The great intrest rate rip off part 6

[interestrateripoff]

Debt crisis: Eurozone should 'make up or break up', says Cameron

 

PM calls on European leaders to agree to finance adequate bailout fund to stop crisis spreading to other countries or “go in a different direction”, in his bleakest warning so far on debt crisis.

282 Comments

How would a euro collapse hit us in the pocket?

 

 

Bank of England cuts UK growth forecasts

 

 

Unemployment falls but worse 'still to come'

 

 

Philip Aldrick: the UK's problems are as intractable as ever

 

Greece to vote again as judge is named as caretaker PM

 

Greece names senior judge Panagiotis Pikramenos as caretaker Prime Minister and sets a date for a second election after leaders fail to form government.

964 Comments

Grexit 'somewhere between catastrophic and armageddon'

 

 

Global lenders face 'killer losses' on Greek debt

 

 

Italy's banks shaken as economic slump deepens

 

 

Q&A: how a Greek exit from the euro might unfold

 

 

Bondholder fury as Athens pays off debts to hedge funds

 

 

UK squeeze worsens as inflation overshoots

 

Households face another crippling squeeze on disposable income this year after the Bank of England sharply lifted its inflation forecast and warned of rising mortgage costs, while expressing “surprise” that wages have been so weak.

6 Comments

Bank of England cuts UK growth forecasts

 

 

 

JP Morgan hit by 'clandestine conversion' suit

 

JP Morgan shareholders have sued the bank over its $2bn (£1.3bn) trading loss, alleging that a division within the bank had a “clandestine conversion” from one designed to manage risk to one that made multi-billion dollar bets.

10 Comments

JP Morgan shareholders sue over $2bn loss

 

 

 

Clinton Cards axes 2,800 jobs

 

Nearly 3,000 Clinton Cards employees are to lose their jobs over the next two weeks, the administrator of the stricken retailer has warned.

5 Comments

 

Lloyds to avoid 'Shareholder Spring' revolt

 

Taxpayer-backed lender Lloyds Banking Group is expected to avoid the controversey that has hit other banks when it holds its annual shareholder meeting tomorrow.

Comment

 

Unemployment falls but worse 'still to come'

 

 

 

 

Greggs warns jobs at risk from Pasty Tax

 

 

 

 

BHP Billiton slashes $80bn spending plans

 

 

 

 

SSE makes £1.3bn profit in six months

 

 

 

 

RBS investors say Hester 'not paid enough'

 

Debt crisis: Greek euro exit looms closer as banks crumble

 

A tsunami of capital flight from Greece threatens to overwhelm the authorities, forcing the country out of the euro before fresh elections in June.

Comment

Euroland's €1 trillion question: after Greece goes, can Spain stay in?

 

 

 

 

Grexit 'somewhere between catastrophic and armageddon'

 

 

 

 

Debt crisis: as it happened - May 16, 2012

 

Euroland's €1 trillion question: after Greece goes, can Spain stay in?

 

Eurozone is 'tearing itself apart', says Mervyn King

 

Grexit will cost €155bn for Germany, France - and that's just for starters

 

Coalition needs to sort out growth before it can sell RBS

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Plavix Set to Lose Patent Protection

 

By KATIE THOMAS 1:00 PM ET

 

 

The drug, which prevents clots among heart attack patients, will no longer be promoted by Bristol-Myers Squibb because of an influx of cheaper generic alternatives.

 

 

 

Travis Dove for The New York Times

 

A generic form of the drug Plavix awaits final approval from the Food and Drug Administration.

 

 

 

 

 

 

DealBook

 

Facebook Increases Number of Shares for I.P.O.

 

By BEN PROTESS 12:16 PM ET

 

Facebook will offer 96 million more shares, or 25 percent more than it was planning to offer previously in response to high demand.

 

• General Motors to Quit Advertising on Facebook
  
• A Russian Magnate’s Facebook Bet Pays Off Big
  

 

DealBook

 

‘London Whale’ Said to Be Leaving JPMorgan

 

By JESSICA SILVER-GREENBERG and NELSON D. SCHWARTZ 33 minutes ago

 

The expected departure of Bruno Iksil, the trader associated with a $2 billion debacle, was reported by current and former associates.

 

• DealBook: As One JPMorgan Trader Sold Risky Contracts, Another One Bought Them
  
• DealBook: F.B.I. Inquiry Adds to JPMorgan's Woes
  

 

Fed Is Firmly on Course, Minutes Show

 

By BINYAMIN APPELBAUM 39 minutes ago

 

The Federal Reserve is solidly entrenched in its existing policies and there is little sign of change ahead, according to the notes of the most recent meeting of its policy-making committee.

 

Wall Street Stocks Turn Mixed

 

By REUTERS 24 minutes ago

 

Remarks from European officials about wanting to keep Greece in the euro zone helped calm markets, analysts said.

 

Rebound in Housing Starts

 

By REUTERS 10:06 AM ET

 

Housing starts in the United States in April increased 2.6 percent, while industrial production shot up 1.1 percent, the government said.

 

Skechers to Pay Fine Over Shoes Claims

 

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 11:48 AM ET

 

Skechers USA will pay $40 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges over marketing that its Shape-ups shoes would help people lose weight and strengthen muscles.

 

Shift by U.S. Muddles Solar Imports Case

 

By KEITH BRADSHER 10:57 AM ET

 

A decision in an anti-dumping case is expected Thursday and will focus on whether China's solar panel companies have been building market share by selling their products below cost.

