Follow our blogs http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/rss Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2013/05/22/how-is-the-abenomics-economic-experiment-going-in-japan 2013-05-22T10:14:49Z 2013-05-22T10:14:49Z

Last Monday saw plenty of action in the markets of the Far East with the price of Silver falling by 7% at one point before recovering to

Mindful Money 2013-05-22T10:14:49Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/05/21/how-rigged-are-the-markets-libor-isdafix-oil-price 2013-05-21T08:51:48Z 2013-05-21T08:51:48Z

It seems that news about the fixing of trillion dollar markets is becoming, well, rather routine. First there was Libor, then there was the

Anthony Harrington 2013-05-21T08:51:48Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/05/17/australian-trade-eyes-there-renminbi-free-float-exchange 2013-05-17T07:57:35Z 2013-05-17T07:57:35Z

What does any nation with a significant amount of trade with China want? Probably many things, but a free floating renminbi exchange rate

Anthony Harrington 2013-05-17T07:57:35Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/05/16/qfinance-financial-news-roundup-business-financial-may-10-15-2013 2013-05-16T09:24:26Z 2013-05-16T09:24:26Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-05-16T09:24:26Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/05/14/eurozone-ecb-rate-cut-perturbs-the-euro 2013-05-14T09:51:43Z 2013-05-14T09:51:43Z

There is a grim inevitability about the way in which analysts pour over every utterance from senior figures at the European Central Bank,

Anthony Harrington 2013-05-14T09:51:43Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/05/13/investments-extraordinary-times-call-for-caution 2013-05-13T08:06:52Z 2013-05-13T08:06:52Z

Take a lackluster, nay, flat to falling economy in Europe and under-performance in the US and match that with record highs for the Standard

Anthony Harrington 2013-05-13T08:06:52Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2013/05/09/a-monetarist-case-for-uk-optimism-economy-qe 2013-05-09T10:15:59Z 2013-05-09T10:15:59Z

Rather than “flat-lining”, the British economy has been regaining momentum since late 2011. This trend is obscured in official GDP

Mindful Money 2013-05-09T10:15:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/05/08/russian-privatiation-plans-in-wobbly-mode 2013-05-08T09:42:49Z 2013-05-08T09:42:49Z

Russia's attempt in the 1990s to "leap with one bound" from a Soviet style "ownership of the means of production" to a modern, capitalist,

Anthony Harrington 2013-05-08T09:42:49Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/05/01/qfinance-financial-news-roundup-business-finance-stock-markets 2013-05-01T16:20:20Z 2013-05-01T16:20:20Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-05-01T16:20:20Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/05/01/developing-economies-find-the-capital-markets-wide-open-according-to-the-world-bank 2013-05-01T10:18:50Z 2013-05-01T10:18:50Z

In its "Global Economic Prospects" report for January 2013 the World Bank has some very interesting figures on the extent to which the hunt

Anthony Harrington 2013-05-01T10:18:50Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2013/04/29/the-fastest-growing-economies-in-2013 2013-04-29T11:08:38Z 2013-04-29T11:08:38Z

As the European Union mulls another year of economic stagnation and the United States a year of lackluster and uncertain economic recovery,

Economy Watch 2013-04-29T11:08:38Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/04/26/currency-war-diplomatic-g20-lagarde-imf-g7 2013-04-26T08:13:39Z 2013-04-26T08:13:39Z

The phrase "currency war" is undoubtedly an emotive one and the G20 at its February 17th/18th meeting, along with IMF chief Christine

Anthony Harrington 2013-04-26T08:13:39Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/04/25/rogoff-reinharts-little-blunder-does-it-matter-austerity-economy 2013-04-25T10:39:19Z 2013-04-25T10:39:19Z

Opponents of austerity have no reason to love a couple of high powered economists who seem to be on a mission to convince senior

Anthony Harrington 2013-04-25T10:39:19Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/04/25/qfinance-financial-news-roundup-business-finance-3 2013-04-25T09:35:41Z 2013-04-25T09:35:41Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-04-25T09:35:41Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2013/04/24/margaret-thatcher-economic-legacy-nation-divided 2013-04-24T08:31:26Z 2013-04-24T08:31:26Z

The funeral of former British PM Margaret Thatcher saw a nation divided in hatred and love for one of the most iconic world leaders of

Economy Watch 2013-04-24T08:31:26Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/04/19/financial-roundup-news-business-finance-latest-economy 2013-04-19T09:20:50Z 2013-04-19T09:20:50Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-04-19T09:20:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/04/17/bank-of-japan-analyses-the-ageing-dilemma-and-other-headwinds 2013-04-17T10:58:47Z 2013-04-17T10:58:47Z

In his last speech as Governor of the Bank of Japan, Masaaki Shirakawa gave a detailed account of what is required to strengthen growth in

Anthony Harrington 2013-04-17T10:58:47Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/04/16/reserve-bank-india-view-macro-economic-challenges-investments 2013-04-16T09:21:13Z 2013-04-16T09:21:13Z

In a fascinating speech to the London School of Economics, Duvvuri Subbarao, the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) talked about

Anthony Harrington 2013-04-16T09:21:13Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2013/04/12/japanese-qe-quantitative-easing-bank-bond-sales-may-sterilise-m3-impact 2013-04-12T09:30:37Z 2013-04-12T09:30:37Z

A post last week suggested that the Bank of Japan’s monetary blitz would boost the M3 broad money supply by less than 3% in 2013. Further

Mindful Money 2013-04-12T09:30:37Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/04/11/qfinance-financial-news-roundup-business-finance-2 2013-04-11T14:27:19Z 2013-04-11T14:27:19Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-04-11T14:27:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/04/10/the-indian-financial-sector-pity-about-the-states-thumb-on-the-scales 2013-04-10T13:12:41Z 2013-04-10T13:12:41Z

The Indian financial sector did rather better through the 2008 global financial crisis than the financial sectors in many western

Anthony Harrington 2013-04-10T13:12:41Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/04/09/world-bank-ponders-impact-of-sea-level-rises-on-developing-countries 2013-04-09T09:16:18Z 2013-04-09T09:16:18Z

Proponents of global warming have long warned of the potential for sea levels to rise one to three meters over the course of the present

Anthony Harrington 2013-04-09T09:16:18Z Shaun Richards http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/shaun-richards/2013/04/03/cyprus-faces-an-economic-catastrophe-even-worse-than-that-inflicted-on-greece 2013-04-03T10:31:22Z 2013-04-03T10:31:22Z

The last fortnight has seen some extraordinary developments in the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. These have seen a small island become a

Shaun Richards 2013-04-03T10:31:22Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/03/28/qfinance-financial-news-roundup-business-finance-global-markets 2013-03-28T14:48:23Z 2013-03-28T14:48:23Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-03-28T14:48:23Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/03/27/global-warming-sustainable-development-climate-impact-squaring-up-low-growth-world 2013-03-27T09:47:52Z 2013-03-27T09:47:52Z

In Part One I looked at the demographic argument put forward by Jeremy Grantham, co founder and chief investment strategist at GMO

Anthony Harrington 2013-03-27T09:47:52Z Gervais Williams http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/gervais-williams/2013/03/25/cyprus-eu-europe-finance-thin-end-of-a-very-worrying-wedge-economy 2013-03-25T12:02:47Z 2013-03-25T12:02:47Z

Cyprus is a small country.  And globally there are very few depositors outside of Cyprus who have significant cash balances in their

Gervais Williams 2013-03-25T12:02:47Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2013/03/21/uk-budget-2013-still-fiddling-around-the-edges 2013-03-21T11:22:00Z 2013-03-21T11:22:00Z

The Chancellor could have chosen to be bold in this Budget, despite the weak state of the public finances. He could, for example, have

Mindful Money 2013-03-21T11:22:00Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/03/21/squaring-up-to-a-low-growth-world-part-one 2013-03-21T10:17:10Z 2013-03-21T10:17:10Z

There wasn't much of an outcry in the media when the US Congressional Budget Office told the Senate Budget Committee and the House Budget

Anthony Harrington 2013-03-21T10:17:10Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/03/18/eurozone-draghi-proves-masterly-at-manipulating-the-euro 2013-03-18T13:07:36Z 2013-03-18T13:07:36Z

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing a few FX strategists on the theme of making above average returns from currency trading. There

Anthony Harrington 2013-03-18T13:07:36Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/03/15/pakistan-the-glass-half-full-or-more-than-a-bit-empty 2013-03-15T15:05:30Z 2013-03-15T15:05:30Z

Comparisons between India and Pakistan do the latter few favors, although with the two countries constantly squaring off over issues like

Anthony Harrington 2013-03-15T15:05:30Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/03/14/every-peak-has-its-trough-but-have-markets-peaked-investments 2013-03-14T11:51:20Z 2013-03-14T11:51:20Z

One of the things that keeps traders trading - apart from money, of course - is the power the markets have to astonish. For what seems like

Anthony Harrington 2013-03-14T11:51:20Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/03/13/qfinance-financial-news-roundup-march-8-13-2013 2013-03-13T15:55:31Z 2013-03-13T15:55:31Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-03-13T15:55:31Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2013/03/13/be-careful-russia-is-back-to-stay-in-the-middle-east 2013-03-13T10:35:08Z 2013-03-13T10:35:08Z

Russia is back. President Vladimir Putin wants the world to acknowledge that Russia remains a global power. He is making his stand in

All About Alpha 2013-03-13T10:35:08Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/03/12/death-chavez-return-venezuela-latin-america 2013-03-12T12:14:35Z 2013-03-12T12:14:35Z

In the 1930s, when it looked as if Socialism in its various guises was going to sweep all before it, the Austrian economist Ludwig von

Anthony Harrington 2013-03-12T12:14:35Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2013/03/11/housing-bubble-why-the-us-property-market-is-headed-for-another-crash 2013-03-11T14:50:23Z 2013-03-11T14:50:23Z

U.S. house prices have risen for the past year, provoking calls that the market has stabilized; But American investment broker Peter Schiff

Economy Watch 2013-03-11T14:50:23Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/03/08/ireland-bond-deal-with-its-central-bank-sets-precedent-says-weidmann-ecb-europe-economy 2013-03-08T14:54:47Z 2013-03-08T14:54:47Z

At a recent press conference, Mario Draghi batted away a seemingly endless stream of questions about the European Central Bank's take on

Anthony Harrington 2013-03-08T14:54:47Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/03/07/qfinance-financial-news-roundup-business-finance-global-world 2013-03-07T12:47:44Z 2013-03-07T12:47:44Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-03-07T12:47:44Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2013/03/07/russell-strips-greece-of-developed-market-status 2013-03-07T11:07:22Z 2013-03-07T11:07:22Z

Greece has been stripped of her developed market status and re-categorized as an emerging market by fund manager and index provider

Mindful Money 2013-03-07T11:07:22Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/03/04/eu-budget-brings-austerity-home-to-roost-for-the-eu 2013-03-04T10:05:52Z 2013-03-04T10:05:52Z

The latest meeting of EU Heads of State can claim a remarkable success in its efforts to agree a Budget for the next 7 years, or in other

Anthony Harrington 2013-03-04T10:05:52Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/03/01/dismantling-universal-banks-bad-idea-says-deutsche-bank-research-finance-banking 2013-03-01T15:16:34Z 2013-03-01T15:16:34Z

These days with re-regulation of the banking system being enthusiastically supported by governments across developed markets, it is hard to

Anthony Harrington 2013-03-01T15:16:34Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/02/28/gulf-banks-set-fair-for-2013 2013-02-28T14:48:58Z 2013-02-28T14:48:58Z

Two reports on the state of the banking sector in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), one from the ratings agency, Standard & Poor's in

Anthony Harrington 2013-02-28T14:48:58Z Shaun Richards http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/shaun-richards/2013/02/27/the-reserve-bank-of-india-is-taking-quite-a-gamble-with-indias-economic-future 2013-02-27T12:47:01Z 2013-02-27T12:47:01Z

The Prime Minister of the UK David Cameron has just completed a state visit to India with the objective of boosting links between his

Shaun Richards 2013-02-27T12:47:01Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/02/26/imf-bumps-up-against-its-limits-with-reserves-report-finance-global 2013-02-26T13:33:11Z 2013-02-26T13:33:11Z

Sometimes it's just no fun being the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Somewhere around 2009, contemplating the fiasco of the great crash

Anthony Harrington 2013-02-26T13:33:11Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/02/22/dhls-five-versions-of-life-in-2050 2013-02-22T11:26:01Z 2013-02-22T11:26:01Z

All multinational companies should at least try to think beyond their tried and tested rolling three year plans. Oil companies are

Anthony Harrington 2013-02-22T11:26:01Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/02/20/telecoms-regulation-hidebound-and-heading-for-disaster 2013-02-20T14:58:53Z 2013-02-20T14:58:53Z

The tremendous strides in technology in the telecoms sector have so far conspicuously failed to be matched by anything like a parallel

Anthony Harrington 2013-02-20T14:58:53Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/02/14/qfinance-financial-news-roundup-business-finance 2013-02-14T11:49:14Z 2013-02-14T11:49:14Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-02-14T11:49:14Z EconMatters http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/econmatters-/2013/02/14/is-inflation-really-a-problem-investments-markets 2013-02-14T10:42:14Z 2013-02-14T10:42:14Z

Consumers only focus on Inflation, they ignore deflation areasIt seems that to exclusively focus on one side of the equation can be human

EconMatters 2013-02-14T10:42:14Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/02/11/is-britain-going-bust-business-confidence-uk-lowest 2013-02-11T09:10:53Z 2013-02-11T09:10:53Z

One of the tactics that publishers of wealth management journals like to employ, or deploy, is to shock potential readers with the idea

Anthony Harrington 2013-02-11T09:10:53Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/02/05/capital-flows-too-much-of-a-good-thing-markets-finance 2013-02-05T13:00:29Z 2013-02-05T13:00:29Z

The damage that "hot money", ie surges of incoming capital, can wreak on the fiscal policies of a domestic economy has been proved time and

Anthony Harrington 2013-02-05T13:00:29Z Wolfgang Fengler http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/wolfgang-fengler/2013/02/01/has-africa-outgrown-aid 2013-02-01T11:54:46Z 2013-02-01T11:54:46Z

Africa’s emergence is the new consensus. For the second time in a just few months, a major international journal has run a cover

Wolfgang Fengler 2013-02-01T11:54:46Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/01/31/local-sovereign-bonds-in-emerging-markets-a-safe-haven 2013-01-31T09:53:37Z 2013-01-31T09:53:37Z

Asian bond markets still have some way to go to achieve the levels of the US and European bond markets, but according to a recent paper by

Anthony Harrington 2013-01-31T09:53:37Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/01/30/qfinance-financial-news-roundup-january-24-30-2013 2013-01-30T16:14:49Z 2013-01-30T16:14:49Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-01-30T16:14:49Z EconMatters http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/econmatters-/2013/01/30/the-market-rally-tells-us-nothing-about-the-economy 2013-01-30T15:47:10Z 2013-01-30T15:47:10Z

Just four months ago…Markets have had a good run from the third quarter earning's sell-off, the inevitable Santa Claus rally, and the first

EconMatters 2013-01-30T15:47:10Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/01/29/world-economic-forum-davos-2013-dynamic 2013-01-29T16:12:21Z 2013-01-29T16:12:21Z

The slogan for the World Economic Forum Davos 2013 has had a lot of people scratching their heads: "Dynamic resilience" is not the kind of

Anthony Harrington 2013-01-29T16:12:21Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/01/28/exit-hatch-to-the-euro-europe-eu-crisis 2013-01-28T15:23:52Z 2013-01-28T15:23:52Z

In an excellent paper pondering how an orderly exit from the euro could be achieved, CASS Business School's Rob Thomas starts from the

Anthony Harrington 2013-01-28T15:23:52Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/01/24/qfinance-financial-news-roundup 2013-01-24T11:04:13Z 2013-01-24T11:04:13Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-01-24T11:04:13Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/01/22/the-auto-industry-and-the-changing-shape-of-world-trade 2013-01-22T13:04:25Z 2013-01-22T13:04:25Z

One of the major ironies of the aftermath of the great crash of 2008 is the way every major country hit by low to no growth is desperate to

Anthony Harrington 2013-01-22T13:04:25Z Bill Sharon http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/bill-sharon/2013/01/21/what-needs-to-go-right-money-markets-global-economy 2013-01-21T14:35:46Z 2013-01-21T14:35:46Z

The trillion-dollar coin is getting a sustained amount of press these days. Essentially the idea is that if the Republicans continue to be

Bill Sharon 2013-01-21T14:35:46Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2013/01/16/news-briefing-economy-finance-business-8 2013-01-16T14:22:11Z 2013-01-16T14:22:11Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2013-01-16T14:22:11Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2013/01/16/year-of-disruption-does-online-boom-spell-doom-for-traditional-university-model-education-digital-internet 2013-01-16T11:58:13Z 2013-01-16T11:58:13Z

The internet has already revolutionized the working environment, the music industry, the media and shopping habits. It now appears likely

Economy Watch 2013-01-16T11:58:13Z Shaun Richards http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/shaun-richards/2013/01/15/is-japan-and-her-economy-moving-forwards-or-towards-an-abyss 2013-01-15T11:04:03Z 2013-01-15T11:04:03Z

Back on the 6th of December 2012 I wrote an article for QFinance outlining the prospects for both Japan and Switzerland with respect to not

Shaun Richards 2013-01-15T11:04:03Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/01/14/crystal-ball-gazing-for-2013-previsions-finance-business-global-affairs 2013-01-14T13:11:09Z 2013-01-14T13:11:09Z

Penning my last blog for 2012, it seems natural to look ahead rather than behind. After all, who wants to sum up 2012 with its austerity,

Anthony Harrington 2013-01-14T13:11:09Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/01/09/gambia-exchange-rates-africa-developing-countries 2013-01-09T15:20:24Z 2013-01-09T15:20:24Z

Yahya Adul-Azizz Jemus Junkung Jammeh, the President of The Gambia, recently conducted what amounts to a fine object lesson in the futility

Anthony Harrington 2013-01-09T15:20:24Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/01/04/arab-countries-to-be-hit-hardest-by-global-warming-says-world-bank-climate-change 2013-01-04T11:05:19Z 2013-01-04T11:05:19Z

The World Bank has produced a massive 450 page report on the potentially devastating impact climate change is likely to have on Arab

Anthony Harrington 2013-01-04T11:05:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2013/01/03/global-economy-and-the-paradox-of-snowplowing-g20 2013-01-03T09:48:27Z 2013-01-03T09:48:27Z

Snowplowing is a classic technique for newbies learning to ski. You put the skis into a triangle, apex forward and get slightly up on the

Anthony Harrington 2013-01-03T09:48:27Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/12/20/news-briefing-economy-finance-business-7 2012-12-20T11:50:03Z 2012-12-20T11:50:03Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-12-20T11:50:03Z Bill Sharon http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/bill-sharon/2012/12/19/the-risk-of-the-single-metric 2012-12-19T15:16:50Z 2012-12-19T15:16:50Z

Over the past several decades the number of metrics used to measure a company’s worth has narrowed to one: profit. The formula is

Bill Sharon 2012-12-19T15:16:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/12/18/carbon-disclosure-price-sustainability-corporate-social-responsibility-csr 2012-12-18T13:46:12Z 2012-12-18T13:46:12Z

In 2008, the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), an organisation based in the UK, published a report on the carbon disclosure results from

Anthony Harrington 2012-12-18T13:46:12Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/12/13/news-briefing-economy-finance-business-6 2012-12-13T10:56:53Z 2012-12-13T10:56:53Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-12-13T10:56:53Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/12/12/japan-growing-stronger-economy-finance-japanese 2012-12-12T14:45:34Z 2012-12-12T14:45:34Z

It is axiomatic that any country with a disproportionately large ageing population has some serious issues to resolve in the medium to long

Anthony Harrington 2012-12-12T14:45:34Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/12/10/apple-crashing-stock-price-market-investments-stocks 2012-12-10T10:14:15Z 2012-12-10T10:14:15Z

It is not unusual for investors to find the markets moving in ways that seem to defy common sense. Companies often feel the same way. They

Anthony Harrington 2012-12-10T10:14:15Z Shaun Richards http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/shaun-richards/2012/12/06/to-how-many-countries-will-negative-interest-rates-spread 2012-12-06T14:53:41Z 2012-12-06T14:53:41Z

One of the subjects which has most exercised my mind over the past eighteen months has been the possible and then increasingly the probable

Shaun Richards 2012-12-06T14:53:41Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/12/06/chancellor-cuts-pension-tax-relief 2012-12-06T10:09:19Z 2012-12-06T10:09:19Z

In his Autumn Statement, Chancellor George Osborne revealed the government's plans to restrict pension tax relief in the coming

Morningstar 2012-12-06T10:09:19Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/12/05/news-briefing-economy-finance-business-5 2012-12-05T16:00:24Z 2012-12-05T16:00:24Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-12-05T16:00:24Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/12/04/microsofts-windows-8-is-it-smart-to-make-an-enterprise-pc-look-like-a-smart-phone 2012-12-04T16:11:37Z 2012-12-04T16:11:37Z

In October 2012 Microsoft launched its much heralded next generation operating system, Windows 8. Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the dire

Anthony Harrington 2012-12-04T16:11:37Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/12/03/china-addiction-investment-led-growth-risk-crisis 2012-12-03T09:21:08Z 2012-12-03T09:21:08Z

Just in case the two men who were recently installed as China’s leader-in-waiting – premier-designate Li Keqiang and Communist Party of

Ian Fraser 2012-12-03T09:21:08Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/11/30/indonesia-10th-largest-economy-by-2025 2012-11-30T11:08:13Z 2012-11-30T11:08:13Z

When you are the world's fourth most populous country, with over 238 million citizens, it makes sense to think in terms of lifting your

Anthony Harrington 2012-11-30T11:08:13Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/11/30/news-briefing-economy-finance-business-4 2012-11-30T09:11:57Z 2012-11-30T09:11:57Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-11-30T09:11:57Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2012/11/27/africa-equities-investments-alternative-beyond-brics 2012-11-27T12:44:14Z 2012-11-27T12:44:14Z

GFIA Research Insights for October 2012 showcases five hedge funds that invest in Africa, offering both numbers and insights for each.The

All About Alpha 2012-11-27T12:44:14Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/11/26/francois-hollande-france-eurozone-thatcherite 2012-11-26T12:43:27Z 2012-11-26T12:43:27Z

Many of François Hollande’s predecessors as French president have publicly stressed the need for structural reforms – for example plans to

Ian Fraser 2012-11-26T12:43:27Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/11/22/facing-up-to-the-end-of-100-years-of-declining-resource-pricing-part-2 2012-11-22T12:17:10Z 2012-11-22T12:17:10Z

In Part One of my analysis of the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) Report, "Resource Revolution: meeting the world's energy, materials, food

Anthony Harrington 2012-11-22T12:17:10Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/11/21/news-briefing-economy-finance-business-3 2012-11-21T16:02:11Z 2012-11-21T16:02:11Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-11-21T16:02:11Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/11/20/facing-up-to-the-end-of-100-years-of-declining-resource-pricing-part-one 2012-11-20T16:19:56Z 2012-11-20T16:19:56Z

It will have occurred to many consumers in the colder climates of Northern Europe and North America that heating bills in particular, and

Anthony Harrington 2012-11-20T16:19:56Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/11/19/french-socialist-europe-left-eu-ideologies-policies-austerity 2012-11-19T10:41:37Z 2012-11-19T10:41:37Z

François Hollande’s rise to power in France was supposed to herald the re-emergence of Left-wing politics in Europe. But with the French

Economy Watch 2012-11-19T10:41:37Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/11/16/bp-looks-for-a-second-bite-at-the-arctic-cherry-part-two 2012-11-16T15:59:18Z 2012-11-16T15:59:18Z

The waters have become so muddy in British oil giant BP's long running battle with its troika of oligarch partners in TKN-BP, Russia's

Anthony Harrington 2012-11-16T15:59:18Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/11/15/news-briefing-economy-finance-business-2 2012-11-15T11:09:41Z 2012-11-15T11:09:41Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-11-15T11:09:41Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/11/13/imf-forecast-slow-growth-investors-world-global 2012-11-13T15:40:03Z 2012-11-13T15:40:03Z

In October, the International Monetary Fund released its World Economic Outlook and the take was hardly rosy. The organization expects the

Morningstar 2012-11-13T15:40:03Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/11/12/singapore-investment-business-capital-economy 2012-11-12T13:18:40Z 2012-11-12T13:18:40Z

In the scramble to invest in emerging markets, especially in Asia where China and India dominate the investment landscape, markets such as

Mindful Money 2012-11-12T13:18:40Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/11/09/bp-looks-for-a-second-bite-arctic-oil-industry 2012-11-09T16:04:12Z 2012-11-09T16:04:12Z

Despite the high profile disaster of the Gulf of Mexico spill, BP is one of the cannier and more sophisticated players on the global scene.

Anthony Harrington 2012-11-09T16:04:12Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/11/08/news-briefing-economy-finance-business 2012-11-08T10:32:15Z 2012-11-08T10:32:15Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-11-08T10:32:15Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/11/05/crop-etf-investments-food-agriculture 2012-11-05T14:24:44Z 2012-11-05T14:24:44Z

There is no question about it: global food consumption is growing. By 2050 the world's population is projected to reach 9 billion, up from

Morningstar 2012-11-05T14:24:44Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/11/02/bernanke-savings-fed-federal-reserve-savers-richer 2012-11-02T13:34:43Z 2012-11-02T13:34:43Z

One of the painful truths about the Federal Reserve's attempt to stimulate growth in the USA post the 2008 global financial crash, is that

Anthony Harrington 2012-11-02T13:34:43Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/10/31/news-briefing-economy-finance-business-24102012 2012-10-31T11:43:03Z 2012-10-31T11:43:03Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-10-31T11:43:03Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2012/10/30/europe-and-gold-eurocrisis-goldprice-price 2012-10-30T11:58:11Z 2012-10-30T11:58:11Z

An analytical piece by Stephen Fidler of The Wall Street Journal’s “Brussels Beat” on October 18th raised the prospect of the use of gold

All About Alpha 2012-10-30T11:58:11Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/10/29/the-resource-curse-australian-economy-growth-asia-markets-australia-china 2012-10-29T12:51:44Z 2012-10-29T12:51:44Z

The Paradox of Plenty, or the Resource Curse, as it is also known, refers to the conundrum posed by the fact that historically, countries

Anthony Harrington 2012-10-29T12:51:44Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/10/26/singapore-growing-power-asian-finance-asia-economy 2012-10-26T12:45:06Z 2012-10-26T12:45:06Z

Two recent speeches featured on the Monetary Authority of Singapore web site give a pretty good indication of the momentum building up in

Anthony Harrington 2012-10-26T12:45:06Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/10/25/uk-recession-gdp-growth-ons-figures 2012-10-25T13:57:25Z 2012-10-25T13:57:25Z

The UK emerged from a double-dip recession in the third quarter of this year, with the London Olympics and Paralympics helping to power the

Morningstar 2012-10-25T13:57:25Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/10/24/finance-business-economy-world-news-briefing 2012-10-24T10:39:33Z 2012-10-24T10:39:33Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-10-24T10:39:33Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/10/23/obama-usa-presidential-elections-billion-dollar-president-us 2012-10-23T13:02:37Z 2012-10-23T13:02:37Z

President Obama’s fundraising campaign is set to raise US$1 billion and that does not even include the massive ads funded by the Super

Economy Watch 2012-10-23T13:02:37Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/10/22/german-constitutional-courts-european-stability-mechanism-eu 2012-10-22T10:25:37Z 2012-10-22T10:25:37Z

It has become something of a sport for leading German academics and others who are opposed to Germany handing over largess - as they see it

Anthony Harrington 2012-10-22T10:25:37Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/10/18/india-economy-finance-financial-reforms 2012-10-18T10:51:22Z 2012-10-18T10:51:22Z

To liberalize finance? Or not to liberalize finance? That is the question. And it is one that is dividing

Ian Fraser 2012-10-18T10:51:22Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/10/17/news-briefing-finance-business-markets-economy 2012-10-17T09:16:21Z 2012-10-17T09:16:21Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-10-17T09:16:21Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/10/16/eu-sovereign-crisis-spain-bailout-banks 2012-10-16T14:08:27Z 2012-10-16T14:08:27Z

The Spanish government (with an assist from the rest of Europe) has spent the last few weeks denying it is on the verge of asking for a

Morningstar 2012-10-16T14:08:27Z Stacy Pruitt http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/stacy-pruitt/2012/10/15/inflation-economic-dragon-global-price-rise 2012-10-15T11:15:21Z 2012-10-15T11:15:21Z

Economists are always trying to predict the next bubble or decipher the previous bubble. One dragon that is beginning to show its head is

Stacy Pruitt 2012-10-15T11:15:21Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/10/11/integrated-financial-sustainability-reporting-india-business-brics 2012-10-11T14:06:59Z 2012-10-11T14:06:59Z

One of the largely unreported and unsung triumphs of the British heir to the throne, Prince Charles, has undoubtedly been the success of

Anthony Harrington 2012-10-11T14:06:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/10/08/facebook-ipo-stock-option-price-investment 2012-10-08T14:52:15Z 2012-10-08T14:52:15Z

Stock options have long been seen as a double edged sword, great for young start-ups who can look ahead to a bright future of soaring

Anthony Harrington 2012-10-08T14:52:15Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2012/10/05/the-politics-of-alpha-europe-china-and-the-usa 2012-10-05T13:02:13Z 2012-10-05T13:02:13Z

On the morning before the first U.S. Presidential debate of the general-election phase of this campaign season, Janus Capital hosted a

All About Alpha 2012-10-05T13:02:13Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/10/04/facebook-ipo-stock-option-and-failing-prices 2012-10-04T12:48:57Z 2012-10-04T12:48:57Z

Two heavyweight journals recently delivered a thumbs down verdict on Mark Zuckerberg’s handling of the Facebook IPO. Forbes tackled the

Anthony Harrington 2012-10-04T12:48:57Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/10/03/finance-economy-business-news-02102012 2012-10-03T11:37:10Z 2012-10-03T11:37:10Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-10-03T11:37:10Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/10/02/numbers-third-quarter-economy-markets-q3 2012-10-02T14:36:50Z 2012-10-02T14:36:50Z

The third quarter of 2012 might have been less scary than in years past, but there was still plenty of bad news in the marketplace. Every

Morningstar 2012-10-02T14:36:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/10/01/india-foreign-investments-economy-fdi 2012-10-01T10:34:32Z 2012-10-01T10:34:32Z

In December 2011 the Indian government did away with the 51% cap on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into single-brand retail chains. From

Anthony Harrington 2012-10-01T10:34:32Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/09/28/india-foreign-investment-fdi-economy 2012-09-28T09:57:24Z 2012-09-28T09:57:24Z

It is no secret that India's retail sector is hugely fragmented, to a degree that would be unthinkable in the UK, Europe or the US, where

Anthony Harrington 2012-09-28T09:57:24Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/09/27/diaoyu-islands-japan-china-demonstrations 2012-09-27T09:50:35Z 2012-09-27T09:50:35Z

Anti-Japanese sentiment in China, whipped up by a dispute over the ownership of an obsure group of islands in the East China Sea, has been

Ian Fraser 2012-09-27T09:50:35Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/09/26/china-economy-monetary-easing 2012-09-26T10:50:42Z 2012-09-26T10:50:42Z

Chinese industrial output is estimated here to have risen by only 1.5% (not annualized) in the six months to August, after adjusting for

Mindful Money 2012-09-26T10:50:42Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/09/26/news-briefing-finance-economy-business 2012-09-26T10:30:08Z 2012-09-26T10:30:08Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-09-26T10:30:08Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/09/25/brics-india-economy-fdi-investments 2012-09-25T13:58:09Z 2012-09-25T13:58:09Z

In an excellent paper, two academics, RamMohan Yallapragada, from the University of Louisiana and Madhu Paruchuri, from Tennessee State

Anthony Harrington 2012-09-25T13:58:09Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/09/24/emerging-market-slowdown-economy-brics 2012-09-24T13:28:35Z 2012-09-24T13:28:35Z

The slowing of economic growth in emerging economies, especially China, and the increased vulnerability in Latin America, are a mixed

Ian Fraser 2012-09-24T13:28:35Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/09/21/the-hft-challenge-to-global-equity-markets 2012-09-21T10:27:32Z 2012-09-21T10:27:32Z

Two excellent recent commentaries on the High Frequency Trading (HFT) dilemma have shed new light on the problem that is perplexing

Anthony Harrington 2012-09-21T10:27:32Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/09/19/qfinance-news-briefing-september-12-18-2012 2012-09-19T10:28:59Z 2012-09-19T10:28:59Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-09-19T10:28:59Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/09/18/the-economic-consequences-of-an-israel-iran-war 2012-09-18T11:03:29Z 2012-09-18T11:03:29Z

An Israeli invasion of Iran could provoke a spiralling in oil prices with catastrophic consequences for the world economy, as well as

Economy Watch 2012-09-18T11:03:29Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/09/17/hong-kong-holds-aces-as-london-tries-to-become-offshore-rmb-trading-hub 2012-09-17T10:30:07Z 2012-09-17T10:30:07Z

China is already the world’s second largest economy but its currency, the renminbi, is barely traded internationally. Unlike reserve

Ian Fraser 2012-09-17T10:30:07Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/09/14/delayed-eu-parliament-vote-on-mifid-ii-reinforces-house-of-lords-report-on-fundamental-flaws 2012-09-14T12:35:55Z 2012-09-14T12:35:55Z

The UK’s upper house, the House of Lords, may not consider itself to be, in any sense, in the pocket of the City of London, but there are

Anthony Harrington 2012-09-14T12:35:55Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2012/09/13/healthcare-nonprofit-investments-the-case-for-boredom 2012-09-13T10:25:11Z 2012-09-13T10:25:11Z

The research arm of the Commonfund Institute has released the results of a survey of nonprofit health care organizations, showing that

All About Alpha 2012-09-13T10:25:11Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/09/12/qfinance-news-briefing-september-5-11-2012 2012-09-12T09:07:32Z 2012-09-12T09:07:32Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-09-12T09:07:32Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/09/11/portugals-government-presses-the-economic-self-destruct-button 2012-09-11T13:11:47Z 2012-09-11T13:11:47Z

Today the Portuguese government will receive the details of the latest troika (IMF,ECB,European Commission) or men in black review of their

Mindful Money 2012-09-11T13:11:47Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/09/10/otc-derivatives-prove-hard-to-tame 2012-09-10T11:04:33Z 2012-09-10T11:04:33Z

On the 10th September 2010 the EU tabled a proposal aimed at making the derivatives markets in Europe "safer and more transparent". This

Anthony Harrington 2012-09-10T11:04:33Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/09/07/is-the-chinese-growth-story-over 2012-09-07T13:16:16Z 2012-09-07T13:16:16Z

Much has been said about the recent data coming out of China. Not only has the aggregate rate of growth fallen below 8% but recent

Morningstar 2012-09-07T13:16:16Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/09/05/bearish-brics-have-the-bric-nations-lived-up-to-the-hype 2012-09-05T10:37:16Z 2012-09-05T10:37:16Z

Over the past decade, very few countries can claim to have matched the economic success of those of the BRICs. Ever since the term ‘BRIC’

Economy Watch 2012-09-05T10:37:16Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/09/05/qfinance-news-briefing-august-29-september-4-2012 2012-09-05T10:08:19Z 2012-09-05T10:08:19Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-09-05T10:08:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/09/04/restoring-confidence-in-the-euro-area 2012-09-04T10:34:27Z 2012-09-04T10:34:27Z

The title of this blog echoes the title of a speech given on 1 June by Benoît Coeuré, a member of the Executive Board of the European

Anthony Harrington 2012-09-04T10:34:27Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/09/03/spain-moves-back-onto-the-economic-frontline 2012-09-03T12:51:27Z 2012-09-03T12:51:27Z

On Friday, in perhaps an example of the strategy of a good day to bury bad news, Spain announced some changes in its position on bank

Mindful Money 2012-09-03T12:51:27Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/08/31/norway-oil-fund-opposes-70bn-glenstrata-deal-amid-allegations-of-passivity 2012-08-31T12:01:50Z 2012-08-31T12:01:50Z

Even as Norwegian sovereign wealth fund throws its weight behind attempts to block the merger of commodities trader Glencore and mining

Ian Fraser 2012-08-31T12:01:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/08/30/thorium-reactors-could-hold-the-key-to-safer-cheaper-nuclear-power 2012-08-30T11:22:19Z 2012-08-30T11:22:19Z

It goes without saying that business needs energy to run. The wheels of industry have to turn and the power that drives them has to be

Anthony Harrington 2012-08-30T11:22:19Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/08/29/has-the-eu-failed-its-original-agenda 2012-08-29T10:55:47Z 2012-08-29T10:55:47Z

The EU was supposedly set up to create a closer political union between the countries in Europe after the Second World War, in an attempt

Mindful Money 2012-08-29T10:55:47Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/08/24/a-cruel-end-to-summer-for-hedge-funds-as-theyre-forced-to-open-their-kimonos 2012-08-24T10:35:24Z 2012-08-24T10:35:24Z

Hedge funds are so used to operating in a light-touch regulatory environment, where inscrutability and even obfuscation traditionally

Ian Fraser 2012-08-24T10:35:24Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/08/23/deconstructing-bankers-complaints 2012-08-23T09:47:26Z 2012-08-23T09:47:26Z

With Standard Chartered, one of the few major banking names to emerge with its reputation unscathed from the 2008 crash and the LIBOR

Anthony Harrington 2012-08-23T09:47:26Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/08/22/qfinance-news-briefing-august-15-21-2012 2012-08-22T10:01:58Z 2012-08-22T10:01:58Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business—essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-08-22T10:01:58Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/08/21/the-real-cost-of-rising-food-prices 2012-08-21T10:12:01Z 2012-08-21T10:12:01Z

We’ve seen a number of spikes in food prices lately and the most recent is being blamed on the worst drought in 50 years in the US.

Mindful Money 2012-08-21T10:12:01Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/08/20/the-low-paid-and-pensions-an-impossible-dilemma-for-governments 2012-08-20T13:52:18Z 2012-08-20T13:52:18Z

One of the biggest dilemmas facing governments across the developed world is how to gracefully scale back expectations about the degree and

Anthony Harrington 2012-08-20T13:52:18Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/08/17/can-ireland-escape-from-the-bank-debt-burden 2012-08-17T13:27:39Z 2012-08-17T13:27:39Z

The Emerald Isle has had a rough few years to say the least as it has begun to digest the consequences of the boom and then bust which took

Mindful Money 2012-08-17T13:27:39Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/08/16/new-bond-issue-market-remains-unusually-active 2012-08-16T13:09:33Z 2012-08-16T13:09:33Z

As opposed to the typical August slowdown, the new-issue market remained relatively active last week. For corporations under Morningstar's

Morningstar 2012-08-16T13:09:33Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/08/15/unless-bankers-face-consequences-of-their-actions-the-augean-stables-will-not-be-cleaned-out 2012-08-15T12:38:07Z 2012-08-15T12:38:07Z

Out-of-court settlements, such as the one involving Standard Chartered announced yesterday, do little to alter bankers' behavior or to put

Ian Fraser 2012-08-15T12:38:07Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/08/15/qfinance-news-briefing-august-8-14-2012 2012-08-15T08:34:19Z 2012-08-15T08:34:19Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-08-15T08:34:19Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/08/14/why-rogue-uk-bankers-cant-escape-us-regulators 2012-08-14T10:52:46Z 2012-08-14T10:52:46Z

In the wake of the recent spate in scandals involving British banks, the UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is now predictably making all the

Economy Watch 2012-08-14T10:52:46Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/08/13/japanese-economic-growth-slows-worryingly 2012-08-13T09:53:13Z 2012-08-13T09:53:13Z

As the world’s focus turns away from London 2012 and the Olympic games that have now concluded there has been a development in one of the

Mindful Money 2012-08-13T09:53:13Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/08/10/the-dangers-of-over-regulation-in-the-insurance-sector-are-mounting 2012-08-10T11:32:55Z 2012-08-10T11:32:55Z

With the LIBOR rigging scandal still very fresh in everyone's mind now is not a good time for anyone to point out that there is a real and

Anthony Harrington 2012-08-10T11:32:55Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2012/08/09/the-rise-and-rise-of-operational-due-diligence 2012-08-09T10:27:30Z 2012-08-09T10:27:30Z

“Sunlight is the best disinfectant”US Supreme Court Justice Louis BrandeisThe Madoff scandal exposed the Alternative Investment Industry to

All About Alpha 2012-08-09T10:27:30Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/08/08/end-of-us-hegemony-brings-need-for-fresh-economic-thinking 2012-08-08T10:37:14Z 2012-08-08T10:37:14Z

As global economic power ebbs from the West to the more solvent emerging economies of the East, conventional economic wisdom is being

Ian Fraser 2012-08-08T10:37:14Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/08/08/qfinance-news-briefing-august-1-7-2012 2012-08-08T09:47:35Z 2012-08-08T09:47:35Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-08-08T09:47:35Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/08/07/italy-is-on-a-downwards-spiral-which-will-prove-hard-to-reverse 2012-08-07T12:50:50Z 2012-08-07T12:50:50Z

The last ten days or so have seen a lot of debate about the role of one of Italy’s most prominent individual, the President of the European

Mindful Money 2012-08-07T12:50:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/08/06/hollande-and-the-french-fairyland-of-happily-ever-after 2012-08-06T11:09:20Z 2012-08-06T11:09:20Z

One can easily understand why voters vote for politicians who cut the retirement age and promise the poorer half of the population that the

Anthony Harrington 2012-08-06T11:09:20Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/08/03/ecb-inaction-bp-blues-and-turbulence-at-ryanair 2012-08-03T13:17:44Z 2012-08-03T13:17:44Z

I Believe You, Thousands Would NotThe European Central Bank is working on the crisis. No use rushing - after all, the crisis has been with

Morningstar 2012-08-03T13:17:44Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/08/02/imf-turns-euro-skeptic-beginning-of-the-end 2012-08-02T09:52:32Z 2012-08-02T09:52:32Z

The IMF's job, in its Article IV country reports, is to fact find, then tell things like they are with a view to making recommendations to

Anthony Harrington 2012-08-02T09:52:32Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/08/01/libor-manipulation-may-yet-bring-profound-change-to-financial-world 2012-08-01T10:52:13Z 2012-08-01T10:52:13Z

The reputation of banks has sunk so low in recent weeks, one wonders if it can plummet any further. On June 27 the the Libor rigging

Ian Fraser 2012-08-01T10:52:13Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/08/01/qfinance-news-briefing-july-25-31-2012 2012-08-01T09:20:01Z 2012-08-01T09:20:01Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-08-01T09:20:01Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/07/31/london-2012-has-money-killed-the-olympic-spirit 2012-07-31T11:17:47Z 2012-07-31T11:17:47Z

The Olympics is no longer all about sport, but rather a corporate jamboree for the elite super-rich. The same pattern repeats itself every

Economy Watch 2012-07-31T11:17:47Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/07/30/what-happened-to-the-post-tsunami-economic-recovery-promised-in-japan 2012-07-30T10:00:56Z 2012-07-30T10:00:56Z

Today I wish to take a look at the land of the rising sun otherwise known as Japan. And in particular I intend to examine what has happened

Mindful Money 2012-07-30T10:00:56Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/07/27/mario-draghi-galvanizes-markets-with-same-old-same-old 2012-07-27T13:33:49Z 2012-07-27T13:33:49Z

You have to hand it to Mario Draghi. It takes some nerve after all the empty promises of the "we'll do whatever it takes" variety which the

Anthony Harrington 2012-07-27T13:33:49Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/07/26/abu-dhabi-commercial-bank-blows-the-lid-off-ratings-agency-independence-part-two 2012-07-26T12:09:13Z 2012-07-26T12:09:13Z

In Part One I looked at the fact that at last the ratings agencies are starting to fail in their attempt to get law suits against them for

Anthony Harrington 2012-07-26T12:09:13Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/07/25/spain-bailout-fears-weak-us-data-drag-on-ftse 2012-07-25T10:23:01Z 2012-07-25T10:23:01Z

A lackluster start on the UK market turned sour in afternoon deals yesterday as London shares tracked their North American cousins south.

