The “Mortgagegate” Scandal: Congratulations America, You’re Now in the Title-Insurance Business

U.S. taxpayers already own pieces of such problem-plagued companies as General Motors Corp., Chrysler LLC, American International Group Inc. (NYSE: AIG), Fannie Mae (OTC: FNMA) and Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC). Now the increasingly problematic "Mortgagegate" saga could land American taxpayers in the trouble-ridden title-insurance business.

Three signs that the stock market rally is on borrowed time

Yesterday was another 'risk on' day in the stock market. The FTSE 100 rose 0.6% as investors' nerves were calmed by a lower US dollar. When this falls, most other assets rise. This week, though, there's been a wobble about QE2 - the next round of quantitative easing, aka money printing. Market rumours are that the US Federal Reserve will now print less money than had been expected. For global share prices, that was seen as bad news. Wall Street and the City want more, as Dominic Frisby talked about yesterday. But just how much QE hype is baked into stock values? The answer is worrying. Let's have a look...

‘Dr. Doom’: ‘Fiscal train wreck’ may be coming

The U.S. economy is a "fiscal train wreck" waiting to happen that risks ushering in a period of stagnation featuring by minimal growth, high unemployment and deflationary pressure, U.S. economist Nouriel Roubini wrote on Friday.

Faster US recovery fails to dispel economic fears

The pace of America's recovery quickened in third quarter but the news did little to ease anxiety as the US economy faces its most important week since President Barack Obama took office.

Mervyn King must turn off the printing press

Quantitative easing will do little to secure the recovery, says Jeremy Warner.

The Fed is fuelling the catastrophe of fast rising raw material prices

Is the world running out of food, alongside oil, metals, water and much else?

EU 'haircut' plans rattle bondholders

Investors face large potential losses on eurozone debt under German plans likely to win backing from EU leaders on Friday – risking a boycott of Greek, Irish, and Portuguese bonds.

Revealed: how Desire's advisers have cashed in

Aim-listed Desire Petroleum has yet to find a single barrel of oil in the Falkland Islands, despite seven cash calls and 12 years of exploration.

Long-term real growth in US stocks

German Industry Feels Rare-Earth Metals Squeeze

Worries over a bottleneck in rare-earth metals from China, which are needed in the production of high-tech equipment, have dominated a conference on raw materials in Berlin this week. Beijing says export quotas are almost filled for the year. German Economics Minister Rainer Brüderle has called for more recycling and greater cooperation between the EU and the US to fill the gap.

China minister says dollar printing "out of control"

Dollar issuance by the United States is "out of control," leading to an inflation assault on China, the Chinese commerce minister said in comments reported on Tuesday.

Greece reignites Europe debt woes

Europe's debt woes have returned to the fore after Greek premier George Papandreou threw open the door to fresh elections and vowed to liberate the nation from "slavery and surveillance".

CNBC VIDEO Alternative Investments - Gold vs Silver

Gold vs. Silver, which is the better investment? CNBC put the two precious metals in a boxing ring, in the form of James Turk, chairman and founder of Goldmoney and Charlie Morris, head of absolute return at HSBC Global Asset Management (UK), to find out.

Fed Won't Join Supreme Court Appeal on Loan Disclosures

The Federal Reserve won’t join a group of the largest commercial banks in asking the U.S. Supreme Court to let the government withhold details of emergency loans made to financial firms in 2008.

Goldman says Fed faces $4 trillion hole

Economists at Goldman Sachs estimate the Federal Reserve may need to buy a staggering $4 trillion worth of assets such as Treasury securities to get the economy rolling again.

Interest rates set to rise as economy recovers

Interest rates will start to rise sooner than expected after official figures showed the economy growing at its fastest rate for a decade, economists have said.

Banks should be broken up, Bank of England Governor Mervyn King warns

Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, has thrown his weight behind breaking up the banks as part of wider reforms to protect the taxpayer from another financial industry meltdown.

Top 5 Graphs of the Week: China Economic Outlook

This week the focus is on China, with the quarterly statistics out this week - as well as a surprise interest rate increase from the PBOC. Among the data we review in this edition is GDP growth, inflation trends, the interest rate decision, retail sales growth, and the continued rise of new lending.

If the Fed won't print more money, markets could turn very ugly

By the end of last week, junk bonds had soared back to pre-crisis levels. Emerging markets were doing the same, as were countless different commodities. Stock markets in the West continued their rise. For those on the long side, things were looking very rosy. Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve Bank, which had been hinting strongly that QE2 - the next bout of quantitative easing, or money printing - is on the way, meets next week. They've got a hell of a decision to make. Markets have been fuelled in recent months by the promise of more cheap money. Will the Fed take the risk of popping the bubble now? Or will it continue to let it inflate?

