Ockham Research Staff @ November 13, 2008 # No Comment Yet
American Express is the latest company to have become a bank holding company in order to receive special “bail out” money from the Fed. While this does make the odds of failure much less, does this make the company a suitable investment?
More on: American Express: Worth the Risk?
Ockham Research Staff @ June 25, 2008 # No Comment Yet
The FOMC announced today that they will hold rates where they are for the time being. There is a delicate balance between weak growth and inflationary pressures, and at this point Bernanke and Co. are handling it well.
More on: The Fed’s Balancing Act
Ockham Research Staff @ April 30, 2008 # No Comment Yet
Chairman Bernanke and the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) have a tough set of challenges to guide the U.S. economy through. First, today the Commerce Department reported that the U.S. economy grew by .6% in the first quarter of the year, which matched the same rate of tepid growth displayed in the last quarter of […]
More on: Macroeconomic Number’s Warning Goes Unheeded
admin @ April 4, 2008 # One Comment
Bear Stearns’ ( BSC) acquisition by JP Morgan ( JPM) was the focus of lengthy testimony before the Congressional Banking Committee on Thursday. Heavy hitters from JP Morgan, Bear Stearns, and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York were in attendance.
Late in the second week of March 2008, it was clear […]
More on: Details of Bear Stearns Backroom Deal Exposed
admin @ March 24, 2008 # No Comment Yet
Last Monday, the news swirling around the stock market was JP Morgan’s ( JPM) $2 per share bid to buy Bear Stearns ( BSC). Bear – at the time the fifth largest U.S. Investment Bank — astoundingly was being sold for about $240 million, far less than the value of its Manhattan […]
More on: JP Morgan Increases Fed-Backed Bid for Bear
admin @ March 11, 2008 # No Comment Yet
Today, the stock market roared ahead as it collectively cheered Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s latest attempt to loosen the squeeze of the credit crunch. Bernanke had hinted at an expanded loan facility to banks to the tune of $100 billion, but this morning the Fed announced that it will lend […]
More on: Fed Steps Up to Provide Liquidity
admin @ January 30, 2008 # No Comment Yet
Two big stories surfaced on the macroeconomic front today. First, the Commerce Department released the fourth quarter GDP results. On an annualized basis the economy grew at .6% which was a disappointment, as the consensus on Wall Street called for 1.2% growth. Clearly, the credit crisis played a large role in slowing […]
More on: Helicopter Ben to the Rescue
admin @ January 17, 2008 # No Comment Yet
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke spoke today before the House in support of implementation of a temporary fiscal stimulus plan. He covered himself with the caveat that it must be implemented quickly yet it must be properly constructed to gain his full support. His prepared testimony before the House Budget Committee this morning […]
More on: Bernanke Bail Out?
admin @ December 11, 2007 # No Comment Yet
Today the Fed Open Market Committee will meet and discuss the appropriate rate cut. For weeks, most commentary has anticipated a 50 basis point cut. However, more and more analysts are now looking for a quarter point drop after the market rallied last week. We will be curious […]
More on: The Fed is Ready to Cut Yet Again