World economy talk

[safeorigin]

haha

pay bills or buy something?

you know you live in CONSUMER NATION when you ask yourself that question

bute di CREDIT EPICENTER

[safeorigin]

and we're back in business

[uls]

^^

dude, label mo naman yung chart

gold spot

--

a rumor that's been going around this week -- China to buy 191 tons of IMF gold

[safeorigin]

^

I guess I got excited anticipating it

[safeorigin]

from Iranian oil, we now change our channel to guess who that (un)lucky country is?

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/uk-...nds-2010-02-26



p.s. although this may be old news, I bet somebody took this idea seriously
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFNQE_TzQNI"]YouTube- Apple I-Pad[/ame]
just couldn't help it

[Monseratto]

The biggest beneficiary of the AIG bailout because its former boss was Hank Paulson is again being investigated for its involvement in another financial mess...

US Fed examines Goldman deals in Greece

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The US Federal Reserve is reviewing the role of Goldman Sachs and other firms to helped Greece hide its debt problems, chairman Ben Bernanke said Thursday.

Bernanke said the central bank was examining Wall Street firms' transactions with Greek authorities that could have exacerbated Greece's fiscal woes.

"We are looking into a number of questions related to Goldman Sachs and other companies and their derivatives arrangements with Greece," said Bernanke, in response to a lawmaker's question during testimony to Congress.

Greece's troubled finances are already under close scrutiny by European Union regulators amid fears that its problems could spread to other members of the 16-nation eurozone.

Greece's total debt, estimated at 300 billion euros (404.6 billion dollars), or 113 percent of gross domestic product, is nearly double the 60 percent eurozone limit, while its public deficit at 12.7 percent of GDP is more than four times the maximum level under eurozone rules.

The Greek authorities also have come under fire over a currency swap arranged with Goldman Sachs that allegedly enabled Athens to mask debt almost a decade ago as the country joined the eurozone.

Bernanke, wrapping up two-day report on monetary policy, was asked by Senator Christopher Dodd whether Bernanke believed there should be limits on the use of credit default swaps (CDS) to prevent the intentional creation of runs against governments.

Dodd, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, noted that banks and hedge funds are reportedly using credit default swaps -- a sophisticated instrument that provides insurance against defaults -- "to bet that Greece will default on its debt."

Dodd said those bets were making it more difficult for the crisis-hit Greek government to borrow critically needed money.

"Since there is no requirement that purchasers of credit default swaps actually own any of the underlying debt, we have a situation in which major financial institutions are amplifying a public crisis for what would appear to be for private gain," he said.

The SEC, contacted by AFP, declined to say whether there was an investigation of Goldman Sachs underway.

SEC spokesman John Nester said: "We have been examining potential abuses and destabilizing effects related to the use of credit default swaps and other opaque financial products and practices."

Douglas McIntyre at 24/7WallSt.com said Goldman Sachs helped Greece defer but not eliminate its day of reckoning.

"Goldman?s argument will be, as it usually is, that is was the only company smart enough to help Greece with its debt problems but it is not at fault in the matter of the deception," he said. "It supplied the gun, but did not pull the trigger."

[uls]

as long as there's money to be made, Goldman is present

[safeorigin]

and as long as they know how to play the rules, they will survive

[uls]

GS doesnt just survive

GS thrives

in any environment

[uls]

AIG to sell AIA to UK's Prudential plc

UPDATE 2-AIG agrees to $35.5 bln unit sale to Pru -sources
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2821240120100301

NEW YORK, Feb 28 (Reuters) - American International Group Inc (AIG.N) agreed to a $35.5 billion sale of its Asian life insurance unit to Britain's Prudential Plc (PRU.L), in a deal that would allow the insurer to repay the U.S. government a substantial amount of its taxpayer bailout debt, sources familiar with the matter said on Sunday.

The board of AIG approved the sale of American International Assurance (AIA) to Prudential, Britain's largest insurer, and the two sides are working on announcing a deal, the sources said.

An announcement could come as soon as Monday, said the sources, who declined to be named because the deal is not yet public.

[safeorigin]

hmmm... so the rumors were correct

[uls]

tagal na gusto ibenta ng AIG ang Asian life insurance business nila

gotta pay the US govt

[safeorigin]

sa bagay. just perpetuating the sell to pay way of life in consumer nation

[safeorigin]

TOKYO (MarketWatch) -- The dollar rebounded against the yen and the euro in Asia on Monday as investors bought back the U.S. unit following its falls late last week, but the recovery could be short-lived.
The dollar's direction remains dependent on how the market views the chances for a near-term policy rate hike by the Federal Reserve.
Many market participants will likely sell the greenback if U.S. data due out this week reinforce the view that the world's biggest economy is still fragile, and the central bank will keep its ultra-low rate policy in place for an extended period.
For the moment, the market is focused on upcoming U.S. economic indicators for February. These include the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing business index, due later in the day, and the employment report, due Friday

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/wor...ted-2010-03-01

USD index

[uls]

nothing significant about USD value today

the big news today is copper (market reaction to the Chile quake --
Chile is world's largest copper producer)

[safeorigin]

I heard there was even some panic for some tsunami

[uls]

kaya tumaas ang copper

coz a lot of the world's copper comes from Chile

the earthquake, aftershocks, tsunami will affect copper production and transport

[br733]

good thing oil production is not located in earthquake prone areas.....

[safeorigin]

well, not really. the arab peninsula is a floating rock by itself in terms of tectonic plates theory

chile on the otherhand is situated near the andes where the land wrinkles as it is pushed and also makes the mountain range go higher

[uls]

good thing oil production is not located in earthquake prone areas.....

more often, things that disrupt oil production are artificial

geopolitics, war, sabotage

pag natural, usually weather (like hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico)

earthquake-caused bihira