New York Sales Tax Receipts In Unprecedented Collapse – Joe Weisenthal – It’s a good thing Wall Street bonuses rebounded in 2009 because otherwise the State of New York would be totally screwed. Yesterday the Comptroller released its survey of the state’s sales tax receipts — a proxy for consumer spending that shows a trend opposite to Wall Street. – Money Game at Business Insider
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Harvard’s Rogoff Sees ‘Bunch’ of Sovereign Defaults – By Aki Ito – hattip John Cervarich – … “It’s very, very hard to call the timing, but it will happen,” Rogoff, co-author of a history on financial calamities, said in the speech. “In rich countries — Germany, the United States and maybe Japan — we are going to see slow growth. They will tighten their belts when the problem hits with interest rates. They will deal with it.” …- Bloomberg
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Fed’s hike in discount rate: Will it kill an international Robin Hood tax? – By Tim Worstall – Christian Science Monitor
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Republicans Pushing To Count GSE Debt Toward Statutory Debt Limit May Be Surprised To Find Real Debt-To-GDP Ratio Is 130% – … Yet with GSE debt most recently at $6.3 trillion, or about half of the existing Treasury debt, this would mean total US debt would not only explode by 50% overnight, but the recently increased debt ceiling would be immediately breached and America would find itself in technical default (where it really is right now for all technical purposes). … – Before It’s News Blog
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At F.D.I.C. , Bracing for a Wave of Failures – By ERIC DASH – The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is bracing for a new wave of bank failures … “We think that we have the cash we need,” Sheila C. Bair, the F.D.I.C. chairwoman, said in an interview on Tuesday. She said it was unlikely the F.D.I.C. would need to tap its emergency credit line with the Treasury Department, although she did not rule out such an action. … – NY Times
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wow – LEGISLATION – Wyden-Gregg Bill Would End Tax-Exempts – By Peter Schroeder – New tax reform legislation unveiled Tuesday by Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Judd Gregg, R-N.H., would eliminate tax-exempt bonds beginning in 2011, change the tax exemption for state and local bonds to a tax credit, and prohibit the advance refunding of bonds. – The Bond Buyer
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Restructuring of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac highly likely, says former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson – Greg Burns – After markets settle, those companies should be scaled way back, he tells University of Chicago audience – … But changes can’t occur right away because the financial system remains heavily dependent on the government-backed companies, Paulson said at an appearance to promote his new book, "On the Brink." … – Chicago Tribune Business