STOCK MARKET WATCH, Tuesday April 21

[ozymandius]

Source: du

STOCK MARKET WATCH, Tuesday April 21, 2009

Bush Administration Officials Under Indictment = 2
Financial Sector Officials Under Indictment = 0
Financial Sector Officials In Prison = 2

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON April 20, 2009

Dow... 7,841.73 -289.60 (-3.69%)
Nasdaq... 1,608.21 -64.86 (-3.88%)
S&P 500... 832.39 -37.21 (-4.28%)
Gold future... 887.50 +19.60 (+2.21%)
30-Year Bond 3.69% -0.10 (-2.59%)
10-Yr Bond... 2.84% -0.09 (-2.97%)

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U.S. FUTURES & MARKETS INDICATORS
NASDAQ FUTURES..............................................S&P FUTURES

Market Conditions During Trading Hours

GOLD, EURO, YEN, Loonie and Silver

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Read more: du

[ozymandius]

1. Market Observation

The Big Lie
BY ROB KIRBY

Last Wednesday, April 15, 2009, The United States Treasury published their monthly Treasury International Capital (TIC) System report. What this report captures, broadly, is macro international capital flows in and out of the U.S. capital markets. Because the United States is a debtor nation, running huge fiscal budget deficits as well as massive, seemingly perpetual, current account (trade) deficits, they require massive amounts of foreign capital injections to finance these shortcomings. In recent years the amount of foreign capital REQUIRED by the United States has been conservatively running in the neighborhood of +70 billion per month.

Here is what Gary North had to say about last week’s TIC report:

The Astounding Reversal Continues: Bernanke’s Nightmare
April 16, 2009

Yesterday, the U.S. Treasury released the Treasury International Capital (TIC) report for February 2009. It shows another outflow of capital. “Monthly net TIC flows were negative $97.0 billion. Of this, net foreign private flows were negative $106.3 billion, and net foreign official flows were positive $9.3 billion.”

The figure for January was updated to minus $147b from the previously reported minus $149b.

http://www.ustreas.gov/

This is a huge reversal. That is almost a quarter of a trillion dollars in just two months. Foreigners are not bailing out the Treasury any longer. They are pulling out. They are net sellers.

...

.....

By the way, Mr. North, the title of your quip is entirely inappropriate; it should be titled Mr. Bernanke’s BIG LIE. You see folks; we’ve all been lied to – WHOLESALE.

If we zero in, specifically on January and February 2009, the MASSIVE TIC OUTFLOWS are telling us that hedge fund de-leveraging has run its course. This has necessitated that the Federal Reserve resort to other means to make the U.S. Dollar look strong.

.....

What hubris; the Federal Reserve has apparently been printing up unaccounted for and undisclosed BIILLIONS (or Trillions, perhaps?) for who-knows-how-long? Based on the data presented above, it's evident that the Fed has been engaged in quantitative easing LONG BEFORE their public acknowledgement of the same. Despite claims to the contrary, the Fed’s actions to date have been elitist, favorable to the banks at the expense of the public and deceptive. So, perhaps it should not come as a surprise to anyone that former Fed Chairman and senior economic advisor to President Obama, Paul Volcker, speaking at a financial markets conference Friday night at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee uttered these words,

"For better or worse, we are at a point where the Federal Reserve Act is going to be reviewed."

more...

http://www.financialsense.com/Market/wrapup.htm

[Dr.Phool]

10. Probably when they quit publishing the Money Supply (M-2?).

Something smelled rotten then.

[ozymandius]

12. That was M3. Yes, it was rotten.

Some people were very motivated to hide the amount of U.S. currency held in overseas accounts, central bank holdings.

[Demeter]

20. March 2006

And nobody could have predicted.....

[AnneD]

30. Morning Marketeers.....

:donut: and lurkers. I have a bumper sticker in my office with the quote "In a time of universal deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act." If that doesn't grab you-maybe the fact that George Orwell said it might. People that want to do illegal/immoral acts prefer to commit them in the cover of darkness. So you can safely bet that dropping the M3 was a sign of immoral activity just as you could tell that the refusal to shine the light of regulation on to the banks and again the use of Tarp Bail Out Money. Any refusal of regulation or transparency is an open invitation for corruption considering the low level of moral and fiscal integrity in our business leaders and political leaders. Until that takes place, we will continue to get screwed.

Happy hunting and watch out for the bears.

[Ghost Dog]

33. Thought-provoking charts. The Volcker utterance referred to (Reuters, Saturday):

...Volcker said a review the Federal Reserve's role, something traditionally regarded as taboo, now seems inevitable given the fallout from the long-running financial crisis.

"For better or worse, we are at a point where the Federal Reserve Act is going to be reviewed," said Volcker.

The wide range of proposals, from giving the Fed much more supervisory authority to stripping it of part of its current authorities, "are just an indication of how wide open that question is going to be."

The Fed, whose basic mandate is to support the U.S. economy without stoking inflation, has come under sharp scrutiny -- along with other government institutions -- since the credit crisis erupted in summer 2007.

Issues range from what the Fed's role would be in a revamped financial regulatory system, to criticism about a lack of disclosure about the central bank's vast new credit programs.

Volcker warned against a rush by Congress to act too hastily on financial reforms and an overhaul of the financial system.

"The temptation is to act quickly, but we have to act comprehensively," he said.

The financial meltdown and associated economic crisis grew out of serious and prolonged imbalances in the international economy that created "extremes" in financial markets, he said.

As time progressed, those problems were "supercharged" by compensation practices geared toward excessive risk-taking that ultimately brought markets to their knees.

Volcker said it was important for regulatory reforms to minimize the risk of firms being treated as "too big to fail" because of their sheer size or perceived systemic risk.

"I don't want to get to the point where some hedge funds or equity funds are getting very large and then getting into trouble to the point they need government protection."

/... http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090418/bs_nm/us_usa_economy_volcker_3

[ozymandius]

2. no goobermental reports today n/t

[ozymandius]

3. Oil languishes below $46 as stock markets sink

SINGAPORE – Oil prices languished below $46 a barrel Tuesday in Asia after renewed doubts about the health of U.S. banks sent crude and stock markets tumbling.

Benchmark crude for May delivery fell 44 cents to $45.44 a barrel by midafternoon in Singapore in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

....

Traders also are focused on weekly petroleum inventory data that the Energy Information Agency will release Wednesday. Analysts expect a build of 3 million barrels in crude stocks, according to a survey by Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill Cos. Crude stocks already are near 19-year highs.

....

