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Wed, 19 Nov 2008 22:48:47 GMT

S&P 500 Falls to Lowest Since 2003

Economic worries and concern about an automaker bailout hammered equity markets on Wednesday, sending the S&P 500 to its lowest since 2003 . The bulk of the selloff came after the Federal Reserve released pessimistic growth forecasts and expressed...(read more)

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 18:23:20 GMT

Treasury's Kashkari Says ABS Market Looks Promising for TARP

The asset-backed securities market appears to be promising for the TARP program, said TARP co-ordinator Neel Kashkari in a speech on Wednesday. Targeting the ABS market will help bring down interest rates on automobile purchases, student loans and credit...(read more)

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:33:54 GMT

Housing Starts and Permits at All-Time Lows

U.S. housing starts and building permits each fell to record lows in October, which economists say is bad news in the short term. However, the quicker housing activity declines, the quicker excess inventory will be cleared off the market and the housing...(read more)

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:28:29 GMT

The Last of the Treasury Candidates

It would be a real voyage back to the future if President-elect Obama were to pick the next candidate as his new Secretary of the Treasury. However, Paul Volcker is a fearless man who took on another looming financial crisis some 25 years ago and beat...(read more)

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:44:17 GMT

MBA Mortgage Applications Move Lower in Week Ending November 14

Weekly mortgage applications in the United States decreased in the week ending Nov. 14, according to data released from the Mortgage Bankers' Association (MBA) on Thursday, which reported an 6.2% week-over-week fall in applications. In the previous...(read more)

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:24:48 GMT

Housing Starts Fall 4.5% in October, Permits Down 12%

Housing starts fell less than expected in October to 791k, representing a month-over-month decrease of 6.3%, according to data released from the U.S. Department of Commerce on Wednesday morning. The drop pushes the number of starts to its lowest level...(read more)

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 21:38:31 GMT

Preview: U.S. Housing Starts Set to Fall in October

The U.S. housing market is expected to give further proof of a long, slow-motion decline with the release of the housing starts & permits report from the Department of Commerce on Wednesday. The starts index could potentially fall to levels not seen...(read more)

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 21:15:50 GMT

BMO Rogue Trader Charged After Losing at Least C$327 Million

A commodities trader is alleged to have manipulated his options book to hide losses, which cost the Bank of Montreal at least C$327 million . David Lee, 36, a former natural-gas trader at the bank, pleaded guilty last week to criminal charges and is now...(read more)

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 19:22:09 GMT

NAHB Builder Confidence Plummets Beyond Record Low in November

A report from Wells Fargo and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reports that confidence amongst homebuilders has plummeted from one all-time low to another in November. The NAHB housing market index tumbled five points to a reading of 9...(read more)

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:57:31 GMT

Paulson Says TARP Wasn't Designed to Help Homeowners and Automakers

The $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) was designed to stabilize the financial system and improve lending liquidity, and "is not a panacea for all our economic difficulties" said U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson on Tuesday...(read more)

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:56:59 GMT

Bernanke Outlines Three Steps to Help Commercial Paper Markets

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the Fed has developed three programs to address problems in commercial paper markets , which suffered losses upwards of $500 billion in mid-September when investors withdrew their funds. First, the Fed has allowed...(read more)

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:55:05 GMT

Home Prices, Existing Sales Continued to Decline in Q3, Says NAR

Home prices continued to fall in a majority of U.S. metropolitan areas in the third quarter, while existing home sales were also down in 32 states, the National Association of Realtors reported Tuesday. In the third quarter, median single-family home...(read more)

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:09:10 GMT

Fed Chairman Bernanke Promotes TARP Injection

Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said there are some signs that credit markets are improving, but that conditions are "still far from normal" and it is "critical" to market confidence that TARP funds are injected into financial...(read more)

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 02:04:58 GMT

The Day Ahead: US PPI; Bernanke, Bair & Paulson to Testify on TARP

On Tuesday, the producer price index for October and the National Association of Home Builders' (NAHB) Housing Market Index for November will be released in the U.S. Market participants will also be interested in hearing testimony from Fed Chairman...(read more)

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 02:01:30 GMT

Paulson Says Government Not "Experimenting" With the TARP

U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said tensions in financial markets will probably continue for many months, and now that his government has addressed the potential failures of massive corporations, the next step will be to deliver a boost to the...(read more)