Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Bloomberg - "Insurers Steer Clear of the Subprime Sludge" (8-13-08)

"The one financial industry that seems to be dodging the subprime bullet is insurance. Only a handful of companies have had their safety ratings knocked down because of an excessive exposure to Wall Street's toxic waste. The vast majority has enough capital to withstand the known problems on their balance sheets, the rating companies all say."

Mortgage Bankers Association - "Mortgage Applications Decrease Slightly In Latest MBA Weekly Survey" (8-13-08)

"The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 8, 2008. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, was 425.9, a decrease of 1.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from 432.6 one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 2.2 percent compared with the previous week and was down 36.9 percent compared with the same week one year earlier."

Yahoo - "Fannie, Freddie shares fall after SEC order ends" (8-13-08)

"Fannie shares dipped 33 cents, or 4.1 percent, to $7.69. But Freddie shares rose 18 cents, or 3.4 percent, to $5.55."

The Washington Post - "Bank Failures Rise but Critics Say Not Fast Enough" (8-13-08)

"Federal and state regulators have closed eight banks this year, four since the start of July, as rising borrower defaults on residential and commercial real estate loans start to push some lenders into default, too. There were no bank failures in 2005 or 2006 and only three in 2007. Now, some analysts expect a few hundred banks to fail over the next several years -- the most since the savings-and-loan crisis two decades ago."

Market Watch - "Toll Brothers reports lower revenue, home orders" (8-13-08)

"Toll Brothers Inc. said Wednesday revenue and home orders continued to fall in the latest quarter, but the luxury-home builder also drew a buy rating from Citigroup, which kicked off coverage of the home-construction industry."

Bloomberg - "Lehman Negotiating With BlackRock About Asset Sale" (8-13-08)

"Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., seeking to restore investor confidence after a $2.8 billion second-quarter loss, is negotiating to sell commercial real estate assets to a group including BlackRock Inc., said three people briefed on the discussions."

Bloomberg - "West Virginia Sues Countrywide Financial Over Loans" (8-13-08)

"Countrywide Financial Corp., the lender acquired by Bank of America Corp., was sued by West Virginia for using deceptive tactics when it sold loans to consumers including a blind woman who didn't finish high school."

Bloomberg - "AIG May Raise $20 Billion, Bernstein's Bault Says" (8-13-08)

"American International Group Inc., the biggest U.S. insurer by assets, may raise $20 billion in a worst-case scenario to cushion against writedowns tied to subprime loans, said Sanford Bernstein analyst Todd Bault."

Orange County Register - "Homebuilder sees no relief through ‘09" (8-13-08)

"Homebuilder California Coastal Communities Inc., developer of the Brightwater project in Bolsa Chica, slogged through another tough quarter, writing down $5 million on projects in the inland"

No comments: