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Larry H. Summers, one of Obama’s top economic advisers among other White House staff, recently released a personal financial disclosure form. The Obama White House is making thousands of millions dollars from Wall Street for themselves. Simmers earned US$5.2 million as compensation from D.E. Shaw in 2008, US$2.7 million as speaking fees for several Wall Street firms, US$45,000 for an appearance in meetings, US$135,000 to visit Goldman Sachs for a day, and many such entries in the disclosure form accumulate to stupendous figures for a single year. When Obama’s White House is called a Wall Street government, there are reasons.
Most of these payments made were made to Summers in around April last year when either Obama or Clinton were expected to be in the White House this year. If any of the two would win the election, it was expected that Larry H. Summers would be in the very same position he is in now, the single most influential financial position in the US government. Some of the remittances indicated in the disclosure form (like the US$45, 000) were received only 8 days to Obama’s election. While it is wrong and illegal to receive a bribe so as to influence government decisions, what the Obama administration did was to receive the bribe in advance, before assuming office.
Obama first considered Larry H. Summers for the post of Treasury Secretary just before naming him as his topmost economics advisers. This change of heart ensured that Continue reading How the Wall Street Government Rules
Tags: Commodities Futures Trading Commission, Mutual Fund Assets, United States government, financial derivatives market, United States House Committee on Financial Services, White House staff
When China’s monetary policy is analyzed, one thing stands out presently – there is a continued incline in importation of products into China at a rate higher than the exports growth. Secondly, after the peg of the Chinese Yuan to the dollar, the Chinese currency’s real trade-weighted value declined. This is notable mostly since the beginning months of 2002, at a time when the US dollar reached its peak value.
China is a great economy in the making. At this point in time, the metrics of China’s currency are largely undervalued and others unlisted. China’s Current Account has been growing at a steep surplus since 2007. For instance, the current account ran at US$17 billion last budget year as compared to US$4.6 billion in 2001. That is giant leap in just six years. This ensues in a 1.5 percent growth in Gross Domestic Product, an outstanding feat for such a massive economy. To realize how big the growth is in China, as other countries go under in the global economic crises, let us compare two more years, 2003 and 2004. China’s economy ran a trade surplus on the Current Account, of an amazing US$32 billion in the year 2004 as compared to a surplus of US$25.5 billion in 2003.
This is indicative of some thing being done right in China’s economy. Experts feel that this kind of growth rate is unsustainable due to the heightened pace as evidenced by the Continue reading Monetary Policy in China
Tags: Chinese money market, China’s Current Account, Gross Domestic Product, China’s monetary policy, normal capital inflows, international aggregate demand
Some time in September 2008, Brazil’s president, Luiz Ignácio Lula da Silva was asked by journalists what he thought about the global economic crises we are going through. He replied by saying, “When people ask me about an economic crisis in the world, I tell them, go ask George Bush. After all, it is his crisis and not mine.” Such has been more or less the attitude of the Latin finance world to contemporary issues and developments. Whether described as indifference or whatever else, Latin finance has had a hands-off policy of administrating growth and development for a long time now.
It is easy to understand why this delusion has been perpetrated in the region about the non-volatile status of their financial institutions. Policymakers and key economists on the world stage have been full of praise for Latin America’s increasing financial independence and industrial maturity. Of repute has been the fiscal discipline, sustained economic growth, reducing external debt and aid levels, high commodity prices, growing international and national reserves, strengthened governance, and the national and corporate balance sheets health. These developments are amiable and deserving of praise indeed. They are indeed very promising in the race to place Latin America on a firm economic footing by and by. The only problem is that without a change of approach and policy, Latin markets might find themselves irrelevant, and very soon at that, in the face of new developments in the world finance circles.
An instance of this myopic indifference was experienced immediately the credit crisis hit the U.S. financial markets. Most experts and public officials expressed confidence that Continue reading Emerging Facts on the Latin finance world
Tags: firm economic footing, Luiz Ignácio Lula da Silva, prime iron-ore projects, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Latin finance paradigms, Latin American countries, Latin finance world
Over the years, money market funds have been the safest means of investing some cash for a long term portfolio entry or for those who want a safe place to hold their money. But recent global developments, with the world economy sagging on its knees, experts have started to point out that there are risks in money markets too. This has shed the previous thoughtline that money markets are a risk-free investment avenue. You can no longer hold it for granted that your investment is safe, just because you are in the money markets. In fact, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) decrees that while investor losses entrusted to money market funds are rare, they are very possible.
However, just as they have become risky to an extent, they have also gained on the rate of interests and profits over the last one decade. Contemporary money markets can triple your initial capital within a few years, and give an impetus to real wealth. Similarly though, just as they are profitable, they can wreck you financially in just a few hours of mishap. It is wise therefore, that before you load your cash into money markets you ensure that you know not only what they are but also how they work. This will facilitate you to know which money market risks to take and which ones are too dear or foolish to take.
Let us begin by understanding what money markets refer to, as a concept. Simply said, money market funds are Continue reading Contextualizing the Risks of Money Markets
Tags: risks in money markets, monetary fund, money market funds, Contemporary money markets, Money markets funds, recent global developments
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