investor88

10 Reasons Why We Still Haven't Hit Bottom

Having read the article and the comments bullish and bearish, I vote for the bear camp market not bottomed yet. However, short term it may rise some against the trend but probably not sustainable.

Preview from Europe: Does the Rally Have Legs?

Neutral article, fair enough. Markets may move up or down!

Misunderstanding the Great Recession

Thoughtful article with good comments by readers.

Government Risk Rises: Credit Markets Face Structural Collapse

I am afraid Rakesh is again right to be sitting on shorts on GE, GS. Salute Rakesh for walking the talk, taking shorts on two of the bluest [supposedly] blue chips which even Warren Buffet believes could do no wrong.

I have not done anything but on balance I go with Rakesh [the "David"] rather than the Goliath of investment Warren Buffet.

What Do We Need In 2009? More Failure

Absolutely true, let nature take its course.

Great Depression Not Imminent, But Inevitable

Good article, things are rather scary in the financial markets. Whether we can conclude then that Depression is inevitable may be debatable since the world is lowering interest rates to zero, record fiscal stimulus with the Obama mega stimulus usd1 trillion yet to come.

You have two forces battling it out: govt printing and pumping whilst deflationary/deleverag... forces are in full swing. The verdict is unkown whilst stocks are taking heart with each massive pumping action.

Why Bailouts Are Not the Answer

I am afraid Peter Schiff and Jim Rogers has hit the nail on the head ie America should increase savings and reduce debt not do the opposite with multi trillion dollar bailouts.

Everyone including Obama and nobel prize winner Krugman is saying damn the deficit, damn increases in debt to be issued to foreigners, damn everything just print and spend, increase debt by more lending. I am afraid the minority like Peter and Jim may be wiser- since we can't do anything about this state of affairs we have to go through the wringer.

What Obama Needs to Know about Tim Geithner, the AIG Fiasco and Citigroup

The derivatives mess is a lot of moving parts but it is not pretty. Articles in seekingalpha have thrown more light into this hard to fathom but dangerous mess; Chris's article is one of the more detailed ones which shines more light on the subject but the more light is shone, the scarier the picture.

We have to be on maximum guard going forward and not be fooling around with investing in this and that like in good old bubble times.

AIG's Implosion Caused by Misplaced Bets on Credit Default Swaps

CDS is the culprit here in AIG's predicament. To those who say CDS is "harmless", AIG's case disproves the point.

The question arises as to who else is badly exposed to CDS whose notional value is no small beer at us$55trillion. Until these mysteries are cleared [could take years] financial markets may remain dysfunctional/weak.

The Failure to Admit Failure

Another excellent article by David in my view. Debt is the problem but government is fuelling the fire with more debt. Let it unwind and get a new begining.

How to protect oneself in this storm? Is it buy assets with the motto "cash is trash"? Have to think hard...

Dear Fed: What Do You Have to Hide?

Good article and good comments. It just goes to show that this crisis is far from ending with so much skeletons around.

Market Overview: Set for Fresh Market Lows?

Agree with The Mole that the macro economic picture is ugly out there. This means new lows for Dow is likely. How low? Some say Dow 7k approx is strong support from which there should be a spirited bounce in the context of a overall bear market.

Stability Primer: Keep An Eye On the TED Spread

Good article.

The Global Economy: Is Deflation the Next Macro Story?

Agree article too long as usual but accept the theme of deflation. To understand deflation just look at the Japanese experience. Governments inflate, the markets deflate. In the end market forces prevail and the result may be deflation like Japan in the 1990s or the US in the 1930s. We have to watch developments and navigate carefully.

Putting the Perception and Reality of the Financial Crisis Into Perspective

May I suggest this is no time to be calling the bottom as there is unusually great uncertainty out there. We may miss the bottom but maybe it is safer [?] to re-invest when "the coast is clear". I am taking this stand from a risk averse standpoint.