credit market

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Fed Pumps Money Into Reeling Banks
Fed Pumps Money Into Reeling Banks
Mar 7, 2008 12:02 PM CST

Fed Pumps Money Into Reeling Banks

It will loan billions more this month to ease credit crisis

(Newser) - The Federal Reserve will lend more money to banks in March in a bid to ease the worsening credit crisis, Bloomberg reports. By dramatically increasing the funds available in two upcoming auctions—from $30 billion to $50 billion—the Fed hopes to convince banks to loosen up and lend more.

Fannie Mae Loses Billions in Q4
Fannie Mae Loses Billions in Q4
Feb 27, 2008 10:48 AM CST

Fannie Mae Loses Billions in Q4

Government-backed lender off $3.56B, but feds lifts restraints on portfolio

(Newser) - Fannie Mae reported huge fourth-quarter losses today, painting an ugly picture both of the economy and the mortgage giant's own future. The company lost $3.56 billion—triple what analysts expected, Bloomberg reports. Derivatives were the big culprit, accounting for $3.33 billion in losses, but the company also reported...

Bernanke Signals New Rate Cuts
Bernanke Signals New Rate Cuts
Feb 27, 2008 9:15 AM CST

Bernanke Signals New Rate Cuts

Says central bank 'will act as needed' to further minimize economic risks

(Newser) - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke today said that the board stands ready to cut interest rates again to give the economy "adequate insurance against downside risks," reports the Wall Street Journal. The move, which follows 2.25% in cuts to the key rate since September, is widely expected...

Economists Lean Closer to the R-Word

Almost half on US panel predict recession, up from 25% last year

(Newser) - An panel of US economists leaned closer to predicting recession today after grappling with a slew of scary data, the AP reports. More than half of analysts at the National Association for Business Economics maintained that a downturn is still unlikely, but 45% expected recession in 2008; only a quarter...

Credit Crunch Extends to Student Loans

Investors balk on bonds key to students, museums, cities

(Newser) - A huge new group of borrowers—from students to museums to local governments—are about to find their credit drying up, as the subprime meltdown that has already cost banks $100 billion continues to spread, reports the Wall Street Journal.  In the last few days, investors have backed away...

Buffett Offers to Save Municipal Lenders

Stocks rally, but companies may rebuff opportunistic Hathaway

(Newser) - Warren Buffett rode to the rescue today, though the color of his horse is in question. The Sage of Omaha offered to reinsure $800 billion worth of municipal bonds, resolving “in one stroke of a pen” the jitters plaguing the municipal debt market. But his plan is also a...

Mortgage Crisis Rivals S&L, Tech Busts

Complex implosion could take far longer to untangle, experts say

(Newser) - How does the current mortgage debacle measure up to the savings-and-loan meltdown of the 1980s and the tech crash of 2000? Losses look manageable, the Wall Street Journal reports in a detailed analysis of how this crisis differs from other crashes, and how likely it is to spin the economy...

Municipalities Feel Credit Market Pain

Unaffordable bonds mean projects stall— or taxes rise

(Newser) - Cities, towns, and schools are learning what would-be homeowners already know: the credit market stinks. Municipalities have grown addicted to financing projects with extremely low-interest bonds, but such cheap credit is hard to come by as bond insurers swing in the subprime wind, the Washington Post reports. Local governments either...

Goldman Sits High and Dry in Credit Crunch

Wall Street envies lone investment firm that got it right

(Newser) - When Goldman Sachs reported $2.85 billion in third-quarter profits, it sounded like an “I told you so.” As most financials reported credit-crunch pratfalls, Goldman alone had read the signs and gone the right way on mortgages. “You’d have to give them an A-plus,” said...

Existing-Home Sales Plummet Past Predictions

(Newser) - The housing market absorbed more bad news today. Existing-home sales dropped 8% in September, hitting their lowest level since at least 1999, as tighter credit standards kept buyers away. The 5.04 million annual rate was far below projections, bolstering predictions of another rate cut by the Fed next week....

