In a previous article titled "Structured by Banks, Built on Froth" I posed several questions and based on the information that was available at the time, made some speculative comments. Well, some time has passed almost a month, and several new developments have surfaced. We now have the Sinking Nature of Froth
Week Ending 11.26.07
We could begin by pointing a jagged little finger at the housing industry as many have and many will in the coming months but that would be an exercise with little benefit. But perhaps, we are simply running in place as Alice and the Red Queen did. If so, we have a
Red Queen Economy to deal with, which might not be so bad.
Week Ending 10.27.07
That said the banks have hatched a plan. Why not form a group where these C.D.O.s of questionable make-up can be bought and finance it with borrowed money? Brilliant. And where do you borrow that kind of money? From the Treasury. And where does the Treasury get its cash? Structured by Banks; Built on Froth
Week Ending 10.20.07
Plain English has been a crusade of sorts from Mr. Cox since he took over as chairman of the agency. Giving shareholders the ability to read a companyıs reports and understand them has been at the heart of his push for better disclosure rules.
Week Ending 10.13.07
Last week's veto by President Bush authorizing additional spending for the State Children's Health Insurance Program or S-chip was based on the belief that the growth of this much needed program would lead to the expansion of health care sponsored by the government. Unfortunately, as is so often the case with this administration, it couldn't be farther from the truth.
Week Ending 10.06.07
Vacation
Week Ending 09.29.07
Vacation
Week Ending 09.22.07
Apposite which also means juxtaposed is from the French word apponere which means to "place near" which is also based on the appose which means proximity. That said, why does it seem as if we have two economies so close, yet so far from each other?The Apposite Economy.
Week Ending 09.08.07
What happens when people lose sight of the meaning of words such as Mortgages, forget the downside of Credit and how their actions can have an effect on the overall Economy? Financial Aphasia.
Week Ending 08.25.07
Recent news coverage has contained phrases such as credit crunch, mortgage meltdown, Ben Bernanke, and discount windows. Here is simple glossary to help with those financial terms: Our Glossary of Gloom.
Week Ending 06.23.07
Hedge funds have been using the strategy for years often with mixed results. But their investors come from a different mindset. A look at 130/30.
Week Ending 06.16.07
Yet, brewing beneath the surface and lurking in the shadows of the bullish surge in equities, the bond market was beginning to unravel.
Week Ending 06.09.07
Is there a lack of liquidity in the stock market? What will happen when the bond markets react?
Week Ending 06.02.07
Recent talks with Chinese ended last week with the feeling that we have gained little ground. And with good reason. Only the US sees the growing trade deficits and the dollar-Yuan peg as a problem of growing importance.
Week Ending 05.26.07
While many of us have been focusing on mortgage meltdowns, stock surges and inflation indicators, several of our distinguished financial leaders have been looking for ways to improve the marketplace.
Week Ending 05.19.07
Vacation
Week Ending 05.12.07
Vacation
Week Ending 05.05.07
Consider Dow 13,000. We have already surpassed that mark and probably will do so repeatedly in the next several weeks. To skeptics such as myself, there is an underlying fallacy in numbers such as this. When DJIA hits new high water marks, it allows investors to fall prey to the big number fallacy.
Week Ending 04.28.07
Determining who is poor is almost as important as why and could affect policies on health insurance, immigration law, job quality and ultimately, education. Farewell Mollie Orshansky
Week Ending 04.21.07
There are currently two undeniable truths in this new global marketplace: The US will buy what it wants with borrowed money and the Chinese have so far enabled that buying spree by loaning us the cash. Special Report: Return to Lender: The First of a Three Part Series on Mortgages. First and foremost, despite how they might appear in relation to recent years, interest rates are still historically low. Unfortunately, many folks with mortgages that are adjustable or were written creatively over the last several years will find little solace in that tidbit of news.
Searching with Credentials: The Second of a Three Part Series on Mortgages. In days gone by, according to several brokers I have spoken with, qualifying for a mortgage may have taken place once the potential buyer selected a broker. Given a general set of income and job history questions, brokers would have made a determination of which home a likely buyer could afford.
No more.
Losing Proposition: The Third in a Three Part Series on Mortgages. Foreclosures estimates for 2007 are expected to reach 1.3 million. These additional homes add to the already higher than normal inventory of available houses driving prices down. It is important to remember that each 1% increase in housing prices keeps 70-80,000 foreclosures from occurring. With inventories of unsold homes rising, the nationwide average home price is expected to fall 5%.
Week Ending 04.07.07
Ben Bernanke, the Federal Reserve chairman seems to be holding his ground when it comes to short-term interest rates at least in the short-term. His testimony before the Congressional Joint Economic Committee this past week offered no additional insight into how the chairman thinks.
Week Ending 03.31.07
Vacation
Week Ending 03.24.07
I am about to break into the top 25% of the contestants currently enrolled in CNBC's Portfolio Challenge. Not that it means anything to anyone but me. I certainly do not expect to win the tax-free prize of one million dollars.
Week Ending 03.17.07
People like me spend countless hours preaching vigilance when it comes to buying mutual funds. Look for good managers we tell them. Search out reasonable fee structures, and pay close attention to lengthy performance histories we repeat. And yet, when they open their 401(k), they simply ignore everything and buy the best performance. Plus a look at the recent meeting held by business leaders in an effort to change regulations. The questions is: will it benefit the average investor?
Week Ending 03.10.07
Hedge fund investing has created increased risk for the average investor. Requests for additional transparency have been resisted by the industry for a number of valid at least to those that run hedge funds -reasons. Now the President's Working Group has agreed that additional oversight is not needed. Really?
Week Ending 03.03.07
Yet, the recent sequence of events seemed to leave even these sage investment experts baffled. The requisite reassurances were proffered and expected after such a fierce and unexpected gyration but they all seemed shallow. Long-term investors were told 'that they need not worry'. It was advice no doubt given by analysts with one eye on the ticker.
Week Ending 02.24.07
If, one the other hand, you were on the fence about ETFs, attracted by the ability to trade them as frequently as stock and wondering how some of these index funds did better from their staid counterparts, you would do well to take a peek at an investment divided.
Week Ending 02.17.07
To those outside the world of finance, the word nairu might be mistaken for a late sixties fashion statement. But in the tongue of bankers, especially those at the Federal Reserve, the term is much more complicated and because of that, the subject of increasing debate.
Week Ending 02.10.07
All budgets, whether they be your own household draft or the mess the president submitted, really need at its core intelligence, imagination and wonder.
And a look at the economy...
The markets got a somewhat dovish statement suggesting that holding steady was by no means a hint that they might start cutting those short-term rates.
Week Ending 02.03.07
Here in the US, we have seen a good many industries that were once considered our own migrate overseas. Trade barriers are always bound to fall. But the downside of such changes leaves many of our citizens at a disadvantage.
On January 17th, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke appeared before Senate lawmakers warning that we are headed for trouble unless we fix our entitlement programs and soon. His report left the Senators with little in the way of answers to the looming problems that we face down the road.
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