 

 

 

• Needy States Use Housing Aid Cash to Plug Budgets
  
• Soda Makers Scramble to Fill Void as Sales Drop
  
• DealBook: Third Point Increases Its Yahoo Stake 10:19 AM ET
  
• Lower Economic Growth Seen for Britain
  
• DealBook: K.K.R. Said to Be in Talks to Buy Stake in Prisma Capital
  

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Why NOT Shrinking Credit In Recession = U R Screwed

Today's lesson that you should have derived from your elementary and middle-school math is served....

Let's recap first.

GDP = C + I + G + (x - i), where "C" is consumption, "I" is investment, "G" is government spending and (x - i) is net exports.

GDP must be bought with something, and that "something" must either be money or credit. Since each "unit" of money or credit "turns over" in the economy some number of times in a year, and the unit of time in GDP is a year, we have:

GDP = ((M + C) * V), where "M" = money (earned output from personal production), "C" = credit (a promise to produce tomorrow) and "V" = Velocity (number of times the "M" or "C" turns over.)

 

More at the link.

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FLASH: Greek Banks Cut Off?

Flash off the rumor mill, unconfirmed -- it appears the Greek banks were just cut off by the ECB.

If this is true then this is the latest "Gun up the nose" game by the Germans and ECB, and is almost-certain, in this political climate, to blow up their face (and quite possibly with shooting involved on the part of the Greeks too.)

This instantly hit the Euro and US stock market, which had been having a reasonably decent day.

If true and confirmed then Greece has been effectively orphaned. This appears to be a facial attempt to stick a tourniquet on Greece's neck, as with elections due next month cutting off Greek banks now will basically guarantee they all detonate.

Expect the incipient bank runs to resume en-masse within hours if not minutes.

 

More at the link.

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Counterfeiting: See, They Really Do

But remember folks, Nobody committed any crimes (according to Gary Johnson, Obama and, I suspect, Mitt(ens) Romney.)

Last week, in response to an Overstock.com motion to unseal certain documents, the banks’ lawyers, apparently accidentally, filed an unredacted version of Overstock’s motion as an exhibit in their declaration of opposition to that motion. In doing so, they inadvertently entered into the public record a sort of greatest-hits selection of the very material they’ve been fighting for years to keep sealed.

For the un-initiated in this issue, Overstock went after virtually everyone in the big banking world, particularly Goldman, when their stock was shorted into the dirt. Their allegation was that the firm (and others) were counterfeiting their shares by selling short shares they never owned and couldn't locate for a borrow. In effect they were representing more shares in the market than existed, which is exactly identical to counterfeiting them in terms of economic impact, exactly as if you ran off some extra $100 bills on your office copier.

 

More at the link.

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Greece Will Leave The Euro: Be Prepared

Stop pretending folks, and start preparing.

Karolos Papoulias, the Greek president, warned party leaders that their continued failure to agree was risking “fatal consequences”. Citing a secret government document, he said Greeks were already pulling £80 million a day out of the country’s banks. Almost €1 billion (£795 million) has been withdrawn since the last elections on May 6.

“The extension of political instability will lead to fatal consequences. The absence of government is a serious risk to the financial security of the Greek people and our national existence,” the president was reported as saying.

Mr Papoulias said he had been warned by the central bank and finance ministry that the country faced “the risk of a collapse of the banking system if withdrawals of deposits from banks continue due to the insecurity of the citizens generated by the political situation”.

Fatal consequences my ass.

Well, not for Greece anyway.

But let's put a couple of things to bed, ok?

 

More at the link.

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What Happens If Greek Payments Stop: Goldman's Thought Experiment On "The Day After"

 

Three Charts On Why This Time Is 'Not' Different For Stocks

 

Fed Minutes: "Easing May Be Needed If Recovery Falters"

 

A 12-Year-Old Girl Crushes The Canadian (and American) Dream

 

One Half Of Simpson-Bowles Goes There: "Krugman Borders On Hysteria"

 

Canary In The Gold Mine: In Historic Move, Japanese Pension Fund Switches To Gold For First Time Ever

 

Guest Post: That Which is Unsustainable Will Go Away: Medicare

 

European Banks Battered As Reality Sets In

 

ECB Stops Monetary Policy Operations To Some Greek Banks

 

Did Draghi Just Give Greece The All-Clear To Leave?

 

Greece: Before And After

 

Rumor Time: Stocks, EUR Surge On Renewed LTRO 3 Speculation

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Global Systemic Risk Soars To 5 Month Highs

 

Mark Grant On Europe's Plan B, Greek Bank Runs, and Why We Need New Sunglasses

 

Dart 1: Greece 0; And Just Desserts For Lemming PSI Participants

 

Soros, PIMCO, Paulson, Texas Teacher Retirement Fund Buy Gold in Q1

 

Guest Post: President Obama, The View, And The False Notion Of Too Big To Fail

 

Japan's WTF Chart

 

Is The Pain Over For Bruno Iksil?

