Credit Writedowns

In the wake of the NSA spying scandal, I have been moving my data away from large US vendors and increasing my computer security. Both of these issues needed to be addressed but the NSA spying scandal has made them relevant for me - and I…

Spain and Italy reported today that the share of bad loans have continued to rise. There is nothing to suggest that this is the peak. In fact, further deterioration is likely.

News links for 18 Jun 2013

In spite of the divergence in the chart, the "loans create deposits" axiom still stands - deposits are still created through bank credit. Two key developments explain much of this divergence without violating these principles.

News links for 14 Jun 2013

Mortgage backed securities (MBS) have sold off sharply over the past month as fixed income markets face the new reality of rising rates. But unlike most other fixed income securities, MBS duration tends to increase with yield.

Let's get back to technology for a day here. I have a slew of links in the TMT space and the overriding them is consolidation. Mobile is now king. And what technology, media and telecom companies are finding is that the mobile world often…

Once again, savers are punished - they either have to take risk (such as rate or credit risk) or live with 5bp (or less). Money markets simply have not benefited from higher interest rates.

News links for 13 Jun 2013

A rout in global equities is taking shape with the decline led by Japan and emerging markets. Japan is now in bear market territory, with shares down over 20% from the high. But emerging markets are my main worry because of the real…