Investors cheered Barack Obama's election as the next US president.
However, the market soon sharply cut its early strong gains. Though
the BSE Sensex was up 95.44 points or 0.9%, the barometer index had
shed close to 220 points from the day's high.
Rally in Asian stocks and expectations that a cut in interest rates
by state-run banks that would result in lower borrowing costs for
the corporates supported the market. The sentiment was also firm
following a statement by the Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal
Nath after trading hours on Tuesday, 3 November 2008, that the
government will further ease foreign investment rules, including
those relating to defence production.
Asian stocks surged as investors welcomed the end to the
uncertainty around the US presidential election. Japan's Nikkei
average pared gains briefly after news of Democrat Barack Obama
winning the US presidential election but still remained up 2.6%,
buoyed by exporters boosted by a softer yen. Key benchmark indices
in China, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea were up by
between 0.29% to 5.63%.
Democrat Barack Obama captured the White House today, defeating
Republican John McCain to make history as the first black to be
elected US president.
At 10:10 IST, the BSE 30-share Sensex was up 95.44 points or 0.9%
to 10,726.56. The Sensex surged 314.29 points at day's high of
10,945.41 in early trade. The index rose 19.04 points at the day's
low of 10,650.16 in early trade.
The S&P CNX Nifty was down 37 points or 1.18% to 3,179.10.
The BSE Mid-Cap index was up 1.92% at 3,513.94 and the BSE
Small-Cap index was up 2.01% at 4,116.07. Both the indices
outperformed the Sensex.
The market breadth was strong. On BSE, 1,176 shares advanced as
compared to 379 that declined. 29 shares remained unchanged.
India's largest private sector company by market capitalization and
oil refiner Reliance Industries (RIL) slipped 1.39% to Rs 1432.90
on reports of shutting down five of its seven polyester and
petrochemical units at Patalganga near Mumbai soon after offering
exit option to employees. The move, which comes in the backdrop of
a global slowdown, aims to improve profit margin amid falling
demand for polyester products worldwide, reports suggest.
Reliance Infrastructure (up 4.64% to Rs 568.50), Jaiprakash
Associates (up 4.42% to Rs 93.60) and DLF (up 3.57% to Rs 300.50)
were the major gainers from Sensex pack.
Reliance Communications (down 1.56% to Rs 246.60), ACC (down 0.47%
to Rs 504) were the major losers from Sensex pack.
IT stocks were mixed on strong rupee and on worries the US
outsourcing business will be curtailed and the direct impact will
be on IT sector after Barack Obama won the US presidential
election. India's third largest IT exporter by sales Satyam
Computer Services fell 0.74% as its American depository receipt
(ADR) fell 0.83% overnight.
India's fourth largest IT exporter by sales Wipro rose 0.76% as ADR
rose 5.25%. India's second largest IT exporter by sales Infosys
slipped 1.33%, even as ADR rose 4.84%.
India's largest IT exporter by sales Tata Consultancy Services
slipped 0.04%.
Democrat Barack Obama has strong reservations on outsourcing from
the US. He had made many statements during his election speeches
that he would discourage outsourcing from the US when he comes into
power.
The Indian rupee strengthened by 1% in opening deals on Wednesday
on expectations the stock market may rise for a sixth successive
session and attract foreign inflows. The partially convertible
rupee was at 47.20/21 per dollar, compared to Tuesday's close of
47.69/71 per dollar. A strong rupee affects the IT companies as
they earn most of their revenues in dollar terms.
Bank stocks extended yesterday's (4 November 2008)'s gains on
reports public sector banks are likely to cut deposit and lending
rates by 50 to 75 basis points within one week. India's largest
commercial bank State Bank of India rose 2.25% after its chairman O
P Bhatt said on 4 November 2008 the bank was likely to cut interest
rates by up to 50 basis points.
Punjab National Bank, Bank of India, Union Bank of India, Federal
Bank, IDBI Bank, Canara Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Allahabad Bank
and IndusInd Bank rose by between 2.84% to 6..97%. Indian Bank rose
1.53% after the bank said yesterday it will consider cutting its
lending and deposit rates by 50-75 basis points this week.
State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur was flat at Rs 2651.70 after it cut
its benchmark prime lending rate to 13.25% from 14%, effective 5
November 2008.
India's largest private sector bank by net profit ICICI Bank rose
4.29% as American depository receipt (ADR) spurted 7.28% overnight.
ICICI Bank's chief executive K.V. Kamath said on 3 November 2008,
the bank will review interest rates in the next few days.
India's second largest private sector bank by net profit HDFC Bank
rose 2.81% as ADR jumped 7.63% on Tuesday.
India's largest home loan lender by operating income HDFC jumped
2.28%.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Saturday, 1 November 2008,
unexpectedly cut its main short-term lending rate viz. the repo
rate to ease a growing cash squeeze, spur faltering economic growth
and fend off damage from the global financial crisis.
India Infoline rose 0.72% after the company received an
in-principle approval from the market regulator, Securities and
Exchange Board of India (Sebi), to set up an asset management
company.
Kingfisher Airlines fell 2.86 on reports the of defaulting on lease
rentals to GE Commercial Aviation Services for four A 320
aircrafts.
Balaji Telefilms rose 0.57% on reports of plans to enter
broadcasting
GMR Infrastructure surged 6.43% on reports it is close to acquiring
a coal mine in Indonesia for over $100 million
US stocks had their biggest Election Day rally ever on Tuesday as
investors looked forward to the end of the uncertainty surrounding
the long fight for the White House, while global credit markets
showed more signs of a thaw. The Dow Jones Industrial Average
jumped 305.45 points or 3.28%. The tech-laden Nasdaq Composite
Index surged 53.79 points or 3.12%.
Showing posts with label US government. Show all posts
Showing posts with label US government. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
US STOCKS-Market opens lower
U.S. stocks fell at the open on Wednesday as investors locked in profits after Tuesday's steep gains and retailers' shares fell as oil prices rose, eclipsing optimism about a possible interest-rate cut.
The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI fell 53.29 points, or 0.59 percent, to 9,011.83, while the Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX slid 6.21 points, or 0.66 percent, to 934.30. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC was down 11.56 points, or 0.70 percent, at 1,637.91
The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI fell 53.29 points, or 0.59 percent, to 9,011.83, while the Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX slid 6.21 points, or 0.66 percent, to 934.30. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC was down 11.56 points, or 0.70 percent, at 1,637.91
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Fed makes emergency move to lend directly to companies; Bernanke hints at rate cuts soon
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Frantically trying to stop the bleeding on Wall Street, the Federal Reserve took a first-time step Tuesday to get cash directly to businesses and hinted that interest rates could come down soon. Stocks continued their free fall anyway and hit new five-year lows.
The central bank invoked emergency powers to lend money to companies outside the financial sector and buy up mounds of commercial paper, the short-term debt that firms use to pay for everyday expenses like salaries and supplies.
The Fed, which has only loaned money to banks before, made the move as the gravest financial crisis in decades wore on and concern spread around the world.
In a speech to the National Association for Business Economics, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke delivered a strong signal interest rates may need to be cut. And he warned the country could be stuck in the economic doldrums for some time.
"The outlook for economic growth has worsened," Bernanke said. "The heightened financial turmoil that we have experienced of late may well lengthen the period of weak economic performance."
The gloomy assessment appeared to open the door wider to an interest rate cut on or before the Fed convenes again Oct. 28. The Fed's key interest rate now stands at 2 percent.
Wall Street turned its back. The Dow Jones industrials lost 508 points, more than 5 percent, to close at 9,447, the lowest since Sept. 30, 2003. The Standard & Poor's 500, a broader stock index, closed below 1,000 for the first time since that same day.
The economic crisis was a major focus of a second presidential debate Tuesday night between Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama. During sharp exchanges with Obama, McCain called for a far-reaching program to stem foreclosures by requiring the federal government to renegotiate the mortgages of individual homeowners and make them more affordable.
"It's my proposal. It's not Sen. Obama's proposal," McCain, R-Ariz., said at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn.
Obama charged that the current crisis was the "final verdict on the failed economic policies of the last eight years" that President Bush pursued and were "supported by Sen. McCain."
He contended that Bush, McCain and others had favored deregulation of the financial industry, predicting that would "let markets run wild and prosperity would rain down on all of us. It didn't happen."
Bush again sought to strike a reassuring tone and said the nation would make it through an economy blighted by job losses, record foreclosures and shriveled retirement savings. Congress' top budget analyst estimated Tuesday that Americans' retirement plans have lost as much as $2 trillion in 15 months.
"Have faith, this economy is going to recover over time," the president said in a speech in Virginia. "I wish I could snap my fingers and make what happened stop. But that's not the way it works."
Bush reached out to European leaders earlier Tuesday to urge coordination on efforts to solve the crisis. The White House said Bush was open to the idea of a summit.
The contagion has spread overseas. Britain's chief financial regulator was readying a statement to make before markets opened Wednesday, and the BBC reported that the British government was poised to announce a rescue package for the banking system there.
Concerns are mounting that a global recession is developing, and pressure is growing on the U.S. government to do something beyond the $700 billion financial bailout package that Bush signed into law Friday.
To that end, the Fed announced it would begin buying companies' short-term debt. The powers were bestowed during the Depression as part of the Federal Reserve Act.
The government's bailout package is aimed at thawing lending by buying bad mortgage-related debt off the books of troubled financial institutions. The idea is that the banks would then be in a better position to lend and get the economy moving.
Commercial paper borrowing usually ranges from overnight to less than a week. But in the current climate of mistrust, the market has dried up considerably.
The action makes the Fed a crucial source of credit for nonfinancial businesses in addition to commercial banks and investment firms -- and also exposes it to risk because so much of the debt would not be backed by collateral.
Credit markets, clenched up for weeks now, relaxed somewhat after the Fed's move.
The Fed said it was creating a new entity to buy two types of short-term debt, known as three-month unsecured and asset-backed commercial paper, directly from eligible companies. It hopes to have the program up and running soon, Fed officials said.
Fed officials said they would buy as much of the debt as necessary to get the market functioning again but refused to say how much that might be. They noted that around $1.3 trillion worth of commercial paper would qualify.
The Treasury Department, which worked with the Fed on the program, said the action was "necessary to prevent substantial disruptions to the financial markets and the economy."
The Treasury will provide money to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to support the new program, the Fed said. The money would be separate from the $700 billion financial bailout package.
The Fed said it planned to stop buying the short-term debt on April 30 but may extend the program.
There was $1.6 trillion in outstanding commercial paper, seasonally adjusted, on the market as of last week, the most recent data from the Fed. The market has shrunk from $2.2 trillion last summer.
Associated Press writers Madlen Read and Tim Paradis in New York and Ben Feller in Washington contributed to this report.
The central bank invoked emergency powers to lend money to companies outside the financial sector and buy up mounds of commercial paper, the short-term debt that firms use to pay for everyday expenses like salaries and supplies.
The Fed, which has only loaned money to banks before, made the move as the gravest financial crisis in decades wore on and concern spread around the world.
In a speech to the National Association for Business Economics, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke delivered a strong signal interest rates may need to be cut. And he warned the country could be stuck in the economic doldrums for some time.
"The outlook for economic growth has worsened," Bernanke said. "The heightened financial turmoil that we have experienced of late may well lengthen the period of weak economic performance."
The gloomy assessment appeared to open the door wider to an interest rate cut on or before the Fed convenes again Oct. 28. The Fed's key interest rate now stands at 2 percent.
Wall Street turned its back. The Dow Jones industrials lost 508 points, more than 5 percent, to close at 9,447, the lowest since Sept. 30, 2003. The Standard & Poor's 500, a broader stock index, closed below 1,000 for the first time since that same day.
The economic crisis was a major focus of a second presidential debate Tuesday night between Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama. During sharp exchanges with Obama, McCain called for a far-reaching program to stem foreclosures by requiring the federal government to renegotiate the mortgages of individual homeowners and make them more affordable.
"It's my proposal. It's not Sen. Obama's proposal," McCain, R-Ariz., said at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn.
Obama charged that the current crisis was the "final verdict on the failed economic policies of the last eight years" that President Bush pursued and were "supported by Sen. McCain."
He contended that Bush, McCain and others had favored deregulation of the financial industry, predicting that would "let markets run wild and prosperity would rain down on all of us. It didn't happen."
Bush again sought to strike a reassuring tone and said the nation would make it through an economy blighted by job losses, record foreclosures and shriveled retirement savings. Congress' top budget analyst estimated Tuesday that Americans' retirement plans have lost as much as $2 trillion in 15 months.
"Have faith, this economy is going to recover over time," the president said in a speech in Virginia. "I wish I could snap my fingers and make what happened stop. But that's not the way it works."
Bush reached out to European leaders earlier Tuesday to urge coordination on efforts to solve the crisis. The White House said Bush was open to the idea of a summit.
The contagion has spread overseas. Britain's chief financial regulator was readying a statement to make before markets opened Wednesday, and the BBC reported that the British government was poised to announce a rescue package for the banking system there.
Concerns are mounting that a global recession is developing, and pressure is growing on the U.S. government to do something beyond the $700 billion financial bailout package that Bush signed into law Friday.
To that end, the Fed announced it would begin buying companies' short-term debt. The powers were bestowed during the Depression as part of the Federal Reserve Act.
The government's bailout package is aimed at thawing lending by buying bad mortgage-related debt off the books of troubled financial institutions. The idea is that the banks would then be in a better position to lend and get the economy moving.
Commercial paper borrowing usually ranges from overnight to less than a week. But in the current climate of mistrust, the market has dried up considerably.
The action makes the Fed a crucial source of credit for nonfinancial businesses in addition to commercial banks and investment firms -- and also exposes it to risk because so much of the debt would not be backed by collateral.
Credit markets, clenched up for weeks now, relaxed somewhat after the Fed's move.
The Fed said it was creating a new entity to buy two types of short-term debt, known as three-month unsecured and asset-backed commercial paper, directly from eligible companies. It hopes to have the program up and running soon, Fed officials said.
Fed officials said they would buy as much of the debt as necessary to get the market functioning again but refused to say how much that might be. They noted that around $1.3 trillion worth of commercial paper would qualify.
The Treasury Department, which worked with the Fed on the program, said the action was "necessary to prevent substantial disruptions to the financial markets and the economy."