In other Nymex trading, gasoline for May delivery was steady at $1.41 a gallon and heating oil rose 0.47 cents to $1.34 a gallon. Natural gas for May delivery was steady at $3.55 per 1,000 cubic feet.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/oil_prices

[ozymandius]

4. From the "No Shit" file: Bank bailout may hurt taxpayers, be open to fraud

WASHINGTON – Taxpayers are increasingly exposed to losses and the government is more vulnerable to fraud under Obama administration initiatives that have created a federal bank bailout program of "unprecedented scope," a government report finds.

In a 250-page quarterly report to Congress, the rescue program's special inspector general concludes that a private-public partnership designed to rid financial institutions of their "toxic assets" is tilted in favor of private investors and creates "potential unfairness to the taxpayer."

The report, which examines the six-month old, $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program, is scheduled for release Tuesday.

Using blunt language, Inspector General Neil Barofksy offers a series of recommendations to protect the public and takes the Treasury to task for not implementing previous advice. The report also commends Treasury and the Federal Reserve for creating some safeguards.

.....

In particular, the report cited the private-public partnership that would purchase troubled real estate-related securities from financial institutions. Under plans unveiled by Treasury, for every $1 of private investment, Treasury would invest $1 and could provide another dollar in a nonrecourse loan. That money could then leverage a loan from another government fund backed mostly by the Federal Reserve, a step that Barofsky says would dilute the incentive for private fund managers to exercise due diligence.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090421/ap_on_bi_ge/bailout_flaws

[BelgianMadCow]

6. Bail-out 'risk' for US taxpayers (BBC)

...

Mr Barofsky recommends that the Treasury should establish conflict of interest rules on public-private fund managers to prevent investment decisions that benefit them at the expense of the taxpayer.

He says the Treasury should also disclose the owners of all private equity stakes in a public-private fund.

His report also notes that the Treasury Department has refused to adopt the inspector general's recommendation that all recipients of Tarp money account for the use of government money received.

"In light of the fact that the American taxpayer has been asked to fund this extraordinary effort to stabilise the financial system, it is not unreasonable that the public be told how those funds have been used by Tarp recipients," the report stated.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8009656.stm

It would seem logical that this report's recommendations are written into law. Not holding my breath though.

[Ghost Dog]

34. "has been asked to fund" should read "has been required to fund",

surely. Does any taxpayer have a choice?

[BelgianMadCow]

49. well...I know I didn't. The bailouts we had were all engineered over a weekend

and presented as fact on monday. When big money is at play, there's no room for democracy...

[Ghost Dog]

70. Ain't that the Truth.

But, there's room for Anarchy...

[tclambert]

13. "Obama administration initiatives?" No mention of Bush?

Huh. I thought TARP came out as a Bush/Paulson "initiative." And the lack of oversight was pure Paulson. With a little sneakiness, the author of the article is trying to put it all on Obama. True, Obama and Geithner haven't fixed it, but calling TARP an Obama administration initiative . . . I'm sorry, I've gotta call shenanigans.

[Demeter]

21. they Should Lay It All On the three Stooges

Benanke, Paulson and Geithner.

I doubt Obama has even read the briefing papers, let alone the minority opinions. He's evidently not talking to Volcker, either. His sin is one of omission, at least. Maybe complicit, hard to say yet.

[ozymandius]

5. Asia stocks tumble after US falls on banking fears

HONG KONG – Asian stock markets tumbled Tuesday, with benchmarks in Tokyo and Hong Kong down 2-3 percent, after news of mounting bad loans at Bank of America rekindled worries about the financial system and halted Wall Street's six-week rally. European markets traded higher.

....

Investors reverted to worrying about the banking industry after Bank of America, while posting a profit in the first quarter, said it was setting aside $13.4 billion to cover losses from souring loans.

The news raised the specter of more colossal write-downs as defaults climb and left many questioning the quality of better-than-expected earnings from other major banks that had cheered Wall Street just a week ago.There was also growing anxiety the results of the government's "stress tests," to be released in May, will show many banks are still in dire straits and may need more government bailout money.

....

European markets were modestly higher in early trade, with Britain's FTSE 100 up 0.3 percent, Germany's DAX adding 0.7 percent and France's CAC-40 rising 0.7 percent.

....

Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average lost 213.42 points, or 2.4 percent, to 8,711.33, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 465.02 points, or 3 percent, to 15,285.89.

Elsewhere, Australia's main index fell 2.4 percent, Shanghai's stock measure retreated 0.9 percent and South Korea's Kospi ended almost flat.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090421/ap_on_bi_ge/world_markets

[ozymandius]

7. Worst Year in Fortune 500 History (Ritholtz)

Fortune 500 Annual List is out for 2008. It is FUGLY:

▪ 2008 was the worst year in the history of the Fortune 500 for America’s largest companies;

▪ Profits fell from $645 billion in profits in 2007, to just $98.9 billion - an 84.7% decline;

▪ Eleven of the top 25 largest corporate losses in list history took place last year;

▪ Insurance giant AIG posted a $99.3 billion loss — the biggest corporate loss of all time;

more...

http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2009/04/worst-year-in-fortune-500-history-847-profit-decline/

[fasttense]

18. How can you lose $546,100,000,000?

And yet these CEOs and corrupt boards keep their jobs, amazing. Greed gone wild.

These "masters of the universe" live in a backward universe.

[Tansy_Gold]

32. they can lose it because they've already sucked so much out of

the real wealth of the working people that there isn't any more "profit" to squeeze.

And most of that loss is probably paper loss anyway. Write downs of inflated assets (on which write ups they never paid taxes but get to write these off against current obligations.)

It makes me sick. It really does.


Wankers. Wankers all.



TG

[Ghost Dog]

35. But not before inflated salaries, expenses, commissions, bonuses etc. were creamed off

the top.

(Not to mention the parachutes).

[tclambert]

42. I once found $3.45 under the sofa cushions.

So if you had a sofa app. 950,000,000,000 feet long, you could look there. That's 179,000,000 miles. Such a couch could stretch from the Sun past the orbit of Mars. You could lose the whole Earth under those sofa cushions.

[Demeter]

22. I'm Sure the Revisions Of Prior Years Will Show

equally dismal numbers. It's just that some of the lying has stopped, or been uncovered, lately. Not all of it, either. Profitable companies don't need to keep borrowing more and more.

[Festivito]

8. Debt: 04/17/2009 11,185,715,978,983.38 (DOWN 33,147,055,295.32) (Down big.)

(Down big after yesterday's big rise, netting 5.5B$ increase which is small.)

= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 6,898,873,477,415.95 + 4,286,842,501,567.43
DOWN 38,696,374,097.81 + UP 5,549,318,802.49

Source: Debt to the penny:
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 306-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.27 each THAT'S 1B$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.8, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 14 seconds we net gain a another American, so at the end of the workday of this report, there should be 306,183,858 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html
Currently, each of these American's owe $36,532.68.
A family of three owes $109,598.03. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 23 reports in the last 30 to 31 days.
The average for the last 23 reports is 6,224,435,110.13.
The average for the last 30 days would be 4,772,066,917.76.
The average for the last 31 days would be 4,618,129,275.25.
There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 61 reports in 87 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 0.51B$ per report, 0.45B$/day so far.
There were 136 reports in 199 days of FY2009 averaging 8.54B$ per report, 5.83B$/day.

PROJECTION:
There are 1,374 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 13.1 and 19.2T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
04/17/2009 11,185,715,978,983.38 BHO (UP 558,838,930,070.30 so far since Obama took office.)

Fiscal Year ends: Sep 30
Borrowed in FY1993: (Maybe later.)
Borrowed in FY1994: 281,261,026,873.94
Borrowed in FY1995: 281,232,990,696.07
Borrowed in FY1996: 250,828,038,426.34
Borrowed in FY1997: 188,335,072,261.61
Borrowed in FY1998: 113,046,997,500.28
Borrowed in FY1999: 130,077,892,735.81
Borrowed in FY2000: _17,907,308,253.43 Bill alone
Borrowed in FY2001: 133,285,202,313.20 Bill and George
Borrowed in FY2002: 420,772,553,397.10 All George
Borrowed in FY2003: 554,995,097,146.46
Borrowed in FY2004: 595,821,633,586.70
Borrowed in FY2005: 553,656,965,393.18
Borrowed in FY2006: 574,264,237,491.73
Borrowed in FY2007: 500,679,473,047.25
Borrowed in FY2008: 1,017,071,524,650.01
Borrowed in FY2009: 1,160,991,082,070.90 so far this fiscal year.

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
03/27/2009 -000,468,145,936.78 ---
03/30/2009 +000,069,902,880.68 ------------******* Mon
03/31/2009 +079,841,314,678.25 ------------**********
04/01/2009 -001,742,860,350.87 --
04/02/2009 +007,764,243,786.78 ------------*********
04/03/2009 +028,967,677,130.84 ------------**********
04/06/2009 +000,073,808,356.95 ------------******* Mon
04/07/2009 +000,123,552,400.07 ------------********
04/08/2009 +000,050,639,456.95 ------------*******
04/09/2009 +024,055,285,655.59 ------------**********
04/10/2009 +000,051,156,797.54 ------------*******
04/13/2009 +000,309,440,014.97 ------------******** Mon
04/14/2009 +000,167,862,523.71 ------------********
04/15/2009 +044,205,591,028.33 ------------**********
04/17/2009 -038,696,374,097.81 -

144,773,094,325.20 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008.
US borrowed $1,521,084,175,724.31 in last 211 days.
That's 1,521B$ in 211 days.
More than any year ever, including last year, and it's 150% of that highest year ever only in 211 days.
And it is over 100% of ANY dismal Bush, for any dismal Bush-year, ONLY IN 211 DAYS NOT 365.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=3839548&mesg_id=3839566

[ozymandius]

9. Pelosi Wall Street Probe Modeled on Pecora After Market Crash

April 21 (Bloomberg) -- Wall Street may be heading for the deepest investigation of its practices since a congressional panel’s probe of abuses following the 1929 stock market crash.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi plans to push for a comprehensive inquiry, saying that three-quarters of Americans want to know what led to the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and the collapse of Bear Stearns Cos. and Merrill Lynch & Co. She favors one patterned after Senate Banking Committee hearings led by Ferdinand Pecora starting in 1933, according to her spokesman, Nadeam Elshami.

....

Congress is reacting to an economic collapse that has generated $1.3 trillion in financial industry losses, $700 billion in U.S. taxpayer cash infusions and loans, and $37 trillion in destroyed world stock market value since 2007. The Pecora Commission generated public support for creating the Securities and Exchange Commission and laws that governed financial services for seven decades.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=aX8OXwhcJXVU&refer=exclusive

---

The article goes on to examine the difficulties in examining an industry that has bankrolled so many in Congress tasked with this investigation.

[Demeter]

23. Nancy's Bid For Fame

Having blown the opportunity of a lifetime by NOT impeaching BushCo, Nancy seeks to build a legacy by outing the banksters, instead.

Evidently she's not afraid of them, whereas she was mortally terrified of BushCo.

I'm feeling too cynical today. Sorry to take it out on Marketeers.

[MattSh]

24. Don't worry. It's just grandstanding.

Get a few cheap political points without actually doing anything.

Yeah, I'm cynical today too.

[Demeter]

26. Do You Really Think She'll Fold?

After all, she must be a little bit scared by the primary opposition she encountered last year, and the bad press she continues to get. She could start something just for the next election, and see it taken over by events... sometimes I think if it weren't for "accidents" this country never would have come into being or lasted even this long.

I'm just hoping we find out which "accidents" caused the BushCo dictatorship to crumble. The economy, the Internet, the stubbornness of the invaded countries, the intransigence of Europe (rubbing Angela's backside really backfired, I think), Cheney's health...and probably the Armed forces revolt over the nuclear missile incident....

[Ghost Dog]

37. It was just her shoulder, or so we're told

(although...)



Ms. Merkel has a electoral fight on her hands just now. With the center-left SPD looking like a potential winner on economic policies (the center-right CDU is well to the 'left' of any mainstream US party on most issues, though, naturally) - as you can read in Spanish here: http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/ofensiva/electoral/socialdemocrata/pone/aprietos/Angela/Merkel/elpepuint/20090421elpepiint_5/Tes (sorry, but most Anglo press prefers ignorance and bigotry to objective Europe reporting).

If anyone's interested and if I've time later I'll try to knock up a translation of "Un gran giro a la izquierda del SPD" (linked to the above).

(The two major parties CDU and SPD (there are significant others) together form the governing "Grand Coalition" at the moment); the SPD leader Frank-Walter Steinmeier is currently Vice-Chancellor and Foreign Minister in Merkel's (CDU) Cabinet. None of these people are what we'd call "really of the left" here in Europe, though).

Der Spiegel does have this in English:

Parties Plan to Bash CEOs in Election Campaign

By SPIEGEL Staff

With five months to go before Germany's general election, the political parties on the left and right plan to win votes by giving chief executives a hammering in their campaigns. The crisis has shifted the balance of power from big business to the government, and CEOs are now fair game.

