Financial Crisis

[LaoPo]

...In the meantime Banks in my own country are buying -new- shares in IT companies (some of them in heavy seas) which is causing false and dirty competition since you and I can't buy those shares as cheap as the banks can with money they borrow for 0.5%.....

The same banks who were supported with Billions by the governments with tax money from...guess....?

I think that you have made a small grammatical error in the tense, the banks "are being, and will continue to be" propped up by screwing the tax payers, savers and anybody else holding the respective currency".

As long as they can borrow overnight as much as they want at zero rate from the central banks, this robbery will continue.

You're right; I stand corrected. Of course they're still practising their low-life stealing and robbing and pay themselves huge bonuses in the end.

I just noticed that the China now demands that every bank keeps at least 20% proven equites/cash whilst western banks are just a little over 3% (if I'm incorrect, please advise) and at the same time they can value their own assets and loans, keeping abnormal valuations of the same out of the books and thus not show them to their stockholders

Now, if these numbers would only rise to 100% (I know...wishful thinking) the problem as painted in your last words would be history.

LaoPo

[flying]

Full show here
http://www.democracynow.org/blog/2011/2/22/matt_taibbi_why_isnt_wall_street_in_jail Edited February 24, 2011 by flying

[MJP]

Bank runs in South Korea

[churchill]

He looks like a very strange - ting tong - lady boy to me - not looking good /

'NATO may attack Libya if violence continues

After Obama says 'suffering and bloodshed is outrageous, unacceptable,' European official tells al-Quds al-Arabi NATO, US warplanes stationed in Italy may be ordered to take down Libyan planes. Wall Street Journal: Washington fears Gaddafi may use mustard gas against protestors'

'NATO forces may attack forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi if the Libyan air force continues to bomb anti-government protesters, the London-based al-Quds al-Arabi reported Thursday, citing a European official claiming the US had threatened to intervene in the violence.

The source said NATO and US warplanes stationed in Italy may be ordered to take down Libyan planes, and that electronic warfare against them may already have been implemented .

The source told al-Quds al-Arabi that NATO forces may launch an aerial attack on Libya or fire missiles from warships positioned in international waters near Tripoli. Libyan army weapons caches may also be targeted, the source said.'

'The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Washington fears Gaddafi may use mustard gas and other chemical-weapons agents against anti-government protestors. The newspaper quoted US officials as saying Tripoli also maintains control of aging Scud B missiles, as well as 1,000 metric tons of uranium yellowcake and vast amounts of conventional weapons'

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4033526,00.html

[MJP]

He looks like a very strange - ting tong - lady boy to me - not looking good /

'NATO may attack Libya if violence continues

After Obama says 'suffering and bloodshed is outrageous, unacceptable,' European official tells al-Quds al-Arabi NATO, US warplanes stationed in Italy may be ordered to take down Libyan planes. Wall Street Journal: Washington fears Gaddafi may use mustard gas against protestors'

'NATO forces may attack forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi if the Libyan air force continues to bomb anti-government protesters, the London-based al-Quds al-Arabi reported Thursday, citing a European official claiming the US had threatened to intervene in the violence.

The source said NATO and US warplanes stationed in Italy may be ordered to take down Libyan planes, and that electronic warfare against them may already have been implemented .

The source told al-Quds al-Arabi that NATO forces may launch an aerial attack on Libya or fire missiles from warships positioned in international waters near Tripoli. Libyan army weapons caches may also be targeted, the source said.'

'The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Washington fears Gaddafi may use mustard gas and other chemical-weapons agents against anti-government protestors. The newspaper quoted US officials as saying Tripoli also maintains control of aging Scud B missiles, as well as 1,000 metric tons of uranium yellowcake and vast amounts of conventional weapons'

http://www.ynetnews....4033526,00.html

Find his location and put a cruise missile in there. All over.

[churchill]

He looks like a very strange - ting tong - lady boy to me - not looking good /

'NATO may attack Libya if violence continues

After Obama says 'suffering and bloodshed is outrageous, unacceptable,' European official tells al-Quds al-Arabi NATO, US warplanes stationed in Italy may be ordered to take down Libyan planes. Wall Street Journal: Washington fears Gaddafi may use mustard gas against protestors'

'NATO forces may attack forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi if the Libyan air force continues to bomb anti-government protesters, the London-based al-Quds al-Arabi reported Thursday, citing a European official claiming the US had threatened to intervene in the violence.