The Treasury will provide money to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to support the new program, the Fed said. The money would be separate from the $700 billion financial bailout package.
The Fed said it planned to stop buying the short-term debt on April 30 but may extend the program.
There was $1.6 trillion in outstanding commercial paper, seasonally adjusted, on the market as of last week, the most recent data from the Fed. The market has shrunk from $2.2 trillion last summer.
Associated Press writers Madlen Read and Tim Paradis in New York and Ben Feller in Washington contributed to this report.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Dow finishes below 10,000 for first time since '04
NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street joined in a worldwide cascade of despair Monday over the financial crisis, driving the Dow Jones industrials to their biggest loss ever during a trading day. Even a big afternoon rally failed to keep the Dow from its first close below 10,000 since 2004.
The sell-off came despite the $700 billion U.S. government bailout package, which was signed into law Friday after two weeks in which traders had appeared to count on the rescue as their only hope to avoid a market meltdown.
At its worst point, the Dow was down more than 800 points, an intraday record. The stock market rallied during the final 90 minutes of the trading day, and the Dow finished down about 370 points at 9,955.50.
The average is down almost 30 percent from its all-time high of 14,164.53, set a year ago Thursday.
Speculation among traders late in the session that the market's pullback had been severe enough to force the Federal Reserve into taking other steps to soothe the markets helped stocks rebound from their lows.
"If you can't say that we're oversold now I don't know what you say. You're at least due for a bounce if nothing else," said Bill Stone, chief investment strategist for PNC Wealth Management.
The global plunge in stocks was under way well before Wall Street ever woke up. In Japan, the Nikkei average lost more than 4 percent. And then the losses spread across Europe -- nearly 6 percent for the FTSE-100 in Britain, 7 percent for the German DAX and more than 9 percent for France's CAC-40.
In the United States, President Bush twice made unscheduled remarks on the economy, saying in Cincinnati that the economy would be "just fine" but that the bailout package needed time to work.
The troubles that started with an overheated housing market in the U.S. have infected financial markets around the world, making banks fearful of lending to other banks, let alone to businesses and consumers. That has led to worries that economies around the world might not only sputter but slide into reverse.
The crush of selling Monday came exactly one week after the Dow lost 778 points, its biggest closing loss in terms of points. On that day, the House voted down an earlier bailout package that had appeared to be a safe bet to pass.
The swings in the Dow on Monday also marked the beginning a fourth week of tumult in the markets. Triple-digit Dow swings have been commonplace since mid-September, when investment house Lehman Brothers went bankrupt and the government stepped in to bail out insurer American International Group.
But even with the bailout package firmly in place -- a plan under which the federal government will buy bad mortgage-related assets off the books of banks -- investors remain worried that banks are too fearful to lend and are cutting off air to the economy.
Over the weekend, governments across Europe rushed to prop up failing banks, while the governments of Germany, Ireland and Greece also said they would guarantee bank deposits. U.S. investors appeared worried the bailout would not be enough to jump-start the economy. Even other steps, including a Federal Reserve decision to expand a loan program to squeezed banks, didn't help much.
The sharp one-day tumbles over the last two Mondays don't come close to the drops that became black marks on the timeline of Wall Street history. Black Monday, in October 1987, and stock drops that preceded the Great Depression were more than 20 percent. Monday's drop, by comparisons, was less than 8 percent at its worst.
For the day, the Dow lost 3.6 percent. The selling was broad: Little more than 200 stocks finished the day higher on the New York Stock Exchange, while about 3,000 finished lower.
At its lowest point Monday, the Dow was down 800.06, at 9,525.32. The benchmark average dipped below 10,000 for the first time since Oct. 29, 2004, and closed there despite the afternoon rally.
The market's paper loss at the day's lows came to $1.1 trillion, as measured by the Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 Composite Index, which tracks 5,000 U.S.-based companies' stocks. That compares with a loss of about $1.5 trillion last week; that was the worst weekly return since the week after trading resumed following the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.
As an indication of how fearful investors still are, government-backed debt was in high demand. The yield on the three-month Treasury bill, which moves in the opposite direction as its price, fell to 0.49 percent from late Friday at 0.50 percent. Investors are willing to accept low returns to have their money in a secure place.
Investors also moved into longer-term Treasury bonds as they fled the stock market. The yield on the 10-year note fell to 3.45 percent from 3.60 percent late Friday.
Broader indexes also plunged. The Standard & Poor's 500 index shed 42.34, or 3.85 percent, to 1,056.89; and the Nasdaq composite index fell 84.43, or 4.34 percent, to 1,862.96. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies dropped 23.49, or 3.79 percent, to 595.91.
Consolidated volume on the NYSE reflected the frantic pace of the day's trading: 7.81 billion shares changed hands, up from Friday's 6.52 billion.
The market "is displaying one of its worst traits with a herd mentality, and investors have an appetite for feeding on fear," said Anthony Sabino, a professor of law and business at St. John's University.
The sell-off came despite the $700 billion U.S. government bailout package, which was signed into law Friday after two weeks in which traders had appeared to count on the rescue as their only hope to avoid a market meltdown.
At its worst point, the Dow was down more than 800 points, an intraday record. The stock market rallied during the final 90 minutes of the trading day, and the Dow finished down about 370 points at 9,955.50.
The average is down almost 30 percent from its all-time high of 14,164.53, set a year ago Thursday.
Speculation among traders late in the session that the market's pullback had been severe enough to force the Federal Reserve into taking other steps to soothe the markets helped stocks rebound from their lows.
"If you can't say that we're oversold now I don't know what you say. You're at least due for a bounce if nothing else," said Bill Stone, chief investment strategist for PNC Wealth Management.
The global plunge in stocks was under way well before Wall Street ever woke up. In Japan, the Nikkei average lost more than 4 percent. And then the losses spread across Europe -- nearly 6 percent for the FTSE-100 in Britain, 7 percent for the German DAX and more than 9 percent for France's CAC-40.
In the United States, President Bush twice made unscheduled remarks on the economy, saying in Cincinnati that the economy would be "just fine" but that the bailout package needed time to work.
The troubles that started with an overheated housing market in the U.S. have infected financial markets around the world, making banks fearful of lending to other banks, let alone to businesses and consumers. That has led to worries that economies around the world might not only sputter but slide into reverse.
The crush of selling Monday came exactly one week after the Dow lost 778 points, its biggest closing loss in terms of points. On that day, the House voted down an earlier bailout package that had appeared to be a safe bet to pass.
The swings in the Dow on Monday also marked the beginning a fourth week of tumult in the markets. Triple-digit Dow swings have been commonplace since mid-September, when investment house Lehman Brothers went bankrupt and the government stepped in to bail out insurer American International Group.
But even with the bailout package firmly in place -- a plan under which the federal government will buy bad mortgage-related assets off the books of banks -- investors remain worried that banks are too fearful to lend and are cutting off air to the economy.
Over the weekend, governments across Europe rushed to prop up failing banks, while the governments of Germany, Ireland and Greece also said they would guarantee bank deposits. U.S. investors appeared worried the bailout would not be enough to jump-start the economy. Even other steps, including a Federal Reserve decision to expand a loan program to squeezed banks, didn't help much.
The sharp one-day tumbles over the last two Mondays don't come close to the drops that became black marks on the timeline of Wall Street history. Black Monday, in October 1987, and stock drops that preceded the Great Depression were more than 20 percent. Monday's drop, by comparisons, was less than 8 percent at its worst.
For the day, the Dow lost 3.6 percent. The selling was broad: Little more than 200 stocks finished the day higher on the New York Stock Exchange, while about 3,000 finished lower.
At its lowest point Monday, the Dow was down 800.06, at 9,525.32. The benchmark average dipped below 10,000 for the first time since Oct. 29, 2004, and closed there despite the afternoon rally.
The market's paper loss at the day's lows came to $1.1 trillion, as measured by the Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 Composite Index, which tracks 5,000 U.S.-based companies' stocks. That compares with a loss of about $1.5 trillion last week; that was the worst weekly return since the week after trading resumed following the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.
As an indication of how fearful investors still are, government-backed debt was in high demand. The yield on the three-month Treasury bill, which moves in the opposite direction as its price, fell to 0.49 percent from late Friday at 0.50 percent. Investors are willing to accept low returns to have their money in a secure place.
Investors also moved into longer-term Treasury bonds as they fled the stock market. The yield on the 10-year note fell to 3.45 percent from 3.60 percent late Friday.
Broader indexes also plunged. The Standard & Poor's 500 index shed 42.34, or 3.85 percent, to 1,056.89; and the Nasdaq composite index fell 84.43, or 4.34 percent, to 1,862.96. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies dropped 23.49, or 3.79 percent, to 595.91.
Consolidated volume on the NYSE reflected the frantic pace of the day's trading: 7.81 billion shares changed hands, up from Friday's 6.52 billion.
The market "is displaying one of its worst traits with a herd mentality, and investors have an appetite for feeding on fear," said Anthony Sabino, a professor of law and business at St. John's University.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Dow dives 777 points, biggest single day fall ever, as House rejects financial bailout package
NEW YORK (AP) -- The failure of the bailout package in Congress literally dropped jaws on Wall Street and triggered a historic selloff -- including a terrifying decline of nearly 500 points in mere minutes as the vote took place, the closest thing to panic the stock market has seen in years.
The Dow Jones industrial average lost 777 points Monday, its biggest single-day fall ever, easily beating the 684 points it lost on the first day of trading after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
As uncertainty gripped investors, the credit markets, which provide the day-to-day lending that powers business in the United States, froze up even further.
At the New York Stock Exchange, traders watched with faces tense and mouths agape as TV screens showed the House vote rejecting the Bush administration's $700 billion plan to buy up bad debt and shore up the financial industry.
Activity on the trading floor became frenetic as the "sell" orders blew in. The selling was so intense that just 162 stocks on the Big Board rose, while 3,073 dropped.
The Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 Composite Index recorded a paper loss of $1 trillion across the market for the day, a first.
The Dow industrials, which were down 210 points at 1:30 p.m. EDT, nose-dived as traders on Wall Street and investors across the country saw "no" votes piling up on live TV feeds of the House vote.
By 1:42 p.m., the decline was 292 points. Then the bottom fell out. Within five minutes, the index was down about 700 points as it became clear the bill was doomed.
"How could this have happened? Is there such a disconnect on Capitol Hill? This becomes a problem because Wall Street is very uncomfortable with uncertainty," said Gordon Charlop, managing director with Rosenblatt Securities.
"The bailout not going through sends a signal that Congress isn't willing to do their part," he added.
While investors didn't believe that the plan was a cure-all and it could take months for its effects to be felt, most market watchers believed it was at least a start toward setting the economy right and unlocking credit.
"Clearly something needs to be done, and the market dropping 400 points in 10 minutes is telling you that," said Chris Johnson, president of Johnson Research Group. "This isn't a market for the timid."
Before trading even began came word that Wachovia Corp., one of the biggest banks to struggle from rising mortgage losses, was being rescued in a buyout by Citigroup Inc.
That followed the recent forced sale of Merrill Lynch & Co. and the failure of three other huge banking companies -- Bear Stearns Cos., Washington Mutual Inc. and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., all of them felled by bad mortgage investments.
And it raised the question: Which banks are next, and how many? The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. lists more than 110 banks in trouble in the second quarter, and the number has probably grown since.
Wall Street is contending with all of it against the backdrop of a credit market -- where bonds and loans are bought and sold -- that is barely functioning because of fears that anyone lending money will never be paid back.
More evidence could be found Monday in the Treasury's three-month bill, where investors were stashing money, willing to accept the tiniest of returns simply to be sure that their principal would survive. The yield on the three-month bill was 0.15 percent, down from 0.87 percent and approaching zero, a level reached last week when fear was also running high.
Analysts said the government needs to find a way to help restore confidence in the markets.
"It's probably fair to say that we are not going to see any significant stability in the credit markets or the stock market until we see some sort of rescue package passed," said Fred Dickson, director of retail research for D.A. Davidson & Co.
The bailout bill failed 228-205 in the House, and Democratic leaders said the House would reconvene Thursday in hopes of a quick vote on a revised bill.
"We need to put something back together that works," Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said. "We need it as soon as possible."
The Dow fell 777.68 points, just shy of 7 percent, to 10,365.45, its lowest close in nearly three years. The decline also surpasses the record for the biggest decline during a trading day -- 721.56 at one point on Sept. 17, 2001, when the market reopened after 9/11.
In percentage terms, it was only the 17th-biggest decline for the Dow, far less severe than the 20-plus-percent drops seen on Black Monday in 1987 and before the Great Depression.
Broader stock indicators also plummeted. The Standard & Poor's 500 index declined 106.62, or nearly 9 percent, to 1,106.39. It was the S&P's largest-ever point drop and its biggest percentage loss since the week after the October 1987 crash.
The Nasdaq composite index fell 199.61, more than 9 percent, to 1,983.73, its third-worst percentage decline. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 47.07, or 6.7 percent, to 657.72.
A huge drop in oil prices was another sign of the economic chaos that investors fear. Light, sweet crude fell $10.52 to settle at $96.36 on the New York Mercantile Exchange as investors feared energy demand would continue to slide amid further economic weakness. And gold, where investors flock when they need a relatively secure investment, rose $23.20 to $911.70 on the Nymex.
Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald, said investors are worried about the spread of troubles beyond banks in the U.S. to Europe and other markets.
"Things are dying and breaking apart," he said.
The federal Office of Thrift Supervision, one of the government's banking regulators, indicated that the market was overreacting to the House vote and that its fears about the financial system are misplaced.
"There is an irrational financial panic taking place today, and we support and applaud the continuing efforts of Secretary Paulson and congressional leadership to restore liquidity and public confidence," John Reich, Director of the federal Office of Thrift Supervision, said in a statement.
The plan would have placed caps on pay packages of top executives that accepted help from the government, and included assurances the government would ultimately be reimbursed by the companies for any losses.
The Treasury would have been permitted to spend $250 billion to buy banks' risky assets, giving them a much-needed cash infusion. There also would be another $100 billion for use at the president's discretion and a final $350 billion if Congress signs off.
