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STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Monday, 23 June 2014
[font size=3]STOCK MARKET WATCH, Monday, 23 June 2014[font color=black][/font]
SMW for 20 June 2014
AT THE CLOSING BELL ON 120 June 2014
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Dow Jones 16,947.08 +25.62 (0.15%)
S&P 500 1,962.87 +3.39 (0.17%)
Nasdaq 4,368.04 +8.71 (0.20%)
[font color=green]10 Year 2.61% -0.05 (-1.88%)
30 Year 3.43% -0.06 (-1.72%) [font color=black]
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[font size=2]Market Conditions During Trading Hours[/font]
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(click on link for latest updates)
http://tools.investing.com/market_quotes.php?
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[font size=2]Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold[center]
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Market Data and News:[/font][/font]
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Economic Calendar
Marketwatch Data
Bloomberg Economic News
Yahoo Finance
Google Finance
Bank Tracker
Credit Union Tracker
Daily Job Cuts
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Economic Blogs:[/font][/font]
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The Big Picture
Financial Sense
Calculated Risk
Naked Capitalism
Credit Writedowns
Brad DeLong
Bonddad
Atrios
goldmansachs666
The Stand-Up Economist
The Automatic Earth
Wall Street on Parade
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Essential Reading:[/font][/font]
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Matt Taibi: Secret and Lies of the Bailout
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Government Issues:[/font][/font]
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LegitGov
Open Government
Earmark Database
USA spending.gov
[/center][font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Videos:[/font][/font]
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Charlie Rose talks with Roubini
Charlie Rose talks with Krugman
William Black: This Economic Disaster
Bill Moyers with Kevin Drum and David Corn
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[font color=red]Partial List of Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 [/font][font color=red]
2/2/12 David Higgs and Salmaan Siddiqui, Credit Suisse, plead guilty to conspiracy involving valuation of MBS
3/6/12 Allen Stanford, former Caribbean billionaire and general schmuck, convicted on 13 of 14 counts in $2.2B Ponzi scheme, faces 20+ years in prison
6/4/12 Matthew Kluger, lawyer, sentenced to 12 years in prison, along with co-conspirator stock trader Garrett Bauer (9 years) and co-conspirator Kenneth Robinson (not yet sentenced) for 17 year insider trading scheme.
6/14/12 Allen Stanford sentenced to 110 years without parole.
6/15/12 Rajat Gupta, former Goldman Sachs director, found guilty of insider trading. Could face a decade in prison when sentenced later this year.
6/22/12 Timothy S. Durham, 49, former CEO of Fair Financial Company, convicted of one count conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, 10 counts of wire fraud, and one count of securities fraud.
6/22/12 James F. Cochran, 56, former chairman of the board of Fair, convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, one count of securities fraud, and six counts of wire fraud.
6/22/12 Rick D. Snow, 48, former CFO of Fair, convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, one count of securities fraud, and three counts of wire fraud.
7/13/12 Russell Wassendorf Sr., CEO of collapsed brokerage firm Peregrine Financial Group Inc. arrested and charged with lying to regulators after admitting to authorities he embezzled "millions of dollars" and forged bank statements for "nearly twenty years."
8/22/12 Doug Whitman, Whitman Capital LLC hedge fund founder, convicted of insider trading following a trial in which he spent more than two days on the stand telling jurors he was innocent
10/26/12 UPDATE: Former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta sentenced to two years in federal prison. He will, of course, appeal. . .
11/20/12 Hedge fund manager Matthew Martoma charged with insider trading at SAC Capital Advisors, and prosecutors are looking at Martoma's boss, Steven Cohen, for possible involvement.
02/14/13 Gilbert Lopez, former chief accounting officer of Stanford Financial Group, and former controller Mark Kuhrt sentenced to 20 yrs in prison for their roles in Allen Sanford's $7.2 billion Ponzi scheme.
