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Too Many People On The Same Side Of The Trade? The Market Is Teetering On Record Margin Debt, Fundamentals Are Deteriorating, Interest Rate Cuts Fail To Spur Growth… Could Major Players Make A Big Fortune By Simply Going Short Here?

When Everyone is On the Same Side of a Trade, the Market is About to Crash

Economist Blake LeBaron has discovered an important cause of stock market crashes:

During the run-up to a crash, population diversity falls. Agents begin using very similar trading strategies as their common good performance is reinforced. This makes the population very brittle…

In other words, when everyone is making the same trade, it will likely lead to a crash.

Tyler Durden summarizes this [...]

Moody’s Sees Defaults as PBOC Warns on Local Risks (China)

Moody’s Investor Services said China’s local-government financing vehicles face greater risk of default, as regulators warn 20 percent of their loans are risky.

A rally in LGFV bonds may reverse, particularly should delinquencies emerge, Christine Kuo, a Moody’s analyst, wrote in an e-mailed response to questions on March 8. The average yield may rise to 7 percent by June from 6 percent now, according to Shenyin & Wanguo Securities Co., the [...]

MF UNTOUCHABLE: Corzine Wins Again

dailybail.com
January 10, 2012

How you like me now…

I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

MF Global Judge Nixes Customer Group’s Bid to Depose Corzine

Reuters

A bankruptcy judge on Tuesday rejected a bid by former MF Global customers to depose the collapsed brokerage’s former chief, Jon Corzine.

In a written ruling in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan, Judge Martin Glenn said the Commodity Customer Coalition, which had sought [...]

Two stocks declared HUGE special dividends this week

From Dividend Growth Stocks:

Income investors love to watch those periodic dividends show up in their brokerage accounts. Good dividend growth stocks send them consistently and give us a raise at least once a year.

Some companies want to give their shareholders something special. When you have a mountain of cash sitting on your balance sheet, you can make your shareholders really happy by sharing the wealth in the form of a [...]

RED ALERT: It’s Open Season on All Customer Funds

“This ruling and precedent will be used by every brokerage, every bank, every insurance company and every pension fund to deny you your money when the financial system finally collapses, be it on Monday, or be it two years from now. DO YOU UNDERSTAND? You have GOT to GET OUT.”

The National Futures Association is collusion with the Banksters, government and judiciary and have achieved their goal. The entire concept of [...]

From Knight To Schrödinger Cat: Brokerage Scrambles Half-Alive, Half-Dead

Update via CNBC:

CITADEL, KRR SAID NO LONGER TO BE LOOKING AT KNIGHT
KNIGHT CAPITAL CLOSE TO FUNDING DEAL, CNBC’S KATE KELLY SAYS
KNIGHT MAY GENERATE ABOUT $400 MLN FROM INVESTORS, KELLY SAYS
GETCO, TD AMERITRADE LIKELY PART OF INVESTMENT GROUP: KELLY

Or not. We will know for sure in a few hours after TD and Getco know all they need to know about Knight’s business and no longer need to give it false hope.

Knight Capital [...]

WSJ: The number of financial firms’ shares that were sold short jumped to 3.42 billion, the highest level since November.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303822204577466752039894504.html

Investors are piling into bets that profit from a fall in bank stocks at the fastest pace since the financial crisis, as uncertainty in Europe and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.’s problems fuel pessimism about the sector.

This increase in “short interest” was the biggest in any two-week period since March 2009, said the brokerage, which tracked the shares of nearly 750 financial firms.

The number of financial firms’ shares that [...]

MF Corzine still bundling cash for prez

Barack Obama’s reelection campaign has released the most recent list of names of fundraising bundlers. On that list is Jon Corzine, the former governor of New Jersey and embattled money man, the former head of MF Global:

Corzine, according to the Obama campaign, has once again helped raise more than $500,000.

(He was likewise named a bundler in January, when the Obama campaign last released the names of their money men.)

“MF Global and its brokerage sought [...]

It’s one of the biggest mysteries on Wall Street. How can stocks be in their fourth year of a bull market and trading activity be so low?

During March, average daily volume in equity shares was at their lowest level since December 2007, according to new data from Credit Suisse. This is the same month that marked the three-year anniversary of the bull market that caused the Standard & Poor’s 500 to double from its March 2009 credit-crisis low.

Credit Suisse tried to solve the riddle by blaming the growing popularity of options and futures markets , [...]

Jon Corzine breaking news – Bloomberg TV

Bloomberg TV reports on the news that Jon Corzine, MF Global Holding Ltd.’s chief executive officer, allegedly gave “direct instructions” to transfer $200 million from a customer fund account to meet an overdraft in one of the brokerage’s JPMorgan Chase & Co. accounts in London, according to an e-mail sent by a firm executive.

 

As Bloomberg’s Julie Hyman reports on Bloomberg Television’s “Street Smart,” “This appears to be the most direct [...]

Bank of America puts advertising account on review

From Reuters:

Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) has put its advertising account up for review as it seeks to mold a new image for a company that has changed significantly since the financial crisis and suffered repeated blows to its brand.

The second-largest bank notified advertising agencies of its plans on Wednesday and expects to make a decision in April, a person familiar with the situation said. The move will influence about [...]

Wall Street Employees Threaten To Quit If Bonuses Aren’t Up To Snuff

Wall Street Employees Threaten To Quit If Bonuses Aren’t Up To Snuff
The Huffington Post Jillian Berman
First Posted: 1/9/12 09:59 AM ET Updated: 1/9/12 01:57 PM ET

For some on Wall Street, a less-than-stellar bonus is simply too much to bear.

