STOCK MARKET WATCH, Friday, September 23, 2011

[Pale Blue Dot]

Source: du

STOCK MARKET WATCH, Friday, September 23, 2011

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON September 22, 2011

Dow 10,733.83 -391.01 (-3.64%)
Nasdaq 2,455.67 -82.52 (-3.36%)
S&P 500 1,129.56 -37.20 (-3.29%)
10-Yr Bond... 1.73 +0.00 (+0.06%)
30-Year Bond 2.80 -0.01 (-0.21%)

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Market Conditions During Trading Hours

Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold

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Bush Administration Officials Convicted = 2
Names: David Safavian, James Fondren
Dishonorable Mention: former House majority leader, Tom DeLay

Bush Administration Officials Charged = 1
Name(s): Richard Lopez Razo

Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 = 12

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This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.

Read more: du

[Pale Blue Dot]

1. No reports today. nt

[Pale Blue Dot]

2. Oil below $81 amid growing global economy fears

SINGAPORE – Oil prices hovered below $81 a barrel Friday in Asia, gaining back a little of the previous day's big loss amid the prospect of weaker demand for crude as the global economy slows.

Benchmark oil for November delivery was up 16 cents to $80.67 at late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude plunged $5.41, or 6.3 percent, to settle at $80.51 on Thursday.

In London, Brent crude for November delivery was up 19 cents at $105.68 on the ICE Futures exchange.

Crude has dropped 10 percent from above $90 last week as investors fret Europe's debt crisis and a weak U.S. economy will stymie oil demand.

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

[Pale Blue Dot]

3. All of the futures articles haven't accounted for the sudden drop you see above in Europe..

Dow futures are down 80 pts. as of 6:30.

[Po_d Mainiac]

8. e/s 1100 is likely 2 B tested

The banksters are running aroound in their birthday suits, and the chairsatan didn't promise any more thread for their taylors.

Perhaps now it's just a matter of time till the first big institution (either Euroland or U$A) suffers from a fatal run as the counterparties rush to collect their hedges.

The question wood seem to be...Has the can finally run into the wall

[burf]

11. Last night the futures were +65 at about 10pm

This entire episode is turning out to be a sad joke.

[DemReadingDU]

14. futures down -147 at 8:15am

[DemReadingDU]

15. Moody's downgrades 8 Greek banks

9/23/11
ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- Moody's ratings agency downgraded eight Greek banks by two notches Friday due to their exposure to Greek government bonds and the deteriorating economic situation in the country, whose government has struggled to meet the terms of an international bailout.

Moody's Investors Service downgraded National Bank of Greece, EFG Eurobank Ergasias, Alpha Bank, Piraeus Bank, Agricultural Bank of Greece and Attica Bank to CAA2 from B3. It also downgraded Emporiki Bank of Greece -- which is majority owned by French bank Credit Agricole -- and General Bank of Greece -- majority owned by another French bank, Societe Generale -- to B3 from B1.

The agency said the outlook for all the banks' long-term deposit and debt ratings was negative.

more...
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Moodys-downgrades-8-Greek-apf-1724410420.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=

[Demeter]

26. Only -68 at 8:30

Europe and Asia on the whole not down by much

[burf]

36. Only down 28 at 10 minutes to open

Its a miracle!!!

[Roland99]

37. G-20 opened its mouth and issued forth some platitudes and soothing talking points.

[Po_d Mainiac]

57. And it's gone..n/t

[Po_d Mainiac]

68. chairsatan hit Ctrl-P ....we're good....n/t

[Demeter]

80. Before or After He Changed His Shorts?

PS: This time, I don't think it's going to work.

[dipsydoodle]

4. Friday : Stock markets fall back despite G20 reassurance

European shares have fallen further after Thursday's slump as investors continue to worry about the outlook for the global economy.

After opening higher, the main indexes in the UK, France and Germany all fell by between 1.5% and 2.5%.

The falls came despite reassurances from the G20 that it was ready to take action to stabilise markets.

Thursday's slump was sparked by a Federal Reserve warning on Wednesday about the outlook for the US economy.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15031731 23 September 2011 Last updated at 11:58 GMT + 1 hour.

[Festivito]

5. Debt: 09/21/2011 14,705,188,086,992.02 (DOWN 6,682,039,626.52) (Wed, DOWN a little.)

Debt: 09/21/2011 14,705,188,086,992.02 (DOWN 6,682,039,626.52) (Wed, DOWN a little.)
(UNDER the new 2011 debt limit of 14.694-trillion dollars by 411.188-billion dollars. Good day.)
Rainy and becoming colder outside and Ben sleeps by my head.
(Debt under Obama seems to jump up big then drop slowly maybe up a little and down a little for days--repeat.)
= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 10,080,805,928,039.90 + 4,624,382,158,952.04
DOWN 3,830,602.70 + DOWN 6,678,209,023.82

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 313-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.20 THAT'S 1B$, and $3,195.48 makes 1T$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.59, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ 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 12 seconds we net gain another American, so at the end of the workday of the report, there should be 312,941,792 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html ON 10/04/2010 04:37 -> 310,403,677
Currently, each of these Americans owe $46,990.17.
A family of three owes $140,970.51. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 23 reports in the last 30 to 33 days.
The average for the last 23 reports is 2,867,326,918.16.
The average for the last 30 days would be 2,198,283,970.59.
The average for the last 33 days would be 1,998,439,973.26.
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$/day.
There were 174 reports in 253 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 7.33B$ per report, 5.07B$/day so far.
There were 249 reports in 365 days of FY2009 averaging 7.57B$ per report, 5.16B$/day.
There were 251 reports in 365 days of FY2010 averaging 6.58B$ per report, 4.53B$/day.
There were 242 reports in 356 days of FY2011 averaging 4.73B$ per report, 3.21B$/day.
Above line should be okay

PROJECTION:
There are 487 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 15.4 and 17.2T$.
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)
09/21/2011 14,705,188,086,992.02 BHO (UP 4,078,311,038,078.86 so far since Obama took office.)

FISCAL YEAR DEBT CHANGE, Sep 30 prior year to Sep 30 named year:
(One "* " for each 40B$ reached)
FY1994 +0,281,261,026,873.94 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1995 +0,281,232,990,696.07 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1996 +0,250,828,038,426.34 ------------* * * * * * WJC
FY1997 +0,188,335,072,261.61 ------------* * * * WJC
FY1998 +0,113,046,997,500.28 ------------* * WJC
FY1999 +0,130,077,892,735.81 ------------* * * WJC
FY2000 +0,017,907,308,253.43 ------------WJC
FY2001 +0,133,285,202,313.20 ------------* * * C&B
01-WJC +0,053,598,528,417.78 ------------* WJC 31% of FY, 40% of FY-Debt
01-GWB +0,079,686,673,895.42 ------------* GWB 69% of FY, 60% of FY-Debt
FY2002 +0,420,772,553,397.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2003 +0,554,995,097,146.46 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2004 +0,595,821,633,586.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2005 +0,553,656,965,393.18 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2006 +0,574,264,237,491.73 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2007 +0,500,679,473,047.25 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2008 +1,017,071,524,649.92 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2009 +1,885,104,106,599.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B&O
09GWB +0,602,152,152,000.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB 31% of FY, 32% of FY-Debt
09-BHO +1,282,951,954,598.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO 69% of FY, 68% of FY-Debt
FY2010 +1,651,794,027,380.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
FY2011 +1,143,565,056,100.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
Endof11 +1,172,475,408,642.16 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
08/31/2011 +034,126,581,560.14 ------------**********
09/01/2011 +034,131,323,630.30 ------------**********
09/02/2011 +000,182,220,803.10 ------------********
09/06/2011 -000,290,117,782.20 --- Tue
09/07/2011 +015,583,261,687.60 ------------**********
09/08/2011 -006,211,008,386.30 --
09/09/2011 +000,079,600,651.10 ------------*******
09/12/2011 -000,033,661,156.40 ---- Mon
09/13/2011 -000,041,637,039.50 ----
09/14/2011 +000,269,185,032.20 ------------********
09/15/2011 +011,965,856,345.50 ------------**********
09/16/2011 +000,192,253,298.50 ------------********
09/19/2011 +000,239,468,823.00 ------------******** Mon
09/20/2011 +000,489,658,328.70 ------------********
09/21/2011 -000,003,830,602.70 -----