An Open Letter to Washington: How to Fix the Deficit and End the Bush-Tax-Cuts Debate

Dear Mr. President and members of Congress: In the months that follow Tuesday's midterm elections, and into the New Year, you all face three very significant challenges. You must: * Find a solution to the Bush-tax-cuts controversy. * Rein in the huge-and-growing U.S. budget deficit. * And better police Wall Street, which got us into this mess in the first place. You can solve all three of these problems with a single, simple proposition. And you can do so without having to ask U.S. taxpayers to dig into their wallets or savings. Let me explain.

The US banking sector is signalling danger for stocks

The huge problem with US commercial property

Goldman: The Fed Needs To Print $4 Trillion In New Money

With just over a week left to the QE2 announcement, discussion over the amount, implications and effectiveness of QE2 are almost as prevalent (and moot) as those over the imminent collapse of the MBS system. Although whereas the latter is exclusively the provenance of legal interpretation of various contractual terms, and as such most who opine either way will soon be proven wrong to quite wrong, as in America contracts no longer are enforced (did nobody learn anything from the GM/Chrysler fiasco for pete's sake), when it comes to printing money the ultimate outcome will certainly have an impact. And the more the printing, the better. One of the amusing debates on the topic has been how much debt will the Fed print. Those who continue to refuse to acknowledge that the economy is in a near-comatose state, of course, hold on to the hope that the amount will be negligible: something like $500 billion (there was a time when half a trillion was a lot of money). A month ago we stated that the full amount will be much larger, and that the Fed will be a marginal buyer of up to $3 trillion. Turns out, even we were optimistic. A brand new analysis by Jan Hatzius, which performs a top down look at how much monetary stimulus is needed to fill the estimated 300 bps hole between the -7% Taylor Implied Funds Rate (of which, Hatzius believes, various other Federal interventions have already filled roughly 400 bps of differential) and the existing 0.2% FF rate. Using some back of the envelope math, the Goldman strategist concludes that every $1 trillion in new LSAP (large scale asset purchases) is the equivalent of a 75 bps rate cut (much less than comparable estimates by Dudley, 100-150bps, and Rudebusch, 130bps). In other words: the Fed will need to print $4 trillion in new money to close the Taylor gap. And here we were thinking the economy is in shambles. Incidentally, $4 trillion in crisp new dollar bills (stored in bank excess reserve vaults) will create just a tad of buying interest in commodities such as gold and oil... Here is the math.

G20 has to show compromise FX pact packs meaning

Excited talk of currency wars has given way to an uneasy truce, but what has so far been a phony war could yet break out into outright hostilities.

Singapore Exchange to buy ASX for $8.3 billion

Singapore Exchange (SGX) (SGXL.SI) has agreed a $8.3 billion takeover of Australia's ASX Ltd (ASX.AX) to create Asia's fourth-largest stock exchange, aiming to cut costs and fight growing competition.

It's every nation for itself in the devaluation race

Is it really only two years since the world's most powerful nations stood shoulder to shoulder, promising to do what it took to haul the global economy back from the brink?

Warren Buffett banks another profit

Warren Buffett certainly hasn't lost his magic touch.

CNBC VIDEO Dollar at Risk of Becoming 'Toxic Waste'

The dollar's slump could be set to get far worse and if the dollar index takes out last year's low it could pass into the investment category labeled "toxic waste", Robin Griffiths, technical strategist at Cazenove Capital, told CNBC Monday.

Owners Seek to Sell at Loss as Banks Push Foreclosure

Bank of America and GMAC are firing up their formidable foreclosure machines again today, after a brief pause.

Bank of America Finds Foreclosure Mistakes: Report

Bank of America acknowledged some mistakes in foreclosure files as it begins to resubmit documents in 102,000 cases, the Wall Street Journal said.

Dollar softer after G20 strikes uneasy FX truce

The U.S. dollar slipped and looked likely to stay under pressure in Asia on Monday after the Group of 20 major economies agreed to shun competitive currency devaluations.

China against current account limits: G20 source

China has made clear it will not agree to a G20 communique that explicitly binds countries to limits on current account balances or any other form of rules on currency policy, a G20 source told Reuters on Friday.

Bank Failures per Year Oct 22, 2010

The Monetary Breakdown of the West

To understand the current monetary chaos, it is necessary to trace briefly the international monetary developments of the 20th century, and to see how each set of unsound inflationist interventions has collapsed of its own inherent problems, only to set the stage for another round of interventions. The 20th-century history of the world monetary order can be divided into nine phases. Let us examine each in turn.

