Before I provide the links I want to add some clarifying points about previous articles.
Regarding the story about Larry Summers, Summers did not dismiss the employee in question. So, the post title is rather misleading. My apologies. Rather, Summers condoned an environment in which large bets on derivatives were permitted. Harvard has since [...]

I am sure you realize by now that I believe Larry Summers is soft on derivatives, soft on regulation and soft on banking executives.  He exemplifies the self-regulatory zeal of the previous boom.  Given his indifference to responsible regulatory oversight of derivatives and other markets, the following account, now public does seem to fit a [...]

This comes via Angus Robertson over at Research Recap:
Fitch Ratings forecasts that Emerging Europe (EE) will suffer its steepest fall in real GDP since the collapse of the Communist planned economic system in the early 1990s, reflecting the severity of the trade and financial shocks that have hit the region. However, the aggregate forecasts conceal [...]

The OCC’s Quarterly Report on Bank Trading and Derivatives Activities
for the Fourth Quarter 2008 is out. And derivatives exposure is way up. U.S. commercial banks now have a massive $200 trillion in derivatives exposure, which is 14x U.S. GDP.

Of course you know I think credit cards are going to produce a tsunami of writedowns, right? Things are looking more and more like that tsunami is right around the corner:
Credit card writedowns soared to record levels in February, representing an all-time high in the 20-year history of the Moody’s Credit Card Index, as [...]

The March 2009 Manufacturing ISM Report on Business is out.  The widely-followed figure of 36.3 for the purchasing manager’s index (PMI) shows a manufacturing sector contracting quickly, albeit at a slower pace.  Last month, the PMI was 35.8 and it was 35.6 in January.  So this marks the second consecutive month of gain in the [...]

In a dramatic speech on the edge of the G-20 summit on this first day of April, Fool was the watch word.  Barack Obama announced that he was changing course and, in an extraordinary development, has given the sack to two of his closest economic advisers as proof of this change.
“Look, I told the American [...]

Lessons from Japan’s failed fiscal stimulus – Vox Eu
Obama’s Ersatz Capitalism – Joseph Stiglitz, NY Times hat tip Mark Thoma
The Future of Investing: Evolution or Revolution? – Bill Gross
NBER: Household and NFP Differences Are Cyclical – Barry Ritholtz
Sacked workers occupy car factory – BBC News
Emerging-Market Stocks Extend Best Monthly Rally in 16 Years – Bloomberg.com
Chicago [...]

I don’t want to beat a dead horse here, but the Chinese have been making a lot of muscular moves diplomatically. While shifts in balance of power often take decades, it is increasingly apparent that China is making a strategic move in that direction right now.
We have been chronicling these moves here in a [...]