India Fund, Inc. (IFN)

All Comments on IFN

  • commenter
    metoobail
    Sep 24 11:38 AM
    Wednesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    If the slumping house market forms the basis of the current problem - $700 billion could be used to buy the current house inventory of about 4 million houses at about $200,000 per for a total of $700 to$800 billion - then burn the houses. banks are now solvent and can loan, people will need houses. Will that solve the problem?????? Reply
  • commenter
    Scared Stiff
    Sep 24 11:16 AM
    Wednesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    Kenny, of course it's far fetched. But I think it's hard to deny the parallels between the way the administration is handling this, and, say, the attack on Iraq. At the very least the $700 billion price tag is just the very beginning.

    I do think, however, that putting a ton of new power and cash in the hands of the people who, literally within hours of publicly saying "Everything is just fine!" were saying "The end is nigh!" would be an unforgivably stupid mistake. Clearly, anything Paulson says from here on must be taken with a grain of salt.     Reply
  • commenter
    sieraromero
    Sep 24 11:14 AM
    Wednesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    Why and What is the financial crises that is going to put us over the brink, if the government doesn't bail out the current corrupt and greed filled system? If we need all of these bailout measures such as no shorting and the hundreds of billions of borrowed taxpayer money and the hundreds of billions more they say they need immediatly or the system will collapse. WHY is the market indeces trading near their highs? Why won't Bernicke and Paulson answer the questions in the hearings in a straghtforward and meaningfull way, so that the average taxpayer and congressmen can understand! The problem is that nobody knows how bad this can get and that only the problem must appear to be solved in the short run and forget about what this is going to entail in the long run and that there isn't time to consider or understand the consequences of doing due dilligence on this matter! Reply
  • commenter
    Internet2k4
    Sep 24 09:41 AM
    Wednesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    Personally I think trying to bail out at the level of these funny instruments is a big mistake. The real problem is the real estate market from which any valuation of the exotic asset packages has to be derived by the Suspender Boys who invented them. The only way to fix this is to inject liquidity into the underlying RE market and let the chips fall from derivative investments on that basis. I think the evil ways of the GSE management has clouded the fact that they're probably the most effective tool for moving government money into the problem assets and helping your friend Chucky save the house. I'd rather Up-Chuck than go blind. Reply
  • commenter
    z06kenny
    Sep 24 09:26 AM
    Wednesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    Scared Stiff? I am thinking you are "Scared Silly". Reply
  • commenter
    Shiv
    Sep 24 08:32 AM
    My Website
    Wednesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    Dave - this is Brilliant; my all time favorite post on any blog. The pictures tell an interesting tale. Loved the walk through Sam Stovall's economic cycle. What is going on in the financial services sector is history in the making. If United States is unable to quickly start the healing process, there is no secular force in the world which can withstand this crisis. I can sing on about the China secular story, or the Indian one, or even Russia and Brazil for that matter; but to survive and prosper, the United States financial crisis must first start the healing process.

    Can you do a piece about which sectors out-performed after the LTCM collapse, the Asia Contagion & the oil shock? I believe there are interesting parallels to learn from in all these historic events. Of course this situation is absolutely unique and its outcome will depend on governmental action and how the public reacts; but the prior events do provide an interesting indication of how people might respond. Could be a flight to staples, health-care and utilities. I still think there are compelling catalysts for global growth (Materials, Industrials & Energy), but this overhang is huge, because to grow one must first have access to capital - which seems to have evaporated from the system.     Reply
  • commenter
    cshrclrd
    Sep 24 07:52 AM
    Wednesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    Sorry, If it was NOT a birdnest on the ground (low hanging fruit).


    On Sep 24 07:51 AM cshrclrd wrote:

