The Wall Street Journal – Ralph Nader: The Great Fannie and Freddie Rip-Off I have long fought against the systemic disempowerment of investors in large public corporations, but the mistreatment of the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shareholders, including me, is uniquely reprehensible. For decades Fannie and Freddie behaved like other large, publicly held financial… Continue reading Fannie And Freddie
Bloomberg.com – Mohamed El-Erian: Davos Moguls Adjust to Fast, Slow, Reverse Whether it’s at Davos or other international forums, policy makers would benefit from a more balanced analysis of the risks and opportunities facing today’s global economy. This is the key to promoting growth and employment, increasing the chances of successful trade negotiations, lessening the… Continue reading Mohamed El-Erian Speaks
Telegraph.co.uk (UK) – Bank of England chief Mervyn King: standard of living to plunge at fastest rate since 1920s Families will see their disposable income eaten up as they “pay the inevitable price” for the financial crisis, Mervyn King warned. With wages failing to keep pace with rising inflation, workers’ take- home pay will end… Continue reading The Standard Of Living Will Plunge In The U.K.
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MarketBeat (WSJ Blog) – Muni Market Woes?: Blame the Media Some muni analysts have recently been telling investors that the selloff in the muni market had essentially been ginned up by the news media, thus making it a great buying opportunity. This would make sense, if journalists were to blame for California’s projected $25 billion… Continue reading The Muni Market & The Media
MarketBeat (WSJ Blog) – Inflation: Bond Market is Changing its Tune Kansas started us off earlier by bringing us up to speed on the current state of the Great Inflation Debate. So we would free remiss if we didn’t give you this wonky snapshot of what the bond markets are saying on stateside price pressures.… Continue reading Inflation
The Wall Street Journal – More Companies Raise Dividends More U.S. companies are initiating or raising dividends as they release earnings and head into shareholder meetings in a sign of growing confidence and rising cash balances. So far this month 17 companies have disclosed increased share dividends, including CVS/Caremark Corp., Family Dollar Stores Inc., and… Continue reading Dividends On The Rise
The Financial Times – Thinking ahead In the recent market lull, the European Union has taken a more leisurely pace in preparing new tools for the sovereign debt crisis. But leaders have not ditched their new year’s resolution that they will not have their hands forced by panicky bond markets again. Talks are progressing on… Continue reading The European Financial Stability Facility
Euro Intelligence – Spain gets rid of the Cajas This is by far the most far-reaching political action as a result of the crisis we have yet seen. Spain essentially abandons its molly-coddled and toxic savings banks industry, and turns them into ordinary well capitalised banks. The Spanish government yesterday announced the outlines of the… Continue reading Haven’t We Tried The “Good Bank/Bad Bank” Idea Before?
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Ireland’s Voters Ready to Confront Rest of Euro Zone Whenever it happens, Ireland’s general election will mark the first clash between the desires of voters in a euro-zone nation that is in receipt of help from its brethren, and the declared interests of the… Continue reading Ireland
The Financial Times – Paulson posts more than $1bn in Citi gains Paulson & Co, the world’s third-largest hedge fund manager, has told clients it has made more than $1bn from its stake in Citigroup over the past 18 months and expects US growth to accelerate this year. Citigroup was the most profitable position for… Continue reading How Did John Paulson Fare In 2010?