90,679,155,193.04 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008 while Bush was in power JUST BEFORE fiscal year end.
Bush admin borrowed $962,245,245,654.01 in those last 124 days in office crossing two fiscal years.
$360,093,093,653.42 in last 12 days of FY2008, and $602,152,152,000.59 in subsequent 112 days before leaving office.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
DUer primer on National debt

(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=5002340&mesg_id=5002884

[Festivito]

103. Debt: 09/22/2011 14,726,790,407,953.74 (UP 21,602,320,961.78) (Thu, DOWN some.)

(UNDER the new 2011 debt limit of 14.694-trillion dollars by 432.790-billion dollars. Good day.)
Oops, forgot Friday I guess.
(Debt under Obama seems to jump up big then drop slowly maybe up a little and down a little for days--repeat.)
= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 10,074,726,277,456.50 + 4,652,064,130,497.22
DOWN 6,079,650,583.40 + UP 27,681,971,545.18

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 313-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.20 THAT'S 1B$, and $3,195.41 makes 1T$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.59, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ 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 12 seconds we net gain another American, so at the end of the workday of the report, there should be 312,948,992 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html ON 10/04/2010 04:37 -> 310,403,677
Currently, each of these Americans owe $47,058.12.
A family of three owes $141,174.35. (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 4,971,952,591.96.
The average for the last 30 days would be 3,811,830,320.50.
The average for the last 31 days would be 3,688,868,052.10.
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$/day.
There were 174 reports in 253 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 7.33B$ per report, 5.07B$/day so far.
There were 249 reports in 365 days of FY2009 averaging 7.57B$ per report, 5.16B$/day.
There were 251 reports in 365 days of FY2010 averaging 6.58B$ per report, 4.53B$/day.
There were 243 reports in 357 days of FY2011 averaging 4.79B$ per report, 3.26B$/day.
Above line should be okay

PROJECTION:
There are 486 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 15.4 and 17.2T$.
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)
09/22/2011 14,726,790,407,953.74 BHO (UP 4,099,913,359,040.64 so far since Obama took office.)

FISCAL YEAR DEBT CHANGE, Sep 30 prior year to Sep 30 named year:
(One "* " for each 40B$ reached)
FY1994 +0,281,261,026,873.94 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1995 +0,281,232,990,696.07 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1996 +0,250,828,038,426.34 ------------* * * * * * WJC
FY1997 +0,188,335,072,261.61 ------------* * * * WJC
FY1998 +0,113,046,997,500.28 ------------* * WJC
FY1999 +0,130,077,892,735.81 ------------* * * WJC
FY2000 +0,017,907,308,253.43 ------------WJC
FY2001 +0,133,285,202,313.20 ------------* * * C&B
01-WJC +0,053,598,528,417.78 ------------* WJC 31% of FY, 40% of FY-Debt
01-GWB +0,079,686,673,895.42 ------------* GWB 69% of FY, 60% of FY-Debt
FY2002 +0,420,772,553,397.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2003 +0,554,995,097,146.46 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2004 +0,595,821,633,586.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2005 +0,553,656,965,393.18 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2006 +0,574,264,237,491.73 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2007 +0,500,679,473,047.25 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2008 +1,017,071,524,649.92 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2009 +1,885,104,106,599.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B&O
09GWB +0,602,152,152,000.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB 31% of FY, 32% of FY-Debt
09-BHO +1,282,951,954,598.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO 69% of FY, 68% of FY-Debt
FY2010 +1,651,794,027,380.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
FY2011 +1,165,167,377,062.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
Endof11 +1,191,277,570,385.52 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
09/01/2011 +034,131,323,630.30 ------------**********
09/02/2011 +000,182,220,803.10 ------------********
09/06/2011 -000,290,117,782.20 --- Tue
09/07/2011 +015,583,261,687.60 ------------**********
09/08/2011 -006,211,008,386.30 --
09/09/2011 +000,079,600,651.10 ------------*******
09/12/2011 -000,033,661,156.40 ---- Mon
09/13/2011 -000,041,637,039.50 ----
09/14/2011 +000,269,185,032.20 ------------********
09/15/2011 +011,965,856,345.50 ------------**********
09/16/2011 +000,192,253,298.50 ------------********
09/19/2011 +000,239,468,823.00 ------------******** Mon
09/20/2011 +000,489,658,328.70 ------------********
09/21/2011 -000,003,830,602.70 -----
09/22/2011 -006,079,650,583.40 --

50,472,923,049.50 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008 while Bush was in power JUST BEFORE fiscal year end.
Bush admin borrowed $962,245,245,654.01 in those last 124 days in office crossing two fiscal years.
$360,093,093,653.42 in last 12 days of FY2008, and $602,152,152,000.59 in subsequent 112 days before leaving office.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
DUer primer on National debt

(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=5003692&mesg_id=5003720

[bread_and_roses]

6. "Is the Near-Trillion-Dollar Student Loan Bubble About to Pop?"

“If you want to take a relation of violent extortion, sheer power, and turn it into something moral, and most of all, make it seem like the victims are to blame, you turn it into a relation of debt.” (from the article - what a perfect summation!)

http://www.alternet.org/story/152477/is_the_near-trillion-dollar_student_loan_bubble_about_to_pop/?page=entire

AlterNet / By Sarah Jaffe

Is the Near-Trillion-Dollar Student Loan Bubble About to Pop?
Student loans have been going up since the recession began--and now defaults are up too. Something has to be done, but what?
September 21, 2011 |

“If you want to take a relation of violent extortion, sheer power, and turn it into something moral, and most of all, make it seem like the victims are to blame, you turn it into a relation of debt.” -- Economic anthropologist David Graeber, author of Debt: The First 5,000 Years

... The story is the same around the country. The economy is stagnant, the job market terrible, and graduates who used to believe their degrees would lead to good jobs are struggling. Meanwhile, the unforgiving student loan system continues to penalize them for their inability to pay.

As Mychal Denzel Smith at the Grio pointed out, “The fundamentals of our economy aren't strong, but they are the same as ever: we are a country built on low wages and debt.” With those low wages, and particularly with the likelihood of finding a job remaining so low, students who took on debt to pay for an education cannot pay it back. We're in the middle of another bubble—a student loan bubble. And it doesn't look like we've learned much from the impact the popping of the housing bubble had on our economy—the same lending practices are continuing.