But Wall Street found further reason for worry overseas. Three European governments agreed to a $16.4 billion bailout for Fortis NV, Belgium's largest retail bank, and the British government said it was nationalizing mortgage lender Bradford & Bingley, which has a $91 billion mortgage and loan portfolio. It was the latest sign that the credit crisis has spread beyond the U.S.
The Dow Jones industrial average lost 777 points Monday, its biggest single-day fall ever, easily beating the 684 points it lost on the first day of trading after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
As uncertainty gripped investors, the credit markets, which provide the day-to-day lending that powers business in the United States, froze up even further.
At the New York Stock Exchange, traders watched with faces tense and mouths agape as TV screens showed the House vote rejecting the Bush administration's $700 billion plan to buy up bad debt and shore up the financial industry.
Activity on the trading floor became frenetic as the "sell" orders blew in. The selling was so intense that just 162 stocks on the Big Board rose, while 3,073 dropped.
The Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 Composite Index recorded a paper loss of $1 trillion across the market for the day, a first.
The Dow industrials, which were down 210 points at 1:30 p.m. EDT, nose-dived as traders on Wall Street and investors across the country saw "no" votes piling up on live TV feeds of the House vote.
By 1:42 p.m., the decline was 292 points. Then the bottom fell out. Within five minutes, the index was down about 700 points as it became clear the bill was doomed.
"How could this have happened? Is there such a disconnect on Capitol Hill? This becomes a problem because Wall Street is very uncomfortable with uncertainty," said Gordon Charlop, managing director with Rosenblatt Securities.
"The bailout not going through sends a signal that Congress isn't willing to do their part," he added.
While investors didn't believe that the plan was a cure-all and it could take months for its effects to be felt, most market watchers believed it was at least a start toward setting the economy right and unlocking credit.
"Clearly something needs to be done, and the market dropping 400 points in 10 minutes is telling you that," said Chris Johnson, president of Johnson Research Group. "This isn't a market for the timid."
Before trading even began came word that Wachovia Corp., one of the biggest banks to struggle from rising mortgage losses, was being rescued in a buyout by Citigroup Inc.
That followed the recent forced sale of Merrill Lynch & Co. and the failure of three other huge banking companies -- Bear Stearns Cos., Washington Mutual Inc. and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., all of them felled by bad mortgage investments.
And it raised the question: Which banks are next, and how many? The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. lists more than 110 banks in trouble in the second quarter, and the number has probably grown since.
Wall Street is contending with all of it against the backdrop of a credit market -- where bonds and loans are bought and sold -- that is barely functioning because of fears that anyone lending money will never be paid back.
More evidence could be found Monday in the Treasury's three-month bill, where investors were stashing money, willing to accept the tiniest of returns simply to be sure that their principal would survive. The yield on the three-month bill was 0.15 percent, down from 0.87 percent and approaching zero, a level reached last week when fear was also running high.
Analysts said the government needs to find a way to help restore confidence in the markets.
"It's probably fair to say that we are not going to see any significant stability in the credit markets or the stock market until we see some sort of rescue package passed," said Fred Dickson, director of retail research for D.A. Davidson & Co.
The bailout bill failed 228-205 in the House, and Democratic leaders said the House would reconvene Thursday in hopes of a quick vote on a revised bill.
"We need to put something back together that works," Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said. "We need it as soon as possible."
The Dow fell 777.68 points, just shy of 7 percent, to 10,365.45, its lowest close in nearly three years. The decline also surpasses the record for the biggest decline during a trading day -- 721.56 at one point on Sept. 17, 2001, when the market reopened after 9/11.
In percentage terms, it was only the 17th-biggest decline for the Dow, far less severe than the 20-plus-percent drops seen on Black Monday in 1987 and before the Great Depression.
Broader stock indicators also plummeted. The Standard & Poor's 500 index declined 106.62, or nearly 9 percent, to 1,106.39. It was the S&P's largest-ever point drop and its biggest percentage loss since the week after the October 1987 crash.
The Nasdaq composite index fell 199.61, more than 9 percent, to 1,983.73, its third-worst percentage decline. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 47.07, or 6.7 percent, to 657.72.
A huge drop in oil prices was another sign of the economic chaos that investors fear. Light, sweet crude fell $10.52 to settle at $96.36 on the New York Mercantile Exchange as investors feared energy demand would continue to slide amid further economic weakness. And gold, where investors flock when they need a relatively secure investment, rose $23.20 to $911.70 on the Nymex.
Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald, said investors are worried about the spread of troubles beyond banks in the U.S. to Europe and other markets.
"Things are dying and breaking apart," he said.
The federal Office of Thrift Supervision, one of the government's banking regulators, indicated that the market was overreacting to the House vote and that its fears about the financial system are misplaced.
"There is an irrational financial panic taking place today, and we support and applaud the continuing efforts of Secretary Paulson and congressional leadership to restore liquidity and public confidence," John Reich, Director of the federal Office of Thrift Supervision, said in a statement.
The plan would have placed caps on pay packages of top executives that accepted help from the government, and included assurances the government would ultimately be reimbursed by the companies for any losses.
The Treasury would have been permitted to spend $250 billion to buy banks' risky assets, giving them a much-needed cash infusion. There also would be another $100 billion for use at the president's discretion and a final $350 billion if Congress signs off.
But Wall Street found further reason for worry overseas. Three European governments agreed to a $16.4 billion bailout for Fortis NV, Belgium's largest retail bank, and the British government said it was nationalizing mortgage lender Bradford & Bingley, which has a $91 billion mortgage and loan portfolio. It was the latest sign that the credit crisis has spread beyond the U.S.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Congress leaders, White House reach tentative deal on $700 billion financial bailout deal
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congressional leaders and the Bush administration reached a tentative deal early Sunday on a landmark bailout of imperiled financial markets whose collapse could plunge the nation into a deep recession.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the $700 billion accord just after midnight but said it still has to be put on paper.
"We've still got more to do to finalize it, but I think we're there," said Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who also participated in the negotiations in the Capitol.
"We worked out everything," said Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., the chief Senate Republican in the talks.
Congressional leaders hope to have the House vote on the measure Monday. A Senate vote would come later.
The plan calls for the Treasury Department to buy deeply distressed mortgage-backed securities and other bad debts held by banks and other investors. The money should help troubled lenders make new loans and keep credit lines open. The government would later try to sell the discounted loan packages at the best possible price.
At the insistence of House Republicans, some money would be devoted to a program that would encourage holders of distressed mortgage-backed securities to keep them and buy government insurance to cover defaults.
The legislation would place "reasonable" limits on severance packages for executives of companies that benefit from the rescue plan, said a senior administration official who was authorized to speak only on background. It would affect fired executives of financial firms, and executives of firms that go bankrupt. Some of the provisions would be retroactive and some prospective, the official said.
Also, the government would receive stock warrants in return for the bailout relief, giving taxpayers a chance to share in financial companies' future profits.
To help struggling homeowners, the plan would require the government to try renegotiating the bad mortgages it acquires with the aim of lowering borrowers' monthly payments so they can keep their homes.
The measure's main elements were proposed a week ago by the Bush administration, with Paulson heading efforts to push it through the Democratic-controlled Congress. Democrats insisted on greater congressional oversight, more taxpayer protections, help for homeowners facing possible foreclosure, and restrictions on executives' compensation.
To some degree, all those items were added.
At the insistence of House Republicans, who threatened to sidetrack negotiations at midweek, the insurance provision was added as an alternative to having the government buy distressed securities. House Republicans say it will require less taxpayer spending for the bailout.
But the Treasury Department has said the insurance provision would not pump enough money into the financial sector to make credit sufficiently available. The department would decide how to structure the insurance provisions, said Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., one of the negotiators.
Money for the rescue plan would be phased in, he said. The first $350 billion would be available as soon as the president requested it. Congress could try to block later amounts if it believed the program was not working. The president could veto such a move, however, requiring extra large margins in the House and Senate to override.
Despite the changes made during an intense week of negotiations, the heart of the program remains Bush's original idea: To have the government spend billions of dollars to buy mortgage-backed securities whose value has plummeted as hundreds of thousands of Americans have defaulted on their home loans.
Senate Majority leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Saturday that the goal was to come up with a final agreement before the Asian markets open Sunday night. "Everybody is waiting for this thing to tip a little bit too far," he said, so "we may not have another day."
Hours later, when he and others told reporters of the plan in a post-midnight news conference, Reid referred to the sometimes testy nature of the negotiations.
"We've had a lot of pleasant words," he said, "and some that haven't always been pleasant."
"We're very pleased with the progress made tonight," said White House spokesman Tony Fratto. "We appreciate the bipartisan effort to deal with this urgent issue."
It was not immediately clear how many House Republicans might vote for the measure. With the election five weeks away, Democrats have said they would not push a plan that appeared sharply partisan in nature.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the $700 billion accord just after midnight but said it still has to be put on paper.
"We've still got more to do to finalize it, but I think we're there," said Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who also participated in the negotiations in the Capitol.
"We worked out everything," said Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., the chief Senate Republican in the talks.
Congressional leaders hope to have the House vote on the measure Monday. A Senate vote would come later.
The plan calls for the Treasury Department to buy deeply distressed mortgage-backed securities and other bad debts held by banks and other investors. The money should help troubled lenders make new loans and keep credit lines open. The government would later try to sell the discounted loan packages at the best possible price.
At the insistence of House Republicans, some money would be devoted to a program that would encourage holders of distressed mortgage-backed securities to keep them and buy government insurance to cover defaults.
The legislation would place "reasonable" limits on severance packages for executives of companies that benefit from the rescue plan, said a senior administration official who was authorized to speak only on background. It would affect fired executives of financial firms, and executives of firms that go bankrupt. Some of the provisions would be retroactive and some prospective, the official said.
Also, the government would receive stock warrants in return for the bailout relief, giving taxpayers a chance to share in financial companies' future profits.
To help struggling homeowners, the plan would require the government to try renegotiating the bad mortgages it acquires with the aim of lowering borrowers' monthly payments so they can keep their homes.
The measure's main elements were proposed a week ago by the Bush administration, with Paulson heading efforts to push it through the Democratic-controlled Congress. Democrats insisted on greater congressional oversight, more taxpayer protections, help for homeowners facing possible foreclosure, and restrictions on executives' compensation.
To some degree, all those items were added.
At the insistence of House Republicans, who threatened to sidetrack negotiations at midweek, the insurance provision was added as an alternative to having the government buy distressed securities. House Republicans say it will require less taxpayer spending for the bailout.
But the Treasury Department has said the insurance provision would not pump enough money into the financial sector to make credit sufficiently available. The department would decide how to structure the insurance provisions, said Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., one of the negotiators.
Money for the rescue plan would be phased in, he said. The first $350 billion would be available as soon as the president requested it. Congress could try to block later amounts if it believed the program was not working. The president could veto such a move, however, requiring extra large margins in the House and Senate to override.
Despite the changes made during an intense week of negotiations, the heart of the program remains Bush's original idea: To have the government spend billions of dollars to buy mortgage-backed securities whose value has plummeted as hundreds of thousands of Americans have defaulted on their home loans.
Senate Majority leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Saturday that the goal was to come up with a final agreement before the Asian markets open Sunday night. "Everybody is waiting for this thing to tip a little bit too far," he said, so "we may not have another day."
Hours later, when he and others told reporters of the plan in a post-midnight news conference, Reid referred to the sometimes testy nature of the negotiations.
"We've had a lot of pleasant words," he said, "and some that haven't always been pleasant."
"We're very pleased with the progress made tonight," said White House spokesman Tony Fratto. "We appreciate the bipartisan effort to deal with this urgent issue."
It was not immediately clear how many House Republicans might vote for the measure. With the election five weeks away, Democrats have said they would not push a plan that appeared sharply partisan in nature.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
US Stocks rise on bailout hopes; credit remains tight
NEW YORK (AP) -- Financial markets were mixed Thursday as lawmakers moved closer to hammering out a deal aimed at reviving the crippled financial system. The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than 200 points on optimism about the deal but a credit market squeeze remained as doubts about the proposed plan's effectiveness drove demand for short-term, safe-haven assets.
To help ease credit markets, the Federal Reserve early Thursday issued more than $20 billion in collateral such as Treasury bills in exchange for dollars to help meet demand for safe assets.
Meanwhile, disappointing readings on employment and demand for big-ticket manufactured goods, as well as a sobering forecast from General Electric Co., were underscoring the broad effects of the more than year-old credit crisis.
But stock investors were hopeful that a $700 billion bailout plan would win approval, albeit with some important changes, following two days of testimony on Capitol Hill by the country's top economic leaders. The momentum intensified Thursday as President Bush summoned congressional leaders to a meeting aimed at securing the legislation.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke urged lawmakers on Tuesday and Wednesday to quickly sign off on the plan, which would help prop up the economy by removing billions of dollars in risky mortgage-related assets from financial firms' balance sheets. The president highlighted the urgency in a national address Wednesday night.
White House officials have yielded to a key demand by congressional leaders, agreeing to include widely supported limits on pay packages for executives whose companies benefit. Major elements are still being worked out, including how to phase in the mammoth cost of the package and a plan to let the government take an ownership stake in troubled companies as part of the rescue.
Strained credit markets tightened, suggesting investors are waiting to see the details.
Demand remained high for the 3-month Treasury bill, considered the safest short-term investment, with the yield trading at 0.47 percent, down from 0.49 percent late Wednesday. That means investors are still willing to earn the slimmest of returns in exchange for a safe place to put their money. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.84 percent from 3.81 late Wednesday.
In another sign of credit market tightness, the benchmark three-month London Interbank Offered Rate, a bank-to-bank lending rate known as LIBOR, jumped 0.29 percentage point to 3.77 percent.
In midmorning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 236.80, or 2.19 percent, to 11,061.97. The Dow fell 563 points, or 4.95 percent, in the first three sessions this week.
Broader stock indicators also rose Thursday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 22.86, or 1.93 percent, to 1,208.73, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 38.32, or 1.78 percent, to 2,194.00.
The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices fell slightly.
Light, sweet crude for November delivery fell 6 cents to $105.67 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department said the number of people requesting jobless benefits increased by 32,000 to a seasonally adjusted 493,000 last week, the highest level in seven years and much greater than analysts' expectations of 445,000. Hurricanes Ike and Gustav added about 50,000 new claims in Louisiana and Texas, the department said.
