Markets Take Horrible Jobs Data into Stride, FHFA Sues Banks
The month of August accounted for zero job growth in the USA.(HuffPo)
The U.S. economy added no new jobs in August as the unemployment rate stayed steady at 9.1 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday, the most concrete sign yet that the recovery has stalled out and a double-dip recession may well be on the way.
Stocks are taking the horrible news on jobs data in stride – down only 2.0-2.4% on Sept 2. It must be the expectation of another handout from the Feds in the form of Operation Twist, aka, QE3. I don’t think QE3 will happen unless stock prices and commodity prices retreat substantially from the current levels. In the mean time… Bank of America is headed down the path of Lehman.
Bank of America Corporation Com
(NYSE: BAC )
Real Time 7.30 
0.61 (7.77%) 3:50PM EDT
| Last Trade: | 7.28 |
|---|---|
| Trade Time: | 3:34PM EDT |
| Change: | 0.63 (7.96%) |
| Prev Close: | 7.91 |
| Open: | 7.31 |
| Bid: | 7.28 x 97300 |
| Ask: | 7.29 x 200800 |
| 1y Target Est: | 12.74 |
| Day’s Range: | 7.17 – 7.45 |
|---|---|
| 52wk Range: | 6.01 – 15.31 |
| Volume: | 259,059,937 |
| Avg Vol (3m): | 243,549,000 |
| Market Cap: | 73.78B |
| P/E (ttm): | N/A |
| EPS (ttm): | -1.64 |
| Div & Yield: | 0.04 (0.50%) |
(Reuters) – A U.S. regulator plans to sue major banks in coming days over subprime mortgage bonds, two sources said, in a lawsuit that may hamper a broader government mortgage settlement with banks.Word of the lawsuits by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, came as a surprise to the market and weighed on bank shares. The lawsuits could add billions of dollars to the banks’ potential legal costs at perhaps the worst possible time for the industry.The FHFA plans to accuse major banks, including Bank of America Corp and JPMorgan Chase & Co, of selling bonds backed by mortgages that should have never been packaged into securities, said the sources, who are familiar with the matter. Neither source was authorized to speak on the record. A spokeswoman for the FHFA declined to comment.The biggest banks are already negotiating with the attorneys general of all 50 states to address mortgage abuses. They are looking for a comprehensive settlement that will protect them from future litigation and limit their potential mortgage litigation losses.
“This new litigation could disrupt the AG settlement,” said Anthony Sanders, finance professor at George Mason University and a former mortgage bond strategist. Banks may be more reluctant to agree to a settlement if they know litigation from other government players could still wallop their capital, he said.
- FHFA Sues Barclays over mortgage securities over losses for $4.9 billion: RTRS
- FHFA Sues Merrill Lynch Bank of Americal over mortgage securities over losses for $30.85 billion: RTRS
Freddie and Fannie deserve a lot of the blame for the current state of housing related economic slump. However, it became fashionable for the wing nuts to keep bashing ONLY Freddie and Fannie for all the mortgage related troubles. Some of these apologists contend that the private sector banks, shadow banks and the greedy pigs at the investment banks have nothing to do with the pervasive and rampant fraud these entities have perpetrated. What will the apologists of these entities say now?