Lehman Debacle 2? Credit Suisse Market Turmoil Deepens After CEO Memo Backfires (Credit Suisse’s CDS Now Higher Than During 2008-2009 Financial Crisis)

New CEO Koerner sought to reassure employees in Friday memo
Shares fall to a fresh record low, gauge of credit risk rises

It is like the Lehman Brothers debacle in 2008 all over again.

(Bloomberg) — Credit Suisse Group AG was plunged into fresh market turmoil after Chief Executive Officer Ulrich Koerner’s attempts to reassure employees and investors backfired, adding to uncertainty surrounding the bank.

The stock, which had already more than halved this year before Monday’s sell-off, fell as much as 12% in Zurich trading to a record low that values the firm at less than $10 billion. That was accompanied by a spike in the cost to insure the bank’s debt against default, which jumped to its highest ever.

Koerner, for the second time in as many weeks, had sought to calm employees and the markets with a memo late Friday stressing the bank’s liquidity and capital strength. Instead, it focused attention on the dramatic recent moves in the firm’s stock price and credit spreads, and investors rushed for the exit when trading reopened after the weekend.

One notable difference between 2008 and today is that Credit Suisse’s equity was flying high in June 2007 then crashed a the global banking crisis went into full motion. We then saw Credit Suisse’s credit default swaps soar in early 2009. But today Credit Suisse’s equity is a pale imitation of its former self, but its credit default swap is now higher than it was at its peak in early 2009.

Credit Suisse is now trading lower than its European rival Deutsche Bank (aka, The Teutonic Titanic).

Yes, this brings back sickening memories of the 2008-2009 global financial crisis. Let’s see how The Federal Reserve, ECB and Bank of Switzerland handle this debacle, particularly with M2 Money growth so low.

It appears that we are in another Lehman debacle. Or should I say “Lemur Bros.”

Wasting Away In Bidenville! Dow Tanks -500 Points On Friday As Fed Reaffirms Their Fight On Bidenflation

My investments are wasting away in Bidenville! Looking for my lost 401k value.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was DOWN -500 points on Friday as The Federal Reserve continues their fight against inflation (green line).

If fact, since January 4, 2022, the Dow is down -22%.

Negative wage growth, relentless inflation, collapsing 401ks, we are wasting away in Bidenville.

Hey Joe! Where is the US economy? With Jackie Walorski??

Living In An Inverted (Bond) World! 19 Nations Have Negative 10yr-2yr Yield Curves (As US Housing Inventory For Sale In SOARING Out West)

We are living in an inverted (bond) world!

19 nations now have inverted 10yr-2yr yield curves.

And housing inventory for sale growth is soaring out West and in Tennessee?

At least Ohio is seeing a modest increase in housing inventory for sale.

On a parting note (before I watch the Ohio State Buckeyes annihilate the Rutgers Scarlet Knights tomorrow at 3pm EST, reverse repos parked overnight at The Fed just hit an all-time high. Apparently, banks don’t believe Janet Yellen’s inflation is transitory mumbo-jumbo.

UMich Buying Conditions For Houses Remain Depressed As Fed Tightens (Fed’s Brainard Calls For Fed To Keep Tightening!)

Bidenflation and The Fed’s counter-attack has caused considerable damage to the housing and mortgage markets.

Today, the University of Michigan consumer sentiment indices were released for September. Of note, buying conditions for houses remained in the tank.

Meanwhile, Fed Vice Chair Lael “Brainless” Brainard is calling for The Fed to NOT stop tightening money and raising interest rates.

As The Fed tightens, the entire range of Agency MBS TBA (to be announced) are under $100.

For example, the FNCL 2.5% TBA is now 84-17. And falling like a paralyzed falcon.

Here is Brainard with Fed Chair Jerome “Foul Owl” Powell, the dynamic duo of crashing markets.

Wipe Out! $32 TRILLION In Stock Value Wiped Out (US Core Deflator Rises To 4.9% Prompting Taylor Rule Fed Target Rate Of 9.65%, We Are Currently At 3.25%)

Wipe out!

$32 TRILLION of global stock value has been wiped out since December 2021.

Today’s core PCE deflator reading of 4.9% YoY shows that the inflation surge is not over. With a core PCE deflator of 4.9%, the Taylor Rule suggests that The Fed Funds Target Rate should be at 9.65%, far below its current level of 3.25%. So, IFF The Fed is following any sort of rule, rates should continue to soar.

And if we use headline inflation of 8.30% YoY, the Taylor Rule suggests hiking the target rate to 14.75%.

After yesterday’s dismal Q2 report of -0.6%, I fully anticipate a recession. Ain’t this a kick in the … head.

Fire! European Stock Valuations Lowest Since 2012 On Strong King Dollar, Atlanta Fed GDPNow Q3 Drops To 0.271% (Bostic Calls For 1.25 MORE Rate Increase)

Fire! European stock valuations have dropped to lowest since 2012.

The US Dollar index is soaring (not helping Europe) as The Federal Reserve tightens monetary policy to combat the inflation fire.