The source said NATO and US warplanes stationed in Italy may be ordered to take down Libyan planes, and that electronic warfare against them may already have been implemented .

The source told al-Quds al-Arabi that NATO forces may launch an aerial attack on Libya or fire missiles from warships positioned in international waters near Tripoli. Libyan army weapons caches may also be targeted, the source said.'

'The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Washington fears Gaddafi may use mustard gas and other chemical-weapons agents against anti-government protestors. The newspaper quoted US officials as saying Tripoli also maintains control of aging Scud B missiles, as well as 1,000 metric tons of uranium yellowcake and vast amounts of conventional weapons'

http://www.ynetnews....4033526,00.html

Find his location and put a cruise missile in there. All over.

Find his location - Yes

He will do a Saddam -

Another madman with too much money and too many weapons /

[MJP]

He looks like a very strange - ting tong - lady boy to me - not looking good /

'NATO may attack Libya if violence continues

After Obama says 'suffering and bloodshed is outrageous, unacceptable,' European official tells al-Quds al-Arabi NATO, US warplanes stationed in Italy may be ordered to take down Libyan planes. Wall Street Journal: Washington fears Gaddafi may use mustard gas against protestors'

'NATO forces may attack forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi if the Libyan air force continues to bomb anti-government protesters, the London-based al-Quds al-Arabi reported Thursday, citing a European official claiming the US had threatened to intervene in the violence.

The source said NATO and US warplanes stationed in Italy may be ordered to take down Libyan planes, and that electronic warfare against them may already have been implemented .

The source told al-Quds al-Arabi that NATO forces may launch an aerial attack on Libya or fire missiles from warships positioned in international waters near Tripoli. Libyan army weapons caches may also be targeted, the source said.'

'The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Washington fears Gaddafi may use mustard gas and other chemical-weapons agents against anti-government protestors. The newspaper quoted US officials as saying Tripoli also maintains control of aging Scud B missiles, as well as 1,000 metric tons of uranium yellowcake and vast amounts of conventional weapons'

http://www.ynetnews....4033526,00.html

Find his location and put a cruise missile in there. All over.

Find his location - Yes

He will do a Saddam -

Another madman with too much money and too many weapons /

I don't think he'll get the chance. He controls less and less by the hour.

[midas]

It would be interesting to read a response to this succinct paragraph ( below ) from posters like

siamamerican who lambast people like me on this forum

as being an impotent confused individiual for not agreeing that the world is booming right now

Of course it is so easy for the likes of siamamerican to continue to just sweep this under the carpet

" The only thing keeping us from recognizing a full-on economic depression is government deficit spending. Spending that, at present levels, cannot possibly continue.

Worse, there's no way out of the box. Raise taxes and you subtract directly from private spending. Refuse to raise taxes and you are forced to continue to borrow.

Extrapolate out the $1.7 trillion from calendar 2010 and removing that would result in a decrease of twenty-eight times Goldman's estimate, or some fifty percent of GDP.

One way or another, the artificial support to GDP that is embedded in our insane deficit spending will stop. It mathematically must stop. And when it does stop, if you believe Goldman's analysis, even if we only cut deficit spending in half GDP will fall by 25%.

If we eliminate it? GDP is halved."

http://market-ticker.org/akcs-www?post=180855

Edited February 25, 2011 by midas

[LaoPo]

From Thailand:

Marc Faber: The Total Financial Collapse of America is Here!

ALEX JONES TV part 1 and 2

part 1

part 2

LaoPo

[flying]

Marc Faber: The Total Financial Collapse of America is Here!

LaoPo

Thanks that was a good listen

[midas]

^ Flying,

Like you, I never believe the gov's statistic on inflation. The use "geometric adjustment" and change the basket of goods to keep the rate lower.

There is no denying inflation now, as the the wheat crops in the Northern China plain will be critical this year to what will happen with the availability of wheat, and the price of it.

Agreed...... I am still in the US & can say prices on common goods/staples has been on a steady rise this last year.

Most can see it with their own eyes so the govt line does little to convince most folks on the street.

Then is this an " experiment " ( or desperate action ) by The Bernank that has gone horribly wrong ?

Was his intention to create inflation in assets and in particular real estate because I can't imagine

any sane person wanting to create inflation in food and commodity prices knowing it could ignite a powder

keg of civil unrest ?

apparently according to George Melloan in the Wall Street Journal i was wrong !

The Federal Reserve Is Causing Turmoil Abroad

Few protesters in the Middle East connect rising food prices to U.S. monetary policy. But central bankers do.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704657704576150202567815380.html

[LaoPo]

Marc Faber: The Total Financial Collapse of America is Here!

LaoPo

Thanks that was a good listen

The question remains....is he right?

He's relatively safe, living in his beautiful home in Chiang Mai

LaoPo

[12DrinkMore]

You're right; I stand corrected. Of course they're still practising their low-life stealing and robbing and pay themselves huge bonuses in the end.

I just noticed that the China now demands that every bank keeps at least 20% proven equites/cash whilst western banks are just a little over 3% (if I'm incorrect, please advise) and at the same time they can value their own assets and loans, keeping abnormal valuations of the same out of the books and thus not show them to their stockholders

Now, if these numbers would only rise to 100% (I know...wishful thinking) the problem as painted in your last words would be history.

LaoPo

A little more on this subject.

http://www.bloomberg...t-r-admati.html

and

http://www.gsb.stanf...saacletter.html

The issue is that...

A dollar paid out to shareholders through either dividends or share repurchases is a dollar that would not be accessible to creditors in a situation of financial distress. For this reason, and to prevent the shifting of value from debt holders to equity holders, debt covenants typically restrict dividend payments when leverage is high. Debt covenants may be less restrictive in banking because most bank creditors are explicitly or implicitly insured, and thus are less concerned with dividend payments that reduce their security.But taxpayers should be concerned when banks pay dividends and remain thinly capitalized, because, as we have seen, taxpayers are the ones who are likely to end up covering the banks' liabilities in a crisis. Moreover, everyone suffers from the consequences of the greater systemic risk associated with highly leveraged banks.

And this also applies to the obscene bonuses that the bastards dish out to themselves.

http://www.telegraph...id-over-1m.html

This bank is owned 84% by the UK tax payer (NOT the government). I am utterly fed up reading about how these self-serving greedy cun_ts distribute huge amounts to themselves rather than return every frigging quid back to the shareholders, who are bailing them out and enabling them to make such profits. It is not due to any particular skill, any imbecile could

1. borrow x-money at zero percent

2. lend out 30 times x-money and charge 7% in a monopoly market (try doing it yourself)

where x is limitless.

This one huge robbery taking place, sucking money from the tax payers, returning a negative rate of interest on deposits and devaluing everybody's quid in the pocket.

"OH!" they'll shout, "but we pay 50% tax on the bonuses".

Yeah, well fuc_k you too. Where has the other 50% they pocketed come from, presumably in RBS's case the 50% they paid in tax?

Central banks are basically inflation machines, taxing the population with their manipulated "inflation rate", and the rest of the banks are currency devaluers by emitting currency that never existed before the instant a new debt is created.

Edited February 25, 2011 by 12DrinkMore

[LaoPo]

^^^^

Good post!

From the bloomberg link:

Force Banks to Put

America's Needs First

"Paying dividends helps banks maintain excessive leverage. A typical bank funds over 95% of its investments with debt and less than 5% with equity. ( - LP) A small drop in asset values can lead to distress and possible insolvency. We have seen that furious "deleveraging" by any highly leveraged and interconnected bank can start a crisis.

The average non-financial listed company in the US funds itself with 70% equity.

Many successful businesses, including Apple, Gap and Yahoo, are essentially 100% equity financed. Given their intermediation function, banks cannot be funded entirely with equity. But there is no compelling reason for them to rely on it so little.

Our financial system would work better if banks funded 15% or even 30% of their assets with equity. (like China banks now - LP)

The Basel III reforms agreed last year set minimum bank equity between 4.5% and 7% of "risk-weighted assets", which are significantly smaller than total assets for most banks. Triple A-rated assets require little or no equity capital. The system of risk weights established by Basel II, which distorts banks' investments towards favorably treated assets, was mostly maintained. Under Basel III, the ratio of equity to total assets can be as low as 3%."

http://www.gsb.stanf...videndoped.html

...and still, the Bankers feel it necessary to grant themselves huge bonuses?........"Bankers....?" ..They're nothing more than lousy businessmen.

LaoPo

[12DrinkMore]

"Bankers....?" ..They're nothing more than lousy businessmen.

That is very polite. You are exercising considerably more constraint that I could possibly muster.

A lousy businessman will go out of business.

This certainly does not apply to our precious banking industry.

[LaoPo]

"Bankers....?" ..They're nothing more than lousy businessmen.

That is very polite. You are exercising considerably more constraint that I could possibly muster.

