BIS warns of collapse in global lending

Started by CrackSmokeRepublican, December 09, 2008, 09:37:53 PM

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CrackSmokeRepublican

BIS warns of collapse in global lending
The City of London has suffered a dramatic collapse in its core business as global lending falls at the steepest rate since records began, according to new figures from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).
 

By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
Last Updated: 8:53AM GMT 09 Dec 2008

Cross-border loans worldwide fell by $1.1 trillion (£740bn) in the first half of the year, reflecting the scramble by the financial industry to cut leverage by pulling credit lines and slashing risky exposure.

Foreign lending by UK banks fell by a staggering $884bn, equal to 81pc of the entire contraction in international lending.

The City is facing a double blow since worldwide issuance of bonds and securities has also gone into freefall, plummeting 77pc from over a trillion dollars to $247bn in the third quarter. The City has been the epicentre of Europe's structured credit industry.

The collapse in bond issuance reflects the near-total closure of the capital markets in the late summer as credit spreads surged. Bonds issued in euros dropped by 94pc from $466bn to $28bn over the quarter.

The UK banking sector includes branches of US, European, Asian and Mid-East institutions. These banks tend to use London as a base for their global credit and investment operations.

Though foreign, they make up a crucial part of the City nexus and are a mainstay for accounting firms, lawyers and the panoply of financial services that enrich the City.

In its quarterly report, the BIS warned the US Federal Reserve, the Bank of England and other central banks that near-zero interest rates and emergency monetary stimulus may come at a cost.

By opening the cash spigot, the authorities risk displacing the money markets and may "discourage banks from lending to other banks".

The money markets are a crucial lubricant for the financial system, but they cannot function if rates fall too low. The sector can wither away, as Japan discovered during its "Lost Decade".

The BIS also hinted that the European Central Bank and Sweden's Riksbank may have blundered by raising rates
this year to contain the oil shock. It said short-term energy spikes have no lasting effect on inflation or wage deals.

"Evidence suggests an absence of strong second-round effects on inflation. The temporary inflationary impulse will soon drop out," it said.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/news ... nding.html
After the Revolution of 1905, the Czar had prudently prepared for further outbreaks by transferring some $400 million in cash to the New York banks, Chase, National City, Guaranty Trust, J.P.Morgan Co., and Hanover Trust. In 1914, these same banks bought the controlling number of shares in the newly organized Federal Reserve Bank of New York, paying for the stock with the Czar\'s sequestered funds. In November 1917,  Red Guards drove a truck to the Imperial Bank and removed the Romanoff gold and jewels. The gold was later shipped directly to Kuhn, Loeb Co. in New York.-- Curse of Canaan

sullivan

QuoteIt said short-term energy spikes have no lasting effect on inflation or wage deals.
Of course it doesn't. What does have an effect, and practically the only thing that does, is the interest (money for nothing) levied on the debt-based currencies produced by the central banks and shuffled around by the BIS.
"The real menace of our Republic is the invisible government which like a giant octopus sprawls its slimy legs over our cities, states and nation. At the head is a small group of banking houses generally referred to as \'international bankers.\' This little coterie... run our government for their own selfish ends. It operates under cover of a self-created screen, seizes our executive officers, legislative bodies, schools, courts, newspapers and every agency created for the public protection."
John F. Hylan (1868-1936) - Former Mayor of New York City