March, 2009
Declaration from the principality of Liechtenstein
The war being staged against opaque offshore banking havens by respectable non tax-evasive western states like Britain (and specifically Gordon Brown) appears to have claimed a victory. The tiny little Alpine principality of Liechtenstein,
More about super-rich, super-losers
Well, the world might have lost 30 per cent of its billionaires, but Bill Gates has reclaimed his pole position in the rankings of the uber-capitalist classes – bouncing back from his recent slippage to top Forbes’ annual rich list for 2009 with a total net worth of about $40bn.
Bubble theory and UK housing
For anyone possibly thinking about getting back into the property market here’s a scary prediction from Dominic Frisby over at MoneyWeek on just how much further houses prices have to fall. To illustrate his point Frisby throws up two charts.
Further reading
Elsewhere on Thursday,
- This is not a test. This is not a test.
- Mark-to-market datapoint of the day.
- The next targets in the Madoff case.
- All about hedge fund leverage.
- Four reasons Buffett may be wrong.
Pink picks
Comment, analysis and other offerings from Thursday’s FT,
John Gapper: The case for a Glass-Steagall ‘lite’
Since, by common consent, we are immersed in the worst financial crisis since 1929, it is not surprising some of the old remedies are being considered again.
Snap news
Breaking pre-market news on Thursday,
- Standard Life reports profit up 6% to £933m, FGD surplus at £3.4bn – statement
- Roche closes Genentech deal at $95 per share, cash – statement
- Cadbury Schweppes agrees to sell Schweppes Australia business to Asahi for A$1.1bn- statement
- Opsec security says will breach bank covenant – statement
- Corporate results:
US calls for tripling of IMF funds
The US on Wednesday called for a tripling of the IMF’s firepower and more fiscal stimulus steps worldwide. Tim Geithner, US Treasury secretary, called for the radical changes ahead of the G20 finance ministers’ meeting in the UK this weekend.
Darling signals UK budget restraint
UK chancellor Alistair Darling on Wednesday gave a clear sign he would not mount a big new fiscal boost in next month’s Budget amid bleak public finances and evidence the economy is being bolstered in other ways.
Stampede to sell UK gilts
Investors flocked to sell government bonds to the Bank of England as it launched an unprecedented programme to expand the money supply. The success of the Bank’s so-called reverse auction, in which investors sell their bonds rather than buy them from the authorities,
Freddie needs $31bn injection
Freddie Mac, the US mortgage financier, said on Wednesday that a $23.9bn Q4 loss would require it to draw down $30.8bn of capital from the US Treasury, but warned it would have difficulty repaying the government.
Merrill ‘misled’ Congress: Cuomo
Merrill Lynch misled a congressional committee about the timing of its decision to accelerate the payment of 2008 bonuses to December, just days before it was acquired by Bank of America, the New York attorney-general claimed on Wednesday.
Gates tops Forbes’ ‘rich list’
The global economic crisis has sharply reduced the number of billionaires, according to Forbes magazine’s annual ‘rich list’, reports the WSJ. Forbes found 793 billionaires in 2009, down 30% from a year earlier,
Japan’s economy shrinks
Japan’s economy shrank 3.2% in the final three months of last year from the preceding quarter, according to revised government data on Thursday that confirmed the sharpest contraction since the 1974 oil crisis,
Nortel in talks to sell units
Nortel Networks is in talks to sell its two main businesses to rivals, a sign the Canadian telecoms equipment maker could break itself apart rather than emerge from bankruptcy as planned, reports the WSJ.
Areva seeks Mideast funding
French officials have held exploratory talks about the potential for Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds to take minority stakes of 1 to 5% in Areva, the French state-owned nuclear group. No decision has yet been taken,
Glencore buys back debt
Glencore, the world’s largest commodities trader, on Wednesday revealed an 8.5% drop in net profit last year but in a sign of confidence, said it was buying back its own debt while liquidity levels had risen sharply.
Bank groups to meet Dinallo on MBIA
Some 15 financial companies will meet Thursday with Eric Dinallo, New York state’s insurance superintendent, to complain about a decision by MBIA, the world’s largest bond insurer, to split its bond insurance unit into two companies,
Europe bond spreads hit highs
The cost of borrowing in European corporate bond markets reached record highs on Tuesday, in a sudden downturn in sentiment that could curb the rush of issuance so far this year. The main index of European investment grade corporate bonds saw spreads hit the highest levels on Tuesday,
Icahn set for Lions Gate showdown
Carl Icahn has set the stage for a hostile proxy fight with Lions Gate Entertainment after failing to secure any places on the Hollywood studio’s board. The activist investor, a long-time shareholder in Lions Gate,
Stanford pleads fifth amendment
Sir Allen Stanford has refused to co-operate with the US government’s investigation into an alleged $8bn fraud at the companies that bear his name as it emerged that Stanford executives had expressed concern about the accuracy of the group’s financial statements weeks before US regulators made their move.
JPMorgan chief urges Congress unity
Jamie Dimon, the chief executive of JPMorgan Chase, on Wednesday urged US lawmakers to unite behind Barack Obama and not behave like a “dysfunctional family” as the country battles the economic crisis. Echoing the patriotic,
Overnight markets: Mixed
Asian stocks fell on Thursday, led by financial companies and automakers, amid renewed concern about deteriorating company earnings and bleak Japanese GDP figures. Futures on the S&P500 fell 0.6% after the gauge added 0.2% in New York on Wednesday as JPMorgan joined Citigroup in reporting a strong start to the year.
[The Stanford Series] Stanford pleading the fifth
Sir Allen Stanford is refusing to cooperate with the SEC’s investigation of his alleged $8bn fraud.
HOUSTON, March 11 (Reuters) – Allen Stanford, the billionaire Texan accused of an $8 billion fraud by U.S.
Sants delivers 20:20 Hindsight lecture
In Edinburgh, of all places, at the annual National Association of Pension Funds bash. The city (and the conference) is said to be chillier than usual this year.
The speech is worth a skim, if only because the pace of the prose suggests the full 2,200 words could have been rattled off in three minutes flat.
Bad news on Sesame Street
Sesame Workshop is cutting 20 per cent of its workforce…
Related links:
The mystery box – FT Alphaville
Downturn hits Sesame Street – FT
CDS update: The rally continues
This CDS report was written by Markit’s Gavan Nolan
The momentum from yesterday’s rally carried over into today in a session light on news. The Markit iTraxx Europe index tightened by over 10bp to 192.5bp,
Bottom fishing, by Anthony Bolton
We have noted here before that Anthony Bolton is about as close as the British investment community gets to a Warren Buffet-style “investment sage”.
So each time, Bolton, now semi-retired from Fidelity International,
Operation QE begins
From Reuters.
BANK OF ENGLAND SAYS ALLOTS £1.999bn of £2bn GILT PURCHASES TO COMPETITIVE BIDS.
BANK OF ENGLAND SAYS TOTAL OFFERS RECEIVED £10.508bn.
BANK OF ENGLAND SAYS BUYS £339m of 5.0% 2014 GILT AT WEIGHTED AVERAGE PRICE OF 114.792.
Restitution, Madoff style
One of the more peculiar elements to the New York attorney general’s detailing of the charges being levelled against Bernie Madoff – as if 150 years wasn’t enough – is this:
Yes - a restitution claim for $170bn.
More bad news from Merrill, squawkbox edition
Another mishap — this time a charge from the SEC with a (relatively minor) fine to pay:
Washington, D.C., March 11, 2009 — The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged Merrill Lynch, Pierce,