The Bubble

... Back in July, credit rating firm Moody's Analytics warned that student debt could lead to the next economic crisis. How did student loans go from “good debt” that could be expected to pay off--Pew found that an adult with a bachelor's degree earns about $650,000 more during their career than a typical high school graduate—to a bubble that threatens the economy?

The article quotes "average" student dept for 4 yr degree is $24.000, but of course many students owe much more - including many who in the end couldn't finish and are working - it they're lucky enough to have a job - at McJobs.

The article hardly takes a bold approach - reports the idea of forgiving some debt is floating around out there, but the amount quoted as proposed hardly seems sufficient to me.

I say wipe it all out. It is unconscionable that tuitions have been allowed to rise as they have at PUBLIC colleges. And the vampire private lenders are, of course, imposing rapacious interest rates. The ghoul collection agencies are slavering and snapping at the heels of people who were scammed into borrowing outrageous sums for tuition in the hope they could get a good job someday. This dept cannot be discharged in bankruptcy and these people will NEVER get out from under it. Wipe it all out. As a start.

I remain convinced that TPTB saw what happened when a generation of working class kids went off to college and took Liberal Arts .... my generation, the kids of the tail end of the boomers - roughly born maybe '45-'55. We nearly took down the system. And they decided "never again!" and began to make college both unaffordable and factory-like. (Of course, most of us then went on to become the tools of TPTB, turned into some variant of Republicans, and forgot what we knew back in the day - alas for our children and grandchildren.)

Wipe it out. Let the young have a chance - what little chance there is in these latter days that they won't be scrabbling though middens at best or eating each other at worst in the near future.

(I have no hope. I see no future.)

[DemReadingDU]

10. College is another bubble that will burst

People are going to find they need to learn basic skills to survive in the future rather than going to college and partying for 4 years getting that finance degree.

But can college debt be wiped out? I had always thought that one was forever obligated to repay loans for college, and debt could not be wiped out via bankruptcy.

[Po_d Mainiac]

22. Big point here

Most student loan debt is not retired via a bankruptcy

[Tansy_Gold]

46. Mine is being paid off

with deductions from social security benefits.

[Po_d Mainiac]

53. Found that missing box of quills

actually my foot found one of them night before last....had put em in a basket that the cat knocked off a shelf during a spazz attack....They ain't long enough for your needs, but long enough to have woken me up real quick.

Road kill is starting to appear, but mostly of the black w/white stripe variety...But I iz lookin.
Tight Lines

[Tansy_Gold]

56. LOL

yeah, I'm into jewelry, not perfume. ;-)

[tclambert]

94. Wow, you must have strong ears.

[Po_d Mainiac]

97. Now don't go insultin the aroma around the lady's ear lobes...geez!!

:hide:

[Tansy_Gold]

100. LOL -- Actually, tc, they're very light weight

Easy to wear comfortably all day long without raising a sweat -- or a stink. :P

[tclambert]

95. Don't most civilized countries have universal college education, as well as universal health care?

If you want to compete in the global martketplace, don't you need to give a college education to every kid who can qualify academically? In fact, shouldn't you push as many to get state sponsored Ph.D.'s as possible?

[DemReadingDU]

7. Seoul - Head of suspended savings bank found dead in apparent suicide

Head of suspended savings bank found dead in apparent suicide

SEOUL, Sept. 23 (Yonhap) -- The head of one of the nation's seven savings banks whose operations were suspended due to capital shortages last week was found dead in an apparent suicide Friday, police said.

Jeong Gu-haeng, 50-year-old president of Seoul's Jeil 2 Savings Bank, appears to have jumped from his office on the sixth floor of the bank's main office building in central Seoul, police said as prosecutors raided the head offices of the seven banks in search of clues for possible irregularities by their executives and large shareholders.

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/national/2011/09/23/0302000000AEN20110923005800315.HTML

[Po_d Mainiac]

9. Open up the window, check out the view and jump you fuckers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TYezSrzUUs

[bread_and_roses]

12. Amen to that, (n/t)

[DemReadingDU]

13. this version for Wall Street

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yge311sFhC8

[Po_d Mainiac]

21. Most of the old headstones in the local boneyard were slabbed off

the granite ledge in the middle of our back acreage. Should Lower Manhatten fall short of grave markers, I'd be more than willing to help fill the gap.

[Hotler]

42. +1 n/t

[xchrom]

16. a very gloomy, drizzling good morning...

:donut:

[Demeter]

27. We finally are getting the drizzle we were forecast

The last two days were really quite pleasant, and not at all what the weatherman had predicted.

And the pain of moving furniture has come in with the damp...I'm the only person I know who doesn't have to drink to feel the way I do right now...and I had aspirin, vitamins, breakfast, and lots of fluids....

[xchrom]

29. oy -- what a way to end the week. nt

[xchrom]

17. europe: Moody's downgrades 8 Greek banks

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_GREECE_FINANCIAL_CRISIS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2011-09-23-08-18-54

ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- Moody's ratings agency downgraded eight Greek banks by two notches Friday due to their exposure to Greek government bonds and the deteriorating economic situation in the country, whose government has struggled to meet the terms of an international bailout.

Moody's Investors Service downgraded National Bank of Greece, EFG Eurobank Ergasias, Alpha Bank, Piraeus Bank, Agricultural Bank of Greece and Attica Bank to CAA2 from B3. It also downgraded Emporiki Bank of Greece - which is majority owned by French bank Credit Agricole - and General Bank of Greece - majority owned by another French bank, Societe Generale - to B3 from B1.

The agency said the outlook for all the banks' long-term deposit and debt ratings was negative.

Shares on the Athens Stock Exchange plunged, with the general price index shedding 4.6 percent in afternoon trading to dip below the 800 mark at 791.7 points. Bank shares were down by more than 8 percent.

[xchrom]

23. Europe's markets resume slide after short-lived rally

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/sep/23/stock-markets-tentative-recovery-ftse100

Shares in London and the rest of Europe resumed their slide on Friday, on worries over European bank writedowns.

A relief rally earlier on was short-lived. By lunchtime, the FTSE 100 index in London was down nearly 90 points, a 1.7% fall that took it through the 5000 mark to 4954, after opening 50 points higher. Germany's Dax lost 2.4% while France's Cac dropped 2.3%.

Shares turned negative again after Deutsche Bank warned that European banks could take bigger writedowns than expected on Greek debt. Private sector creditors agreed in July to take a 21% loss on Greek bonds maturing before 2020, but the loss is more likely to be 25% or more, said Charlotte Jones, in charge of group controlling at Germany's biggest lender.

The July agreement was based on a Greek government bond yield of 9%, but the yield has risen much further since then. "Today, there are no Greek government bonds trading below yields of 13.75%," Jones told Reuters.

[xchrom]

31. Greece on Edge 24 Centuries After First Default

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-22/greece-on-edge-of-biggest-insolvency-24-centuries-after-first-city-default.html

History’s first sovereign default came in the 4th century BC, committed by 10 Greek municipalities. There was one creditor: the temple of Delos, Apollo’s mythical birthplace.

Twenty-four centuries later, Greece is at the edge of the biggest sovereign default and policy makers are worried about global shock waves of an insolvency by a government with 353 billion euros ($483 billion) of debt -- five times the size of Argentina’s $95 billion default in 2001.

