The Wall Street Journal – AIG, Fed in Subprime-Bond Standoff American International Group Inc. is trying to force the hand of the Federal Reserve on a large portfolio of subprime-mortgage bonds it wants to repurchase, putting the central bank in the position of weighing taxpayers’ interests against those of the government-controlled insurer. Earlier this month,… Continue reading AIG Wants To Repurchase Subprime Mortgages
The Wall Street Journal – Panic Could Do More Damage to Global Growth than Japan’s Earthquake The scale of human tragedy caused by an earthquake and tsunami that has left so many thousands dead or missing can’t be quantified. Economists, however, are doing their best to gauge just how much the destruction will cost both… Continue reading Global Growth And Japan
Lew Rockwell – James Grant: Over to You, H. Parker Willis This testimony was delivered before the Ron Paul monetary subcommittee on March 16, 2011 The Fed – his Fed – had gone off the rails almost as soon as it opened its doors for business in 1914, Willis lamented. The central bank he envisioned… Continue reading Jim Grant Speaks
CNBC.com – John Carney: Harvard MBA Index Flashes ‘Sell’ Warning More Harvard M.B.A. graduates took jobs on Wall Street last year than the previous year, when the financial sector was still reeling from the crisis of 2008. Thirty-one percent the class of 2010 took jobs in “market sensitive” positions in the financial sector. This means… Continue reading The Harvard Business School Index
Examiner.com – Oil sheen reported in Gulf of Mexico off Louisiana coast from Matterhorn Seastar A new sheen of oil is being reported approximately 30 miles off the coast of Louisiana and is currently being investigated by the United States Coast Guard. The new slick of oil was reported to be about 100 miles long… Continue reading Possible New Oil Spill In The Gulf?
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The Financial Times – Central banks: markets’ security blanket Some things in life you can rely on. The beneficence of the Federal Open Market Committee for investors, for example. Its latest billet doux affirms that the recovery is on a “firmer footing” while still promising that interest rates will stay virtually at zero for an… Continue reading Did The G-7 Panic About The Carry Trade?
Bloomberg Businessweek – The Makings of a Bond Debacle Economists pick up early signs of a 1994-style bond rout in the actions of central banks. If they’re right, watch out Among central bankers, there is agreement on the recipe for restoring stable, steady global growth. Step 1: Emerging-market central banks raise rates enough to put… Continue reading Can We Have A Bond Debacle When Everyone Is Forecasting It?
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – BOJ’s Current Account Is Set to Expand The Bank of Japan’s current account is likely to grow to levels not seen since early in the last decade—when the central bank implemented its quantitative-easing monetary policy—as the BOJ continued Friday to aggressively provide emergency funds… Continue reading Japan Continues To Print Money
The Economist – The Japanese earthquake is the latest piece of bad news to unsettle investors WHEN disaster strikes, the reaction of many investors is to scoot first and ask questions later. The Japanese earthquake and tsunami, and the subsequent nuclear crisis, prompted some very sharp falls in equity markets this week. The Nikkei 225… Continue reading In Other “Stories Of The Year” – Japan’s Earthquake
The Wall Street Journal – Libya Declares Cease-Fire Libya’s foreign minister Friday said the country will abide by the United Nations Security Council resolution calling for military action in Libya, and will implement an immediate ceasefire and end to all military operations across the country. “My country will try to deal with this resolution” Foreign… Continue reading In Other “Stories Of The Year” – Libya No Fly Zone And Cease Fires
The Wall Street Journal – China Raises Reserve Ratio for Banks China’s central bank said Friday it will raise the share of deposits banks must hold in reserve by half a percentage point, the third increase this year, as inflationary pressures remain in the spotlight. The increase, which takes effect March 25, comes after the… Continue reading In Other “Stories Of The Year” – China Hikes Rates To Slow Inflation