BloggingStocks http://www.bloggingstocks.com BloggingStocks http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/media/feedlogo.gif BloggingStocks http://www.bloggingstocks.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Wall Street 'relieved' by Barclays' $2.7 billion subprime loss]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/15/wall-street-relieved-by-barclays-2-7b-subprime-loss/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/15/wall-street-relieved-by-barclays-2-7b-subprime-loss/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/15/wall-street-relieved-by-barclays-2-7b-subprime-loss/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

It's not every season that Wall Street analysts greet losses or write-downs with smiles, but such is the case in the 'subprime watch' era.

Barclays (NYSE: BCS) Thursday said it wrote-down $2.7 billion of credit-related securities tied to the U.S. subprime mortgage market.

Investors once again appeared to be relieved that a major bank's subprime losses, while not small, weren't catastrophic. Barclays' shares fell just 44 cents to $43.44 in mid-morning trading Thursday. Further, Barclays' shares are up more than 10% for the week, an indication that investors may be regaining an appetite for the United Kingdom's third-largest bank.

Continue reading Wall Street 'relieved' by Barclays' $2.7 billion subprime loss

Wall Street 'relieved' by Barclays' $2.7 billion subprime loss originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 15 Nov 2007 12:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>banksBarclaysBCSBear Stearnsbond marketbondsBSCcentral bankscollateralized debt obligationscredit crunchfeaturedMERMerrill Lynchmonetary policysubprime debtsubprime mortgagesThu, 15 Nov 2007 12:18:00 EST<![CDATA[A silver lining: U.S. Q3 productivity jumps 4.9%]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/07/a-silver-lining-u-s-q3-productivity-jumps-4-9/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/07/a-silver-lining-u-s-q3-productivity-jumps-4-9/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/07/a-silver-lining-u-s-q3-productivity-jumps-4-9/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

The dollar, it seems, can't stop falling; oil, on the other hand, can't stop rising (let alone decline a little); General Motors (NYSE: GM) is taking a $39 billion charge; there's talk that Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) may take an as-yet undetermined (oh no) charge related to subprime debt, and the housing market remains sluggish, nationally, to put it diplomatically.

Other than that, to cite a famous line by Groucho Marx, things are fine.

Still, you may be wondering, "Is there any good news out there, financially-speaking?"

Indeed there is: The U.S. Labor Department announced Wednesday that U.S. non-farm productivity surged to an annualized rate of 4.9% in the third quarter -- the largest increase in productivity in four years -- and well above Wall Street's consensus of about 3.5%-3.7% productivity growth.

Continue reading A silver lining: U.S. Q3 productivity jumps 4.9%

A silver lining: U.S. Q3 productivity jumps 4.9% originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 07 Nov 2007 14:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>CPIfeaturedfederal reserveFederalReserveGDPGeneral MotorsGMhousinginflationinterest ratesmonetary policyMorgan StanleyMSPPIpricesproductivityQ3subprime debtU.S. economyU.S. Federal ReserveU.S. Labor Departmentworker productivityWed, 07 Nov 2007 14:02:00 EST<![CDATA[Hedge fund letter outlines how we got into this mess]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/08/18/hedge-fund-letter-outlines-how-we-got-into-this-mess/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/08/18/hedge-fund-letter-outlines-how-we-got-into-this-mess/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/08/18/hedge-fund-letter-outlines-how-we-got-into-this-mess/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

As investors, we are blessed by the willingness of hedge fund operators to write letters to investors that describe the current financial situation. One such letter helps me understand how financial alchemy transformed subprime mortgages into AAA-rated paper eagerly consumed by European and Asian investors eager to recycle the cash generated by high oil prices and trade surpluses with the U.S.

Barron's [subscription required] excerpted this letter from "A (bearish) hedge-fund operator," in a letter to his investors, describes how a senior Wall Street marketing director recounted the genesis of the current situation:

"'Real money' (U.S. insurance companies, pension funds, etc.) accounts had stopped purchasing mezzanine tranches of U.S. subprime debt in late 2003 and [Wall Street] needed a mechanism that could enable them to 'mark up' these loans, package them opaquely, and EXPORT THE NEWLY PACKAGED RISK TO UNWITTING BUYERS IN ASIA AND CENTRAL EUROPE!!

Continue reading Hedge fund letter outlines how we got into this mess

Hedge fund letter outlines how we got into this mess originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 18 Aug 2007 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>AAACDO managersCDOsChinese banksChinese governmentfinancial illusionsFrench banksGerman bankshedge fund operatorsKorean banksmezzanine tranchespetrodollar recyclerssubprimesubprime debtsubprime mortgagesTaiwanese bankstrade surplusU.K. banksSat, 18 Aug 2007 11:40:00 EST