January, 2009
Farewell, John Thain
It has come to this.
John Thain has bid farewell to his herd, and tendered his resignation from Bank of Merrill Lynch of America. No – let’s be frank. Thain’s been ousted.
And what for? According to the WSJ,
Manipulation in China?
Timothy Geithner, just days into the job of Treasury Secretary, is already moving US bond markets by saying the sort of things Henry Paulson would have dared to imply, but never said outright. As Bloomberg reports (our emphasis):
That JP Morgan picture – official redux
Because you all loved it so much, here is THE revised, official version (click for the full-sized image):
Apparently, the version we got was a “draft”. Oops.
Now, please stop emailing us.
Related Links:
There’s some good news out of China too, really
While some say Thursday’s Chinese economic figures will certainly have been massaged by authorities, Standard Chartered has found some green shoots of optimism within the data released. In fact, the bank even asks if China could already be staging a recovery.
Rouble float likely?
From Beat Siegenthaler at TD Securities:
The CBR has confirmed Chairman Ignatiev holding a press conference at 6pm Moscow time (3pm UK). This is highly unusual and suggests that an important announcement will be made.
Lord Turner, VaR and the FSA
Lord Turner’s speech at the Economist’s Inaugural City Lecture yesterday is really worth a read: broad without being generalised, nuanced without being technocratic. It more or less covers all the bases and is an excellent brief on the current financial crisis.
US futures point lower after economic data, Microsoft disappoint
US futures are pointing to a sharply lower open this morning, after a slew of weak economic data and poor quarterly results from Microsoft.
Microsoft’s shares fell more than 8 per cent in pre-market trade after it reported below-consensus sales and earnings and said it would cut 5,000 jobs over the next 18 months. The software company’s results were not expected until after the closing bell.
Have you seen this man?
Apparently in the London area spreading doom and gloom about the UK economy.
Sometimes uses alias, Nouriel Roubini, New York University professor.
KBC Peel Hunt ‘Buy low, Sell high’ T-Shirt on offer for information leading to a guest appearance on Markets Live.
CDS Report: The mood lightens in Europe
European credit market indices opened tighter on Thursday morning, helped by early advances in stock markets.
The mood is lighter, as President Barack Obama’s nominee treasury secretary, Timothy Geithner,
The mattress savings plan?
With the woes of the financial sector increasingly seeping into the public consciousness, customers are starting to question the safety of their bank accounts.
The Guardian provides a rather straight-laced answer:
Lunch Wrap
On FT Alphaville Thursday morning,
- Farewell rally monkey.
- Anton Kreil: The biography.
- Synthetic eurotrash.
- Darling in the dark.
- How to say ‘decoupling’ in Chinese and Japanese – Don’t.
Markets live transcript 22 Jan 2009
Markets live chat transcript for the chat ending at 12:08 on 22 Jan 2009. Participants in this chat were: Neil Hume, FT (NH) Bryce Elder, FT (BE) NH:Good morning and welcome to Markets Live
As gone as gold
Gold hit a new record in sterling yesterday after the UK currency fell to a 23-year low against the USD. Too bad the UK really doesn’t have any of it left to sell.
(HT Sean Corrigan at Diapason Commodities).
Richard Bove ♥ banks
We’re starting to feel a bit sorry for Ladenburg Thalmann banking analyst Richard “I’ve got a problem” Bove.
Here’s a man who, against all odds, loves his banks. In fact, he’s maintained his buy recommendation on Bank of America even after the company posted a $1.79bn fourth-quarter loss.
Sony: Watch this space…
It’s all coming to a head at Sony — even as we write, as Sir Howard Stringer and other executives attend an evening press briefing in Tokyo to outline more detail of Sony’s sweeping restructuring plan.
Doom tweets
A reader points us to Nouriel’s latest Tweet, barely half an hour old:
Is the U.K. an Iceland 2? Nouriel is in London to find out.
- 22 minutes ago from web
Meanwhile, on the Icelandic front…
How contango affects oil ETFs
Hat tip to Abnormal Returns which draws attention to this oil post on Market Folly.com.
The Market Folly piece highlights why retail investors should most definitely be interested in the forward oil curve,
Darling in the dark
A rift has opened up between the government and the financial authorities after a furious Alistair Darling was kept in the dark over the lifting of the ban on short-selling, which may have contributed to this week’s tumultuous crash in the value of banking shares.
Anton Kreil: The biography
Anton Kreil is making the most of his Million Dollar Traders publicity, launching his own website yesterday.
Of particular interest is the former Goldman Sachs trader’s 1,700-word biography, reprinted below.
Farewell Rally Monkey
Sad news reaches us from across the Irish sea – Rally Monkey has been made Ireland’s new financial regulator. That’s right, its new financial regulator.
It seems the Irish made RM an offer he just could not refuse and it seems Murphy (who is on holiday at the moment if you didn’t know) would not match.
How to say ‘decoupling’ in Chinese and Japanese: Don’t
Whoever claimed “decoupling” from Western markets would save Asian economies?
Bloomberg reports Thursday that the bottom dropped out of Japan’s export industry in December, with exports diving a record 35 per cent year on year,
Further reading
Elsewhere on Thursday,
- So much for hope trumping fear – in the markets.
- Blame it on Beijing (and Soul, and Riyadh…)
- RBS gives five lessons for future bankers.
- So, farewell then Sir Win.
Pink picks
Comment, analysis and other offerings from Thursday’s FT,
Opinion: Nationalisation is not a panacea
John Gapper writes: If the UK government has to follow the example of the Irish government in the case of Anglo Irish Bank and take over at least one big bank,
Snap news
Breaking pre-market news on Thursday,
- London Stock Exchange sees revenue up 4% to £171m – statement
- New Star Asset management seeks delisting following debt restructuring- statement
- Autonomy
Sterling sinks to new lows
The pound plunged to its lowest level against the dollar since 1985 on Wednesday amid uncertainty about the government’s banking support package. Sterling slid another 1.6% against key UK trading partners,
AIG starts $20bn auction of Asian unit
AIG, the stricken insurance giant, on Wednesday kicked off the sale of its Asian life assurance unit – one of its most prized assets – in the hope of raising up to $20bn to help repay its $60bn US government loan.
Parsons takes over as Citi chair
Dick Parsons, former chief executive of Time Warner, was on Wednesday night named to replace Sir Win Bischoff as chairman of Citigroup. Sir Win, a veteran British banker who took over only last year, had been expected to step down amid complaints from some directors and investors that he had not offered enough guidance to Vikram Pandit,