 

"The Weight Of The Nation": Documenting America's Obesity Epidemic: Part 2 - Choices

 

Will America Ever Recover From The Housing Crisis - A Real Estate Infographic

 

Next Stop: Dow 100,000

 

Majority Of Neo-Normal Greek Cops Vote Neo-Nazi

 

What Happens When A Hedge Fund Hotel Explodes

 

Of Whitney Tilson's $345MM In AUM, $104MM Is In Call Options, $24MM Is In Warrants

 

Acknowledging The Arrival Of Peak Government

 

Santelli Explains Why A Broke California "Likes" A Hot Facebook IPO

 

Guest Post: That Which Is Unsustainable Will Go Away: Pensions

[interestrateripoff]

Global Systemic Risk Soars To 5 Month Highs

 

Mark Grant On Europe's Plan B, Greek Bank Runs, and Why We Need New Sunglasses

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http://www.zerohedge.com/news/japans-wtf-chart

 

 

Still at least spending money you don't have isn't a problem.

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Breaking news

 

• Spanish government denies Bankia deposit exit report - Reuters
  

 

 

 

• Eurozone crisis live: Fitch downgrades Greece on euro exit fears
   
  Last updated three minutes ago
  Live Rating agency says there is heightened risk that June election could lead to Greece leaving the euro
  690 comments
  
  • Politics Weekly podcast: Greece nears euro exit
     
    
  • Cameron to warn of huge risk from euro breakup
    
  • Greece's interim government sworn in
    
  • Eurozone crisis: Greek elections called for 17 June
    
  • Profile: Panagiotis Pikramenos
    
  • European Union – GDP breakdown by country
    

  [*] European markets slide on fears over Spanish banks

   

  Shares suffered fresh losses on Thursday amid reports that nervous customers at Spain's fourth-largest bank had begun withdrawing funds

   

  • Cost of Greek exit from euro put at $1tn
    
  • Cable: no need to panic over Greek crisis
    
  • Greek crisis: UK banks have just £6bn exposure
    
  • Cameron urges eurozone to follow UK model
    
  • Eurozone banks nearly collapsed, says ECB director
    
  • Greeks withdraw €3bn in 10 days since election
    
  • Greek crisis: This is not a quarrel in a faraway land
    
  • Greece: here come the vulture funds
    

  [*] Vauxhall saves Ellesmere Port plant

   

  Feared closure averted as GM announces that next Astra car model will be built at Merseyside and Polish plants

   

  • Closure averted but new manufacturing base is needed
    

  [*] Coalition needs to deliver on pro-business promises, CBI says

   

  Sir Roger Carr, the president of the CBI, intensifies the war of words between business and the government

   

  • Unemployment fall raises hopes for economy
    
  • Claimants constituency by constituency: full data
    
  • Youth unemployment mapped
    
  • Boots owner warns of 'anti-business' mood in Britain
    

 

 

• Analysts warn off Facebook investors
   
  As early investors decide to cash out, some consultants warn first-day bubble will burst once the cultural spectacle wears off
   
  
  • Facebook Nasdaq flotation set to raise $16bn
    
  • Pinterest valued at more than $1bn after fundraising
    

  [*] Mortgage lenders tighten criteria

   

  Several high-street lenders have cut loan-to-values and raised interest rates in recent weeks

  13 comments

  [*] Bank rules 'may lead to riskier trading'

   

  Fitch says race by 29 banks to raise $566bn of capital to meet rules intended to make them more resilient may hit borrowers

  [*] National Grid profits and debts rise

   

  Company that operates most of England's energy pylons and pipelines turns in strong financial performance for 2011 but debt nearing £20bn

  10 comments

  [*] Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway buys Media General newspaper group

   

  Media company owns 63 local newspapers across south-east US and is Buffett's second print news purchase in a year

  [*] More business news

  [*] Cairn Energy faces shareholder rebellion over pay

  [*] French Connection shares plunge

  The company, which made a £8.2m loss last year, warns investors that it 'appears unlikely' that its profits will meet City expectations this year

  5 comments

  [*] Cookson suffers shareholder revolt

  [*] SFO arrests in football apprentice inquiry

[interestrateripoff]

Eurozone concerns drag markets lower

 

 

Fears surrounding the stability of the eurozone — particularly the state of Spain's financial system and whether Greece might be forced out of the single currency union — pushed global markets down again today.

 

 

• 'Vulture funds' circle as Greece fears grow
  
• The euro crisis and your holiday cash - the answers you need
  
• Fears push up Spain borrowing costs
  
• Andreas Whittam Smith: What happens if Greece exits?
  

Vauxhall confirms new Astra wil be built at Ellesmere Port in £125m jobs boost

 

17 May 2012 02:30 PM

A future of a car factory has been secured for years after workers agreed to a "ground-breaking" pay and conditions deal clearing the way for investment worth £125 million.

 

 

 

Bank of England sees inflation up and growth falling

 

17 May 2012 09:30 AM

MPC open to more quantitative easing as jobless rate falls to 8.2 per cent

 

 

 

UK banks suffer more markets pain

 

17 May 2012 02:22 PM

Britain's biggest banks suffered more pain on the markets today after Spain fuelled the flames of the eurozone crisis with more economic woe.

 

 

 

Fears push up Spain borrowing costs

 

17 May 2012 04:00 PM

Spain has paid sharply higher interest rates to raise 2.5 billion euro (£2 billion) in a medium-term debt auction, reflecting fears it will be caught up in the fallout of the Greek crisis.

 

 

 

Facebook set for monster flotation

 

17 May 2012 12:19 PM

Facebook is heading for one of the biggest ever US stock flotations when it sells hundreds of millions of shares to the public.

 

 

 

UK car production up 9.3% as General Motors announce Ellesmere Port Vauxhall investment

 

17 May 2012 09:37 AM

The number of cars built in the UK last month was almost 10 per cent up on a year ago, boosted by strong export demand, new figures showed.