Housing Still a Drag: Fed Chief
Housing Still a Drag: Fed Chief
Oct 16, 2007 5:38 AM CDT

Housing Still a Drag: Fed Chief

Setbacks likely, says Bernanke, who offers no hints on interest rate status

(Newser) - The real estate slump will continue to be a "significant drag" on US economic growth well into next year, said Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke in his first speech on the economy since August. Recovery from the credit crisis will take time, and setbacks are likely, Bernanke told the...

Economy Slows, Stocks Surge: What Gives?

'Teflon investors' are relying on the good news

(Newser) - Stocks are surging while classic indicators are signaling slump — so what gives? The answer, reports the Washington Post, lies in a bright jobs report and spiking Standard & Poor's 500-stock index. Backers are dissing the bad news as fast as they can finance, says the Post: "Call them...

Swiss Bank Giant Posts Huge Losses Amid Credit Crisis

Biggest loser so far in subprime mess

(Newser) - Switzerland's largest bank, UBS, has become the biggest casualty of the worldwide turmoil in the financial markets, reports the Wall Street Journal. The bank is expected to announced today that it has written off  $3.4 billion in fixed income assets. UBS is projecting third quarter losses of at least...

$25B Sallie Mae Buyout on the Rocks
$25B Sallie Mae Buyout
on the Rocks
Sep 27, 2007 9:52 AM CDT

$25B Sallie Mae Buyout on the Rocks

Credit market implosion leaves buyer looking for the door

(Newser) - Sallie Mae doesn’t look like such a bargain at $25 billion anymore, and J.C. Flowers & Co. is trying to renegotiate—or escape—its deal to acquire the student lender, citing the credit market implosion and legislation to reform student loan practices. It’s the kind of deal...

British Bank Rebounds as Panic Wears Off

Financial stocks see gains on Northern Rock guarantees

(Newser) - As the lines of people waiting to make withdrawals from Northern Rock bank dwindled today, the British lender’s stock rose, bringing with it other hard-hit British financials. Northern Rock's huge losses in the mortgage market sparked a sell-off, drawing emergency funds from the Bank of England. But the government's...

Jobless Claims Rise, but Economists See Silver Lining

Figures lower than expected as labor market deals with volatility

(Newser) - First-time applications for jobless claims rose last week, but economists are encouraged that the figures were less than expected, Bloomberg reports today. Claims grew by 4,000 to 319,000—still well short of the 325,000 applications expected. The numbers suggest that the labor market isn’t collapsing, despite...

Banks Pouring Money Into Russian Loans

Forget default: country now looks like haven from credit turmoil

(Newser) - Banks around the world are clamoring to loan money to Russia, just nine years after the country paralyzed the economic world by defaulting on $40 billion in debt. These days, Russia looks like a haven from the US mortgage meltdown. Russian corporations borrowed $29 billion over the last three months,...

Trade Gap Dips to Lowest Level in 3 Years

Weak dollar, stronger world economies fuel rise in US exports

(Newser) - The US trade gap—the difference in total value between imports and exports—dropped to a 3-year low in July as exports jumped on a weak dollar and growing overseas demand. The figure fell 0.3% to $59.2 billion, roughly on par with the estimate economists surveyed by Bloomberg...

KKR Prepares for Test of Credit Markets

Fate of pending deals may foretell future of private equity

(Newser) - Kolhberg Kravis Roberts is pushing forward with some of the biggest deals in US history, but the iconic buyout firm finds itself under unprecedented scrutiny. Analysts say the huge deals KKR has pending will be a test of the struggling credit markets, the Washington Post reports: If they don't go...

Tightening Credit Markets Squeeze Banks

$140B in commercial paper is coming due, and forecast is fuzzy

(Newser) - Almost $140 billion in commercial paper has matured and is up for renewal by next week, and banks need to attract buyers to pay it off. The yield on the short-term loans, which are entangled in the subprime mortgage crisis, is skyrocketing. "This could be a pivotal seven to...

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