The Commerce Department said sales of new homes fell sharply in August to the slowest pace in 17 years. The average sales price also fell by the largest amount on record. New homes sales fell by 11.5 percent in August to a seasonally adjusted annual sales rate of 460,000 units, the slowest sales rate since January 1991.
The department also said orders for manufactured goods sank in August by the largest amount in seven months as demand for both airplanes and cars sank. Durable goods orders fell by 4.5 percent last month, far worse than the 1.6 percent decline that economists expected and the biggest drop since a 4.7 percent fall in January.
GE fell 74 cents, or 3 percent, to $23.85 after lowering its forecast for third-quarter and full-year earnings, citing unprecedented weakness and volatility in the financial services markets.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by about 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 103.9 million shares.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 5.34, or 0.77 percent, to 703.10.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average was down 0.90 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.27 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 1.31 percent, and France's CAC-40 added 1.60 percent.
To help ease credit markets, the Federal Reserve early Thursday issued more than $20 billion in collateral such as Treasury bills in exchange for dollars to help meet demand for safe assets.
Meanwhile, disappointing readings on employment and demand for big-ticket manufactured goods, as well as a sobering forecast from General Electric Co., were underscoring the broad effects of the more than year-old credit crisis.
But stock investors were hopeful that a $700 billion bailout plan would win approval, albeit with some important changes, following two days of testimony on Capitol Hill by the country's top economic leaders. The momentum intensified Thursday as President Bush summoned congressional leaders to a meeting aimed at securing the legislation.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke urged lawmakers on Tuesday and Wednesday to quickly sign off on the plan, which would help prop up the economy by removing billions of dollars in risky mortgage-related assets from financial firms' balance sheets. The president highlighted the urgency in a national address Wednesday night.
White House officials have yielded to a key demand by congressional leaders, agreeing to include widely supported limits on pay packages for executives whose companies benefit. Major elements are still being worked out, including how to phase in the mammoth cost of the package and a plan to let the government take an ownership stake in troubled companies as part of the rescue.
Strained credit markets tightened, suggesting investors are waiting to see the details.
Demand remained high for the 3-month Treasury bill, considered the safest short-term investment, with the yield trading at 0.47 percent, down from 0.49 percent late Wednesday. That means investors are still willing to earn the slimmest of returns in exchange for a safe place to put their money. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.84 percent from 3.81 late Wednesday.
In another sign of credit market tightness, the benchmark three-month London Interbank Offered Rate, a bank-to-bank lending rate known as LIBOR, jumped 0.29 percentage point to 3.77 percent.
In midmorning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 236.80, or 2.19 percent, to 11,061.97. The Dow fell 563 points, or 4.95 percent, in the first three sessions this week.
Broader stock indicators also rose Thursday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 22.86, or 1.93 percent, to 1,208.73, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 38.32, or 1.78 percent, to 2,194.00.
The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices fell slightly.
Light, sweet crude for November delivery fell 6 cents to $105.67 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department said the number of people requesting jobless benefits increased by 32,000 to a seasonally adjusted 493,000 last week, the highest level in seven years and much greater than analysts' expectations of 445,000. Hurricanes Ike and Gustav added about 50,000 new claims in Louisiana and Texas, the department said.
The Commerce Department said sales of new homes fell sharply in August to the slowest pace in 17 years. The average sales price also fell by the largest amount on record. New homes sales fell by 11.5 percent in August to a seasonally adjusted annual sales rate of 460,000 units, the slowest sales rate since January 1991.
The department also said orders for manufactured goods sank in August by the largest amount in seven months as demand for both airplanes and cars sank. Durable goods orders fell by 4.5 percent last month, far worse than the 1.6 percent decline that economists expected and the biggest drop since a 4.7 percent fall in January.
GE fell 74 cents, or 3 percent, to $23.85 after lowering its forecast for third-quarter and full-year earnings, citing unprecedented weakness and volatility in the financial services markets.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by about 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 103.9 million shares.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 5.34, or 0.77 percent, to 703.10.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average was down 0.90 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.27 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 1.31 percent, and France's CAC-40 added 1.60 percent.
Deal close on $700 billion financial bailout plan
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush is bringing presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain into negotiations on a $700 billion rescue of Wall Street as Democrats and Republicans near agreement on a bailout plan with more protections for taxpayers and new help for distressed homeowners.
Senior lawmakers and Bush administration officials have cleared away key obstacles to a deal on the unprecedented rescue, agreeing to include widely supported limits on pay packages for executives whose companies benefit.
They're still wrangling over major elements, including how to phase in the eye-popping cost -- a measure demanded by Democrats and some Republicans who want stronger congressional control over the bailout -- without spooking markets. A plan to let the government take an ownership stake in troubled companies as part of the rescue, rather than just buying bad debt, also was under intense negotiation.
A bipartisan meeting was set for Thursday to begin drafting a compromise, which top Democrats said they hoped could pass within days.
The core of the plan envisions the government buying up sour assets of shaky financial firms in a bid to keep them from going under and to stave off a potentially severe recession.
Bush acknowledged in a prime-time television address Wednesday night that the bailout would be a "tough vote" for lawmakers.
But he said failing to approve it would risk dire consequences for the economy and most Americans.
"Without immediate action by Congress, America could slip into a financial panic, and a distressing scenario would unfold," Bush said as he worked to resurrect the unpopular bailout package. "Our entire economy is in danger."
Bush's warning came soon after he invited Obama and McCain, one of whom will inherit the economic mess in four months, as well as key congressional leaders to a White House meeting Thursday to work on a compromise.
With the administration's original proposal considered dead in Congress, House leaders said they were making progress toward revised legislation that could be approved.
Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., who has led negotiations with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson on the package, said that given the progress of the talks, the White House meeting was a distraction.
"We're going to have to interrupt a negotiating session tomorrow between the Democrats and Republicans on a bill where I think we are getting pretty close, and troop down to the White House for their photo op," said Frank, the House Financial Services Committee chairman. "I wish they'd checked with us."
Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke have been crisscrossing Capitol Hill in recent days, shuttling between public hearings on the proposal and private meetings with lawmakers, to sell the proposal.
Obama and McCain are calling for a bipartisan effort to deal with the crisis, little more than five weeks before national elections in which the economy has emerged as the dominant theme.
"The plan that has been submitted to Congress by the Bush administration is flawed, but the effort to protect the American economy must not fail," they said in a joint statement Wednesday night. "This is a time to rise above politics for the good of the country. We cannot risk an economic catastrophe."
Presidential politics intruded, nonetheless, when McCain said earlier Wednesday he intended to return to Washington and was asking Obama to agree to delay their first debate, scheduled for Friday, to deal with the meltdown.
Obama said the debate should go ahead.
Lawmakers in both parties have objected strenuously to the rescue plan over the past two days, Republicans complaining about federal intervention in private business and Democrats pressing to tack on more conditions and help for beleaguered homeowners.
But many in both parties said they were open to legislation, although on different terms than the White House has proposed.
Some partisan sticking points remain.
Democrats are pushing to allow bankruptcy judges to rewrite mortgages to ease the burden on consumers who are facing foreclosure -- a nonstarter for Republicans.
Democrats acknowledge privately that the provision will almost certainly be dropped in the interest of a bipartisan deal. Obama told reporters it's "probably something that we shouldn't try to do in this piece of legislation."
Democrats also want any potential proceeds the government reaps from the bailout to go to a fund designed to pay for housing for poor families. Many Republicans oppose the very existence of the fund, which they say is a backdoor means of funneling money to liberal political groups.
Democratic demands that Congress be given greater authority over the bailout and that the government be required to help homeowners renegotiate their mortgages so they have lower monthly payments already have been accepted in principle.
Under the bailout bill, which will let the government buy huge amounts of toxic mortgage-related assets, "we're now the biggest mortgage holder in town, and we can do serious foreclosure avoidance," Frank said.
Senior lawmakers and Bush administration officials have cleared away key obstacles to a deal on the unprecedented rescue, agreeing to include widely supported limits on pay packages for executives whose companies benefit.
They're still wrangling over major elements, including how to phase in the eye-popping cost -- a measure demanded by Democrats and some Republicans who want stronger congressional control over the bailout -- without spooking markets. A plan to let the government take an ownership stake in troubled companies as part of the rescue, rather than just buying bad debt, also was under intense negotiation.
A bipartisan meeting was set for Thursday to begin drafting a compromise, which top Democrats said they hoped could pass within days.
The core of the plan envisions the government buying up sour assets of shaky financial firms in a bid to keep them from going under and to stave off a potentially severe recession.
Bush acknowledged in a prime-time television address Wednesday night that the bailout would be a "tough vote" for lawmakers.
But he said failing to approve it would risk dire consequences for the economy and most Americans.
"Without immediate action by Congress, America could slip into a financial panic, and a distressing scenario would unfold," Bush said as he worked to resurrect the unpopular bailout package. "Our entire economy is in danger."
Bush's warning came soon after he invited Obama and McCain, one of whom will inherit the economic mess in four months, as well as key congressional leaders to a White House meeting Thursday to work on a compromise.
With the administration's original proposal considered dead in Congress, House leaders said they were making progress toward revised legislation that could be approved.
Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., who has led negotiations with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson on the package, said that given the progress of the talks, the White House meeting was a distraction.
"We're going to have to interrupt a negotiating session tomorrow between the Democrats and Republicans on a bill where I think we are getting pretty close, and troop down to the White House for their photo op," said Frank, the House Financial Services Committee chairman. "I wish they'd checked with us."
Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke have been crisscrossing Capitol Hill in recent days, shuttling between public hearings on the proposal and private meetings with lawmakers, to sell the proposal.
Obama and McCain are calling for a bipartisan effort to deal with the crisis, little more than five weeks before national elections in which the economy has emerged as the dominant theme.
"The plan that has been submitted to Congress by the Bush administration is flawed, but the effort to protect the American economy must not fail," they said in a joint statement Wednesday night. "This is a time to rise above politics for the good of the country. We cannot risk an economic catastrophe."
Presidential politics intruded, nonetheless, when McCain said earlier Wednesday he intended to return to Washington and was asking Obama to agree to delay their first debate, scheduled for Friday, to deal with the meltdown.
Obama said the debate should go ahead.
Lawmakers in both parties have objected strenuously to the rescue plan over the past two days, Republicans complaining about federal intervention in private business and Democrats pressing to tack on more conditions and help for beleaguered homeowners.
But many in both parties said they were open to legislation, although on different terms than the White House has proposed.
Some partisan sticking points remain.
Democrats are pushing to allow bankruptcy judges to rewrite mortgages to ease the burden on consumers who are facing foreclosure -- a nonstarter for Republicans.
Democrats acknowledge privately that the provision will almost certainly be dropped in the interest of a bipartisan deal. Obama told reporters it's "probably something that we shouldn't try to do in this piece of legislation."
Democrats also want any potential proceeds the government reaps from the bailout to go to a fund designed to pay for housing for poor families. Many Republicans oppose the very existence of the fund, which they say is a backdoor means of funneling money to liberal political groups.
Democratic demands that Congress be given greater authority over the bailout and that the government be required to help homeowners renegotiate their mortgages so they have lower monthly payments already have been accepted in principle.
Under the bailout bill, which will let the government buy huge amounts of toxic mortgage-related assets, "we're now the biggest mortgage holder in town, and we can do serious foreclosure avoidance," Frank said.
Bush warns 'entire economy is in danger'
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush said Wednesday that lawmakers risk a cascade of wiped-out retirement savings, rising home foreclosures, lost jobs and closed businesses if they fail to act on a massive financial rescue plan. "Our entire economy is in danger," he said.
"Without immediate action by Congress, American could slip into a financial panic and a distressing scenario would unfold," Bush said in a 12-minute prime-time address delivered from the White House East Room that he hoped would help rescue his tough-sell bailout package. "Ultimately, our country could experience a long and painful recession."
Said Bush: "We must not let this happen."
The unprecedented $700 billion bailout, which the Bush administration asked Congress last weekend to approve before it adjourns, is meeting with deep skepticism, especially from conservatives in Bush's own Republican Party who are revolting at the high price tag and massive private-sector intervention by government. Though there is general agreement that something must be done to address the spiraling economic problems, Bush has been forced to accept changes almost daily, based on demands from the right and left.
Seeking to explain himself to conservatives, Bush stressed he was reluctant to put taxpayer money on the line to help businesses that had made bad decisions and that the rescue is not aimed at saving individual companies. He tried to address some of the major complaints from Democrats by promising that CEOs of failed companies won't be rewarded, while warning he would draw the line at regulations he determined would hamper economic growth.
"With the situation becoming more precarious by the day, I faced a choice: to step in with dramatic government action or to stand back and allow the irresponsible actions by some to undermine the financial security of all," Bush said.
The president turned himself into an economics professor for much of the address, tracing the origins of the problem back a decade.
But while generally acknowledging risky and poorly thought-out financial decisions at many levels of society, Bush never assigned blame to any specific entity, such as his administration, the quasi-independent mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac or the Wall Street firms that built rising profits on increasingly speculative mortgage-backed securities. Instead, he spoke in terms of investment banks that "found themselves saddled with" the toxic assets the government is now proposing to buy and banks that "found themselves" with questionable balance sheets.
Intensive, personal lobbying of lawmakers is not usually Bush's style as president, unlike some predecessors. He does not often make calls or twist arms on behalf of a legislative priority.
But with the nation facing the biggest financial meltdown in decades, Bush took the unusual step of asking Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain, one of whom will inherit the financial mess in four months, and key congressional leaders of both parties to a White House meeting on Thursday to work on a compromise.
Obama spokesman Bill Burton said the senator would attend the meeting scheduled for the afternoon, and senior McCain advisers said he would, too. The plans of the other invitees were unknown. The White House said that the idea for the joint meeting was McCain's and that aides went about setting it up after Bush and McCain spoke Wednesday afternoon.
In another move welcome at the White House, Obama and McCain issued a joint statement using their own dire language to urge lawmakers to act. The two candidates -- bitterly fighting each other for the White House but coming together over this issue -- said the situation offers a chance for politicians to prove Washington's worth.
"The plan that has been submitted to Congress by the Bush administration is flawed, but the effort to protect the American economy must not fail," they said. "This is a time to rise above politics for the good of the country. We cannot risk an economic catastrophe."
However, the Oval Office rivals were not putting politics aside entirely. McCain asked Obama to agree to delay their first debate, scheduled for Friday, while Obama said it should go ahead.
White House and administration officials have warned repeatedly in recent days of a coming "financial calamity."
But that has not closed the deal, which for many recalls previous warnings of grave threats from Bush -- such as before the Iraq war -- that did not materialize. So Bush's goal with his speech, his first prime-time address in 377 days, was to frame the debate in layman's terms to show the depths of the crisis, explain how it affects the people's daily lives and inspire the public to demand action from Washington.
He said that more banks could fail, the stock market could plummet and erase retirement accounts, businesses could find it hard to get credit and be forced to close, wiping out jobs for millions of Americans.
He ended on a positive note, predicting lawmakers would "rise to the occasion" and that the nation's economy will overcome "a moment of great challenge."
With so many crises hitting the United States at once, the presidential race has taken a back seat and so has Bush's involvement in politics. Bush canceled a campaign trip to Florida on Wednesday to deal with the problem, the third time in a week that he has scrapped his attendance at out-of-town fundraisers, either because of the market turmoil or Hurricane Ike.
The economic crisis also is almost certain to overshadow the rest of Bush's four months left in office and could hugely impact his legacy. It has been assumed that the long-term view of Bush's presidency was to be shaped largely by Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Now, the dire economic problems and the aftermath of the government's attempted solution will certainly be added to that list.
"Without immediate action by Congress, American could slip into a financial panic and a distressing scenario would unfold," Bush said in a 12-minute prime-time address delivered from the White House East Room that he hoped would help rescue his tough-sell bailout package. "Ultimately, our country could experience a long and painful recession."
Said Bush: "We must not let this happen."
The unprecedented $700 billion bailout, which the Bush administration asked Congress last weekend to approve before it adjourns, is meeting with deep skepticism, especially from conservatives in Bush's own Republican Party who are revolting at the high price tag and massive private-sector intervention by government. Though there is general agreement that something must be done to address the spiraling economic problems, Bush has been forced to accept changes almost daily, based on demands from the right and left.
Seeking to explain himself to conservatives, Bush stressed he was reluctant to put taxpayer money on the line to help businesses that had made bad decisions and that the rescue is not aimed at saving individual companies. He tried to address some of the major complaints from Democrats by promising that CEOs of failed companies won't be rewarded, while warning he would draw the line at regulations he determined would hamper economic growth.
"With the situation becoming more precarious by the day, I faced a choice: to step in with dramatic government action or to stand back and allow the irresponsible actions by some to undermine the financial security of all," Bush said.
The president turned himself into an economics professor for much of the address, tracing the origins of the problem back a decade.
But while generally acknowledging risky and poorly thought-out financial decisions at many levels of society, Bush never assigned blame to any specific entity, such as his administration, the quasi-independent mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac or the Wall Street firms that built rising profits on increasingly speculative mortgage-backed securities. Instead, he spoke in terms of investment banks that "found themselves saddled with" the toxic assets the government is now proposing to buy and banks that "found themselves" with questionable balance sheets.
Intensive, personal lobbying of lawmakers is not usually Bush's style as president, unlike some predecessors. He does not often make calls or twist arms on behalf of a legislative priority.
But with the nation facing the biggest financial meltdown in decades, Bush took the unusual step of asking Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain, one of whom will inherit the financial mess in four months, and key congressional leaders of both parties to a White House meeting on Thursday to work on a compromise.
Obama spokesman Bill Burton said the senator would attend the meeting scheduled for the afternoon, and senior McCain advisers said he would, too. The plans of the other invitees were unknown. The White House said that the idea for the joint meeting was McCain's and that aides went about setting it up after Bush and McCain spoke Wednesday afternoon.
In another move welcome at the White House, Obama and McCain issued a joint statement using their own dire language to urge lawmakers to act. The two candidates -- bitterly fighting each other for the White House but coming together over this issue -- said the situation offers a chance for politicians to prove Washington's worth.
"The plan that has been submitted to Congress by the Bush administration is flawed, but the effort to protect the American economy must not fail," they said. "This is a time to rise above politics for the good of the country. We cannot risk an economic catastrophe."
However, the Oval Office rivals were not putting politics aside entirely. McCain asked Obama to agree to delay their first debate, scheduled for Friday, while Obama said it should go ahead.
White House and administration officials have warned repeatedly in recent days of a coming "financial calamity."
But that has not closed the deal, which for many recalls previous warnings of grave threats from Bush -- such as before the Iraq war -- that did not materialize. So Bush's goal with his speech, his first prime-time address in 377 days, was to frame the debate in layman's terms to show the depths of the crisis, explain how it affects the people's daily lives and inspire the public to demand action from Washington.
He said that more banks could fail, the stock market could plummet and erase retirement accounts, businesses could find it hard to get credit and be forced to close, wiping out jobs for millions of Americans.
He ended on a positive note, predicting lawmakers would "rise to the occasion" and that the nation's economy will overcome "a moment of great challenge."
With so many crises hitting the United States at once, the presidential race has taken a back seat and so has Bush's involvement in politics. Bush canceled a campaign trip to Florida on Wednesday to deal with the problem, the third time in a week that he has scrapped his attendance at out-of-town fundraisers, either because of the market turmoil or Hurricane Ike.
The economic crisis also is almost certain to overshadow the rest of Bush's four months left in office and could hugely impact his legacy. It has been assumed that the long-term view of Bush's presidency was to be shaped largely by Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Now, the dire economic problems and the aftermath of the government's attempted solution will certainly be added to that list.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Ahead of the US Bell: Bernanke briefing
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is scheduled to return to Capitol Hill Wednesday to provide lawmakers an up-to-date assessment of the economy, and again make the case for Congress to speedily enact the $700 billion financial bailout package.
Bernanke's first stop will be Congress' Joint Economic Committee, where he'll discuss the economy, which has been badly bruised by the housing and credit debacles. That hearing is slated to begin at 10 a.m. EDT.
Unemployment has climbed to a five-year high of 6.1 percent as nervous employers cut jobs, and consumers are hunkering down as the bracing tonic of the government's tax rebates disappears.
Oil prices are up about $15 in the past week, momentarily halting a precipitous two-month slide from the all-time high of $147.27 a barrel reached in mid July.
Appearing Tuesday before the Senate Banking Committee, Bernanke warned that the economy could face grave consequences if credit problems persist because Congress doesn't step in and enact the financial bailout. More jobs would be lost, more homes would fall into foreclosure and the economy will contract, he said.
The plan would let the government buy bad mortgages and other troubled assets held by banks and other financial institutions. Getting those debts off their books, should make them more inclined to lend, breaking through the credit jam and reviving the economy. Congressional leaders predict passage but want significant changes to better protect taxpayers.
Later on Wednesday, Bernanke is scheduled to appear before the House Financial Services Committee, along with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, to talk about the state of financial markets and make a fresh pitch for the Bush administration's bailout package. That hearing is slated to begin at noon EDT.
Bernanke's first stop will be Congress' Joint Economic Committee, where he'll discuss the economy, which has been badly bruised by the housing and credit debacles. That hearing is slated to begin at 10 a.m. EDT.
Unemployment has climbed to a five-year high of 6.1 percent as nervous employers cut jobs, and consumers are hunkering down as the bracing tonic of the government's tax rebates disappears.
Oil prices are up about $15 in the past week, momentarily halting a precipitous two-month slide from the all-time high of $147.27 a barrel reached in mid July.
Appearing Tuesday before the Senate Banking Committee, Bernanke warned that the economy could face grave consequences if credit problems persist because Congress doesn't step in and enact the financial bailout. More jobs would be lost, more homes would fall into foreclosure and the economy will contract, he said.
The plan would let the government buy bad mortgages and other troubled assets held by banks and other financial institutions. Getting those debts off their books, should make them more inclined to lend, breaking through the credit jam and reviving the economy. Congressional leaders predict passage but want significant changes to better protect taxpayers.
Later on Wednesday, Bernanke is scheduled to appear before the House Financial Services Committee, along with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, to talk about the state of financial markets and make a fresh pitch for the Bush administration's bailout package. That hearing is slated to begin at noon EDT.
US Stocks extend fall as Street weighs bailout plan
NEW YORK (AP) -- Financial markets extended their declines Tuesday as investors worried that lawmakers were beginning to doubt the necessity of a broad government bailout for financial institutions as a way to revive ailing credit markets.
Top economic officials updating Congress about efforts to work out a $700 billion financial rescue plan faced a greater degree of second-guessing from lawmakers than some investors had expected. The Dow Jones industrials, which had been higher for the first half of the session ended at the lows of the day, tacking a 161-point loss onto a steep drop from Monday.
Still, trading appeared more orderly than Monday, when investors rushed into hard assets like oil and gold. Meanwhile, demand remained high for 3-month Treasury bills, considered the safest short-term financial asset, while the dollar regained some ground after being hard hit Monday.
After days of intense gyrations in financial markets, investors are anxious about whether the plan to absorb bad mortgages and other risky assets will help steer the economy onto more solid footing -- and also about resistance to the plan in Congress.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox testified before lawmakers, who are working alongside others in the Bush administration to complete the details of the bailout.
Traders grew nervous, and sent the stock market lower, as the officials faced questions about whether the government's planned response was appropriate. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., for example, asked whether $150 billion might be adequate to get the program started if investors were told more money could be added if necessary.
The market remains uncertain about how long it will take for the bailout plans to take effect, and assuming they do, how effective they will be.
"There's skepticism about whether the $700 billion number is the right number," said Jim Herrick, manager and director of equity trading at Baird & Co.
Bernanke told the Senate Banking Committee Congress risks triggering a recession if it doesn't act on the plan. He said inaction could leave a range of businesses unable to borrow the money while consumers could find it impossible to finance big purchases like cars and homes.
While financial markets showed uneasiness as investors listened to the testimony, there wasn't the level of fear and volatility that dominated Monday's trading.
Demand for short-term Treasurys remained high. The yield on the 3-month T-bill fell to 0.79 percent from 0.88 percent on Monday; last week, it was around zero after investors flooded money into T-bills as the credit markets seized up. That spurred government officials to propose a debt buyout plan.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which trades opposite its price, fell to 3.80 percent from 3.85 percent late Monday.
The dollar, whose decline Monday drove some of the frenetic trading in other markets, regained some of its lost ground against the euro, while gold prices declined after starting the week with a big advance.
The Dow fell 161.52, or 1.47 percent, to 10,854.17 after having risen more than 125 points in the early going and then falling by more than 180. With Monday's 370-point decline, the blue chips are down 534 points, or 4.69 percent, for the week.
Broader stock indicators also fell Tuesday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 18.87, or 1.56 percent, to 1,188.22, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 25.67, or 1.18 percent, to 2,153.34.
Investors also were watching oil prices after anxiety over the government bailout and a huge short-covering rally pushed crude to the biggest one-day gain.
Light, sweet crude for November delivery fell $2.76 to settle at $106.61 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The October contract, which expired Monday, surged as much as $25.45 to $130 before falling back to settle at $120.92, an advance of $16.37. While that gain was due to technical market dynamics, the price of oil has moved higher over the past week amid increasing concerns about the U.S. financial system.
"We're going to see this volatility for a while even after this package passes because I think we're still facing a fundamental slowdown in the economy worldwide which is going to have some impact on earnings," said J. Stephen Lauck, chief executive and portfolio manager at Ashfield Capital Partners.
Financial stocks finished mixed as some investors worried that the government's plan could prove inadequate to save some banks. Should the government pay too little for assets some banks might be forced to book ruinous write-offs and risk going under.
Bank of America Corp. fell 85 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $33.30, while Washington Mutual Inc. fell 13 cents, or 3.9 percent, to $3.20.
Some energy names lost ground as oil declined. Occidental Petroleum Corp. fell $4.08, or 5 percent, to $77.16 and XTO Energy Inc. declined $1.14, or 2.2 percent, to $51.30.
In addition, some industrial stocks slid as investors worried about the well-being of the global economy. Aluminum maker Alcoa Inc. fell $1.21, or 4.5 percent, to $25.59. Seed company Monsanto Co. fell $4.85, or 4.2 percent, to $112.14.
Some technology stocks advanced as investors looked for areas outside the financial, energy and industrial sectors. Computer chip maker Intel Corp. rose 13 cents to $18.63, while Sprint Nextel Corp. rose 27 cents, or 4.2 percent, to $6.77.
Declining issues outnumbered advancers by about 5 to 2 on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 5.11 billion shares, compared with 5.22 billion traded Monday.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 11.25, or 1.56 percent, to 709.19.
Overseas, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.91 percent, Germany's DAX index slid 0.64 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 1.98 percent. Japanese financial markets were closed Tuesday for a national holiday.
Top economic officials updating Congress about efforts to work out a $700 billion financial rescue plan faced a greater degree of second-guessing from lawmakers than some investors had expected. The Dow Jones industrials, which had been higher for the first half of the session ended at the lows of the day, tacking a 161-point loss onto a steep drop from Monday.
Still, trading appeared more orderly than Monday, when investors rushed into hard assets like oil and gold. Meanwhile, demand remained high for 3-month Treasury bills, considered the safest short-term financial asset, while the dollar regained some ground after being hard hit Monday.
After days of intense gyrations in financial markets, investors are anxious about whether the plan to absorb bad mortgages and other risky assets will help steer the economy onto more solid footing -- and also about resistance to the plan in Congress.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox testified before lawmakers, who are working alongside others in the Bush administration to complete the details of the bailout.
Traders grew nervous, and sent the stock market lower, as the officials faced questions about whether the government's planned response was appropriate. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., for example, asked whether $150 billion might be adequate to get the program started if investors were told more money could be added if necessary.
The market remains uncertain about how long it will take for the bailout plans to take effect, and assuming they do, how effective they will be.
"There's skepticism about whether the $700 billion number is the right number," said Jim Herrick, manager and director of equity trading at Baird & Co.
Bernanke told the Senate Banking Committee Congress risks triggering a recession if it doesn't act on the plan. He said inaction could leave a range of businesses unable to borrow the money while consumers could find it impossible to finance big purchases like cars and homes.