 

 

 

Pay vote clears the way for Ellesmere Port Vauxhall investment

 

17 May 2012 09:01 AM

Vauxhall car workers have voted massively in favour of a new pay and conditions deal which clears the way for huge new investment in the UK motor industry.

 

 

 

Windfall for founder as Yell buys Moonfruit

 

17 May 2012 12:00 AM

A London entrepreneur who was forced to sack staff at her website-making business in a bid to save money today sold it for up to £23 million.

 

 

 

Land Secs defends Alison Carnwath after its profits leap to £300m

 

17 May 2012 08:00 AM

Land Securities' new chief executive yesterday stood up for the developer's under-fire chairman Alison Carnwath, who has been savaged by investors in this year's "shareholder spring".

 

 

 

Britons in love with Wednesday night at the movies

 

17 May 2012 12:00 AM

Saturday night has lost its title as the most popular night to go to the cinema, in the latest evidence of Britons cutting back on spending.

 

 

 

While other chains look poorly, light tax burden helps Boots stay healthy

 

17 May 2012 12:00 AM

Alliance Boots has shrugged off complaints about its tax affairs and showed it is resisting the recession and the wider slump on the high street.

 

 

 

We risk being shut out of financial markets, warns Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy

 

17 May 2012 10:00 AM

The Spanish Prime Minister has vigorously defended the austerity policies that united thousands who protested against the harsh cuts this week by warning that the country risked being shut out of the financial markets unless it works to bring its debt burden under control.

 

 

 

David Cameron to tell François Hollande austerity works – but King raises alarm

 

17 May 2012 12:00 AM

David Cameron will claim today that austerity is working despite Britain's slide back into recession as he urges eurozone countries to either "make up or break up".

 

 

 

Thousands of jobs saved as Ellesmere Port Vauxhall plant reprieved

 

17 May 2012 08:00 AM

The threatened Vauxhall plant in Ellesmere Port has been saved and hundreds of new jobs will be created there, its American parent company General Motors will announce today.

[interestrateripoff]

Spain beset by bank crisis, recession, bond pressure

 

7:10pm BST

MADRID - Spain's borrowing costs shot up at a bond auction on Thursday, after economic data confirmed the country is back in recession and reports of an outflow of deposits from nationalised Bankia hammered its share price.

BoE's Fisher sees no more QE if recession mild

 

3:30pm BST

LONDON - The Bank of England should only do further quantitative easing asset purchases if the economy seems to be slipping into a deep recession, which does not appear to be the case, Bank policymaker Paul Fisher said in an interview published on Thursday.

 

 

• HSBC says turnaround plan on target, costs cut by $2 billion 5:47pm BST
  
• Syria opposition head says to quit for sake of unity 5:31pm BST
  
• Horrors of Srebrenica set out at Mladic trial | 4:52pm BST
  
• Asda's sales growth accelerates 1:53pm BST
  

Back from the brink - how Europe saved its banks (for now)

 

The euro zone crisis was in full swing when Jean-Claude Trichet took the podium in Berlin last October 6 for his final press conference as president of the European Central Bank. Having helped create one of the longest periods of price stability in the history of central banking, Trichet was closing out his eight-year reign under siege.

BoE's Fisher sees no more QE if recession mild

 

3:30pm BST

LONDON - The Bank of England should only do further quantitative easing asset purchases if the economy seems to be slipping into a deep recession, which does not appear to be the case, Bank policymaker Paul Fisher said in an interview published on Thursday.

Spanish government denies Bankia deposit exit report

 

MADRID - The Spanish government denied a newspaper report on Thursday that customers had withdrawn more than 1 billion euros (822 million pounds) from the partly nationalised lender Bankia over the past week.

 

• HSBC says turnaround plan on target, costs cut by $2 billion 5:47pm BST
  
• FTSE 100 drops to six-month closing low | 5:27pm BST
  
• Facebook to price IPO, demand seen strong 7:46pm BST
  
• 3i promotes dealmaker to top job 6:39pm BST
  
• Prudential attracts 30 percent "no" vote on pay
  

FITCH cuts Greece's rating on euro zone exit risk

 

NEW YORK - Fitch Ratings Agency on Thursday downgraded Greece's credit rating to CCC from B-minus, citing the heightened risk that the country might have to leave the euro zone.

6:57pm BST

 

Insurer Aviva to sell some businesses in overhaul

 

LONDON - British insurer Aviva will sell underperforming businesses in a strategic overhaul after irate investors forced out its chief executive last week, it said on Thursday.

11:17am BST

 

Explorer Cairn's shareholders revolt over pay

 

LONDON - British oil explorer Cairn Energy said investors holding two thirds of its stock voted against executive pay awards in one of the biggest rebellions to take place yet in the 'shareholder spring' of salary disapproval.

5:18pm BST

 

Human Genome adopts rights plan to ward off Glaxo

 

- Human Genome Sciences Inc said on Thursday it adopted a stockholder rights plan as the biotechnology company defends itself against a $2.6 billion (1.6 billion pounds) hostile takeover bid by drug maker GlaxoSmithKline Plc .

[interestrateripoff]

17 May 2012 Last updated at 19:57

 

 

Jobs boost as UK gets Astra deal

 

Vauxhall's Ellesmere Port car plant will build a new Astra car in a deal that means huge investment and the creation and support of thousands of jobs.

 

• Deal lifts cloud over plant
  
• Workers on 'fantastic deal' Watch
  

 

Facebook share sale approaches

 

Facebook shares will begin trading in New York on Friday in one of the most eagerly anticipated share flotations in recent stock market history.