“There is a monstrously large amount of uncertainty and a massive range of possibilities,” said David Mackie, chief European economist at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in London. “A macroeconomic disaster could be averted but only by aggressive policy action” by central banks and governments, he said.

After two international-bailout deals, three years of recession and budget-cutting votes that almost cost him his job, Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou says throwing in the towel now would be a “catastrophe.” Potential consequences of a national bankruptcy include the failure of the country’s banking system, an even deeper economic contraction and government collapse.

[xchrom]

49. France’s BNP, SocGen Beat Retreat as Europe’s Crisis Deepens

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-22/bnp-paribas-joins-socgen-to-beat-retreat-as-european-debt-crisis-deepens.html

BNP Paribas (BNP) SA and Societe Generale SA, France’s two largest banks, are trimming about 300 billion euros ($405 billion) off their balance sheets as Europe’s deepening debt crisis threatens to make them too big to save.

At the end of March, French financial firms had $672 billion in public and private debt in Greece, Portugal, Ireland, Italy and Spain, according to Basel, Switzerland-based Bank for International Settlements. That’s the biggest exposure to the euro-area’s troubled countries and almost a third more than German lenders. The four largest French banks have 5.9 trillion euros in total assets, including loans and bond holdings, or about three times France’s gross domestic product.

“The banks are entering a slimming cure, which is forced by the sovereign crisis,” said Jerome Forneris, who helps manage $10 billion, including the two French lenders, at Banque Martin Maurel in Marseille, France.

Rather than tap the market for capital, BNP Paribas and Societe Generale (GLE) are seeking to free up a combined 10 billion euros through asset cuts and disposals. Paris-based BNP Paribas plans to cut $82 billion of corporate- and investment-banking assets, while Societe Generale may exit businesses such as aircraft and real-estate finance in the U.S.




***a slimming cure?:eyes:

[xchrom]

62. FTSE 100 plunges below 5,000 mark

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/ftse-100-plunges-below-5000-mark-2359632.html

Shell-shocked investors suffered more losses today as London's top shares index fell below the psychologically important 5,000 mark.

Global recession fears continued to plague the FTSE 100 Index which, after posting slight gains in early trading, fell more than 1% into the red.

Britain's top 100 companies lost £64 billion from their value yesterday after a gloomy outlook from America's central bank, weak Chinese and eurozone economic data and the enduring sovereign debt crisis damaged investors' confidence.

The FTSE 100 Index fell below the 5000 mark last month but managed to recover before the market closed. It has not ended a session below 5000 since July last year.

[AnneD]

76. Where is....

Ghost Dog?

[Demeter]

77. Greece could have used capital controls and a Tobin Tax

and so could every other cash-printing nation.

[xchrom]

18. asia: Signs of China slowdown add to dim global outlook

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/W/WORLD_ECONOMY?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2011-09-23-07-23-05

SHANGHAI (AP) -- Signs that powerhouse China is slowing have spooked global markets and sharpened fears that the world economy will not escape another recession.

The dramatic stock market fallout from one small, preliminary survey of Chinese manufacturers far exceeded the data's importance, analysts said Friday. The world's No. 2 economy is slowing, as expected, but growth will remain relatively strong, they say.

If nothing else, the market rout that began Thursday and continued Friday reflects China's growing importance for world growth, said Xianfang Ren, chief China economist for IHS Global Insight.

A preliminary reading of HSBC's index of manufacturing for September, released about a week before the final survey is due, was at a two-month low of 49.4 and like August's reading of 49.9 is under 50 - indicating that activity is contracting. An official manufacturing index that surveys a bigger number of companies is also due about the end of September.

[xchrom]

19. UBS CEO Gruebel faces board amid huge trading loss

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/UBS_TRADING_SCANDAL?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2011-09-23-07-35-57

SINGAPORE (AP) -- UBS Chief Executive Oswald Gruebel, under pressure after a rogue trader lost $2.3 billion of the Swiss banking giant's money, kept silent Friday after facing the institution's board of directors in Singapore.

Gruebel was the first of UBS's top management and board to leave the meeting at the bank's office and refused to answer reporters' questions as he sat alone in the back of a chauffeured Mercedes.

Several UBS board members left about 30 minutes later and also declined to comment.

Some analysts have speculated that Gruebel's job is at stake, though he said last weekend that he will not resign. UBS leadership may also be mulling whether to keep its investment banking arm to go along with its wealth management business.

[xchrom]

51. China, Japan Say Europe Must Fix Own Debt Crisis, No ‘Blank Check’ for Aid

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-22/china-can-help-europe-world-economy-at-the-margin-pboc-s-yi-gang-says.html

Officials from China and Japan, the world’s second- and third-biggest economies, indicated that their support for Europe will have limits and the region needs to solve its own debt crisis.

Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi said in Washington yesterday that while his nation can buy European Financial Stability Facility bonds if needed, there is no blank check.

“At the margin we can do quite a bit to help,” Chinese central bank Deputy Governor Yi Gang said in a panel discussion yesterday at the International Monetary Fund in the same city. At the same time, “the real solution of the European sovereign debt crisis has to be done by Europeans themselves.”

Group of 20 finance chiefs pledged coordinated efforts to tackle rising risks as Greece teeters on the brink of default and stocks plunge around the world. Weak growth, high unemployment, sovereign stresses and turbulence in financial markets are “renewed challenges facing the global economy,” the officials said in a statement released late Sept. 22.

[xchrom]

67. India-China dialogue to focus on economic coordination:China

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/indicators/india-china-dialogue-to-focus-on-economic-coordinationchina/articleshow/10093116.cms

BEIJING: The first India-China strategic economic dialogue being held here next week would focus on macroeconomic outlook and increasing communication on economic policy-making between the two countries, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said here today.
The dialogue, regarded as the most significant elevation of bilateral ties as both the countries have such a mechanism only with the US, would be co-chaired by Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia and Zhang Ping, Director of China's National Development and Reform Commission.

The two-day dialogue will begin here on September 26. Officials of the two countries in-charge of foreign affairs and macroeconomic planning will attend the dialogue, Chinese Foreign Ministry, Spokesman, Hong Lei told a media briefing here today.

The dialogue will focus on macroeconomic outlook, communication and coordination on economic policy-making and other potential opportunities for pragmatic cooperation, he said.

"I believe the China-India strategic economic dialogue would help boost economic cooperation between the two nations," Hong said.

[xchrom]

69. China may have had a gigantic bubble; some sectors of the economy will collapse: Marc Faber

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/global-markets/china-may-have-had-a-gigantic-bubble-some-sectors-of-the-economy-will-collapse-marc-faber/articleshow/10089884.cms

NEW DELHI: Marc Faber, Founder & Publisher, Gloom, Boom & Doom report believes that the US Federal Reserve did the right thing by not announcing a third round of Quantitative Easing (QE3). "I am for the first time in 12 years applauding the Federal Reserve. They did the right thing but the stock market reacted on the downside because there was not a QE3 type of announcement," he said in an interview.

According to him investors around the world should cheer Federal Reserve's decision. His view is that if the S&P drops to around 900-950 levels, the Federal Reserve would go in for a third round of easing.

"I am not selling my gold because in the long run, the Federal Reserve will print money. As soon as markets in the world are down another 10-20%, as soon as asset prices go down and the economy is weak, everybody will applaud the Federal Reserve if they print money," he said.

