
Concerns about a US recession again clouded the financial markets during the past week and the subprime woes continued to unfold as more write-downs and depressed earnings were reported.
The bears made their presence felt and stock markets slumped across the globe with almost panicky selling being encountered. This is evidenced by the steep fall in both the MSCI World Index (-5.1%) and emerging markets (-6.4%). Under the circumstances, the Japanese Nikkei 225 Average did relatively well with a more modest decline of 1.8%.
The losses of the US stock markets are mounting as illustrated by the following year-to-date returns: Dow Jones Industrial Index: -9.5%; S&P 500 Index: -10.4%; Nasdaq Composite Index: -12.5% and Russell 2000 Small Cap Index: -12.8%. The latter has declined by 21.5% since its high in July 2007, thereby now qualifying as being in a bear market as the “official” definition of a 20% decline has been met.
Concerns about a US recession again clouded the financial markets during the past week and the subprime woes continued to unfold as more write-downs and depressed earnings were reported.
The bears made their presence felt and stock markets slumped across the globe with almost panicky selling being encountered. This is evidenced by the steep fall in both the MSCI World Index (-5.1%) and emerging markets (-6.4%). Under the circumstances, the Japanese Nikkei 225 Average did relatively well with a more modest decline of 1.8%.
The losses of the US stock markets are mounting as illustrated by the following year-to-date returns: Dow Jones Industrial Index: -9.5%; S&P 500 Index: -10.4%; Nasdaq Composite Index: -12.5% and Russell 2000 Small Cap Index: -12.8%. The latter has declined by 21.5% since its high in July 2007, thereby now qualifying as being in a bear market as the “official” definition of a 20% decline has been met.
Fitch slashed Ambac's rating by two notches to AA, downgraded the long-term rating of Ambac's parent company by three notches, and said more cuts could be on the way.
Since the ratings of insured bonds are tied directly to the ratings of the insurer, Fitch was also forced to take action on the 137,000 bonds that are covered by Ambac, setting off a veritable ratings massacre in the market for municipal and mortgage-backed bonds.
based on the current market price of credit swaps (bets on future defaults), Wall Street itself believes that the chance Ambac and MBIA will avoid bankruptcy is less than one in three.
Fitch slashed Ambac's rating by two notches to AA, downgraded the long-term rating of Ambac's parent company by three notches, and said more cuts could be on the way.
Since the ratings of insured bonds are tied directly to the ratings of the insurer, Fitch was also forced to take action on the 137,000 bonds that are covered by Ambac, setting off a veritable ratings massacre in the market for municipal and mortgage-backed bonds.
based on the current market price of credit swaps (bets on future defaults), Wall Street itself believes that the chance Ambac and MBIA will avoid bankruptcy is less than one in three.
"The turmoil on Wall Street is beginning to rock a foundation of the financial system: the ability of institutions to make good on their many trades with one another.
"Today, a struggling bond insurer, ACA Financial Guaranty Corp., will ask its trading partners for more time as it scrambles to unwind more than $60 billion of insurance contracts it sold to financial firms but can't fully pay off, according to people familiar with the matter. The contracts were intended to protect Wall Street firms from losses on mortgage securities and other debt they own.
"The problem is that the insurer itself is teetering — with repercussions across the financial world. Some of its trading partners, called counterparties, already are writing off billions of dollars because of its inability to pay ...
"This has investors and regulators worried that, through such swaps, some market players could spread their own problems to the wider financial system ...
"The issue is raising broader concern among regulators and investors over what Wall Street calls 'counterparty risk,' the danger that one party in a trade can't pay its losses. ...
"Few envisioned a little-known bond insurer like ACA causing so much instability."
But despite this rude awakening described in the Journal, Wall Street is not asking the obvious next question: If little-known ACA could cause so much trouble, what kind of damage would be caused by the collapse of Ambac and MBIA, which are far larger?
"The turmoil on Wall Street is beginning to rock a foundation of the financial system: the ability of institutions to make good on their many trades with one another.
"Today, a struggling bond insurer, ACA Financial Guaranty Corp., will ask its trading partners for more time as it scrambles to unwind more than $60 billion of insurance contracts it sold to financial firms but can't fully pay off, according to people familiar with the matter. The contracts were intended to protect Wall Street firms from losses on mortgage securities and other debt they own.
"The problem is that the insurer itself is teetering — with repercussions across the financial world. Some of its trading partners, called counterparties, already are writing off billions of dollars because of its inability to pay ...
"This has investors and regulators worried that, through such swaps, some market players could spread their own problems to the wider financial system ...
"The issue is raising broader concern among regulators and investors over what Wall Street calls 'counterparty risk,' the danger that one party in a trade can't pay its losses. ...
"Few envisioned a little-known bond insurer like ACA causing so much instability."
But despite this rude awakening described in the Journal, Wall Street is not asking the obvious next question: If little-known ACA could cause so much trouble, what kind of damage would be caused by the collapse of Ambac and MBIA, which are far larger?
The next bubble to deflate may be Alan Greenspan's reputation. Hailed as perhaps the greatest central banker who ever lived when he left the Federal Reserve in 2006, Greenspan is under attack from critics ranging from the New York Times to economists at the American Enterprise Institute for his handling of the 2000-2005 housing boom. The former Fed chairman has taken to the media to defend himself, writing in the Wall Street Journal and appearing on network television.
"'He's had a bubble reputation that derived from the growth of US household wealth,' said Edward Chancellor, author of 'Devil Take the Hindmost: A History of Financial Speculation'. 'As that goes down, his standing as a superstar will suffer.'
"At stake is not only Greenspan's legacy but also the future of policies he espoused during 18-1/2 years atop the central bank. Critics blame his aversion to regulation and reluctance to use interest rates to puncture asset bubbles for the boom in mortgage lending and house prices that has since gone bust, threatening to throw the economy into recession.
"In an interview, Greenspan said such criticism ignores limits on what regulation and monetary policy can achieve.
"Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke has already moved away from the laissez-faire approach of his predecessor by proposing new restrictions on subprime mortgages."
Source: Rich Miller, Bloomberg.com, January 10, 2008.
The next bubble to deflate may be Alan Greenspan's reputation. Hailed as perhaps the greatest central banker who ever lived when he left the Federal Reserve in 2006, Greenspan is under attack from critics ranging from the New York Times to economists at the American Enterprise Institute for his handling of the 2000-2005 housing boom. The former Fed chairman has taken to the media to defend himself, writing in the Wall Street Journal and appearing on network television.
"'He's had a bubble reputation that derived from the growth of US household wealth,' said Edward Chancellor, author of 'Devil Take the Hindmost: A History of Financial Speculation'. 'As that goes down, his standing as a superstar will suffer.'
"At stake is not only Greenspan's legacy but also the future of policies he espoused during 18-1/2 years atop the central bank. Critics blame his aversion to regulation and reluctance to use interest rates to puncture asset bubbles for the boom in mortgage lending and house prices that has since gone bust, threatening to throw the economy into recession.
"In an interview, Greenspan said such criticism ignores limits on what regulation and monetary policy can achieve.
"Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke has already moved away from the laissez-faire approach of his predecessor by proposing new restrictions on subprime mortgages."
Source: Rich Miller, Bloomberg.com, January 10, 2008.
Just got the 75 bps cut.
Just got the 75 bps cut.
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