Archive for the 'Economy' Category
Danish Central Bank Nationalizes Roskilde Bank After Efforts to Find Buyer Failed
August 25th, 2008Via: Bloomberg: The Danish Central Bank will lead a buyout of Roskilde Bank A/S after a slumping property market drove the lender into insolvency and a private purchaser couldn’t be found. Roskilde will receive 4.5 billion kroner ($890 million) in cash from the central bank and Danish lenders. The purchasers will also assume 37.3 billion […]
“Big 3” Automakers Beg for $25 Billion Government Bailout
August 23rd, 2008UPDATE: Make that $50 Billion HAHA. The free market! The American Soviet Ministry of Automobiles is “free” to double its request for public handouts from $25 billion to $50 billion. Via: Reuters: The Big 3 Detroit-based automakers are seeking about $25 billion in federal loans as they struggle to ride out a steep downturn in […]
FDIC Friday: Columbian Bank and Trust of Kansas Shut by Regulators
August 23rd, 2008Via: Reuters: Columbian Bank and Trust Co. of Topeka, Kansas, was closed by U.S. regulators today, the ninth U.S. bank to collapse this year amid bad real-estate loans and writedowns stemming from a drop in home prices. The bank, with $752 million in assets and $622 million in total deposits, was shuttered by the Kansas […]
Oil Falls 5.4% in Biggest Drop Since 2004
August 23rd, 2008WARNING: This is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any financial instrument. A couple of days ago, during the crank rally in oil and gold, and the sell off of the dollar, I wrote: These moves look like very technical plays. I’d be extremely careful chasing gold or oil long here. These look […]
Sterling Tumbles as UK Economy Grinds to a Halt
August 22nd, 2008Via: Financial Times: Sterling tumbled on Friday as official figures showed UK economic growth ground to a halt in the second quarter of this year, strengthening fears the economy is already contracting. The Office for National Statistics revised its first estimate of second quarter growth by more than expected as it said output had been […]
A Few Speculators Dominate Vast Market for Oil Trading
August 21st, 2008Mmm hmm. Full text. Via: Washington Post: Regulators had long classified a private Swiss energy conglomerate called Vitol as a trader that primarily helped industrial firms that needed oil to run their businesses. But when the Commodity Futures Trading Commission examined Vitol’s books last month, it found that the firm was in fact more of […]
Wall Street Journal Claims U.S. Mint Has Stopped Selling American Eagle Gold Coins
August 21st, 2008Hmm. That’s interesting, because, as of right now, the U.S. Mint is still selling them online (with a hefty premium built in). There’s always a supply of gold coins for sale on eBay. If you want 1oz American Eagles, go to eBay and search for american eagle gold $50. It will be interesting to see […]
Oil Up, Gold Up, Dollar Down
August 21st, 2008WARNING: This is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any financial instrument. The business media is saying that geopolitical tensions between Russia and the U.S. and the ongoing credit/banking crisis are the drivers here. Maybe. To me, these moves look like very technical plays. I’d be extremely careful chasing gold or oil long […]
Mortgage Application Volume Hits Multiyear Low
August 20th, 2008If people can’t or won’t take out new loans, the chainsaw juggling that we’ve been seeing is about to get kicked up a few notches. Via: AP: Mortgage application volume fell last week to its lowest levels in nearly eight years, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday. The fall in application volume is the latest […]
Merrill Lynch, Wachovia at Risk of Failure
August 20th, 2008Via: CNBC: Merrill Lynch, Wachovia and other financial companies are at risk of failure as the cost of raising capital soars at a time when the banks need to pay settlements over auction rate securities, David Kotok, chairman & chief investment officer from Cumberland Advisors, told CNBC Monday. … “Those firms — Merrill, Wachovia and […]