US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned of significant downside risks for economic growth, which had triggered a sell-off in equities and commodities. The stock markets are falling but the dollar has gone up, which according to Faber is good news. "For the US, it is more important to have a strong dollar than to have a strong stock market. Dollar will continue to rally not because it is a desirable currency but because it is better than many other currencies," he opines.

[xchrom]

73. McDonald's may close hundreds of restaurants

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20110923n1.html

McDonald's Holdings Co. (Japan) may shut hundreds of outlets next year to boost profit margin after the power shortages following the March 11 earthquake crimped demand for fast food.

"We want to close a few hundred stores next year and we expect to increase sales the year after that," Chief Executive Officer Eikoh Harada said Thursday.

Japan's largest fast-food chain also intends to renovate larger stores as it increases profit relative to cash flow, Harada said, after eliminating more than 400 unprofitable outlets last year.

Revenue fell last year for the second year in a row and every month in 2011 as of July 31, according to Bloomberg data. Sales at stores open at least a year have started to increase in September following the end of limits on electric power usage set by utilities after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami crippled some power plants, Harada said.

[xchrom]

20. KB Home posts wider loss for fiscal 3Q

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_EARNS_KB_HOME?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2011-09-23-08-25-34

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- KB Home says its fiscal third quarter loss widened, as the homebuilder delivered fewer homes compared to last year, when a federal tax credit affected results.

The Los Angeles company says it lost $9.6 million, or 13 cents per share, in the three months that ended Aug. 31. That compares with a loss of $1.4 million, or 2 cents a share, in the same period last year.

Revenue sank 27 percent to $367.3 million from $501 million the previous year.

Analysts polled by FactSet were expecting a loss of 16 cents a share on $390.4 million in revenue.

[xchrom]

24. Meg Whitman named new Hewlett-Packard chief executive

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/sep/22/meg-whitman-hewlett-packard-ceo

Léo Apotheker has been fired as chief executive of Hewlett-Packard and replaced with Meg Whitman, the technology firm has announced.

Following a board meeting, Whitman, the former chief executive of eBay and candidate for California governor, was confirmed as the replacement for Apotheker, who has been at the helm at Hewlett-Packard for only 11 months.

Ray Lane, who has moved from non-executive chairman to executive chairman of HP's board, said: "We are at a critical moment and we need renewed leadership to successfully implement our strategy and take advantage of the market opportunities ahead."

Referring to Apotheker, Lane said the board believes "the job of the HP CEO now requires additional attributes".


they weren't just silly rumours -- they were threats:eyes:

[xchrom]

25. Gold loses its shine as investors cash in

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/sep/22/gold-prices-fall-us-investors

Gold, the favourite currency of conspiracy theorist Glenn Beck and modern-day prospectors, is losing its lustre.

The gold price crashed on Wednesday as spooked investors decided to cash in after a record boom in the price of the precious metal.

Analysts said investors were selling gold to buy dollars, betting on a strengthening US currency. They noted, worryingly, that a similar trend occurred after the collapse of Lehman Bros in 2008, a collapse that ushered in the worst recession in living memory.

Gold is a traditional safe haven during dark financial times. It has become such a popular investment recently that gold investment firms have hired top US media stars like Beck to shill for their firms.

[Po_d Mainiac]

32. More like panic in the paper market as

the banksters are now in full desperation mode to raise cash.

Kinda like a fire drill in a theater of a Broadway show....The seats become real cheap, real fast, and the price of doorways skyrockets.

But don't expect a factual assessment from MSM...advertizing revenues are in the balance.
YMMV

[Demeter]

34. I'd Venture that QE2 Is Finally Drained of The Last Drop

so the bubbles are ALL going flat...glad to see oil drop!

[Po_d Mainiac]

38. I'll wander out to the thin end of the branch and wager

That the drop is either 'transitory' or the dollars to purchase oil become very scarse
YMMV

[Hawkowl]

64. I agree completely

Since all the major banks have their own trading operations now, it looks like they are selling everything that isn't nailed down to raise cash. Commodities such as copper are plummeting as well as oil. All these paper trades are hugely leveraged and are being unwound. It looks like the markets are setting up for the mother of all cascade failures. :popcorn:

[AnneD]

35. I just can't see it....

Here in this country we know Chopper Ben is printing fiat currency at a break neck speed and we know there were no jobs produced last month, so unless unless Obama has a goodly number of jobs in that bill or Boner has some jobs in his hip pocket... this economy isn't all that great.

The very last thing I would do at this point is trade my gold in for USD. We are in better shape than Europe but I think China is still in the better shape than we are.

I am not a shill paid or otherwise for gold, I just know that debt is not an asset and derivatives are not an investment vehicle. Call be old fashioned if you will but I have not been brain washed. I have been holding off buying anything because it has been out of my reach but frankly, IMHO and it is just that, this seems like a fire sale to me. I try to buy low sell high and I think the true value is around 1800 per oz. I will wait to see if it drops more and buy but I find it hard to agree with the reasons for the sell off.

This is my second gold cycle to witness and I invest in gold as a safe haven, a wealth diversification, and to retain my spending/saving. All I ask of it is to preserve my wealth-I am not looking for a gain.

[Po_d Mainiac]

39. BTFD..n/t

[Roland99]

41. All that gold bug rush talk got the price to rise quickly and now the speculators are cashing out...

always some who play the suckers but I don't see gold maintaining the selloff. Esp. if more easing comes about.

[AnneD]

70. Exactly my point....

easing is the only way they can keep the ponzi scheme going. I think Timmy was trying to talk EU into some scheme like that. I was listening to Max Keiser in his latest talk about is. Seems like the USD is now the currency of choice for debt. That is one reason why the strong dollar.

I am considering it a fire sale and am planning to pick me up a few new pieces that I could not have afforded several months ago, thank you very much.

I buy for best value, not those fancy overpriced coins that Beck hawks.

[Po_d Mainiac]

98. nope. n/t

[DemReadingDU]

43. China's ghost cities

It appears China is also printing fiat money, and some is used to build cities that on one can afford to live in. The cities are for 'investments'
:crazy:

9/9/11 China's empty city of Ordos
Despite high inflation levels, China's economy is the world's second largest.
And as it continues to grow, so too do the building projects.
Investors see them as a safe bet to place their money.
Al Jazeera's Melissa Chan has this report from Ordos, a wealthy coal-mining town in Inner Mongolia, originally designed to house one million people, yet hardly anyone lives there.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0brcZTVde-I&feature=player_embedded

11/9/09 same city, 2 years ago
China's economy is continuing to grow despite the global recession, helped by a massive government stimulus package of $585bn.
But doubts remain whether such strong growth can be sustained by public spending alone.
Al Jazeera's Melissa Chan reports from Inner Mongolia, where a whole town built with government money is standing empty.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0h7V3Twb-Qk&feature=player_embedded

[ozone_man]

45. It's the flight to safety.

Which is still to the dollar. Gold has been money before, and may be in the future, but it is not at present. So, when the liquidation occurs, the dollar goes up. I'd still keep a certain amount in gold though. Probably at some point, hyperinflation phase will take over and gold will go through the roof, but we are in a deflationary phase for now. The FED is trying to balance that, but is fighting deflation not inflation, hence our 0% rates. Soon the banks will charge you to keep dollars in the bank.