Foreclosuregate Goes Beyond the Banks

Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, suggested last week that if the foreclosure verification problem was not fixed within a few weeks, it would probably be mean bad news for everyone. Now, with stories of evictees breaking into foreclosed homes, and fearful articles in The New York Times suggesting that buyers should steer clear of foreclosures until things are sorted out, it is difficult to imagine the situation will resolve fully within a month.

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac bailout cost is likely to rise to $154 billion, agency projects

The bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is likely to cost taxpayers an additional $19 billion and may cost as much as $124 billion more if the economy starts shrinking again, according to a government projection released Thursday.

China Said to Widen Its Embargo of Minerals

China, which has been blocking shipments of crucial minerals to Japan for the last month, has now quietly halted some shipments of those materials to the United States and Europe, three industry officials said this week.

Pimco, NY Fed Said to Seek BofA Repurchase of Mortgages

Pacific Investment Management Co., BlackRock Inc. and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York are seeking to force Bank of America Corp. to repurchase soured mortgages packaged into $47 billion of bonds by its Countrywide Financial Corp. unit, people familiar with the matter said. A group of bondholders wrote a letter to Bank of America and Bank of New York Mellon Corp., the debt’s trustee, citing alleged failures by Countrywide to service loans properly, their lawyer said yesterday in a statement that didn’t name the firms. The New York Fed acquired mortgage debt through its 2008 rescues of Bear Stearns Cos. and American International Group Inc. Investors are stepping up efforts to recoup losses on mortgage bonds, which plummeted in value amid the worst slump in home prices since the 1930s. Last month, BNY Mellon declined to investigate mortgage files in response to a demand from the bondholder group, which has since expanded. Countrywide’s servicing failures, including insufficient record keeping, may open the door for investors to seek repurchases by bypassing the trustee, said Kathy Patrick, their lawyer at Gibbs & Bruns LLP.

Mortgage Buybacks May Cost Lenders $120 Billion, JPMorgan Says

Forced repurchases of soured U.S. mortgages may be the “biggest issue facing banks” even as errors in the foreclosure process draw attention to other industry risks, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. analysts. Future losses from repurchases of home loans whose quality failed to meet sellers’ promises will likely total $55 billion to $120 billion, or potentially $10 billion to $25 billion for the next five years, the New York-based mortgage-bond analysts led by John Sim and Ed Reardon wrote in a Oct. 15 report.

Vince Cable in push for 'Cadbury law'

The Government is to launch a major inquiry into "short-termism" and shareholder behaviour in the City after Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, said that the Takeover Panel findings on how investors influence takeover battles had been "modest" and a "small move".

BT ruling could open pension claim floodgates

Taxpayers could be on the hook for tens of billions of pounds to cover a string of privatised companies' pension schemes after the precedent set by BT's landmark "crown guarantee" victory.

Gilt yields fall to record low on QE expectations

Gilt yields hit a record low after the Chancellor indicated he is relying on the Bank of England to safeguard the recovery through monetary stimulus if his £81bn of savings cut too deep.

Dollar plummets on report Fed plans to pump $500bn more into economy

US stock markets recovered on Wednesday as the dollar fell across the board amid further signs the Federal Reserve will increase economic stimulus over the next six months.

What We Can Learn From The Stock Market Genius That Wall Street Loves to Ignore

As mathematicians go, Mandelbrot was very likely the best of the last half-century. And that brilliance extended to the financial markets. In fact, his groundbreaking insights into the operations of the stock market could have been used to avert the 2008 crash - had those insights only been heeded. But Mandelbrot - for all his stock market genius - has been largely ignored by Wall Street. As investors, let's not make the same mistake.

Silver will go much higher - but take some profits for now

Silver is the precociously gifted, but errant teenager of the commodities markets. I doubt that there's any other commodity with as much potential. And it's a potential that many 'talent scouts' have long since identified. And yet, like the troubled, youthful genius who the whole world wants to do well but seems determined to snatch failure from the jaws of victory, silver so often seems to disappoint. Of late that has not been the case. It has burst to 30-year highs. But yesterday's sell-off was a reminder of how silver can fall when it wants to. So is it set to disappoint us all again?

iDepression 2.0: An Unemployment Reality Check

As I listen to pundits, politicians and populists expound on the jobs situation in our country day after day, as if they knew what they were talking about, I’m reminded of the Seinfeld episode where George quits his job as a real estate agent. He sits in Jerry’s apartment and ponders whether he could become the general manager of the Yankees, a sportscaster, getting paid to watch movies, or a talk show host. After the discussion with Jerry, he realizes that he has absolutely no skills that are transferable to another career. Everyone in America would like to be the General Manager of the Yankees or get paid for watching movies, but that isn’t how it works in the real world.

