Everything You Wanted To Know About EFSF (But Should Be Afraid To Ask)
by Zero Hedge - October 2nd, 2011 11:41 pm
Courtesy of ZeroHedge. View original post here.
Submitted by Tyler Durden.
With the weekend full of on-again-off-again comments from various European, Asian, and US politicians and central bankers with regard the chances of various incarnations of the EFSF solving all of our ills (or not), Nomura’s Fixed Income Research team has what we feel is one of the most definitive analyses of the various options. We have discussed the self-exciting strange attractor nature of the endgame that will be a leveraged EFSF many times recently. The Nomura team, however, does a great job of breaking down various scenarios, such as Structural Weaknesses of EFSF 2.0, Proposals for an EFSF 3.0 (and their variants), Leverage-based options, and EFSF 2.0 as TARP and how these will result in one of three final outcomes: fiscal union, monetization, or major restructurings risking the end of the euro, as everyone searches for a steady state solution to the ‘problem’ of the eurozone.
While the most elegant solutions have no official sanction, we think the necessary political resolve is yet to be forthcoming, and the technical issues are challenging if not insurmountable for many of the legal workarounds, resulting in the need for yet another round of parliamentary approvals. Consequently, we see a significant risk that the market, looking for large headlines and enhanced flexibility, will be disappointed at least in the short run.
The search for a steady state solution
In analyzing the eurozone debt crisis, the key challenge is to assess the likely path towards a steady state solution, defined as the market no longer being concerned about future default risks on government debt – at least over a time-frame that is meaningful to immediate asset allocation decisions. We have highlighted three broad alternative steady state solutions:
1. Full fiscal union and the issuance of Eurobonds with a joint and several liability structure or at least unconditional credit risk transfers to stronger countries for a extensive period of time (for sustainability to be reestablished).
2. Aggressive policy reflation, whereby the ECB significantly expands its balance sheet and its SMP program. (Given the requirement of EU governments to recapitalize the ECB, this option ultimately begins to blend into option 1.
3. Default and debt restructuring in selected non-core countries and possible end of the euro area.
Option 1 is not under consideration at this juncture since all forms
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Secular Bull and Bear Markets
by Chart School - October 2nd, 2011 9:35 pm
Courtesy of Doug Short.
Was the March 2009 low the end of a secular bear market and the beginning of a secular bull? Without crystal ball, we simply don’t know.
One thing we can do is examine the past to broaden our understanding of the range of possibilities. An obvious feature of this inflation-adjusted is the pattern of long-term alternations between up-and down-trends. Market historians call these “secular” bull and bear markets from the Latin word saeculum “long period of time” (in contrast to aeternus “eternal” — the type of bull market we fantasize about).
If we study the data underlying the chart, we can extract a number of interesting facts about these secular patterns:
The annualized rate of growth from 1871 through the end of August is 1.93%. If that seems incredibly low, remember that the chart shows “real” price growth, excluding inflation and dividends. If we factor in the dividend yield, we get an annualized return of 6.58%. Yes, dividends make a difference. Unfortunately that has been less true during the past three decades than in earlier times. When we let Excel draw a regression through the data, the slope is an even lower annualized rate of 1.71% (see the regression section below for further explanation).
If we added in the value lost from inflation, the “nominal” annualized return comes to 8.80% — the number commonly reported in the popular press. But for an accurate view of the purchasing power of the dollar, we’ll stick to “real” numbers.
Since that first trough in 1877 to the March 2009 low:
- Secular bull gains totaled 2075% for an average of 415%.
- Secular bear losses totaled -329% for an average of -65%.
- Secular bull years total 80 versus 52 for the bears, a 60:40 ratio.
This last bullet probably comes as a surprise to many people. The finance industry and media have conditioned us to view every dip as a buying opportunity. If we realize that bear markets have accounted for about 40% of the past 122 years, we can better…
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Bernanke Getting Cold Feet On European Bank Bail Out?
by Zero Hedge - October 2nd, 2011 8:49 pm
Courtesy of ZeroHedge. View original post here.
Submitted by Tyler Durden.
Two weeks after Bernanke agreed to invest unlimited taxpayer funds in the form of global FX swap lines to prevent a worldwide dollar funding squeeze arising from the Europen financial collapse, the Chairman appears to be getting cold feet. BusinessWeek reports: “The Federal Reserve Bank of New York may ask foreign lenders for more detailed daily reports on liquidity as the U.S. steps up monitoring of risks from Europe’s sovereign debt crisis, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. Regulators held informal talks with some of the largest European lenders about producing a “fourth-generation daily liquidity” or 4G report, according to the people, who asked for anonymity because communications with central bankers are confidential. The reports may cover potential liabilities such as foreign-exchange swaps and credit-default swaps, said one person. The U.S. has already increased the number of examiners embedded in these banks, the person said.” In other words, not only after Bernanke’s pledge to fund as much money as is needed to prevent bank defaults around the world, is he actually going to have enough information to determine if there is any danger of this money not getting repaid. Well, better late than never. But at least we can permanently set aside any latent questions over whether European banks have liquidity problems. When even the Fed no longer believes you, you have far bigger problems than just liquidity (except for Dexia: liquidity there may well be the largest problem, but at least it won’t be for long).
From Business Week:
Concern is growing that European lenders may falter as Greece teeters on the brink of default. U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner has warned that failure to bolster European backstops would threaten “cascading default, bank runs and catastrophic risk” for the global economy.
“The Fed is trying to understand what the pressure points are in terms of liquidity and potential risks that are imposed by foreign banks to domestic institutions in our financial system,” said Kevin Petrasic, an attorney at the Washington- based law firm of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLC. “There is a little bit more sense of urgency as a result of what’s going on in Europe.”
“The report requires rapid
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Koch Brothers Flout Law Getting Richer With Secret Iran Sales
by ilene - October 2nd, 2011 7:49 pm
Intro by Zeke Miller at Business Insider
Koch Brothers Flout Law Getting Richer With Secret Iran Sales
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By Asjylyn Loder and David Evans
In May 2008, a unit of Koch Industries Inc., one of the world’s largest privately held companies, sent Ludmila Egorova-Farines, its newly hired compliance officer and ethics manager, to investigate the management of a subsidiary in Arles in southern France. In less than a week, she discovered that the company had paid bribes to win contracts.
“I uncovered the practices within a few days,” Egorova- Farines says. “They were not hidden at all.”
She immediately notified her supervisors in the U.S. A week later, Wichita, Kansas-based Koch Industries dispatched an investigative team to look into her findings, Bloomberg Markets magazine reports in its November issue.
By September of that year, the researchers had found evidence of improper payments to secure contracts in six countries dating back to 2002, authorized by the business director of the company’s Koch-Glitsch affiliate in France.
“Those activities constitute violations of criminal law,” Koch Industries wrote in a Dec. 8, 2008, letter giving details of its findings. The letter was made public in a civil court ruling in France in September 2010; the document has never before been reported by the media.
Egorova-Farines wasn’t rewarded for bringing the illicit payments to the company’s attention. Her superiors removed her from the inquiry in August 2008 and fired her in June 2009, calling her incompetent, even after Koch’s investigators substantiated her findings. She sued Koch-Glitsch in France for wrongful termination.
Obsessed with Secrecy
Koch-Glitsch is part of a global empire run by billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch, who have taken a small oil company they inherited from their father, Fred, after his death in 1967, and built it into a chemical, textile, trading and refining conglomerate spanning more than 50 countries.
Koch Industries is obsessed with secrecy, to the point that it discloses only an approximation of its annual revenue — $100 billion a year — and says nothing about its profits.
The most visible part of Koch Industries is its consumer brands, including Lycra fiber and Stainmaster carpet. Georgia- Pacific LLC, which Koch owns, makes Dixie cups, Brawny paper towels and Quilted Northern bath tissue.
Charles, 75, and David,
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From A Lexington, KY Gas Station Bathroom
by Zero Hedge - October 2nd, 2011 7:19 pm
Courtesy of ZeroHedge. View original post here.
Submitted by Tyler Durden.
Presented without comment.
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Weekly Market Commentary: Weekly Consolidation Break
by Chart School - October 2nd, 2011 7:08 pm
Courtesy of Declan Fallon
Leading down are Small Caps. Friday saw a clear break of the consolidation. The Russell 2000 looks destined to test 593 support. For bulls to have a shot there needs to be a smooth rally-and-break of 760 – anything less will only lead to indecision.
The Nasdaq, like the Russell 2000, is looking for a measured move lower. The immediate target is 2,160 with last ditch support down at 2,100. The weekly chart shows a new ‘sell’ trigger in on-balance-volume.
The Dow was another index to crack. It had already generated a ‘sell’ trigger in its on-balance-volume although stochastics have not confirmed an oversold condition.
The S&P was the only index to perhaps hang on to consolidation support. Like the Dow it has a ‘sell’ trigger in on-balance-volume, but stochastics are no longer oversold.
As for next week. if bulls can prevent the consolidation breakdowns from expanding it will be a job well done. European fundamentals will play a heavy role in next weeks action; Greece hogging 99.9% of news is an all-too obvious “victim” but it’s hard to see where the good news is going to come from. Bulls have their work cut out.
Dr. Declan Fallon is the Senior Market Technician and Community Director for Zignals.com. I offer a range of stock trading strategies for global markets which can be Previewed for Free with delayed trade signals. You can also view the top-10
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Dexia Nationalization Imminent?
by Zero Hedge - October 2nd, 2011 6:56 pm
Courtesy of ZeroHedge. View original post here.
