The Dow hit a new record high yesterday, topping 14,264. The previous record was 14,198.10, set in October 2007, when investors were squarely focused on the Federal Reserve (Fed). The Fed had cut rates for the first time in four years and bought over $40 billion a month of toxic debt from banks because the housing implosion was hitting consumers and
Read moreRecession Is Over Update: The root of the crisis over the past couple of years wasn’t recession, but debt, which has spread “like a cancer,” according to Nassim Taleb, professor and author of the bestselling book “The Black Swan,” who is now relieved that public attention has shifted to debt, instead of growth. More at CNBC: http://www.cnbc.com/id/37610064
Read moreRecession is Over Update: Regulators on Friday shut down a Nevada bank, raising the number of U.S. bank failures this year to 83. The 83 closures so far this year is more than double the pace set in all of 2009. By this time last year, regulators had closed 40 banks. The pace has accelerated as banks’ losses mount on loans made for commercial property
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WILLIAM STICKEVERS 