U.S. will not engage in dollar devaluation

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Monday sought to ease fears the United States was actively weakening the dollar to gain an export edge, saying no country could devalue its way to health.

Paging Bob Pisani: Mutual Funds See 23rd Sequential Outflow, As Redemptions Accelerate, Hit $80 Billion

Sorry CNBC (and Bob) but there is no way to spin this. ICI has just reported the latest in what is now a weekly farce: nobody wants a piece of this market. Nobody. Retail is out permanently, as was confirmed by the 23rd sequential outflow from domestic equity mutual funds, this time redeeming $5.6 billion, the highest since the beginning of September, right before the Fed full blown stock ramp intervention began. And that brings the total YTD mutual fund redemptions to $80 billion. Sorry bankers - no greater fool, no hot potato. The jig is up. Have fun selling AAPL at $50,000,000 to each other (and of course ENIAC) in subpenny increments. Everyone else will stick to bonds and gold. Lights out.

 

Look to Emerging Markets as the Federal Reserve Diminishes the Dollar

The main thrust of the past two months has been the renewed collapse of the U.S. dollar. The dollar has been on a one-way elevator ride to the ground floor since August, when U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke first warned that quantitative easing was on the horizon. Most recently, the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee's (FOMC) last meeting telegraphed further monetary stimulus. ''In light of the considerable uncertainty about the current trajectory for the economy, some members saw merit in accumulating further information before reaching a decision about providing additional monetary stimulus," the minutes read. "In addition, members wanted to consider further the most effective framework for calibrating and communicating any additional steps to provide such stimulus. Several members noted that unless the pace of economic recovery strengthened or underlying inflation moved back toward a level consistent with the Committee's mandate, they would consider it appropriate to take action soon." Concerns about inflation being too low almost guarantees additional quantitative easing unless the recovery gets a big shot in the arm before the next meeting in early November.

Could the US repossession scandal sink the banks again?

Only one day to go until 'the cuts'. It's like the mirror image of Christmas Eve. Instead of getting presents, tomorrow we'll wake up and find out about all the things that the government is planning to take away from us. I'm not going to waste your time here by speculating on what might happen. Obviously we've already seen several changes announced, but you never know what they'll pull out of the hat on the day. The key things to watch will be how the pound and gilts react. If the cuts are less violent than expected, we'll see a weaker pound, higher gilt yields and probably a relief rally in stocks. If they're tougher than expected (though that seems unlikely), the opposite will happen. In the meantime, let's take a look at something completely different – this US foreclosures business. It's been bubbling away in the background, but there's every sign that it won't stay that way...

China Just Raised Rates, And The Dollar Is Spiking .

China is taking another serious move towards tightening money, reining in its bubble, and implicitly putting upward pressure on the yuan

BHP and Rio scrap $116 billion iron ore joint venture

(Reuters) - BHP Billiton (BHP.AX) and Rio Tinto (RIO.AX) ditched plans to form the world's biggest iron-ore joint venture, in a victory for steel makers and a move that could prompt both miners to step up competing expansion plans.

As the Rescue of the Chilean Miners Shows, this South American Country is Superbly Managed and an Enticing Investment

The efficient, well-managed rescue of the 33 Chilean miners was an affecting spectacle for the world. It also should remind us that Chile is a well-run country, and that in an era when commodities are ever more important to the global economy, it is becoming an essential part of investors' portfolios. Earthquakes are terrifying and mining is a dangerous job anywhere, but you're much more likely to survive an earthquake or a mine disaster in some countries than in others. Indeed Chile's performance both in the earthquake and this mine disaster was of the highest quality probably only in Germany, Scandinavia and maybe Singapore could one reliably expect public rescue services to work so effectively. For investors, the Chilean earthquake and mine disaster experiences have an important lesson: Countries with really good management should be promoted sharply up investor league tables, for a number of reasons.

Fed chief Ben Bernanke signals more easing to counter high unemployment, low inflation

Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the US Federal Reserve, said with unemployment too high and inflation too low there was a case for further action to stimulate the world's biggest economy.

US Consumer Sentiment

Washington Policy Makers Resist Calls for a Big Fix in Foreclosure Crisis

Washington policy makers, who moved swiftly to calm markets during the subprime mortgage crisis in 2008, have resisted calls for similarly broad steps in response to concern that banks may have acted illegally to seize homes.

