Lynne Kiesling
I am not sufficiently expert in financial markets to opine on the current state of affairs in mortgages, mortgage-backed securities, banks, and so on. Hearing the current state of financial affairs at the two quasi-public financial institutions Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac , as well as the cacophonous din of those inveighing Congress and the Department of Treasury to "do something" because these two organizations are "too large to fail", my first thought is this:
What purpose do Fannie and Freddie really serve? Due to the perverse incentives facing them, are they really forces acting in the market for stability, or are they gasping under the weight of the consequences of their own moral hazard? Instead of propping them up, shouldn’t we be paring down such incursions into market manipulation?
But, as I am not expert in this realm, that is simply my general economist-y perspective. Fortunately, Gerald O’Driscoll is more expert than I, and he has made som...
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With foreclosures on the rise, it seems like a lot of homeowners will be facing a bleak holiday season this year. However, Gov. Charlie Crist is considering to give a Christmas gift for his constituents and put a holiday moratorium, albeit temporarily, to Florida foreclosures .
Last week, a disheartening report showed that Florida’s budget shortfall was at $2.1 this year. The national housing market crisis has also not fared better and has affected whole neighborhoods.
Crist informed ... more
FREDDIE MAC ADVISES NYSE OF INTENT TO MEET CONTINUED LISTING STANDARD
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McLean, VA – Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) today reported in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that the company has notified the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) that it intends to bring the share price of its common stock and the average share price of its common stock for 30 consecutive trading days above $1.00 by no later than May 18, 2009.
Freddie Mac is currently working with... more
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, McCain , and Obama · McCain Wins Debate · Bailout! Obama : 9 Lies in 30 seconds about infanticide · Walid Phares · Fake Outrage · Palin, Obama , Down Syndrome and Abortion · Fred Thompson to Obama : “Zing!” …
More: continued here ... more
WASHINGTON — As soon as I heard about the federal government’s takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, I began wondering what this will mean for homeowners long-term. ... more
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. And for Democrats 700 billion is worth a thousand laughs. That’s Nancy, Barney, Christopher and Harry sharing a good chuckle at having just spent a whole lot of your money.
It’s appropriate that Barney Frank is front and center in this comedy act. After all it was his House Circus, I mean House Committee, that oversaw Fannie and Freddie. This was the same Barney who ridiculed Republicans for suggesting there were any problems... more
Lynne Kiesling
Yesterday’s New York Times had an article about voluntary purchases of carbon offsets and their efficacy. Importantly, this article points out that private options exist for those who want to negate the carbon effects of their behavior.
The couple highlighted in the story used Climate Care . Other organizations that provide carbon offset purchase opportunities are listed in the right margin of this NRDC story on carbon offsetting . You can even give carbon off... more
Michael Giberson
In letters to the chairmen of FERC and the CFTC, Senator Jeff Bingaman asks what actions the agencies have taken in response to recent episodes of natural gas price volatility. Particularly of concern to the Senator were allegations of manipulation of the NYMEX gas futures contract price at the end of August 2006. (The letter reports that failed investment company Amaranth told NYMEX that the company suspected manipulation. I guess when you lose billions of dollars ... more
Lynne Kiesling
Here’s a great new source from the Wall Street Journal: Energy Roundup , an energy economics blog. Excellent! Welcome to the party.
HT to Environmental Economics for the link; now let’s persuade Mr. Gongloff that KP should be on his list of "blogs we’re reading" ...
... more
Michael Giberson
XM and Sirius, two satellite radio networks, announced plans to merge yesterday. Amusingly, in the New York Times the story begins with "The nation’s two satellite radio services, Sirius and XM, announced ...", while in the Washington Post leads with ’’XM and Sirius, the two satellite radio companies ...." In each case the hometown company goes first.
Both stories highlight the apparently high antitrust standard the two companies must overcome to... more
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