Morningstar 2012-07-25T10:23:01Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/07/24/qfinance-news-briefing-july-18-24-2012 2012-07-24T14:55:32Z 2012-07-24T14:55:32Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-07-24T14:55:32Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/07/24/is-the-euro-rot-spreading-to-germany-is-she-no-longer-my-perfect-cousin 2012-07-24T10:26:41Z 2012-07-24T10:26:41Z

Because of the nature of the situation in the Euro area the situation in the periphery is often up for analysis. For example I looked at

Mindful Money 2012-07-24T10:26:41Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/07/23/abu-dhabi-commercial-bank-blows-the-lid-off-ratings-agency-independence-part-one 2012-07-23T10:52:05Z 2012-07-23T10:52:05Z

The scandal of the mis-rating of asset backed securities looks like coming back to haunt the ratings agencies in a major way. Up until July

Anthony Harrington 2012-07-23T10:52:05Z EconMatters http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/econmatters-/2012/07/20/forget-libor-gate-oil-market-manipulation-is-far-worse 2012-07-20T13:41:19Z 2012-07-20T13:41:19Z

Since the Global Community all the sudden seems to be preoccupied with Market manipulation even though the authorities knew it was a

EconMatters 2012-07-20T13:41:19Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/07/19/hugh-hendry-proud-to-exist-outside-the-accepted-belief-system 2012-07-19T10:16:29Z 2012-07-19T10:16:29Z

The hedge fund manager Hugh Hendry became something of a media darling in 2008-10. Bouyed after his Eclectica hedge fund gained 31.2% in

Ian Fraser 2012-07-19T10:16:29Z Chris Hewett http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/chris-hewett/2012/07/18/for-this-financial-crisis-lets-debate-the-solutions-not-the-problems 2012-07-18T11:11:03Z 2012-07-18T11:11:03Z

As the UK banking sector is heading towards another self inflicted crisis, and politician’s jockey about who is most to blame for the mess,

Chris Hewett 2012-07-18T11:11:03Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/07/18/qfinance-news-briefing-july-11-17-2012 2012-07-18T09:03:49Z 2012-07-18T09:03:49Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-07-18T09:03:49Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/07/17/the-curse-of-the-treasure-islands-how-tax-havens-are-sinking-europes-economy 2012-07-17T09:04:29Z 2012-07-17T09:04:29Z

EU states lose an estimated €1 trillion in potential revenue every year from tax evasion and avoidance activities. Much of this amount, it

Economy Watch 2012-07-17T09:04:29Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/07/16/are-negative-interest-rates-and-bond-yields-a-benefit-or-a-curse 2012-07-16T12:52:09Z 2012-07-16T12:52:09Z

One of the most intriguing developments of the credit crunch era has been the development of trends in interest rates and bond yields. It

Mindful Money 2012-07-16T12:52:09Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/07/12/high-yield-debt-defaults-rise-but-performance-stays-strong 2012-07-12T09:24:57Z 2012-07-12T09:24:57Z

In its latest reports on US and European high yield corporate debt, the ratings agency Fitch flagged up the fact that the trailing 12-month

Anthony Harrington 2012-07-12T09:24:57Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/07/10/fsa-insider-blindness-to-risk-left-banks-vulnerable-to-open-ended-losses 2012-07-10T08:18:27Z 2012-07-10T08:18:27Z

The cluelessness of most banks and G-SIFIs about their own financial strength, which I touched on in my earlier blog post on systems

Ian Fraser 2012-07-10T08:18:27Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/07/09/china-slow-down-sends-mixed-signals 2012-07-09T11:29:09Z 2012-07-09T11:29:09Z

A hard landing in China has been predicted by "China bears" ever since word of China's property bubble first emerged after the 2008 crash.

Anthony Harrington 2012-07-09T11:29:09Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/07/06/will-the-london-olympics-be-a-success-for-the-uk-economy 2012-07-06T09:23:47Z 2012-07-06T09:23:47Z

When the Olympics, or even the World Cup for that matter, are awarded to a country there is always an initial flurry of reports about how

Mindful Money 2012-07-06T09:23:47Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/07/05/an-irish-view-of-the-esm 2012-07-05T13:40:42Z 2012-07-05T13:40:42Z

On 5 April 2012 Brendan Halligan, Chairman of the Institute of International and European Affairs, presented a paper a sub-committee of the

Anthony Harrington 2012-07-05T13:40:42Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/07/04/diamond-tells-mps-i-have-done-nothing-wrong 2012-07-04T14:16:34Z 2012-07-04T14:16:34Z

Bob Diamond's performance in front of the Treasury Select Committee on Wednesday afternoon was less entertaining, less rumbustuous and less

Ian Fraser 2012-07-04T14:16:34Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/07/03/qfinance-news-briefing-june-27-july-3-2012 2012-07-03T15:11:31Z 2012-07-03T15:11:31Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-07-03T15:11:31Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/07/03/eu-bank-bailout-ploy-opens-up-pandoras-box 2012-07-03T11:00:04Z 2012-07-03T11:00:04Z

With the 500 billion euros of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) being placed at the disposal of an EU wide bailout of troubled banks

Anthony Harrington 2012-07-03T11:00:04Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/06/29/what-if-germany-were-forced-out-of-the-euro 2012-06-29T15:28:33Z 2012-06-29T15:28:33Z

The Summit of European leaders on Thursday and Friday 28th and 29th of June takes place against a backdrop of German intransigence to the

Anthony Harrington 2012-06-29T15:28:33Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/06/29/debate-on-commodities-speculation-turns-ugly 2012-06-29T13:26:47Z 2012-06-29T13:26:47Z

A row is building in Europe about whether commodities speculation is good or bad for the economy.In the blue corner the Nice-based

Ian Fraser 2012-06-29T13:26:47Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/06/27/euro-bonds-hollande-says-yes-merkel-says-no-impasse-or-fudge 2012-06-27T13:07:36Z 2012-06-27T13:07:36Z

One of  the new French President's first statements on the European sovereign debt crisis was to declare his enthusiastic support for the

Anthony Harrington 2012-06-27T13:07:36Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/06/26/qfinance-news-briefing-june-20-26-2012 2012-06-26T14:19:52Z 2012-06-26T14:19:52Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-06-26T14:19:52Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/06/26/listed-private-equity-a-great-example-of-market-innovation 2012-06-26T11:35:50Z 2012-06-26T11:35:50Z

Financial innovation got a very bad name following the 2008 crash, when monstrosities such as "CDO cubed" were seen as adding massive

Anthony Harrington 2012-06-26T11:35:50Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/06/25/natwest-and-rbs-systems-meltdown-blamed-on-offshoring-to-chennai 2012-06-25T08:33:22Z 2012-06-25T08:33:22Z

The fiasco at RBS and NatWest over the past few days has caused disruption to some 12 million retail and business customers, many of whom

Ian Fraser 2012-06-25T08:33:22Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2012/06/22/banks-arent-really-much-like-dominoes 2012-06-22T11:17:07Z 2012-06-22T11:17:07Z

Whether the growth of the credit derivatives market caused or contributed to the U.S. centered financial crisis of 2007-08 is an issue that

All About Alpha 2012-06-22T11:17:07Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/06/21/reaffirming-the-role-of-the-audit-committee 2012-06-21T11:11:52Z 2012-06-21T11:11:52Z

In the wake of the 2008 crash, with massive public anger over billions in losses caused by reckless trading by bank proprietary desks, the

Anthony Harrington 2012-06-21T11:11:52Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/06/20/the-uk-monetary-policy-committee-seems-more-worried-about-the-banks-than-the-real-economy 2012-06-20T11:55:17Z 2012-06-20T11:55:17Z

Last night the G-20 summit ended and the world’s leaders started to depart from the Mexican tourist destination of Los Cabos. As ever they

Mindful Money 2012-06-20T11:55:17Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/06/19/saving-the-euro 2012-06-19T13:02:49Z 2012-06-19T13:02:49Z

The management of the eurozone debt crisis is dysfunctional. In our assessment, to save the Euro currency, policy makers must focus on

Morningstar 2012-06-19T13:02:49Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/06/18/financial-regulation-with-griffith-jones-appointment-britain-keeps-it-in-the-family 2012-06-18T12:29:30Z 2012-06-18T12:29:30Z

I was surprised and exasperated to learn last week that the UK government has rubber stamped the appointment of John Griffith-Jones, the

Ian Fraser 2012-06-18T12:29:30Z EconMatters http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/econmatters-/2012/06/15/spain-and-the-runaway-euro-bailout-train 2012-06-15T07:47:59Z 2012-06-15T07:47:59Z

Spain finally bowed to the rising interest rates and the billions of euros worth of bad loans at Spain's regional governments to ask for a

EconMatters 2012-06-15T07:47:59Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/06/14/qfinance-news-briefing-june-8-14-2012 2012-06-14T15:34:49Z 2012-06-14T15:34:49Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-06-14T15:34:49Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/06/14/oecd-and-imf-studies-find-their-downside-risks-rising-to-haunt-them 2012-06-14T09:43:44Z 2012-06-14T09:43:44Z

It is not particularly rewarding, being a macro economist when the global marbles really start to roll around. It's even worse when you've

Anthony Harrington 2012-06-14T09:43:44Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/06/13/hedge-funds-and-risk-transparency-make-strange-bedfellows 2012-06-13T10:35:37Z 2012-06-13T10:35:37Z

Imagine a random collection of hot shot "boutique" (i.e small) fund management houses, each doing its own thing in its own, jealously

Anthony Harrington 2012-06-13T10:35:37Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/06/12/spains-victory-is-in-fact-a-defeat 2012-06-12T12:48:31Z 2012-06-12T12:48:31Z

The weekend just gone has seen the Kingdom of Spain join the countries in the euro area which have called for international help to deal

Mindful Money 2012-06-12T12:48:31Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/06/11/how-a-flawed-ideology-provided-cover-for-an-epidemic-of-financial-crime 2012-06-11T13:45:59Z 2012-06-11T13:45:59Z

As I was putting the finishing touches to a speech on whether greed and corruption are endemic in the City of London, which I'm due to give

Ian Fraser 2012-06-11T13:45:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/06/08/fdic-report-shows-us-banks-on-the-mend 2012-06-08T10:23:08Z 2012-06-08T10:23:08Z

The Federal Deposits Insurance Company (FDIC), which insures US commercial banks and savings entities, publishes a quarterly report on the

Anthony Harrington 2012-06-08T10:23:08Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/06/07/soros-the-germans-must-show-leadership-or-the-euro-is-toast 2012-06-07T08:39:03Z 2012-06-07T08:39:03Z

George Soros caused quite a stir when, in a remarkable 4,400 word speech at the Festival of Economics at Trento, north-eastern Italy on

Ian Fraser 2012-06-07T08:39:03Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/05/31/qfinance-news-briefing-may-25-31-2012 2012-05-31T15:51:48Z 2012-05-31T15:51:48Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-05-31T15:51:48Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/05/31/spain-the-property-bubble-comes-home-to-roost 2012-05-31T10:09:28Z 2012-05-31T10:09:28Z

Spain is following Ireland in giving a graphic demonstration of just how difficult it is to recover from the bursting of a major property

Anthony Harrington 2012-05-31T10:09:28Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/05/30/why-ireland-should-vote-no-to-the-fiscal-compact-treaty-tomorrow 2012-05-30T10:48:32Z 2012-05-30T10:48:32Z

Tomorrow Irish voters go to the polls to decide whether they should vote yes or no to the European Union’s Fiscal Compact Treaty. There is

Mindful Money 2012-05-30T10:48:32Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/05/29/anat-admati-mending-the-roof-of-a-bankrupt-banking-system 2012-05-29T12:19:09Z 2012-05-29T12:19:09Z

Five years on from the start of the financial crisis, the debt overhang at the world’s banks remains terrifyingly huge. Balance sheets are

Ian Fraser 2012-05-29T12:19:09Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/05/28/market-meltdown-in-progress 2012-05-28T11:35:52Z 2012-05-28T11:35:52Z

One of the more certain facts about recessions is that they are generally spotted only with the benefit of hindsight. You have to wait for

Anthony Harrington 2012-05-28T11:35:52Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/05/25/stay-away-from-facebook-and-retail 2012-05-25T10:52:10Z 2012-05-25T10:52:10Z

Face-offThere are lessons to be learnt from the flotation of Facebook (FB), which I was never tempted to join (the flotation, that is, not

Morningstar 2012-05-25T10:52:10Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/05/24/qfinance-news-briefing-may-18-24-2012 2012-05-24T15:49:27Z 2012-05-24T15:49:27Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-05-24T15:49:27Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/05/24/european-leaders-waffle-about-economic-growth-just-as-even-germany-sees-it-grind-to-a-halt 2012-05-24T13:10:42Z 2012-05-24T13:10:42Z

Late last night or more accurately early this morning European Council President Van Rompuy gave a Press Conference to announce the

Mindful Money 2012-05-24T13:10:42Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/05/23/jamie-dimons-downfall-brings-fresh-hope 2012-05-23T11:13:20Z 2012-05-23T11:13:20Z

Jamie Dimon, chief executive of JP Morgan Chase, had a good crisis and has since been posing as a latter-day George Bailey (the character

Ian Fraser 2012-05-23T11:13:20Z EconMatters http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/econmatters-/2012/05/22/forget-peak-oil-time-to-worry-about-peak-oil-labor 2012-05-22T13:44:48Z 2012-05-22T13:44:48Z

In a recent working paper, researchers at the the IMF attempt to reconcile the Peak Oil debate that whether resource constraints will

EconMatters 2012-05-22T13:44:48Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/05/21/property-as-a-hedge-against-inflation-commercial-property-part-3-of-3 2012-05-21T11:52:12Z 2012-05-21T11:52:12Z

One of the more frequently cited arguments for investing in property is that "real" assets like property and say, agriculture commodities,

Anthony Harrington 2012-05-21T11:52:12Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/05/18/battle-lines-drawn-over-further-chinese-auditing 2012-05-18T13:31:18Z 2012-05-18T13:31:18Z

Regulators in China and the US are on a collision course over the future of bean-counting.At stake is how Chinese companies are audited,

Ian Fraser 2012-05-18T13:31:18Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/05/17/qfinance-news-briefing-may-11-17-2012 2012-05-17T09:58:41Z 2012-05-17T09:58:41Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business—essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-05-17T09:58:41Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/05/17/secondary-property-the-unloved-rump-commercial-property-part-2 2012-05-17T08:11:23Z 2012-05-17T08:11:23Z

In Part One we looked at the tribulations of the commercial property market in the light of what is now an entrenched resistance on the

Anthony Harrington 2012-05-17T08:11:23Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/05/16/uks-shareholder-spring-risks-becoming-a-winter-of-discontent 2012-05-16T11:26:07Z 2012-05-16T11:26:07Z

The "shareholder spring", which has seen UK institutional investors rise up against corporate greed and 'rewards for failure', and which is

Ian Fraser 2012-05-16T11:26:07Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/05/15/the-uk-can-borrow-cheaply-but-needs-to-account-for-all-of-the-costs 2012-05-15T10:37:35Z 2012-05-15T10:37:35Z

One of the features of the credit crunch era has been the rise in price of what are considered to be “safe haven” assets. We have seen this

Mindful Money 2012-05-15T10:37:35Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/05/14/commercial-real-estate-heading-for-a-deep-freeze-part-one-of-three 2012-05-14T11:03:43Z 2012-05-14T11:03:43Z

One of the clichés of real estate investing is that you can make more of everything but you can't  make more land. The implication is that

Anthony Harrington 2012-05-14T11:03:43Z Rachel Stanley http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/rachel-stanley/2012/05/11/consolidation-is-key-to-driving-ma-activity-in-consumer-products-for-2012 2012-05-11T10:49:55Z 2012-05-11T10:49:55Z

Consolidation and rationalization of assets are set to be the main focus of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity for the consumer

Rachel Stanley 2012-05-11T10:49:55Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/05/10/qfinance-news-briefing-may-4-10-2012 2012-05-10T15:26:06Z 2012-05-10T15:26:06Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-05-10T15:26:06Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/05/10/a-missed-opportunity-for-sir-mervyn-king 2012-05-10T07:54:43Z 2012-05-10T07:54:43Z

I was taken back by the vitriol that was leveled at Sir Mervyn King after his Today lecture last week (amusingly summed up in an earlier

Ian Fraser 2012-05-10T07:54:43Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/05/09/greece-not-a-hopeless-basket-case-after-all 2012-05-09T10:22:30Z 2012-05-09T10:22:30Z

One of the astonishing features of the Greek elections on May 6th was the reaction of the markets. The German DAX index crashed from the

Anthony Harrington 2012-05-09T10:22:30Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/05/04/just-another-tailspin-for-the-eurozone 2012-05-04T11:10:57Z 2012-05-04T11:10:57Z

There can surely be no-one who has not grasped that mid-April 2012 has brought with it not just another bout of euro-jitters, but a serious

Anthony Harrington 2012-05-04T11:10:57Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/05/03/qfinance-news-briefing-april-27-may-3-2012 2012-05-03T14:18:29Z 2012-05-03T14:18:29Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-05-03T14:18:29Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/05/03/mervyn-king-has-failed-it-is-time-for-some-democracy-at-the-bank-of-england 2012-05-03T11:17:42Z 2012-05-03T11:17:42Z

Yesterday evening the Governor of the Bank of England gave a lecture for BBC Radio’s The Today Programme. Of course there is already an

Mindful Money 2012-05-03T11:17:42Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/05/02/the-west-has-much-learn-from-islamic-finance 2012-05-02T09:10:19Z 2012-05-02T09:10:19Z

Given they are barred from charging interest and must abide by a strict religious code, Islamic financial institutions are often dismissed

Ian Fraser 2012-05-02T09:10:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/04/30/rain-in-spain-falls-mainly-on-the-banks 2012-04-30T11:37:11Z 2012-04-30T11:37:11Z

On 25 April 2012 a team from the IMF issued a report on the Spanish financial sector, following inspections in February and earlier in

Anthony Harrington 2012-04-30T11:37:11Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/04/27/news-briefing-april-20-26-2012 2012-04-27T09:38:57Z 2012-04-27T09:38:57Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-04-27T09:38:57Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/04/27/cbi-still-ensnared-by-the-delusion-of-performance-related-pay 2012-04-27T08:51:23Z 2012-04-27T08:51:23Z

The debate over executive pay is getting ugly. In the UK, investor disquiet about the unwarranted rewards routinely doled out to bankers

Ian Fraser 2012-04-27T08:51:23Z Insider Monkey http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/insider-monkey/2012/04/26/what-percentage-of-hedge-fund-profits-are-pocketed-by-managers 2012-04-26T12:07:38Z 2012-04-26T12:07:38Z

What percentage of hedge fund profits are pocketed by hedge fund managers? Reuters published an article a few days ago with the following

Insider Monkey 2012-04-26T12:07:38Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/04/25/black-ice-the-dangerous-race-for-oil-at-the-top-of-the-world 2012-04-25T10:58:57Z 2012-04-25T10:58:57Z

The European healthcare equity sector performed remarkably well last week, giving a big boost to various exchange-traded funds (ETFs)

Morningstar 2012-04-25T10:58:57Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2012/04/24/why-you-should-care-about-warren-buffetts-prostate 2012-04-24T08:13:14Z 2012-04-24T08:13:14Z

Have you heard the news? Warren Buffett has been diagnosed with first stage prostate cancer.Buffett (aka, the “Sage of Omaha”) is the

Leslie Kossoff 2012-04-24T08:13:14Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2012/04/23/the-climate-change-trade-your-portfolio-may-never-look-the-same 2012-04-23T09:47:27Z 2012-04-23T09:47:27Z

The Negative Alpha of FliesA lot of problems get solved when you understand natural tendencies. Everyone has had the experience of a

All About Alpha 2012-04-23T09:47:27Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/04/20/spain-should-be-singing-help 2012-04-20T10:39:08Z 2012-04-20T10:39:08Z

Today sees the Spring Meetings for both the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. One of the lessons of these times is that there

Mindful Money 2012-04-20T10:39:08Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/04/19/qfinance-news-briefing-april-13-19-2012 2012-04-19T15:19:54Z 2012-04-19T15:19:54Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-04-19T15:19:54Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/04/19/irish-central-banker-ponders-eu-regulatory-flaws 2012-04-19T12:07:31Z 2012-04-19T12:07:31Z

On 26 March 2012, addressing an audience of central bankers at the 4th CDU/CSU Congress at the Bundestag, Berlin, Matthew Elderfield,

Anthony Harrington 2012-04-19T12:07:31Z EconMatters http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/econmatters-/2012/04/18/another-oil-price-shock-another-global-recession 2012-04-18T09:41:22Z 2012-04-18T09:41:22Z

Brent crude ended trading above $120 a barrel on Friday, April 13, while WTI crude on NYMEX for May delivery settled at $102.83 a barrel.