Bernanke Sees Case for `Further Action' With Too-Low Inflation

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said additional monetary stimulus may be warranted because inflation is too low and unemployment is too high.

What You Don’t Know about “Mortgagegate” Could Crush the U.S. Banking System

What most Americans don't know about " Mortgagegate" is that "robo-signing" of foreclosure documents is the tip of the iceberg. The breadth and depth of this newest mortgage crisis is so dangerous that the U.S. Federal Reserve last month pre-announced another potential round of quantitative easing (pundits are calling it "QE2") to address "potential negative shocks." In fact, the fallout potential is so numbing and the actions that birthed it so scandalous that commentators have given the crisis the Watergate-esque title of " Mortgagegate" (or, as some prefer, "Mortgage Gate"). Here's what the news-story headlines aren't telling you.

The US can win the currency war – but it'll regret it

I'm at the tail end of the generation that still remembers vaguely what it was like to live in a world where the big overshadowing fear behind the daily headlines was nuclear apocalypse, rather than climate change, or total economic collapse. The optimists' argument against the idea that we'd end up blowing ourselves and each other up was that "no one would be crazy enough to do it". The doctrine of 'mutually assured destruction' – the fact that as soon as you launched one missile, the other side would fire off ten in your general direction – would prevent anyone from pressing the big red button. And luckily enough, the USSR didn't survive quite long enough for either side in the Cold War to produce such a leader. Sadly, today's currency wars are different. Everyone knows that a race to the bottom will be hugely damaging. But what can the rest of us do when the biggest currency of all – the US dollar – is run by Ben Bernanke, who once theorised about dumping helicopter-loads of money into the streets. 'Blackhawk Ben', as he's been nicknamed by traders, has certainly persuaded investors that he's more than willing to sacrifice the dollar to reflate the US economy – whatever the cost...

China warns US against making yuan dispute a 'scapegoat' for a flagging economy

China has again warned the US not to use the dispute over the value of the Chinese currency, the yuan, as a “scapegoat” for its high unemployment and flagging growth prospects.

Economic Hallucinations

Two generations ago the gold price in Bombay was about 450 rupees, whereas today it is about 58,000 rupees. Indians, along with nearly all non-Westerners, generally assume that, rather than the gold price being up, the money is down. Put differently, gold is gold, copper is copper, it’s the money that changes. Only in the Anglo-American world do investors consider money stable and things (gold, copper, whatever) volatile. It will prove a fatal mistake.

Fears of global currency war rise

Thailand is introducing a tax on foreign holdings of bonds, the latest in a string of attempts by emerging economies to curb destabilising capital inflows amid fears of a global currency war. The Thai cabinet on Tuesday imposed a 15 per cent withholding tax on capital gains and interest payments for government and state-owned company bonds, a clear signal that it would take tough measures to curb inflows of "hot money".

The junk bond bubble is set to pop – here's how to profit

As the old adage goes, they don't ring a bell at the top. If you want to know – in any market – when prices are peaking out, you have to work it out for yourself. It's not easy. If it were, everyone would be doing it. But there are often signals you shouldn't ignore. Worrying signs are appearing in several markets right now. Some of the most concerning, though, are showing up in 'junk' bonds. Yes, they've done very nicely of late. But this is one market that could be heading for a pile-up.

Skype and Facebook announce video calls deal

Skype users will now be able to sync their Facebook profile with their Skype account, providing one click video calling to friends on the social networking site.

There is no soft option when confronting our economic reality

Forecasters may disagree, but some harsh truths are unavoidable, writes Jeff Randall.

MBA Purchase Index

The Purchase Index includes all mortgages applications for the purchase of a single-family home. It covers the entire market, both conventional and government loans, and all products. The Purchase Index has proven to be a reliable indicator of impending home sales

Goldman Tells Clients To Buy COMEX Gold At $1,364.2, Raises 12 Month Gold Forecast From $1,365 To $1,650, Silver To $27.60

Alarm bells are ringing everywhere as Goldman (which joins UniCredit in boosting its gold price target) may have just picked the short-term top in gold, after it revised its 12 month target from $1,365 to $1,650. And while David Greely's track record is nowhere near as atrocious as that of Goldman's FX team which manages to top tick the EURUSD every single time, the fact that Goldman is now opening Long Gold recommendations (to go with its current trading recommendations of long Corn, Copper, Platinum and WTI) is reason for big worry. Recall which bank was getting its clients to go all in in crude 2008 when oil was $140+. We would be very cautious when Goldman is on "your" side of the trade. Nonetheless, the firm is pretty much spot on "We believe that a return to quantitative easing will act as a strong catalyst to carry gold prices to even higher levels."

