Is there a case for suspending the markets?
James Forsyth 2:27pm
The White House yesterday dismissed Silvio Berlusconi’s suggestion that the markets should be shut down for a few days. But support for this idea is still gathering pace. Steven Pearlstein, the Washington Post’s respected business commentator, makes the case for it today:
Personally, I’m sceptical. I suspect that it would just lead to an almighty sell-off when the suspension was lifted and would add to the air of panic. But I suspect that we’ll hear more people floating this idea before the crisis is over.the markets could use a timeout just about now, something that lasts longer than a weekend and gives policymakers around the world the chance to get a good nice sleep and evaluate their options without feeling like they have to respond to every movement flashing across their Bloomberg screens. It would allow some time for passions to cool and for real investors to regain control of markets now dominated by the computerized short-term trading strategies of hedge funds and hot-shot money managers desperate to recoup some of their losses. It would give banks and major corporations a chance to regain the trust of the markets by issuing unscheduled updates on their financial condition.
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mitch
October 11th, 2008 3:38pm Report this commentThis whole sorry mess just shows how little people understand what's happening.Surely this "market correction" had to come sooner or later and all greenspan/brown did by flooding the market with cheap money was to push the date back a bit and the fall further.
I can see this and I am just a humble Engineer who makes real things not just bits of paper that as this crisis proves are not worth a hill of beans.These damn fools with their student ideology have tampered with a powerful force they know nothing about and look stunned when it rips their arm off.
Hosing a burning market with borrowed money is truly idiotic.Next thing our "leaders" will do is let inflation rip to erode the huge debt and then start the whole sorry mess off again saying "look we fixed it".I despair of the human race and its inability to chose leaders who fix problems rather than create more.
Outer Circle
October 11th, 2008 8:36pm Report this commentLong live capital. If it is false capital let it be destroyed. In the greatest bubble of all time the destruction will be immense. The force is too strong to hold back. The markets are telling us the party is over. The conservatives and new labour fell for the false dogma that people should take on huge debt and speculate in property. The property owning class are the biggest most powerful class in our country - media, politicians, et al. The horror when property falls is huge. Front pages demand something be done. The pornography during the bubble was high art. The underclass missed it all and there violent anger has escalated. It will be good if we all got poorer. The socialistic greed was obscene. Capital was debased. Scotland thought it was on the march with RBS and HBOS. The two banks that have brought Britain to the brink. Very bonnie.
Key workers must be helped on the housing bubble - thank you Gordon for loading me up with a life of debt and deflation - cheers mate, nice one. Tony Blair the king of bling and ace property magnate - we miss you.
Middle England you have been shafted by your stupid leaders. Daily Mail, Times; all of you are property porners. C4 cheers for the drug. BBC1 up yours! You all took part in the great debt swindle.
The bubble is bursting and a 40% fall is on the cards.
Buy-to- let I'll meet you in penury. Cheers kirstie - love ya! Homes under the Hammer - god bless you.
Centrefold pictures of mansions - so erotic. Those big chimmneys. Ouch!
No more marbled kitchens. Me wooden floors..gosh.
Britain you have been living on debt. The City is bust, Property is bust and now the State is bust. We are all bust after the greatest bubble in British history.
Gordon Brown's "boom & bust" rhetoric was the big warning sign that Britain had gone mad. Brown is bonkers. We all went mad - except the 95% too poor or sane to join in.
Collective madness.
Buy-to-let madness.
Maxed on credit card madness.
Homes abroad madness.
It was all a big bubble.
Long capital - kill the bad capital. Capital will be re-born. The state will shrink - capital will win. Socialism for housing will die. Free from debt we will march on.
Ganpat Ram
October 11th, 2008 10:42pm Report this commentThere is an excellent case for not only nationalising the banks, but for forbidding all stock market transactions for a long time until the crooked mess called capitalism is sorted out.
If only we had a Churchill today ! He would have done it like a shot, setting aside all his capitalist prejudices.
Travis Bickle
October 11th, 2008 11:29pm Report this commentHorse.. stable.. door.
Should have suspended the markets on Friday 2nd, then like most people I'd be 20% richer than I am today
Roy Simpson
October 12th, 2008 5:16pm Report this commentThe demise of socialism in recent years (both democratic and autocratic versions,) should give Ganpat Ram serious food for thought.
Alternatively, he could of course consider emigrating to Cuba.
Frank P
October 13th, 2008 12:53am Report this commentOuter Circle
Enjoyed your post.
Gresham's Law, it seems not to to have been mentioned in recent events. Discuss.
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