Bonds: THE ONE CHART THAT SCARES RICHARD RUSSELL – Russell " … I view the pattern on this chart as a huge, down-slanting head-and-shoulder top with the bond sitting right on support. The bond appears weak, and if support is violated, interest rateswill be heading higher. And that’s the last thing the Fed wants at this time.” … " – The Pragmatic Capitalist
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we are ok! – JP MORGAN: THE FISCAL THREAT IS OVERBLOWN – … JP Morgan is shifting back to a fully bullish posture here. Three weeks ago they shifted to a more cautious position (see here), but have removed the hedges as equity fund flows begin to support the market and fears of fiscal tightening, regulation, and sovereign debt appear overblown. Based on this change in outlook they are moving back into the recovery trade. They are now net long equities, credit, commodities with a long dollar hedge and a short bond position: … – The Pragmatic Capitalist
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(Louise) Yamada: Ready for a bond bear market? – Posted by Edward Harrison – Uber-technician Louise Yamada is now warning that the secular bear market in equities is likely to be joined by one in bonds as well. In the video below, she talks with Bloomberg’s Pimm Fox about her view that bond yields are going to rise over time. – Credit Writedowns
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Japan Declares They’ll Kill Deflation THIS YEAR With The Loosest Monetary Policy You’ve Ever Seen – Vincent Fernando – Japan’s finance minister has arbitrarily declared that he wants Japan to defeat deflation by the end of 2010.
This is opposition to what the Bank of Japan had intended, given that they were planning on beating inflation over the course of a few years. – Money Game at Business Insider
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About the Fed and $187.53 Billion of Chinese-Owned Toxic Assets – Andrew Butter – Seeking Alpha
Two pieces of disturbing news on the wires this week:
1: The Chinese are NOT buying U.S. debt anymore.
2: The Chinese ARE buying U.S. debt (except they are buying it through intermediaries).
And then there is always the fear that China might dump $700 billion or so of U.S. Treasuries and so yields will go through the roof
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FDIC to grease mortgage market with $1.8 bln deal- By Al Yoon – … The move has been anticipated by investors and dealers for months as the FDIC piles up loans from banks failing at an alarming rate. The plan calls up memories of the savings and loan crisis of the early 1990s when the federal government created the Resolution Trust Corp to dispose of assets. It could also awaken a market that has been largely frozen for two years, except for government-sponsored programs of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac … – Reuters
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It’s Time for Swaps to Lose Their Swagger – By GRETCHEN MORGENSON – “USING these instruments in a way that intentionally destabilizes a company or a country is — is counterproductive, and I’m sure the S.E.C. will be looking into that.” That’s what Ben S. Bernanke, chairman of the Federal Reserve, said last week when lawmakers asked him about credit default swaps during his Congressional testimony. Concerns are growing about such swaps … – NY Times