by ilene - October 13th, 2009 11:46 am
Courtesy of Jesse’s Café Américain
"We will have another armed robbery unless we prevent the banks, the banks that are too big to fail. We should say that if you’re too big to fail then you are too big to be. They need more restrictions, such as no derivative trading.” Joe Stiglitz
If a Nobel Prize winner in economics says the obvious, besides a few diligent bloggers, perhaps other economists will obtain ‘air cover’ in speaking about the economic and regulatory absurdity taking place today in the US and the UK. Winning the Nobel is even better than tenure.
Here is a video of his speech in Brussels, because this Bloomberg article leaves out some of the more ‘pithy’ remarks on the Wall Street bank bonuses, the errors efficient market theory, political and ideological capture, lies (his wording) told by central bankers including Alan Greenspan, unproductive "taxes" by banks on the real economy, ‘criminal’ management of beta, and the social costs of this financial crisis from Joe Stiglitz from the Brussels banking conference.
Stiglitz characterizes the reforms being put forward by the US Congress as completely wrong, and harmful. Watch the video, and compare what Joe Stiglitz is saying with the ponderous mendacity of Larry Summers, and you may better understand why Obama’s policies are doomed to failure.
It does not take much imagine to see how things might be quite different if Joltin’ Joe was the Chief Economic Advisor or Fed Chairman, rather than ‘Last War’ Larry or Zimbabwe Ben.
Again, here is a link to this ‘must see’ video which can be a bit slow to start because of Bloomberg’s video platform.
Bloomberg
Stiglitz Says Banks Should Be Banned From CDS Trading
By Ben Moshinsky
October 12, 2009 06:28 EDT
Oct. 12 (Bloomberg) — Large banks should be banned from trading derivatives including credit default swaps, said Joseph Stiglitz, the Nobel prize-winning economist.
The CDS positions held by the five largest banks posed “significant risk” to the financial system, Stiglitz said at a press conference in Brussels. Big banks should have extra restrictions placed on them, including a ban on derivative trading, because of the risk that they would need government money if they fail, he said in a speech today.
“We will have another armed robbery unless we…
Tags: Banks, CDS trading, derivatives market, Financial System, Joe Stiglitz, reform
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by ilene - September 4th, 2009 12:48 pm
Courtesy of Jesse’s Café Américain
Joe Stiglitz describes the current financial crisis and prospective recovery quite well, and the conclusions he draws are remarkably similar to our own which is gratifying.
It’s good to hear these things from a distinguished Nobel laureate, and not just from your humble Propriétaire, while puttering over his daily bread.
Bloomberg
Stiglitz Says U.S. Economic Recovery May Not Be ‘Sustainable’
By Michael McKee
Sept. 4 (Bloomberg) — The U.S. economy faces a “significant chance” of contracting again after emerging from its worst recession since the 1930s, Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz said.
“It’s not clear that the U.S. is recovering in a sustainable way,” Stiglitz, a Columbia University professor, told reporters yesterday in New York.
Economists and policy makers are expressing concern about the strength of a projected economic recovery,…
Stiglitz said he sees two scenarios for the world’s largest economy in coming months. One is a period of “malaise,” in which consumption lags and private investment is slow to accelerate. The other is a rebound fueled by government stimulus that’s followed by an abrupt downturn — an occurrence that economists call a “W-shaped’ recovery.
“There’s a significant chance of a W, but I don’t think it’s inevitable,” he said. The economy “could just bounce along the bottom.”
Stiglitz said it’s difficult to predict the economy’s trajectory because “we really are in a different world.” He said the crisis of the past year was made worse by lax regulation that allowed some financial firms to grow so large that the system couldn’t handle a failure of any of them.
Big Banks
“These institutions are not only too big to fail, they are too big to be managed,” he said.
Finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 nations meet in London Sept. 4-5 to lay the groundwork for a summit in Pittsburgh later this month, where leaders will consider measures to overhaul supervision of the financial system…
With so much excess capacity, the American economy faces a short-term threat of disinflation and possibly deflation, Stiglitz said. Wages may even decline, given recent high productivity and the likelihood of an extended period of high unemployment, he said.
Longer term, he said the Fed’s aggressive monetary policy will mean inflation becomes the greater threat. “With the magnitude of the deficits and the…
Tags: current financial crisis, dollar system, global financial system, Joe Stiglitz
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by ilene - June 15th, 2009 4:20 pm
Courtesy of Jesse’s Café Américain 
Joe Stiglitz writes an important essay, and it is suggested that you take the time to read it. It helps to explain many of the things we have been saying, including the forecast that ‘a new school of economics will rise from the ashes of this crisis, as Keynesianism rose from the Great Depression.’
These are changes of an historic nature, and as such they will progress slowly, and be largely unnoticed by those going about their daily business.
But the tides of change have been loosed, and what we have known, and relied upon, and expected will be shaken to its foundations.
Wall Street’s Toxic Message by Joseph Stiglitz – Vanity Fair (pdf)
Tags: Great Depression, Joe Stiglitz
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Philip R. Davis is a founder Phil's Stock World, a stock and options trading site that teaches the art of options trading to newcomers and devises advanced strategies for expert traders...
Ilene is editor and affiliate program
coordinator for PSW.