G10 Advancers and Decliners vs USD JPY 0.44 GBP -0.44 EUR -0.51 CHF -0.56 Gold has once again outshone other assets classes by powering to new highs above $1153, bringing the gains month-to-date to an astounding +10.2%. The move has been paralleled by rallies in most major a ... Read t ... Read more

This is a recurring theme: a bank fails, the Inspector General reviews the failure and discovers that the field examiners saw problems starting around 2002, and ... nothing happened for years. We saw this with the Federal Reserve and the failure of Riverside Bank of the Gulf Coast , and with the ... Read more

H&H Bagels , bakers of what Zagat once called iconic bagels, now has a new, and unwelcome, claim to fame (or infamy). New York City alleges that the bagel company's owner, Helmer Toro, is a tax cheat . Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau has charged Toro with ... Read th ... Read more

Typically, one of the best thing Congress ever does is nothing. And so it is again with the Cap-And-Trade energy bill. Thankfully, Senate Climate Bill Delay Raises Doubt on Chance for U.S. Law . The U.S. Senate won’t try to pass a bill limiting U.S. greenhouse-gas emissions for months, clouding ... Read more

Islamic Finance: Lower Risk, But at What Cost? - BusinessWeek: "Financial products based on 8th-century religious laws may seem an unlikely haven during a global crisis. But Islamic banking and financial services, based on traditional Muslim laws known as Sharia, are enjoying a major resurgence. ... Read more

In what should be no surprise, banks are cutting back on small business loans. Please consider Small business loans: $10 billion evaporates . Eight months after President Obama began prodding the nation's banks to increase their small business lending, the loan numbers continue to move in the oppos ... Read more

G10 Advancers and Decliners vs USD CHF 0.70 EUR 0.66 JPY -0.16 GBP -0.35 Gold has once again outshone other assets classes by powering to new highs above $1152, bringing the gains month-to-date to an astounding +10.2%. The move has been paralleled by rallies in most major and ... Read t ... Read more