03/29/13 Michael Sternberg, portfolio mgr at SAC Capital, arrested in NYC, charged with conspiracy and securities fraud. Pled not guilty and freed on $3m bail.
04/04/13 Matthew Marshall Taylor,fmr Goldman Sachs trader arrested, charged by CFTC w/defrauding his employer on $8BN futures bet "by intentionally concealing the true huge size, as well as the risk and potential profits or losses associated."
04/04/13 Matthew Taylor admits guilt, makes plea bargain. Sentencing set for 26 June; faces up to 20 years in prison but will likely only see 3-4 years. Says, "I am truly sorry."
04/11/13 Ex-KPMG LLP partner Scott London charged by federal prosecutors w/passing inside tips to a friend in exchange for cash, jewelry, and concert tickets; expected to plead guilty in May.
08/01/13 Fabrice Tourré convicted on six counts of security fraud, including "aiding and abetting" his former employer, Goldman Sachs
08/14/13 Javier Martin-Artajo and Julien Grout charged with wire fraud, falsifying records, and conspiracy in connection with JP Morgan's "London Whale" trade.
08/19/13 Phillip A. Falcone, manager of hedge fund Harbinger Capital Partners, agrees to admit to "wrongdoing" in market manipulation. Will banned from securities industry for 5 years and pay $18MM in disgorgement and fines.
09/16/13 Javier Martin-Artajo and Julien Grout officially indicted on charges associated with "London Whale" trade.
02/06/14 Matthew Martoma convicted of insider trading while at hedge fund SAC (Stephen A. Cohen) Capital Advisors. Expected sentence 7-10 years.
03/24/14 Annette Bongiorno, Bernard Madoff's secretary; Daniel Bonventre, director of operations for investments; JoAnn Crupi, an account manager; and Jerome O'Hara and George Perez, both computer programmers convicted of conspiracy to defraud clients, securities fraud, and falsifying the books and records.
05/19/14 Credit Suisse, which has an investment bank branch in NYC, agrees to plead guilty and pay appx. $2.6 billion penalties for helping wealthy Americans hide wealth and avoid taxes.
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[font size=3][font color=red]This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.[/font][/font][/font color=red][font color=black]
31 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
http://www.latimes.com/business/hiltzik/la-fi-mh-social-security-20140618-column.html
It would be incorrect to call the dramatic deterioration in customer service and outreach at the Social Security Administration a dirty little secret. It's no secret to the increasing number of people who get a busy signal when they call the agency's 800-number help line. Or those who have to find a way to traverse the 85 miles of rural roads they may have to navigate to reach their closest Social Security field office, or wait more than two hours to be served once they get there. Or the more than 40% of beneficiaries who have to wait three weeks or more for an appointment with a benefits officer.
It's no secret to the millions of Americans who became accustomed to receiving annual Social Security statements in the mail once a year, and now are wondering why those don't come anymore. And it's no secret to the Social Security Administration itself, which bravely tries to portray all these shortcomings as part of its master plan for the future, a document called, laughably, "Vision 2025." The downside of drastic cutbacks in the agency's staffing levels, number of field offices and general commitment to service is detailed in a report issued by the Senate Committee on Aging in conjunction with a hearing on the subject Wednesday.
The report documented the scale of the cutbacks... The wave of baby-boomer retirements has driven demand for services "as high as they have ever been," as the agency's inspector general observed last year. Nevertheless, the agency has closed offices left and right, reducing the number of full-service field offices to 1,245 from the 1,340 it staffed in the year 2000 and closing 533 of its 734 limited-service "contact stations" since 2010 alone. Meanwhile, hours have been cut at all remaining field offices. It shouldn't be a surprise that the number of people facing two-hour-plus wait times has tripled over the last 18 months.
The agency says that's all right, because more people can access crucial services by phone or online. But busy signals and hold times have increased three- to four-fold. And for many older people, the phone is no substitute for face-to-face contact, especially when the abstruse complexity of a Social Security rule may be the subject.