[AnneD]

74. Good thoughts....

If we are in the deflationary phase, my gold is worth less, but it also cost less to buy. BUT if I hold on and go long, my gold will go through the roof.

Hmmmmmm. I am trying to find a down side here. Seems like either way I am coming out ahead. The variable seems to be the time I hold on to it and the market when I sell.

I still am holding on to what I have, maybe bargain shop. I notice I am not so quick to spend if it is gold as opposed to fiat. So actually I save more.

My eggs are not in one basket but I like to have a gold and silver egg in the basket. I have all the stock I care to have and are concentrating on the tangible assets.

[ozone_man]

102. By all means buy the dips.

Like when gold reaches $1,000 looks like a good (re)entry point, to me even. Assuming there is more cash on hand for such purpose.

Stocks?! Well, lets just agree to disagree there. Way overvalued in my humble opinion. It will be quite a while before we get to this bottom.

[Demeter]

81. Obama is going to become the punchline for many a bad joke in the near future

Even more than W. And Obama will remain a joke in the future, whereas W will always be known as a crooked cheat. Unfortunately, the joke's on us.

[xchrom]

50. Gold Premium Over Platinum Seen at Record on Recession Threat: Commodities

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-22/gold-premium-over-platinum-seen-at-record-on-recession-threat-commodities.html

Gold’s premium to platinum, already the biggest in almost two decades, may surge to the highest on record in the next year because of investors’ mounting concern about the global economy.

Gold cost 3.1 percent more than platinum in London yesterday, compared with an average discount of 39 percent over the past decade, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The metal may reach a premium of 26 percent in the third quarter of 2012, according to David Wilson of Societe Generale SA in London, the most accurate platinum, palladium and silver forecaster tracked by Bloomberg over two years. That would be the highest in data compiled by Bloomberg going back to 1987.

Prices are converging for the first time since the global economy was in recession in 2008 as investors seek a haven from slumping stock markets and slowing growth. Platinum is down 7.8 percent for the year because 58 percent of supply is used in industry for catalytic converters, glass and chemicals. Gold rose 19 percent and investors in exchange-traded products hold $121.5 billion of the metal, about 53 times more than in platinum, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

“The ratio is indicating that markets are still concerned about a global recession,” said Peter Fertig, owner of Quantitative Commodity Research Ltd. in Hainburg, Germany, and the most accurate platinum forecaster so far this year in a survey by the London Bullion Market Association. “That’s weighing far stronger on platinum than it is gold.”

[Demeter]

79. If I were to Buy a Commodity for Its Industrial Use

I'd go with the rare earths (not radioactives), integrated circuit grade silicon, and any kind of hardwood (not pulp woods).

Most anything else can be substituted.

[xchrom]

61. Commodities Fall to Nine-Month Low

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-23/commodities-poised-for-worst-week-in-4-months.html

Commodities fell to a nine-month low as silver, copper and nickel tumbled on deepening concern that policy makers are running out of tools to avert another global recession, hurting demand for metals, fuel and food. Gold fell below $1,700 an ounce in New York.

The Standard & Poor’s GSCI Index of 24 commodities fell as much as 2.2 percent, the most since Dec. 2, and was down 0.8 percent at 2:40 p.m. in London. The index is down 7.8 percent this week, the most since May 6. Silver slumped 10 percent, copper was down 2.7 percent and nickel dropped 3.1 percent.

Central bankers and finance ministers will discuss the economic outlook today at the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington. The Federal Reserve on Sept. 21 said it will replace $400 billion of short-term debt with longer-term Treasuries, saying it sees “significant downside risks” to growth.

[DCBob]

96. Its interesting that investors are turning from gold now..

even though the world economy is on the verge of collapse. I would have thought just the oppsite reaction.

[xchrom]

28. Global economy: it could be autumn 2008 all over again - but worse

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/sep/22/global-economy-autum-2008-again

It is all scarily familiar. Finance ministers and central bank governors gather in Washington for the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund against a backdrop of weakening growth and tumbling financial markets. Three years on from the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the air is thick with memories of a time when the world was 48 hours away from cash machines running out of money.

Both the IMF and the World Bank are issuing warnings by the bucketload about the need to address the crisis they see looming – and with good reason. This could be the autumn of 2008 all over again, only worse this time.

Christine Lagarde, the IMF's managing director, identified two reasons why that could be so. First, policymakers have used up virtually all their ammunition. Interest rates are already at historically low levels and countries that once had the cushion of sound public finances are now running big budget deficits.

[xchrom]

30. GLOBAL MARKETS-Shares hit 14-mnth lows; little faith in G20 pledge

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/feedarticle/9861271

LONDON, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Global stocks fell to 14-month lows on Friday and the euro reversed gains as growing concern about the impact on the banking sector of a possible Greek default offset vows from G20 leading economies to shore up the financial system.
European shares fell 1.8 percent, extending Thursday's losses of almost 5 percent, with banking shares suffering the most after Deutsche Bank said the region's banks may face a bigger-than expected hit from an internationally agreed swap arrangement on Greek government debt .
Riskier assets had staged a tentative recovery earlier after finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 said they would take "all steps necessary" to calm the global financial system and said central banks were ready to provide liquidity.

[Demeter]

33. Confused? By James Kwak

http://baselinescenario.com/2011/09/20/confused/

Some of the headline numbers for President Obama’s deficit reduction proposal that you hear are the following:

$3 trillion in deficit reduction over ten years—more than the $1.2–1.5 trillion expected from the Joint Select Committee (JSC)
$4 trillion in deficit reduction, including the discretionary spending caps in the Budget Control Act
$1.5 trillion in tax increases
$1 trillion in deficit reduction by capping spending on Iraq and Afghanistan

This didn’t make sense to me for a few reasons, notably that any deal that preserves any of the Bush tax cuts should be scored by the CBO as a tax cut, which increases the deficit. The actual numbers are rather more complicated...

LONG DISCUSSION AT LINK

...Just an observation: President Obama has decided to frame his tax proposal as a $1.5 trillion tax increase on the rich (relative to current tax rates), when he could have framed it as a $2.4 trillion tax cut for the middle class (relative to current law). That’s a purely political decision, and I’m not sure it’s the right one, but his people are the experts, not I.

Finally, by assuming extension of the Bush tax cuts in his adjusted baseline, Obama has moved that item from a contestable policy choice to a fait accompli. It strikes me that no one should be happier about this outcome than President George W. Bush. Obama has basically endorsed making 80 percent of the Bush tax cuts permanent. Sure, the 20 percent for the rich was probably the part that Bush cared about the most. But it means that the core of Bush’s domestic agenda—cutting taxes and depriving the federal government of revenue—is now safe. (As far as I can tell, Obama wants to keep the lower tax rates on investment income that were in the 2003 tax cut.) As I’ve said before, it was bad policy then, and it’s bad policy now. But it will be with us for a long time.

[Roland99]

40. At the start - Gold under $1,700/oz. Oil under $80/bbl

Dow 10,681 -53 -0.49%
Nasdaq 2,441 -15 -0.59%
S&P 500 1,122 -7 -0.63%
GlobalDow 1,677 -14 -0.82%
Gold 1,691 -50 -2.87%
Oil 79.38 -1.13 -1.40%

[Hotler]

44. Looks like a good day to start drinking early.

I have no hope. I see no future.

[Demeter]

82. We're Going to Have an Equinox Party this Weekend

Come as you are!