US 'Robo foreclosures' threaten new financial meltdown

Anyone who thought the American housing crisis was starting to abate should think again. In fact it threatens to enter a new, and possibly even more destructive phase. The cause is growing foreclosure abuse. This has already prompted Bank of America and JP Morgan to call a moratorium on foreclosures. The White House is under growing pressure to extend this to a nationwide ban.

Everything You Need to Know About Tomorrow’s OPEC Meeting

Crude dropped for the second straight day yesterday (Tuesday) after Saudi Arabia made it clear that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will leave its production targets unchanged at its meeting tomorrow (Thursday). Crude oil for November delivery fell 54 cents a barrel - or 0.7% - to finish at $81.67 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange yesterday. Even with yesterday's decline, oil prices are up 11% over the past 12 months. Speaking in advance of tomorrow's OPEC meeting in Vienna, Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said that prices between $70 and $80 a barrel are "ideal," and noted that the market is "very well-balanced" right now. In a related development, Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. LLC slashed its oil-price forecasts for both next year and 2012, and attributed the new viewpoint to big stockpiles. But this only provides you with part of the picture. And it'll lead you to the wrong conclusions. So here's the proverbial "rest of the story" - including everything you need to know about tomorrow's OPEC meeting.

Question of the Week: Investors Seek Metals To Soften Blow of Global Currency War

he housing market remains in the dumper. U.S. stocks - despite a rally - are still 22% below their record highs of two years ago. And the "official" unemployment rate remains at a heart-stopping 9.6%. Question of the Week With their knees almost ready to buckle under such burdens already, how will American consumers respond when clothes, computer accessories and other key consumer staples at their neighborhood Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) undergo an overnight price hike of 30% to 60%? As the United States aims to increase exports by debasing the dollar, a global currency war is underway that could swallow consumers and investors if they don't prepare for the likelihood of a weaker dollar. The United States, China, Switzerland, Brazil, South Korea, Australia, Japan have all entered the war, trying to bring down their currencies to boost exports and fuel growth.

What now for the dollar - collapse or miracle recovery?

Do you remember back in June when the euro was going to collapse? It's now up 17.5% against the dollar. In May, the pound was doomed. It's since up about 11% against the dollar. Now, apparently, the end is nigh for the US dollar. But is it really? Or will it be the next currency to see a miracle recovery?

A Primer On The Foreclosure Crisis

Last week, Bank of America announced that it was halting foreclosures in all fifty-states while it reviewed its foreclosure process for defects. Now several lawmakers on Capitol Hill are calling for other banks to initiate nationwide foreclosure freezes—a move which the Obama administration is currently opposing.

Currency wars are necessary if all else fails

The overwhelming fact of the global currency system is that America needs a much weaker dollar to bring its economy back into kilter and avoid slow ruin, yet the rest of the world cannot easily handle the consequences of such a wrenching adjustment. There is not enough demand to go around.

IMF fails to strike deal over currency frictions

The International Monetary Fund on Saturday night failed to reach agreement on tackling mounting global "frictions" over exchange rate policies despite US calls to deal with the issue more forcefully.

IMF Fails, Gold Shines as Currency Wars to Continue

The IMF was unable to stem the tide of competitive currency devaluations over the weekend. As a result, governments and central banks around the world still have the green light to continue with their money printing orgy. Some of the citizens of these various regions and countries have recently been acting as their own central banks by purchasing gold as insurance against the currency wars. As fears escalate, the question now becomes, when will the people of this world once again have a stable system of currency?

David Cameron's secret plan to cut UK's £149bn debt by selling off property

The Government is working on a secret plan to tackle Britain's £149bn deficit by hiving off state-owned property assets worth tens of billions of pounds and selling them to the private sector.

EDF suffers nuclear setback in America

Energy group EDF has suffered a setback in the US with its joint venture partner pulling out of a project to build a nuclear power plant in the US state of Maryland.

Cut or spend: what the IMF really thinks

Cut or spend? It’s the big debate of the day. In fact, at the International Monetary Fund’s Washington conference it is the big debate today. The Bretton Woods institution is holding a seminar titled Stimulate or consolidate: How to secure a robust global recovery?.

International M&A Boom Fueled by Global Currency War

A binge of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) is being fueled by the global currency war, which has increased the value of emerging market currencies. The value of worldwide M&A totaled $1.75 trillion during the first nine months of 2010, a 21% increase from comparable 2009 levels and the strongest nine month period for M&A since 2008, according to Thomson Reuters. But mergers and acquisitions involving companies located in the emerging markets skyrocketed by 62.9% during the same period over 2009, totaling $480.7 billion. During the first three quarters of 2010, emerging markets accounted for 27.4% of worldwide M&A volume compared to 21% during the comparable period in 2009.

