Credit Writedowns

The G20 meeting did not provide much in the way of fresh trading incentives.  However, there were a couple of developments that were noteworthy. The most important of these is the balance struck between growth and fiscal…

I fully support deficit spending as a means to prevent a debt deflationary spiral in a deep downturn.  However, there are limits to what stimulus can actually do. Stimulus is no panacea for an unbalanced economy. In particular, when…

Highlights The US dollar is narrowly mixed to start the new week.  It is hanged against most of the major currencies as the market waits for fresh trading incentives.  The euro was turned back on the initial test of the $1.24…

Blog post series, like the vuvuzela, is the new bacon; it works with everything and with John Hempton’s recent excellent series on the economics of default in the Eurozone and Edward Hugh’s recent postings on AFOE in which he pulls out…

G-20 Financial Reform Efforts Update Osborne tries to put the brakes on banking reform - Telegraph Obama pushes U.S. bank tax - National Post The Usual Fare Bill to Extend Unemployment Benefits Dies - WSJ.com BBC News - Why…

A post by John Mauldin. In this issue: The Risk of Recession The Leading Indicators Are Starting to Turn Terms of Trade and US Real GDP Bernanke at the Crossroads Vancouver, Maine, and San Francisco We are…

As the details of the agreement struck by the key House and Senate conference on financial reform has been embraced favorably by the US equity market, that is being led by the financials, and the foreign currencies.    In the…

In this video from the Wall Street Journal, Sheila Bar talks to the Journal's David Wessel explaining her view that the financial reform bill due to be passed by Congress will end too big to fail. Also see the associated WSJ article,…

By Michael Pettis. With the PBoC’s currency announcement last Saturday and the surge (!) in the value of RMB on Monday (all very kindly timed to add zest to my meetings this week in Boston, New York, and Washington), you would assume that…

By David Galland, Managing Director, Casey’s Energy Report At first glance, no two individuals could seem more different. The Doctor, middle-aged and balding, could be the very archetype of the college professor. The Dealman is young with…