Fed Officials Debate the Wisdom of $600 Billion of Asset Purchases—Publicly(CNBC.com with Reuters) The view among Federal Reserve board governors on QE2 seems far from uniformly positive, even among those who voted for easing, based on recent public statements.
Bad Precedent for Banks? Ohio Attorney General Pushes Foreclosure Challenge (Bloomberg) In a foreclosure case in Ohio, Attorney General Richard Cordray has just taken the next legal steps in his continuing struggle to force banks to meet more onerous standards—and possibly face penalties — in foreclosure claims involving faulty documentation. (For example: when cases involve faulty loan paperwork, Cordray doesn't want banks to be able to simply resubmit the documents—pointing out that judges have the power to impose “sanctions, penalties, fines and even default,” against banks.)
Indian Prime Minister Singh Likes QE2 – Not Surprisingly, Perhaps, He's an Economist by Trade (New York Times) Amid jeers from the Germans, Brazilians, and Chinese, who believe the U.S. is driving down the value of the dollar, India's Prime Minister Singh publicly supports the U.S. Federal Reserve's latest round of asset purchases, citing the growth of the U.S. economy as a key factor in the global recovery.
Gold Hits New High, Again (WSJ) Gold futures top historic $1,400 mark amid uncertainties over G20 currency talks. (Sovereign credit default swap prices rise.)
Stock May be Maxed Out, For Now (Yahoo) After several months of soaring prices, U.S. equities may no longer be rising, according to some analysts and market strategists.
Volcker Rule Prohibition on Prop Trading no Big Loss for Morgan Stanley? (Business Insider) Why not? According to Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman, the firm hasn't been "outstanding in our proprietary trading over time" anyway.