While financial markets showed uneasiness as investors listened to the testimony, there wasn't the level of fear and volatility that dominated Monday's trading.
Demand for short-term Treasurys remained high. The yield on the 3-month T-bill fell to 0.79 percent from 0.88 percent on Monday; last week, it was around zero after investors flooded money into T-bills as the credit markets seized up. That spurred government officials to propose a debt buyout plan.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which trades opposite its price, fell to 3.80 percent from 3.85 percent late Monday.
The dollar, whose decline Monday drove some of the frenetic trading in other markets, regained some of its lost ground against the euro, while gold prices declined after starting the week with a big advance.
The Dow fell 161.52, or 1.47 percent, to 10,854.17 after having risen more than 125 points in the early going and then falling by more than 180. With Monday's 370-point decline, the blue chips are down 534 points, or 4.69 percent, for the week.
Broader stock indicators also fell Tuesday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 18.87, or 1.56 percent, to 1,188.22, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 25.67, or 1.18 percent, to 2,153.34.
Investors also were watching oil prices after anxiety over the government bailout and a huge short-covering rally pushed crude to the biggest one-day gain.
Light, sweet crude for November delivery fell $2.76 to settle at $106.61 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The October contract, which expired Monday, surged as much as $25.45 to $130 before falling back to settle at $120.92, an advance of $16.37. While that gain was due to technical market dynamics, the price of oil has moved higher over the past week amid increasing concerns about the U.S. financial system.
"We're going to see this volatility for a while even after this package passes because I think we're still facing a fundamental slowdown in the economy worldwide which is going to have some impact on earnings," said J. Stephen Lauck, chief executive and portfolio manager at Ashfield Capital Partners.
Financial stocks finished mixed as some investors worried that the government's plan could prove inadequate to save some banks. Should the government pay too little for assets some banks might be forced to book ruinous write-offs and risk going under.
Bank of America Corp. fell 85 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $33.30, while Washington Mutual Inc. fell 13 cents, or 3.9 percent, to $3.20.
Some energy names lost ground as oil declined. Occidental Petroleum Corp. fell $4.08, or 5 percent, to $77.16 and XTO Energy Inc. declined $1.14, or 2.2 percent, to $51.30.
In addition, some industrial stocks slid as investors worried about the well-being of the global economy. Aluminum maker Alcoa Inc. fell $1.21, or 4.5 percent, to $25.59. Seed company Monsanto Co. fell $4.85, or 4.2 percent, to $112.14.
Some technology stocks advanced as investors looked for areas outside the financial, energy and industrial sectors. Computer chip maker Intel Corp. rose 13 cents to $18.63, while Sprint Nextel Corp. rose 27 cents, or 4.2 percent, to $6.77.
Declining issues outnumbered advancers by about 5 to 2 on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 5.11 billion shares, compared with 5.22 billion traded Monday.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 11.25, or 1.56 percent, to 709.19.
Overseas, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.91 percent, Germany's DAX index slid 0.64 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 1.98 percent. Japanese financial markets were closed Tuesday for a national holiday.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Congress, Bush team agree on some bailout terms
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Scrambling for a swift deal on the $700 billion bailout for failing financial firms, key Democrats and Bush administration officials agreed Monday to include mortgage help for beleaguered homeowners but wrangled over other issues, including "golden parachutes" for executives who benefit from the unprecedented rescue.
Democrats demanded that the measure limit pay packages for executives of companies helped by the biggest financial rescue since the Great Depression. The administration was balking at that, and also at a proposal by Democrats to let judges rewrite mortgages to lower bankrupt homeowners' monthly payments.
President Bush prodded Congress during the day to pass the rescue plan quickly, declaring, "The whole world is watching."
Rep. Barney Frank, the House Financial Services Committee chairman, said the administration essentially had forced Congress to the negotiating table by creating an expectation in financial markets that a massive bailout was on the way.
"By the declaration that they made, by sending this proposal, I think we have to recognize the reality that we don't have a choice now of debating whether this is a good or a bad thing," said Frank, D-Mass, who was leading negotiations with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.
"We have gotten closer," Frank said, but "We're not there yet."
Congressional aides said the House could act on a bailout bill as early as Wednesday, but leaders emerged from a closed-door meeting late Monday with no firm timetable for action.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said only that leaders were working to give the markets confidence that "this legislation will pass, and it will pass soon."
However, Wall Street wasn't comforted by the progress of the talks. The Dow Jones industrials plummeted 372 points, oil prices soared $25 a barrel at one point and gold prices surged anew as investors searched for a safe place to park their money. And despite encouraging talk on Capitol Hill, lawmakers on both the right and left were already assailing the deal-in-progress.
The emergency legislation would give the government broad power to buy up devalued assets from troubled financial firms in a bid to unlock the flow of credit and stabilize badly shaken markets in the United States and around the globe.
In one expansion of its original proposal, the administration is asking for broad power to buy up virtually any kind of bad asset -- including credit card debt or car loans -- from any financial institution in the U.S. or abroad in order to stabilize markets.
Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., the Banking Committee chairman, has proposed granting that request; Frank said he was working to limit the bailout to mortgage-related investments.
Differences remained with the administration on Democrats' proposal that the government take an ownership stake in the troubled companies it bails out so that taxpayers could benefit from future profits. Frank said Paulson had accepted the idea in principle, but several staff aides at work on the plan said there was no agreement yet on how the concept would work.
Frank said he and Paulson had agreed to create a congressional oversight board as part of the bailout and to mandate that the government come up with a plan to avoid foreclosures on any mortgages it acquires in the rescue. A government official with knowledge of the talks confirmed the administration backs those provisions.
As for tottering financial firms, there still were divisions on which would be helped and what kind of assets the government could buy as part of the bailout.
And in a fresh sign of a challenging road ahead, Sen. Richard C. Shelby of Alabama, the top Banking Committee Republican, blasted the emerging plan as "neither workable nor comprehensive."
"In my judgment, it would be foolish to waste massive sums of taxpayer funds testing an idea that has been hastily crafted and may actually cause the government to revert to an inadequate strategy of ad hoc bailouts," Shelby said.
Lawmakers on both extremes of the political spectrum assailed the plan as a massive, poorly conceived bailout. Conservative House Republicans and liberal House Democrats both and huddled privately to express their concerns.
A partisan battle was brewing over the bankruptcy provision for homeowners' mortgage payments, a key Democratic demand.
"We'll see how hard they fight -- it's something we care about," Frank said.
Lawmakers in both parties appeared to be coalescing around the idea that executive compensation limits should be part of the bailout, although Paulson is said to be concerned that such curbs would discourage companies from participating.
"Some element of that has to be in this package," said Sen. Mel Martinez, R-Fla.
Investors were uncertain just how successful the administration's plan would be in unfreezing credit markets, which many businesses depend on to fund day-to-day operations, and for propping up the still-weak housing market.
Bush said, "Obviously, there will be differences over some details, and we will have to work through them. That is an understandable part of the policymaking process." But he also said, "It would not be understandable if members of Congress sought to use this emergency legislation to pass unrelated provisions, or to insist on provisions that would undermine the effectiveness of the plan."
Treasury spokeswoman Brookly McLaughlin said, "We are confident that we can get a bill done this week."
The fast-moving negotiations between the administration and Congress unfolded a day after the government approved a request by investment houses Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to change their status to bank holding companies.
That change will allow the two venerable institutions to set up commercial banks that will be able to take deposits, significantly bolstering the resources of both institutions. It will also grant them permanent access to emergency loans supplied by the Fed rather than the temporary loan status they have had since last March when the Fed moved to prop up investment banks following the forced sale of Bear Stearns.
Democrats demanded that the measure limit pay packages for executives of companies helped by the biggest financial rescue since the Great Depression. The administration was balking at that, and also at a proposal by Democrats to let judges rewrite mortgages to lower bankrupt homeowners' monthly payments.
President Bush prodded Congress during the day to pass the rescue plan quickly, declaring, "The whole world is watching."
Rep. Barney Frank, the House Financial Services Committee chairman, said the administration essentially had forced Congress to the negotiating table by creating an expectation in financial markets that a massive bailout was on the way.
"By the declaration that they made, by sending this proposal, I think we have to recognize the reality that we don't have a choice now of debating whether this is a good or a bad thing," said Frank, D-Mass, who was leading negotiations with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.
"We have gotten closer," Frank said, but "We're not there yet."
Congressional aides said the House could act on a bailout bill as early as Wednesday, but leaders emerged from a closed-door meeting late Monday with no firm timetable for action.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said only that leaders were working to give the markets confidence that "this legislation will pass, and it will pass soon."
However, Wall Street wasn't comforted by the progress of the talks. The Dow Jones industrials plummeted 372 points, oil prices soared $25 a barrel at one point and gold prices surged anew as investors searched for a safe place to park their money. And despite encouraging talk on Capitol Hill, lawmakers on both the right and left were already assailing the deal-in-progress.
The emergency legislation would give the government broad power to buy up devalued assets from troubled financial firms in a bid to unlock the flow of credit and stabilize badly shaken markets in the United States and around the globe.
In one expansion of its original proposal, the administration is asking for broad power to buy up virtually any kind of bad asset -- including credit card debt or car loans -- from any financial institution in the U.S. or abroad in order to stabilize markets.
Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., the Banking Committee chairman, has proposed granting that request; Frank said he was working to limit the bailout to mortgage-related investments.
Differences remained with the administration on Democrats' proposal that the government take an ownership stake in the troubled companies it bails out so that taxpayers could benefit from future profits. Frank said Paulson had accepted the idea in principle, but several staff aides at work on the plan said there was no agreement yet on how the concept would work.
Frank said he and Paulson had agreed to create a congressional oversight board as part of the bailout and to mandate that the government come up with a plan to avoid foreclosures on any mortgages it acquires in the rescue. A government official with knowledge of the talks confirmed the administration backs those provisions.
As for tottering financial firms, there still were divisions on which would be helped and what kind of assets the government could buy as part of the bailout.
And in a fresh sign of a challenging road ahead, Sen. Richard C. Shelby of Alabama, the top Banking Committee Republican, blasted the emerging plan as "neither workable nor comprehensive."
"In my judgment, it would be foolish to waste massive sums of taxpayer funds testing an idea that has been hastily crafted and may actually cause the government to revert to an inadequate strategy of ad hoc bailouts," Shelby said.
Lawmakers on both extremes of the political spectrum assailed the plan as a massive, poorly conceived bailout. Conservative House Republicans and liberal House Democrats both and huddled privately to express their concerns.
A partisan battle was brewing over the bankruptcy provision for homeowners' mortgage payments, a key Democratic demand.
"We'll see how hard they fight -- it's something we care about," Frank said.
Lawmakers in both parties appeared to be coalescing around the idea that executive compensation limits should be part of the bailout, although Paulson is said to be concerned that such curbs would discourage companies from participating.
"Some element of that has to be in this package," said Sen. Mel Martinez, R-Fla.
Investors were uncertain just how successful the administration's plan would be in unfreezing credit markets, which many businesses depend on to fund day-to-day operations, and for propping up the still-weak housing market.
Bush said, "Obviously, there will be differences over some details, and we will have to work through them. That is an understandable part of the policymaking process." But he also said, "It would not be understandable if members of Congress sought to use this emergency legislation to pass unrelated provisions, or to insist on provisions that would undermine the effectiveness of the plan."
Treasury spokeswoman Brookly McLaughlin said, "We are confident that we can get a bill done this week."
The fast-moving negotiations between the administration and Congress unfolded a day after the government approved a request by investment houses Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to change their status to bank holding companies.
That change will allow the two venerable institutions to set up commercial banks that will be able to take deposits, significantly bolstering the resources of both institutions. It will also grant them permanent access to emergency loans supplied by the Fed rather than the temporary loan status they have had since last March when the Fed moved to prop up investment banks following the forced sale of Bear Stearns.
Monday, September 22, 2008
US Stocks fall 2 percent on bailout unease, oil
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks extended losses on Monday, sending the benchmark S&P 500 and the Nasdaq down more than 2 percent, as investors worried that passage of a proposed $700 billion bailout to resuscitate financial markets might hit a speed bump in Congress.
Another headwind for the market was a resurgence in the price of crude oil, which shot up $4.40 to $109.11 a barrel as the dollar slid.
Shares of financial services companies led the broader market's decline, which also hit other economically sensitive sectors like retailers and home builders. The S&P financial index dropped 6.3 percent.
Members of Congress have called for changes in the plan. But President Bush said in a statement: "Failure to act would have broad consequences far beyond Wall Street." Delay would threaten small businesses and home owners, Bush said.
The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 220.46 points, or 1.94 percent, to 11,167.98. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index shed 27.84 points, or 2.22 percent, to 1,227.24. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 48.26 points, or 2.12 percent, to 2,225.64.
Another headwind for the market was a resurgence in the price of crude oil, which shot up $4.40 to $109.11 a barrel as the dollar slid.
Shares of financial services companies led the broader market's decline, which also hit other economically sensitive sectors like retailers and home builders. The S&P financial index dropped 6.3 percent.
Members of Congress have called for changes in the plan. But President Bush said in a statement: "Failure to act would have broad consequences far beyond Wall Street." Delay would threaten small businesses and home owners, Bush said.
The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 220.46 points, or 1.94 percent, to 11,167.98. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index shed 27.84 points, or 2.22 percent, to 1,227.24. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 48.26 points, or 2.12 percent, to 2,225.64.
Goldman, Morgan Stanley Bring Down Curtain on an Era
Sept. 22 (Bloomberg) -- The Wall Street that shaped the financial world for two decades ended last night, when Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley concluded there is no future in remaining investment banks now that investors have determined the model is broken.
The Federal Reserve's approval of their bid to become banks ends the ascendancy of the securities firms, 75 years after Congress separated them from deposit-taking lenders, and caps weeks of chaos that sent Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. into bankruptcy and led to the rushed sale of Merrill Lynch & Co. to Bank of America Corp.
``The decision marks the end of Wall Street as we have known it,'' said William Isaac, a former chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. ``It's too bad.''
