Asian Stocks Drop, Extending Worst Slump Since 2009

[BDBoop]

Asian Stocks Drop, Extending Worst Slump Since 2009 - Bloomberg

Asian stocks dropped, extending the worst global slump since the bull market began in 2009, while U.S. equity futures, 30-year Treasuries and oil slid after the loss of America’s top credit rating. Gold jumped to a record and the Swiss franc climbed to an all-time high against the dollar.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slid 1.5 percent at 11:20 a.m. in Tokyo. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures lost 1.8 percent, following a two-week rout that dragged the gauge down 11 percent and erased its 2011 gain. The dollar reached an all-time low of 74.85 Swiss centimes before trading at 76.15. Treasury 30-year yields climbed four basis points. Oil sank 2.9 percent in New York, while immediate-delivery gold topped $1,690 an ounce.

Tomorrow promises to be a thing of beauty. Thanks, Tea Party!

 

[Si modo]

Obama really fucked more than just Americans over. Thanks, Obama.

 

[expat_panama]

Asian Stocks Drop, Extending Worst Slump Since 2009 - Bloomberg

Asian stocks dropped, extending the worst global slump since the bull market began in 2009... ...Thanks, Tea Party!

Ah, stocks plummeting with Obama's rise to power was bushes fault, and stocks never recovering to 2008 levels is the Tea Party's fault. All blaming aside, here's how it's been going this morning--

---and here's (Futures Quotes and Charts - PFGBEST.com) what's happening now. Seems that the only budget deal the Senate and White House would accept (after rejecting two house proposals) included enough tax'n'spending hikes to promise continued and accelerating destruction of private wealth.

 

[editec]

The world's markets have seen the "compromise" and are less than happy with it.

Now we can tell ourselves that the market is tanking because of some far distant problem, but I really think the market knows that the compromise does nothing to help the current economy.

After all, the market projects about three month ahead, TOPS.

It is reacting to the negative numbers about TODAY's economy, not some distantly future economy.

What it is reacting to is the obvious stand off that continues to prevent this nation from taking the steps it needs to revitalize this economy.

 

[Oddball]

Meh....All they need to do is print up a few trillion Yuan and everything will be just peachy!

 

[dilloduck]

The world's markets have seen the "compromise" and are less than happy with it.

Now we can tell ourselves that the market is tanking because of some far distant problem, but I really think the market knows that the compromise does nothing to help the current economy.

After all, the market projects about three month ahead, TOPS.

It is reacting to the negative numbers about TODAY's economy, not some distantly future economy.

What it is reacting to is the obvious stand off that continues to prevent this nation from taking the steps it needs to revitalize this economy.

Are there any steps to get blood out of a turnip ?

 

[BDBoop]

I used to be a bill collector, so I'll tell you what I'd tell the people. "Get a job. Okay, get another job. Sell plasma. Sell on Ebay. Have a garage sale." I know from personal experience that it is possible to get blood out of a turnip, BUT IT INVOLVES RAISING REVENUE."

 

[Avorysuds]

So is this one Bush's fault too? Maybe this is where the recovery really takes off?

 

[waltky]

The sky is fallin'...

Stocks: Fear takes center stage
August 20, 2011: Gold keeps hitting record highs as fearful investors turn to the metal as a safe haven.

Nervous investors hoping for a reprieve this week will be disappointed. The past month has been nothing but a disaster for stock market investors. The S&P posted its biggest four-week loss since March 2009. Meanwhile, safe haven plays like gold and U.S. treasuries have soared, with gold hitting a new record high day after day. This week will be fairly quiet as far as scheduled economic and company events, but fears about the U.S. possibly heading into another recession and the financial crisis in Europe are expected to weigh heavily on trading.

The big event for investors will be on Friday, when Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will give his keynote speech at the Kansas City Fed's annual retreat in Jackson Hole, Wyo. Bernanke is faced with a turbulent and declining market combined with investor fears that the U.S. economy is heading into an economic downturn, just as he was when he appeared at the same event one year ago. At the time, the Fed chairman reassured investors by raising the possibility that the Federal Reserve would do another round of quantitative easing in his speech. The central bank implemented that plan a few months later.

Investors aren't sure what to expect from Bernanke on Friday. Some believe he will bring up the possibility of a third round of quantitative easing - commonly nicknamed QE3. Others think Bernanke will only re-emphasize the central bank's statement from earlier this month, when the Fed said it planned to hold interest rates at near-zero levels for at least two years. Either way, investors hope to see some sort of clear leadership from the Fed chairman. "What's worrying the markets is the perception that there isn't much more that can be done by the Fed and politicians," said Rob Lutts, chief investment officer with Cabot Money Management. "All three -- the White House, the Fed, and Congress - are in a bind that I have never seen before."

