Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

CIT on the brink. Sources say CIT Group ( CIT ) is preparing a sweeping exchange offer that would eliminate 30-40% of its $30B in debt, giving bondholders new debt with a later maturity, and nearly all the equity in a restructured CIT. The plan is likely to be more attractive to bondholders with near-term debt, and some insiders say competing bondholder interests are likely to thwart any deal and send CIT to bankruptcy court. CIT -24% premarket. IMF turns optimistic. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 11:20:04

Blog posts (141) | Videos (33)
 

In The News Today

Barrick and its OTC Short of Gold Derivative Obligations: I am asked constantly how Barrick can cover all their hedges. The answer is quite simple. Barrick does not have to buy one ounce of gold. You buy your way out of hedge contracts with paper money. The simple question is what does the long side want to release the obligation in light of future possible profits on the position? What a hell of a needlessly expensive mess. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 19:48:55

Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act an improvement over House bill on offsets

With respect to offsets, the Kerry-Boxer bill is a distinct improvement over the ACES . It allows a relatively strong approach to offset integrity, avoiding negative social or environmental effects, and facilitating possible integration with other systems. It also addresses some issues that will be important to the functioning of a trading market, but still leaves some uncertainties that could cause problems in the market. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 21:05:41

The Problem Of Medical Homelessness

Please allow me to coin a new term: Medical Homelessness – Not having access to a consistent familiar medical setting.  Not having a care location where one is known or where the medical information is accurate. credit I think medical homelessness is one of the main problems in our system. Given the nature of care in the US, most patients are required to be their own homes.  They serve as the conduit where medical information from one provider goes to another. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-29 20:00:50

Things To Remember In Choosing A Credit Card

by Eric Jilson If you have a low credit rating, you will most likely not be offered an unsecured low interest credit card. This requires faith on the part of the credit card company that you will repay your debts on time. People with good credit are able to get these cards because their credit history shows that they have been capable of paying on time in the past. If you have good credit and plan to continue making timely payments, then you will probably qualify for these low-interest credit cards. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-28 09:44:37

If You Have A Debt Problem, Then Admit It!

You Can’t Solve A Debt Problem If You Deny Its Existence.  If you have a major debt problem and want to end it, then go look at yourself in a mirror and say, "I have a huge debt problem, it’s suffocating me, and it’s taking away my freedom", or whatever words feel right to you. If it felt real and you shuddered, then you’re most likely ready to start getting out of debt, but if you think that having overwhelming debts is: a) no big deal,b) something that everybody has right now,c) something [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 20:42:18

Relevance of ‘Atlas Shrugged’

Pound to Salinger Creative Commons License photo credit: igb I’ve finished reading “Atlas Shrugged” again, ... have been served up the $700 billion “Emergency Economic Stabilization Act” and the “Auto Industry Financing and Restructuring Act.” Now that Barack Obama is in town, he will soon sign into law with great [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 17:07:50

GMAC Auto Loans

11 of the best sites about GMAC auto loans. Know of another site that should be listed here? Leave your suggestion at the bottom of this page. (Related searches: Auto Loans ,  GMAC Smart Lease , GMAC Auto Insurance ) 1. GMAC Automotive Financing - Home page of GMAC financing for car loans, truck loans and leases, including information on their SmartBuy and SmartLease programs that allow you to get into a GM vehicle for a lower monthly payment. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-28 14:59:09

Bailout Binge: Zombie Edition

You know, Keyser has been ruminating a bit recently about the implications of printing ungodly sums of money to bailout people and companies that made bad decisions in the past and would go into bankruptcy if they didn't get bailed ... , and the only problem is this "credit crunch." So give them a few hundred billion dollars (in return [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 18:22:00

Making Work for Ourselves (Part Two)

In part one, I imagined a scenario where one hundred people, selected at random, are stranded on a desert island ... to them. In fact, only forty need to work to satisfy the needs of the whole population. So how would ... , in their capabilities, in their generosity and so forth. There may, arguably, be different degrees of need [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 15:58:44

The Secrets behind the FICO Score

by Ty Crandall Your credit score is the most important number in your life. How much you pay for car and health insurance, car payments, your rent and mortgage payments, house utilities, and even whether you get hired for a job or not, are ALL based on your credit profile and credit score. This article will help you understand each component of your total credit score. For more details on your credit score you can see this article and more at www.PerfectCreditFast.com. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-28 13:26:56

Busting the Ghosts of Hope

Expectations for Barack Obama’s presidency have continued to soar since his historic election. Millions believe change is possible. But what kind of change? And to whose benefit? Our country and our world are in crisis, and the tepid, incremental reforms Obama has been emphasizing aren’t going to cut it. It’s time to think outside the box [more...]