Looking for a US property bargain? You can afford to wait

With prices having fallen so far for so long, surely we can expect an upturn soon? You might think so. But sadly, that doesn't look likely right now. In fact, there's every chance that things will get even worse.

As “QE2″ Looms, Is the Fed Focusing on the Wrong Things?

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke is looking forward to 1932. That's not a misprint. Actually, Bernanke is looking forward to a point when the challenges facing today's U.S. economy mirror the problems of that particular Great Depression-era year. And he wants that to happen for a very simple reason. He knows how to solve those problems. Unfortunately, "1932" isn't likely to arrive. And the preparations the Fed is making in the meantime are likely to deepen the United States' economic woes. Let me show you what I mean...

The Secret Indicator That Points to Much Higher Oil Prices

Crude oil has taken on a life of its own. As I have noted on several occasions, oil is both a commodity in wide demand and a financial asset in its own right. In the former case, as a commodity, the so-called "wet" barrels (the actual oil) will respond to traditional marketplace pressures - particularly supply and demand. In the asset role, which involves futures contracts (the "paper" barrels), oil becomes something that can be used as a store of value. As we'll see momentarily, oil's role as a financial asset underpins a crucial new development. Six catalysts are behind the recent increase in oil prices. Five are well known in the marketplace. But it's the sixth catalyst - not as widely known or understood - that is central to our forecast that oil prices will continue their march. This sixth catalyst also enabled us to uncover a significant opportunity for you to make a great deal of money.

How volatile is the US Stock market?

China tells EU to stop pressing on currency

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao told the European Union on Wednesday to stop piling pressure on Beijing to revalue its currency, saying a rapid shift could unleash disastrous social turmoil.

The post-bubble world: what’s next?

The American Enterprise Institute is hosting a panel with Nouriel Roubini and Reuters contributor Chris Whalen on “living in the post-bubble world: what’s next?” It is being livestreamed today from 2pm – 4pm ET. You can watch the video of it here:

Nothing scary about these charts

There is nothing scary about these charts, provided you own some physical gold and/or silver. Both precious metals are in clear uptrends. Both precious metals are making new highs - record highs for gold and 30-year highs for silver.

Non-Business US Bankruptcy filings by quarter

Buffett’s China-Gushing Optimism Sells Like Sex: William Pesek

Warren Buffett says China’s BYD Co. has “momentum.” It may have more to do with his name than the company’s. Such is the power of the most famous investor. Buffett, worth $47.5 billion, according to Bloomberg data, homes in on a Shenzhen automaker and its stock heads for the stratosphere. This dynamic works both ways. Add a China element to any company or trend, and success is virtually assured. China is the economic equivalent of sex -- it sells. Buffett knows how dabbling in Asia’s hottest economy makes headlines. He also knows how to turn on the charm, as he did in China last week.

Geithner Sees `Damaging Dynamic' in Currency Policies

Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner said a “damaging dynamic” of large economies keeping their currencies undervalued can cause inflation and asset bubbles, and called on countries to coordinate their policies.

IMF Says Public Debt, Fragile Banks Pose Risks to Growth

High unemployment, public debt and fragile banking systems pose risks to global prosperity, the International Monetary Fund said, urging policy makers to take bolder steps to assure a sustained recovery.

Soros: Why Ignoring History Threatens the Global Economy

The following speech was given by George Soros yesterday afternoon at Columbia University.

Joseph Stiglitz Discusses Fed Policy, Global Economy

Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz, a professor at Columbia University, talks about the impact of Federal Reserve monetary policy on the global economic recovery. Stiglitz, speaking with Betty Liu on Bloomberg Television’s “In the Loop” at the World Business Forum in New York, also discusses global trade relations. (This is an excerpt of the full interview. Source: Bloomberg)

11 Long-Term Trends That Are Absolutely Destroying The U.S. Economy

The U.S. economy is being slowly but surely destroyed and many Americans have no idea that it is happening. That is at least partially due to the fact that most financial news is entirely focused on the short-term. Whenever a key economic statistic goes up the financial markets surge and analysts rejoice. Whenever a key economic statistic goes down the financial markets decline and analysts speak of the potential for a "double-dip" recession. You could literally get whiplash as you watch the financial ping pong ball bounce back and forth between good news and bad news. But focusing on short-term statistics is not the correct way to analyze the U.S. economy. It is the long-term trends that reveal the truth. The reality is that there are certain underlying foundational problems that are destroying the U.S. economy a little bit more every single day. 11 of those foundational problems are discussed below. They are undeniable and they are constantly getting worse. If they are not corrected (and there is no indication that they will be) they will destroy not only our economy but also our entire way of life. The sad truth is that it would be hard to understate just how desperate the situation is for the U.S. economy.

