This weekend has seen two major European financial institutions forced into the hands of government and a third on the verge of major new asset writedowns and job cuts. The events highlight the fragility of European banking and the need for concrete solutions at the upcoming G-20 summit in London.
First, in the UK, you [...]

This comes from Alan Abelson at Barron’s talking about seasonal adjustments for February data:
 

The misleading figures cut across a wide swath of the economy, encompassing housing, manufacturing, employment — you name it. The leading agent of deception, unintentional or otherwise, has been that old sly villain, seasonal adjustment. As it turns out, the seasons don’t [...]

Toxic Asset Plan May Appeal Little to Banks on Write-Down Rule
Two Graphs That Tell It All On Spain – Edward Hugh
A New Kind of Bank Stress Test — John Lousbury
YouTube – Hey Paul Krugman (A song, A plea) this is funny stuff.
The Market Mystique – Paul Krugman, NY Times
Deeper And Deeper – Andrew Sullivan
The PPIP: [...]

This video from yesterday’s Council on Foreign Relations symposium gives Treasury Seretary Tim Geithner a chance to explain why he has constructed his bailout plan in the way he has. Rather than editorialize the video, I will provide it without comment.  I do suggest you watch it if you want to develop a well-informed view [...]

I hope you all have a great weekend. Here is a clip from a new film you might want to take the kids to see.

Enjoy.

This just in from the FDIC. Another Friday night special:
Omni National Bank, Atlanta, Georgia, was closed today by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which then appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver. To protect the depositors, the FDIC entered into an agreement with SunTrust Bank, Atlanta, Georgia, to act [...]

Recently, I posted a Wall Street Journal article that suggested smaller banks and new banking enterprise can supply the lion’s share of additional credit needed for the U.S. banking system. While President Obama is off meeting the heads of the big banks, we should keep in mind that there are other institutions out there [...]

I am certainly no dollar bull. Longer-term, I believe the dollar is a weak currency. But, in the here and now, it does seem to be holding up quite well. Whether this continues to be the case remains to be seen. Nevertheless, in the near-term, there are a number of events [...]

The following post is up on Morgan Stanley’s website and highlights the degree to which money printing has become the policy tool of choice used by central bankers with which to fight this deflationary threat. I have highlighted the whole paragraph on the inflationary risk of all of this.

Commerzbank reveals toxic assets – BBC News Obviously, there are more writedowns to come. What does this say about what’s on Deutsche’s books? or UBS?
MGM Mirage’s City Center Hires Bankruptcy Counsel – Deal Book
Fear and Greed – Mark Thoma this is a hilarious post and a must-read
Europe fetches the monetary helicopters, at long [...]