EconMatters 2012-04-18T09:41:22Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/04/17/city-analyst-barclays-approach-to-paying-diamond-is-just-laughable 2012-04-17T08:40:48Z 2012-04-17T08:40:48Z

I was happily reading my Sunday Telegraph business section at the weekend, when a particular quote jumped out at me. A City investment

Ian Fraser 2012-04-17T08:40:48Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/04/16/exchanges-have-much-to-lose-as-high-frequency-traders-get-emasculated 2012-04-16T11:10:11Z 2012-04-16T11:10:11Z

There can be little doubt that high-frequency trading (HFT) is a malign force in the financial markets.High-speed traders use powerful

Ian Fraser 2012-04-16T11:10:11Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/04/13/april-economic-overview 2012-04-13T11:15:03Z 2012-04-13T11:15:03Z

Despite some weaker data points in the EU and China, the past few months have delivered a pleasant growth surprise with global gross

Morningstar 2012-04-13T11:15:03Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/04/12/qfinance-news-briefing-april-6-12-2012 2012-04-12T15:30:54Z 2012-04-12T15:30:54Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-04-12T15:30:54Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/04/12/as-spain-pays-nearly-6-on-her-benchmark-bonds-and-the-uk-pays-2-is-euro-membership-worth-that 2012-04-12T11:15:19Z 2012-04-12T11:15:19Z

The last week or so has since something of a gathering storm for Spain as two effects have coincided. Firstly the efforts of the European

Mindful Money 2012-04-12T11:15:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/04/11/does-income-inequality-lead-to-global-busts 2012-04-11T12:53:54Z 2012-04-11T12:53:54Z

Back in 2010, Raghuram Rajan of the University of Chicago put the spotlight on income inequality as the real villain behind the 2008 global

Anthony Harrington 2012-04-11T12:53:54Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/04/05/mario-draghi-shows-his-subtle-side 2012-04-05T10:35:04Z 2012-04-05T10:35:04Z

A recent article on Mario Draghi, the man who succeeded Jean-Claude Trichet as president of the European Central Bank in October 2011,

Anthony Harrington 2012-04-05T10:35:04Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/04/04/fear-and-loathing-in-london-as-barnier-taps-consumer-power 2012-04-04T13:55:11Z 2012-04-04T13:55:11Z

Michel Barnier is viewed with a mixture of fear and loathing in the City of London. In the Square Mile the Frenchman is variously regarded

Ian Fraser 2012-04-04T13:55:11Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/03/29/qfinance-news-briefing-march-23-29-2012 2012-03-29T15:03:43Z 2012-03-29T15:03:43Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business—essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-03-29T15:03:43Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/03/29/shadow-banking-system-to-get-the-regulatory-make-over 2012-03-29T11:00:21Z 2012-03-29T11:00:21Z

The European Financial Stability Board (FSB) has issued a consultation draft setting out the ways it is proposing to extend regulation from

Anthony Harrington 2012-03-29T11:00:21Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/03/28/charles-goodhart-warns-of-regulatory-overkill 2012-03-28T10:37:45Z 2012-03-28T10:37:45Z

In forcing the world's banks to dramatically increase their capital ratios at a time when capital is scarce, are global policymakers and

Ian Fraser 2012-03-28T10:37:45Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/03/27/kahnemans-fast-and-slow-thinking-sets-a-puzzle 2012-03-27T12:55:17Z 2012-03-27T12:55:17Z

The Nobel Laureate Daniel Kahneman is a world famous behavioural psychologist and author of Thinking, Fast and Slow. He won the Nobel Prize

Anthony Harrington 2012-03-27T12:55:17Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2012/03/26/genius-or-sucker-the-dilemma-of-being-a-goldman-sachs-client 2012-03-26T09:05:39Z 2012-03-26T09:05:39Z

So there you are - a bazillionnaire. Or, possibly, someone responsible for overseeing the bazillions of others. Like the investment manager

Leslie Kossoff 2012-03-26T09:05:39Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/03/23/japan-a-surge-in-optimism 2012-03-23T11:07:50Z 2012-03-23T11:07:50Z

Professional investors are becoming increasingly optimistic about prospects for Japan and Japanese companies, with a net 91% of Japanese

Morningstar 2012-03-23T11:07:50Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/03/22/qfinance-news-briefing-march-16-22-2012 2012-03-22T15:59:06Z 2012-03-22T15:59:06Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-03-22T15:59:06Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/03/22/robert-jenkins-britains-banks-must-kick-their-roe-habit 2012-03-22T12:05:19Z 2012-03-22T12:05:19Z

Robert Jenkins, the Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee member who last November famously slapped down UK bankers for lobbying  to

Ian Fraser 2012-03-22T12:05:19Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/03/21/the-uk-budget-should-involve-the-monetary-policy-committee 2012-03-21T12:23:41Z 2012-03-21T12:23:41Z

At 12:30pm today the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne will stand up and announce his Budget plans for the next year and

Mindful Money 2012-03-21T12:23:41Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/03/20/china-considers-opening-up-the-renminbi 2012-03-20T13:00:26Z 2012-03-20T13:00:26Z

Having jealously guarded its currency and manipulated its exchange rate to give itself the best possible environment to grow its massive

Anthony Harrington 2012-03-20T13:00:26Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2012/03/19/goldman-sachs-culture-when-making-money-isnt-enough 2012-03-19T12:34:26Z 2012-03-19T12:34:26Z

You know you've hit a nerve when not only are the Twitter stream and blogosphere overrun with comments and links - but the originating

Leslie Kossoff 2012-03-19T12:34:26Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/03/16/gold-a-risk-asset 2012-03-16T13:15:18Z 2012-03-16T13:15:18Z

After tearing away to the 1900s in September 2011, and making goldbugs everywhere think that the $2000 mark was within reach, the tide

Anthony Harrington 2012-03-16T13:15:18Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/03/16/qfinance-news-briefing-09-03-2012 2012-03-16T09:47:32Z 2012-03-16T09:47:32Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-03-16T09:47:32Z EconMatters http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/econmatters-/2012/03/15/greed-is-indeed-good-at-goldman 2012-03-15T10:23:09Z 2012-03-15T10:23:09Z

Scandal and headlines seem to perpetually follow Goldman Sachs (GS), a firm that's simply doing "God's Work". On Wednesday March 14,

EconMatters 2012-03-15T10:23:09Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/03/14/to-change-investors-priorities-first-change-the-law 2012-03-14T15:52:27Z 2012-03-14T15:52:27Z

The UK government desperately wants investors and asset managers to act as its front line in the war against ‘crony capitalism’,

Ian Fraser 2012-03-14T15:52:27Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/03/09/neo-classical-economics-led-us-into-a-cul-de-sac-now-we-must-find-a-way-out 2012-03-09T15:15:50Z 2012-03-09T15:15:50Z

The so-called “Washington Consensus” ought to have been consigned to the scrapheap of history by now. The consensus -sometimes known as

Ian Fraser 2012-03-09T15:15:50Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/03/08/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-march-02-08-2012 2012-03-08T17:12:27Z 2012-03-08T17:12:27Z

Each week QFINANCE.com brings you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business – essential reading to

QFINANCE Editor 2012-03-08T17:12:27Z Christoph Lindinger http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/christoph-lindinger/2012/03/08/new-colonialism-or-social-empowerment-african-agriculture-a-winning-investment 2012-03-08T15:06:23Z 2012-03-08T15:06:23Z

Investments in the Agriculture chiefly involve speculation and profiteering on commodities and land. Some investors see agricultural

Christoph Lindinger 2012-03-08T15:06:23Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/03/07/breeding-the-culture-of-greed-behind-big-banking-bonuses-in-the-uk 2012-03-07T15:01:54Z 2012-03-07T15:01:54Z

Despite losing billions in 2011, bailed-out British banks, including Lloyds and RBS, continued to pay out millions in bonuses to its top

Economy Watch 2012-03-07T15:01:54Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/03/06/mortgage-rates-are-rising-whilst-the-bank-of-england-quantitative-easing-is-supposed-to-cut-them 2012-03-06T14:54:10Z 2012-03-06T14:54:10Z

Today I wish to return to a subject that was the second theme I established when I began this blog back in November 2009. It was that there

Mindful Money 2012-03-06T14:54:10Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/03/05/gauging-chinas-economic-future-fair-to-middling 2012-03-05T11:27:44Z 2012-03-05T11:27:44Z

China is so vast, its leaders so inscrutable, it’s future so tied to imponderables -- including who will succeed premier Wen Jiabao,

Ian Fraser 2012-03-05T11:27:44Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/03/02/greek-deal-nice-but-what-about-the-trade-deficit 2012-03-02T11:20:44Z 2012-03-02T11:20:44Z

In one of his “Thoughts from the Front Line”, John Mauldin, in speaking of the problem of sovereign debt in the eurozone, reiterates the

Anthony Harrington 2012-03-02T11:20:44Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/03/01/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-february-24-march-01-2012 2012-03-01T16:48:55Z 2012-03-01T16:48:55Z

Each week QFINANCE.com will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well

QFINANCE Editor 2012-03-01T16:48:55Z EconMatters http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/econmatters-/2012/03/01/dollar-gold-and-gasoline-much-ado-about-nothing 2012-03-01T14:27:14Z 2012-03-01T14:27:14Z

U.S. regular gasoline price has spiked almost 4% in one week to $3.688 a gallon as of Feb. 26, the highest level since last September, with

EconMatters 2012-03-01T14:27:14Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/02/29/attempts-to-make-swaps-market-safer-may-backfire 2012-02-29T16:50:00Z 2012-02-29T16:50:00Z

First of all, a word of warning. Today I am writing about a particularly jargon laden corner of the financial markets.The Washington-based

Ian Fraser 2012-02-29T16:50:00Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/02/28/rise-of-asian-middle-classes-becomes-the-new-growth-engine 2012-02-28T09:37:20Z 2012-02-28T09:37:20Z

A working paper, “The Emerging Middle Class in Developing Countries”, by the OECD Development Centre, produced back in January 2010, set

Anthony Harrington 2012-02-28T09:37:20Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/02/27/currency-flight-from-the-euro-is-boosting-the-swiss-franc-but-has-the-yen-finally-started-to-weaken 2012-02-27T12:43:37Z 2012-02-27T12:43:37Z

Over the past few years there has been a remarkable convergence in the performance of the Swiss Franc and the Japanese Yen. A lot of this

Mindful Money 2012-02-27T12:43:37Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/02/24/hong-kong-losing-out-to-singapore-in-battle-of-the-asian-financial-centers 2012-02-24T12:14:18Z 2012-02-24T12:14:18Z

On December 13, fuelled by the rise of non-banking services including IPOs and insurance, Hong Kong usurped the USA and Britain to become

Ian Fraser 2012-02-24T12:14:18Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/02/23/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-february-17-23-2012 2012-02-23T16:58:43Z 2012-02-23T16:58:43Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2012-02-23T16:58:43Z EconMatters http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/econmatters-/2012/02/23/crude-oil-and-iran-who-blinks-first 2012-02-23T14:52:31Z 2012-02-23T14:52:31Z

Oil futures spiked more than 2% in one day to their highest level in nine months on Tuesday Feb. 21. WTI front month contract closed at

EconMatters 2012-02-23T14:52:31Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/02/22/china-tacks-hard-to-avoid-a-hard-landing 2012-02-22T10:39:05Z 2012-02-22T10:39:05Z

On 22 November last year China completely reversed its policy on credit. Where it had been steadily raising bank reserves to soak up excess

Anthony Harrington 2012-02-22T10:39:05Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/02/21/beat-the-market-with-dividends 2012-02-21T10:16:19Z 2012-02-21T10:16:19Z

I've had quite enough of the buy-low, sell-high circus. There are better ways of making money from stocks - strategies that don't rely on

Morningstar 2012-02-21T10:16:19Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/02/20/goldman-sachs-the-european-crisis 2012-02-20T14:59:04Z 2012-02-20T14:59:04Z

The secret of Goldman Sachs’ power over the global financial system can be summed up in one word: Alumni. In his book, 13 Bankers, the

Economy Watch 2012-02-20T14:59:04Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/02/17/greek-deal-is-probably-undeliverable-warns-pimco 2012-02-17T10:02:58Z 2012-02-17T10:02:58Z

Finally, after what must have been some of the most painful arm twisting in history, in a historic late night sitting, with the policemen

Anthony Harrington 2012-02-17T10:02:58Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/02/16/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-february-10-16-2012 2012-02-16T17:07:52Z 2012-02-16T17:07:52Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2012-02-16T17:07:52Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2012/02/16/lessons-learned-from-banking-regulation 2012-02-16T13:43:51Z 2012-02-16T13:43:51Z

There was a fascinating piece in Joe Nocera's New York Times column in January about bank regulation and complexity. In it, he raises the

Leslie Kossoff 2012-02-16T13:43:51Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/02/15/if-hector-sants-gets-pra-role-it-will-be-the-ultimate-reward-for-failure 2012-02-15T15:56:06Z 2012-02-15T15:56:06Z

The Financial Services Authority's chairman Lord Turner made a fairly staunch defense of FSA chief executive Hector Sants at a hearing of

Ian Fraser 2012-02-15T15:56:06Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/02/14/fsas-hector-sants-passes-the-buck-for-financial-crisis 2012-02-14T16:56:38Z 2012-02-14T16:56:38Z

At a hearing of the Treasury Select Committee last month Hector Sants, chief executive of UK regulator the Financial Services Authority,

Ian Fraser 2012-02-14T16:56:38Z Mindful Money http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/mindful-money/2012/02/13/a-necessary-greek-devaluation-and-default 2012-02-13T12:05:22Z 2012-02-13T12:05:22Z

Yesterday was a day of great shame for Greece. However I wish to distinguish myself from the rolling 24 hours news coverage of the protest

Mindful Money 2012-02-13T12:05:22Z Insider Monkey http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/insider-monkey/2012/02/10/the-problem-of-mobility-and-facebooks-battle-for-revenue 2012-02-10T12:55:53Z 2012-02-10T12:55:53Z

Social media figures prominently amongst mobile phone users in the US, with roughly 80% of all mobile phone owners using Facebook. It may

Insider Monkey 2012-02-10T12:55:53Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/02/09/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-february-03-09-2012 2012-02-09T17:38:05Z 2012-02-09T17:38:05Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2012-02-09T17:38:05Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/02/09/merkeldithering-to-destruction 2012-02-09T14:55:09Z 2012-02-09T14:55:09Z

It is a sad fact that the wrong leader at the wrong time can massively exacerbate a difficult situation. The German Chancellor Angela

Anthony Harrington 2012-02-09T14:55:09Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/02/08/mf-global-collapse-prompts-regulatory-rethink-in-washington 2012-02-08T12:56:04Z 2012-02-08T12:56:04Z

A commissioner at one of one of the most important US financial regulators has launched a stinging attack on his own organization, accusing

Ian Fraser 2012-02-08T12:56:04Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/02/07/how-goldman-sachs-became-the-most-hated-bank-on-earth 2012-02-07T15:18:41Z 2012-02-07T15:18:41Z

Goldman Sachs is the bank everyone loves to hate. In the first of our two-part investigation into the bank, we ask why they emerged as the

Economy Watch 2012-02-07T15:18:41Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/02/06/markets-rise-as-europe-teeters-on-the-brink 2012-02-06T09:29:35Z 2012-02-06T09:29:35Z

The behavior of the major European stock markets has been distinctly odd through January. All through 2011 every time the markets got some

Anthony Harrington 2012-02-06T09:29:35Z Pensionomics http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/pensionomics-/2012/02/03/5331-a-poorer-future 2012-02-03T15:20:22Z 2012-02-03T15:20:22Z

Last week, youth unemployment ticked upwards again for the third month in a row and is now running at 20.2% according to the latest numbers

Pensionomics 2012-02-03T15:20:22Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/02/02/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-january-27-february-02-2012 2012-02-02T19:57:37Z 2012-02-02T19:57:37Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2012-02-02T19:57:37Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/02/02/the-media-frenzy-about-rbs-bonuses-and-fred-goodwins-knighthood-is-a-sideshow 2012-02-02T17:03:45Z 2012-02-02T17:03:45Z

Financial commentators are, suddenly, in demand and it's largely down to the continuing failure of banks to reform themselves in the wake

Ian Fraser 2012-02-02T17:03:45Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/02/01/are-thehedge-fund-and-private-equity-boys-pulling-a-fast-one 2012-02-01T12:02:14Z 2012-02-01T12:02:14Z

The Berkshire Hathaway chairman Warren Buffett once famously quipped that a hedge fund is a “compensation scheme masquerading as an asset

Ian Fraser 2012-02-01T12:02:14Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/01/31/funds-for-navigating-chinas-choppy-waters 2012-01-31T17:11:30Z 2012-01-31T17:11:30Z

The last year has been extremely difficult for all investors and Chinese equity managers have not been immune from this. Inflationary

Morningstar 2012-01-31T17:11:30Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/01/30/why-income-inequality-is-killing-the-us-economy 2012-01-30T11:28:46Z 2012-01-30T11:28:46Z

One of the more dismal facts about the US economy, right up there with the Gargantuan debt figure, is the shrinking average wage being

Anthony Harrington 2012-01-30T11:28:46Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/01/27/so-does-rbs-boss-stephen-hester-deserve-his-1m-bonus 2012-01-27T15:15:43Z 2012-01-27T15:15:43Z

The board of RBS and its remuneration committee, led by ex-Coca Cola executive Penny Hughes, must have decided let's just go for it and to

Ian Fraser 2012-01-27T15:15:43Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/01/26/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-january-20-26-2012 2012-01-26T16:08:59Z 2012-01-26T16:08:59Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2012-01-26T16:08:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/01/26/greek-hardball-game-highlights-the-scale-of-the-euro-problem 2012-01-26T13:02:10Z 2012-01-26T13:02:10Z

It is a great shame that the logic of human evolution did not require our species to develop a sharper understanding of the fact that short

Anthony Harrington 2012-01-26T13:02:10Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/01/25/the-end-of-free-consumer-banking 2012-01-25T15:25:29Z 2012-01-25T15:25:29Z

Many of us are familiar with the basic services that banks provide. In simple, straightforward cases, banks keep our money and pay an

Economy Watch 2012-01-25T15:25:29Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/01/24/why-china-is-changing-its-hukou-system-to-allow-free-movement 2012-01-24T12:52:45Z 2012-01-24T12:52:45Z

With a potential hard landing in sight for the Chinese economy, particularly if the eurozone implodes, the Chinese government has rather a

Anthony Harrington 2012-01-24T12:52:45Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2012/01/23/future-of-asias-synthetic-etf-market-may-lie-with-singapore-regulators 2012-01-23T12:33:49Z 2012-01-23T12:33:49Z

Celent expects that there will continue to be a global trend of increasing volume for physical ETFs in the Asian markets, but it does not

All About Alpha 2012-01-23T12:33:49Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/01/20/2012-the-year-ahead-investors-in-china-pin-hopes-on-slowing-inflation-and-rate-cuts 2012-01-20T11:57:11Z 2012-01-20T11:57:11Z

China faces some severe challenges in 2012. They include wage inflation which is undermining its economic model, the delicate task of

Ian Fraser 2012-01-20T11:57:11Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/01/19/5264-01-13-19-2012-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance 2012-01-19T18:18:44Z 2012-01-19T18:18:44Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2012-01-19T18:18:44Z Insider Monkey http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/insider-monkey/2012/01/19/stock-market-legends-were-hammered-in-china-buffett-lost-1-7-billion-in-asia-pacific 2012-01-19T11:57:16Z 2012-01-19T11:57:16Z

The stock market performance in China can be described as “tragic” in 2011. Shanghai Composite Index was down 21.68, while Shenzhen

Insider Monkey 2012-01-19T11:57:16Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2012/01/18/2012-the-year-ahead-winners-and-losers-in-the-war-over-financial-regulation 2012-01-18T10:27:47Z 2012-01-18T10:27:47Z

The spirit of global co-operation and desire for a harmonized set of global financial rules to prevent further blow-outs that pervaded

Ian Fraser 2012-01-18T10:27:47Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2012/01/17/innovation-why-julia-child-and-steve-jobs-are-the-same-person 2012-01-17T10:20:37Z 2012-01-17T10:20:37Z

They don't look alike. They weren't in the same industry. One began her career by learning all there was to know in France and bringing

Leslie Kossoff 2012-01-17T10:20:37Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/01/16/bis-rethinks-zero-risk-weighting-for-sovereigns 2012-01-16T12:25:53Z 2012-01-16T12:25:53Z

While Basel III, the new regulatory standard for banks has had a great deal of thought put into it, there is one element in it – a legacy

Anthony Harrington 2012-01-16T12:25:53Z EconMatters http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/econmatters-/2012/01/13/china-and-the-global-trade-rebalance 2012-01-13T16:42:28Z 2012-01-13T16:42:28Z

Europe’s underlying problem is not budget deficits or even unsustainable debt. These are mainly symptoms. The real problem with Europe is

EconMatters 2012-01-13T16:42:28Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/01/12/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-january-05-12-2012 2012-01-12T17:18:23Z 2012-01-12T17:18:23Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2012-01-12T17:18:23Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2012/01/12/2012-the-year-ahead-can-emerging-markets-ride-out-the-storm 2012-01-12T11:41:53Z 2012-01-12T11:41:53Z

Emerging market equities have taken a hammering over the past 12 months, largely as a result of high inflation, high domestic

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2012-01-12T11:41:53Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2012/01/11/these-big-funds-had-happy-shareholders-in-2011 2012-01-11T11:47:16Z 2012-01-11T11:47:16Z

Stocks staged an impressive recovery in 2011's final quarter, but the year was still a disappointing one for many holders of equity funds.