/more... http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,619999,00.html

[MattSh]

38. I've believed from around the time of the "Dean Scream"...

That change would be possible only after things hit rock-bottom. And that change would not come from within the system, that people would have to force change from the outside. Yet, I don't see the type of popular uprising on the horizon yet to force this kind of change.

But I do believe that Nancy, indeed, most politicians, when (and if) they see this tsunami coming, will be more than willing to hop aboard for the ride. Refusal to do so will be political suicide, and even I don't think Nancy will choose that.

So, are we anywhere close to rock-bottom?



My guess is no. I could be wrong though.

[Ghost Dog]

40. Not there yet!

This example still has clothes, for example, and the plumbing appears still to be in order...

[Dr.Phool]

41. Didn't they see the sign about not feeding the Steeler fans!

Or Blue Dogs!

[Demeter]

59. Hugin's Index Says We're Halfway

And progress across the country is uneven, to say the least.

Thing is, the TARP isn't slowing it down any. Big crash predicted for October...

[Ghost Dog]

71. Music! - In lieu of October Song: Who Knows Where The Time Goes

(Sandy Denny Demo tape): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbpURBJA4uA
(Here's Sansy's song sung by Nina Simone): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZa3XsHA6UU&NR=1 (Shivers)...

Hell, here's an October Song cover: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-f_C1Bg7cA
And a Womankind cover: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmzyBZbbfcY

while we're at it.

Need more String Band at youtube. Some, such as My Name Is Death, have been pulled.

[Ghost Dog]

73. And recommending this thread: "The Rage of the Priviliged":

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5506638

(And attempting to download Diana Krall and Band performing Tom Waits's/Kathleen Brennan's "Temptation" live in Montreal): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9y1vGxPVAA

[Demeter]

76. Good Choice!!

Melancholy nostalgia.

[burf]

28. Me three!

When the people come in to testify are in orange jumpsuits then I'll believe they are getting serious.

[Demeter]

60. YES!

That's the missing detail! Thanks, burf!

[PassingFair]

29. I think she does what she can.

I'm not a Pelosi basher...I think
she has our best interests at heart
and does WHAT she can, WHEN she can,
given her circumstances...

She adds to the bean bucket that will
someday tip our way (hopefully) and
she does it pretty quietly.

Maybe she was protecting more than
just herself from BushCo, maybe so
many have been BLACKMAILED like
that SNAKE Jane Harmon, that Pelosi
has had to keep it toned down so that
we didn't ALL get pegged as crooks
or worse, leaving a general impression
of democrats being on the take, and
spoiling our chances in any election.

[ozymandius]

11. Odd that Treasury feels the need to comment on this -

Treasury Says ‘No Basis’ to Report on Bank Testing (Update2)
[br /> April 20 (Bloomberg) -- A U.S. Treasury spokesman said there’s no basis to a blog posting that buffeted financial stocks by saying that most of the nation’s largest banks are insolvent.

.....

In his blog posting, Turner said 16 of the banks are “already technically insolvent.” He mentioned HSBC Holdings Plc as one of the lenders. HSBC isn’t among the 19 banks being examined, according to the government.

Reached by telephone, Turner declined to say who would have given him the government’s so-called stress test of the 19 biggest U.S. banks. The Federal Reserve has said it plans to release results on May 4.

[tclambert]

14. Well, there aren't any newspapers anymore.

There was a time, young'uns, when editorials in newspapers, real by dang printed on paper newspapers, could "buffet financial stocks."

As a general rule of thumb, when official spokespeople say "there's no basis" to something, it means somehow the real, unredacted report leaked out. The "official" report with the official spin incorporated into it will soon appear, the spokesperson will say, "See? The official report is quite a bit different from what so-and-so said," and the debate will soon turn to political editing, denial, etc. In other words, "there's no basis" means "Dammit! Someone leaked the truth! Throw some PR at it to put the fire out!"

[Ghost Dog]

39. I believe the term in spin-world is "sexing-up",

or, as you point out, more recently, "sexing-down"?

In Memoriam Dr. David Kelly.

[skoalyman]

74. yep kind of like cramer the exact opposite to what he says

but Hals a pretty shadowy KKK kinda dude too:puke: so its more or less a coin toss in who to believe.I wouldn't be at all surprised if it was a true leak.

[Dr.Phool]

15. Key loses nearly a half-billion, cuts dividend again

Key loses nearly a half-billion, cuts dividend again
by Teresa Dixon Murray/Plain Dealer Reporter
Tuesday April 21, 2009, 6:33 AM


CLEVELAND — KeyCorp today said it lost much more money in the first quarter than expected and, more importantly, the Cleveland bank seems to be bracing for times to get even tougher.

Key lost $488 million, or $1.09 per share. Analysts had expected it to lose 21 cents per share.

Also, Key cut its dividend to shareholders for the third time since last summer, chopping it to 1 cent per share per quarter, down from 6.25 cents. Last year, the board cut the dividend from 37.5 cents per quarter, or $1.50 a year, to 18.75 cents per quarter..

Key said the loss stemmed from a big increase in its reserves for future loan losses, increasing it by $383 million, and a paper loss to reflect the lower value of the Key Bank brand.

While the banking industry is being accused of not lending much, Key said it posted $7.8 billion in new or renewed loans in the first quarter to consumers and businesses.

The loss is the fourth straight for Northeast Ohio's largest local bank and was nearly the same as the fourth-quarter loss of $524 million or $1.13 per share. A year ago, Key posted a profit of $218 million, or 54 cents per share.

"Our results reflect an extremely challenging operating environment and the expedient steps we continue to take to identify problem loans and to build Key's loan loss reserves," said Chairman and Chief Executive Henry Meyer.

(more)

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2009/04/key_loses_nearly_a_halfbillion.html


A Friday visit coming soon?

[Pale Blue Dot]

16. European Stocks, U.S. Futures Fall; Bank of New York Declines

European stocks and U.S. futures sank as earnings at Bank of New York Mellon Corp. missed analysts’ estimates and concern mounted banks may post more credit losses.

Bank of New York, the world’s biggest custody bank, slid 6.9 percent after net income dropped 51 percent. Deutsche Bank AG and BNP Paribas SA led European lenders lower on speculation further credit losses may emerge in the industry. U.K. retailers Tesco Plc and Burberry Group Plc limited losses on Europe’s Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index after reporting increased sales.

The Stoxx 600 slid 0.6 percent to 188.73 at 12:24 p.m. in London, extending yesterday’s 3.6 percent tumble. The regional benchmark advanced 25 percent from March 9 through last week as investors speculated the U.S. government’s plan to finance the purchase of as much as $1 trillion in toxic assets from banks will help to pull the global economy out of its first recession since World War II. Futures on the U.S. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slid 0.5 percent.

