Was it cocktail hour when you wrote that? :~ p
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2008-06/23/content_6786925.htm
Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services believes the 100 basis point increase in the deposit reserve requirement to a 23-year high of 17.5% will tighten the pressure on the banks’ asset and liability management. This will lead them to accelerate the shift in their asset mix towards low-yield reserve assets, which will take a toll on profitability. Higher yields on debt securities will also ensure revaluation losses on domestic trading books.
“The biggest threat to banks will center on loan quality, as marginal borrowers struggle to secure loans amid tightening credit conditions, which further asset adjustments will exacerbate,” said Standard & Poor’s credit analyst Qiang Liao.
https://www.theasianbanker.com/A556C5/Update.nsf/0/BE59AEB53D5FCD534825747200085593?Opendocument
according to Bob Janjuah of the Royal Bank of Scotland: “A very nasty period is soon to be upon us. Be prepared.” It's not like the RBS to go around making alarmist statements but it has warned of a “global equity and credit crash” this autumn. Morgan Stanley bank has forecast a “catastrophic event”. The hedge fund guru John Paulson says global losses from the credit crisis, currently $300bn, may reach $1.3 trillion.
Meanwhile, the world's stock markets are falling: 50% in China, 30% here if you strip out unstable oil, mining and commodities. The commodities boom is due for a sharp correction and many banks are in deep trouble. Which is why analysts are warning of further stock market and credit shocks this autumn. They believe we haven't begun to recognise the scale and ramifications of this crisis.
Ahmadinejad has been criticised by Iranian economists for provoking inflation rates of almost 25 per cent with high spending instead of saving the treasury windfalls from the high price of oil.
Economic issues will be crucial when the controversial president, as expected, seeks re-election in the summer next year. He said part of the government's reform of the economy would include the gradual dismantling of subsidies, which the government pays to keep basic goods such as bread and petrol at ultra-low prices. “We hope to start with some areas in the second half of the year. We have plans for all subsidies,” he said, without elaborating.
http://news.smh.com.au/world/oil-market-is-saturated-iran-president-20080624-2vpp.html
Iran should consent: (1) to halt its enrichment activities for a set period, fully cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency and ratify its Additional Protocol, and restart its enrichment programs at the end of the specified period or after it reaches an agreement with its nuclear nemesis for a fully verifiable enrichment for civilian use - whichever comes first; (2) to remove all support for the anti-Israeli and anti-American groups in the region (Iraq and the Occupied Territories included), and officially accept the two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict; and (3) to allow for free and fair elections in the country beginning with the 2009 Iranian presidential elections. These and other auxiliary compromises that might be demanded from Iran and its nuclear nemesis should be attractive to many of the stakeholders in US-Iran relations.
http://www.payvand.com/news/08/jun/1200.html
WASHINGTON (AFP) The United States is considering opening an interests section staffed by US diplomats in Tehran, similar to the one it has in Cuba, a State Department official said Monday.
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5gY5cRpfxfwC98CNhl_tg35aEyvEg