Morningstar 2012-01-11T11:47:16Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2012/01/10/the-iran-card-and-the-future-of-oil-in-2012 2012-01-10T10:27:00Z 2012-01-10T10:27:00Z

Oil prices had a low point or two in 2011, but finished the year with a fairly decent run, ending on the $100 mark despite fears of a

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2012-01-10T10:27:00Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2012/01/09/how-did-canada-turn-its-debt-crisis-around-in-6-years 2012-01-09T16:33:49Z 2012-01-09T16:33:49Z

Back in 1992, Standard and Poor’s downgraded Canada’s triple A credit rating to AA+ amid concerns over its fiscal health. But in just six

Economy Watch 2012-01-09T16:33:49Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/01/06/a-lesson-on-inflation-and-debt 2012-01-06T12:20:42Z 2012-01-06T12:20:42Z

As 2011 closes and the possibility of a recession in Europe remains rather too high for comfort, concerns about high inflation have more or

Anthony Harrington 2012-01-06T12:20:42Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2012/01/05/a-couple-of-weeks-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-december-22-2011-january-5-2012 2012-01-05T17:46:35Z 2012-01-05T17:46:35Z

Many of us were busy with celebration and festivity over the past few weeks, but the financial sector continued on in choppy waters as

QFINANCE Editor 2012-01-05T17:46:35Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2012/01/05/looking-ahead-to-2012-the-currency-wars-roll-on-by-anthony-harrington-and-ian-fraser 2012-01-05T12:01:14Z 2012-01-05T12:01:14Z

One of the more influential books to appear late in 2011 was Jim Rickards’ Currency Wars, which likens the struggle by various nations to

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2012-01-05T12:01:14Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2012/01/04/is-the-eu-getting-a-grip-fitch-doesnt-think-so 2012-01-04T11:31:35Z 2012-01-04T11:31:35Z

With eurozone heads of government meeting on 9 December now fading into history it is already clear that the markets are not particularly

Anthony Harrington 2012-01-04T11:31:35Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2012/01/03/2012-year-of-the-courageous 2012-01-03T13:35:52Z 2012-01-03T13:35:52Z

I tend to keep away from doing the “New Year Predictions” thing – but this year I’m making an exception. I’ve decided to make one

Leslie Kossoff 2012-01-03T13:35:52Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/12/20/china-shale-gas-changes-the-global-game 2011-12-20T12:53:03Z 2011-12-20T12:53:03Z

On 6 December, Reuters and several other media sources announced that China was on the cusp of a shale gas revolution that was potentially

Anthony Harrington 2011-12-20T12:53:03Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2011/12/19/the-numbers-dont-add-up-they-add-down 2011-12-19T14:54:07Z 2011-12-19T14:54:07Z

The Numbers Don't Add UpThis has been the week when the European Union had to take a stiff dose of reality. Likewise, the europhiles and

Morningstar 2011-12-19T14:54:07Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2011/12/16/leadership-and-profitability-lessons-from-royalty-and-the-hallelujah-chorus 2011-12-16T14:23:28Z 2011-12-16T14:23:28Z

There's always a lot of discussion about "leadership." In fact, it's one of the most powerful SEO terms to drive traffic toward you or

Leslie Kossoff 2011-12-16T14:23:28Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/12/15/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-december-9-15-2011 2011-12-15T17:46:24Z 2011-12-15T17:46:24Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past seven days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-12-15T17:46:24Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/12/15/china-bank-reserve-cut-signals-deep-concern-over-economy 2011-12-15T15:18:55Z 2011-12-15T15:18:55Z

On Wednesday November 30, China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBC) reversed a June 19 decision to raise the amount of reserve

Anthony Harrington 2011-12-15T15:18:55Z Bill Sharon http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/bill-sharon/2011/12/14/the-certainty-of-uncertainty 2011-12-14T11:03:04Z 2011-12-14T11:03:04Z

Over the past year we have heard intermittent calls for the restoration of confidence, usually by those who would relax all manner of

Bill Sharon 2011-12-14T11:03:04Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2011/12/13/what-good-is-money-what-good-is-europe 2011-12-13T11:19:35Z 2011-12-13T11:19:35Z

The latest European summit culminated in a seven-page statement by the euro area heads of state or government. Separately, Herman Van

All About Alpha 2011-12-13T11:19:35Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/12/12/big-four-audit-firms-losing-the-plot-over-barnier 2011-12-12T14:23:15Z 2011-12-12T14:23:15Z

The response of the “Big Four” accountancy firms to plans from EU internal markets commissioner Michel Barnier to shake up their oligopoly

Ian Fraser 2011-12-12T14:23:15Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/12/09/bps-threat-to-indemnify-clauses-shakes-contract-law-and-indeed-business-itself 2011-12-09T10:34:38Z 2011-12-09T10:34:38Z

A court case involving Transocean, BP’s partner in the Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, is causing lawyers across the

Anthony Harrington 2011-12-09T10:34:38Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/12/08/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-december-02-08-2011 2011-12-08T18:22:57Z 2011-12-08T18:22:57Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-12-08T18:22:57Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2011/12/08/executive-compensation-fear-scarcity-and-wrong-measures 2011-12-08T13:06:21Z 2011-12-08T13:06:21Z

Over a decade ago, I wrote an article entitled "Worth Every Penny" for a local Silicon Valley business publication. My position was that

Leslie Kossoff 2011-12-08T13:06:21Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2011/12/07/dont-overthink-the-eurozone-crisis 2011-12-07T10:50:44Z 2011-12-07T10:50:44Z

It's hard to avoid the daily updates on the crisis in Europe. The financial troubles once concentrated in Greece and Ireland have broadened

Morningstar 2011-12-07T10:50:44Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/12/06/oecd-weighs-in-on-eu-breakup-potential 2011-12-06T13:46:34Z 2011-12-06T13:46:34Z

We live in a time when many possible futures are jostling each other, each striving to be born. The two sharply contrasting possible fates

Anthony Harrington 2011-12-06T13:46:34Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/12/05/fsas-failure-to-tackle-white-collar-crime-endangers-the-city-of-london 2011-12-05T15:20:31Z 2011-12-05T15:20:31Z

Ever since its first failure became apparent with the collapse of Northern Rock in September 2007, the UK's Financial Services Authority

Ian Fraser 2011-12-05T15:20:31Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2011/12/02/chinas-new-wave-of-economic-immigration 2011-12-02T14:14:33Z 2011-12-02T14:14:33Z

Since China opened up its doors to the world a few decades ago, we’ve witnessed what has been a remarkable Chinese growth spurt. Today,

Economy Watch 2011-12-02T14:14:33Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/12/01/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-november25-december01-2011 2011-12-01T17:46:34Z 2011-12-01T17:46:34Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-12-01T17:46:34Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/12/01/st-pauls-shines-light-on-the-city-of-londons-dark-heart 2011-12-01T10:26:47Z 2011-12-01T10:26:47Z

The bizarre contortions that the Church of England got itself into, over the protesters camping outside St Paul’s Cathedral are nothing

Ian Fraser 2011-12-01T10:26:47Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2011/11/30/euroland-an-intractable-and-never-ending-crisis 2011-11-30T12:11:25Z 2011-11-30T12:11:25Z

A 12-year-old coffee mug has a permanent place on the right corner of my office desk. Given to me by an Allianz executive to commemorate

Morningstar 2011-11-30T12:11:25Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/11/29/anthony-bolton-takes-a-hammering-but-remains-upbeat-about-the-future-of-china 2011-11-29T14:01:02Z 2011-11-29T14:01:02Z

Things are not going too well for star fund manager Anthony Bolton. His Fidelity China Special Situations fund, launched with much fanfare

Ian Fraser 2011-11-29T14:01:02Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/11/28/bank-of-japan-analyzes-their-macroprudential-strategies-need-cash-weve-got-cash 2011-11-28T12:53:59Z 2011-11-28T12:53:59Z

The Bank of Japan’s recent paper on macroprudential policy and its analysis of how macroprudential strategies are playing, and will play in

Anthony Harrington 2011-11-28T12:53:59Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/11/25/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-11-21-11 2011-11-25T17:44:49Z 2011-11-25T17:44:49Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-11-25T17:44:49Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/11/25/the-world-is-making-a-meal-of-otc-derivatives-re-regulation 2011-11-25T16:45:39Z 2011-11-25T16:45:39Z

Ironically, derivatives were developed as a way for corporates, investors and financial institutions to mitigate and manage risk. However,

Ian Fraser 2011-11-25T16:45:39Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/11/24/the-death-of-capitalism-has-been-greatly-exaggerated 2011-11-24T16:55:51Z 2011-11-24T16:55:51Z

The flaws in the eurozone, which as we have all been told with increasing frequency over the last few years, lie in its founding charter,

Anthony Harrington 2011-11-24T16:55:51Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/11/23/mike-mayo-is-one-of-the-few-voices-of-reason-on-wall-street 2011-11-23T11:00:19Z 2011-11-23T11:00:19Z

Most investment analysts tend to look at the corporations they cover through rose-tinted spectacles. You just have to look at the

Ian Fraser 2011-11-23T11:00:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/11/22/quants-and-fx-a-marriage-made-in-heaven 2011-11-22T12:32:25Z 2011-11-22T12:32:25Z

Equity fund managers have long had an ambiguous relationship with currency risk. If you are not a diehard FX trader, and sometimes even if

Anthony Harrington 2011-11-22T12:32:25Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/11/17/imf-raises-red-flags-about-chinas-financial-system 2011-11-17T10:02:55Z 2011-11-17T10:02:55Z

In its first ever formal assessment of the stability of China's financial system, the International Monetary Fund has blamed heavy-handed

Ian Fraser 2011-11-17T10:02:55Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/11/16/markets-two-european-democracy-zerothe-dawn-of-the-zombie-technocrats 2011-11-16T09:58:05Z 2011-11-16T09:58:05Z

First days are always trying and this is certainly proving the case for ex-European Central Bank Vice President Lucas Papademos in Greece

Anthony Harrington 2011-11-16T09:58:05Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/11/11/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-november-7-11-2011 2011-11-11T12:39:06Z 2011-11-11T12:39:06Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-11-11T12:39:06Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/11/10/the-new-sheriff-in-finances-global-village 2011-11-10T10:34:50Z 2011-11-10T10:34:50Z

The wild swings in global liquidity that continue to distort economies around the world might, if left unchecked, trigger the end of open

Ian Fraser 2011-11-10T10:34:50Z Dan Swanson http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/dan-swanson/2011/11/08/finance-needs-to-be-high-performing 2011-11-08T10:40:33Z 2011-11-08T10:40:33Z

The finance function is a strategic one because it helps drive organizations to higher levels of performance by delivering information that

Dan Swanson 2011-11-08T10:40:33Z EconMatters http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/econmatters-/2011/11/07/too-big-to-care 2011-11-07T11:20:21Z 2011-11-07T11:20:21Z

Various financial commentators have pointed to the fact that Wall Street banks created and partied in the subprime securitization mess as

EconMatters 2011-11-07T11:20:21Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/11/04/do-we-trust-banks-diamonds-damascene-conversion-on-the-road-to-st-pauls-fails-to-convince 2011-11-04T12:49:15Z 2011-11-04T12:49:15Z

What’s up with Barclays chief executive Bob Diamond?In January, the US-born investment banker, who had recently taken over as Barclays

Ian Fraser 2011-11-04T12:49:15Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/11/04/beware-greeks-threatening-referendums 2011-11-04T10:23:24Z 2011-11-04T10:23:24Z

When Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou decided to tweak the noses of the French President and the German Chancellor with the

Anthony Harrington 2011-11-04T10:23:24Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2011/11/02/are-asian-economies-sacrificing-happiness-for-development 2011-11-02T11:26:49Z 2011-11-02T11:26:49Z

The UN General Assembly in September saw the Prime Minister of small Asian nation Bhutan denounce what he believed to be a “monster of a

Economy Watch 2011-11-02T11:26:49Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/11/01/yen-strength-frustrates-bank-of-japan-but-the-future-looks-brighter-for-japanese-investments 2011-11-01T11:50:34Z 2011-11-01T11:50:34Z

By common agreement, the Bank of Japan’s intervention in the currency markets on October 27 failed in its objective to weaken the Yen. That

Anthony Harrington 2011-11-01T11:50:34Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/10/31/europes-comprehensive-rescue-package-only-buys-a-few-more-months-for-the-euro 2011-10-31T10:09:07Z 2011-10-31T10:09:07Z

Billionaire financier George Soros last week branded the "comprehensive package" to rescue the euro a failure -- and he is by no means

Ian Fraser 2011-10-31T10:09:07Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/10/28/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-october-24-28-2011 2011-10-28T09:50:56Z 2011-10-28T09:50:56Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-10-28T09:50:56Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/10/27/can-the-sec-be-made-fit-for-purpose 2011-10-27T08:19:51Z 2011-10-27T08:19:51Z

When the UK Government sat down to ponder the performance of its regulator, the Financial Services Authority (FSA), which had conspicuously

Anthony Harrington 2011-10-27T08:19:51Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/10/26/how-to-find-your-way-through-a-maze-of-business-terminology 2011-10-26T10:58:03Z 2011-10-26T10:58:03Z

Do you have a 'cafeteria plan'? Why not? Have you ever heard of 'wimbledonization'? Don’t you think you should have? Can you guess what a

QFINANCE Editor 2011-10-26T10:58:03Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/10/26/slovakias-ill-conceived-moment-in-the-spotlight 2011-10-26T08:13:54Z 2011-10-26T08:13:54Z

Give politicians a sniff of a chance at grandstanding and they are off and away like greyhounds after a hare. Everything else of importance

Anthony Harrington 2011-10-26T08:13:54Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/10/25/andy-haldanes-proposals-for-breaking-the-bankers-doom-loop 2011-10-25T08:15:33Z 2011-10-25T08:15:33Z

For a central bank director, Andy Haldane is remarkably alert to the widening cracks in the global financial system. Delivering the Wincott

Ian Fraser 2011-10-25T08:15:33Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2011/10/24/some-tough-love-for-the-eurozone-leaders 2011-10-24T09:26:48Z 2011-10-24T09:26:48Z

European sovereign debt solutions are on everybody's lips, with last week's papers filled with everything, including paparazzi reports

Morningstar 2011-10-24T09:26:48Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/10/21/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-october-1721-2011 2011-10-21T10:46:50Z 2011-10-21T10:46:50Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-10-21T10:46:50Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/10/20/the-dukes-and-earls-in-americas-great-tower-of-bullst-are-starting-to-blink-a-little 2011-10-20T08:39:47Z 2011-10-20T08:39:47Z

There may be a good few Maoists, Trotskyists, Anarcho-Syndicalists and even the odd deluded benefit scrounger among them, but it is simply

Ian Fraser 2011-10-20T08:39:47Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/10/19/democracy-for-sale-occupy-wall-street-is-right-our-politicians-and-banks-have-failed-us 2011-10-19T01:35:46Z 2011-10-19T01:35:46Z

The Occupy Wall Street movement that started in Manhattan’s Zuccotti Park on September 17 has, since last weekend, spread like wildfire

Ian Fraser 2011-10-19T01:35:46Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2011/10/17/can-emerging-market-nations-save-the-world-or-just-investors 2011-10-17T09:34:50Z 2011-10-17T09:34:50Z

For the past few months, reporters, commenters, bloggers and twitterers have been frequently using the aggressive terminology of war to

All About Alpha 2011-10-17T09:34:50Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/10/14/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-october-10-14-2011 2011-10-14T11:46:53Z 2011-10-14T11:46:53Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-10-14T11:46:53Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/10/14/given-the-economic-devastation-theyve-caused-should-swedens-academy-really-be-honoring-economists 2011-10-14T08:33:36Z 2011-10-14T08:33:36Z

A pair of US economists, one of whom is from the discredited “Freshwater School" of economics and whose faith in efficient markets played a

Ian Fraser 2011-10-14T08:33:36Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/10/13/are-ratings-agencies-brewing-up-their-own-destruction-or-just-stirring-the-pot 2011-10-13T09:11:58Z 2011-10-13T09:11:58Z

In his 1960s iconic book, Armies of the Night, Norman Mailer reflects on the dangers of getting caught on a moral ladder. Faced with the

Anthony Harrington 2011-10-13T09:11:58Z Economy Watch http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/-economy watch/2011/10/12/how-to-profit-from-the-collapse-of-the-eurozone-courtesy-of-goldman-sachs 2011-10-12T08:04:19Z 2011-10-12T08:04:19Z

On the 16th of August, Goldman Sachs released a report, 'State of the Markets – Long and Short Risk Strategies', that is currently making

Economy Watch 2011-10-12T08:04:19Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2011/10/11/business-leaders-weenies-and-the-question-of-confidence-the-lessons-of-a-root-canal 2011-10-11T08:06:44Z 2011-10-11T08:06:44Z

Yesterday I had a root canal and it got me thinking all about business confidence and the complaints that so-called "business leaders" are

Leslie Kossoff 2011-10-11T08:06:44Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/10/10/does-china-want-to-save-the-eurozone 2011-10-10T08:27:15Z 2011-10-10T08:27:15Z

China’s Premier, Wen Jiabao, has said on a number of occasions that China is willing to support Europe. To date, however, China has

Anthony Harrington 2011-10-10T08:27:15Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/10/07/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-october-3-7-2011 2011-10-07T13:17:31Z 2011-10-07T13:17:31Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-10-07T13:17:31Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/10/07/world-on-brink-as-central-bankers-run-out-of-ammo-the-need-for-alternative-models-has-never-been-more-urgent 2011-10-07T11:20:38Z 2011-10-07T11:20:38Z

The Bank of England governor Sir Mervyn King yesterday added to the general sense of doom that has pervaded financial markets by saying

Ian Fraser 2011-10-07T11:20:38Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2011/10/06/givers-and-takers-the-final-and-longest-lasting-lesson-of-steve-jobs 2011-10-06T10:23:00Z 2011-10-06T10:23:00Z

Steve Jobs has died. He was too young to go. Too talented and visionary not to be missed. Too important to his company, Apple, for his

Leslie Kossoff 2011-10-06T10:23:00Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/10/06/the-argument-over-eurobonds-heats-up 2011-10-06T08:54:09Z 2011-10-06T08:54:09Z

Whenever the Eurozone’s political masters get together these days on any issue, eurobonds must seem like the elephant in the room. The

Anthony Harrington 2011-10-06T08:54:09Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/10/05/what-weve-learnt-from-the-markets-reaction-to-bernanke-obama-and-trichet 2011-10-05T08:04:10Z 2011-10-05T08:04:10Z

Markets can be very peremptory. If they are expecting something specific like the introduction of eurobonds, or the start of QE3, or

Anthony Harrington 2011-10-05T08:04:10Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/10/04/cries-for-a-sustainable-economy-are-a-wake-up-call-for-the-investment-community 2011-10-04T09:20:17Z 2011-10-04T09:20:17Z

Today’s system for allocating capital via the global financial markets, whose agenda is set by short-termist investors, is looking

Ian Fraser 2011-10-04T09:20:17Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/10/03/are-bail-outs-inevitable-for-large-european-and-us-banks 2011-10-03T08:38:35Z 2011-10-03T08:38:35Z

Amongst all the speculation that is swirling around concerning the fate and future of many large European and US banks, one thing at least

Anthony Harrington 2011-10-03T08:38:35Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/09/30/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-september-26-30-2011 2011-09-30T12:39:26Z 2011-09-30T12:39:26Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-09-30T12:39:26Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/09/30/the-oligopoly-that-is-the-us-financial-sector-part-2 2011-09-30T07:54:48Z 2011-09-30T07:54:48Z

In Part One we glanced at the proposition by the former IMF chief economist, Simon Johnson, now a professor at MIT’s Sloan School of

Anthony Harrington 2011-09-30T07:54:48Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/09/29/you-cant-do-dodd-frank-on-a-shoestring-the-sec-warns-us-congress 2011-09-29T07:51:23Z 2011-09-29T07:51:23Z

When Mary Shapiro took on the top job at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) she would have known that it was a job very like the

Anthony Harrington 2011-09-29T07:51:23Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/09/28/anonymous-takes-aim-at-the-cozy-world-of-investment-analysis 2011-09-28T08:59:26Z 2011-09-28T08:59:26Z

Why does anyone rely on ‘sellside’ research? The investment analysts who produce it, for free, tend to work for investment banks that also

Ian Fraser 2011-09-28T08:59:26Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/09/26/the-us-federal-reserves-operation-twist-may-cause-significant-collateral-damage 2011-09-26T08:55:39Z 2011-09-26T08:55:39Z

On September 21 the Federal Reserve launched Operation Twist, Mark II in what some commentators are already dubbing a disguised QE3. The

Anthony Harrington 2011-09-26T08:55:39Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/09/23/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-september-19-23-2011 2011-09-23T09:47:54Z 2011-09-23T09:47:54Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-09-23T09:47:54Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/09/22/charting-the-psychological-journey-of-the-ubs-rogue-trader 2011-09-22T10:52:43Z 2011-09-22T10:52:43Z

The gigantic $2.3 billion losses that Union Bank of Switzerland is blaming on a Ghanaian-born “rogue” trader have added power to the elbows

Ian Fraser 2011-09-22T10:52:43Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2011/09/21/how-to-deal-with-business-consultants 2011-09-21T08:04:48Z 2011-09-21T08:04:48Z

When the email alert from Fast Company popped up on my screen promoting an article entitled, “6 Golden Rules for Turning Consulting

Leslie Kossoff 2011-09-21T08:04:48Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/09/20/the-oil-crunch-is-london-the-only-place-that-cares 2011-09-20T08:27:56Z 2011-09-20T08:27:56Z

After penning the final part of my Peak Oil blog series ('Peak oil and collapse scenarios. Part 3'), I came across a more in-depth audio

Anthony Harrington 2011-09-20T08:27:56Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/09/19/the-oligopoly-that-is-the-us-financial-sector-part-1 2011-09-19T08:12:36Z 2011-09-19T08:12:36Z

One of the more damning articles on the US financial sector to emerge lately is a piece by the former IMF chief economist, Simon Johnson,

Anthony Harrington 2011-09-19T08:12:36Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/09/16/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-september-12-16-2011 2011-09-16T10:35:36Z 2011-09-16T10:35:36Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-09-16T10:35:36Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/09/15/how-buying-the-competition-could-kill-banks 2011-09-15T08:16:46Z 2011-09-15T08:16:46Z

There should be a health warning on major banks buying other large banks. The wreckage of such deals litters recent banking history. RBS

Anthony Harrington 2011-09-15T08:16:46Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/09/14/vickers-report-and-ringfencing-may-turn-out-to-be-a-sideshow 2011-09-14T10:32:54Z 2011-09-14T10:32:54Z

The Independent Banking Commission was established by the UK's coalition government in June 2010 as a means of kicking a thorny and

Ian Fraser 2011-09-14T10:32:54Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/09/13/peak-oil-and-collapse-scenarios-part-3 2011-09-13T08:44:13Z 2011-09-13T08:44:13Z

In this final part of my blog series (Part One and Part Two here) I take a quick look at how the Peak Oilers’ view that all the big oil

Anthony Harrington 2011-09-13T08:44:13Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/09/12/peak-oil-and-collapse-scenarios-part-2 2011-09-12T08:57:59Z 2011-09-12T08:57:59Z

In Part One we did a sort of fast fly-by of the Peak Oil debate, taking its temperature, as it were, rather than “explaining” it. There are

Anthony Harrington 2011-09-12T08:57:59Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/09/08/norways-safe-haven-status-could-harm-its-economic-health 2011-09-08T09:52:30Z 2011-09-08T09:52:30Z

Few countries have been as well-cushioned from the global economic crisis as Norway.The country’s economy is on track to grow by 3% this

Ian Fraser 2011-09-08T09:52:30Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/09/07/the-struggle-to-erase-mubaraks-legacy-and-build-a-saner-egyptian-economy 2011-09-07T09:18:54Z 2011-09-07T09:18:54Z

The January 25 revolution that toppled Egypt's former dictator Hosni Mubarak will almost certainly bring more social justice, personal

Ian Fraser 2011-09-07T09:18:54Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/09/06/egypts-economic-outlook-neither-blissful-nor-heavenly 2011-09-06T10:07:06Z 2011-09-06T10:07:06Z

“Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive, but to be young was very heaven!” This is how poet William Wordsworth felt about the storming of

Ian Fraser 2011-09-06T10:07:06Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/09/06/peak-oil-and-collapse-scenarios-part-1 2011-09-06T07:26:33Z 2011-09-06T07:26:33Z

Stepping into the Peak Oil debate is not to be undertaken lightly. The two warring camps, the peak oilers and the set of all those who

Anthony Harrington 2011-09-06T07:26:33Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/09/05/dr-dooms-deathbed-prescription-for-capitalism 2011-09-05T07:30:49Z 2011-09-05T07:30:49Z

Capitalism, like socialism, is bust. At least, in its present form. So says Nouriel Roubini. It is just as well that the markets do not

Anthony Harrington 2011-09-05T07:30:49Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/09/02/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-august-29-september-2-2011 2011-09-02T11:57:19Z 2011-09-02T11:57:19Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-09-02T11:57:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/09/01/did-the-us-federal-reserve-blunder-by-committing-to-low-rates-till-2013 2011-09-01T07:43:59Z 2011-09-01T07:43:59Z

In an attempt to calm markets, which were crashing all around him, in mid-August Federal Chairman Ben Bernanke committed the Fed to not

Anthony Harrington 2011-09-01T07:43:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/31/bernanke-the-market-magician-and-his-empty-bag-of-tricks 2011-08-31T08:00:47Z 2011-08-31T08:00:47Z

There comes a point where the markets leave any sensible person scratching their heads and wondering just what is driving the show along.