Goldman, whose alumni include Henry Paulson, the Treasury Secretary presiding over a $700 billion bank bailout, and Morgan Stanley, a product of the 1933 Glass-Steagall Act that cleaved investment and commercial banks, insisted they didn't need to change course, even as their shares plunged and their borrowing costs soared last week.
By then, it was too late. As financial markets gyrated -- the Dow Jones Industrial Average whipsawed 1,000 points in the week's last two days -- and clients defected, executives at the two firms concluded they had no choice. The Federal Reserve Board met at 9 p.m. yesterday and considered applications delivered that day, said Michelle Smith, a spokeswoman for the central bank. The decision was unanimous, she said.
`Blood in Water'
``There's blood in the water in the industry and the sharks are circling,'' Peter Kovalski, who helps oversee about $10 billion at Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC, said at the end of last week. ``It all comes down to perception and the current trust within the community.''
Morgan Stanley rose 16 percent to $31.60 as of 9:31 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. Goldman advanced 3 percent to $133.37.
Wall Street hasn't had such a shakeup since the 1980s, when firms including Morgan Stanley and Bear Stearns Cos. went public and London's financial markets were altered forever with the so- called Big Bang reforms implemented in 1986. Bear Stearns disappeared in March, when it was bought by JPMorgan Chase & Co.
The announcement paves the way for the two New York-based firms, both of which will now be regulated by the Fed, to build their deposit base, potentially through acquisitions. That will allow them to rely more heavily on deposits from retail customers instead of using money borrowed in the bond market -- the leverage that led to the undoing of Bear Stearns and Lehman.
Depositors Rule
Morgan Stanley has taken $15.7 billion of writedowns and losses on mortgage-related securities and other types of loans since the credit crunch started last year. Goldman's tally stands at about $4.9 billion. While both companies have remained profitable and avoided money-losing quarters suffered by Lehman and Merrill Lynch, their revenue from sales and trading and investment banking has been declining this year.
``Deposit-banking is king right now,'' said David Hendler, an analyst at CreditSights Inc. in New York. ``It's the only meaningful critical-mass way to make money.''
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., Japan's largest bank, said today it will pay up to 900 billion yen ($8.4 billion) for as much as a fifth of Morgan Stanley. The deal would mark the biggest overseas acquisition by a Japanese financial company, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Building Deposit Base
The Japanese bank will become ``a valuable partner as we transition to a bank holding company and build our bank services and deposit base,'' Morgan Stanley Chief Executive Officer John Mack said in a statement today.
The deal announced today came after Morgan Stanley held talks last week to pursue a merger with Wachovia Corp. That deal became less likely now that Morgan Stanley is becoming a bank holding company, said Tony Plath, a finance professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
Morgan Stanley, the second-biggest securities firm until this week, had $36 billion of deposits and 3 million retail accounts at the end of August. The company plans to convert its Utah-based industrial bank into a national bank.
``This new bank holding structure will ensure that Morgan Stanley is in the strongest possible position,'' Chairman and CEO Mack, 63, said in a statement last night. ``It also offers the marketplace certainty about the strength of our financial position and our access to funding.''
Citigroup, JPMorgan
Goldman, the largest and most profitable of the U.S. securities firms, will become the fourth-largest bank holding company. The firm already has more than $20 billion in customer deposits in two subsidiaries and is creating a new one, GS Bank USA, that will have more than $150 billion of assets, making it one of the 10 largest banks in the U.S., the firm said in a statement last night. The firm will increase its deposit base ``through acquisitions and organically,'' Goldman said.
``Goldman Sachs, under Federal Reserve supervision, will be regarded as an even more secure institution with an exceptionally clean balance sheet and a greater diversity of funding sources,'' Lloyd Blankfein, 54, Goldman's chairman and CEO, said in the statement.
The Washington-based Fed is the primary regulator of bank- holding companies, which are firms that own or control banks. Citigroup Inc., Bank of America Corp. and JPMorgan are bank- holding companies regulated by the Fed.
Less Risky
Securities firms, by contrast, had been regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC's future becomes dimmer with the change in Goldman and Morgan Stanley's structures.
``You can't kiss goodbye to the last two important investment banks without noting that the house is empty,'' said David Becker, a former SEC general counsel who is now a partner at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton in Washington. ``It's a downward spiral where the less significant the population you regulate, the less your available resources.''
The change is also likely to lead to less risk-taking by the companies and possibly lower pay for their employees. Both Goldman and Morgan Stanley held more than $20 of assets for every $1 of shareholder equity, making them dependent on market funding to operate.
Goldman, in particular, has been remarkable for the high bonuses it pays to its employees. Goldman's CEO and two co- presidents were each paid more than $67 million last year.
``They're going to have to protect their deposit bases by law, and the days of high leverage are gone,'' said Charles Geisst, a finance professor at Manhattan College in Riverdale, New York, who wrote ``Wall Street: A History.'' ``The days of the big bonuses are gone.''
The Federal Reserve's approval of their bid to become banks ends the ascendancy of the securities firms, 75 years after Congress separated them from deposit-taking lenders, and caps weeks of chaos that sent Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. into bankruptcy and led to the rushed sale of Merrill Lynch & Co. to Bank of America Corp.
``The decision marks the end of Wall Street as we have known it,'' said William Isaac, a former chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. ``It's too bad.''
Goldman, whose alumni include Henry Paulson, the Treasury Secretary presiding over a $700 billion bank bailout, and Morgan Stanley, a product of the 1933 Glass-Steagall Act that cleaved investment and commercial banks, insisted they didn't need to change course, even as their shares plunged and their borrowing costs soared last week.
By then, it was too late. As financial markets gyrated -- the Dow Jones Industrial Average whipsawed 1,000 points in the week's last two days -- and clients defected, executives at the two firms concluded they had no choice. The Federal Reserve Board met at 9 p.m. yesterday and considered applications delivered that day, said Michelle Smith, a spokeswoman for the central bank. The decision was unanimous, she said.
`Blood in Water'
``There's blood in the water in the industry and the sharks are circling,'' Peter Kovalski, who helps oversee about $10 billion at Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC, said at the end of last week. ``It all comes down to perception and the current trust within the community.''
Morgan Stanley rose 16 percent to $31.60 as of 9:31 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. Goldman advanced 3 percent to $133.37.
Wall Street hasn't had such a shakeup since the 1980s, when firms including Morgan Stanley and Bear Stearns Cos. went public and London's financial markets were altered forever with the so- called Big Bang reforms implemented in 1986. Bear Stearns disappeared in March, when it was bought by JPMorgan Chase & Co.
The announcement paves the way for the two New York-based firms, both of which will now be regulated by the Fed, to build their deposit base, potentially through acquisitions. That will allow them to rely more heavily on deposits from retail customers instead of using money borrowed in the bond market -- the leverage that led to the undoing of Bear Stearns and Lehman.
Depositors Rule
Morgan Stanley has taken $15.7 billion of writedowns and losses on mortgage-related securities and other types of loans since the credit crunch started last year. Goldman's tally stands at about $4.9 billion. While both companies have remained profitable and avoided money-losing quarters suffered by Lehman and Merrill Lynch, their revenue from sales and trading and investment banking has been declining this year.
``Deposit-banking is king right now,'' said David Hendler, an analyst at CreditSights Inc. in New York. ``It's the only meaningful critical-mass way to make money.''
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., Japan's largest bank, said today it will pay up to 900 billion yen ($8.4 billion) for as much as a fifth of Morgan Stanley. The deal would mark the biggest overseas acquisition by a Japanese financial company, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Building Deposit Base
The Japanese bank will become ``a valuable partner as we transition to a bank holding company and build our bank services and deposit base,'' Morgan Stanley Chief Executive Officer John Mack said in a statement today.
The deal announced today came after Morgan Stanley held talks last week to pursue a merger with Wachovia Corp. That deal became less likely now that Morgan Stanley is becoming a bank holding company, said Tony Plath, a finance professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
Morgan Stanley, the second-biggest securities firm until this week, had $36 billion of deposits and 3 million retail accounts at the end of August. The company plans to convert its Utah-based industrial bank into a national bank.
``This new bank holding structure will ensure that Morgan Stanley is in the strongest possible position,'' Chairman and CEO Mack, 63, said in a statement last night. ``It also offers the marketplace certainty about the strength of our financial position and our access to funding.''
Citigroup, JPMorgan
Goldman, the largest and most profitable of the U.S. securities firms, will become the fourth-largest bank holding company. The firm already has more than $20 billion in customer deposits in two subsidiaries and is creating a new one, GS Bank USA, that will have more than $150 billion of assets, making it one of the 10 largest banks in the U.S., the firm said in a statement last night. The firm will increase its deposit base ``through acquisitions and organically,'' Goldman said.
``Goldman Sachs, under Federal Reserve supervision, will be regarded as an even more secure institution with an exceptionally clean balance sheet and a greater diversity of funding sources,'' Lloyd Blankfein, 54, Goldman's chairman and CEO, said in the statement.
The Washington-based Fed is the primary regulator of bank- holding companies, which are firms that own or control banks. Citigroup Inc., Bank of America Corp. and JPMorgan are bank- holding companies regulated by the Fed.
Less Risky
Securities firms, by contrast, had been regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC's future becomes dimmer with the change in Goldman and Morgan Stanley's structures.
``You can't kiss goodbye to the last two important investment banks without noting that the house is empty,'' said David Becker, a former SEC general counsel who is now a partner at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton in Washington. ``It's a downward spiral where the less significant the population you regulate, the less your available resources.''
The change is also likely to lead to less risk-taking by the companies and possibly lower pay for their employees. Both Goldman and Morgan Stanley held more than $20 of assets for every $1 of shareholder equity, making them dependent on market funding to operate.
Goldman, in particular, has been remarkable for the high bonuses it pays to its employees. Goldman's CEO and two co- presidents were each paid more than $67 million last year.
``They're going to have to protect their deposit bases by law, and the days of high leverage are gone,'' said Charles Geisst, a finance professor at Manhattan College in Riverdale, New York, who wrote ``Wall Street: A History.'' ``The days of the big bonuses are gone.''
Sunday, September 21, 2008
$700B rescue plan may not save some troubled banks
NEW YORK (AP) -- A sweeping government plan to buy up to $700 billion in bad mortgages may not be enough to save some banks, which experts say may be forced to absorb big losses if they sell their troubled assets.
The proposal for the government to soak up the mortgage-backed securities would be the biggest bailout plan since the Great Depression, but experts say a critical issue will be how much it actually pays for the troubled assets.
How the government might acquire banks' toxic debt is still being ironed out, but one approach suggested by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson involves a process under which financial institutions would propose a price for their mortgage-backed securities and the government would choose the lowest bids.
If banks sell at the proposed price -- say 50 cents on the dollar -- accounting rules would require firms to take the losses on their balance sheets before getting the damaged assets off their books. For weaker banks buffeted by the deepening credit crisis, the losses may hinder their ability to go out raise capital, make loans and ultimately stay afloat, according to industry experts.
"There is a risk that there will be bank failures to come," said Vincent R. Reinhart, former director of the Federal Reserve's monetary affairs division.
While the reverse auctions could help banks set a clearing price for mortgage-related assets, Reinhart said, that "price doesn't mean that every financial firm will be solvent" after those assets are sold.
Another risk is that if the auctions set too low a price for mortgage-related assets, other institutions with bad debt may be forced to take the distressed valuation onto their books under mark-to-market accounting rules, Reinhart said. Mark-to-market rules involve adjusting the price of an asset to reflect its current market value.
"If the auctions don't go well, it will drag down everybody's balance sheet who marks to market," Reinhart said.
The financial system has been battered by $500 billion in losses from the mortgage mess, and the International Monetary Fund has estimated the price tag could ultimately top $1 trillion.
The crisis has forced 11 federally insured banks and thrifts into failure this year. Another 117 banks and thrifts were considered to be in trouble in the second quarter -- the highest level since 2003 -- with the total assets of troubled banks tripling to $78 billion, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The agency does not disclose which institutions are on its list, but on average, 13 percent of banks that make the list fail.
Christopher Whalen, senior vice president and managing director of Institutional Risk Analytics, has predicted that 110 banks with assets worth $850 billion are in danger of failing by next summer. He said the Treasury Department's rescue plan hasn't given him reason to be more optimistic.
"If the government comes in and buys these assets at a discount and you're a strong bank, you don't care because you're getting cash and you go off and do business. If you're a weak bank and you take a big hit, you may not have that option," Whalen said.
He said the government may decide that the only option to save some banks is to pay full price for the assets in exchange for equity, which could be sold later.
But that could be risky because if the government pays too high a price, it will be difficult if not impossible to go out and sell the assets for a profit in the future, meaning any losses incurred would be absorbed by taxpayers. But paying too little also is problematic because banks will be forced to take steeper losses that they may not be able to recover from.
"The government should be able to arrange to pick a price that helps the banks but also that allow the government to turn around and make a profit down the line," said Marvin Goodfriend, professor of economics at Carnegie Mellon University.
The proposal for the government to soak up the mortgage-backed securities would be the biggest bailout plan since the Great Depression, but experts say a critical issue will be how much it actually pays for the troubled assets.
How the government might acquire banks' toxic debt is still being ironed out, but one approach suggested by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson involves a process under which financial institutions would propose a price for their mortgage-backed securities and the government would choose the lowest bids.
If banks sell at the proposed price -- say 50 cents on the dollar -- accounting rules would require firms to take the losses on their balance sheets before getting the damaged assets off their books. For weaker banks buffeted by the deepening credit crisis, the losses may hinder their ability to go out raise capital, make loans and ultimately stay afloat, according to industry experts.
"There is a risk that there will be bank failures to come," said Vincent R. Reinhart, former director of the Federal Reserve's monetary affairs division.
While the reverse auctions could help banks set a clearing price for mortgage-related assets, Reinhart said, that "price doesn't mean that every financial firm will be solvent" after those assets are sold.
Another risk is that if the auctions set too low a price for mortgage-related assets, other institutions with bad debt may be forced to take the distressed valuation onto their books under mark-to-market accounting rules, Reinhart said. Mark-to-market rules involve adjusting the price of an asset to reflect its current market value.
"If the auctions don't go well, it will drag down everybody's balance sheet who marks to market," Reinhart said.
The financial system has been battered by $500 billion in losses from the mortgage mess, and the International Monetary Fund has estimated the price tag could ultimately top $1 trillion.