“There still concern around the banks and any more losses that may come out,” said Philippe Gijsels, a senior structured equity strategist at Fortis Global Markets. “If you’re a short- term investor then you can definitely play this rally, but I would wait for a correction before going in at these levels.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20602003&sid=aHBjJN4sH6ow&refer=world_indices

[UpInArms]

17. dollar watch

http://quotes.ino.com/chart/?s=NYBOT_DX&v=i

Last trade 86.565 Change -0.088 (-0.11%)

Currencies Continue to Focus on US Earnings Calendar

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/market_alerts/fundamental_alert/Currencies_Continue_to_Focus_on_1240312441645.html

Price action has been fairly quiet overnight with the markets seemingly content on consolidating ahead of the US session of trade. The two big releases this morning have been the German ZEW survey and UK inflation data. German ZEW was much better than expected on the economic sentiment side coming in at 13.0 versus a 2.0 expectation. This was the fist time the survey came in positive territory since July 2007. However, the current situation reading of the survey was slightly weaker coming in at -91.6 after the consensus has been calling for a -90.0 print. One of the ZEW economists said that there was evidence of a slowdown in the economic deterioration but also conceded that there was room for additional accommodation in monetary policy. ECB Ordonez also came out with a more accommodative tone, expressing the need for additional rate cuts while also supporting the introduction of unconventional monetary policy tools. In the UK, CPI came in as expected with only the core showing slightly higher. This failed to materially impact price action. Meanwhile, BoE Sentance reaffirmed the key challenge for the central bank was to aid demand and avert inflation. Also on the wires was new MPC member Fisher who said, in reference to the weaker Sterling rate, that the BoE could act in the currency market if necessary. Looking ahead, all eyes will be focused on the Bank of Canada due at 12:30GMT. The majority of analysts look for an unchanged verdict at 0.50%, however, there are some who are looking for another 25bps. As far as quantitative easing measures are concerned, the central bank is not expected to unveil its plans until Thursday. Also on the calendar is Canada wholesale sales (1.0% expected) due at 12:30GMT, followed by US consumer confidence later in the day at 21:00GMT. Market participants will continue to focus on the heavily stocked earnings schedule, with the corporate results to likely heavily influence direction in the FX market. US equity futures point to a lower open, while on the commodity front, gold is slightly higher and oil is unchanged.

...more...

Euro Finds Support As German Investor Sentiment Reaches Two Year High, But Will Weakness Resume?

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/bio1/Euro_Finds_Support_As_German_1240308491954.html

The Euro shot higher by 45 pips on the better than expected German ZEW release which saw investor sentiment turn positive for the first time in two years. The euro/dollar reached as high as 1.2991 building upon earlier gains derived from improved risk appetite. The +13 reading jumped from last month’s -3.5 and far exceeded expectations of +2 as investors are starting to see positive developments pertaining to growth. All the news wasn’t positive as German producer prices falling by 0.7% in March dragged the annualized reading into negative territory for the first time in five years. The 0.5% decline will add to deflation concerns which could make the ECB’s decision on quantitative easing easier at their next policy meeting.

However, falling inflation is one of the reasons that investor confidence is improving as it is leading to increasing purchasing power by consumers. Increasing demand could lead companies to slow their pace of layoffs which could help bring a bottom to the current downturn. Additionally, credit conditions have deteriorated at a slower pace which is fueling hope that businesses and consumers will begin to gain access to needed funds. Therefore, this may be the opportune time for the central bank to step up their efforts in order to accelerate the pace of the recovery. Regardless further weakness appears to be in store for the single currency as technically it has broken below key support levels at the 61.8% Fibo level of 1.2456-1.3740 and the 50-Day SMA.

The pound rose through overnight trading despite U.K. CPI falling to 2.9% from 3.2% in March. It is the first time since in a year that inflation has been within the BoE’s 1%-3% target band. The central bank has maintained that prices at risk of undershooting their benchmark which led them to initiate quantitative easing measures. However, core prices unexpectedly rose to 1.7% from 1.6% as prices absent food and gasoline have started to stabilize. Apparel and household goods prices rose 1.1% and 2.0% respectively which could be a sign that demand is picking up which we may see in Friday’s retail sales figures. The BoE will be able to complete its current purchasing program and assess its results without considering further measures if prices continue to stabilize, which may become a supportive factor for sterling. The 100-Day SMA continues to hold as support at 1.4527 but if we see the pound/dollar break below the technical level then downside risks may increase.

After yesterday’s flight to safety sparked a dollar rally, we are seeing fears ease a bit as there are enough “green shoots” to give investors hope that a recovery is imminent. Therefore, we could see the greenback give back some of yesterdays gains today if risk appetite continues to increase. The earnings calendar may have something to say today regarding overall risk sentiment as five Dow components will report including United Technologies, Coca Cola, DuPont, Merck and Caterpillar. The biggest event risk from the North American session will be the upcoming Bank of Canada rate decision where the central bank is expected to lower their benchmark rate by 50 bps to 0.50%. Traders are also expecting that the committee will announce quantitative easing measures which could lead to further “loonie” weakness. However, most of the move may already be priced into the currency as we saw it lose over 300 pips against the dollar.

...more...

[nc4bo]

19. Nice 'toon. Actually made me snort coffee through my nose. Whadda world. nt

[DemReadingDU]

25. JEC hearing at 9:30 - Joseph Stiglitz and Simon Johnson to testify

4/21/09 Too Big to Fail or Too Big to Save? Examining the Systemic Threats of Large Financial Institutions

The Joint Economic Committee (JEC), chaired by Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney, will hold a hearing on Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 9:30 a.m. in Cannon House Office Building Room 210. At the hearing, entitled “Too Big to Fail or Too Big to Save? Examining the Systemic Threats of Large Financial Institutions,” economists including Joseph Stiglitz and Simon Johnson will focus on new policy responses to failures at large financial institutions. The hearing will examine what criteria policymakers and regulators should use to determine when institutions pose systemic risk – at what point financial firms become ‘too big to fail’ – and how regulators should deal with them when they are insolvent.


