Economy

The Department of Labor reports: In the week ending Feb. 20, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 496,000, an increase of 22,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 474,000. The 4-week moving average…

Also see Greece in turmoil over austerity from the FT.

Former New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine talks with Bloomberg's Deirdre Bolton and Erik Schatzker about his concerns about the U.S. budget deficit and stimulus-spending strategy.

This is just in from the FT: Germany recorded a budget deficit of 3.3 per cent of gross domestic product last year, one point more than the most recent forecasts, but still well below the level for most of Europe’s larger economies.…

By now, you know about the much-discussed swaps that Greece used to conceal it’s debt load.  While the amount of debt concealed is low relative to the total, the mere fact that Greece attempted to conceal its true fiscal position is…

I said: "Here’s my question: when does this affect the Greek sovereign credit rating? That has to be next because the scenario I just scoped out would indeed suggest lower tax revenue and more budgetary pressure. Sure sounds like a death…

I referenced Matt Taibbi’s latest work at Rolling Stone “Wall Street’s Bailout Hustle” recently when talking about a movie on Ponzi schemes and fraud that aired on 60 Minutes. I liked the piece and recommend you read it – fully aware of the…

Yves Smith and I received a tip at the weekend from a friend who reads the German press regularly about credit default swaps (CDS) on Greek government debt. Read Yves’ piece based on that article here. Below is mine. Previously, I had…

Apparently, some of the ‘best reforms’ now being instituted in the U.S. to prevent a liquidity crisis in the future include limitations on demand deposits (hat tip Karl Denninger). What financial institutions are trying to prevent is a bank…

In the wake of the most recent Matt Taibbi polemic “Wall Street's Bailout Hustle,” I think the video below about financial fraud is appropriate viewing. I liked the Taibbi piece - although it certainly had a certain over-the-top gonzo feel…