Submitted by Tyler Durden.
Back on Friday, when we closed out the Dexia long sub CDS trade, we said “We expect a partial or complete nationalization to be announced imminently, which in addition to all other side effects, would lead in a Bear Stearnsing of all accrued profit.” Sure enough, here is the Sunday Times on the very topic… And while a nationalization of Dexia, which now appears a matter of hours if not days, will be bad for anyone still long the bank’s CDS (it should trade down to pari with Belgium tomorrow, just as Bear CDS trades in line with JPM), it is pretty horrifying for SovX and Eurocore CDS in general, now that a bank which holds assets amounting to 180% of Belgium’s GDP, is about to be nationalized by the very same country. Anyone who is still not long Belgium CDS, this is probably your last chance to get on that particular train. Of course, if one is waiting patiently in line at a Dexia ATM machine, one is forgiven.
Source: Sunday Times.
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Latest Trading Jobs
by Chart School - October 2nd, 2011 6:32 pm
Courtesy of Declan Fallon
Alternative trading jobs on offer include:
FIX on Boarding Specialist
Silverlight/WPF Developer
Fixed Income Middle Office ($70-90K)
Trading Floor Administrative Assistant
Head of Risk Management
Market Data Support Specialist ($100-130K)
Trade Floor Support – IT Developer
Bond Desk Supervisor
Strategist
Fixed Income Desk Manager
Project Manager: Futures – Must have GMI Experience
Relationship Manager
High Net Worth Broker
Manager – Strategy & Consulting
Senior Financial Analyst – Capital Markets Finance
Sr. Software Engineer – (C#) Algorithmic Products
Vice President, Treasury / FP & A (Private Equity); $200K
Senior Equity Compensation Analyst
Director, Equity Capital Markets Compliance
Institutional Equity Research Associate ($90-110K)
Bilingual Japanese Equity Research Analyst
Equity Research Compliance Specialist II
Pension Plan Equity Specialist
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Meltdown – The Conclusion: “After The Fall”
by Zero Hedge - October 2nd, 2011 6:00 pm
Courtesy of ZeroHedge. View original post here.
Submitted by Tyler Durden.
Previously, we brought you parts one, two and three of the Canadian must see documentary “Meltdown.” In this final episode “After the Fall”, we hear about the sheikh who says the crash never happened; a Wall Street king charged with fraud; a congresswoman who wants to jail the bankers; and the world leaders who want a re-think of capitalism. As one world leader handles the crisis through denial, other leaders try to re-think capitalism. Even though the causes of the 2008 meltdown are now clear, there is no magic formula to stop it from happening again. The world has to start planning for the next crisis, even as we recognise that this one is not over yet.
Courtesy of Al Jazeera
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Hokey Pokey Plan
by Zero Hedge - October 2nd, 2011 5:50 pm
Courtesy of ZeroHedge. View original post here.
Submitted by ilene.
(Taken from the Week Ahead Section of Stock World Weekly)
The Fed announced its upcoming schedule for “Operation Twist.” The Fed plans to buy approximately $44 billion long-term treasuries funded by its sale of approximately $44 billion short-term bonds in October. While this program was named after the dance craze of the early 60’s, a more appropriate name might be “Operation Hokey Pokey,” since it is a simple program of exchanging short bonds for long bonds, or in other words “you put your short bonds in, you pull your long bonds out, you put your short bonds in and you shake them all about.”
One of the purported beneficiaries of the Fed’s policy is the housing market because “Operation Twist” is expected to push interest rates down for home mortgages, which will (hopefully) put more money in homeowners’ pockets, and ultimately the economy at large.
The housing market can use the help. A recent survey of economists, analysts and real estate professionals concluded that the “housing market remains shaky and is unlikely to deliver significant growth in prices over the next five years.” On the other hand, many question the wisdom of the Fed’s intervention. Robert Shiller, cofounder of MacroMarkets, opined “markets and government institutions are visibly struggling to respond consistently to an unprecedented rash of crises and conflicts. These struggles diminish confidence, which compounds the underlying economic stresses and lowers expectations.” (Five more years of housing problems, with some stability in local markets)
Paul Craig Roberts questioned the potential efficacy of the Fed’s Hokey Pokey program. In Saving the Rich, Losing the Economy, he wrote, “The Federal Reserve announced that the bank would purchase $400 billion of long-term Treasury bonds over the next nine months in an effort to drive long-term US interest rates even further below the rate of inflation, thus maximizing the negative rate of return on the purchase of long-term Treasury bonds. The Federal Reserve officials say that this will lower mortgage rates by a few basis points and renew the housing market.
“The officials say that QE 3, unlike its predecessors, will not result in the Federal Reserve printing more dollars in order to monetize US debt. Instead, the central bank will raise money for the bond purchases by selling holdings of short-term debt. Apparently,…
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