Credit Writedowns

While I have come down hard on some aspects of Barack Obama’s legislative agenda, I have not been painting him with a Hitler moustache or accusing him of socialism, that great evil practised only in cheese-loving France.  So I was…

Refining margins have been absolutely decimated, especially for refiners of heavy, sour crude like Valero Energy (VLO) and Tesoro Petroleum (TSO).  This is taking a toll on profits in the oil and gas sector, with both oil majors highly…

The U.S. Dollar fell to its lowest against the Swiss Franc and Euro, while the Canadian dollar and the Scandinavian currencies are also near year highs as well.  If you read Bloomberg, you might think this has to do with a bullish equity…

In the latest move toward China’s long-term strategy of internationalising its currency, the Chinese Ministry of Finance announced today it will issue government bonds valued at 6 billion yuan in Hong Kong. The last article I wrote on…

With the Lehman meltdown hitting its one-year anniversary soon, a lot of media outlets are looking back at the events that surrounded Lehman’s collapse. Bloomberg has a good article out that is a must-read piece. For me, the money quote of…

There Is Another Shoe To Drop In The Global Economic and Financial Crisis - And The Focus Will Be On Europe’s Perifery | Edward Hugh A number of countries in Eastern Europe immediately come to mind - not only the Baltics, but also Russia,…

According to an account published in the Daily Telegraph by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, the Chinese government is quite anxious about money printing in the United States and the effect this printing could have on China’s dollar denominated…

iPhone makes worldwide loss, says report While Orange and T-Mobile compete with O2 to sell the iPhone in Britain, a report by Denmark's Strand Consult reveals how it makes a loss for providers and struggles against other phones…

I have no opinion about this plan as I only know what you see in the video.  But, here it is – worthy of debate.

Troubles For 'Prime' Borrowers Intensify - WSJ.com The mortgage-delinquency rate among so-called subprime borrowers reached 25% in the first quarter but appears to be leveling off, rising only slightly in the second quarter. The pace of…