not to solve problems.
Now It Can't Be Told!: The Environmental Protection Agency has ordered its staff to "not respond to questions or make any statements" to Congress, the GAO or even its own Office of Inspector General, in order to to promote efficiency and consistency and to keep their stories straight.
Yes, But: PIMCO's Bill Gross knows how to solve the credit problems: solve the housing problem. Mind you our Bill doesn't claim to know how to do that, just that it should be done. He did suggest having the government buy a million new houses, blow them up, and then start all over again, but he was pretty sure this idea wasn't going to catch on. Golly, it must be rewarding to be a financial leader.
Yesterday's News: Some of the MSM is breathlessly revealing that Richard Perle, one of the original bomb 'em and buy 'em neocons, is thinking about going into the oil business in Iraq. Fellas, take a deep breath. Perle and company have been thinking about this since 1994.
Realty Strikes: BofA: "We're going to see continued declines in house prices..." Pulte Homes "...no immediate signs of this housing downturn relenting." Case-Shiller: House prices fell by the steepest rate ever in May, down 15.8%.
Mighty Casey: The US drive to force small farmers in the developing world out of business ran up against some common sense and the WTO's "last chance to strike a deal" struck out.
Baltic Avenue: A British blogger of some repute is predicting the collapse and nationalization of Swedbank following the devaluation of the Lati. As Mr. Hamptom points out, you have to be really careful of countries with "unsustainable current account deficits."
Fashionable Necessity: The fashionistas are leading a charge back to Depression-era chic. Making a virtue of necessity; my Scots ancestry will finally pay off.
Then & Now: The US Navy's Fourth Fleet has resumed patrolling the Latin American coasts, demonstrating "U.S. commitment to our global partners," Admiral Gary Roughead said, explaining that "The Fourth Fleet will send a strong signal to all Navies operating in the region." Like Venezuela?
Professional Credentials: The longest serving Republican Senator, Alaska's Ted Stevens, has been awarded the top recognition in his chosen profession: an indictment for corruption.
Vocabulary Helper: The people that brought you CDOs and such are now introducing a "new and improved" product, Covered Bonds. Don't get too excited, covered bonds are simply CDOs guaranteed by Banks that are too big to exist fail, and thus are backed by the pockets of the US taxpayer. It's like buying Treasuries with a better return rate.
Explanation: "The financial firms obviously think investors are utter fools."
Shell Game: For over a year Bernanke inflated the money supply while claiming that inflation was not a problem. Now that the CPI is above 5% and the PPI above 9% for the year, inflation is pretty obviously not part of the solution. Other means will have to be found to perpetuate the shell-game. Not talking about it seems to be working so far.
Porn O'Graph: It's all about Debt, no doubt .
2 comments:
Covered bonds are not like CDO's. At all. CDO's are pooled debt obligations, corporate (in a traditional CLO/CDO structured) or structured (as on CDO's of ABS which have been causing havoc). Covered bonds are bonds issued by banks and protected or 'covered' by a pool of mortgages. As such, theay are akin to RMBS but with a bank guarantee over them (i.e. in a RMBS only the mortgages had to default, here both the mortgages and the issuing bank).
So, covered bond are first-order quasi-securitisation with extra protection, stronger collateral and less leverage. CDO's are second-order leverage plays. Not the same thing.
Covered bonds are not like CDO's. At all. CDO's are pooled debt obligations, corporate (in a traditional CLO/CDO structured) or structured (as on CDO's of ABS which have been causing havoc). Covered bonds are bonds issued by banks and protected or 'covered' by a pool of mortgages. As such, theay are akin to RMBS but with a bank guarantee over them (i.e. in a RMBS only the mortgages had to default, here both the mortgages and the issuing bank).
So, covered bond are first-order quasi-securitisation with extra protection, stronger collateral and less leverage. CDO's are second-order leverage plays. Not the same thing.
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