    > If it was a birdnest on the ground, then Warren Buffett would not
    > be buying Goldman Sachs, would he.     Reply
  • commenter
    cshrclrd
    Sep 24 07:51 AM
    Wednesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    If it was a birdnest on the ground, then Warren Buffett would not be buying Goldman Sachs, would he. Reply
  • commenter
    Unfaire
    Sep 24 07:42 AM
    Wednesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    The problem I have with the current bailout plan is as follows.
    The financial institutions have knowingly (or, at least, they closed their eyes while they are doing so) lent money to people who could not afford the mortgage (who may have knowingly taken advantage of the situation or may have been lured into) to buy houses. Now, these people are bankrupt because they cannot pay their mortgages. And, these institutions are also bankrupt because of the non-performing debt. Now, here comes this bailout plan that takes the taxes paid by people, including those who owe money to these institutions, and give them to these institutions. With the new personal bankruptcy laws, these people would still have to pay up their mortgages to enrich these institutions or the bureaucracies (they never refund the tax money to the people; they only take a little less).
    This simply doesn’t make sense.
    There are two liquidity crises: One is the financial instruments that had bundled these mortgages in them had become much less valuable than their intrinsic worth and that causes these institutions to cease operation. Another is the people who are or about to be bankrupt whose rank are increasing because of the liquidity crisis of the former. They feed onto each other and thus our current financial death spiral.
    The current bailout plan may temporarily halt the former but not the latter. Eventually, the latter will come around the make the situation even worse.
    The reality is that the economy of the country as a whole would not be stabilized until the financial situation of most of these people have recovered to a level somewhat equivalent to that before they are falsely lured into buying something they could not afford. This takes a long time.
    The other reality is that $700 billion is a lot of capital to get the economy going and why should we waste them on some worthless financial papers. The sensible thing to do may be is to do nothing and let all those institutions holding these worthless financial papers to fend for themselves, even bankruptcies. Let the bankruptcy courts and the new owners of these “toxic” instruments to work out what to do with them. In the meantime, inject this $700 billion into the economy to get it going again. Just think $700 billion can pay one year’s salary to 14 million people at $50,000 each. “Helicopter” Ben should be spraying this money on the healthy companies not to the deadbeats.
    Reply
  • commenter
    Scared Stiff
    Sep 24 07:21 AM
    Wednesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    This whole thing has Bush Administration con job written all over it-- the sense of panic, the secrecy, the political pressure... all with most sensible people wondering, "what am I missing?" What are the chances this is nothing more than W waving his middle finger at the public, picking up a few extra trillion dollars for his cronies on the way out the door? Reply
  • commenter
    svosavvy
    Sep 23 09:16 PM
    Tuesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    automatic weapons, wow, you really are a bear. At least if it gets that bad the last thing you'll have to worry about is money. We'll be back to trading shiny metal and hooch. Reply
  • commenter
    johnthebear
    Sep 23 01:48 PM
    Tuesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    Jim Bunning got it right:

    Paulson, you were CEO of Goldman Sachs from 1999 to 2006 yet you did not know the problems that were created by the CDO and securitization of dumb subprime mortgages and the lack of oversight!

    His comany was a leader in changing the law in 1999 during Clinton's term that allowed all this crap to happen! How can he claim such ignorance? Are we dumb enough to buy that line?

    The lowest quality mortgages were still being written all through Paulson's term.

    They have not talked at all about commercial mortgages. They will be marked to market, a cut of 25% or more in lost value. Talk about a huge loss. General Growth Properties REIT fell 25% yesterday because of inability to re-finance it's debt. I hear that McDonald's was denied new financing by Bank of America because of a shortage of capital!

    There are many properties that are mortgaged for $1 billion or more! Just think,

    700 properties at $1billion each would consume all the money Paulson is seeking!

    And now he would include credit cards and student loans!

    What in the world does he mean by transparency and oversight? Wait till he spends all $700 Billion taking care of his wall street friends before he informs congress of his strategy?

    Oversight should allow review and reports on a weekly basis to Congress, and with the opportunity for congress to disagree with his assessment of what to do. So far, I see no way for Congress to ever take a look at how he is doing!

    Looks like we are heading to caves, automatic weapons and canned food for survival! God help us!     Reply
  • commenter
    OldLimey
    Sep 23 01:45 PM
    Tuesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    Seeking Advice: "Yes, how do individual investors decide on an appropriate course of action in a market that is mostly moved now by unpredictable government intervention instead of economic and market fundamentals?"

    Although Mr. Fry's post is as good today as it always is, what he is charting is not a properly functioning market but a piece of performance art. Unless you're very risk-tolerant, highly adept at getting in and out quickly or just plain lucky, there's a lot to be said for cash.     Reply
  • commenter
    davemcc3300
    Sep 23 01:13 PM
    Tuesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    I've never had a Vanguard order fail to execute. What do you suppose happened? Reply
  • commenter
    svosavvy
    Sep 23 12:35 PM
    Tuesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets [view article]
    Finally, someone else who realizes the true underpinnings of yesterdays energy move and not just coming up with some generic weak dollar crap. People who have to be "in" something just got flushed "out" of their shorts and they need somewhere else to hide. Sold my coal to them yesterday, thank you professional money. So when you pay more for gas thank your legislators who waited forever until the shorts made their money anyway to enact this rule. Thank you author for stepping out on a limb to call it. Reply
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