Archive for the 'Economy' Category
Oil: Margin Requirements Tripled on Nymex and Ice Futures Exchanges
June 2nd, 2008I’m in no position to assess the impact that this will have. The initial margin requirements were a joke, so is tripling them a meaningful improvement? I don’t know. I better stick to my squiggly lines and chicken entrails, which have come in handy. Remember what I told you about that weekly stochastic on oil? […]
Fed Might Accept Foreign Collateral
June 1st, 2008Via: MarketWatch: The Federal Reserve is actively considering creation of a lending facility that would accept “very safe” foreign collateral from “sound” global banks in case of a widespread liquidity crisis, Fed Vice Chairman Donald Kohn said Thursday. A new global discount window is “under active study,” Kohn said. “It is possible that over time, […]
Billboards that Look Back
May 31st, 2008Pretty high creep-out factor here. Via: New York Times: In advertising these days, the brass ring goes to those who can measure everything — how many people see a particular advertisement, when they see it, who they are. All of that is easy on the Internet, and getting easier in television and print. Billboards are […]
Eurozone Inflation Reaches 16-Year High
May 31st, 2008Via: Financial Times: Eurozone inflation surged to the highest rate for 16 years on the back of sharply higher oil prices as consumer spending in the 15-country region showed further signs of weakness. Annual inflation in the eurozone reached 3.6 per cent in May, according to official data released on Friday, up from 3.3 per […]
U.S., British Oil Probes Focusing on Price Manipulation
May 30th, 2008Assume maximum criminal behavior… —Insider Crimes, Funny Money and Options Rackets The parts I found especially interesting are in bold. I think my favorite phrase is, “generally not illegal.” You might like the part about the Enron style antics. Or maybe the questionable reporting of reserves. But there’s plenty of fun for the whole family […]
U.S. Banks Likely to Fail as Bad Loans Soar
May 30th, 2008WARNING: This is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any financial instrument. I’ve been posting fewer financial doom stories, but this one is worth reading, especially for U.S. bank account holders. Watch those FDIC limits, move your money out of the U.S., consider cash in hand strategies and weigh the risks of doing […]
UK House Price Decline Accelerating
May 29th, 2008Via: BBC: UK house prices have recorded their largest monthly fall since 1991, says the Nationwide building society. Prices have fallen by 2.5% during May, according to its latest monthly survey. The lender said prices were now 4.4% lower than a year ago, a drop of £8,000, which has taken the average UK house price […]
Pentagon Watchdogs Swamped by Military Spending; $152 Billion a Year Goes Unaudited
May 28th, 2008Via: Wired: The Pentagon’s internal watchdogs can’t keep up with the explosive growth in military spending. Which means $152 billion’s worth of contracts annually aren’t being reviewed for fraud, abuse and criminal interference by the Defense Department’s Inspector General, according to a newly-unearthed report to Congress. The result: “undetected or inadequately investigated criminal activity and […]
Native Americans Buying Their Own Land Back with Casino Profits
May 28th, 2008Via: Star Tribune: Face black with soot, Victoria Ranua strides across a Scott County hillside, painting it with fire. What begins as a low thin strip of yellow, ignited by her torch, leaps behind her at once into a huge hedge of dancing flames, racing across dry prairie grasses. The process, Ranua said, helps the […]
Olmert ‘Took Cash in Envelopes’
May 27th, 2008Via: BBC: A US businessman has testified he gave envelopes full of cash to Israel’s prime minister but said he did not seek or receive any favours in return. Morris Talansky told an Israeli court he did not know how the money was spent, but linked it to Ehud Olmert’s “love” of “expensive” luxury goods. […]
