Forex Live – Fed’s Fisher Fears Bond Mkt Distortion When Exit Time Comes Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Richard Fisher said Monday that additional Fed asset purchases would greatly complicate the Fed’s eventual exit strategy and disrupt the bond market while enabling deficit spending — all for very little benefit. Fisher, in an interview with… Continue reading Exit Strategy Fears
The Wall Street Journal – Investors Shift Money Out of China New Figures Show Capital Leaving Amid Concerns Over Nation’s Growth Prospects; Real-Estate Buyers Also Look Abroad Investors and companies are increasingly pulling money out of China and its currency in a vote of concern over its growth prospects, a development that could hinder Beijing’s… Continue reading Investors Are Pulling Money Out Of China
The Financial Times – Debt crisis sends European blue-chips to bonds The eurozone debt crisis is changing the face of European capitalism. Traditionally, the continent’s companies have relied far more heavily than their US counterparts on banks for external funding. But in recent months, European business has taken advantage of investors’ search for havens. In… Continue reading Bond Issuance In Europe Rises
The Financial Times – ECB is right to ask for more eurozone action The European Central Bank has been widely criticised for announcing that while it stands ready to buy sovereign bonds, this is conditional upon countries asking for support from eurozone bailout programmes and accepting “strict and effective conditionality”. Bond purchases could buy time.… Continue reading QE In Europe
The New York Times – British Bank in $340 Million Settlement for Laundering Standard Chartered, the British bank, has agreed to pay New York’s top banking regulator $340 million to settle claims that it laundered hundreds of billions of dollars in tainted money for Iran and lied to regulators. The agreement is a victory for… Continue reading Standard Chartered Settles Its Laundering Case
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The Wall Street Journal – Even Amid the Current Turmoil, Stocks Still Beat Bonds The stock market continues to reflect the very modest economic recovery now under way in the United States. From January 2011 through mid-August 2012, the S&P 500 has produced moderate single-digit total returns. But many individual investors are not participating. Some… Continue reading Stocks vs. Bonds
Bloomberg.com – Hedge Funds Reduce Wagers After Longest-Ever Rally Hedge funds trimmed bets on a commodity rally for the first time in nine weeks as signs of U.S. growth and speculation that central banks will do more to stimulate economies drove prices to a three-month high. Money managers lowered their net-long positions across 18 U.S.… Continue reading Hedge Funds Cool On Commodities?
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Greece Completes Largest Debt Sale in Two Years Greece completed its largest debt sale in two years Tuesday, ensuring that it will have the money to repay bonds held by the European Central Bank next week. The Greek Public Debt Management Agency said it… Continue reading Greek Debt Sale
The Financial Times – Lex: Eurozone growth – go figure There is much twaddle in finance and economics. Take the eurozone growth figures released on Tuesday and the reaction in stock markets. For starters it is flat out wrong to say that the economies of Germany and France did not contract in the second quarter.… Continue reading Eurozone Recession
<Click on chart for larger image> Zero Hedge (Blog) – Spanish Bank Borrowings From ECB Continue Parabolic Rise Even as the Spanish (and Italian) sovereign bond market foundered in July, hitting record yields following stark realizations just how insolvent Spain is, a more sinister development was taking place: Spanish banks, completely disconnected from the funding… Continue reading ECB Lending
The Financial Times – France stages eurozone bond turnaround France has been the comeback kid of eurozone bond markets this year. After feeling the heat of the continent’s crisis last autumn, French borrowing costs have fallen more than almost all others this year to plumb new euro-era lows. Since the start of 2012, France’s benchmark… Continue reading French Bonds