 

• Ad boss on Facebook's power Watch
  
• Can Facebook crack China?
  
• Profile: Behind the likes and pokes
  
• Facebook feature timeline
  

 

 

Markets drop on eurozone worries

 

Concern over the eurozone debt crisis has continued to weigh on financial markets, with the euro dropping more than a cent against the US dollar,

 

• Bankia: No cash withdrawal surge
  
• France questions EU fiscal pact
  

 

 

 

• Bankia: No cash withdrawal surge
   
  Shares in Spanish bank Bankia close sharply lower as it is forced to deny a report of a large amount of withdrawals from the troubled group.
  
• More households in fuel poverty
   
  Gas and electricity price rises at the end of last year are expected to have pushed 400,000 more households in England into fuel poverty.
  
• Cairn shareholders rebel on pay
   
  Shareholders at the Edinburgh oil and gas exploration firm Cairn Energy rebel against top executive pay.
  
• Cameron defends his euro warning 1284
  
• Buffett in newspaper investment
  
• French Connection in profit alert
  
• English house building falls back
  
• France questions EU fiscal pact
  
• Some work schemes 'of no benefit'
  
• Rebuilding spurs Japan economy
  
• Chinese gold demand hits record
  
• Toshiba halts Japan TV production
  
• The euro's survival 'requires political union'
   
  10 hours ago
  In late 2011 "we were very close to having a collapse in the banking system in the euro area", says a senior ECB figure.
  
• Greek banks, the euro and the ECB
   
  18 hours ago
  Talk of a run on Greek deposits, and some banks being cut off from European Central Bank support, add a fresh twist to scary talk about Greece and the euro.
  

[interestrateripoff]

Long Odds on a Big Facebook Payday

 

By NATHANIEL POPPER 3 minutes ago

 

If history offers any lesson, average investors may find they face steep odds if they hope to make big money in a much-hyped stock like Facebook.

 

• The Facebook Offering: How It Compares
  
• Back to the Future: The Netscape and Google I.P.O.'s 1:44 PM ET
  

Valentin Flauraud/Reuters

 

 

 

 

Interactive: How Will Facebook’s Stock Fare?

 

 

What do you think the company’s share price will be at the end of Friday, and what do you think about the company’s long-term financial prospects?

 

 

 

• DealBook: Spotify Deal Would Value Company at $4 Billion 1:02 PM ET
  
• DealBook: Pinterest Raises $100 Million 25 minutes ago
  

 

Other Business News

 

Wal-Mart Concedes Bribery Case May Widen

 

By STEPHANIE CLIFFORD 12:08 PM ET

 

The scope of an investigation into foreign bribery issues seemed to have widened at the retailer, which reported higher-than-expected first-quarter earnings.

 

U.S. Slaps Tariffs of 30% and More on Chinese Solar Panels

 

By KEITH BRADSHER and DIANE CARDWELL 18 minutes ago

 

The United States Commerce Department concluded that Chinese producers had “dumped” their products on the American market.

 

Senate Confirms Fed Board Nominees

 

By JOHN H. CUSHMAN Jr. 53 minutes ago

 

The Senate’s votes to approve Jeremy Stein and Jerome Powell bring the seven-member Federal Reserve board to full strength for the first time since 2006.

 

DealBook

 

JPMorgan’s Trading Loss Is Said to Rise at Least 50%

 

By NELSON D. SCHWARTZ and JESSICA SILVER-GREENBERG

 

Hedge funds and other investors taking advantage of JPMorgan Chase’s distress have fueled faster deterioration in the underlying credit market positions held by the bank.

 

• ‘London Whale’ Expected to Leave JPMorgan
  

 

Wall Street Stocks Slip

 

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 1:53 PM ET

 

Stocks traded lower, as unease about Europe overshadowed a hopeful unemployment report in the United States.

 

• Spain Tries to Calm Fears About Ailing Lender 1:17 PM ET
  
• No Change in Claims for Jobless Benefits 12:27 PM ET
  

 

DealBook

 

Berkshire Bets Again on Newspapers

 

By MICHAEL J. DE LA MERCED 10:52 AM ET

 

Media General said that it sold nearly all of its newspaper properties to Berkshire Hathaway for $142 million.

 

DealBook

 

The Boldface Names on the Witness List for Gupta's Trial

 

By PETER LATTMAN

 

Possible witnesses who could be called to testify -- or whose names may come up during the trial -- include Lloyd C. Blankfein, Goldman's chief executive, and A.G. Lafley, the former chief executive of Procter & Gamble.

 

 

 

• Postal Service to Consolidate 48 Processing Centers in Coming Months 46 minutes ago
  
• DealBook: Human Genome Sciences Adopts Poison Pill to Thwart Glaxo Takeover 1:40 PM ET
  
• DealBook: Ackman Wins Proxy Fight at Canadian Pacific 1:04 PM ET
  
• DealBook: HSBC Targets Extra Revenue from Business Units
  
• DealBook: Fitch Warns Banks Must Raise $566 Billion in New Capital
  

[interestrateripoff]

http://blogs.reuters.com/felix-salmon/2012/05/16/how-bruno-iksil-lost-2-billion/

 

Go back to early February, long before the articles about the “London Whale” came out in Bloomberg and the WSJ, and you’ll find Weinstein revealing his biggest trade at the Harbor Investment Conference:

 

The derivatives trader and legendary hedge fund manager said his trade idea is to buy Investment Grade Series 9 10-Year Index CDS (maturing on 12/20/2017).