Click here to watch the Joint Economic Committee hearing LIVE - Link will not be active until the hearing begins.
http://budget.edgeboss.net/wmedia-live/budget/11374/100_budget-video_060519.asx

http://jec.senate.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=Hearings.HearingsCalendar&ContentRecord_id=c89b185b-5056-8059-7670-0ce56df64713


I started a thread in GD for live commentary
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5502892

[Demeter]

27. I can't watch, but please give a summary!

rubs hands evilly. :evilgrin:

[antigop]

31. Dodd taps Wall Street money for re-election

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ixvoSkF4yknffeFgV_hCeE5mT1OQD97MBTP00

Wealthy Wall Street executives may be outcasts to some Americans, but not to Democratic Sen. Chris Dodd.

Facing his toughest re-election fight, the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee is reaching out to the financial sector's deep-pocketed donors for the campaign cash he needs to hang onto his Connecticut seat.

It's a practice that worked for Dodd in the past as millions flowed in and the five-term lawmaker cruised to victory. Down in the polls and looking at a tough Republican challenge next year, Dodd again is turning to the financial industry for campaign money, undeterred by the populist Main Street anger.

More than $100,000 of the $1 million Dodd raised in the first three months of this year came from political action committees for the financial, insurance and real estate industries, according to his latest fundraising report. Among his donors were PACs for the American Insurance Association, Mortgage Bankers Association, Vanguard, Oppenheimer Funds, Charles Schwab, Real Estate Roundtable and Ameriprise Financial.

Dodd raised $608,995 from individuals, among them top executives from companies such as Fidelity, Citigroup and Citizens Financial Group. His take from Connecticut residents was $4,250, an especially anemic display of political enthusiasm for the state's senior senator.

[antigop]

36. Naomi Klein: Why We Should Banish Larry Summers From Public Life

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/16/AR2009041603244.html

I vote to banish Larry Summers. Not from the planet. That wouldn't be nice. Just from public life.

The criticisms of President Obama's chief economic adviser are well known. He's too close to Wall Street. And he's a frightful bully, of both people and countries. Still, we're told we shouldn't care about such minor infractions. Why? Because Summers is brilliant, and the world needs his big brain.

And this brings us to a central and often overlooked cause of the global financial crisis: Brain Bubbles. This is the process wherein the intelligence of an inarguably intelligent person is inflated and valued beyond all reason, creating a dangerous accumulation of unhedged risk. Larry Summers is the biggest Brain Bubble we've got.

Brain Bubbles start with an innocuous "whiz kid" moniker in undergrad, which later escalates to "wunderkind." Next comes the requisite foray as an economic adviser to a small crisis-wracked country, where the kid is declared a "savior." By 30, our Bubble Boy is tenured and officially a "genius." By 40, he's a "guru," by 50 an "oracle." After a few drinks: "messiah."

The superhuman powers bestowed upon these men -- and yes, they are all men -- shield them from the scrutiny that might have prevented the current crisis. Alan Greenspan's Brain Bubble allowed him to put the economy at great risk: When he made no sense, people assumed that it was their own fault. Brain Bubbles also formed the key argument Greenspan and Summers used to explain why lawmakers couldn't regulate the derivatives market: The wizards on Wall Street were too brilliant, their models too complex, for mere mortals to understand.

"Larry Summers is the biggest Brain Bubble we've got."

[tclambert]

43. Karl Rove was considered a whiz kid.

Wouldn't mind banning him from the planet.

There are four common problems I've run into with experts. They have trouble saying "I don't know" and "I was wrong." Those two are trained into them in college and grad school. If you admit either one, you don't get any partial credit. Better to pretend you know something, or argue cleverly that your incorrect position wasn't incorrect. And if you can work in a reference to Aristotle, that's usually good for at least one point.

The third problem is they often fall in love with some obscure corner of their field of expertise, and their passion for this trivia causes them to lose sight of the basic fundamentals. Financial derivatives come to mind. Or creating complicated mortgage structures that people can qualify for initially, but can't actually pay down the road. Or thinking a gold standard has any relevance to economics.

The fourth is the temptation to do something just because they realize they can, and forget to ask whether or not they should. Maybe you can make the idiot son of a former President into a "President" himself, but should you? Of course not. Nor should you leverage a bank's capital reserve 40 times over. Nor should you merge financial institutions of various types over and over until you get monstrous entities "too big to fail."

[Dr.Phool]

44. That's because everyone used to piss on him in high school.

His Homecoming pic is in post #38.

[tclambert]

56. And he took his revenge on the entire planet by getting Georgie into the White House.

"I'll show those guys. I'll show them all! I'll find the dumbest rich kid I can and make him President! Then we'll see who gets to piss on who!"

[saigon68]

79. Actually he Pisses on himself a lot

[Demeter]

63. Didn't They Used to be Called Brain Trusts?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_Trust


brain trust

NOUN:

1. A group of experts who serve, usually unofficially, as advisers and policy planners, especially in a government.
2. often Brain Trust Such a group associated with the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the development of the New Deal.
3. brains trust Chiefly British A group of experts gathered to discuss issues informally in public, especially on radio or television.

http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/entry/brain%20trust

Thing Is, Roosevelt used actual brains--and shit-canned the useless ones.

[tclambert]

67. In Britain, they're called boffins.

[AnneD]

45. The Rise and Fall of the Stanford Financial Group

On an overcast March day, Rosemary Mazor is saying goodbye to friends at the Stanford Financial Group in the Galleria area. This week, the doors are open for employees who didn't get time to gather their belongings before federal agents raided the building February 17.

Laura Pendergest-Holt, Securities and Exchange CommissionMazor had already collected her things, but she is in the area for a job interview so decided to come by anyway. She figured she would walk through the doors one more time, no matter how strange it felt. One last time through the lobby, up the elegant staircases and past all the proud Stanford eagles carved into the limestone and mahogany and marble.

The last time she was here, she didn't get to capture one last snapshot of this place she had come to consider a second home. It's kind of hard to get an image for posterity when you and the rest of your four-person team are being escorted out of the building by armed U.S. marshals.

"I look at it as a promising career that could have been," the 48-year-old Brooklyn native says. In three years, she worked her way up from receptionist to a management training ­specialist. She had even met the company's founder, Allen Stanford, who might possibly be the only Caribbean Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order ever to be accused of a multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme.

more....

http://www.houstonpress.com/2009-04-09/news/the-rise-fall-of-the-stanford-financial-group/

This is a long read but it is great local journalism. The story that they did on the S&L Scandal and the BCCI are 2 other examples of solid news reporting. I put more stock in what this little free rag says than most M$M. Bookmark it for later.

[UpInArms]

50. the last of that story really was so ...

Allen Stanford, supposedly a man with deep religious convictions, made sure this corner of the building would reflect his company's core values. Under a crucifix, in capital letters, are the words "These companies are dedicated to the glory of God."

