freddie charade” on the prospect of a Fannie and Freddie rescue. Why is it the British can fulminate better than we Americans do? But Buiter’s beef isn’t the operation of the GSEs but the philosophy behind […]
Read more...Nouriel Roubini has consistently been accurate in predicting the course of our snowballing credit crisis, and has also made some important intellectual contributions to the discussion. such as how the breakdown of the Bretton Woods system has lessons for the future of our Bretton Woods 2 currency program. But in my view, Roubini’s post today […]
Read more...Cow Backpacks Trap Methane Gas PhysOrg Living in a world without waste BBC Micro materials could pose major health risks Globe and Mail. Key statement: Nanamaterials may “usurp traditional biological protective mechanisms” and, as a result, possibly have “enhanced toxicological effects.” Fed to Bar Loan Penalties That Deter Refinancing, Person Says Bloomberg. Love those “person […]
Read more...Ambrose Evans-Pritchard in “Monetarists warn of crunch across Atlantic economies” in the Telegraph points to a troubling development: a fall over last few months in M1 and M2 in the US, UK and EU. Many have criticized the Fed for “printing money” of late. But the evidence suggests otherwise. First, all of the cash injections […]
Read more...The end-game for what was very briefly the nation’s biggest mortgage lender, IndyMac, seemed inevitable, although the signals even as a of a few days ago were that a takeover was not imminent. The timing, coming in the midst of Famnie and Freddie worries, is particularly bad. One can only conclude that this action could […]
Read more...Henry Kaufman, aka Dr. Doom for his prominence and prescience in reading the bond markets during the painful early 1980s credit crunch, said not surprisingly that the Federal government needed to assist Fannie and Freddie. Unfortunately, the more important part of Kaufman’s message is likely to be ignored. The former Salomon Brothers chief economist also […]
Read more...There is a very good op-ed at the Wall Street Journal today by Adam Levitin, who we have often quoted at the blog Credit Slips. It offers a clear explanation of why the Dodd-Frank housing bill won’t accomplish much in the way of borrower relief. Many of our readers will regard that as a good […]
Read more...Blomberg columnist William Pesek plays out a line of thought that may have occurred to some readers: what if the resolution of the credit crisis and global imbalances isn’t a nasty recession or punishing inflation but Japan-like protracted low growth, with stagnant to deteriorating living standards? This idea may not be as much of a […]
Read more...‘Alarming’ plight of coral reefs BBC Top Ten Worst Uses for Windows Network World Iranian Govt: Persian Pixels Pwned Photoshop Disasters (hat tip Michael). Iran is not too good at digital imagery, which calls their other technological skills into question. A Change in Bank Control: Interview With Ernest Patrikis Institutional Risk Analytics. A bit geeky […]
Read more...The New York Time reports that the Federal government is leaning towards conservatorship as the approach for handling Freddie and Fannie’s shaky finances. Under this scenario. shareholders are wiped out and taxpayers fund any losses. What I find disturbing about the mainstream media coverage is the refusal to connect the dots between the increasing demands […]
Read more...This came from an investor: Q: What’s the difference between a pigeon and an investment banker? A: The pigeon can still make a deposit on a BMW.
Read more...Many foreign observers of Japan don’t get past the “lost decade/deflation” headline. They miss the fact that Japan has a robust export sector and continues to run high trade surpluses, despite the supposed difficulty of advanced economies competing with emerging markets. But how has this outcome been achieved? As Michiyo Nakamoto tells us in a […]
Read more...Every bull market has its Pets.com moment. The oil market’s may have just arrived. Is a market top is nigh? The newsletter Springwise, whose theme is “new business ideas for entrepreneurial minds” showcases MyGallons.com: Today’s high gas prices are already forcing changes in the way many consumers live, but it’s a pretty safe bet they […]
Read more...Will Cockroaches Inherit the Earth? Slate Dutch cat suckles abandoned panda BBC Workplace BlackBerry Use May Spur Lawsuits CNBC A Little Fair Value Never Killed Anyone CFO Hotel Vacancies Rising Calculated Risk. New York City, of course, is supposed to be immune, which simply means it will show up here a tad later than elsewhere. […]
Read more...Just a few weeks ago, experts were saying the credit crisis was on the mend and we could all get back in the pool. But as we discussed in an earlier post, worries about Fannie and Freddie are on the rise, and the increase in agency spreads back in January was probably the biggest trigger […]
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