Meanwhile, the Atlanta Fed’s GDPNow real-time forecast for Q3 is at least above zero (barely) at 0.271%.

Fed officials continued to hammer home the central bank’s hawkish outlook, with Atlanta President Raphael Bostic saying he backs raising rates by a further 1.25 percentage points by the end of this year. Meanwhile, the People’s Bank of China said it will accelerate usage of targeted loans.

Bond volatility is increasing.

The US Treasury 10-year yield was down -20 basis points yesterday and is up +10 basis points today. This is the Fed’s Rollercoaster effect.

The Dow is down another 400 points today as The Fed’s Sugar Rush is ending. Perhaps The Federal Reserve main building in Washington DC should be renamed “The Sugar Shack.”

In related news, apparently the Biden Administration is going to replace Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen with … anybody else??

Meanwhile I will have a bottle of wine to kill the pain of inflation and Fed tightening.

When Temporary Seems Permanent: Overnight Repos Hit All-time High, $2.366 TRILLION (MOVE Bond Volatility Index Near Covid Recession High)

When temporary seems permanent?

Banks get to park money at The Federal Reserve overnight in the form of repurchase agreements (or repos). But as inflation is raging in the US, banks have parked a record $2.366 TRILLION at The Federal Reserve.

The MOVE bond volatility index keeps rising as inflation roars and The Fed fights back,

The US bond volatility index is now almost as high as during the Covid Crisis and approaching financial crisis levels.

Flight To Safety! US 10yr Treasury Yield FALLS -12.2 BPS, UK 10yr Yield FALLS -46.6% BPS (UK Natural Gas Futures UP 16.37%)

It is going to be a bad day in markets. As I often mentioned in my classes, any 10 basis point shift in Treasury yields is a big deal.

On the bond side, the US Treasury 10-yr yield fell -12.2 basis points as investors run for cover. The UK 10 yr yield fell -46.6 basis points.

On the commodity side, we see WTI crude up 1.12%, heating oil up 1.92% and … UK Natural Gas Futures up 16.37%.

The natural gas leak in the Baltic Sea might have something to do with global jitters.

Here is a map of the gas leak.

I will have to turn on “The View” to find out who sabotaged the natural gas pipeline. /sarc

No, I don’t think Biden yelling at gasoline companies to lower prices has anything to do with market turmoil today. Its just another day under Joe Biden.

Escape From LA! US Home Prices “Cool” To 15.77% YoY In July As Fed Tightens (Miami And Tampa FL Only Metro Areas Over 30% YoY) 12 Of 20 Metro Areas Experienced NEGATIVE Growth From June To July

Welcome to DeSantisville! Miami and Tampa Florida are the only metro areas in the nation (at least of the top 20 metro areas) growing at >30% growth in home prices.

But at the national level, the Case-Shiller National home price index “cooled” to 15.77% growth YoY as The Fed continues to tighten.

My former home, Phoenix AZ, finally is no longer the fastest growing metro area in terms of home prices, relinquishing the crown to Miami and Tampa FL.

It almost seems that people are trying to escape the mess Gavin Newsome made in California and are escaping to Arizona, Nevada, Florida and Texas. But note that all 20 metro areas are positive in growth YoY, but 12 of the top 20 metro areas experienced NEGATIVE growth from June to July.

Any questions as to whether The Fed is killing the housing and mortgage markets??

On a different note, we see all hell breaking out in Great Britain. Like the US, Great Britain’s inflation is off the charts and the Bank of England is scared about the Pound getting pounded with BofE tightening.

Is FLA governor Ron DeSantis actually Snake Pliskin??

More On Worst Bond Bubble Burst Since 1949! US Yield Curve Inverts To Lowest Since 2000 (US Mortgage Rate Climbs To 6.59%, UP 129% Under Biden)

And I thought the Washington Commanders QB Carson Wentz getting sacked nine times in a game against his former team was bad!

We start the week with another chapter of “The Worst Bond Bubble Burst Since 1949.” This time its the US Treasury 10yr-2yr yield curve inverted to its lowest level since 2000.

Then across the pond, the UK sovereign yield curve is also inverted. But this curve is only inverted to 2008 levels of The Great Recession. The UK 2-year sovereign yield is up over 50 basis points this morning.

Then we have the US Dollar Swaps curve (green line), steeply UPWARD sloping until 6 months, then declining. The same goes for the US Treasury Actives curve (blue line), except that is it steeply upward sloping out to 1 year then begins declining.

And then we have the Bankrate 30-year mortgage rate rising to 6.59%, up 129% since Biden was sworn-in as President.

Also declining since Powell unleashed his monetary Panzers on the economy and financial markets are 1) agency MBS and 2) S&P 500 index.

The stock market’s value is down $7.6 trillion since Biden took office.

When I saw Carson Wentz of the Washington Commanders getting sacked 9 times, I thought maybe Prince Harry was playing instead. Or maybe Meghan Markle.

Price Harry is on the left, Commanders QB Carson Wentz is on the right.