Date: 2009-01-16 16:44:52

One-Stop Shopping Calamity

The news that Citigroup is considering selling half its Smith Barney brokerage unit to Morgan Stanley is seen as evidence that Sandy Weill's plan for ... from one financial institution. Credit cards, checking accounts, mortgages, brokerage services ... a one-stop financial shop is officially dead. But the financial supermarket is the bad idea [more...]

Date: 2009-01-12 18:00:00

De-leveraging the Children of Wall Street

submitted by James Baker Welch, VP of Rothschild Investments One of the most stunning facts of the 2008 Financial Melt-down has been the wholesale ... regulatory agencies to determine if the institution has met the credit needs of its entire community. 1   The CRA began to compel banks to underwrite less credit-worthy mortgage loans in order [more...]

Date: 2009-01-15 15:40:18

Highlights and Lowlights of BofA’s Earnings Call

Bank of America moved its earnings announcement up to this morning to soothe investors after The Wall Street Journal’s report that BofA would need ... and $27 billion in credit costs. Many of the problems originated at Merrill Lynch, which had a loss ... Goldman Sachs research analysts noted wryly in a research report this morning. BofA CEO Ken Lewis [more...]

Date: 2009-01-16 16:01:30

Emotional, financial and legal advice on surviving redundancy

Keep calm Remember you're not alone Redundancy can be a devastating, sometimes brutal, experience but it's not your fault ... the credit crunch in your own backyard," says Phillip Hodson, a fellow of the British Association ... way as due to the western economic cycle, the bastard in charge of hiring and firing, or bad luck [more...]

Date: 2009-01-08 14:45:20

Fed and BOE Shell Games to Bailout Insolvent Banks

The US banking system is insolvent. I gave 25 reasons on Wednesday, July 23, 2008 in You Know The Banking System Is Unsound When.... 1 ... , imploding commercial real estate deals, Alt-A liar loans, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bonds, toggle bonds ... loans cannot be paid back.Many things have transpired since then. I could easily list another 25 [more...]

Date: 2009-01-18 01:51:43

Suze Orman’s Free Book - Fixing Your Finances in 2009

Barack Obama’s speech warning of devastating unemployment levels and a lengthy recession was no surprise to most Americans ... . Debt consolidators are often a very bad deal. The National Foundation for Credit Counseling ... into the history behind the economic downturn, the book has 7 main sections: Credit Retirement Investing Saving [more...]

Date: 2009-01-09 13:29:00

How Is The Broke FDIC Insuring Citigroup's Debt?

The point of my post yesterday about the FDIC was not point out that the FDIC is broke - everyone knew that. The FDIC's release yesterday gave us some serious insight into just how bad the financial situation is: the FDIC's estimates for losses continue to grow, and their time frame for replenishing the DIF (Deposit Insurance Fund) continues to be pushed out. In addition, the assets held by the FDIC are deteriorating in quality. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 15:26:33

How to win (pf) friends & influence people. NOT!

Regular Readers :) Please consider this post a 'break from regular programming' and not directed at any of you at allDear fake 'readers' who have ... to post their insurance, credit card, payday loans sites in a post in a link disguised as a post ... has been very good to me and I'm happy to hear genuine comments from readers, but I'm really tired having [more...]

Date: 2009-01-16 18:20:00

Can You Survive on One Income?

People are losing their jobs left, right and centre. I’ve been overwhelmed with the letters from people who have recently been pounced on by the Unemployment Monster. And even people who still have a job have watched pieces of their income evaporate through pay-cuts or cuts in hours worked. Corporate North America is cutting back and Joanna Average is feeling the bite. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-28 09:45:34

the inevitability of unavoidable change

Health care is not headed into a good period. I know in my state that there is a big deficit and I am sure this is true across the country ... more and more people lose their jobs and along with it, their health insurance. That means ... to the ER without insurance. A lot of those bills will have to be written off. This decrease [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 00:47:00

small employers are about to face another big hit: markedly higher increases in health-insurance premiums as they head into 2009.

For many of these companies, the steeper increases couldn’t come at a worse time, when the economy is weakening and credit is harder to come by. “We can’t pass these costs ... he’s forgoing new wood-cutting equipment he had planned to purchase. “I just felt it was a bad time [more...]

Date: 2008-11-24 06:57:08

Interesting Reads - 17th Jan 2009

I read a lot of interesting stuff during the week, but most of it was discouraging and sombre. However, such are the times ... Card Savings by The Digerati Life: Smarter Ways to use your credit card in this intensive post ... about the signs that come with a bottoming market. 10. Credit Card losses at Citibank by Plugged In Finance [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 17:25:10

Guest Post: Time to Recapitalize Banks Fully

As debate continues over the release of the second half of the Treasury Department’s Troubled Asset Relief Program, ... recapitalizations using government money on October 13th, but largely by massive credit lines from the Federal ... in the payments system (in which letters of credit and the willingness to take counterparty risk [more...]

