Credit woes continue – Posted by Prieur du Plessis – … The chart below, courtesy of economist David Rosenberg of Gluskin Sheff & Associates, shows that credit is still contracting as banks go through the painful process of repairing their balance sheets.  … – Investment Postcards from Cape Town

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The Puzzle of Asia’s Rapid Rebound – By Anoop Singh – … One part of the answer is the powerful measures the region took  to counteract the crisis. … Their fiscal programs were, on average, even larger  than those introduced by the Group of Twenty industrialized and emerging market countries. … IMF Direct
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Heavier Regulation May do Little to Reduce Financial Risk – Increased competition rather than heavier regulation may be a better way to deal with the problem of financial institutions (FIs) that are too big to fail (TBTF), according to an article in Booz & Co’s strategy+business. – Research Recap

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GSEs Miss FHFA’s Goals for Low-Income Originations – By AUSTIN KILGORE – … Fannie Mae exceeded its goal of purchases of loans originated to borrowers in underserved areas by 0.4%, but Freddie missed its goal by 1.3%. Both GSEs missed the goal for special affordable mortgage purchases … For 2009, FHFA will lower the existing low- and moderate-income goal from 56% of each GSE’s total loan purchases to 43%, the existing underserved areas goal from 39% to 32% and the existing special affordable goal from 27% to 18% … -   HousingWire

Fannie Raises Lenders’ Net Worth Requirement Ten-Fold – By JON PRIOR – … To do business with Fannie Mae, lenders must now have a net worth of at least $2.5m — 10 times the previous required net worth — plus a dollar amount equal to 0.25% of the outstanding principal balance of any Fannie Mae portfolio it services. … – HousingWire

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ZIRP: The Cruelest Tax Of Them All – Sarel Oberholster – … How totally one sided. Rip off the savers and give to the borrowers. Not even the socialist dictate of Karl Marx which proclaims that everybody should contribute according to ability and receive according to need, can contain the injustice of a zero interest rate policy tax. … – Gold-Eagle.com