In 2010, a year marked by a tepid recovery, there were nonetheless some moments of wondrous surprise and genuine shock. Wall Street titans were taken to task, and the markets roiled under the apparent digital whims of robotic traders. Beneath the slow and difficult restructuring of the U.S. economy, some massive and rapid shifts were Read More
Each week, The Observer looks at commodities, stocks, currencies and economic data points that are making big moves and setting new records. This week’s extreme action takes place everywhere from the German job market to Russia’s dairy farms. For the most hard-core, eye-popping economic action this week, check out the latest installment of … Read More
The financial panic of 2008 made and undid quite a few careers, but a surprising number of executives haven’t traveled far from where they roosted in the runup to the crisis. For a look at people who found new homes while staying in the financial world, check out Artful Dodgers: Bankers Who Landed New Read More
Fresh off a reported settlement of kickback charges and the publication of his financial crisis account Overhaul, former car czar Steven Rattner has taken to the pages of the Financial Times to reassure us that, yes, the U.S. economy has gone to pot, but it’s “not quite the basket case” everyone thinks Read More
Analysts are not reacting favorably to recent news about Bank of America, the country’s largest bank by assets and the reported recipient of a nasty letter from lawyers representing some of the country’s biggest money movers. BofA today suffered downgrades from Chris Kotowski at Oppenheimer and Christopher Mustascio of Stifel Nicolaus. Both took Read More
If political/financial/sports journalist Matt Taibbi were writing the introduction to this slideshow, he would probably do something self-referential, exaggerated and parodic. Something like, “Throughout his aggressive, mischievous, occasionally drug-fueled career, Taibbi has made cunnilingus jokes about a secretary of state, found the lighter side in the death of a Pope and chronicled the historical role Read More
Dear Diary,
I am just simply so dadgum irritated. Just had a day of pure sinking; bathed in red from opening bell to closing bell.
The reason might sound familiar to you: Poorly executed legal paperwork all the way down the mortgage chain: from origination and securitization to the forclosure documents themsleves. It’s creating an Read More
GMAC Mortgage, a subsidiary of mainly government-owned Ally Financial, announced today that it has resumed foreclosure proceedings in 23 states, ending its nationwide moratorium on home repossessions. The Detroit News reports:
“As we review the affected files in the 23 judicial states and take any needed remediation, the foreclosure process continues,” said Gina Proia, Read More
Dear Diary,
Phew! I am feeling so relieved about that whole little foreclosure-paperwork problem. Maybe all that stress I was feeling on Friday was over nothing. The financial stocks led the way today, and I logged a gain of 81 points.
I think I owe at least part of today’s victory to Citigroup, which Read More
After a week of alarming predictions about the impact of troubled foreclosure proceedings on the big banks, several analyst reports have begun to put dollar figures on the cost of an emerging dustup over “robo-signers” and poorly executed evictions.
Analysts at JPMorgan Chase, which is one of the banks to have suspended foreclosures in Read More