The Internet? Only people who use computers in their daily work or have assistants to do their navigating for them -- people like government bureaucrats -- could imagine the Internet is a solution for many in the Social Security client base. That community includes millions of people who view the computer as an alien instrument, or whose low fixed incomes rule out computer ownership, or who live in remote rural communities without broadband service...The deterioration of customer service has been allowed to happen because people in power don't have to suffer the consequences. Members of Congress won't have to worry about making ends meet on a Social Security check in retirement, or what to do if a glitch stops that check from coming. The Senate committee's report is a good start at filling the gap -- if it gets read.
It would be incorrect to call the dramatic deterioration in customer service and outreach at the Social Security Administration a dirty little secret. It's no secret to the increasing number of people who get a busy signal when they call the agency's 800-number help line. Or those who have to find a way to traverse the 85 miles of rural roads they may have to navigate to reach their closest Social Security field office, or wait more than two hours to be served once they get there. Or the more than 40% of beneficiaries who have to wait three weeks or more for an appointment with a benefits officer.
It's no secret to the millions of Americans who became accustomed to receiving annual Social Security statements in the mail once a year, and now are wondering why those don't come anymore. And it's no secret to the Social Security Administration itself, which bravely tries to portray all these shortcomings as part of its master plan for the future, a document called, laughably, "Vision 2025." The downside of drastic cutbacks in the agency's staffing levels, number of field offices and general commitment to service is detailed in a report issued by the Senate Committee on Aging in conjunction with a hearing on the subject Wednesday.
The report documented the scale of the cutbacks... The wave of baby-boomer retirements has driven demand for services "as high as they have ever been," as the agency's inspector general observed last year. Nevertheless, the agency has closed offices left and right, reducing the number of full-service field offices to 1,245 from the 1,340 it staffed in the year 2000 and closing 533 of its 734 limited-service "contact stations" since 2010 alone. Meanwhile, hours have been cut at all remaining field offices. It shouldn't be a surprise that the number of people facing two-hour-plus wait times has tripled over the last 18 months.
The agency says that's all right, because more people can access crucial services by phone or online. But busy signals and hold times have increased three- to four-fold. And for many older people, the phone is no substitute for face-to-face contact, especially when the abstruse complexity of a Social Security rule may be the subject.
"Hearing loss is chronic in our aging population," Tammy DeLong, an official of an agency on aging from Presque Isle, Maine, told the panel. "Telephonic services are a challenge especially to those with late-life hearing loss.... Social Security prefers to do business by telephone and this is not an option for those with impaired hearing. They need to be able to walk into an office, look at the person they are speaking with and feel comfortable that communication is really happening."
The Internet? Only people who use computers in their daily work or have assistants to do their navigating for them -- people like government bureaucrats -- could imagine the Internet is a solution for many in the Social Security client base. That community includes millions of people who view the computer as an alien instrument, or whose low fixed incomes rule out computer ownership, or who live in remote rural communities without broadband service...The deterioration of customer service has been allowed to happen because people in power don't have to suffer the consequences. Members of Congress won't have to worry about making ends meet on a Social Security check in retirement, or what to do if a glitch stops that check from coming. The Senate committee's report is a good start at filling the gap -- if it gets read.
http://econintersect.com/a/blogs/blog1.php/video-evidence-shows-media-reports
Consumer revolving credit has been in the news recently as the Fed’s data on consumer credit for April reportedly showed a record surge. However, we have more current data and it clearly shows that these reports are another case of hysterical media over reaction.
The Fed’s weekly H8 statement reports the aggregate balance sheet of the nation’s commercial banking system every Friday as of Wednesday the previous week. Current data is for the June 4 week. It shows credit card debt up by 1.77% year over year.
Whoop dee doo.
