US announces plan to delay foreclosures

Since 2000, it has ballooned from $900 billion to more than $45.5 trillion � roughly twice the size of the entire United States stock market.

No one knows how troubled the credit swaps market is, because, like the now-distressed market for subprime mortgage securities, it is unregulated. But because swaps have proliferated so rapidly, experts say that a hiccup in this market could set off a chain reaction of losses at financial institutions, making it even harder for borrowers to get loans that grease economic activity.

It is entirely possible that this market can withstand a big jump in corporate defaults, if it comes. But an inkling of trouble emerged in a recent report from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, a federal banking regulator. It warned that a significant increase in trading in swaps during the third quarter of last year put a strain on processing systems used by banks to handle these trades and make sure they match up. read more

President Bush to Push for Tax Rebates, Breaks for Businesses to Keep �

Gearing up with cheap money cuts both ways when one-way betting goes wrong...

We can only guess at quite how much money has so far been lost by bullish gold traders this week.

The net long position of speculative traders - the total number of their bullish contracts minus their bearish betting - had never been greater than in the week to last Tuesday, the latest data available. With Gold Prices only pushing higher 'til Monday, you can bet there was never so much money at stake, gambled on gold's 38% surge in five months only running one way.

Of course, gold buyers holding just physical gold - that most simple of assets - are also showing a loss from the new all-time record of $914 per ounce. But at least they don't face any margin calls. read more