Brokerage executives at one Wall Street firm, Jefferies Group, have threatened to leave the company if their bonuses aren’t up to par with other firms, the New York Post reports. Though some [...]

I’m Calling For A General Financial Market Strike

PETER SCHIFF INTERVIEW
POSTED BY ANN BARNHARDT – DECEMBER 21, AD 2011 8:44 PM MST
I did the Peter Schiff radio show this morning and here is the YouTube of the video of that interview. Mr. Schiff actually said something that sets up an essay I have been wanting to write for quite a while now, so please do watch, and that essay will be written and posted tomorrow.There is some new [...]

UPDATE: Regulators know where MF GLOBAL funds went

By Christopher Doering

WASHINGTON | Wed Dec 14, 2011 6:52pm EST

(Reuters) – Regulators now have a more complete picture of money transfers in the final days of bankrupt brokerage MF Global, but must sort out which transactions were legitimate before more money can be released to customers, a top official told Reuters on Wednesday.

Jill Sommers, who is heading the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s review of MF Global, said regulators “are far enough along the [...]

Jon-Bubba twist (Clinton’s profitable consulting work for MF Global)

FRIEND$ AT THE TOP: Former President Bill Clinton and British ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair both sit on the advisory board of Teneo Holdings, which was paid at least $625,000 to do public-relations and financial-consulting work for Jon Corzine’s failed brokerage, MF Global.

 

….Clinton spokesman Matt McKenna said “President Clinton does not advise clients on the firm’s behalf.” Clinton does make money from Teneo, but has declined to disclose the sum.

Corzine and [...]

Must-read: “The entire system has been utterly destroyed by the MF Global collapse”

From Zero Hedge:

Presented without comment, merely to confirm that the market as we know it, no longer exists.

BCM Has Ceased Operations (source)
Posted by Ann Barnhardt – November 17, AD 2011 10:27 AM MST

Dear Clients, Industry Colleagues and Friends of Barnhardt Capital Management,

It is with regret and unflinching moral certainty that I announce that Barnhardt Capital Management has ceased operations. After six years of operating as an independent introducing brokerage, and eight [...]

Just in: MF Global’s 1,066 brokerage employees have been fired – BloombergNews

Morgan Stanley “Running Layoff Scenarios Into Several Thousand”

Layoffs across Wall Street started in June and have continued through the summer.

Morgan Stanley already begun reducing headcount in its brokerage.

But it looks like things are about to get much worse.

“The firm is “running layoff scenarios into several thousand folks,” said one person with direct knowledge of the matter” to Charlie Gasparino at Fox Business News.

In June, Morgan Stanley’s CFO, Ruth Porat, hinted there would be significant cuts coming to [...]

Stuart Robertson: For people who want to put aside substantial savings, “the solo 401(k) is clearly the best option,”

For people who want to put aside substantial savings, “the solo 401(k) is clearly the best option,” according to Stuart Robertson, head of ShareBuilder 401k. Above, an image from a TV ad for the ShareBuilder brokerage. [...]

A Tale Of Two Lies – Oil and Silver

Let’s run two charts here:

and

What does this tell us?

First, let’s remember something about futures markets – for every long there is a short in exactly equal amount.

There has to be, since you’re not trading a physical thing – you’re trading a future promise to perform.  So when you buy a futures contract, someone has to sell it to you.  That person becomes short(er) than he was [...]

What drives stock prices higher no matter what the state of the economy?

by TheRedPills

Over a year ago, one of the “experts” on a cable financial news show was challenged to find out who was buying US stocks that seemed to be invariably rising in prices day by day, without regard as to whether there was poor financial news, no news, or good news.

For a year this so-called expert tried to identify just who was purchasing, for instance, the stocks in the Dow [...]

Excellent analysis on the state of the world economy at a Hungarian site by a senior analyst of a leading local brokerage

by Google Translate

http://index.hu/gazdasag/vilag/2010/09/15/meztelenul_erne_a_piacokat_egy_ujabb_valsag/

There are large imbalances in the world and advanced economies have already amassed debt that is irrepayable. First, much of the debt are financed mainly by Asian and Middle Eastern private sector. Therefore, it is unlikely that the debt could be in remitted the near future, a pension fund or an institutional investor is not willing to do it.

However, the leadership of developed countries did not agree to [...]

How and where can you invest in funds?

Charles Schwab. They are very service oriented and cheap. Go online and get one of their checking accounts with a brokerage account attached. Once you have that yo can invest in anything you want with direct transfer from your checking, or wherever. Plus once you are a customer you get all their services FREE. Go in and talk to someone, or call them up and start buying. Remember to buy [...]

GS: The statue that has been violated is the Bank Fraud law, USC:

TITLE 18 > PART I > CHAPTER 63 > § 1344

§ 1344. Bank fraud

Whoever knowingly executes, or attempts to execute, a scheme or artifice—
(1) to defraud a financial institution; or
(2) to obtain any of the moneys, funds, credits, assets, securities, or other property owned by, or under the custody or control of, a financial institution, by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises;
shall be fined not more than [...]

Stock market is is poised to fall tomorrow.

More cheerful news to rally on -

“U.S. Stocks Set to Fall on Deepening Unemployment: Chart of Day
By Hideki Sagiike and Masaki Kondo

April 27 (Bloomberg) — The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index is poised to fall as chronic unemployment rises to a record among jobless Americans, according to Mitsubishi UFJ Securities Co. the brokerage unit of Japan’s biggest bank by market value.

The CHART OF THE DAY shows the S&P 500 and [...]