CLibertyC

Chief Greek Statistician Threatened with Jail For Revealing True Size of Deficit

"At a time when the rest of the world was furious that Greece had artificially improved the country's budget statistics, Greek prosecutors are accusing Georgiou of doing the opposite. Prosecutors acted after a 15-month investigation into allegations made by a former ELSTAT board member. If found guilty, Georgiou faces five to 10 years in prison. Some argue that the technocrat Georgiou was serving his former superiors at the IMF and the European statistics agency Eurostat, which is led by a German. This theory holds that Greece was to be brought to its knees by imposing harsh austerity measures based on bloated deficit figures." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingChief Greek Statistician Threatened with Jail For Revealing True Size of Deficit

How A Rookie Excel Error Led JPMorgan To Misreport Its Risk For Years

"If this glaringly amateur error was present in America's largest bank by assets, and one which proudly boasts a 'fortress balance sheet', an error which just so happens feeds into countless other input cells driven by the firm's VaR calculation, leading to capital allocation, trading, and overall executive decisions many of which have a direct impact on the firm's exposure to $72 trillion in over the counter derivatives, what can one say about the thousands of other banks, which are not as closely 'supervised' by the Federal Reserve as JPMorgan is (supposedly)." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHow A Rookie Excel Error Led JPMorgan To Misreport Its Risk For Years

TARP: The bailout success story that wasn’t

"The idea that TARP is somehow a wash because a few banks repaid the bailouts with interest is misleading. The reality is that bailed-out firms essentially wrote off their losses on taxes. As of Dec. 30, TARP was still owed $67.3 billion, including $27 billion in realized losses — which is to say, that money is gone and is never coming back. Now, TARP is losing money as it tries to exit the programs. A new report by SNL Financial shows the Treasury Department is taking a beating in auctions of the Capital Purchase Program, one of the pipelines through which bailout money flowed." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTARP: The bailout success story that wasn’t

America’s Housing “Recovery”: Wall St. Buying Homes to Rent Back to Their Former Owners

"The Blackstone group, the biggest player in the new REO to rental market, has spent $2.5 billion in the last year purchasing 16,000 homes, a number that amounts to over $100 million per week. Property records show that many of the homes Blackstone has acquired in Fulton County over the last few months were purchased on the courthouse steps at the monthly foreclosure auction, or through short sales—when a lender agrees to accept less than the amount owed on a loan. The vast majority of these homes are not empty, but occupied by homeowners who fell behind during the great recession." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAmerica’s Housing “Recovery”: Wall St. Buying Homes to Rent Back to Their Former Owners

Renters to thank for healthier housing market

"Shares of the biggest U.S. builders including Lennar Homes (LEN) and Toll Brothers (TOL) have soared during the past year, but investors appear more excited about renters than a return of homeowners. To date, construction of multi-family units destined for the rental market rose by 150% over the two years ending in the third quarter of 2012. That's by far higher than the 50% rise of newly constructed multi-family homes for sale, and a 30% increase of single-family starts also for sale, according to Capital Economics." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRenters to thank for healthier housing market

Japan’s economic minister wants Nikkei to surge 17% to 13,000 by March

"Economic and fiscal policy minister Akira Amari said Saturday the government will step up economic recovery efforts so that the benchmark Nikkei index jumps an additional 17 percent to 13,000 points by the end of March. 'We want to continue taking (new) steps to help stock prices rise' further, Amari stressed, referring to the core policies of the Liberal Democratic Party administration — the promotion of bold monetary easing, fiscal spending and greater private sector investment." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJapan’s economic minister wants Nikkei to surge 17% to 13,000 by March

Doug Casey: Why America Should Default and You Should Live Abroad

"Reason TV's Nick Gillespie sat down with Casey to discuss why America should default on its debt, why he spends most of his time in Argentina these days, and the importance of self-reliance and free-market principles. His new book, Totally Incorrect, is a collection of conversations with Louis James that explore the ways in which government policy and centralized power threaten cultural and economic progress. In a series of engaging and wide-ranging dialogues, Casey and James talk about everything from the Great Depression to drug use to the Roman Empire." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDoug Casey: Why America Should Default and You Should Live Abroad