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-31T08:00:47Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/30/why-the-us-tea-party-dreams-of-a-return-to-the-gold-standard-are-a-bust 2011-08-30T07:39:51Z 2011-08-30T07:39:51Z

A scathing Taiwanese satirical animation of the US Tea Party’s arrival on the Washington political stage depicts the Tea Party

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-30T07:39:51Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/08/26/does-over-reliance-on-wind-energy-risk-the-lights-going-out-across-europe 2011-08-26T11:53:09Z 2011-08-26T11:53:09Z

I might be simplifying things but the debate about the future of energy seems to be largely divided on political lines. On one extreme, you

Ian Fraser 2011-08-26T11:53:09Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/25/wheres-the-bottom-for-recession-2011 2011-08-25T12:23:13Z 2011-08-25T12:23:13Z

Chief economists at banks, brokerages and academia, along with market analysts and commentators, are swinging en masse towards the idea

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-25T12:23:13Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/08/25/collapse-competition-because-everybody-loves-free-books 2011-08-25T10:34:19Z 2011-08-25T10:34:19Z

Very recently (if you can call August recent) one of our authors Anthony Harrington wrote a series of blogs for QFINANCE looking at two

QFINANCE Editor 2011-08-25T10:34:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/24/collapse-scenarios-satire-or-vision-of-the-future-part-4 2011-08-24T08:35:40Z 2011-08-24T08:35:40Z

In Part Three of this blog series I looked at John Michael Greer’s argument in The Wealth of Nature: Economics as if Survival Mattered that

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-24T08:35:40Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/23/collapse-scenarios-satire-or-vision-of-the-future-part-3 2011-08-23T09:33:38Z 2011-08-23T09:33:38Z

John Michael Greer’s The Wealth of Nature: Economics as if Survival Mattered, castigates what Greer perceives as the failure of modern

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-23T09:33:38Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/08/22/cry-for-banking-reform-as-policymakers-drive-economies-into-a-cul-de-sac 2011-08-22T09:01:40Z 2011-08-22T09:01:40Z

There are eerie parallels between the recent precipitous falls in the shares of most European banks and the stomach-churning gyrations seen

Ian Fraser 2011-08-22T09:01:40Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/08/19/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-august-15-19-2011 2011-08-19T09:51:36Z 2011-08-19T09:51:36Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-08-19T09:51:36Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/17/french-german-fudge-on-euro-bond-issue-leaves-markets-unimpressed 2011-08-17T09:46:19Z 2011-08-17T09:46:19Z

What was needed to stop European markets from slip sliding their way to a deep recession, once again, was for European leaders to step up

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-17T09:46:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/17/collapse-scenarios-satire-or-vision-of-the-future-part-2 2011-08-17T08:24:04Z 2011-08-17T08:24:04Z

Part One of this blog series looked briefly at Dmitry Orlov’s proposition in his book, Reinventing Collapse: The Soviet Experience and

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-17T08:24:04Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/16/collapse-scenarios-satire-or-vision-of-the-future-part-1 2011-08-16T09:15:02Z 2011-08-16T09:15:02Z

With the US debt mountain looking increasingly unresolvable and European state debts at levels sufficient to give the markets recurrent

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-16T09:15:02Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/15/he-legacy-of-the-us-debt-ceiling-spectacle-will-live-on 2011-08-15T07:57:32Z 2011-08-15T07:57:32Z

I came across Pimco founder and legendary bond investor Bill Gross’s views on the US deficit agreement a day after penning my own blog on

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-15T07:57:32Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/08/12/europes-short-selling-bans-suggest-the-lessons-of-2008-have-gone-unlearnt 2011-08-12T14:14:33Z 2011-08-12T14:14:33Z

The temporary short selling bans imposed by Belgium, France, Italy and Spain in the hope of rooting out perceived market abuse and trying

Ian Fraser 2011-08-12T14:14:33Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/08/12/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-august-8-12-2011 2011-08-12T10:14:28Z 2011-08-12T10:14:28Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-08-12T10:14:28Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/08/11/us-downgrade-shows-the-rating-agencies-work-in-mysterious-ways 2011-08-11T13:13:27Z 2011-08-11T13:13:27Z

When Standard & Poor’s stripped the US of its AAA credit rating on August 5, it didn’t have quite the apocalyptic consequences some had

Ian Fraser 2011-08-11T13:13:27Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/10/chinese-government-gets-its-pulse-taken-by-the-imf-over-housing-bubble 2011-08-10T10:35:25Z 2011-08-10T10:35:25Z

In its latest Article IV country report on China, dated June 27 2011, the IMF reported on the potential for a property bubble, on the state

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-10T10:35:25Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/09/a-wake-up-call-to-the-us-federal-reserve-from-caruana-part-2 2011-08-09T14:20:24Z 2011-08-09T14:20:24Z

In a speech delivered at the South African Reserve Bank on 1 July 2011, Jaime Caruana, the general manager of the Bank of International

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-09T14:20:24Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/09/a-wake-up-call-to-the-us-federal-reserve-from-caruana-part-1 2011-08-09T08:47:39Z 2011-08-09T08:47:39Z

In a speech given at the South African Reserve Bank on July 1 2011, Jaime Caruana, the general manager of the Bank of International

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-09T08:47:39Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/08/the-chinese-government-the-dtz-and-the-property-bubble 2011-08-08T08:27:07Z 2011-08-08T08:27:07Z

Back in June Naked Capitalism ran a blog asking if the Chinese Real Estate Bubble was finally imploding. We’re now in August and the

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-08T08:27:07Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/08/05/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-august-1-5-2011 2011-08-05T11:31:51Z 2011-08-05T11:31:51Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-08-05T11:31:51Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/04/rethinking-the-global-system-and-financial-sector-reform 2011-08-04T08:49:59Z 2011-08-04T08:49:59Z

Now that it is close to three years since the demise of Lehman Brothers and the onset of the 2008 global financial crash, senior figures in

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-04T08:49:59Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/08/03/buoyed-by-massive-oil-reserves-and-uneasy-peace-iraq-is-not-such-a-crazy-place-to-invest 2011-08-03T06:54:12Z 2011-08-03T06:54:12Z

When fund management group FMG invited me to a seminar to promote their Iraq Fund, I thought they must be joking. After all the Middle

Ian Fraser 2011-08-03T06:54:12Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/02/markets-plunge-on-obamas-agreement-to-tackle-us-deficit-whats-wrong-with-that 2011-08-02T09:28:17Z 2011-08-02T09:28:17Z

We were all warned loudly by large type headlines and by streams of market commentators, analysts and politicians, including the President

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-02T09:28:17Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/08/01/ten-good-and-bad-things-about-banking 2011-08-01T08:49:44Z 2011-08-01T08:49:44Z

It has not been fun to be a banker since the crash. If the public have come to understand one thing about the global crash of 2008, it is

Anthony Harrington 2011-08-01T08:49:44Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/07/29/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-july-25-29-2011 2011-07-29T12:41:24Z 2011-07-29T12:41:24Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-07-29T12:41:24Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/07/28/taking-stock-of-george-soros-the-sec-and-quantum 2011-07-28T08:24:14Z 2011-07-28T08:24:14Z

It's kind of ironic. The reason that billionaire investor and philanthropist George Soros gave for his recent decision to close the Quantum

Ian Fraser 2011-07-28T08:24:14Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/07/27/to-ensure-the-euros-survival-eurozone-leaders-must-become-more-radical 2011-07-27T09:07:35Z 2011-07-27T09:07:35Z

The package of measures agreed by European policymakers at their emergency summit on July 21 was immediately hailed for its boldness. After

Ian Fraser 2011-07-27T09:07:35Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/26/why-reform-of-the-global-monetary-system-tops-the-list-of-10-impossible-things-part-2 2011-07-26T08:45:09Z 2011-07-26T08:45:09Z

In attempting to set out some discussion points for a reform of the international monetary system, which is characterised today by national

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-26T08:45:09Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/25/why-reform-of-the-global-monetary-system-tops-the-list-of-10-impossible-things-part-1 2011-07-25T08:44:34Z 2011-07-25T08:44:34Z

Even in his eighties, the former chairman of the US Federal Reserve, Paul Volker, is a formidable figure and is certainly not a man to shy

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-25T08:44:34Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/07/22/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-july-18-22-2011 2011-07-22T12:45:37Z 2011-07-22T12:45:37Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-07-22T12:45:37Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/21/revitalising-the-european-dream-according-to-trichet 2011-07-21T08:50:42Z 2011-07-21T08:50:42Z

In a recent blog I looked at ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet’s vision of how Europe could resolve the euro’s dilemma of a monetary union

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-21T08:50:42Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/20/ben-bernanke-on-commodities-and-consumer-spending-in-the-us-part-two 2011-07-20T08:26:01Z 2011-07-20T08:26:01Z

In Part One we looked at Bernanke’s view of the US jobs market. Here we turn to his view of the impact the boom in commodities pricing is

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-20T08:26:01Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/19/ben-bernanke-on-the-us-unemployment-rate-and-consumer-spending-part-one 2011-07-19T12:48:21Z 2011-07-19T12:48:21Z

June was nothing to write home about, as far as the performance of the US economy was concerned, according to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-19T12:48:21Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/07/19/the-post-crisis-triumphalism-of-chin-may-be-premature-as-whispers-of-a-china-crisis-circulate 2011-07-19T08:41:43Z 2011-07-19T08:41:43Z

Last year only a minority of commentators were predicting a doomsday scenario for the Middle Kingdom. They included a few lonely hedge fund

Ian Fraser 2011-07-19T08:41:43Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/18/look-how-i-changed-the-world-ma-ben-bernanke-and-moodys-on-eurozone-and-us-debt 2011-07-18T08:33:11Z 2011-07-18T08:33:11Z

One of the oddest things about the latest market panic, which saw the price of gold rocket above $1590 for the first time and caused

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-18T08:33:11Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/07/15/finance-news-a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-july-11-15-2011 2011-07-15T12:56:51Z 2011-07-15T12:56:51Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-07-15T12:56:51Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/15/pondering-the-premium-on-texas-instruments-acquisition-of-national-semiconductor 2011-07-15T10:15:06Z 2011-07-15T10:15:06Z

Texas Instruments’ acquisition of rival chip maker National Semiconductor for $6.5 billion is the biggest M&A deal in the chip

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-15T10:15:06Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/14/building-a-european-union-the-benign-crisis-theory-keeps-on-trucking 2011-07-14T09:10:24Z 2011-07-14T09:10:24Z

At the birth of the euro it was plain to all the major players that while there was sufficient will and agreement among the European

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-14T09:10:24Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/13/exchanging-fates-why-exchanges-merge-and-why-it-matters 2011-07-13T10:59:05Z 2011-07-13T10:59:05Z

At the time of writing, the London Stock Exchange’s bid for the Toronto Exchange TMX, which most people, including the LSE and TMX, thought

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-13T10:59:05Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/07/12/new-dawn-for-thai-economy-has-one-of-the-most-chaotic-democracies-turned-the-corner 2011-07-12T09:39:51Z 2011-07-12T09:39:51Z

There has been much talk about Thailand turning the corner and putting half a decade of turmoil behind it following the recent surprise

Ian Fraser 2011-07-12T09:39:51Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/11/redefining-consumption-in-the-new-normal 2011-07-11T09:25:12Z 2011-07-11T09:25:12Z

These thoughts on future consumption and consumer behaviours were prompted by Jason Hsu’s piece, 'The 3D Hurricane and the New Normal',

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-11T09:25:12Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/07/08/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-july-4-july-8-2011 2011-07-08T10:54:21Z 2011-07-08T10:54:21Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-07-08T10:54:21Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/07/07/accountants-who-dont-want-to-be-conservative-or-prudent-are-serving-capital-markets-ill 2011-07-07T10:38:33Z 2011-07-07T10:38:33Z

Accountancy has changed beyond recognition since the 1970s. At that time the accountancy professor Roy Sidebotham wrote:"There seems to be

Ian Fraser 2011-07-07T10:38:33Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/06/greek-debt-reprofiling-is-now-a-certainty 2011-07-06T08:57:35Z 2011-07-06T08:57:35Z

The EU, led by a French initiative which German banks appear to be signing up to, is finally getting ready to allow a reprofiling of Greek

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-06T08:57:35Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/05/challenges-and-hopeful-signs-in-the-debt-market 2011-07-05T09:12:22Z 2011-07-05T09:12:22Z

European governments need 1.8 trillion of debt funding and roll-over funding in the markets in 2011 in order for everything to stay

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-05T09:12:22Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/04/the-eus-attempt-to-control-derivatives-runs-into-criticism-and-delay 2011-07-04T11:34:48Z 2011-07-04T11:34:48Z

The Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA), the trade association for global hedge funds, warned recently that, while it is

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-04T11:34:48Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/07/01/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-june-27-july-1-2011 2011-07-01T12:35:13Z 2011-07-01T12:35:13Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-07-01T12:35:13Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/07/01/stealth-bail-outs-an-economists-furore-with-a-twist-part-three 2011-07-01T09:05:47Z 2011-07-01T09:05:47Z

The aim of this concluding comment on the Hans Werner Sinn versus the rest on the subject of Target2 stealth bail-outs is a simple one. It

Anthony Harrington 2011-07-01T09:05:47Z Ian Lowes http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-lowes/2011/06/29/structured_products_a_further_introduction 2011-06-29T10:01:31Z 2011-06-29T10:01:31Z

In 2010 £12.32bn was invested in Structured Products, which, for the right reasons, remained a popular choice with many advisers; but

Ian Lowes 2011-06-29T10:01:31Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/06/29/dagong-chairman-calls-for-radical-reform-of-global-credit-rating-system 2011-06-29T08:11:42Z 2011-06-29T08:11:42Z

Guan Jianzhong, chairman of Dagong Global Credit Rating Co has accused western democracies of using credit rating agencies to pull the wool

Ian Fraser 2011-06-29T08:11:42Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/28/when-the-bail-outs-dont-work-what-then-part-two 2011-06-28T10:29:33Z 2011-06-28T10:29:33Z

What happens if Greece defaults? Andreas Whittam-Smith argues, in an article in The Independent, that those who claim that a Greek default

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-28T10:29:33Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/27/when-the-bail-outs-dont-work-what-then-part-one 2011-06-27T15:16:31Z 2011-06-27T15:16:31Z

At the time of writing Greek default looks just around the corner. This is despite the belated efforts of Europe’s senior political leaders

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-27T15:16:31Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/27/greek-default-its-now-or-never 2011-06-27T10:13:04Z 2011-06-27T10:13:04Z

The number of prominent market commentators calling for an immediate Greek default as the only sensible outcome of the current crisis

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-27T10:13:04Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/06/24/a_week_in_the_world_of_business_and_finance_june_20_24_2011 2011-06-24T13:13:19Z 2011-06-24T13:13:19Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-06-24T13:13:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/24/ratings-agencies-get-into-the-act-once-again-over-greece 2011-06-24T09:27:51Z 2011-06-24T09:27:51Z

When Europe, or even better, the globe, is teetering on a knife edge you can rest assured that one or other of the ratings agencies, or

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-24T09:27:51Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/23/stealth-bail-outs-an-economists-furore-with-a-twist-part-two 2011-06-23T10:09:33Z 2011-06-23T10:09:33Z

Many commentators on Hans Werner Sinn’s claim, that the stability of the euro is under threat from Target2 trade imbalances between the

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-23T10:09:33Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/06/22/willem-buiter-reasons-to-be-cheerful-about-greece 2011-06-22T12:13:55Z 2011-06-22T12:13:55Z

Given the recent blood-curdling, apocalyptic warnings about Greece (see Robert Peston and Andrew Lilico), it’s a relief to find there are

Ian Fraser 2011-06-22T12:13:55Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/22/the-return-of-pe-doesnt-necessarily-secure-the-future-of-pe 2011-06-22T09:45:08Z 2011-06-22T09:45:08Z

The global credit crunch that led to the recession of 2008 to 2009, and whose consequences global markets are still struggling to shake

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-22T09:45:08Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/06/21/salmond-dreams-scotland-can-become-a-celtic-lion-but-will-it-work 2011-06-21T10:12:19Z 2011-06-21T10:12:19Z

Alex Salmond, Scotland's first minister and leader of the Scottish National Party, has an undergraduate joint honours degree in economics

Ian Fraser 2011-06-21T10:12:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/20/stealth-bail-outs-an-economists-furore-with-a-twist-part-one 2011-06-20T11:15:43Z 2011-06-20T11:15:43Z

An extraordinary row is going on over whether the EU settlement mechanism, Target2, which has until now been regarded simply as the

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-20T11:15:43Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/06/17/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-june-13-17-2011 2011-06-17T13:26:47Z 2011-06-17T13:26:47Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-06-17T13:26:47Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/06/17/the-osbourne-ultimatum-banks-must-split-or-else 2011-06-17T08:14:44Z 2011-06-17T08:14:44Z

The announcement from Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, that British banks are going to be forced to “ring fence” their retail

Ian Fraser 2011-06-17T08:14:44Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/06/16/salmonds-silence-on-banking-is-elephant-in-room-for-scottish-independence 2011-06-16T10:53:52Z 2011-06-16T10:53:52Z

Since Alex Salmond’s Scottish National Party secured a majority in Scotland's parliamentary elections on May 5, there has been much debate

Ian Fraser 2011-06-16T10:53:52Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/15/why-pushing-otc-derivatives-through-central-clearing-houses-still-carries-risk 2011-06-15T13:51:37Z 2011-06-15T13:51:37Z

One of the themes of the analysis of the global crash has been the role of derivatives in magnifying losses. Part of the concern here has

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-15T13:51:37Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2011/06/14/i-didnt-do-it-the-hedge-funds-did-financialization 2011-06-14T08:59:26Z 2011-06-14T08:59:26Z

Hedge funds have been blamed for a lot of things – the recent financial crisis, illicit financial market activity, bad weather, natural

All About Alpha 2011-06-14T08:59:26Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/13/china-wobbles-spook-the-markets-economic-growth 2011-06-13T09:21:50Z 2011-06-13T09:21:50Z

European and US markets, which had already posted getting on for six weeks of losses, went into a tailspin on June 10 when it became clear

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-13T09:21:50Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/06/10/a-week-in-the-world-of-business-and-finance-june-6-10-2011 2011-06-10T12:33:14Z 2011-06-10T12:33:14Z

Each week QFINANCE will endeavor to bring you some of the biggest news stories from the past five days in finance and business, as well as

QFINANCE Editor 2011-06-10T12:33:14Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/10/imf-looks-ahead-to-latin-americas-challenges 2011-06-10T08:39:46Z 2011-06-10T08:39:46Z

In April the International Monetary Fund (IMF) published a “Discussion Note” which looked at the challenges a new era of abundance is

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-10T08:39:46Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/06/09/david-tuckett-economics-fatally-under-estimates-importance-of-emotions 2011-06-09T14:42:54Z 2011-06-09T14:42:54Z

The myths of the rational investor and the efficient market hypothesis have much to answer for. Arguably, they underpinned the folly that

Ian Fraser 2011-06-09T14:42:54Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2011/06/09/pain-at-the-pump-high-gas-prices-might-be-here-to-stay-and-the-consequences-for-the-recovery-arent-pretty 2011-06-09T12:51:13Z 2011-06-09T12:51:13Z

It's no secret that gas prices are high. Here in Chicago, prices seem to be perilously close to $5 a gallon, and the cost of gas seems to

Morningstar 2011-06-09T12:51:13Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/06/08/its-time-investors-saw-sense-and-stopped-giving-credence-to-ratings-agencies 2011-06-08T08:57:54Z 2011-06-08T08:57:54Z

The credit rating agencies performed so woefully in the run-up to the global financial crisis, one might have thought they would be utterly

Ian Fraser 2011-06-08T08:57:54Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/07/quant-funds-make-up-lost-ground-after-the-crash-by-anthony-harrington-part-two 2011-06-07T09:40:59Z 2011-06-07T09:40:59Z

With quant funds on the rise again – and this time looking a lot more resilient than they did before the crash of 2008 – what is different

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-07T09:40:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/06/gdp-a-damn-statistic-if-ever-there-was-one 2011-06-06T08:45:06Z 2011-06-06T08:45:06Z