Mazor would like to believe that, somewhere deep down, that's true. She would like to believe that, for the sake of the employees who were turned out onto the street, Stanford will cooperate with authorities.

"I know in my heart, when I first met him, that he was an honorable man," Mazor says. "I just want him to be honorable now."

when folks try to sell their shit with a religious twist ...

:puke:

like my grandmother use to say:

God uses the good people and the bad people use God.

[tclambert]

55. . . . and bad people use good people because the bad people THINK they are God.

And God told me He/She/It doesn't need any of our money. If God needs money, It can miracle some up out of thin air. Poof. Magic. Kinda like the Fed.

[AnneD]

46. At Citi’s annual meeting, shareholders get angry

NEW YORK — The anger was evident at Citigroup Inc.’s annual meeting, where all nominated directors were elected but shareholders took turns at the microphone to object to how the bank has been operating.

The meeting is usually a well-attended affair lasting many hours as shareholders air their grievances, and today’s gathering was as somber and full of ire as ever. When Citi Chairman Richard Parsons recognized the five departing members of the board, who include ex-chairman Win Bischoff and former U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin, one man from the audience yelled out: “Thank God you’ve gone!”

Despite the rancor on the floor, all returning directors and four new ones were elected with at least 70 percent of the vote, according to preliminary results. And while some shareholder proposals came close to passing, preliminary results showed that none did.

Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit tried to bring a more upbeat atmosphere to the ballroom at the New York Hilton hotel, emphasizing to shareholders that Citigroup is not the same company it was just a year ago, when it was became clear the bank was buckling under the weight of billions of dollars in bad debt.

more.....

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/6384382.html.

Can the public lynch mob be far behind...

[AnneD]

47. We're all left holding the tea bag...

Sorry, but I missed the tea party.

Last week thousand of people staged protests around the country to jeer the trillions of dollars being spent on the economic bailout, the tax increases that are likely coming as a result, and the ballooning federal deficit we’re leaving for our children.

All of which left me to wonder: Why now?

The tea party craze, which takes its name from the one in Boston Harbor in 1773, stems from a trading-floor rant by CNBC’s Windy City windbag Rick Santelli. In February, he railed against the Obama administration’s plan to bail out homeowners facing foreclosure from subprime mortgages. At one point, Santelli even referred to his fellow commodities traders as representing average Americans.

Never mind that the trading mentality did more to fan the flames of this crisis than home buyers who, after enticing come-ons from fee-hungry mortgage brokers, bought more house than they could afford.

A lot of Wednesday’s tea partiers probably hadn’t heard Santelli’s rant. They’re simply angry about the bailout’s cost and its long-term consequences. They should be.

more.....

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/steffy/6380761.html

A good read.

[AnneD]

48. Cuts at M.D. Anderson to include layoffs

University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center will lay off an unspecified number of workers as it aims to cut expenses by 10 percent.

Employees were told last week that M.D. Anderson had to make the move because expenses had outgrown revenues for six months.

If the center doesn’t make cuts, it faces a “severely threatened” operating margin and “threatened” cash flow by the end of the year, according to a memo to the staff from president John Mendelsohn and other executives.

“The main causes of this situation – an increase in indigent care and bad debt, as well as a reduction in cash philanthropy – are beyond our control,” the memo said. “We can and must address those areas that are within our control.”

Because personnel costs account for 60 percent of M. D. Anderson’s expenses, layoffs are imminent.

more.........

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/6383227.html

Hubby has told me of staff meetings where they have said this is a certainty. Because he makes so much (forget that he works OT)he is in line for this we will see how this turns out.

[Dr.Phool]

58. My wife is running scared too.

Nothing is safe with the Florida Legislature in session. She works in the lead agency (privatized by Jeb) that handles foster care. They've been firing a lot of people lately. And the day they had a meeting to tell everyone that their jobs were safe, there wouldn't be any layoffs, they fired 3 more.

We could tighten our belts, and lie without her income, but we need the health care.

[Tansy_Gold]

65. There is something so FUNDAMENTALLY wrong with this

My apologies, fellow SMWers and lurkers, for my few and far between drive by postings of late. I've been buried in work of the paying (but not enough) kind, and though I read and digest and lurk, I just haven't had the time or, to be honest, the motivation to post.

But I got to listen to a tiny bit of Howard Dean on NPR this morning, and then reading these two posts ---- WHAT IN THE BLOODY FUCK IS WRONG WITH THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION? Oh, don't answer that; it's a rhetorical question, and probably moot as well.

We let hospitals close? We turn neglected children onto the street? And why? Because we had to give all our money to the filthy rich criminal bankers??????????????????????????


Mr. Obama, someone needs to take you by the shoulders and shake some sense into you. You are fucking up every bit as badly as your predecessor. Maybe not in the same areas. Maybe not with same overtly deadly effect. But you are still fucking up.

As the mullet-man, said, GET A BRAIN, MORANS. It's not about cutting $100 million from the cabinet department budgets. It's about treating cancer patients, and teaching children to read and write. It's about making sure no one goes to bed hungry or cold. It's about making the streets safe and the crime labs efficient. It's about making sure our air and water and restaurant kitchens are clean and safe.

It's not about the bankers! It's not about getting the banks to lend us money. Where is your head, Barack? It better not be up your ass, brother, or you are never gonna be able to see where you're leading this country. It's about jobs. It's about learning to live within our national means. It's about eschewing greed and glory and about cultivating civility and community.

You just spent months on the very important task of choosing a puppy for your girls. that's a good thing, and as the owner of four lovable canines myself, I say good on you, because kids need pets. But what about all the kids whose parents have lost their jobs and then lost their homes and they have to turn a beloved pet out onto the street or drop it off at the pound where it faces a bleak, but probably short, future? How do you think those kids are going to deal with that? How do you think they are going grow and mature and care and love when their lives are traumatized like this?

So you and your advisers, Messrs. Geithner and Summers and Rubin, think the banks are too big to fail, too precious and too essential? What about the hospitals, man? What about the schools and the police departments and the fire departments?

You lied to us, man. You lied to us. You aren't getting us out of Iraq. You aren't investigating the booooshies. You aren't renegotiating the trade treaties that eviscerated our economy. Is it a lie if you tell it and believe it and mean it when you aren't in a position to implement it, but then as soon as you ARE in that position you renege on the promise? Maybe not to some it isn't, but it's the worst kind of lie


in the opinion of


Tansy Gold (who had to edit this because she's so damn mad she can't even spell her own name)

[Ghost Dog]

72. It's about teaching children to think

for themselves,

based on sound information.





Hey, a (much missed) Tansy Gold post!

All we need now is for TalkingDog to show up...

