“Philosophy, sociology and liberal arts agendas will no longer suffice.” Continue reading »
Archive for June 2011
Cuts have been going down this morning at the House of Gorman. Continue reading »
The radical truth-seeking sessions are paying off. Continue reading »
S&P: Risk of U.S. Credit Rating Downgrade Increased (Reuters)
The risk of a downgrade to the credit rating of the United States has increased due to a lack of political consensus on how to employ the country’s balance sheet flexibility, Standard and Poors’ said on Tuesday.
Fitch sees risk of Greece, U.S. debt defaults (Reuters)
Fitch Ratings said on Tuesday that it would regard a voluntary rollover of Greece’s sovereign bond maturities as a default and would cut the credit rating appropriately, keeping pressure on Athens ahead of a confidence vote in parliament… Fitch’s Colquhoun also reiterated that the rating agency would place the U.S. sovereign rating on watch negative if Congress did not raise the federal government’s borrowing ceiling by August 2, and said if the U.S. government misses an August 15 coupon payment, then Fitch would place the rating on restricted default.
Vote of Confidence Is Only the First Step for Greece (NYT)
The payment of 12 billion euros will help Greece pay its debts coming due only until September. After that, Greece still faces obstacles to winning tens of billions more in a much bigger bailout package that is essential to its survival through next year. It has to persuade private banks and other companies that hold its government debt to take part in the bailout by agreeing to lend the country the same amount of money again after their bonds are redeemed. Only then will other European countries and the International Monetary Fund agree to put up their share of the new bailout.
IMF says board to meet June 28 to select new chief (Reuters)
The International Monetary Fund said on Monday its executive board will meet on June 28 to discuss the strengths of the two candidates for managing director, with the aim of completing its selection by June 30.
Director or No, Wall Street’s Newest Cop Is Ready for Duty (DealBook)
On July 21, the [Consumer Financial Protection Bureau] will formally open its doors and will be able to send its examiners into Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and other financial titans — whether or not it has a director. It can also issue new rules for big banks, examine their books and file enforcement actions, all crucial steps for an agency that was born only a year ago.
Paulson May Deal Clients $720 Million Loss (Bloomberg)
Paulson & Co., which held 34.7 million shares of Sino- Forest as of April 29, said in a filing yesterday that it had disposed of the stake as of June 17. The New York-based firm’s holding was worth C$815.80 million when it was disclosed. Its value had dropped to C$110.69 million by the end of last week.
Muddy Waters Target Urges Action (Bloomberg)
Orient Paper Inc. (ONP), a target of short-seller Muddy Waters LLC last year, urged overseas-listed Chinese companies to increase transparency after its shares fell 60 percent following the critical report. After the Muddy Waters June 28 analysis that labeled Orient a fraud, the company appointed Loeb & Loeb LLP, Deloitte & Touche Financial Advisory Services and TransAsia Layers to probe the allegations. That four-month investigation found no evidence to support the short-seller’s claims. Continue reading »
$$$ Pressure Rises for Greece Ahead of Confidence Vote (NYT)
$$$ I.M.F. Warns of New Austerity Measures Ahead (NYT)
$$$ S&P: Greek debt restructuring likely a default (Reuters)
$$$ Small Group Rode LinkedIn To Big Pay Day (NYT via Heidi Moore)
$$$ Wall Street Banks Lose Ruling on Research (DealBook)
$$$ Bank M&A Star Lurie Joins Guggenheim Partners (WSJ)
$$$ FTC says investigating oil manipulation (Reuters)
$$$ Stocks Cheapest in 26 Years as Profits Rise (Bloomberg)
$$$ Morgan Stanley Said to Plan Loan Fund for Blackstone Group’s GSO Capital (Bloomberg)
$$$ Bank Stocks’ Low Valuation = Lost Decade, Says Bank Analyst (MarketBeat)
$$$ Nearly One in Five Republicans Wouldn’t Vote for a Mormon (Daily Intel) Continue reading »
“Due to the uncertainty over Sino-Forest’s public disclosures and financial statements, we have sold our stock and await the results of the independent committee’s investigation,” Paulson and Co said today. Continue reading »
Guy With Sign On Wall Street Offering $10 Million/Year For An Initial Investment Of $250K
By Bess Levin
“If it is not the best idea you’ve ever heard I’ll pay you 4 your time!” Continue reading »
As Egger noted, there is “ample precedent” for protests to turn into riots. In 2008, demonstrations over the shooting of Alexandros Grigoropoulos, a 15-year old boy, by police in Athens, turned into a week-long riot, with public buildings, including a police station, set on fire by protestors wielding Molotov cocktails. The riots escalated so quickly and were so widespread that the Athens police reportedly ran out of tear gas. With tensions as high as they are now, Egger said, overzealous policing could see the situation spiral out of control. “Until the vote of confidence and after that, until the vote on austerity, there is a very explosive situation there,” he said. “The Greek police are not known to operate with a soft touch. This is a very risky situation. If they injure or kill somebody with whom they are fighting these running battles, then the whole thing is going to go up in flames, like it did in 2008.” [CNBC]
Harbinger Capital-Backed LightSquared Says It Has Come Up With A Solution That Might Work Re: “Devastating Interference”
By Bess LevinSeveral weeks ago, it was reported that government tests indicated LightSquared, Phil Falcone’s big bet in the sky, would cause “devastating interference” to all GPS devices in range. Then last Thursday, the National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation and Timing Systems Engineering Forum said the venture would “degrade global-positioning system navigation devices that are nearby and as far away as outer space.” LightSquared, shares of which Harbinger Capital investors will receive should they have requested their cash back from the fund, says do not worry, though, because they’ve got a plan. Continue reading »
“We have, unfortunately, nothing but bad choices,” he said. “What we’re looking at is better burden-sharing. Right now more of the burden-sharing is being taken by the Greek people.” [CNBC]
In February 2010, RBS employee Jim Glover (AKA G-Love) was told that his services were no longer required by the firm, when it came to light he’d spent that last year or so instructing junior employees to submit wires that would normally go to a counterparty to pay for trades, and then approving them to, instead, go to his personal account. The Glove Love did so, it’s been suggested, because he wasn’t happy with what he believed to be an offensively paltry bonus that wasn’t sufficient enough to fund his dream: “to build beautiful luxury mountain homes in his favorite ski town, Windham, N.Y.” Now that Glover has pleaded guilty and faces a fine of up to $1.25 million (plus ten years in jail), his own dream house has been put on the block and it could conceivably be yours a ten-spot, as the auction requires no minimum bid. According to the listing: Continue reading »
