Short interest in financial stocks generally fell in NYSE figures for January 31. Numbers compare to January 15. Shares sold short in Countrywide (NYSE: CFC) fell 52.7 million to 114.2 million. Shares…
Citigroup (NYSE: C) is trading off over 5% today. Wachovia (NYSE: WB) and JP Morgan (NYSE: JPM) are down over 3%. Is it any wonder? S&P today said that its potential downgrade…
Ambac (ABK) and MBIA (MBI) figured they could improve their earnings by putting money into swaps and derivative instruments. For years they were not allowed to. They had to watch big banks…
As the selling of bank shares has fallen off, Wall St. has begun to believe that the worst of the global banking crisis is in the rear view mirror. Not likely. If…
The head of insurance regulation in NY State is busy as a bee trying to bail out Ambac (ABK) and MBIA (MBI). According to the FT "Eric Dinallo, the New York state…
As if some miracle had saved the financial system and averted a recession, shares in bank and brokerage companies moved irrationally higher last week. A case in point, Wells Fargo (WFC) moved…
People still take about how Hannibal crossed the Alps to attack the Romans in 218 BC. Years from now they will probably do the same about the big 600 point turnaround on…
Senior officials of the US Treasury Department are sneaking around Davos trying to get the managers of big sovereign funds from Asia and the Middle East to sign a code of conduct. …
Years ago, in a fit of creativity, some journalist coined the term "rogue trader" to describe some manic soul who made a bunch of bad bets at a big bank and then…
Douglas A. McIntyre According to Reuters, Meg Whitman is stepping down as CEO of Ebay (EBAY). Reuters writes that GM (GM) said it would rather be a strong No.2 in the global market than a…
On tonight’s MAD MONEY on CNBC, Jim Cramer said emphatically that the huge drop today followed by the monster rally in the same day is a classic bottoming pattern, although he thinks…
Worries over the actions of sovereign funds from China, Singapore, and the Middle East have government officials in the US and the UK voicing concerns about whether all of their large financial…
Douglas A. McIntyre Getting a much-needed investment when a company is in deep trouble is nice. But, when it damages the firm’s public reputation it takes away some of the joy of surviving. According to…
Douglas A. McIntyre According to Reuters, S&P futures are down 5.3%. Reuters writes that Yahoo! (YHOO) plans to cut several hundred jobs. Reuters reports that GM (GM) has unveiled a China-made hybrid. Reuters writes that…
Tuesday could bring a 1,000 point drop on the Dow, especially if markets in Asia and Europe repeat their Monday performances tomorrow. China’s big Hang Seng index fell 5.5% to 23,818. The…
