US Fed pumps $1.0t more into market in March
Friday, 10 April 2009
From Fazle Rashid
NEW YORK, Apr 9: Unrelenting downhill slide in economy forced the US Fed Reserve to pump in more than $1.0 trillion into the market in March. It was done so without any fanfare. It was not reported in the media.
The minutes of the March 17-18 meeting offered a glimpse of how the Fed decided to inject more liquidity into the economy by buying $750 billion in mortgage backed securities and $300 billion of longer term Treasuries, the New York Times (NYT) reported today.
The stress tests of the ailing banks has started. For last eight weeks nearly 200 federal examiners have laboured inside some of nation's biggest banks to determine how those institutions would hold up if the recession deepened, NYT reported. The examiners have concluded that the banking industry appears to be in a better shape than many think but hastened to say many of the largest lenders would need further cash infusions.
Regulators say all the 19 banks put to "stress test" will pass the exam. Reluctant banks will be coaxed to dispose off their toxic assets.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has become delinquent in meeting payments to contractors. British contractors are gripped with panic about Gulf state failing to meet its payment deadline. The UAE, particularly Dubai has been hit hard by the meltdown. The situation prompted a British minister to fly to the UAE to seek assurances from the rulers that the money due to British contractors would be paid.
Mohammad bin Kharbash, a former state minister of finance has been charged with embezzlement of public money.
Mobile phone has, meanwhile, become both sign of social status and affluence. The mobile phone sell fell by 162 million in the final quarter of 2008. More than 4.0 billion people across the globe use cell phones. Some of the world's fastest growing mobile markets Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Philippines were hit hard, a reputed paper said. China is the largest mobile market in the world.
On the political front, the most startling news is Washington saying that it cannot settle Afghanistan and such other issues "without India's full involvement". Richard Holbrooke, US special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan said America and India shared the same priorities in their approach to Afghanistan.
The United States and Nato members have spent billions of dollars and used the latest lethal weapons along Pak-Afghan border for past several years to eliminate Talebans and al-Qaeda.
The United States, principal player in the war against Islamic insurgency, now realises that all these have gone in waste. The major factor in confronting the Islamic insurgents will be India's active participation. The new US perception will obviously be not welcomed in Islamabad.
Richard Holbrooke, and Chairman of the US Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen had visited Kabul, Islamabad and New Delhi.
In another development, Indonesia, now seen as model of democracy in a Muslim world, has gone to polls today. Indonesia's 171 million voters are yet to settle which of 38 parties and 1.64 million candidates will vote for. Indonesia has been described as world's third largest democracy.
NEW YORK, Apr 9: Unrelenting downhill slide in economy forced the US Fed Reserve to pump in more than $1.0 trillion into the market in March. It was done so without any fanfare. It was not reported in the media.
The minutes of the March 17-18 meeting offered a glimpse of how the Fed decided to inject more liquidity into the economy by buying $750 billion in mortgage backed securities and $300 billion of longer term Treasuries, the New York Times (NYT) reported today.
The stress tests of the ailing banks has started. For last eight weeks nearly 200 federal examiners have laboured inside some of nation's biggest banks to determine how those institutions would hold up if the recession deepened, NYT reported. The examiners have concluded that the banking industry appears to be in a better shape than many think but hastened to say many of the largest lenders would need further cash infusions.
Regulators say all the 19 banks put to "stress test" will pass the exam. Reluctant banks will be coaxed to dispose off their toxic assets.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has become delinquent in meeting payments to contractors. British contractors are gripped with panic about Gulf state failing to meet its payment deadline. The UAE, particularly Dubai has been hit hard by the meltdown. The situation prompted a British minister to fly to the UAE to seek assurances from the rulers that the money due to British contractors would be paid.
Mohammad bin Kharbash, a former state minister of finance has been charged with embezzlement of public money.
Mobile phone has, meanwhile, become both sign of social status and affluence. The mobile phone sell fell by 162 million in the final quarter of 2008. More than 4.0 billion people across the globe use cell phones. Some of the world's fastest growing mobile markets Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Philippines were hit hard, a reputed paper said. China is the largest mobile market in the world.
On the political front, the most startling news is Washington saying that it cannot settle Afghanistan and such other issues "without India's full involvement". Richard Holbrooke, US special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan said America and India shared the same priorities in their approach to Afghanistan.
The United States and Nato members have spent billions of dollars and used the latest lethal weapons along Pak-Afghan border for past several years to eliminate Talebans and al-Qaeda.
The United States, principal player in the war against Islamic insurgency, now realises that all these have gone in waste. The major factor in confronting the Islamic insurgents will be India's active participation. The new US perception will obviously be not welcomed in Islamabad.
Richard Holbrooke, and Chairman of the US Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen had visited Kabul, Islamabad and New Delhi.
In another development, Indonesia, now seen as model of democracy in a Muslim world, has gone to polls today. Indonesia's 171 million voters are yet to settle which of 38 parties and 1.64 million candidates will vote for. Indonesia has been described as world's third largest democracy.