[Zardoz]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jboogy', 'R')emember how for the past couple years everyone was saying that housing is what's keeping the economy afloat?...

...Well we are in some pretty shit now...

[evilgenius]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jboogy', 'T')hat's some pretty convoluted logic evilG,Do you have anything to support this scenario besides your own suspicions?

[evilgenius]

I forgot how necessary it is to think backwards, like designing a computer program, from the desired result back through how to get it from the given staring point. The farther I go the more I realize that the neocons have been thinking this way before me. They have the advantage of resources and many minds, I have you guys.

The difference between them and me is that, if I was in charge, I wouldn't ever risk everything on one gamble (Iraq). If they are defeated, pulling out is not the same thing as defeat, in Iraq all of this is over. It might not be over right away, though, it probably will play out quickly. Power abhors a vacuum.

[Zardoz]

Reuters also has a bad feeling about next week:

Subprime worries to spur more volatility

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'M')ore signs of weakness in the mortgage market, another surge in oil prices and a Federal Reserve rate decision could create more turbulence for Wall Street next week.

Widening fallout from the U.S. housing slump has rattled credit markets, putting investors on edge about the outlook for corporate takeovers and share buybacks -- two catalysts of the market's recent rally to record highs...

..."The market is really struggling with defining the size of the subprime problem. The market does not like uncertainty," said Jim Fehrenbach, head of Nasdaq trading at Piper Jaffray, in Minneapolis.

Investors will tune in to what the Federal Reserve says in its assessment of the economy's outlook on Tuesday, when it releases its policy decision on interest rates.

[Roccland]

Maybe when this all plays out we can hand out more medals for a job well done...eh?

[Zardoz]

More dread about next week:

U.S. stocks to fall further next week on credit woes

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]U.S. stocks will fall next week, continuing a broad sell-off seen on Friday, as investors stay on high-alert for more bad news linked to dodgy home loans, credit woes, and their potential impact on the broad economy, analysts said.

"My expectations are that equities are in for another volatile week," said Mike Malone, trading analyst at Cowen & Co. "It's going to be difficult for equities to sustain any gains until the concerns in the credit markets begin to wane."

Investors will also anxiously await the meeting of the Federal Reserve on Tuesday to see whether central bankers signal growing concerns about credit markets.

[Twilight]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'I')n several speeches recently, Fed officials have indicated that they would not intervene to calm credit markets.

Ever since the Fed organized the 1998 bail-out of Long-Term Capital Management (LTCM), a hedge fund that failed after making the wrong bets before the Russian debt crisis, investors have come to rely on the U.S. central bank's willingness to intervene in times of crises. This reliance on the Fed has been dubbed the "Greenspan put", a reference to then-Fed-Chief Alan Greenspan.

Source: MarketWatch

[Zardoz]

Asian stocks tumble on Wall Street plunge

Not that bad, though, so far:

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'A')sian indexes dropped sharply early Monday in the wake of a U.S. stock plunge on credit-market concerns. Japanese shares also were hit hard by declines in exporters such as Canon Inc. and Sony Corp. as the yen strengthened against the U.S. dollar.

The Nikkei 225 index fell 1.5% to 16,722.67, while the broader Topix index dropped 1.5% to 1,647.03

[jdumars]

I am afraid my own prediction for this week is less rosey...

Monday:

Dow: -51
Gold: -6.20
WTI crude: +.45

Tuesday:

Dow: -123
Gold: +5.10
WTI crude: +.82

Wednesday:

Dow: +15
Gold: +2.15
WTI crude: +.25

Thursday:
Up

Friday:
Down... a lot.

[Zardoz]

"Economic Katrina". What a cheery thought:

Credit debate rages on extent of emerging 'crunch' - Is an economic Katrina poised to overtake the financial system's levees?

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'C')ould the turmoil in the markets in the past few weeks be the precursor of a full-blown credit crunch that could force the U.S. and global economies into a recession?

Some observers think that the markets are exhibiting classic signs of a so-called "Minsky moment," when overleveraged borrowers must finally pay the piper for their euphoria. The result, they say, will be a credit shortage that could bring down even innocent bystanders in their wake.

Academics, economists and money managers are all sounding the alarm. Financial markets are counting on the Federal Reserve to drop interest rates to cushion the fall, and yet senior officials at the central bank have insisted that the markets must discipline themselves.

Market professionals seem resigned that the fallout is inevitable, and has already begun with losses in several rocky sessions on Wall Street.

[Zardoz]

Never mind! Some Europeans (UBS) say Merrill Lynch is worth buying now, so suddenly nothing else matters, and it's all sunshine and happy talk:

U.S. stocks to push higher at Monday's opening

Ready to rebound

What a farce. What a gigantic, phony game.

Once again, all credit to the Plunge Protection Team. Think of the phone bill they must have run up over the weekend!

[firestarter]

Program trading isn't necessarily kind to the bulls, especially given that the three major indices broke critical support on Friday.Trading at 3:30 will be interesting to watch.

All the pump monkeying in the world isn't going to change what's going on in the credit and bond markets. One piece of bad news can set thing tumbling real quick. There's a lot of nervous investors out there, knowing that j6p is wobbling worse than a weeble.

[Eli]

Zardoz I do not think it is the plunge protection team. What is the big guys unloading stocks.

They pump up the futures markets to create a window to sell into. A little well timed good news at this point, makes the people hold off on selling while the big boys make there move. By the time the people realize it was a head fake the market is tanking and they are left holding the bag.

This is an equities sell off and the market is in serious trouble, but big players don't just sell in a panic, it is organized and strategic.

[Zardoz]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Eli', '.')..big players don't just sell in a panic, it is organized and strategic.

[firestarter]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Zardoz', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Eli', '.')..big players don't just sell in a panic, it is organized and strategic.

[Zardoz]

Oh, come on! They're absolutely convinced the nanny state is going to come to their rescue again!

U.S. stocks rallied the most in four years, led by financial companies, on speculation the government will take steps to limit losses in mortgage lending.

Give us a frickin' break!

Explosive day for the Dow - Blue-chip barometer soars nearly 300 points, posting biggest point gain so far this year, a day ahead of Fed meeting.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')here was also speculation on Wall Street that the Federal Reserve will offer some consolation to investors at its policy meeting Tuesday in light of the recent woes in the subprime, credit and housing markets.

"I think with everything we've seen recently and the shifting momentum to the downside, there's hope out there that we will hear something soothing from the Fed," said John Wilson, chief technical strategist at Morgan Keegan.

[Jack]

Zardoz - seriously - was there ever any doubt?

Given the choice between the immediate pain of market meltdowns and the deferred pain of inflation and accumulating debts, which will a polyglot society such as ours choose?

[Zardoz]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Jack', '.')..was there ever any doubt?

[AlCzervik]

Sorry if this was already posted. It's official, AHM files for bankruptcy.
Yahoo News.
Bloomberg News.

[Eli]

The only thing I see is they are putting some bondo on a flaming car wreck, by loosening Fanie and Freddie.

There is still billions of bad loans to work, and this the Fannie and Freddie that had accounting problems to the tune of 14 billion, although it was likely much worse.

Non banking mortgage lenders are still going under daily and this will not insure that they have liquidity.