Imagine that you are an innovative economist back in, say, the 18th century, and you discover a brand new way of measuring private

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-06T08:45:06Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/03/why-geopolitics-creates-havoc-with-south-asias-energy-needs-part-2 2011-06-03T13:01:29Z 2011-06-03T13:01:29Z

Despite the challenges looked at in Part 1 (which you can read here), the potential of an IPI (Iran-Pakistan-India) “peace” pipeline has

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-03T13:01:29Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/03/sovereign-wealth-funds-swfs-political-they-are-political-they-stay-part-two 2011-06-03T09:54:01Z 2011-06-03T09:54:01Z

Part 1 covered the origins of the Sovereign Wealth Fund GAPP (Generally Accepted Principles and Practice, also known as “the Santiago

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-03T09:54:01Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/06/02/frances-economy-turns-corner-but-only-to-smash-into-wall-of-debt 2011-06-02T14:59:15Z 2011-06-02T14:59:15Z

The French economy may not have not made quite the assured recovery that Germany has, but it it did grow faster than expected in the first

Ian Fraser 2011-06-02T14:59:15Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/06/02/geopolitics-creates-havoc-with-south-asia-energy-needs-part-1-economic-growth 2011-06-02T10:05:58Z 2011-06-02T10:05:58Z

The role of natural gas in India’s energy mix should, in theory, be a no-brainer – use as much of it as you can get, would be the summary

Anthony Harrington 2011-06-02T10:05:58Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/06/01/its-time-the-imf-had-a-non-european-at-the-helm 2011-06-01T08:25:35Z 2011-06-01T08:25:35Z

European nations still haven't quite got over their loss of empire and status after World War II. Prior to 1939, countries like Belgium,

Ian Fraser 2011-06-01T08:25:35Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/31/sovereign-wealth-funds-swfs-political-they-are-part-1 2011-05-31T09:30:37Z 2011-05-31T09:30:37Z

Some history of SWFsAt the height of the last boom, with the coming crash already visible for those who had eyes to see, the activities of

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-31T09:30:37Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/27/greek-debt-restructuring-junckers-says-yes-ecb-says-no 2011-05-27T08:11:39Z 2011-05-27T08:11:39Z

For a man who recently rattled more than a few cages around Europe by proclaiming the necessity for “deep dark secrets” and for espousing

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-27T08:11:39Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/05/26/etfs-accident-waiting-to-happen-exchange-traded-funds 2011-05-26T09:19:59Z 2011-05-26T09:19:59Z

Terry Smith, the pugnacious founder of London-based asset management group Fundsmith, has launched a broadside at the exchange-traded funds

Ian Fraser 2011-05-26T09:19:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/25/china-watchers-envy-strong-party-control-command-economy 2011-05-25T10:34:47Z 2011-05-25T10:34:47Z

When you come right down to it, corporations are not democracies. They may play nicely under the glare of the public spotlight and put a

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-25T10:34:47Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2011/05/24/finance-and-procurement-a-critical-value-add-relationship 2011-05-24T08:53:33Z 2011-05-24T08:53:33Z

It’s time for the Finance and Accounting functions to change their roles - particularly when it comes to procurement.Too often, Finance

Leslie Kossoff 2011-05-24T08:53:33Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/23/sovereign-wealth-funds-just-keep-getting-bigger 2011-05-23T08:27:46Z 2011-05-23T08:27:46Z

The aggregate assets of the world’s sovereign wealth funds rose 11% through 2010 to $3.8 trillion according to a report by Prequin. Whether

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-23T08:27:46Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/05/20/apres-strauss-kahn-le-deluge-international-monetary-fund 2011-05-20T07:58:51Z 2011-05-20T07:58:51Z

Even several days after the story first broke, the Dominique Strauss-Kahn affair beggars belief.Strauss-Kahn resignsOne of the most

Ian Fraser 2011-05-20T07:58:51Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/19/quant-funds-make-up-lost-ground-after-the-crash 2011-05-19T10:20:03Z 2011-05-19T10:20:03Z

Quantitative managers who rely on mathematical models to assemble investment portfolios, rather than going out to meet company management

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-19T10:20:03Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2011/05/18/greek-default-us-investors 2011-05-18T09:07:19Z 2011-05-18T09:07:19Z

A few weeks back, I argued that Standard & Poor's lower outlook on U.S. sovereign debt was nothing more than distraction from the real

Morningstar 2011-05-18T09:07:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/17/whats-ahead-for-central-europe-capital-flows 2011-05-17T14:27:19Z 2011-05-17T14:27:19Z

In a presentation made at the end of 2010, Steven Cecchetti, the Head of the Monetary and Economic Department at the Bank for International

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-17T14:27:19Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/05/17/as-vietnam-loses-faith-in-the-dong-hanoi-struggles-to-rein-in-inflation 2011-05-17T08:20:13Z 2011-05-17T08:20:13Z

The commodities price correction of early May has led some, including New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, to believe the spectre of

Ian Fraser 2011-05-17T08:20:13Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/16/accounting-for-value-financial-engineering-part-four 2011-05-16T13:40:17Z 2011-05-16T13:40:17Z

In the closing part of the review of Accounting for Value by Stephen Penman, Professor of Accounting at Columbia Business School, I

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-16T13:40:17Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/05/16/what-dominique-strauss-kahns-arrest-means-for-the-markets-and-for-france 2011-05-16T08:46:00Z 2011-05-16T08:46:00Z

The surprise arrest last Saturday of the IMF managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn at Kennedy airport in New York on sex charges could

Ian Fraser 2011-05-16T08:46:00Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/13/accounting-for-value-accounting-principles-part-3 2011-05-13T08:53:23Z 2011-05-13T08:53:23Z

In his book Accounting for Value Steven Penman, Professor of Accounting at the Columbia business school, argues that anyone concerned with

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-13T08:53:23Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/12/accounting-for-value-part-2-mark-to-market-accounting 2011-05-12T13:34:24Z 2011-05-12T13:34:24Z

In part 1 we looked at the implications of the distinction between price and value made by Stephen Penman, Professor of Accounting at the

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-12T13:34:24Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/05/12/paul-krugman-causes-of-the-financial-crisis 2011-05-12T08:22:50Z 2011-05-12T08:22:50Z

Who really got us into this mess? In Wall Street, in the City, in the corridors of Whitehall and Washington DC, and in the Berlaymont

Ian Fraser 2011-05-12T08:22:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/11/fair-value-accountingignore-this-at-your-peril-part-one 2011-05-11T09:38:15Z 2011-05-11T09:38:15Z

How does anyone - analysts or bankers or investors or even regulators, bless them - judge the value of a commercial entity of any scale?

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-11T09:38:15Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/05/10/fidelity-is-confident-its-mints-wont-suck-emerging-economies 2011-05-10T09:45:30Z 2011-05-10T09:45:30Z

Jim O’Neill has a lot to answer for. In 2001 the British-born Goldman Sachs economist and senior executive coined a term to describe the

Ian Fraser 2011-05-10T09:45:30Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/09/senate-report-recommendations-will-regulation-work-this-time-financial-regulatory-reform 2011-05-09T09:04:38Z 2011-05-09T09:04:38Z

This is the fourth of four blog posts on the US Senate report on the crash. See also: The US Senate report on the crash (part 1),

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-09T09:04:38Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/05/06/eu-asset-management-reforms-are-in-industrys-best-interests-says-state-street-regulation 2011-05-06T13:12:58Z 2011-05-06T13:12:58Z

Europe's asset-management industry is generally unenthusiastic about the torrent of regulatory change emanating from Brussels right now.

Ian Fraser 2011-05-06T13:12:58Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/06/the-secret-behind-economy-of-russia 2011-05-06T09:59:05Z 2011-05-06T09:59:05Z

As a fully paid-up member of the BRIC emerging economies, Russia has long been thought of as a pure commodities play. Oil and gas are the

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-06T09:59:05Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2011/05/05/from-poison-pens-to-poison-pills 2011-05-05T13:14:47Z 2011-05-05T13:14:47Z

For those who haven’t had the pleasure of reading a well-written, vitriol-filled diatribe from an activist fund manager bitterly

All About Alpha 2011-05-05T13:14:47Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/05/fomc-press-conference-us-monetary-policy 2011-05-05T08:39:19Z 2011-05-05T08:39:19Z

In part 1 we looked at how Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s first ever press conference, following an Federal Open Market Committee

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-05T08:39:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/04/catch-22-snookers-fdic-over-wamu-failure-market-regulation 2011-05-04T12:21:47Z 2011-05-04T12:21:47Z

What is to be said of a regulator that sees horrendous weaknesses in an institution it is charged to regulate, and yet is too timid, or

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-04T12:21:47Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/03/the-fomc-first-ever-press-conference-has-gold-setting-new-records-part-one-us-inflation 2011-05-03T13:54:05Z 2011-05-03T13:54:05Z

On April 27th the US Federal Reserve held a historic press conference, its first ever such conference after its regular Federal Open

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-03T13:54:05Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/05/03/us-senate-report-into-the-crash-part-three-loan-securitization 2011-05-03T09:41:11Z 2011-05-03T09:41:11Z

This is the third of four blog posts on the US Senate report on the crash. See also: The US Senate report on the crash (part 1),

Anthony Harrington 2011-05-03T09:41:11Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/04/28/its-securitization-but-not-as-we-have-known-it 2011-04-28T14:21:09Z 2011-04-28T14:21:09Z

When the global securitization market froze up as a result of sub-prime contagion in July 2007, many practitioners headed for the hills,

Ian Fraser 2011-04-28T14:21:09Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/28/us-senate-report-into-the-crash-part-two-financial-crisis-causes 2011-04-28T10:04:20Z 2011-04-28T10:04:20Z

This is the second of four blog posts on the US Senate report on the crash. See also: The US Senate report on the crash (part 1), The

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-28T10:04:20Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/04/27/crispin-odey-you-need-three-bear-markets-before-you-know-what-to-do 2011-04-27T14:27:59Z 2011-04-27T14:27:59Z

Investment managers who haven’t lived through at least two bear markets are bound to make serious blunders, a bit like jockeys who haven’t

Ian Fraser 2011-04-27T14:27:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/27/davos-comments-on-greece-of-30-debt-haircut-now-seem-a-good-bet-sovereign-debt-crisis 2011-04-27T09:28:33Z 2011-04-27T09:28:33Z

Shortly after the World Economic Forum in Davos in February, I highlighted the fact that there was much talk in the corridors of Davos

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-27T09:28:33Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/26/japans-nuclear-nightmare-could-be-ending-at-fukushima-daiichi-2 2011-04-26T08:13:37Z 2011-04-26T08:13:37Z

Japan’s Tepco (Tokyo Electric Power Company) seems to be on a winning path, finally, in its long struggle to get on top of the nuclear

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-26T08:13:37Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2011/04/21/we-see-gold-going-lower-in-the-long-term-gold-analysis 2011-04-21T08:13:04Z 2011-04-21T08:13:04Z

Current drivers of record gold prices may be unsustainable moving forwardAfter exhibiting few signs of life during much of the 1980s and

Morningstar 2011-04-21T08:13:04Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/20/the-us-senate-report-on-the-crash-part-one-financial-report 2011-04-20T10:24:52Z 2011-04-20T10:24:52Z

This is the first of four blog posts on the US Senate report on the crash. See also: “Criminalization” of America’s financial system? (part

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-20T10:24:52Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/19/chinas-renewables-strategy-annoys-the-us-energy 2011-04-19T12:35:07Z 2011-04-19T12:35:07Z

The scale of China’s strategy for renewable power generation is not widely grasped or appreciated in the West. Japan’s horrendous

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-19T12:35:07Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/04/19/kotlikoff-financial-system-is-a-ponzi-scheme-that-could-collapse-at-any-time-fiscal-reform 2011-04-19T09:47:05Z 2011-04-19T09:47:05Z

A leading professor of economics has warned that the global economy is a giant Ponzi scheme that could collapse at any time.Speaking at a

Ian Fraser 2011-04-19T09:47:05Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/04/18/defaults-might-be-the-only-way-to-ensure-the-eurozones-survival-crisis 2011-04-18T08:33:25Z 2011-04-18T08:33:25Z

The response of the European Union to the unfolding eurozone sovereign debt crisis has, so far, been of the headless chicken variety. Or to

Ian Fraser 2011-04-18T08:33:25Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/15/creative-accounting-and-government-debt-another-fine-mess-regulation 2011-04-15T09:09:27Z 2011-04-15T09:09:27Z

What is it about politicians that makes them think we’re all stupid? Is it because we are? I think not, though taken as that pliable mass,

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-15T09:09:27Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/04/14/fairpensions-exposes-conflicts-at-heart-of-pensions-management-and-calls-for-shake-up 2011-04-14T15:19:40Z 2011-04-14T15:19:40Z

FairPensions has produced an in-depth report which lifts the lid on the conflicts of interest at the heart of pensions management, and

Ian Fraser 2011-04-14T15:19:40Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2011/04/14/on-corporate-politics-and-what-can-be-done-about-it 2011-04-14T10:05:33Z 2011-04-14T10:05:33Z

Everyone complains about corporate politics but, interestingly, it’s rare that anyone admits they participate in them. It’s more of a

Leslie Kossoff 2011-04-14T10:05:33Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/13/why-greek-debt-spells-goodnight-to-ecb-independence 2011-04-13T08:54:56Z 2011-04-13T08:54:56Z

As the euro sovereign debt crisis continues to gnaw away at market confidence, sometimes fading into the background, sometimes zooming back

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-13T08:54:56Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/12/us-deficit-finally-gets-the-politicians-thinking-budget 2011-04-12T12:32:26Z 2011-04-12T12:32:26Z

This blog was written just hours before the US government was due to find itself in a total stalemate over President Obama’s 2012 Budget.

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-12T12:32:26Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/04/11/life-insurers-to-be-saved-from-the-consequences-of-their-own-short-termism 2011-04-11T09:44:46Z 2011-04-11T09:44:46Z

It looks like the UK life insurance sector is to be saved from the consequences of its own short-termism thanks to timely re-regulation by

Ian Fraser 2011-04-11T09:44:46Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/08/gold-sets-new-highs-on-investor-fears 2011-04-08T08:13:31Z 2011-04-08T08:13:31Z

If there is anything surprising about gold moving to new record highs on the back of the unrest in North Africa and fears that the Persian

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-08T08:13:31Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/04/07/as-portugal-succumbs-to-an-eu-bailout-spain-could-be-next-in-line-piigs 2011-04-07T10:01:06Z 2011-04-07T10:01:06Z

When prime minister Jose Socrates formally requested a bailout for Portugal on April 6, it left just two of the five PIIGS countries

Ian Fraser 2011-04-07T10:01:06Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/06/imf-lessons-from-the-crash-part-two-asset-bubbles 2011-04-06T10:18:39Z 2011-04-06T10:18:39Z

Part one considered IMF Chief Economist Olivier Blanchard’s view that one of the central lessons from the global crash of 2008 was the

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-06T10:18:39Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/05/spanish-banks-towing-spain-towards-the-rocks-banking-crisis 2011-04-05T09:43:02Z 2011-04-05T09:43:02Z

On March 24 Moody’s Investors Services downgraded the senior debt and deposit ratings of the 30 Spanish banks below the big three (Banco

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-05T09:43:02Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/04/04/big-four-auditors-on-back-foot-after-having-failures-exposed-by-uk-parliamentary-report 2011-04-04T14:16:59Z 2011-04-04T14:16:59Z

The report into the auditing profession published by the House of Lords economic affairs committee last week signals a major turning point

Ian Fraser 2011-04-04T14:16:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/04/the-ecb-on-the-brink-of-another-historic-blunder-ecb-rate 2011-04-04T08:18:23Z 2011-04-04T08:18:23Z

A few weeks before the fall of Lehman Brothers precipitated the most cataclysmic destruction of wealth since the Great Depression, the

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-04T08:18:23Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/04/01/qfinance-news-round-up-2 2011-04-01T15:20:06Z 2011-04-01T15:20:06Z

Bringing to you the top finance and business news stories of the week. Libya crisisLibya's rebel opposition council will start benefiting

QFINANCE Editor 2011-04-01T15:20:06Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/04/01/why-accounting-rules-and-investment-logic-can-and-do-collide-impairment-charge 2011-04-01T11:41:12Z 2011-04-01T11:41:12Z

I am hugely indebted to Jim Fink’s Investing Daily newsletter for picking up on an absolutely daft confrontation between Warren Buffett’s

Anthony Harrington 2011-04-01T11:41:12Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/31/japans-nuclear-industry-disaster-gives-some-countries-pause 2011-03-31T08:39:57Z 2011-03-31T08:39:57Z

No one can look on as Japanese nuclear engineers struggle to prevent further radioactive leakage from the damaged reactor cores of the

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-31T08:39:57Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/03/30/the-spin-free-cycle-of-nexts-corporate-reporting-bodes-well-for-future-transparency 2011-03-30T09:30:55Z 2011-03-30T09:30:55Z

The chief executive’s statement that accompanies a listed company's annual results is often so laced with corporate spin and

Ian Fraser 2011-03-30T09:30:55Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/29/libya-crisis-of-2011-leaves-italy-where 2011-03-29T08:32:02Z 2011-03-29T08:32:02Z

Enmeshed as he is in present and pending court cases, the Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi probably doesn’t have that much time to

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-29T08:32:02Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/03/28/libor-probe-tests-regulators-faith-in-chinese-walls 2011-03-28T07:53:29Z 2011-03-28T07:53:29Z

One of the biggest financial scandals of recent weeks involves the alleged "rigging" of Libor rates by a group of the world's largest

Ian Fraser 2011-03-28T07:53:29Z Pensionomics http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/pensionomics-/2011/03/24/osbornes_budget_what_does_it_mean_for_pension_reform 2011-03-24T15:27:06Z 2011-03-24T15:27:06Z

24 hours on, it’s time to take stock of the Budget.Simplifying benefits and taking more pensioners out of the tax net is good. The

Pensionomics 2011-03-24T15:27:06Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/24/imf-seeks-to-define-the-lessons-of-the-crash-part-1 2011-03-24T11:33:21Z 2011-03-24T11:33:21Z

In one of the most high powered mini events it has ever orchestrated, the IMF recently brought together four top economists, including

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-24T11:33:21Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/23/mauldins-end-game-teaches-politicians-the-basics-but-are-they-listening-austerity-measures 2011-03-23T11:09:49Z 2011-03-23T11:09:49Z

John Mauldin’s blog “Thoughts from the Frontline” is one of the best financial and economic commentaries around, not least because Mauldin

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-23T11:09:49Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/03/22/the-uk-government-is-wrong-governance-cannot-be-outsourced-to-investors-corporate-governance 2011-03-22T11:06:56Z 2011-03-22T11:06:56Z

Can investors be relied upon to police corporate behavior (governance) and guide the companies in which they invest to take decisions

Ian Fraser 2011-03-22T11:06:56Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/18/china-readjusts-to-address-its-weaknesses-five-year-plan 2011-03-18T11:33:14Z 2011-03-18T11:33:14Z

The latest Chinese five-year plan recognises that the way the Chinese economy has developed so far, with a massive emphasis on exports, is

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-18T11:33:14Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/17/rethinking-risk-management-the-ecb-takes-stock-global-risk 2011-03-17T10:54:22Z 2011-03-17T10:54:22Z

At a recent speech to delegates at a conference on Risk and Return in South Africa, José Manuel González-Páramo, Member of the Executive

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-17T10:54:22Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/16/us-affordable-care-health-plan-attacked-as-unconstitutional-price-fixing 2011-03-16T15:08:25Z 2011-03-16T15:08:25Z

US President Barak Obama’s most ambitious legislative venture, the reform of the US healthcare system, is facing legal action from 22

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-16T15:08:25Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/15/what-stops-improving-living-standards-for-everyone-answer-interventionist-politicians-fiscal-stimulus 2011-03-15T17:03:06Z 2011-03-15T17:03:06Z

There can be few people who do not grasp that the UK is facing a huge deficit as a result of the stimulus measures undertaken to help the

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-15T17:03:06Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/03/15/reducing-corruption-and-the-kleptomania-of-autocrats-the-eiti-way 2011-03-15T12:00:48Z 2011-03-15T12:00:48Z

The extractive industries are one of the biggest sources of foreign direct investment for many emerging economies - often accounting for

Ian Fraser 2011-03-15T12:00:48Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/14/trichet-and-the-ecb-hint-at-rate-rises-quantitative-easing 2011-03-14T17:21:08Z 2011-03-14T17:21:08Z

The broad hint given by Jean-Claude Trichet, President of the European Central Bank, during the ECB’s monthly press conference on March 3,

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-14T17:21:08Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/14/economic-cost-of-the-japanese-quake-and-tsunami-100-billion-and-rising 2011-03-14T13:02:13Z 2011-03-14T13:02:13Z

With the damage caused by the fifth largest earthquake ever recorded (magnitude 9.0) still being assessed, the expectation is that the

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-14T13:02:13Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/03/11/qfinance-news-round-up 2011-03-11T14:53:55Z 2011-03-11T14:53:55Z

Bringing to you the top finance and business news stories of the week. This week, oil prices rise sharply due to unrest in Libya, Barclays

QFINANCE Editor 2011-03-11T14:53:55Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/11/commodity-prices-just-murphys-law-at-work-global-commodities 2011-03-11T11:18:49Z 2011-03-11T11:18:49Z

Murphy’s Law says that if something can go wrong, it will go wrong. For the last year it seems that Murphy’s Law has been in full swing in

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-11T11:18:49Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/03/10/buffett-slams-black-scholes-and-flat-earth-economists 2011-03-10T12:21:21Z 2011-03-10T12:21:21Z

This is the second part of Ian Fraser's blog on Warren Buffett’s letter to shareholders in insurance conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway. Here,

Ian Fraser 2011-03-10T12:21:21Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/03/09/buffett-on-hiring-accounting-cash-hoarding-and-the-avoidance-of-corporate-excess 2011-03-09T11:28:19Z 2011-03-09T11:28:19Z

This is the first part of Ian Fraser's blog on Warren Buffett’s letter to shareholders in insurance conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway.Warren