:hi:

[Demeter]

77. I Feel It Too, Tansy

The futility of living in a nation too big for its britches.

It was board meeting night. Our management company executive was whining because the Budget and Finance committee got together last night to read through the financials so the newly appointed, daft volunteer idiot Treasurer (yours truly) could have some idea what was going on. He accused us girls of wanting to get together to trash him! As if we had nothing else on our minds and schedules, that we would take 2 hours on a Monday night in the cold and rain to trash talk this paranoid, needy man who has driven most of us crazy over 5 to 10 years.

He knows we don't need his company any more, we can't afford to throw away the money, and they don't give us what we want and need. So what's the problem? Is his company going to change? Hasn't yet, and we've been "working with him" for 5 years now. Totally unprofessional.

Now I don't pretend to be a professional. I'm a volunteer, I don't get paid nothing but a crappy meal from Applebee's. And I won't be patronized on my nickel, to the tune of $7000 a month.

I should be able to calm down and sleep eventually. Thanks for listening.

[Hawkowl]

78. You said it!

Couldn't agree with you more.

[saigon68]

80. K & R

[tclambert]

51. U.S. Stocks Advance as Geithner Says Banks Have Enough Cash

By Rita Nazareth

April 21 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks advanced, erasing an earlier slide, after Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the “vast majority” of the nation’s banks have enough capital. . . .

The S&P 500 gained 2.1 percent to 849.62 at 3:20 p.m. in New York after dropping as much as 0.7 percent earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 135.88 points, or 1.7 percent, to 7,977.61. The Russell 2000 Index of small companies jumped 3.6 percent. Six stocks gained for each that fell on the New York Stock Exchange. . . .

“Currently, the vast majority of banks have more capital than they need to be considered well capitalized by their regulators,” Geithner said in testimony to a congressional oversight panel on the government’s financial-rescue program. He added that there will be a “series of options” for lenders deemed to need additional money at the conclusion of government stress tests. . . .

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ayTvmA1.Gv6k&refer=home

[BelgianMadCow]

54. "have enough cash" - "need trillions"

only one of the two can be true, as I saw William Black put it.

[Ghost Dog]

62. Geithner says hard to set prices on toxic assets

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Tuesday said difficulty in setting a value on banks' toxic assets was a continuing hindrance to their ability to lend and borrow.

Testifying before the Congressional Oversight Panel that monitors the Treasury's efforts to bail out troubled banks, Geithner said toxic assets were "congesting" the U.S. financial system and hindering efforts to get credit flowing normally.

"Uncertainty about the value of legacy assets is constraining the ability of financial institutions to raise private capital," he said, adding that he hoped a public-private investment program will improve the ability to put a price on troubled mortgage and other assets.

/... http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090421/bs_nm/us_financial_geithner;_ylt=At.QSxb_x_wjUdBNViuxrpa573QA

[Tansy_Gold]

68. "Legacy" assets???? does this mean.. . . . . .

"We'll be loooooooooooooooooooong gone before these things ever return to any worthwhile value."

[Ghost Dog]

69. Reuters provided the translation: "legacy" (in this context) == toxic" .

:rofl:

Seems the attempt to subvert "al-Reuters" hasn't been 100% effective,






yet.

[tclambert]

52. World stocks rally on Geithner's banks assessment

By PAN PYLAS , 04.21.09, 12:18 PM EDT - AP

European stock markets recouped most of their earlier losses Tuesday as Wall Street turned higher in the wake of a fairly optimistic assessment of the U.S. banking system by Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner.

In Europe, the FTSE 100 of leading British shares closed down a mere 3.4 points, or 0.1 percent, at 3,987.46, while France's CAC-40 rose a miniscule 0.26 point to 2,969.66. Germany's DAX rose 15.33 points, or 0.3 percent, to 4,501.63. . . .

U.S. stocks had opened lower, though not by much, as investors remained wary of entering the market following a wave of downbeat earnings reports. But Geithner's testimony to a Congressional body prompted the modest turnaround.

Geithner told lawmakers that most U.S. banks have more capital than they actually need, stoking market hopes that the banks may have gone through the worst of the financial crisis and that the Obama administration has enough money, through the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), to deal with any further problems that may arise.

"Geithner has given a reasonable account of himself to Congress about his plans for TARP recapitalization and public private participation in buying toxic assets," said David Buik, markets analyst at BGC Partners.

"Whether it works remains to be seen but for the first time he sounded authoritative," he added.

[Ghost Dog]

64. Have a link for this AP spin?

AP's "Geithner has given a reasonable account of himself to Congress about his plans for ... public private participation in buying toxic assets" appears to be the same as Reuters's Geithner "adding that he hoped a public-private investment program will improve the ability to put a price on troubled mortgage and other assets". :shrug:

[tclambert]

66. Sorry. Forgot.

http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=926598&lang=eng_news

[BelgianMadCow]

53. Global bank losses likely to reach $4.1 trillion, says IMF

Source: Guardian

The global financial sector faces write-downs of $4.1tn (£2.8tn) from the toxic assets that have crashed in value since the start of the credit crunch 20 months ago, the International Monetary Fund said today .

In its first comprehensive study of the impact of the crisis on banks and other financial institutions, the Fund said that it had increased its estimate of the potential losses in the US from $2.2tn to $2.7tn as a result of the deepening economic slump over the past three months. Europe and Japan between them account for $1.3tn of the write-downs, with UK banks facing losses of $316bn (£216bn).

The Fund warned that the damage to the balance sheets of institutions would take years to fix and would lead to a credit famine in Britain, the US and Europe.

In addition, it said the open-ended taxpayer bailouts provided to the crippled financial sector in recent months risked adding to the debt burdens of western countries already facing a demographic time bomb.

more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/apr/21/imf-huge-global-bank-losses

further on in the article: ...but the IMF said there had been some signs of improvement in the interbank markets since the intervention of governments

Hooray for "some signs of improvement" after spending a couple trillions! When oh when will they acknowledge only open books can restore any measure of confidence.

[tclambert]

57. You sure open books won't result in horror and disgust?

And a call for criminal prosecutions? Maybe they can't open them until they've "cooked" them long enough.

[BelgianMadCow]

61. yes it likely would

which is why it will only happen if INDEPENDENT people get to see the books. You can't hope for people to speak the truth if their salary depends on obscuring it.

And yes, just give it some time and money and all balances will look rosy. Just look at the Q1 earnings...

Only question is, will the manure heap be at the front door or hauled away in the back?

[skoalyman]

75. that and a crucifix and a priest oh holy water too

because you know the devil cooked those books good lol:scared: