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bkkandrew

^I have a 5K condo (brand new) in Ratchada, slightly bigger that the one I was paying 14K for next door. I still have a 4.5K one near On Nut and a large house in Somerset, UK. I did, however, sell 4 properties in the UK last lear (at the height of the house price boom).

Again, how are you doing?

Butterfly

^ so let me get this straight, you are a multi millionaire in BP, and yet you live in a 5k condo, bitch when the motocycle taxi overcharge you by 2 THB, and then make a fool of yourself on a forum by making silly predictions while claiming to be a financial expert and yet fail to understand basic economic principles ?

yes indeed you are priceless, bkka

bkkandrew

So when did anyone become rich by wasting money?

Again, how are you doing?

Butterfly

^ not sure why my post was deleted, so I will post it again for bkka

I am doing fine, thank you. Having a beer now

bkkandrew

^Leo from the 7/11?

BTW, your post was no doubt deleted, as you simply troll this forum looking for your next bullying victim.

This MoFo doesn't get bullied and that is why you are crying in your beer.

Anyway, back on topic:

Fed Loans May Give Lehman Breathing Room Bear Lacked (Update2)

By Scott Lanman and Steve Matthews




Sept. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Access to Federal Reserve loans means Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., which has plunged this week on concern about its capital, may have breathing room that Bear Stearns Cos. lacked before its abrupt collapse.

The program instituted in the aftermath of the Bear Stearns debacle, the Primary Dealer Credit Facility, could be used for funding while officials, regulators and executives find alternative sources of cash, Fed watchers said.
``The PDCF could be used to keep Lehman operating until a broader solution was found,'' said Brian Sack, a former Fed research manager who's now senior economist at Macroeconomic Advisers LLC in Washington. ``The challenge is figuring out what the broader solution is.''

Lehman can borrow overnight from the central bank, with escalating costs if it keeps using the program. Because it's a stopgap, speculation may mount that the government will again intervene to prevent a large financial company from failing, after the Bear Stearns rescue and takeovers of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

``Given what was done with Freddie and Fannie and Bear Stearns, it's hard to distinguish why Lehman is not too big to fail as well,'' said Robert Eisenbeis, chief monetary economist at Cumberland Advisors, and a former research director at the Atlanta Fed. ``My guess is that everyone will blink again and Lehman too will be saved. We are in for a rough ride.''

More here:

Bloomberg.com: Worldwide

So, we can assume Lehman has been deemed to big to fail too. Those tax dollars are being burnt fast. No, wait, ahem, that dosh borrowed from the Chinese is, er, being fried?

bkkandrew

More details on the Lehman loss:

Lehman Plans Neuberger Auction, Real Estate Spinoff (Update3)

By Yalman Onaran



Sept. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., reporting the biggest loss in its 158-year history

From:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...fDk&refer=home

Despite the suggested safety net of the FED, I, for one, would not risk placing funds with Lehman any time soon...

bkkandrew

Bailouts Will Push US into Depression: Manager

The end result of the global economic slowdown may be the U.S. announcing national bankruptcy as the government cannot afford the bailouts that it promised and the market will not bail out the government, Martin Hennecke, senior manager of private clients at Tyche, told CNBC on Thursday.

"We expect a depression in the United States. We expect a depression, very possibly, also in Europe," Hennecke said on "Worldwide Exchange."

The estimated $300 billion cost of the Fannie/Freddie bailout will probably be considered as a loss that the government will have to take, therefore passing it on to taxpayers, he explained.

"We already have $3 trillion of debt, as far as the U.S. government is concerned. These debt figures across the U.S. economy are rising very sharply."

When the government can no longer pass the United States' "immense debt" on to taxpayers, it will turn to the holders of U.S. dollars, leading to the eventual downfall of the currency, Hennecke said.

"Definitely, it (the dollar) is not a safe place to be invested in, as real inflation is closer to 10 or 11 percent than the actual inflation numbers given by the U.S. government," Hennecke said on "Worldwide Exchange".

Investors should avoid exposure to debt and stay away from leveraging on any investment or asset, including property, Hennecke advised, adding that "banks have been too highly leveraged in the past, private households, everybody."

Hennecke's stock allocations are mainly Asian-based, especially in the Chinese market as the country's government has a large amount of cash and the macroeconomics are fundamentally strong.

He also suggested investing in gold, despite the recent fall in price.

Bailouts Will Push US into Depression: Manager - General * Europe * News * Story - CNBC.com

bkkandrew

Wall Street Prepares for Potential Lehman Bankruptcy Filing


By Craig Torres

Sept. 14 (Bloomberg) -- A group of banks and brokers began preparing for a potential Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. bankruptcy filing today, addressing outstanding trades that the company has in over-the-counter derivatives markets.

Financial firms have started ``netting'' Lehman trades on credit, equity, interest-rate, foreign exchange, and commodity derivatives, according to a statement from the International Swaps and Derivatives Association e-mailed to Bloomberg News.

``ISDA confirms a netting trading session will take place between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. New York time for over-the-counter derivatives,'' the ISDA said. ``Trades are contingent on a bankruptcy filing at or before 11:59 p.m. New York time, Sunday, Sept. 14, 2008. If there is no filing, the trades cease to exist.''

The announcement came after Barclays Plc, the U.K.'s third- biggest bank, said it abandoned talks to buy Lehman, contending it couldn't obtain guarantees to protect against potential losses at the U.S. securities firm.

Bloomberg.com: Worldwide

Now, when this happens, you know 'its' going to happen, as all counterparties have to work out their 'net' position, i.e. what they owe to and are owed by the bankrupt bank. They can then see if (a) they are themselves bankrupt (quite important), (b) may the necessary report to the SECC, NYSE et al on any loss and (c) prepare to present the claims/payment offers to the liquidators.

So, they are going down. Properly.

bkkandrew

Bank of America saving Merrills instead?

Bank of America, Merrill Lynch In Merger Talks


By Matthew Karnitschnig, Susanne Craig and Dennis K. Berman
Word Count: 94
Bank of America and Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. are in merger discussions, according to people familiar with the matter.

The talks come amid a Wall Street scramble to sort out a potential liquidation of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.

Bank of America had considered buying Lehman, but when those talks failed to result in a deal, BofA turned its attention to Merrill, which is considered a better fit for the bank.

Much remains uncertain and conditions were fluid.


Free Preview - WSJ.com

Subscription needed for full report.

Butterfly

how many fights have you been into in the last 48 hours with how many members ? quite a few I suspect

bkkandrew

^Nope, just you and the senile fool.

Anyway, back on topic:

More `Chaos' Ahead for U.S. Banks, Investor Jim Rogers Predicts

By Lynn Thomasson and Betty Liu

Sept. 10 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. financials face more ``chaos'' as the credit market worsens, investor Jim Rogers predicted.

``Balance sheets of many of these financial institutions are still terribly impaired and there are more problems to come,'' he said during a Bloomberg Television interview. ``We had the worst credit bubble in the history of the world. You don't clean that out in a year or two or three.''

The chairman of Singapore-based Rogers Holdings said he's still betting against U.S. investment banks, even after ending his short sale of Citigroup Inc. a few weeks ago because the bank's stock fell too low. Citigroup shares closed at $14.56 on July 15, the lowest since 1997. The world's largest bank by assets has rallied 25 percent since then.

Rogers also called the government takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac ``outrageous'' and said the largest U.S. mortgage finance companies should have declared bankruptcy.

``I'm happy some people will be able to get lower mortgages, but I shouldn't have to pay for it,'' he said. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac executives aren't ``turning in their Maseratis when they're asking us to bail them out.''

Complete article here:

Bloomberg.com: Worldwide

The news about how sour the Freddie/Fannie deal actually is will start to seep out over the coming days...

bkkandrew

US BECOMES WORLD'S BIGGEST COUNCIL ESTATE AMERICA became the world's largest council estate last night after the US government bought all the houses.

Fudd has underpinned US mortgages for 40 years

With the nationalisation of the country's biggest mortage companies, Washington can now begin painting all the front doors the same colour and filling the gardens with rubbish.

Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson said: "By taking Kenny G and Elmer Fudd into state control the US government is now the second biggest owner of third rate homes after Liverpool City Council."

He added: "Since the Pilgrim Fathers set foot on Plymouth Rock, the American dream has been about working hard and owning your own home until the government suddenly turns into a bunch of communists and buys up all the mortgages.

"Rest assured we will choose a sickly blue-green colour for your front door and inject damp into the walls in time for Christmas."

Mr Paulson continued: "Now we all know that when the government owns your home you have an immediate and irresistible urge to use it as a one big toilet.

"All I would say is: do at least try to use the lavatory, but if not, then please sweep all your droppings into the corner of the room and then cover them in sawdust."

Meanwhile economist Tom Logan warned: "If all Americans are now effectively council tenants then it's only a matter of time before they become fat, ignorant bastards who sit around all day eating huge bags of crisps and watching X-Factor."

US BECOMES WORLD'S BIGGEST COUNCIL ESTATE - The Daily Mash

Butterfly

I think you are confusing the Fed Funds rate and the discount window,

The discount window is an instrument of monetary policy (usually controlled by central banks) that allows eligible institutions to borrow money from the central bank, usually on a short-term basis, to meet temporary shortages of liquidity caused by internal or external disruptions.

It is distinct from the federal funds rate or its equivalents in other currencies, which determine the rate at which banks lend money to each other. In recent years, the discount rate has been approximately a percentage point above the federal funds rate (see Lombard credit). Because of this, it is a relatively unimportant factor in the control of the money supply and is only taken advantage of at large volume during emergencies.

Discount window - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

who

The discount window is an instrument of monetary policy that allows eligible institutions to borrow money from the central bank to meet temporary shortages of liquidity.
The interest rate charged on such loans by a central bank is called the discount rate.

Butterfly

Yes, it is and I stand by what I said below, that is a "special" rate (and discounted). The collateral assets you mentioned are not discounted as they are not sold, they just serve as collateral, usually pre-approved by the Fed. I think you are confusing US Treasury Zero Coupon bonds, a short term instrument often used as collateral in complex edging operations by market participants, including banks. The Fed is NOT the US Treasury.

until 2003 the rate used to be "especially" low (that is fixed by the Fed and usually below the Federal Fund rate) but what I didn't know is that the rates were restructured in 2003 and are now 100bp above the Federal Fund rate.

More here: FACTBOX-What is the Fed's discount window | Markets | Bonds News | Reuters

Another source here: Real Time Economics : Explaining the Discount Window

Hardly used for day to day operations as you mentioned, at least until the rate were restructured in 2003, so maybe banks are less reluctant to borrow now. With the latest crisis, they surely did use it extensively. Not a good sign though and definitely not normal.

bkkandrew

Capital fears for AIG and Washington Mutual


By James Quinn Wall Street Correspondent

Last Updated: 12:00am BST 13/09/2008





American International Group, the world's largest insurer, is under pressure to clarify its capital position, amid concern that its balance sheet is not strong enough, as other financials began to feel the pain meted out earlier in the week to Lehman Brothers.

Beleaguered American savings bank Washington Mutual (WaMu) is understood to have told potential buyers it is not interested in being taken over in spite of constant questions about its capital adequacy.

AIG, best known in the UK as the shirt-sponsor of Manchester United, is believed to be considering scheduling a conference call with Wall Street analysts on Monday morning to confirm its position and assuage worried investors.

The call, if it happens, will come after ratings agency Standard & Poor's said last night that it may cut the insurer's credit rating by up to three notches. AIG's shares ended yesterday down 30pc.

Continued here:

Capital fears for AIG and Washington Mutual - Telegraph

who

Regarding paragraph one above:

"special" in relation to what? "discounted" from what? I agree: the collateral is not sold, other wise it would no longer be collateral. Re: Zero Coupon Treasuries: I personally would not refer to 30 year bonds as 'short term'. I am not familiar with "edging" operations. I agree that the Fed is not the Treasury. The Treasury is a federal gov't Department, the Fed is a privately owned corporation.

bkkandrew

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York held an emergency meeting Friday night with top Wall Street executives to discuss the future of venerable firm Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and the parlous state of U.S. financial markets.

The meeting, which began at 6 p.m., was called by the New York Fed in an attempt to find a solution to the problems plaguing Lehman. The group, which consisted of the heads of most major financial institutions, is expected to meet throughout the weekend to see if it can agree on some way to rescue the ailing firm, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Business - WSJ.com

Here we go again. I wonder which firm will be lent some money to prop up Lehman?

Milkman

Ignorant question here by me:

I know some firms and even Dubai pumped in helicopter money to save some of the investment houses.

But if nobody comes in to pump up Lehman brothers, what the big deal?

Would the fall of Lehman hurt anyone in the greater economy (in addition to those that hold it's plunging stock)?

__________________
Military men are dumb, stupid animals, to be used as pawns for foreign policy

bkkandrew

^The couterparties to any investment bank would be hurt badly by any outright insolvency. Bank A owes money to bank B, which has lent it to bank C. Bank C goes bust, leaving bank A and B in trouble. Its called contagen. One large failure could bring down the entire banking system. It was broadly known that if Bear had gone bust properly they would have taken JP Morgan Chase with them.