I think today’s market drop is the conspiracy hatched by banks and analysts. Many retail investors are already out of the market. Today’s market drop is the blackmail to warn the government to throw more money at the banks without any oversight.
Ok, I am getting carried away. This is nonsense. Think about it. Everyone was praying for Senate to pass the stimulus bill. Now, there is an expectation to know all the details of bailout plan as quickly as possible. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner gave the speech about how the Fed is going to handle the crisis. However, market participants blamed that Mr. Geithner’s speech lacked details.
Hey guys, it’s the plan for one trillion dollars! It’s not your household budget. It will take time to come out with specific plans and actions. The bank managers and analysts want to see the green light to their industry as soon as possible. When they don’t get to see it, they screw up the market.
Referring to Mr. Geithner’s announcement, which didn’t specify how the government would determine the prices of underwater credit bets it wants to take off of banks’ hands, Richard Peterson, director of risk strategies at Standard & Poor’s in New York, said: “It’s almost like a chapter out of Dickens where you end with a cliffhanger wondering what’s going to happen next to the characters.” See… is the Fed running some kind of show?
We are in a real mess. It is getting more and more complicated. Obama or Geithner can’t do any magic to solve the issues in a day or two. It’s going to take lot of time. Banks that are salivating for tax payers’ money won’t get it without any strings attached to it. Hedge funds that are dying to take some money from Fed won’t get it easily as well. Everything will take time for careful evaluation and planning.
Until then, retail investors should not worry about daily swings in the market. Let the bank folks torture themselves with their own chaotic trading pattern. Let the rest of us stay away and move on with our daily lives.
To quote Stephanie Cutter, Treasury spokeswoman: “We understood that some might be disappointed that we didn’t announce a large bailout program. But our focus is on what will be the best comprehensive plan to protect taxpayer dollars, jump-start lending and bring forth a long-term financial recovery, not the hour-by-hour movement of the markets or a particular company’s stock on any given day.”
I agree that the daily movements of the market shouldn’t be the worries of the treasury department. I also agree that money shouldn’t be thrown at banks like Paulson did with no accountability. I believe that Geithner and the rest of Obama’s team need to work quickly to make the details clear of how things will work, so that as individuals we can see how our dollars are being spent. As of now, we have no idea where that money is going.