The Wall Street Journal – One of Wall Street’s Riskiest Bets Returns Investors are once again clamoring for a risky investment blamed for helping unleash the financial crisis: the synthetic CDO. In a sign of how hard Wall Street is trying to satisfy voracious demand for higher returns amid rock-bottom interest rates, J.P. Morgan Chase… Continue reading Mortimer, We’re Back!
The Financial Times – Martin Wolf: America owes a lot to Bernanke Fed critics lack imagination or are indifferent to what would have happened had it not acted Exceptional times call for exceptional measures. Those who criticise the Fed so bitterly either lack imagination or are indifferent to what would have happened to the economy… Continue reading Federal Reserve Praise
Bloomberg.com – Stock Exchanges Seek Curbs on Dark Pools to Fight Exodus Three large U.S. stock exchanges are lobbying for new limits on dark pools and other competitors, arguing that too much trading has become hidden on private venues that create more cost and volatility in public markets. Chief executive officers of NYSE Euronext (NYX)… Continue reading Stock Exchanges Fight Against Exodus
The Wall Street Journal – FHA Losses Could Hit $115 Billion in Extreme Scenario The Federal Housing Administration’s projected losses over 30 years could reach as high as $115 billion under a previously undisclosed stress test conducted last year to determine how the government mortgage-insurance agency would fare under an extremely severe economic scenario, according… Continue reading FHA Losses
The Atlantic – Should We Trust Economists? They’re fractious, frequently wrong, and have lost much of the public’s faith. But their insights are still valuable — as long as you don’t expect them to predict the future. No matter how much we might wish they were, economists are not go-to experts who know just how… Continue reading Listening To Economists
The Wall Street Journal – Japan’s Premier Lines Up New Overhauls As global investors turn skeptical about Japan’s recovery program, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe unveiled on Wednesday an ambitious blueprint for lifting the country’s long-term growth prospects, promising a grab bag of reforms of everything from the stagnant agriculture and energy markets to new tax… Continue reading Japan
Business Insider – The Fed Is Studying The Risks Of Bitcoin The United States is studying the potential risk from online payment mechanisms like PayPal and Bitcoin, a top US Federal Reserve official told an international conference on Monday. Some bankers have expressed worries that newer players in the online marketplace could have negative implications… Continue reading Bitcoin
Economix (NYT Blog) – Ann Lowrey: The Fed and Inequality Is the Federal Reserve a driving force behind the post-recession growth in inequality? It’s a provocative idea, voiced by writers including Neil Irwin and Robert Frank. It is certainly true that inequality, in terms of both income and wealth, has widened since the recession. A… Continue reading More On The Wealth Effect
<Click on chart for larger image> Reuters – Mom And Pop Are Still Scared To Death Of Stocks Top wealth chiefs at Bank of America Corp’s Merrill Lynch and Wells Fargo & Co say many retail investors are still very hesitant about getting back into equities and are urging advisers at their firms to help… Continue reading Will The Public Ever Like Stocks Again?
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – U.S. Car Sales Signal Plateau For Demand Auto makers posted higher U.S. sales in May driven by strong demand for pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles even as some analysts questioned whether the auto market’s recovery is starting to level off. For the last four… Continue reading Auto Sales
<Click on chart for larger image> The Financial Times – US funds left bruised by heavy bond losses Ben Bernanke, Fed chairman, last month said that bond purchases designed to hold down interest rates could slow in coming months as the US recovers, a shift that could have far-reaching consequences for US debt markets, perhaps signalling… Continue reading Bond Fund Inflows Continue Despite Losses