The political consensus may be that President Barack Obama’s handling of the economy has been weak. The judgment of money in all its forms has been overwhelmingly positive, and that may be the more lasting appraisal.
One year after U.S stocks hit their post-financial-crisis low on March 9, 2009, the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500 Index has risen [...]

dollar, recovery, stock market, US Hide

WASHINGTON: The US Federal Reserve is expected to hike benchmark interest rates within six months as the economy recovers from one of the most brutal recessions, a poll among economists showed Monday.
When asked what monetary policy posture they would prefer in the next six months, 63 per cent of 203 economists of the National Association [...]

federal reserve, Interest rates, recovery, US Hide

Let’s play a game. I’ll remove a few words from the following piece of debt market research and you guess which country the strategist author is talking about.
“The country urgently needs a credible and enforceable austerity plan — the worry for **** investors is that, despite all the **** posturing, politicians still fail to grasp [...]

debt, global markets, greece, spain, UK Hide

SYDNEY: Australia’s treasurer said on Sunday the government would withdraw its bank funding guarantee due to improved conditions, ending a scheme put in place at the height of the global crisis.
Treasurer Wayne Swan said the Council of Financial Regulators had recommended ending the measure, which he said had been vital in stabilising Australia’s banking system [...]

australia, Interest rates, recovery Hide

WASHINGTON: Democratic lawmakers introduced a bill Thursday that would slap a 50-per-cent tax on “excessive” bonuses paid to employees of bailed-out Wall Street banks and investment firms.
“It is outrageous that these companies are now doling out millions of dollars in bonuses while the rest of America feels the pain of their reckless decisions,” said Senator [...]

bonus, taxes, US Hide

DAVOS, Switzerland: Bankers on Wednesday hit out against over-regulation, with the head of British giant Barclays warning that cutting big banks down would hurt employment and the economy.
While politicians including French President Nicolas Sarkozy said he backed US clampdown plans, others like China’s deputy central bank chief Zhu Min saw no reason for the finance [...]

Bank failures, recovery, unemployment, US Hide

LONDON : Britain on Monday led a push for a global deal on reforming the banking sector that could include widespread agreement for an extraordinary tax on lenders amid concerns that the US may go it alone.
Paul Myners, the minister charged with overseeing Britain’s financial services sector, said international agreement on the issue “would be [...]

Bank failures, taxes, UK Hide

EW YORK: US banking giant Goldman Sachs blasted past Wall Street forecasts on Thursday, posting fourth quarter and full-year 2009 profits well above expectations despite a slip in revenues.
Goldman Sachs, one of the leading Wall Street investment banks, said it had net profit of 4.787 billion dollars in the fourth quarter.
Earnings per share in the [...]

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WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama on Thursday announced a plan to limit the size and scope of US banks and finance firms in a populist bid to roll back corporate excess and limit dangerous risk-taking.
“Never again will the American taxpayer be held hostage by a bank that is too big to fail,” Obama said, at the [...]

Bank failures, US Hide

SYDNEY : French bank Societe Generale on Monday said that it was considering pulling out of Australia and was in discussions with regulators regarding its banking licence.
Australian branch chief executive John Harvey said no decision had yet been made but that a total exit was “clearly on the agenda”, adding that the bank was in [...]

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