 

“They are very attractive,” he explained adding that they can be bought at a “very good discount.”

 

At the time, Weinstein didn’t know — or necessarily even suspect — that his big trade would involve a zero-sum bet with one of the biggest hedge funds in the world, JP Morgan’s Chief Investment Office. But over time, as he bought more and more protection but the price stubbornly refused to rise, he began to learn just how big the other size of the trade was. Whale big.

 

More at the link.

[interestrateripoff]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/fund-run-by-jpmorgan-bet-against-whale-7758162.html

 

Hedge funders were not the only market whiz-kids betting against JPMorgan's disastrous London Whale trading positions. Another part of his own bank was too.

 

It emerged yesterday that JPMorgan Asset Management, run by Mary Callahan Erdoes, was one of the investors betting big against the London trader Bruno Iksil, exacerbating his $2bn (£1.2bn) losses.

 

..

 

Bloomberg reported that the fund had about $380m of insurance identical to that being sold by Mr Iksil. It is unclear how much profit Ms Erdoes' team made on the trades.

 

I wonder how the bosses of JP Morgan will feel about this, it looks like she looked after her clients money....

 

So JP Morgan bet against itself!

[interestrateripoff]

Eurozone faces mass downgrades if Greek elections are not positive

 

Ratings agency Fitch warns that all eurozone countries face a greater than 50pc chance of a downgrade if a stable, pro-bail-out government is not formed following Greece's second round of elections.

1189 Comments

Fitch warns of mass eurozone downgrades

 

 

French finmin warns: no fiscal pact without growth measures

 

 

Spain borrowing costs rise on bank crisis and recession

 

 

Cameron: eurozone should 'make up or break up'

 

 

BoE's Fisher says no to QE unless crisis hits

 

Britons should see no more money-printing stimulus from the Bank of England unless a crisis hits, said one of its top policymakers.

25 Comments

 

Fitch: UK banks may have to raise charges

 

Britain's biggest banks could be forced to raise customer charges to meet tough new international rules according to Fitch Ratings.

9 Comments

HSBC targets $2bn revenue from turnaround

 

 

 

Reject RBS pay deal, investor group says

 

The Government has been told to oppose Royal Bank of Scotland’s “excessive” executive pay deals and to remove both the bank’s auditors and its audit committee chairman over concerns about the accounts.

Comment

 

Pinterest investment values site at $1.5bn

 

It has just 30 staff and has been running for little more than two years, but scrapbooking website Pinterest has secured $100m (£62m) of funding, catapulting it to a valuation of $1.5bn.

8 Comments

 

Cookson hit by investor revolt, may split in two

 

Jeff Harris, chairman of industrial materials group Cookson, has suffered a personal rebuke after his plea to support its remuneration report was defied by a third of shareholders.

3 Comments

 

Aviva says new CEO search to take all year

 

 

 

 

French Connection profits to fall

 

 

 

 

Taking rates "begging bowl" from councils 'worth £10bn'

 

 

 

 

Further spending squeeze on high inflation

 

Euro crisis ensnares Spain

 

Spain moved back into the eye of the eurozone storm yesterday as the country’s borrowing costs rocketed to unsustainable levels, the authorities were forced to deny that one of its biggest banks was in meltdown and the economy tipped back into recession.

Comment

Treasury examines £20bn growth plan

 

 

 

 

Are the Germans destined to save the euro?

 

 

 

 

Global banks see market rally on Greek exit

 

General Motors' decision shows the benefit of business

 

Global banks see market rally on Greek exit

 

Britain must make ready for the storm as clueless Europe tears itself apart

 

Euroland's €1 trillion question: after Greece goes, can Spain stay in?

[interestrateripoff]

Philly Fed: Terrible

Oh oh....

The survey’s broadest measure of manufacturing conditions, the diffusion index of current activity, fell from a reading of 8.5 in April to -5.8 in May (see Chart 1).

That be a negative print, and comes after I warned last month that the softening was something to pay close attention to.

 

More at the link.

[interestrateripoff]

Goldman Goes Short The US Consumer

 

Jamie Dimon "Invited" To Testify Before Senate

 

Gundlach On Mortgages, Models, And "AAPL-To-NatGas" Monster Legs

 

Guest Post: Regardless Of What The Propaganda Says, This Is Not How A Free Society Treats People

 

A Simple Question For Senator Schumer

 

Step Aside Business Cycle: Presenting The Business Swirl

 

Fitch Roundtrips On Greece, Re-Downgrades Country

 

Thank You Mario Draghi For The Best Year-To-Date Trade

 

On Credit Index Notional Changes

 

The American Foreclosure Process Has Ground To A Halt

 

Guest Post: How The U.S. Dollar Will Be Replaced

 

How JPM's "Hedge" Blew Up In One Easy Chart

[interestrateripoff]

The Economist FTW (Redux)

 

Philly Fed Plunges, First Contraction Since September 2011

 

Consumer Blinks as "Consumer Comfort" Collapses Most In 4 Years

 

Greek Lights Out... Literally

 

Schumer Introduces Ex-PATRIOT Act: Will Banish Those Who Renounce US Citizenship

 

The Forthcoming Hellenic Curse

 

Initial Claims Miss, Media Spin: "Unchanged"

 

Moody's Warns Spain It Will Downgrade "More Than 21" Spanish Banks - Expansion

 

