wow soap opera September 9, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedgirls and their accessories 2 September 5, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedI have been watching the expensive handbag phenomenon for a while now. Today at Concurring Opinions Frank Pasquale discusses a Louis Vuitton “patch bag” which retails for some amount over $40,000 (sources seem to vary in the cost they report). Commentators have suggested it is not the most attractive handbag. But as Louis Vuitton only made 24 of them, we’re unlikely to be able to rent one of these, let alone the Chanel bags which will sell for over $250,000…..
From a marketing perspective it may be that stories about such bags make cheaper (but still expensive) bags seem more reasonable in price. But wouldn’t there be more useful ways to spend this money?
girls and their accessories September 5, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedMattel is in the middle of another recall, this time including accessories for Barbie dolls (lead paint again). Seems like it may be safer to experience the phenomenon of Barbie online at Barbiegirls.com (in some ways).
boston stock exchange September 5, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedSEC Press Release: SEC Charges Boston Stock Exchange and Former President James Crofwell With Failing to Police Specialists:
The Commission’s Order against the Exchange and Crofwell finds that the Exchange’s failure allowed hundreds of violations per day to go undetected even after the Commission staff had repeatedly warned the Exchange it needed to improve its surveillance systems.
what happens to better regulation now? September 5, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedCharlie McCreevy, a champion of better regulation, comments on the state of the financial markets and implications for regulation:
The interconnectivity of markets shows how important it is to have a globally convergent approach to regulation, with sound prudential rules and proper investor protection standards. It makes the Commission’s regulatory dialogues with the US and other jurisdictions even more critical. High standards of regulation are necessary throughout global financial markets – given the spill-over effects.
But:
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governance in the uk September 4, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedGovernmental suggestions that UK citizens do not need to be consulted about the EU’s reform treaty look particularly odd in the light of the Green Paper on The Governance of Britain, published in July, which states, right at the beginning:
We want to forge a new relationship between government and citizen, and begin the journey towards a new constitutional settlement — a settlement that entrusts Parliament and the people with more power.
The proposals published in this Green Paper seek to address two fundamental questions: how should we hold power accountable, and how should we uphold and enhance the rights and responsibilities of the citizen?
There’s a lot more rhetoric later on. For example:
The time has come to build a consensus about the changes that we can make together to help renew trust and confidence in our democratic institutions, to make them fit for the modern world and to begin properly to articulate and celebrate what it means to be British. Renewing the fabric of our nation is not a one-off project or some meaningless side-show. The aim of the proposals in this paper should be to create a renewed bond between government and the people it serves, bringing people closer to the decision-making process at both the local and national level. By rebalancing some aspects of the way power is exercised, the Government hopes to ensure that individual citizens feel more closely engaged with those representing them; able to have their voice heard, active in their communities and bound together by common ties.
uk referendum on the eu reform treaty? September 3, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedSuggestions that the UK’s voters won’t have a chance to express their views on the proposed reform treaty are creating ructions. The UK’s white paper on the reform treaty states that the reform treaty will remain within the red lines the UK Government established:
Ahead of the June European Council, we set out our red lines to ensure that there would not be a transfer of power away from the UK on issues of fundamental importance to our sovereignty. The Mandate for the new amending Treaty meets these red lines. It ensures that our existing labour and social legislation remains intact; protects our common law system, police and judicial processes, as well as our tax and social security systems; and preserves our independent foreign and defence policy. In addition, the Treaty will make clear for the first time that national security remains a matter for Member States.
This amending Treaty will allow the EU to move on from debates about institutions to creating the outward-facing, flexible Europe that we need to meet the fundamental challenges of globalisation.
But not everyone is happy to take the Government’s word for it. A leader in yesterday’s Observer characterises the Government’s approach as “cowardly and dangerous”. The Telegraph is organising a petition for a referendum.
Meanwhile, in contrast to the UK Government’s assertions that institutional questions are now settled, Poland today stated that it wanted an advocate general of its own.
happy labor day September 3, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedCelebrate labor day by reading the latest BIS Quarterly Review, just out. It is not a happy read, beginning:
Concerns about exposures to US mortgages cast a dark shadow over global financial markets during the period from end-May to 24 August 2007, with deepening losses on mortgage-related products spilling over to markets for other risky assets. As uncertainty about the extent and distribution of these losses spread through the financial system, investors fled to safe havens and lquidity demand surged. This caused a pronounced squeeze across major financial markets, prompting central banks around the globe to inject large amounts of liquidity.
Triggered by declining confidence in the valuation of mortgage-related and structured credit products, spreads rose sharply across the credit universe, increasingly affecting higher-rated products and assets other than credit. The price of credit risk, a measure of investor appetite for credit market exposures, jumped upwards, suggesting that a large part of the ongoing repricing was due to changes in investor sentiment towards risk.