Credit Writedowns

On Friday, in reporting on second quarter GDP statistics, I wrote with some skepticism about the underlying consumer demand which would underpin a sustainable recovery.  I do feel that the stage is set for recovery; Alan Greenspan…

Kinder, Gentler Banks? It Wasn’t in the Deal - NYTimes.com Good effort on what banks owe taxpayers. But, still not quite there. Hat tip Yves Smith. Financial Armageddon: Jenga Time in CRE CRE is the next big writedown time bomb.…

Economist Robert Shiller of Yale University provides Charlie Rose an update on the economic crisis, focusing on the housing market and the data from his recent reports.

Here are the latest FDIC seizures: First State Bank of Altus, Altus, Oklahoma Total assets of $103.4 million and deposits of approximately $98.2 million Estimated cost to the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF): $25.2 million. Integrity…

Sorry for the lack of posts today. I have been travelling. Have a great weekend. Edward. Vacancy rate for offices reaches an 18-year high - Independent.ie CRE is a major problem in Ireland too HSBC May Post Loss on $15 Billion Bad…

Down 1.5% was the consensus expectation. But Q1 was revised down to minus 6.4% from 5.5%. The GDP Deflator for Q2 came in at 0.2%, which shows that disinflation risks tipping into deflation still.  The dollar is weaker and the short…

As U.S. recession bites, Ohio hopes fade for Obama | Politics | Reuters Yet another piece of bad news for Obama Obama Ratings Slide Across the Board -- Taegan Goddard's Political Wire Will this change anytime soon? Ambassadorships…

Late last year, I anticipated that the global slowdown would bring China’s GDP growth down to 2%, a level that would make most nations envious but which would have been catastrophic for China.  In the end, robust government stimulus…

The US Department of Labor released data showing that 584,000 people filed initial claims for unemployment insurance this past week.  This is up sharply from the upwardly revised 559,000 last week and 524,000 two weeks ago.  The…

UK house prices have now risen for three months consecutively and four months in five according to statistics released by Nationwide Building Society this morning. The rise for July was a very robust 1.3% month-on-month, which translates…