Mainstream News

Twitter flash crash: Fake White House bomb report causes stock market panic

"A tweet from The Associated Press Twitter account claiming the White House had been bombed caused investors to suddenly push the Dow down more than 100 points in two minutes Tuesday before it became clear the report was untrue and AP's account had been hacked. Reaction on the stock market was swift, as what had been a mildly positive day on the Dow Jones quickly turned negative, with America's benchmark stock index losing more than 134 points or more than a full per cent of its value in a matter of seconds. Reports suggest more than $20 billion worth of equity positions changed hands on the New York Stock Exchange during the brief trading hiccup." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTwitter flash crash: Fake White House bomb report causes stock market panic

Wall Street betting billions on single-family homes in distressed markets

"Drawn by the prospect of double-figure profit margins on rents and the resale of homes whose prices plummeted in the crash, hedge funds, Wall Street investors and other institutions are crowding out individual home buyers. Real estate executives say institutional investors — who in some cases are bidding on hundreds of homes a day — account for as much as 70 percent of sales in some Florida markets. Over the past two years, analysts say, they also have accounted for a majority of purchases in other parts of the country where housing prices are rebounding sharply." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWall Street betting billions on single-family homes in distressed markets

Bloomberg Says Interpretation of Constitution Will ‘Have to Change’ After Boston Bombing

"In the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Monday the country’s interpretation of the Constitution will 'have to change' to allow for greater security to stave off future attacks. 'We live in a complex word where you’re going to have to have a level of security greater than you did back in the olden days, if you will. And our laws and our interpretation of the Constitution, I think, have to change. 'We have to understand that in the world going forward, we’re going to have more cameras and that kind of stuff. That’s good in some sense, but it’s different from what we are used to,' he said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBloomberg Says Interpretation of Constitution Will ‘Have to Change’ After Boston Bombing

Top Treasury Official: ‘Too Big to Fail’ Bailouts Are Over

"U.S. banks won’t be rescued by taxpayers, U.S. Treasury Department official Mary Miller said, rebutting investor skepticism that some lenders are too large to be allowed to fail. 'With respect to this understanding of too-big-to-fail, let me be very clear: It is wrong.' 'No financial institution, regardless of its size, will be bailed out by taxpayers again,' Miller said at a conference in New York. 'Shareholders of failed companies will be wiped out; creditors will absorb losses; culpable management will not be retained and may have their compensation clawed back.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTop Treasury Official: ‘Too Big to Fail’ Bailouts Are Over

Greece’s great fire sale

"The idea of snapping up a Greek island certainly has its appeal. In March the Emir of Qatar bought six for £7 million, while a Russian oligarch bought Skorpios – previously owned by the Onassis family – earlier this month for a reported £65 million, as a present for his 24-year-old daughter Ekaterina Rybolovlev. To that end, the royal palace on Corfu, where Prince Philip was born, is now also for sale. So too is a large coastal estate which, the government boasts on its website, is next door to land owned by the Rothschild banking dynasty. Officials refuse to discuss prices, saying that it depends on offers and the development proposals." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGreece’s great fire sale

German Tax Officials Launch Nationwide Raids With Stolen Swiss Bank Data

"A total of five German states clubbed together to buy the CD for €4 million from an anonymous informant, said sources close to the Rhineland-Palatinate government, which arranged the deal. The information was distributed to tax authorities across Germany some six weeks ago. Tuesday's raids only mark the start of an extensive investigation that could last until the end of the year. Authorities expect that the media coverage of the raids will prompt many tax evaders to turn themselves in to authorities so that they can lessen their penalties. The current raids affected customers with accounts in Credit Suisse, the former Clariden Leu AG and Neue Aargauer Bank." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGerman Tax Officials Launch Nationwide Raids With Stolen Swiss Bank Data

Mark Carney: Canadian deposits safe under bail-in, but no guarantee

"Mark Carney says policy-makers are working diligently to devise an international 'bail-in' regime to prevent big bank failures, but he offered no guarantee that individual deposits would be protected. The Canadian central banker, who is a few months away from heading the Bank of England, says banks must have a set of buffers in place to draw on in an emergency. He notes the Canadian government has pledged not to dip into individual deposits. Carney did not answer whether there should be a total hands-off treatment to non-secured accounts as well, which in Canada would mean deposits over $100,000." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMark Carney: Canadian deposits safe under bail-in, but no guarantee

German advisors push for ‘wealth tax’ on holiday homes to bail out Greece

"As well as inflaming tensions between Germany and its smaller southern partners, the suggestion could also mean that Britons with holiday homes are dragged deeper into the eurozone crisis. Senior figures in Germany are now arguing that some richer home owners in countries like Spain, Portugal and Greece have so far avoided paying their fair share to rescue the euro, leaving Germany paying too much. Until now, the cost of rescue packages for countries like Ireland, Greece and Portugal has fallen largely on people who invest money in either those countries' bonds or – in the case of Cyprus – bank accounts." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGerman advisors push for ‘wealth tax’ on holiday homes to bail out Greece

Vast Greek war claims against Germany explode like a ‘time-bomb’

"Premier Antonis Samaras held a special meeting with the foreign minister Dimitris Avramopoulos and other key officials this morning to limit the diplomatic damage from the 80-page report. The document – stamped 'Aporito', or secret – was drafted by a panel of experts appointed by the Greek finance ministry and delivered to officials last month. The alleged claim against Germany reaches a grand total of €162bn, including €108bn for rebuilding the country’s infrastructure after the Nazi occupation from 1941 to 1944. This is 80pc of Greek GDP." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingVast Greek war claims against Germany explode like a ‘time-bomb’

Discovery Of A 17th Century Spanish Shipwreck Yields Awesome Treasure

"A great superpower, weakened by economic calamity at home and staggering under the debt from years of war in the Middle East, finally collapses. A new political best-seller, or an apocalyptic Hollywood blockbuster? Neither — it's the story told by a 1622 shipwreck whose treasures were desperately needed to shore up the finances of the struggling Spanish Empire. The galleon Buen Jesus y Nuestra Senora del Rosario was one of 28 ships in the Tierra Firme fleet; all were sailing from the New World back to Spain, laden with colonial treasures, when they were struck by a powerful hurricane off the Florida Keys." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDiscovery Of A 17th Century Spanish Shipwreck Yields Awesome Treasure