A lousy businessman will go out of business.

This certainly does not apply to our precious banking industry.

Once more I stand corrected; I fully agree with you!

OK..I feel better now.

LaoPo

[flying]

A lousy businessman will go out of business.

This certainly does not apply to our precious banking industry.

Too Big To Fail Baby

Dont know how it is on your side of the pond.....

But on this side ..... Top Campaign Contributors to both presidential candidates will show you the

Too Big To Fail mafia

[12DrinkMore]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/Bank-of-India-becomes-first-to-offer-trade-settlement-in-yuan/articleshow/7565143.cms

The process has been facilitated by a recent memorandum of understanding signed between the Reserve Bank of India and the CBRC to enhance banking relationship between the two giant neighbors.

BoI has opened a RMB with the Bank of China, which will provide real time settlement with buyers and sellers across all provinces of China. The move is part of a campaign by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, which has persuaded 100 foreign banks to enter into arrangements with Chinese banks for trade settlement in RMB.

"We will sell RMB against the US dollar, and companies can buy as much as they want provided they have the right papers. For individuals, the limit of 20,000 RMB a day," Arora said. He expects settlements for an amount ranging between 200 million and 300 million in the first year.

The amounts mentioned are still trivial. But the writing is appearing on the wall.

"Geithner, we don't want your dam_n Bernanke manipulated USD anymore".

[LaoPo]

In the meantime there's someone with an "itchy trigger finger", sitting on a wallet with $ 38.2 BILLION in cash, ready to invest....

http://www.bloomberg...ual-letter.html

and:

Berkshire Profit Rises 43% to $4.38 Billion on Railroad

http://www.bloomberg...n-earnings.html

LaoPo

[12DrinkMore]

And the next issue on the table is.....

http://www.economist.com/node/18200678

..how do we feed all the brats?

IMO we should stop having them.

Some global initiative to squirt contraceptives into the environment might do the trick? If we all stopped having brats the world would be depopulated of humans , bankers and politicians in less than 120 years (have to allow for the odd Russian) and be a far nicer place. You know, a paradise, where you might like to take a holiday.

Yep, we are not so important, in fact, the human race is a scourge and the most destructive living thing that ever evolved on this planet.

So come on all you greens, get your show together and sort out the mess.

Oh, and pass me the next beer, really, what is the point? Is islam going to see eye to eye with any other religion? Are the politicians going to fix the problems? Will the bankers stop screwing us? "No" has to be the answer.

Do you want to see your brats living under these conditions?

If the answer is "no", then the solution is simple.

Jeeze, time for bed, methinks.

Peace love and happiness. Maybe another beer might help? I'm off to the fridge. Goodnight all.

[12DrinkMore]

Here's an interesting take on inflation and feeding the mouths of the humans.

http://www.independe...ns-2226896.html

Now, I reckon that in Thailand it is quite difficult to spend less than 100 baht/day on three meals. So a Thai is spending around 3,000 baht/month on food. This is a considerable percentage of a month's salary, I would guess between 30 to 50% for an average employee. In my days in farangland I was spending a lot less, maybe around 5 to 10% maximum, of my monthly income on basic food costs.

So what happens when all those hungry overweight farang mouths get hungry and drive up the world price of rice, chicken etc?

Either the baht is kept low and inflation is imported into Thailand, or the baht rises, increasing the wealth of the Thais, allowing them to still be able to afford to feed themselves.

Edited February 27, 2011 by 12DrinkMore

[12DrinkMore]

Well, not really financial crisis related, but still relevant to the UK and debt,

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/british-firms-stand-to-lose-millions-in-revolt-2226895.html

Although Britain is not Libya's largest trading partner, coming behind countries such as Italy, China, France and Germany, the trade is significant to the UK. British exports of goods to Libya have risen from £232m in 2007 to £377m in 2010, with imports more than doubling from £577m in 2007 to £1.29bn last year. "Invisible" trade in terms of services accounted for £399m in 2009.

This is another huge trade imbalance demonstrating that the UK has much less to export than it needs in terms of imports.

Even though currencies seem to have moved away from from their valuations according to trade and now swing up and down depending on the interest rate that the central wanke_rs put out, surely such a huge trade imbalance will finally work its way through the sewers of the financial world and emerge as an appreciation of the asset owning and productive countries respective currencies?

Or are we now at the mercy of the whims of all the QE sloshing around in the bilges?