Nationalized Spanish Bank Plummets On News Of Bank Run

 

Guest Post: The Wisdom of Thucydides

 

The ECB Presents: Inflation Island

 

Quantifying The Plan Z Dry Powder - This Is The Greek ELA Borrowing Capacity

 

Chris Martenson: "We Are About To Have Another 2008-Style Crisis"

 

Guest Post: The Fabled Greek Mega-Bailout

[interestrateripoff]

Breaking news

 

 

• Facebook's debut is modest, high volumes cause problems - Reuters
  

 

 

 

• Eurozone crisis live: Merkel 'suggests' Greece referendum
   
  Last updated 15 minutes ago
  Live Greek interim PM rejects idea of vote alongside June election as beyond scope of caretaker administration
  910 comments
  
  • 
    
  • Nouriel Roubini: Greek euro tragedy nears final act
    
  • Austerity 'will send Greece to hell'
    
  • Mohamed el-Erian: Who is to blame?
    
  • Moody's downgrades Santander UK
    
  • Greek crisis: what happens next?
    
  • Greek crisis: UK banks have just £6bn exposure
    
  • Spanish crisis hits European stock markets
    

  [*] Obama tells EU: boost growth now or face global crisis

   

  Germany to be urged to ease austerity during G8 talks as fears of global recession grow

  436 comments

  • PM calls for world trade boost
    
  • Cameron urges eurozone to follow UK model
    
  • G8 at Camp David: what the world wants to achieve
    

  [*] Facebook preaches accountability - but doesn't practise it

   

  Nils Pratley: Mark Zuckerberg's control of Facebook shares means there could be tension over strategy in the future

   

  • Facebook IPO reaps huge rewards for founders
    
  • The key players and what they are worth
    
  • Pinterest valued at more than $1bn after fundraising
    

 

 

• Interview
   
  OBR's Robert Chote
   
  
  
• Selling porkies: boost for UK exports
   
  Parts of the pig that most of us refuse to eat are to form the main dish in a £50m pork export deal with China
  
• Unions fear Tesco move into post offices
   
  Tesco could become a major player in a restructured Post Office as the government looks to replace traditional counters with the checkouts of convenience stores
  
• More business news
  
• Stagecoach's California dreams
  1 comment
  
• JD Wetherspoon boss buys £2.5m of shares
  
• Hewlett-Packard to axe 30,000 jobs
  

[interestrateripoff]

Merkel suggests Greek euro referendum

 

 

Merkel has floated the idea that the country hold a referendum on the euro alongside national elections.

 

• FTSE 100 ends week £80bn down
  
• Spain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including Santander
  
• David Cameron to tell Angela Merkel she is the only person who can save euro
  
• Eurozone crisis: Don't panic – yet... Our expert guide to the coming storm
  
• Greek exit fears hit bond markets
  
• Prepared for the Grexit?
  

Spain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including Santander

 

18 May 2012 02:00 PM

The flames of the eurozone crisis leapt higher yesterday, as fears spread about the state of the Continent's most vulnerable banks.

 

 

Europe fears keep markets on edge

 

18 May 2012 03:23 PM

Concerns that Europe's debt crisis could drag down parts of the continent's banking system hit most global markets today though social network Facebook's imminent flotation buoyed sentiment on Wall Street.

 

 

 

FTSE 100 ends week £80bn down

 

18 May 2012 07:00 PM

The eurozone storm showed no signs of clearing tonight as fears over Spain and Greece saw £80 billion wiped from the value of London's leading shares index in just one week.

 

 

 

Zuckerberg pockets a fortune as Facebook debuts on stock market

 

18 May 2012 07:11 PM

Facebook co-creator Mark Zuckerberg pocketed more than a billion US dollars (£630 million) today after one of the biggest US stock market flotations.

 

 

 

Labour was 'lucky' with Northern Rock gamble using taxpayer billions

 

18 May 2012 11:00 AM

Treasury lacked 'capacity and expertise' to deal with financial meltdown, auditors' report warns

 

 

 

Greek exit fears hit bond markets

 

18 May 2012 08:00 AM

Madrid and Rome see borrowing costs rise as fears of Greek contagion are ratcheted up

 

 

 

David Cameron to tell Angela Merkel she is the only person who can save euro

 

18 May 2012 10:00 AM

PM will urge German Chancellor to use her country's wealth to shore up single currency

 

 

 

Three more pay plans suffer protest votes

 

18 May 2012 12:00 AM

The shareholder spring continued yesterday with investor revolts against boardroom pay at the insurance giant Prudential, the oil explorer Cairn Energy and the engineer Cookson.

 

 

 

JPMorgan shares lurch down again as trading losses hit $3bn

 

18 May 2012 09:00 AM

Jamie Dimon's worst fears for the scale of losses on the "London Whale" derivatives disaster could be coming true in double-quick time.

 

 

 

Troubled French Connection issues third profits warning

 

18 May 2012 12:00 AM

The fashion chain French Connection issued its third profits warning in seven months yesterday as it said sales in its UK shops slumped by 12 per cent in the first three months of the year.

 

 

 

Facebook soothes privacy fears on eve of flotation

 

18 May 2012 09:00 AM

Facebook is bracing for increased scrutiny of its privacy policies and the way it makes money from data on its 900 million users, now that it is finally making its debut as a public company.

 

 

 

Lloyds' spa plan to detoxify banking

 

18 May 2012 12:00 AM

Lloyds Banking Group dispatched a dozen top bosses on a luxury spa break designed to prevent them from "bail out, burn out or being booted out".