The crisis has forced 11 federally insured banks and thrifts into failure this year. Another 117 banks and thrifts were considered to be in trouble in the second quarter -- the highest level since 2003 -- with the total assets of troubled banks tripling to $78 billion, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The agency does not disclose which institutions are on its list, but on average, 13 percent of banks that make the list fail.
Christopher Whalen, senior vice president and managing director of Institutional Risk Analytics, has predicted that 110 banks with assets worth $850 billion are in danger of failing by next summer. He said the Treasury Department's rescue plan hasn't given him reason to be more optimistic.
"If the government comes in and buys these assets at a discount and you're a strong bank, you don't care because you're getting cash and you go off and do business. If you're a weak bank and you take a big hit, you may not have that option," Whalen said.
He said the government may decide that the only option to save some banks is to pay full price for the assets in exchange for equity, which could be sold later.
But that could be risky because if the government pays too high a price, it will be difficult if not impossible to go out and sell the assets for a profit in the future, meaning any losses incurred would be absorbed by taxpayers. But paying too little also is problematic because banks will be forced to take steeper losses that they may not be able to recover from.
"The government should be able to arrange to pick a price that helps the banks but also that allow the government to turn around and make a profit down the line," said Marvin Goodfriend, professor of economics at Carnegie Mellon University.
Economists see financial bailout as necessary
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The economy could suffer a massive hangover from the government's efforts to rescue the financial system in the form of a soaring debt burden. But the alternatives look infinitely worse.
The $700 billion the administration is seeking from Congress as the upper bounds of what it will need to take a mountain of bad loans off the books of financial firms is certainly an eye-popping figure.
To get the funds to buy up the bad mortgage loans that have threatened to bring the financial system to its knees, the government will have to borrow. And that borrowing will come at a time when the federal budget deficit is already soaring.
The deficit for this budget year, which ends on Sept. 30, is expected to rise to $407 billion, a figure that is more than double the $161.5 billion imbalance for 2007, reflecting what the economic slowdown and this year's $168 billion economic stimulus program are already doing to the government's books.
The Bush administration is estimating that the deficit for the budget year that begins Oct. 1, which will cover the new president's first year in office, will hit $482 billion, a record in dollar terms.
And that forecast doesn't include the $200 billion the administration committed to spending two weeks ago when it took over the nation's two biggest mortgage companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
And it doesn't have any of the $700 billion the administration is seeking to soak up the bad mortgage-backed securities that have been at the heart of the severe credit crisis the country has been struggling with since August 2007.
The legislation Congress passed this summer that gave the authority to rescue Fannie and Freddie boosted the limit on the national debt by $800 billion to $10.6 trillion.
The legislation the administration is now seeking to authorize the financial system bailout, according to a draft obtained by The Associated Press, would boost that debt limit to $11.3 trillion, up another $700 billion.
It is the rapidly rising debt that is cause for concern. The government is already spending more than $400 billion a year just to pay interest on the national debt. The higher that debt goes, the higher the government's borrowing costs and the less it has to spend on other programs.
Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama are both running for president, making campaign promises about what new programs they will implement once in office, promises that could be severely constrained by the costs of a financial bailout.
The escalating borrowing also means that the government is competing with the private sector for loans, driving up interest rates. And then there is the matter of the country's large trade imbalances which mean the United States has to borrow $2 billion a day from foreigners.
Will foreigners still want to lend as much to the United States if there are concerns that all the borrowing could weaken the dollar's value against other currencies.
But even with all these threats, economists said the government has to take decisive action because the alternative of letting the financial system slide into even deeper problems which could jeopardize the routine loans that businesses and consumers need was simply not an option.
"It was critical to arrest the downward slide in financial markets," said Sung Won Sohn, an economist at California State University, Channel Islands.
The dire situation was dramatically demonstrated this past week when the Federal Reserve, working with the central banks of other nations, poured billions of dollars into the financial system without any significant impact because of the fear keeping banks from lending.
The financial system has already been staggered with $500 billion in losses from the mortgage mess and the International Monetary Fund has estimated the ultimate price could be $1 trillion.
What the administration's plan would do is at least establish a price for the mortgage-backed securities, which at the moment no one wants to own.
Officials who have briefed Congress on Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's plan have suggested that one approach would be for the government to buy the toxic debt through a reverse auction process in which companies wanting to unload their mortgage-backed securities would propose a price to the government -- say 50 cents on the dollar -- and those offering the lowest price would win the bid.
By establishing a price for assets no one currently wants to buy, it could allow a market to develop and allow financial firms to get on with the effort of taking their losses and getting the damaged assets off their books.
"This could go a long way toward solving these problems," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Economy.com, who has written a book on the mortgage meltdown.
And the final cost to the government?
No one knows for sure, but Zandi said if the experience with cleaning up all the assets left over from the savings and loan mess is any guide, it should be less than the $700 billion that the administration is seeking.
In the S&L crisis, the government was able to recoup about two-thirds of its initial costs when it sold the assets it had obtained from the failed S&Ls.
"Obviously there is a big upfront cost to taxpayers," Zandi said, "but the ultimate cost may be measurably lower."
The $700 billion the administration is seeking from Congress as the upper bounds of what it will need to take a mountain of bad loans off the books of financial firms is certainly an eye-popping figure.
To get the funds to buy up the bad mortgage loans that have threatened to bring the financial system to its knees, the government will have to borrow. And that borrowing will come at a time when the federal budget deficit is already soaring.
The deficit for this budget year, which ends on Sept. 30, is expected to rise to $407 billion, a figure that is more than double the $161.5 billion imbalance for 2007, reflecting what the economic slowdown and this year's $168 billion economic stimulus program are already doing to the government's books.
The Bush administration is estimating that the deficit for the budget year that begins Oct. 1, which will cover the new president's first year in office, will hit $482 billion, a record in dollar terms.
And that forecast doesn't include the $200 billion the administration committed to spending two weeks ago when it took over the nation's two biggest mortgage companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
And it doesn't have any of the $700 billion the administration is seeking to soak up the bad mortgage-backed securities that have been at the heart of the severe credit crisis the country has been struggling with since August 2007.
The legislation Congress passed this summer that gave the authority to rescue Fannie and Freddie boosted the limit on the national debt by $800 billion to $10.6 trillion.
The legislation the administration is now seeking to authorize the financial system bailout, according to a draft obtained by The Associated Press, would boost that debt limit to $11.3 trillion, up another $700 billion.
It is the rapidly rising debt that is cause for concern. The government is already spending more than $400 billion a year just to pay interest on the national debt. The higher that debt goes, the higher the government's borrowing costs and the less it has to spend on other programs.
Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama are both running for president, making campaign promises about what new programs they will implement once in office, promises that could be severely constrained by the costs of a financial bailout.
The escalating borrowing also means that the government is competing with the private sector for loans, driving up interest rates. And then there is the matter of the country's large trade imbalances which mean the United States has to borrow $2 billion a day from foreigners.
Will foreigners still want to lend as much to the United States if there are concerns that all the borrowing could weaken the dollar's value against other currencies.
But even with all these threats, economists said the government has to take decisive action because the alternative of letting the financial system slide into even deeper problems which could jeopardize the routine loans that businesses and consumers need was simply not an option.
"It was critical to arrest the downward slide in financial markets," said Sung Won Sohn, an economist at California State University, Channel Islands.
The dire situation was dramatically demonstrated this past week when the Federal Reserve, working with the central banks of other nations, poured billions of dollars into the financial system without any significant impact because of the fear keeping banks from lending.
The financial system has already been staggered with $500 billion in losses from the mortgage mess and the International Monetary Fund has estimated the ultimate price could be $1 trillion.
What the administration's plan would do is at least establish a price for the mortgage-backed securities, which at the moment no one wants to own.
Officials who have briefed Congress on Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's plan have suggested that one approach would be for the government to buy the toxic debt through a reverse auction process in which companies wanting to unload their mortgage-backed securities would propose a price to the government -- say 50 cents on the dollar -- and those offering the lowest price would win the bid.
By establishing a price for assets no one currently wants to buy, it could allow a market to develop and allow financial firms to get on with the effort of taking their losses and getting the damaged assets off their books.
"This could go a long way toward solving these problems," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Economy.com, who has written a book on the mortgage meltdown.
And the final cost to the government?
No one knows for sure, but Zandi said if the experience with cleaning up all the assets left over from the savings and loan mess is any guide, it should be less than the $700 billion that the administration is seeking.
In the S&L crisis, the government was able to recoup about two-thirds of its initial costs when it sold the assets it had obtained from the failed S&Ls.
"Obviously there is a big upfront cost to taxpayers," Zandi said, "but the ultimate cost may be measurably lower."
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Morgan Stanley seeks deal with Wachovia
NEW YORK (AP) -- Morgan Stanley's stock price plunged again Thursday as the investment bank scrambled to strike a major deal or raise more cash that will assuage investors and prevent more damage to its free-falling shares.
John Mack, the No. 2 U.S. investment bank's chief executive, has reached out to China's Citic Group overnight about a possible investment, according to a person familiar with the talks. Morgan Stanley is also considering a combination with retail bank Wachovia Corp. and an investment from Singapore Investment Corp., one of the world's biggest sovereign wealth funds, said the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the discussions were still ongoing,
Morgan Stanley shares have fallen 38 percent in the past week amid unprecedented turmoil in the global banking system. Investors remain anxious after Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection, Merrill Lynch & Co. was forced into a sale to Bank of America Corp. and the federal government bailed out insurer American International Group.
Mack made telephone calls late Wednesday to Wachovia executives and also to Citigroup Inc. CEO Vikram Pandit, exploring all options to help restore confidence in the investment house, the person said. Citigroup was not interested in a tie-up, but talks remain ongoing with Wachovia, he said.
Wachovia declined to comment about a potential deal, while Citigroup confirmed that Mack and Pandit spoke.
Spokesmen for GIC and Citic could not immediately be reached for comment.
Mack isn't the only CEO looking to strike some kind of a deal or capital infusion. Washington Mutual Inc., which has lost billions and seen its shares plummet due to subprime mortgage exposure, is selling itself or looking for a deep-pocketed investor.
And overnight in London, Britain's Lloyds TSB Lloyds TSB announced a $21.85-billion deal to take over struggling HBOS PLC, Britain's biggest mortgage lender.
The U.S. government, which helped organize an $85 billion bailout of insurer AIG on Tuesday, also sought to break the grip of worsening global credit crisis by pumping billions into financial markets in a concerted action with central banks of other countries. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York, in two operations, injected $55 billion into temporary reserves in the United States, a move aimed to help ease a strained financial system in danger of freezing up.
The move helped steady Wall Street after the previous session's massive rout. However, market participants still moved into safe assets such as gold and Treasury bills, a sign that they remain skittish during the most troubling period for the world's financial system in most investors' memory.
AP Economics Writer Jeannine Aversa in Washington and AP Business Writer Tim Paradis in New York contributed to this report.
John Mack, the No. 2 U.S. investment bank's chief executive, has reached out to China's Citic Group overnight about a possible investment, according to a person familiar with the talks. Morgan Stanley is also considering a combination with retail bank Wachovia Corp. and an investment from Singapore Investment Corp., one of the world's biggest sovereign wealth funds, said the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the discussions were still ongoing,
Morgan Stanley shares have fallen 38 percent in the past week amid unprecedented turmoil in the global banking system. Investors remain anxious after Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection, Merrill Lynch & Co. was forced into a sale to Bank of America Corp. and the federal government bailed out insurer American International Group.
Mack made telephone calls late Wednesday to Wachovia executives and also to Citigroup Inc. CEO Vikram Pandit, exploring all options to help restore confidence in the investment house, the person said. Citigroup was not interested in a tie-up, but talks remain ongoing with Wachovia, he said.
Wachovia declined to comment about a potential deal, while Citigroup confirmed that Mack and Pandit spoke.
Spokesmen for GIC and Citic could not immediately be reached for comment.
Mack isn't the only CEO looking to strike some kind of a deal or capital infusion. Washington Mutual Inc., which has lost billions and seen its shares plummet due to subprime mortgage exposure, is selling itself or looking for a deep-pocketed investor.
And overnight in London, Britain's Lloyds TSB Lloyds TSB announced a $21.85-billion deal to take over struggling HBOS PLC, Britain's biggest mortgage lender.
The U.S. government, which helped organize an $85 billion bailout of insurer AIG on Tuesday, also sought to break the grip of worsening global credit crisis by pumping billions into financial markets in a concerted action with central banks of other countries. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York, in two operations, injected $55 billion into temporary reserves in the United States, a move aimed to help ease a strained financial system in danger of freezing up.
The move helped steady Wall Street after the previous session's massive rout. However, market participants still moved into safe assets such as gold and Treasury bills, a sign that they remain skittish during the most troubling period for the world's financial system in most investors' memory.
AP Economics Writer Jeannine Aversa in Washington and AP Business Writer Tim Paradis in New York contributed to this report.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
US government announces $85 bn loan to save AIG
WASHINGTON: The US government has agreed to provide an $85 billion emergency loan to rescue the huge insurer AIG, the The Federal Reserve said on Tuesday. The Fed said the US Treasury Department was in full support of the decision.
The Fed determined that a "disorderly failure" of AIG could undermine already fragile financial markets.
The government will receive an 79.9 percent equity stake in AIG, the Fed said
The deal would avoid the biggest corporate bankruptcy ever and follows a government bailout of mortgage lenders Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae just over a week ago.
Earlier, US stocks clawed back from their biggest one-day drop in seven years, soothed by speculation about a government rescue of AIG, a likely sale of Lehman Brothers' investment bank to Britain's Barclays, and a better-than-expected quarterly profit from Goldman Sachs.
The Fed determined that a "disorderly failure" of AIG could undermine already fragile financial markets.
The government will receive an 79.9 percent equity stake in AIG, the Fed said
The deal would avoid the biggest corporate bankruptcy ever and follows a government bailout of mortgage lenders Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae just over a week ago.
Earlier, US stocks clawed back from their biggest one-day drop in seven years, soothed by speculation about a government rescue of AIG, a likely sale of Lehman Brothers' investment bank to Britain's Barclays, and a better-than-expected quarterly profit from Goldman Sachs.
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