[Fuddnik]

85. I thought you had to come as a horse.

[Demeter]

86. Whatever works for you.

But I'm not putting up with any Equus jokes...I've never seen it, I never want to, I don't care who says what about it. It's beyond gross, depraved and degenerate.

[Demeter]

91. Just don't come as a horse's ass

[hamerfan]

101. +1. n/t

[DemReadingDU]

47. Law of Mean Reversion

9/23/11
John Xenakis says...
I'm posting this chart again because it's still highly relevant, and it explains what's going on on Wall Street. Even if you don't understand the Law of Mean Reversion at all, you can still understand this chart. This shows that P/E ratios (also called "valuations") have been high, sometimes astronomically high, continuously since 1995. And you can see that valuations are on their way down to 1982 levels, which implies a stock market at the Dow 3000 level or lower.



more...
http://www.generationaldynamics.com/cgi-bin/D.PL?xct=gd.e110923#e110923


Mean reversion is a mathematical concept sometimes used for stock investing, but it can be applied to other assets. In general terms, the essence of the concept is the assumption that both a stock's high and low prices are temporary and that a stock's price will tend to move to the average price over time.
more
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mean_reversion_%28finance%29

[Po_d Mainiac]

48. The executive washroom at BAC HQ after Buffet just used it

[xchrom]

63. ...

:spray:

[AnneD]

75. Next time.....

give a spew alert....::spray:

[xchrom]

52. south asia: The Socialist Push Behind India’s Capitalist Rise: Pankaj Mishra

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-23/a-socialist-push-behind-india-capitalist-rise-commentary-by-pankaj-mishra.html

Twenty years ago, India faced a fiscal crisis caused by profligate public spending and rising oil prices after the first Persian Gulf War. There was a risk it would default on its international payments.

The finance minister, an English-educated Sikh economist named Manmohan Singh, responded to an almost unmanageable situation by liberalizing trade and industrial policies.

So India entered a bright world of market-driven capitalism after years of socialist darkness, and was set on its current path of almost 8 percent annual growth in gross domestic product.

Or so the story goes. Like all historical watersheds, India’s economic liberalization in 1991 has generated its own share of heroes and myths. Few books or articles in the mainstream press about Indian politics and economy in the past two decades have been judicious with their praise for Manmohan Singh, the apparent slayer of India’s socialist fantasies, the prophet of free-market logic, and for the past seven years prime minister of India.

But things are never so simple, and for Singh they have gotten vastly more complicated in recent years.

[xchrom]

65. Sensex pares losses by 1.22%; metals, banks down

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/market-news/sensex-pares-losses-by-1-22-metals-banks-down/articleshow/10091628.cms

Indian shares logged their first weekly decline in four and ended 1.14 percent down on Friday. Investors opted to stay away from a highly volatile market with the Nifty showing signs of indecision unlike Thursday when it was down throughout the day, dealers said.

India's export-driven software services companies paired early gains and ended down. "A close below 4,900 is definitely bearish for the Nifty. However, any softening of USD-INR rates in the coming sessions could trigger fresh buying in equities," said Amit Chheda, head equity, Inventure Growth and Securities.

The 50-share NSE index declined 55.90 points to 4,867.75, taking losses for the week to 4.26 percent, with 29 of its components losing ground.

Metals indices lost the most and ended 2.28 percent lower followed by auto and consumer durable stocks.

[xchrom]

66. Silver tumbles by Rs 5,500, gold down by Rs 300 on global cues

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/commodities/silver-tumbles-by-rs-5500-gold-down-by-rs-300-on-global-cues/articleshow/10091436.cms

NEW DELHI: Silver tumbled by a whopping Rs 5,500 to Rs 59,000 per kg today, its second biggest fall in three months, due to slackened demand at prevailing high levels amid a bearish global trend.

The white metal had fallen by Rs 6,000 to Rs 53,200 per kg on May 6 earlier this year.

Gold also fell by Rs 300 to Rs 28,040 per 10 grams on sustained offloading of positions by stockists.

Selling pressure gathered momentum after gold headed for its worst weekly performance in more than four months in global markets as investors sold the metal, amid melting equities and other commodities, fearing the world economy might slow down, traders said.

[xchrom]

54. GE Put-Option Ratio at Highest Since ’97

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-22/ge-put-ratio-surges-to-highest-since-1997-as-growth-jeopardized-options.html

Options traders are the most bearish on General Electric Co. (GE) in 14 years, speculating its streak of quarterly earnings increases won’t survive Europe’s debt crisis and slowing global growth.

The ratio of puts to sell shares versus calls to buy has climbed 11 percent in the past two months to 1.3, and was 1.33 on Sept. 15, the highest since October 1997 and the third- highest among Dow Jones Industrial Average companies, data compiled by Bloomberg show. United Technologies Corp. (UTX) and Honeywell International Inc. (HON), which compete with Fairfield, Connecticut-based GE, both have more calls than puts.

GE, which expects to get about 60 percent of sales from outside the U.S. this year, is susceptible to falling consumer spending and industrial demand for its products such as jet engines. The International Monetary Fund cut its forecast for global growth this week and predicted “severe” repercussions if Europe fails to contain its debt crisis or U.S. policy makers deadlock over a fiscal plan.

“If there is a global recession, which we’re sort of on the razor’s edge of, it’s going to impact their sales, and you’re going to see the stock decline further,” said Tom Wirth, who helps manage $1.6 billion as senior investment officer for Chemung Canal Trust Co. in Elmira, New York, said in a Sept. 21 phone interview. “It’s more fear-driven than anything else.”

[xchrom]

55. Emerging-Market Stocks Plunge, Set for Biggest Weekly Tumble Since 2008

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-23/emerging-stocks-plunge-boosting-prospects-for-government-support-measures.html

Emerging-market stocks dropped, with the benchmark index set for its biggest weekly loss since 2008, as concern deepened that the global economic slowdown will overwhelm government efforts to support growth.

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index fell 2.1 percent to 861.69 at 9:11 a.m. in New York, extending this week’s retreat to 12 percent. South Korea’s Kospi Index (KOSPI) tumbled 5.7 percent for the biggest drop among global equity gauges, while Russia’s Micex Index fell 4.4 percent. Asian currencies rallied, paring the Bloomberg-JPMorgan Asia Dollar Index’s biggest weekly drop since 1998, as central banks in the region intervened. Brazil’s real gained 1.2 percent and the Bovespa index added 0.5 percent.

The world is poised for a financial crisis, Mohamed El- Erian, chief executive officer of Pacific Investment Management Co., said yesterday. The MSCI emerging stock gauge has tumbled 29 percent from this year’s high on May 2 as European leaders failed to find a solution for the region’s sovereign debt crisis and the U.S. economic recovery stalled.

[xchrom]

58. Markets Pound South America as Leaders Tout Strengths

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-23/markets-pound-south-america-as-leaders-proclaim-strength-in-face-of-crisis.html

Leaders from South America came to New York this week to tout their combined economic strength in the face of financial turmoil in developed nations. They’ll return home with their armor dented after investors dumped the region’s stocks, bonds and currencies.

The presidents of Brazil, Colombia, Peru and Chile -- the region’s four investment-grade economies -- rattled off a list of accomplishments in speeches this week while attending the United Nations General Assembly: record foreign currency reserves, falling debt levels and economic growth above 4 percent. While criticizing policy makers in Europe and the U.S. for acting slowly to address their debt challenges, they vowed to work together to protect their own economies from turmoil.