Headlines out of Europe will also dominate market direction this week. Europe's financial situation is a mess, it's getting worse, and Wall Street has zero confidence that politicians will be able to fix it. Those fears have spilled over into the region's banking sector, where rumors that European banks are having trouble getting financing are stirring up ugly memories of the weeks leading up to Lehman Brothers' collapse. Many believe a default is inevitable. "Europe is at a very pivotal point right now [as far as] deciding the fate of the whole euro zone," said James Keenan, a portfolio manager with BlackRock.

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See also:

Stock market begins to feed economic fear
Aug 21, `11 - The stock market is starting to feed economic fear, not just reflect it. Stocks have fallen four weeks in a row.

Some on Wall Street worry that the resulting blow to confidence, not to mention 401(k) statements, has set off a spiral of fear that could push prices even lower, cause people and businesses to pull back and tip the economy into a new recession. "I'm nervous that fear will lead companies to stop hiring and people to stop spending," says Jim Paulsen, chief investment strategist of Wells Capital Management, famous for his usually bullish take on the markets.

A home sales report this past week showed that more sales than usual fell apart at the last minute, which suggests plunging stocks and dismal economic news gave buyers cold feet. At least 16 percent of deals were canceled ahead of closings last month, four times the rate in May. Beth Ann Bovino, senior economist at Standard & Poor's, says that another big plunge in stocks could "push us closer to the brink."

The Standard & Poor's 500 stock index ended Friday at 1,123.53, down 5 percent for the week. The average is down 16 percent during the four-week losing streak. One reason for the drop is fear that another recession, if not certain, is more likely now. The run of bad economic news started last month when the government said the economy grew much more weakly in the first half of this year than thought. Growth, at an annual rate of 0.8 percent, was the slowest since the Great Recession ended in June 2009.

The economic weakness has made investors more likely to sell stocks at the first hint that things are getting worse. And last week, they got signs aplenty. A regional survey by the Federal Reserve said manufacturing had slowed in the mid-Atlantic states by the most in more than two years. Existing home sales fell in July for third time in four months. Another report showed that exports from Japan, the world's third-biggest economy, had slumped for the fifth straight month. Japan is still reeling from the effects of an earthquake and tsunami in March.

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[expat_panama]

Futures are down again. Tomorrow should be fun.

 

[Dr.House]

But Barry said we're better...

How can this be?

 

[Old Rocks]

Well, given the Teabaggers and their pet, the GOP, has done everything in their power to create a depression, all of you should be happy over the success of the project.

 

[elvis]

Well, given the Teabaggers and their pet, the GOP, has done everything in their power to create a depression, all of you should be happy over the success of the project.

So you admit Obama's a pussy.

 

[Dr.House]

Barack 0bama: The Buck Stops Elsewhere

 

[expat_panama]

Futures are back up now. Free markets, aren't they great?

 

[Toro]

Futures are back up now. Free markets, aren't they great?

We are as oversold and sentiment is as bad now as at any time in 08-09, so one would expect a rally soon. However, Monday morning futures are often indicative of the actions of the "dumb money," and can suck people in against the trend. Let's see if the futures hold. If around 10:30 or 11, this bounce gets sold, and sold all day, the dynamic remains unchanged, and then we watch to see if the lows can hold.

 

[expat_panama]

...We are as oversold and sentiment is as bad now as at any time in 08-09, so one would expect a rally soon. However, Monday morning futures are often indicative of the actions of the "dumb money," and can suck people in...

Regardless of whether y'all are sold overly or underly, and regardless of whether other traders' money is smart or dumb, the market price is the price that exists on the planet earth and we deal with it. Major indexes are no where near as low as they were back in Mar. 09 when Obama's popularity peaked. In fact, atm they seem to be hitting a support level higher than last years floor which was higher than the Mar. 09 bottom.

What we're watching now is how well the current support will hold.

 

[Toro]

Do not know if we are at a bottom or not. It's trying to bottom. But is this ultimate bottom? I suspect not. But I have no idea. What I do know is that it looks like we are flying without a net, given the hostility towards fiscal and, especially, monetary expansion, which means the environment in which we are operating may be changing.

Another nod to the bulls, copper has been hanging in there pretty well.

 

[expat_panama]

Do not know if we are at a bottom or not. It's trying to bottom. But is this ultimate bottom? I suspect not. But I have no idea. What I do know is that it looks like we are flying without a net, given the hostility towards fiscal and, especially, monetary expansion, which means the environment in which we are operating may be changing...

That's exactly what I'm seeing too, great minds thinking alile .

I feel like a farmer during a long winter. Not making any money but not losing anything except living expenses. Only work to be done is more and more preparation for growing season. There are some that can make money on shorts and puts, but I'm not one of them.