Banks' $4 trillion debts are 'Achilles’ heel of the economic recovery', warns IMF

More taxpayer support is needed to ensure global financial stability despite the billions already pledged, the International Monetary Fund has warned, as banks remain the “achilles heel” of the economic recovery.

China 'supports' stable euro says Wen Jiabao

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao appeared to be looking for allies in Europe as he said China would not cut its holdings of European bonds.

Roman Abramovich's Millhouse warns Ireland of legal action over Irish Nationwide bail-out

Millhouse, Roman Abramovich's asset management company, has lashed out at the Irish government and given warning of “huge reputation loss” and possible legal action if it continues to push it to foot part of the bill to bail out Irish Nationwide Building Society.

Gold might look frothy – but it's not a bubble

Within the last few weeks, gold has made it onto Radio 4's Today programme and the front pages of The Sunday Times Money section. Even the notorious deflationist Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, who, until recently, championed government money printing in the form of quantitative easing, signed off a piece for The Telegraph last weekend with the words: "Of course gold can go higher". When gold starts getting that kind of exposure, it's often a sign of some kind of intermediate-term top. But a bubble? I'm not so sure. Let's take a look at some of history's greatest bubbles and see how gold's ten-year run ranks so far.

America's recovery 'wholly unsatisfactory', says top Federal Reserve official William Dudley

America's recovery is "wholly unsatisfactory" and has failed "to catch fire", a top Federal Reserve official has said in the most public statement yet of the anxieties at the central bank.

IMF admits that the West is stuck in near depression

f you strip away the political correctness, Chapter Three of the IMF's World Economic Outlook more or less condemns Southern Europe to death by slow suffocation and leaves little doubt that fiscal tightening will trap North Europe, Britain and America in slump for a long time.

Joseph Stiglitz: the euro may not survive

Joseph Stiglitz, one of the world's leading economists, has warned that the future of the euro is "looking bleak" and the fragile European economic recovery could be irreparably damaged by a "wave of austerity" sweeping the continent.

US Is 'Practically Owned' by China: Analyst

The US supremacy as the top world economy will end sooner than many people believe, so gold is a better investment than the dollar despite it hitting a new record, Tom Winnifrith, CEO at financial services firm Rivington Street Holdings, told CNBC.com Monday.

Charting Statistical Fraud At The BLS: 22 Out Of 23 Consecutive Upward Revisions In Initial Jobless Claims

For all those who continue to doubt the statistically quetionable methods of our Labor Department, as well as for all others who mock those who doubt the veracity out of anything coming out of the BLS, the following chart should provide much needed closure. The top section of the chart below demonstrates weekly prior revisions in initial claims for all of 2010.

Ireland nationalises second-biggest bank Allied Irish

• Allied Irish becomes fourth bank to be nationalised • Anglo Irish needs at least €7bn more to survive • News follows huge protests against bank bailouts

Ireland Cancels All Remaining 2010 Bond Auctions Due To Market "Turbulence"

Apparently in Ireland, a global stock market that surges up 10% in a month to celebrate the latest obliteration of the purchasing power of the American middle class is considered "turbulence." This is precisely the excuse given by Irish PM Brian Cowen when asked why he has cancelled all bond auctions for the rest of the year. Surely, the market is buying it. Cowen also added that he doesn't need funds at rates of 6.8 to 6.9%. What is hilarious is that he will need the funds much more in 3 months when the rates are double that, now that the country is openly nationalizing each and every bank, and will fund these "acquisitions" with tens of billions it doesn't have.

Capital controls eyed as global currency wars escalate

Stimulus leaking out of the West's stagnant economies is flooding into emerging markets, playing havoc with their currencies and economies.

US and China battle over the trade policy that dare not speak its name

Last week, America's President Obama and China's President Wen Jiabao met for talks, with Sino-US trade relations high on the agenda. At the moment, the dispute is conducted by what Churchill called jaw-jaw. But before too long, if nothing is done, it will degenerate into trade war-war.

Hedge funds hold Ireland to ransom over Anglo Irish Bank bail-out

Hedge funds are holding the Irish government to ransom over its €30bn (£26bn) bail-out of one of the country's biggest lenders, Anglo Irish Bank.