“No offense to the Greeks but I think your investment would be safer in Peru,” President Ollanta Humala said last night during a Council of the Americas dinner in New York.

The MSCI EM Latin America Index extended a weekly slump to 14 percent, the most since November 2008, while the MSCI World Index lost 7.6 percent. In Brazil, the Bovespa stock index fell for fifth day while the real rebounded after the central bank sold dollars in the futures market for the first time in two years to stem a 17 percent tumble this month. Chile’s peso rebounded from the biggest drop among global currencies as speculation the central bank will cease its dollar-buying program overshadowed copper’s tumble to a one-year low.

[xchrom]

59. Rail Shipments Defy Recession With Growth

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-23/no-sign-of-recession-with-rising-rail-shipments-showing-trend-to-expansion.html

Railroads shipments are the highest in almost three years, helping to defy concerns about a double- dip recession.

Total rail volumes excluding grain and coal averaged 381,831 carloads in August, the most since October 2008, according to data from the Association of American Railroads in Washington. These shipments represent the bulk of materials for industrial production, so rising volumes show the economy is still growing, according to Art Hatfield, a transportation analyst in Memphis, Tennessee, at Morgan Keegan & Co.

“We’re not seeing declines in rail volumes that are synonymous with a recession,” Hatfield said. “We remain in a slow growth environment.”

The correlation between the 12-month average of total rail- car loadings excluding grain and coal and the three-month average of the Federal Reserve’s manufacturing industrial- production index is 0.82, according to Bloomberg News calculations. A correlation of 1 would show they move in lockstep, while a value of zero signals no relationship.

[xchrom]

60. Shipowner Mothballs New Supertanker Without Having Delivered Single Cargo

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-23/new-supertanker-to-be-mothballed-before-getting-cargo-wilhelmsen-says.html

A shipowner will mothball a newly built supertanker for the first time since the 1980s as a glut of the ships erodes earnings to an unprofitable $1,000 a day.

The tanker, capable of carrying 2 million barrels of crude, will be sent to a natural harbor in Malaysia, Arild Johannessen, an Oslo-based spokesman for Wilhelmsen Ship Management, which will oversee the deactivation, said by phone today. He declined to identify the ship because the details are private.

Earnings from this class of vessel, which carry about a fifth of the world’s oil, last week averaged $1,000 a day, according to Braemar Shipping Services Plc (BMS) in London, the U.K.’s second-largest publicly traded shipbroker. Some tankers were contracted speculatively and not secured against long-term charters, according to Holger Romer, spokesman for Hamburg, Germany-based Dr. Peters Group, owner of 19 supertankers.

“If you have a new ship that was ordered in ‘07 and ‘08, it was at a high price and now if you don’t have a charterer, it’s a big problem,” Romer said by phone. Dr. Peters Group owns 19 supertankers, he said.

[DemReadingDU]

71. CNBC video - German Banks Have $1 Trillion In Hidden Losses?

9/23/11 A look at the currency markets, with Joseph Trevisani, FX Solutions chief market analyst, who recommends buying the U.S. dollar right now.

http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000047166 2 min video

[Demeter]

83. Come out, come out, wherever you are!

That will shut up the Germans for another 60 years.

[DemReadingDU]

72. Ex-NBA Player Tate George Charged in $2M Ponzi Scheme

9/23/11 Ex-NBA Player Charged in $2M Ponzi Scheme

Tate George, who played professional basketball for the New Jersey Nets and Milwaukee Bucks in the 1990s, was charged with running a $2 million Ponzi scheme that targeted former pro athletes.

George, 43, is charged with one count of wire fraud, according to a statement today from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark, New Jersey. George, who faces a maximum of 20 years in prison if convicted, surrendered to federal authorities today in Newark, the U.S. said.

From 2005 through March 2011, George, claiming to have more than $500 million under management at his company, raised more than $2 million from investors for real-estate developments in Florida, Illinois, Connecticut and New Jersey, according to the statement. The company had “virtually no income generating operations,” prosecutors said.

“Instead of using investments to fund real estate development projects, George used the money from new investors to pay existing investors,” according to the statement. “He also used some of the money for home improvement projects, meals at restaurants, clothing and gas.”

more...
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-23/former-nba-player-tate-george-charged-in-investment-fraud.html

[Fuddnik]

78. Oil bobbing a few pennies north and south of $80.00

I hope it stays below there for a while.

We booked a cruise in the Caribbean for 7 days, way back in April. We paid it off and got our final documents in July. Then I started reading the fine print in the agreement (which we'd never seen before). There's a clause in there that says for any day of the cruise that the price of oil is above $80, passengers will be charged a $25.00 per day fuel surcharge. Per passenger.

What originally looks like a good deal could wind up costing hundreds of dollars more. I don't know if my BIL and SIL next door noticed that or not. We're going with them to celebrate their 45th anniversary. They're not rich by any means, but they also paid for their son and his wife, their daughter and her two kids. They'll really take a hit.

[Demeter]

84. OMG!

Will keep fingers crossed for you.

[DemReadingDU]

87. OMG

Highway robbery, never heard of that kind of fine print before.

Certainly wishing the oil price remains less than $80.
Otherwise a cruise sounds awesome!

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

88. "Ve vill not go into the veekend on a down note!"

'Cause it's getting real shaky.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

89. LOL!

[Po_d Mainiac]

99. Butt vee vil vee vaary hunggded ovah on munday...

Fuckin Schnapps, nevah mixed well will ouzo :rofl:

[Demeter]

90. TODAY'S PRETEXT: Morgan Stanley rally, leads financials higher

PLEASE IGNORE THAT WHOLLY UNNECESSARY AND UNJUSTIFIED COMMA IN HEADLINE


http://www.marketwatch.com/story/bank-stocks-fall-in-active-us-preopen-trade-2011-09-23?siteid=YAHOOB

The financial sector rebounded on Friday as shares of major U.S. banks, led by Morgan Stanley, rebounded from pre-open losses. But despite the gains, financials are headed for a weekly loss of nearly 10%. Shares of Morgan Stanley surged 4.3%, Citigroup Inc. C +3.84% rose 3.7%, Goldman Sachs Group GS +1.22% climbed 2% and Wells Fargo WFC +1.25% jumped 3%.

The recovery was supported by building expectations that European authorities will take more aggressive steps if the situation in the euro zone deteriorates further. Overnight, the Group of 20 major economies said European parliaments will work in the next few weeks to approve a plan to boost the flexibility of the €440 billion ($595 billion) European Financial Stability Facility to aid troubled euro-area banks. Separately, a European Commission spokesman downplayed a report of accelerated recapitalization of 16 European banks that nearly failed recent stress tests. The comments followed a Financial Times report that European officials planned to speed up recapitalization efforts for the banks, including ones in Greece, Portugal Spain and Germany.

J.P. Morgan Chase economists also projected that the European Central Bank may cut its policy rate by a half point to 1% in October. “The data are pretty clearly pointing downwards, so why save your limited conventional bullets for just another month or two?” Greg Fuzesi, an economist at J.P. Morgan Chase....MORE AT LINK

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

92. Rally?

:rofl:

[Demeter]

93. The Pause That Refreshes, Maybe

I always thought a rally meant good news.