Date: 2009-01-15 11:47:00

The Endgame

The Endgame Employment Numbers Are Worse Than Posted Aye, Captain, I'm Giving Her All I've Got! Problem #1: Deflation Problem #2: Pushing on a String The Muddle Through Middle Conversations With John Deflation? Stimulus? Deleveraging? Recession? A soft depression? A return to a bull market? With all that is going on, how does it all end up? [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 21:29:29

ROUNDUP: Can’t stop talking about the crisis

Sometimes, I wonder when the global financial crunch will no longer be in the headlines…or when a day will pass when we won’t talk about it…or when ... , whether a medical insurance or health card from an HMO. While you keep pouring your juice ... , UITFs and mutual funds, check out this article. Yes, there’s good debt and bad debt and it’ [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 13:29:37

Bush Economic Miracle: International Art Market Collapsing-- Along With Every Other Market

Damien Hirst's "Adam & Eve Under the Table." The seated lady isn't part of the exhibitionSunday I was laughing about some of the Times'top 44 tourist ... has some bad news for all Damien Hirst purchasers. His edgy art may have been a better investment ... boom in the art market that was buoyed by record bonuses paid to financial executives.Lehman plans [more...]

Date: 2009-01-13 14:00:00

E-Prescriptions and Comparative Effectiveness - $500 billion savings

This post at The Seminal (where I also post) by Jason Rosenbaum contained so much information that is good, I just copied it here: A new report from the consulting firm Deloitte LLP shows that health care reform can indeed save money. A lot of money. Like half a trillion dollars: U.S. health care spending could drop by half [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 21:00:00

Full Text: Barack Obama on Economy | Economic Recovery and Reinvestment | January 8, 2009

(Source: Office of the President-Elect) Throughout America’s history, ... from a troubled past, and set a new course for our nation. This is one of those years. We start 2009 ... ’t believe it’s too late to change course, but it will be if we don’t take dramatic action as soon [more...]

Date: 2009-01-08 18:00:11

Portugal Sustains

“Art has a function of teaching about the human condition. We live in hope, hope is fundamental” - Manoel de Oliveira Manoel de Oliveira (photo and quote above) is a living example for the Potuguese people of how to force their way out of the low growth/low per capita income trap into which they have steadily stuck their neck [more...]

Date: 2009-01-12 14:37:23

Is Personal Information Property?

Note: This article originally appeared on the Security Catalyst Blog A colleague recently asked me, “When did my personal information become someone’s property?” It’s a question with a vital answer, because if my personal information belongs to someone else, then they can do whatever they want with it [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 19:59:52

Does Mobile Marketing Infringe on Your Privacy?

Naturally, privacy watchdogs answer the question in this post title with a resounding “Yes! ... a new car recently, and went on the mobile phone looking for a lower-interest credit card,” said Jeff ... to know that? Marketers for fast food companies, car insurance companies or credit card companies? It’ [more...]

Date: 2009-01-13 22:52:51

It’s time to refinance ~ but is your home worth enough to get that great low rate?

Short sales, Bailouts, Mortgage Reductions…there are all kinds of programs being talked about, ... .  You have a credit score over 800?  Awesome…we’ll give you a loan for up to 100% of the value of your home ... .  But I have a question.  What about the homeowner who has never missed a payment, has a great credit score [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 04:16:58

Credit Crisis Watch: Gaining Positive Traction

In order to gauge the progress being made to unclog credit markets and restore confidence in the world’s financial system, ... in this “Credit Crisis Watch” review, one can ascertain to what extent the various central bank liquidity ... of the credit crisis in August 2007. 14-jan-1.jpg Source: StockCharts.com Importantly [more...]

Date: 2009-01-14 13:30:49

Alan Schram: The Story of 2008: What Went Wrong?

The past year has been financially chaotic on a level almost no one alive has ever seen ... in loans from their gracious neighborhood banker. This sounds like very high leverage ... more than 1%. However, suddenly home prices decline nationwide, and 20% of the mortgages default [more...]

Date: 2009-01-12 05:06:35

How the Credit Crunch is Crunching Out First Time Buyers

by Troy Cruz William Engle Dawn Khoury James Nissen Robert Hill Chris Laning Janet Taylor Jack Enders Bruce Gross Rick Bean Keith Wood Ray Johnson ... who have established credit. So, how are first time buyers affected by the down turn in the economy? It isn’ ... when there wasn’t a credit crunch. Before, first time buyers got a break on the interest [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 21:06:22

The Next Step for the U.S. Bank Bailout

From the WSJ: U.S. Plots New Phase in Banking Bailout Officials at the Treasury, Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp ... has a table of credit losses based on estimates from Goldman Sachs: $1.1 trillion from residential mortgages ... a government bank that would buy up the bad investments and loans that are behind the huge losses [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 18:31:35

The U.S. as a Banana Republic?

