Morning Report 11/21/12

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Brent Nyitray

Vital Statistics:

	Last	Change	Percent
S&P Futures	1387.4	1.1	0.08%
Eurostoxx Index	2513.7	4.1	0.16%
Oil (WTI)	87.83	1.1	1.24%
LIBOR	0.312	0.001	0.32%
US Dollar Index (DXY)	81.03	0.070	0.09%
10 Year Govt Bond Yield	1.67%	0.00%
RPX Composite Real Estate Index	191	-0.4

Markets are flattish this morning after a earning miss from Deere and Greek debt negotiation efforts hit a snag. Expect low volume today as investors pack up and head to Grandma’s. Bonds are and MBS are down small.

Initial Jobless Claims came in at 410k. Like last week, this is a Sandy-affected number and should be viewed accordingly. Mortgage applications fell 2.2%. University of Michigan Consumer Confidence dropped, and the index of leading economic indicators increased .2%. Rising real estate prices are the driver of this.

Here are the highlights of the HUD report to Congress. Aside from telling us what we already know (FHA is in deep trouble), there are also changes to the mortgage insurance program. Insurance rates on FHA loans are going up, and borrowers will soon be charged mortgage insurance for the entire life of the loan, not just they typical 10-year period L.Os take note – here is a good argument to get those borrowers off the fence – start the process now and get in under with wire.

Looks like the Feds are closing in on Stevie Cohen. His healthcare PM allegedly made a quarter of a billion shorting Elan and Wyeth. SAC Capital pays the highest commissions on the Street, by far. They aren’t doing it out of the kindness of their hearts. Of course his investors don’t care – they know he is trading on inside information, but they are protected because they are limited partners.

Two arguments about the proper size of government and its effect on prosperity.

The negotiation between the baker’s union and Hostess didn’t last long. Hostess is headed for liquidation.

Have a happy Thanksgiving.

Filed under: Morning Report |

12 Responses

lmsinca, on November 21, 2012 at 9:02 am said:

Just stopping by to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving tomorrow. The pumpkin cheesecake is in the oven and the cranberry relish is made. I hope everyone enjoys their day; family, food and football.

I just read our Thanksgiving post from last year again as well as the comments and really enjoyed it (https://all-things-in-moderation.com/2011/11/24/).

My best to all of you.

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- markinaustin, on November 21, 2012 at 9:24 am said:
  
  Happy TG, Lulu, to you and your family.
  
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novahockey, on November 21, 2012 at 9:21 am said:

Happy Thanksgiving LMS!

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Mike, on November 21, 2012 at 10:32 am said:

Happy Thanksgiving, lms. Strangely enough, I will also be making a pumpkin cheesecake for TG dinner.

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Mike, on November 21, 2012 at 11:00 am said:

Just read the HUD link. Boy, it sure sounds like FHA has no idea what they’re doing. I wonder how that will affect the housing market. Lots of empty low-end housing? More rentals? Stagnant prices?

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Michigoose, on November 21, 2012 at 11:26 am said:

Thanks for linking to last year’s post, Lulu. That was a good one! I hope that all of you have wonderful days; I’m spending mine here in SLC with sunny skies and good friends (having decided to NOT spend 13 hours on the road [over Donner Pass] to Sacramento) and providing the “stuffing” and the cranberry sauce for our dinner. Happy Thanksgiving to all!

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jnc4p, on November 21, 2012 at 12:00 pm said:

Happy Thanksgiving LuLu.

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jnc4p, on November 21, 2012 at 2:57 pm said:

Worth a read:

“One Interesting Thing About Paula Broadwell’s Petraeus Biography
POSTED: November 21, 1:50 PM ET
Matt Taibbi”

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/blogs/taibblog/one-interesting-thing-about-paula-broadwells-petraeus-biography-20121121

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Michigoose, on November 21, 2012 at 3:07 pm said:

Ouch!

Decades ago, when people like Sy Hersh were the go-to-profilers of influential people, journalists reflexively distrusted power, and any reporter, male or female, who wrote a blowjob profile (that’s what we call them) of a politician or tycoon was looked down upon as a hack and a traitor. But these days, you can’t tell the difference between your average profile of a Senator or CEO or a four-star general and an ESPN feature about a day in the life of Lebron James. We’re supposed to make heroes out of sports stars, but what’s everyone else’s excuse? At least Broadwell did it for love. Well, maybe it wasn’t even that . . .

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okiegirl, on November 22, 2012 at 6:50 am said:

Happy Thanksgiving to all.

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jnc4p, on November 22, 2012 at 9:32 pm said:

The President is shocked to find that underwater mortgages and the debt overhang from the financial collapse prevented a more robust recovery, but still can’t actually propose anything substantial to address the problem.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/economists-obama-administration-at-odds-over-role-of-mortgage-debt-in-slow-recovery/2012/11/22/dc83f25e-2e87-11e2-89d4-040c9330702a_story.html

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Brent Nyitray, on November 24, 2012 at 2:35 pm said:

One year and one month before President Obama won reelection, he invited seven of the world’s top economists to a private meeting in the Oval Office to hear their advice on what do to fix the ailing economy. “I’m not asking you to consider the political feasibility of things,” he told them in the previously unreported meeting.

There was a former Federal Reserve vice chairman, a Nobel laureate, one of the world’s foremost experts on financial crises and the chief economist of the International Monetary Fund , among others. Nearly all said Obama should introduce a much bigger plan to forgive part of the mortgage debt owed by millions of homeowners who are underwater on their properties.

Note that he didn’t bother to ask anyone who works in the financial sector. It is amazing, really.

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