Economy & Markets
The important economic and stock market news that advisors need to know.
S&P Downgrades Hungary to Junk After It Defies IMF and EU
By Marlene Y. SatterHungary was downgraded to junk for the second time in a month, this time by S&P, after Moody's took a similar action previously, but markets reacted little to the news.
December 21, 2011
Top 10 Christmas Movie VillainsChristmas is a time of giving and love. But for movies (and real life) the truth is that without a villain (or at least a gaggle of relatives with irritating habits) we would never know just how joyful the season can be at times.
December 21, 2011
Greenhill Managing Directors Killed in Plane CrashTwo managing directors from investment bank Greenhill & Co., Inc. were killed on Tuesday when the small plane they were in crashed in New Jersey. Ice on the wings was cited as a possible cause for the plane to come down.
December 21, 2011
Italy Teeters on Brink of RecessionItaly got bad news on Wednesday as its economy contracted in Q3, with GDP falling 0.2%, as opposed to a 0.3% expansion in Q2. The news could signal a beginning of Italys fifth recession since 2001, just as new austerity measures are being put in place that will further threaten...
December 21, 2011
ECB Lends to Banks to Keep Credit FlowingThe European Central Bank surprised analysts by offering a record amount of 489 billion euros in loans to stressed banks.
December 21, 2011
House Rejection of Senate Bill Leaves Payroll Tax Cut UncertainThe House rejected, 229-193, on Tuesday the Senate bill to extend the payroll tax cut for two months as well as unemployment benefits. If Congress cant break the logjam, 160 million Americans will pay higher taxes next year.
December 20, 2011
Does Keynes Offer Solutions for Today?Readers are invited to weigh in on the controversy over the validity of John Maynard Keynes economic theoryso poignant today because we are living in the worst economic times since the Great Depression, to which Keynesian economics was a response.
December 20, 2011
Asia's New Millionaires Invest in Art, Wine and Other AlternativesAsia's new millionaires are drawn to 'investments of passion' like art and wine.