That’s in nominal terms. Adjusted for inflation, that’s a big fat zero, zilch, nada. So much for “increased consumer confidence,” increased consumer borrowing, yadda yadda, propelling retail sales. As usual, it’s juvenile nonsense from breathless teenage Valley Girl reporters. The vast majority of American consumers remain moribund. The evidence strongly indicates that they are going backward, not forward, as their real income continues to shrink. Whatever gains there are in retail sales, are being driven by the handful of people at the top of the wealth spectrum, and by shopping tourism, as foreigners pour into the US to vacation and shop in steadily growing numbers.
Last December, a major commercial bank divested a chunk of its credit card receivables to a non bank. Adjusting for that $16.2 billion drop, credit card loans at US commercial banks looks like this.
Credit Card Loans At Commercial Banks
The upper lines of each scale are as adjusted for the drop caused by the divestiture. Note that the annual growth rate maxed out last year just above 2%. It has never been higher than that. That’s about the level of CPI inflation. The current growth rate at 1.77% may actually be below CPI inflation, in other words, negative real growth.
Furthermore, lest we forget, interest accrues on credit card balances often at rates of 10-20%, not the rates on the free money the Fed hands to the banks week in and week out. Under certain circumstances, for example if consumers simply maintain the same level of spending each month but make only minimum payments, their card balance can grow. Some overextended borrowers open new credit cards to make payments on existing balances. Based on accruing interest, the level of real credit card spending is probably declining. We would need to have more data to know the real truth about these numbers. One thing is certain, the headline data for April, and the hysterical reporting by the mainstream media, was bogus and misleading.
In case you’re wondering, commercial banks do nearly 75% of credit card lending. As goes this data, so goes the Fed’s extremely delayed monthly consumer lending data. While there was “growth in the spring” particularly in March and April when it came from an extremely weak level, real growth is nil, and in fact, the growth rate declined in the mid May-early June period.
Consumer revolving credit has been in the news recently as the Fed’s data on consumer credit for April reportedly showed a record surge. However, we have more current data and it clearly shows that these reports are another case of hysterical media over reaction.
The Fed’s weekly H8 statement reports the aggregate balance sheet of the nation’s commercial banking system every Friday as of Wednesday the previous week. Current data is for the June 4 week. It shows credit card debt up by 1.77% year over year.
Whoop dee doo.
That’s in nominal terms. Adjusted for inflation, that’s a big fat zero, zilch, nada. So much for “increased consumer confidence,” increased consumer borrowing, yadda yadda, propelling retail sales. As usual, it’s juvenile nonsense from breathless teenage Valley Girl reporters. The vast majority of American consumers remain moribund. The evidence strongly indicates that they are going backward, not forward, as their real income continues to shrink. Whatever gains there are in retail sales, are being driven by the handful of people at the top of the wealth spectrum, and by shopping tourism, as foreigners pour into the US to vacation and shop in steadily growing numbers.
Last December, a major commercial bank divested a chunk of its credit card receivables to a non bank. Adjusting for that $16.2 billion drop, credit card loans at US commercial banks looks like this.
Credit Card Loans At Commercial Banks
The upper lines of each scale are as adjusted for the drop caused by the divestiture. Note that the annual growth rate maxed out last year just above 2%. It has never been higher than that. That’s about the level of CPI inflation. The current growth rate at 1.77% may actually be below CPI inflation, in other words, negative real growth.
Furthermore, lest we forget, interest accrues on credit card balances often at rates of 10-20%, not the rates on the free money the Fed hands to the banks week in and week out. Under certain circumstances, for example if consumers simply maintain the same level of spending each month but make only minimum payments, their card balance can grow. Some overextended borrowers open new credit cards to make payments on existing balances. Based on accruing interest, the level of real credit card spending is probably declining. We would need to have more data to know the real truth about these numbers. One thing is certain, the headline data for April, and the hysterical reporting by the mainstream media, was bogus and misleading.
In case you’re wondering, commercial banks do nearly 75% of credit card lending. As goes this data, so goes the Fed’s extremely delayed monthly consumer lending data. While there was “growth in the spring” particularly in March and April when it came from an extremely weak level, real growth is nil, and in fact, the growth rate declined in the mid May-early June period.
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2014-06-22/the-case-of-the-missing-white-collar-criminal
The senior executives who played leading roles in the 2008 financial crisis can breathe a sigh of relief: If any committed crimes, the statute of limitations will run out for most of them this year. It's safe to say nobody will go to jail...Prosecutors often argue that while executives may have acted recklessly and made mistakes, that doesn’t mean they committed crimes. If so, then the 2008 crisis would be unique in its immaculate conception. After the savings-and-loan bust of the 1980s, more than 1,000 people were charged, and more than 100 company officers and directors served prison terms. The accounting and other corporate scandals of the early 2000s led to criminal charges against at least 30 top-level executives, most of whom were convicted or pleaded guilty.
Even where the government has demonstrated that crimes occurred in and around the crisis, individual culpability has been notably lacking. From 2009 through May 2014, federal prosecutors filed or threatened criminal charges in 21 separate actions against major financial companies, which admitted to such misdeeds as laundering hundreds of millions of dollars for Mexican and Colombian drug traffickers, systematically lying about their borrowing costs, and devoting hundreds of employees to helping U.S. citizens commit tax fraud. A company typically can’t be charged unless a real person committed a crime. Yet in just eight cases did prosecutors pursue individuals -- none of whom were high-level executives:
The senior executives who played leading roles in the 2008 financial crisis can breathe a sigh of relief: If any committed crimes, the statute of limitations will run out for most of them this year. It's safe to say nobody will go to jail...Prosecutors often argue that while executives may have acted recklessly and made mistakes, that doesn’t mean they committed crimes. If so, then the 2008 crisis would be unique in its immaculate conception. After the savings-and-loan bust of the 1980s, more than 1,000 people were charged, and more than 100 company officers and directors served prison terms. The accounting and other corporate scandals of the early 2000s led to criminal charges against at least 30 top-level executives, most of whom were convicted or pleaded guilty.
Even where the government has demonstrated that crimes occurred in and around the crisis, individual culpability has been notably lacking. From 2009 through May 2014, federal prosecutors filed or threatened criminal charges in 21 separate actions against major financial companies, which admitted to such misdeeds as laundering hundreds of millions of dollars for Mexican and Colombian drug traffickers, systematically lying about their borrowing costs, and devoting hundreds of employees to helping U.S. citizens commit tax fraud. A company typically can’t be charged unless a real person committed a crime. Yet in just eight cases did prosecutors pursue individuals -- none of whom were high-level executives:
Bridges Crumble as Muni Rates at Least Since ’60s Ignored
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-23/bridges-crumble-as-muni-rates-at-least-since-60s-ignored.html
***SNIP
he legacy of the 18-month recession that ended in June 2009 still looms large for America’s states and cities. While revenue has revived, governments are under pressure to increase funding for education and other services after years of cuts. They’re balancing those needs against required payments toward entitlements such as pensions, having set aside $1.4 trillion less than they’ve promised to retirees, according to Fed data.
Pennsylvania Hangover
“There’s a psychological hangover,” said Uri Monson, chief financial officer of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, outside Philadelphia. “We’re not going to go out and borrow unless we absolutely have to.”
Issuance this year has tumbled to $123 billion nationwide through June 13, down 20 percent from the 2013 pace, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It’s also 30 percent below levels seen in 2010, the final year of the federally subsidized Build America Bonds program, which was designed to spur infrastructure investment.
Since 2010, states and localities have lowered their bond load by $111 billion, the most since the Fed began keeping records in 1945. They’ve paid down the liabilities even as yields on 20-year general obligations have averaged 4.25 percent in the five years since the recession, the lowest since 1969, according to Bond Buyer data.