Edited February 27, 2011 by 12DrinkMore

[12DrinkMore]

All gone very quiet around here, but here's one last post for tonight.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/ireland-bets-on-quiet-man-to-cure-financial-ills-2226786.html

Aah the Irish.

Have to admit I am very sympathetic towards them. Why the fuc_k should they suffer and pay back the <deleted> UK banks for debts that have brought nothing but indebtedness? They should do an "Iceland" and shove one up the <deleted> of the Eurobanks.

There is no end to the destruction the current financial system is inflicting on the world. "Debtor till you die" and then pass on the debt to the next generations. This is the basis that they work on.

Surely its time to stuff a massive one up their combined arsehol_e and send them to another planet, or universe?

[midas]

" If there’s no deterrents, no certainty when there is wrongdoing, we’re going to be back where we were."

http://www.dylanratigan.com/2011/02/28/will-washington-wake-up-to-wall-street-greed/

Edited March 1, 2011 by midas

[12DrinkMore]

" If there’s no deterrents, no certainty when there is wrongdoing, we’re going to be back where we were."

http://www.dylanrati...l-street-greed/

Deja vu

http://blogs.reuters.com/christopher-whalen/2011/02/23/aig-redux-is-the-fed-blowing-bubbles-in-structured-finance-and-insurance/

[LaoPo]

CHINA owns a lot more US Treasury securities than anticipated.......$ 1.160 Trillion per end December 2010:

http://www.treasury....cuments/mfh.txt

and:

WASHINGTON (AP) -- China, the biggest buyer of U.S. Treasury securities, owns a lot more than previously estimated.

In an annual revision of the figures, the Treasury Department said Monday that China's holdings totaled $1.16 trillion at the end of December. That was an increase of 30 percent from an estimate the government made two weeks ago.

http://finance.yahoo...302220.html?x=0

In itself is eases the fear of increased dumpings and a rise of interest rates, causing slowing economy.

LaoPo

[midas]

" If there’s no deterrents, no certainty when there is wrongdoing, we’re going to be back where we were."

http://www.dylanrati...l-street-greed/

Deja vu

http://blogs.reuters.com/christopher-whalen/2011/02/23/aig-redux-is-the-fed-blowing-bubbles-in-structured-finance-and-insurance/

i dont think i will ever trust any insurance company ever again

meanwhile have you heard what Merv King ( of all people ) said ? listen to the video clip

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/boes-mervyn-king-surprised-anger-directed-bankers-not-greater

[lannarebirth]

" If there's no deterrents, no certainty when there is wrongdoing, we're going to be back where we were."

http://www.dylanrati...l-street-greed/

Deja vu

http://blogs.reuters...-and-insurance/

i dont think i will ever trust any insurance company ever again

meanwhile have you heard what Merv King ( of all people ) said ? listen to the video clip

http://www.zerohedge...ers-not-greater

I'm always a little surprised about the reaction to banker's greed. It's like blaming a snake for biting you. You knew it was a snake when you picked it up didn't you? A better place to place the blame is with the greedy public which allows a loose regulatory regime and is only to happy to saddle their offspring with crippling debt so long as their leisure is assured in their golden years.

[flying]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/8251364/US-Federal-Reserve-makes-80.9bn-profit.html Edited March 2, 2011 by flying

[midas]

" If there's no deterrents, no certainty when there is wrongdoing, we're going to be back where we were."

http://www.dylanrati...l-street-greed/

Deja vu

http://blogs.reuters...-and-insurance/

i dont think i will ever trust any insurance company ever again

meanwhile have you heard what Merv King ( of all people ) said ? listen to the video clip

http://www.zerohedge...ers-not-greater

I'm always a little surprised about the reaction to banker's greed. It's like blaming a snake for biting you. You knew it was a snake when you picked it up didn't you? A better place to place the blame is with the greedy public which allows a loose regulatory regime and is only to happy to saddle their offspring with crippling debt so long as their leisure is assured in their golden years.

That the bankers were " greedy " was one thing but that they fulfilled that greed

through pure criminal activities ( i.e. fraud ) is another thing entirely and people

should react to that. If I break into your home

and steal your possessions, will you give me the same latitude ?

Bankers are government sponsored terrorists.

And let us not just blame bankers or the " greedy public " - what about greedy politicians who are meant to be in charge of the " regulators " ?

And in what way do the public " allow a loose regulatory regime " when they have no say in the matter ? I mean I doubt if many people would have actually voted to give Ben Bernanke another term ?

Edited March 2, 2011 by midas