Plane Ditches in New York River, All Aboard are SafeReutersNEW YORK (Reuters) - A US Airways jet with 155 people on board ditched in the frigid Hudson River off Manhattan after apparently hitting a flock of geese on Thursday and officials said everyone was rescued."We've had a miracle on the Hudson," New York Gov [more...]

Date: 2009-01-16 15:10:00

B of A reports loss, gets more cash

by Rolfe Winkler, CFA The TARP was phase 1 of the bank bailout: give the banks cash to rebuild their capital ... 1: the government is absorbing losses on bad assets themselves.  See Citi’s bailout in late November ... for credit-losses nearly tripled, while the company showed why it needed further help from the government [more...]

Date: 2009-01-16 15:09:12

You Need Credit Scores With A Credit Report

By John Rasor the importance of knowing and understanding your credit history and score I recently logged on to annualcreditreport ... that people with bad credit are more likely to file a claim than people with good credit. As a result ... .com to get my once a year free credit report but to my surprise there were no credit scores [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 19:01:47

Live-Blogging the Hearings for Obama’s SEC Chairman Pick

Mary Schapiro, President Barack Obama’s vaguely controversial pick to head the Securities and Exchange Commission, is appearing on the Dodd & Shelby Show today (otherwise known as the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, of which Connecticut Democrat Chris Dodd is the chairman and Alabama Republican Richard Shelby is the [more...]

Date: 2009-01-15 15:16:09

Live-Blogging the Hearings for Obama’s SEC Chairman Pick

Mary Schapiro, President Barack Obama’s vaguely controversial pick to head the Securities and Exchange Commission, is appearing on the Dodd & Shelby Show today (otherwise known as the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, of which Connecticut Democrat Chris Dodd is the chairman and Alabama Republican Richard Shelby is the [more...]

Date: 2009-01-15 16:37:43

The Three Musketeers of Woo meet d'Artagnan to fight for woo on the editorial page of the Wall Street Journal

The seemingly never-ending quest of advocates of unscientific medicine, the so-called "complementary and alternative medicine" (CAM) movement is to convince policy makers, patients, and physicians that, really and truly, it no longer deserves the qualifier of "alternative," that it is in fact mainstream and even "scientific [more...]

Date: 2009-01-08 02:20:58

Financial Management Course:Deudas

What is debt elimination? Debt elimination is the process of getting your outstanding debts under control and then avoiding getting into debt in the ... you a lot of stress, it will also destroy your credit ratings. Once your credit ratings go bad ... , housing and credit card debt crisis, a lot of financial companies in the country are offering different [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 14:46:14

Using Free Credit Reports And Credit Scores To Save Money

No doubt you've probably seen a commercial offering you the opportunity to request your free credit report or free credit score. Why all the big fuss? Why the big interest in credit scores and credit reports? To begin, you need to obtain copies of your credit score and credit reports. Let's start with your credit report first. You can get your free annual credit reports from the government. You can request the three major credit bureau reports every year. [more...]

Date: 2009-09-30 01:37:23

Getting the Architecture Right: The Economic Implications of Cap and Trade Policy

This isn't just about carbon ... it turns out that cap and trade could be the largest economic redistribution program the US has ever seen. I attended a symposium a few weeks ago at Evergreen State College about preparing our communities for climate regulation [more...]

Date: 2009-01-12 19:16:46

Ray LaHood and Changing our Thinking About Transportation

Today, the U.S. Senate will hold a confirmation hearing on the president-elect's choice of Ray LaHood for Secretary of Transportation. No one expects that hearing to be anything but easy for LaHood. That's too bad, because it shows that when it comes to greening the stimulus, we're not only missing the forest for the trees, we're [more...]

Date: 2009-01-12 23:32:23

Insurance Companies Are Not All Equal

by Ethan Kalvin You can get Insurance Coverage on just about anything you can think of ... be rated based on your gender, age, distance driven each year, driving record, and your credit history. There are also external influences that also contribute to your final insurance quote [more...]

Date: 2009-01-17 21:22:40

The Endgame

The Endgame by John Mauldin January 17, 2009 • Employment Numbers Are Worse Than Posted • Aye, Captain, I’m Giving Her All I’ve Got! • Problem #1: Deflation • Problem #2: Pushing on a String • The Muddle Through Middle • Conversations With John Deflation? Stimulus? Deleveraging? Recession? A soft depression? A return to a bull market? [more...]

Date: 2009-01-18 02:04:12

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