 

 

 

$100m pin money for noticeboard site

 

18 May 2012 12:00 AM

The quirky social networking website Pinterest cashed in on the "Facebook effect" yesterday with a fundraising that values the business at $1.5bn (£940m).

 

 

 

Jump in dividend sends TalkTalk soaring

 

18 May 2012 12:00 AM

TalkTalk's shares surged 20 per cent yesterday to 159p, their highest level in a year, after the broadband and telecoms group raised its dividend by almost two thirds, with the promise of more to come.

 

 

 

Eurozone woes weigh on Aviva as long search begins for CEO

 

18 May 2012 12:00 AM

Aviva insisted yesterday that it had made a "solid start" to the year, despite the investor fury surrounding the now departed chief executive Andrew Moss. He stepped down last week, recognising that shareholder unhappiness at his pay and the company performance made it difficult for him to continue.

[interestrateripoff]

Facebook's debut is modest, high volumes cause problems

 

SAN FRANCISCO - Facebook Inc shares rose less than expected on their first day of trade on Friday and huge order volume caused technical problems that marred the coming out party of the No. 1 online social network.

 

 

• Refloat of Italy's Concordia wreck to be biggest ever 7:37pm BST
  
• Ex-miner Abbott may collect millions from LME sale 5:45pm BST
  
• World stocks erase year's gains on Europe 7:50pm BST
  
• Briton wins EBRD presidency for first time 7:57pm BST
  
• ICAP eyes futures with PLUS exchange 5:59pm BST
  

BoE's Posen to quit to head U.S. think tank

 

LONDON/WASHINGTON - Bank of England policymaker Adam Posen will not seek a second term at the central bank and instead plans to step down in August to head a leading U.S. economic think tank, the Bank said on Friday.

UK 4:06pm BST

 

Exclusive - Repsol comes up dry in Cuba offshore well

 

HAVANA - Spanish oil giant Repsol said Friday that the first of three planned wells in Cuban waters was unsuccessful, a blow to Cuba's hopes for energy independence.

7:34pm BST

 

Sudan set to devalue pound amid oil crunch

 

KHARTOUM - Sudan will allow foreign exchange bureaux and banks to trade dollars at a level close to the black market rate, effectively devaluing the pound, a senior banking official said on Friday.

7:14pm BST

 

Weak CWW results may rally support for Vodafone bid

 

LONDON - Cable & Wireless Worldwide could use its expected poor set of results on Monday to justify its support for a takeover by Vodafone, a deal that its largest shareholder has said is too cheap.

Europe thinks the unthinkable on Greece

 

7:14pm BST

BRUSSELS/LONDON - European officials are working on contingency plans in case Greece bombs out of the euro zone, the EU's trade commissioner said on Friday, while Berlin said it was prepared for all eventualities.

 

 

• Weak CWW results may rally support for Vodafone bid 6:17pm BST
  
• Euro crisis is big threat to emerging Europe - EBRD 1:02pm BST
  
• Taxpayers may lose 2 billion pounds on Northern Rock rescue - NAO
  

[interestrateripoff]

18 May 2012 Last updated at 18:46

 

 

Facebook shares spike on debut

 

Facebook shares are up 6% at $40 on their stock market debut, having initially jumped to $42 within minutes of trade beginning.

 

• Zuckerberg rings Nasdaq bell Watch
  
• 'Is Facebook worth $100 billion?' Watch
  
• California expects Facebook boost
  
• Facebook's first female engineer
  
• Can Facebook crack China?
  
• Profile: Behind the likes and pokes
  

 

Merkel 'suggests Greek euro vote'

 

Greek officials say the German leader has suggested that Greece could hold a referendum on the euro, but a spokesman in Berlin denies the report.

 

• Market jitters over eurozone woes
  
• Hollande 'Greece must stay in euro' Watch
  
• Obama unveils US Africa food plan
  

 

 

Market jitters over eurozone woes

 

European markets suffer a nervous session with investors unsettled by a downgrade for Spanish banks and the political crisis in Greece.

 

• EU 'taking all neccessary action' Watch
  

 

 

 

• Yahoo jumps on Alibaba deal talk
   
  Shares in internet giant Yahoo rise 5% on reports that it is close to selling its valuable stake in Alibaba Group, the Chinese e-commerce company.
  
• N Rock rescue 'could cost £2bn'
   
  The taxpayer could lose about £2bn once the assets of collapsed bank Northern Rock are wound down, the National Audit Office estimates.
  
• JP Morgan boss to testify in US
   
  JP Morgan chief executive Jamie Dimon will appear before a Senate committee to explain the bank's $2bn trading loss on a failed hedging strategy.
  
• UK in £50m pork deal with China
  
• HMRC defends child benefit plan
  
• LSE reveals strong profits rise
  
• Rain dampens sales at pub group
  
• EU 'plans for Greek exit option'
  
• Stagecoach in £100m US expansion
  
• Moody's downgrades Spanish banks
  
• Private rents 'increasing again'
  
• China property prices fall again
  
• US puts tariffs on Chinese panels
  
• More households in fuel poverty
  
• How serious is the £2bn Rock loss?
   
  20 hours ago
  The government is set to lose £2bn on the privatisation of part of Northern Rock and the winding down of the rest, even though taxpayers are expected get back all the £37bn of cash we put into the bank and a lot more. Confused? Here is why the National Audit Office is forecasting a loss.