Ian Fraser 2011-03-09T11:28:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/08/in-an-electric-world-batteries-rule-a-revolution-to-come-battery-technology 2011-03-08T11:28:28Z 2011-03-08T11:28:28Z

With the threat of the growing build up of unsustainable concentrations of greenhouse gasses ever before them, the world’s governments in

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-08T11:28:28Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/03/07/boe-govenor-mervyn-king-and-the-case-for-reforming-britains-banks 2011-03-07T11:02:06Z 2011-03-07T11:02:06Z

It’s virtually unheard for the governor of a central bank to launch an outspoken attack on the integrity and purpose of his country’s

Ian Fraser 2011-03-07T11:02:06Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2011/03/04/think-you-know-all-about-infrastructure-investments-think-again 2011-03-04T15:53:32Z 2011-03-04T15:53:32Z

Infrastructure has long been one of the more esoteric “alternative” investments, broadly defined as a separate asset class yet loosely

All About Alpha 2011-03-04T15:53:32Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/03/02/quantitative_easing_is_not_only_failing_its_also_sparking_global_unrest_western_economics 2011-03-02T10:26:00Z 2011-03-02T10:26:00Z

Andy Xie, a board director at Rosetta Stone Advisors, is a man worth listening to. The 49-year-old former Morgan Stanley Asia-Pacific chief

Ian Fraser 2011-03-02T10:26:00Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/03/01/bernankes-analysis-of-capital-flows-does-anyone-actually-know-how-to-invest-global-economy 2011-03-01T14:42:09Z 2011-03-01T14:42:09Z

What happens when country A has a massive and growing current account surplus? The most natural thing to happen is that the people with

Anthony Harrington 2011-03-01T14:42:09Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2011/02/28/apple-shareholders-succession-demands-do-they-have-a-point-shareholder-activism 2011-02-28T14:17:55Z 2011-02-28T14:17:55Z

No matter whether you’re an executive or an entrepreneur, succession planning has to be on your To-Do list. After all, you might be hit by

Leslie Kossoff 2011-02-28T14:17:55Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/28/us-subprime-saga-phase-two-could-be-deadly-subprime-mortgage-crisis 2011-02-28T11:29:03Z 2011-02-28T11:29:03Z

The bursting of any major asset bubble leaves ruin and woe in its wake, but few recent bubbles have caused havoc on the scale of the

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-28T11:29:03Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/25/rising-energy-prices-threaten-global-recovery-high-oil-prices 2011-02-25T12:31:17Z 2011-02-25T12:31:17Z

It was inevitable that as Libya looked to be degenerating into civil war, the price of oil would climb and climb. Already we have had

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-25T12:31:17Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/02/24/inside-job-afflicted-by-conflicts-of-interest-economists-must-share-significant-blame-for-the-global-crisis 2011-02-24T16:38:48Z 2011-02-24T16:38:48Z

Charles Ferguson’s movie about the financial crisis, Inside Job, released in the US in October 2010, has finally made it the UK. I went to

Ian Fraser 2011-02-24T16:38:48Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/24/the-future-of-central-banking-part-2 2011-02-24T15:18:54Z 2011-02-24T15:18:54Z

In his keynote speech to the 9th Bank for International Settlements (BIS) annual conference, Baron Alexandre Lamfalussy, former General

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-24T15:18:54Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/23/central-bankers-on-the-future-of-central-banking-part-1 2011-02-23T17:07:56Z 2011-02-23T17:07:56Z

On June 24-25 2010, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) held its 9th Annual Conference in Lucerne, with the theme being “The

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-23T17:07:56Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/22/fusion-power-will-change-everything-for-business-nuclear-energy 2011-02-22T12:40:23Z 2011-02-22T12:40:23Z

Any company that is a heavy user of power, a category that includes the vast majority of manufacturing companies as well as transport and

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-22T12:40:23Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/21/colombia-part-2-a-chinese-alternative-to-the-panama-canal-colombian-economy 2011-02-21T12:48:01Z 2011-02-21T12:48:01Z

Perhaps as little as five years ago the Chinese were gathering an unenviable reputation for themselves as neo-colonialists, charging around

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-21T12:48:01Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/18/the-4-trillion-a-day-fx-market-keeps-on-growing 2011-02-18T11:46:10Z 2011-02-18T11:46:10Z

The scale of the foreign exchange (FX) dealing market is enormous and growing. According to an article in the Quarterly Review of the Bank

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-18T11:46:10Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/17/colombia-from-failed-state-to-rising-star-part-1 2011-02-17T16:09:24Z 2011-02-17T16:09:24Z

When President Clinton went to Colombia in 2000, the country was a failed state, with the government in charge of less than one third of

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-17T16:09:24Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2011/02/17/is-the-u-s-serious-about-cutting-healthcare-costs 2011-02-17T12:22:09Z 2011-02-17T12:22:09Z

We recently attended the National Congress on Health Insurance Reform in Washington, D.C. One of our favorite presentations was delivered

Morningstar 2011-02-17T12:22:09Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/16/austerity-under-the-microscope 2011-02-16T17:17:07Z 2011-02-16T17:17:07Z

It has been said many times that the debt levels being racked up by some governments are simply not sustainable. This anxiety, after all,

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-16T17:17:07Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/16/could-the-crash-lead-to-enthusiasm-for-central-planning 2011-02-16T12:50:04Z 2011-02-16T12:50:04Z

China has enjoyed two decades of 10% growth and this has caused some in the West to speculate that perhaps command capitalism, run by an

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-16T12:50:04Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/02/15/how-a-deceptive-report-from-merrill-lynch-sank-ireland 2011-02-15T15:15:23Z 2011-02-15T15:15:23Z

Michael Lewis, author of The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine and Liar's Poker, has invented a new journalistic genre. It’s called

Ian Fraser 2011-02-15T15:15:23Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/15/greece-leaves-the-world-economic-forum-in-better-spirits-economic-recovery 2011-02-15T10:42:21Z 2011-02-15T10:42:21Z

Davos, the Swiss ski resort that played host to the 2010 World Economic Forum, was not notable for any grand final communiqué and it drew

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-15T10:42:21Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/14/stewardship-the-other-half-of-the-hinge-in-corporate-governance-shareholder-activism 2011-02-14T12:25:01Z 2011-02-14T12:25:01Z

The UK Stewardship Code was launched by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) in July 2010 and seemed to promptly vanish, almost without a

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-14T12:25:01Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/02/11/qfinance-weekly-news-round-up-2 2011-02-11T16:55:04Z 2011-02-11T16:55:04Z

Bringing to you the top finance and business news stories of the week. This week, Project Merlin takes a blow, mega mergers in the stock

QFINANCE Editor 2011-02-11T16:55:04Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/02/11/challenging-investment-banks-over-rights-issue-charges 2011-02-11T15:51:50Z 2011-02-11T15:51:50Z

What’s the difference between an underwriter and an undertaker?According to a recent article in The Economist, Vexed in the City, not that

Ian Fraser 2011-02-11T15:51:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/11/the-great-depression-revisited-some-key-facts-2008-financial-crash 2011-02-11T12:08:12Z 2011-02-11T12:08:12Z

As a counterweight to the view of the Great Depression expressed by the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, I recently embarked

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-11T12:08:12Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/10/sarkozy-redefines-capitalism-at-davos-new-capitalism 2011-02-10T14:20:09Z 2011-02-10T14:20:09Z

French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s freehand sketch of a new capitalism for the 21st century astonished more than a few of the delegates at

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-10T14:20:09Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/02/09/project-merlin-should-be-quietly-allowed-to-expire-bank-bonuses 2011-02-09T11:52:07Z 2011-02-09T11:52:07Z

Project Merlin, the wizard scheme dreamt up in autumn 2010 by the ex-Barclays chief executive John Varley and RBS chairman Sir Philip

Ian Fraser 2011-02-09T11:52:07Z Searching Finance http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/searching-finance/2011/02/08/how-far-can-investment-firms-innovate 2011-02-08T12:40:51Z 2011-02-08T12:40:51Z

This article was first published in 2010.I’m continually impressed and amazed by the speed of change in the technology of the investment

Searching Finance 2011-02-08T12:40:51Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2011/02/07/elephantine-sovereign-wealth-funds-trying-to-fly-below-the-radar 2011-02-07T12:42:53Z 2011-02-07T12:42:53Z

It seems that sovereign wealth funds are the latest “scary” thing in the media – perhaps scarier than high-frequency traders, Irish banks,

All About Alpha 2011-02-07T12:42:53Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/02/04/qfinance-weekly-news-round-up 2011-02-04T17:28:52Z 2011-02-04T17:28:52Z

Bringing to you the top finance and business news stories of the week. This week, Egyptian politics, the BP/Rosneft deal and the

QFINANCE Editor 2011-02-04T17:28:52Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/04/sarkozys-war-on-commodity-speculators-is-more-intervention-the-way-to-go-french-economy 2011-02-04T12:39:41Z 2011-02-04T12:39:41Z

French President Nicolas Sarkozy is probably the leading proponent among supposedly free market politicians, of vigorous state intervention

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-04T12:39:41Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/03/casting-about-for-a-new-economics-rediscovering-hayek-part-3 2011-02-03T11:10:23Z 2011-02-03T11:10:23Z

For the last of these three blogs on Hayek (last for now, anyway) I want to look at his suggestions for a practical implementation of his

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-03T11:10:23Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/02/02/indias-reputation-as-magnet-for-foreign-direct-investment-at-risk-indian-econom 2011-02-02T15:07:50Z 2011-02-02T15:07:50Z

During the recent World Economic Forum in Switzerland, India made a concerted effort to present itself as an attractive destination for

Ian Fraser 2011-02-02T15:07:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/02/01/casting-about-for-a-new-economics-rediscovering-hayek-part-2 2011-02-01T17:05:31Z 2011-02-01T17:05:31Z

On the face of things it might seem odd that the Austrian School, in the shape of Friedrich Hayek and Ludwig Von Mises should be back in

Anthony Harrington 2011-02-01T17:05:31Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/02/01/remutualizing-britains-ex-building-societies-might-benefit-its-banks-banking-reform 2011-02-01T11:03:38Z 2011-02-01T11:03:38Z

Vast quantities of hot air and newsprint have been expended by British politicians and media on how to reform the banking sector, make it

Ian Fraser 2011-02-01T11:03:38Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/01/31/casting-about-for-the-new-economics-rediscovering-hayek-part-1 2011-01-31T12:16:25Z 2011-01-31T12:16:25Z

It is now widely believed that the 2008-09 global crash discredited the classical economic model of efficient markets beyond repair and

Anthony Harrington 2011-01-31T12:16:25Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/01/28/qfinance-weekly-round-up-2 2011-01-28T12:41:56Z 2011-01-28T12:41:56Z

Bringing to you the top finance and business news stories of the week. This week, Obama's State of the Union address and the politics

QFINANCE Editor 2011-01-28T12:41:56Z Bill Sharon http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/bill-sharon/2011/01/28/truth-in-america-us-economy 2011-01-28T10:23:40Z 2011-01-28T10:23:40Z

Truth is an emotion applied to a set of facts. President Obama stated early in his State of the Union speech:“Two years after the worst

Bill Sharon 2011-01-28T10:23:40Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/01/27/bp-and-rosnefts-arctic-adventure-part-two-russian-economy 2011-01-27T12:56:29Z 2011-01-27T12:56:29Z

In part one I looked at the argument that BP’s superior governance and more developed corporate social responsibility could keep its

Anthony Harrington 2011-01-27T12:56:29Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/01/26/bp-and-rosneft-arctic-adventure-part-one-russian-economy 2011-01-26T17:02:14Z 2011-01-26T17:02:14Z

At QFINANCE we are always interested in major mergers and joint ventures so the BP-Rosneft deal announced on January 14 is a natural focus,

Anthony Harrington 2011-01-26T17:02:14Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/01/26/fretting-about-the-price-of-onions-inflationary-pressures-build-in-the-indian-economy 2011-01-26T12:46:08Z 2011-01-26T12:46:08Z

India is in a state of high anxiety right now ... about the price of onions. One year ago, a kilo of onions - a staple ingredient of even

Ian Fraser 2011-01-26T12:46:08Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/01/25/china-and-japan-promise-help-for-the-euro 2011-01-25T16:46:42Z 2011-01-25T16:46:42Z

We all knew that there would be many a twist and turn in the Euro sovereign debt crisis before it finally plays itself out, in whatever

Anthony Harrington 2011-01-25T16:46:42Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/01/25/meteorologists-are-unsung-heroes-la-nina-shows-her-teeth 2011-01-25T12:58:51Z 2011-01-25T12:58:51Z

Those engaged with the “soft” or agriculture related commodities markets watch the big, global weather patterns more closely than most of

Anthony Harrington 2011-01-25T12:58:51Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/01/24/accountancy-sacrificed-its-right-to-call-itself-a-profession-long-ago 2011-01-24T17:32:18Z 2011-01-24T17:32:18Z

Stewart Hamilton, Professor Emeritus at the IMD business school in Lausanne, wrote a prescient article about the accountancy profession 22

Ian Fraser 2011-01-24T17:32:18Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/01/18/big-oil-driven-into-blind-alley-by-myopic-investors-and-resource-nationalism 2011-01-18T16:07:15Z 2011-01-18T16:07:15Z

Big oil and gas companies are being pushed into a dangerous corner by a combination of “resource nationalism” - which is excluding them

Ian Fraser 2011-01-18T16:07:15Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2011/01/18/commodities-set-to-shine-in-2011-global-markets 2011-01-18T11:00:04Z 2011-01-18T11:00:04Z

The weather has not been kind to global wheat crops through 2010 - so wheat prices have been outperforming all other commodities. And it is

Anthony Harrington 2011-01-18T11:00:04Z Searching Finance http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/searching-finance/2011/01/17/why-would-a-bank-change-its-core-system 2011-01-17T10:17:01Z 2011-01-17T10:17:01Z

There are lots of reasons why a bank would change its core system. Here’s my top five.Legacy constraintsThis is the most obvious one, but

Searching Finance 2011-01-17T10:17:01Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2011/01/14/qfinance-weekly-round-up 2011-01-14T16:15:05Z 2011-01-14T16:15:05Z

Bringing to you the top finance and business news stories of the week. This week, Spain's successful bond auction, more talk of currency

QFINANCE Editor 2011-01-14T16:15:05Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2011/01/14/scrap-mark-to-market-accounting-or-face-further-crisis-warn-investors 2011-01-14T10:45:26Z 2011-01-14T10:45:26Z

The interrogation of Barclays' newly-installed chief executive Bob Diamond by the Treasury committee of the House of Commons last Tuesday

Ian Fraser 2011-01-14T10:45:26Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2011/01/13/ok-people-stretch-those-muscles-and-lets-invest-in-a-way-that-has-a-positive-impact 2011-01-13T16:29:33Z 2011-01-13T16:29:33Z

A car accident, a plane crash, or Jane Fonda’s workout, perhaps, but ‘impact’ is not a word one might typically associate with investing.

All About Alpha 2011-01-13T16:29:33Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2011/01/12/2011-the-year-ahead-getting-used-to-100-oil-or-200-oil 2011-01-12T12:17:36Z 2011-01-12T12:17:36Z

A resurgent oil price is likely to be one of the biggest threats to global economic recovery in 2011, especially if the price per barrel

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2011-01-12T12:17:36Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2011/01/11/women-profit-sharing-and-deteriorating-bosses 2011-01-11T16:53:32Z 2011-01-11T16:53:32Z

There's a highly enjoyable, marvelously disingenuous article in the Telegraph newspaper about how a study showed that "relations between

Leslie Kossoff 2011-01-11T16:53:32Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2011/01/11/2011-the-year-to-come-australia-the-fair 2011-01-11T10:58:58Z 2011-01-11T10:58:58Z

Australia started 2011 with a tract of territory larger than Germany and France combined under water. Initially, before deaths started

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2011-01-11T10:58:58Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2011/01/10/2011-the-year-ahead-where-now-for-the-once-mighty-greenback 2011-01-10T11:49:26Z 2011-01-10T11:49:26Z

The US has benefited enormously from the use of the global reserve currency as its domestic currency and from the blindness of most bond

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2011-01-10T11:49:26Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2011/01/07/2011-the-year-ahead-predicting-the-fate-of-the-eurozone 2011-01-07T10:26:39Z 2011-01-07T10:26:39Z

As we move into 2011 the world is rapidly polarizing into those who think that the Eurozone is going to disintegrate or fragment this year

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2011-01-07T10:26:39Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2011/01/06/2011-the-year-ahead-russias-prospects-and-problems 2011-01-06T11:28:01Z 2011-01-06T11:28:01Z

Despite the self inflicted public relations disaster of the second Khordokovsky trial, with its absurd guilty verdict, the Russian

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2011-01-06T11:28:01Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2011/01/05/2011-the-year-ahead-china-faces-interesting-times 2011-01-05T12:29:01Z 2011-01-05T12:29:01Z

When commentators in developed markets talk about China facing some difficult challenges in the year ahead, they should preface their

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2011-01-05T12:29:01Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2011/01/04/goldman-sachs-facebook-and-the-sec-too-big-to-care 2011-01-04T11:26:28Z 2011-01-04T11:26:28Z

The one thing you always know about Goldman Sachs is that they know exactly what they're doing. Every step of the way.They can say

Leslie Kossoff 2011-01-04T11:26:28Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/12/23/merry-christmas-from-qfinance 2010-12-23T12:05:47Z 2010-12-23T12:05:47Z

The QFINANCE team will be away until January for the Christmas holidays. Thank you for all your support during 2010 and we look forward to

QFINANCE Editor 2010-12-23T12:05:47Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2010/12/22/review-of-2010-stimulus-versus-austerity 2010-12-22T16:20:56Z 2010-12-22T16:20:56Z

The theme of the World Economic Forum last January was “Improve the State of the World: Rethink, Redesign, Rebuild.” Sadly few of these

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2010-12-22T16:20:56Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2010/12/22/2010-the-year-in-retrospect-russia-and-commodities 2010-12-22T15:36:43Z 2010-12-22T15:36:43Z

On paper at least, the Russian Federation did rather better than alright through 2010. Although, as the latest Wikileaks revelations about

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2010-12-22T15:36:43Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2010/12/21/review-of-2010-emerging-markets 2010-12-21T17:17:48Z 2010-12-21T17:17:48Z

By the middle of 2010 China overtook Japan as the world’s second largest economy. At the time QFINANCE cited a January 2005 report by

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2010-12-21T17:17:48Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2010/12/21/review-of-2010-the-g20-and-the-us-recovery 2010-12-21T12:56:17Z 2010-12-21T12:56:17Z

Much was expected of 2010 and in emerging markets, much was delivered. However, what became abundantly clear through 2010 was the weakness

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2010-12-21T12:56:17Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2010/12/21/review-of-2010-making-the-eurozone-crisis-proof 2010-12-21T12:28:22Z 2010-12-21T12:28:22Z

Whereas 2008-09 was a period when the developed world leaders were scrabbling around for politically acceptable measures about mopping up

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2010-12-21T12:28:22Z Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian fraser and-anthony harrington/2010/12/21/review-of-2010-shaking-up-regulation 2010-12-21T12:10:29Z 2010-12-21T12:10:29Z

In January, it seemed that few lessons had been learned from the most destructive financial crisis since the 1930s. Writing in Freefall:

Ian Fraser and Anthony Harrington 2010-12-21T12:10:29Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/12/20/ny-times-slams-the-bankers-over-secretive-derivatives-meetings 2010-12-20T16:22:10Z 2010-12-20T16:22:10Z

We’re hunkered down wearing our hard hat writing this, since the writs are bound to be flying shortly. New York Times writer Louise Story

Anthony Harrington 2010-12-20T16:22:10Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2010/12/20/reception-booster-why-you-can-and-should-put-a-monetary-value-on-the-reputation-of-your-organisation 2010-12-20T12:18:41Z 2010-12-20T12:18:41Z

“We want to make all our users happy. If you don’t know that, you don’t know Apple.”Steve Jobs, Apple Chairman and CEO at the 16 July 2010

Leslie Kossoff 2010-12-20T12:18:41Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/12/17/betting-against-china-part-3-chinese-economy 2010-12-17T11:58:48Z 2010-12-17T11:58:48Z

In this final part we look at two major reports on China, the World Bank’s latest quarterly report (WBQR) on the major economic trends in

Anthony Harrington 2010-12-17T11:58:48Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/12/16/betting-against-china-part-2-chinese-economy 2010-12-16T11:11:10Z 2010-12-16T11:11:10Z

One of the key reasons why some fund managers are starting to bet against China is that food prices across the country have surged by

Anthony Harrington 2010-12-16T11:11:10Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/12/15/betting-against-china-is-this-wise-chinese-economy 2010-12-15T11:58:51Z 2010-12-15T11:58:51Z

The investment world always holds a handful of contrarians, those who, seeing the markets surging in one direction absolutely have to go

Anthony Harrington 2010-12-15T11:58:51Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/12/14/onward-christian-bankers 2010-12-14T16:25:58Z 2010-12-14T16:25:58Z

Islamic finance has been in vogue in recent years, with Sharia-compliant products being widely introduced by many of the world’s largest

Ian Fraser 2010-12-14T16:25:58Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/12/14/what-now-for-russia-part-three-russian-economy 2010-12-14T11:11:45Z 2010-12-14T11:11:45Z

On December 15, a few days after this blog was penned, a judge appointed by the Kremlin and sitting alone is expected to pronounce a

Anthony Harrington 2010-12-14T11:11:45Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/12/13/there-is-a-way-out-of-the-eus-debt-slavery 2010-12-13T17:07:47Z 2010-12-13T17:07:47Z

There are a number of reasons why the eurozone might disintegrate and many of them are historical. First, is the way the currency bloc was

Ian Fraser 2010-12-13T17:07:47Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/12/13/paving-the-way-for-dodd-frank-bill-and-basel-iii 2010-12-13T15:00:37Z 2010-12-13T15:00:37Z

This interview has been contributed by marcus evans events.Anticipation is mounting as the global banking industry awaits the

QFINANCE Editor 2010-12-13T15:00:37Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/12/13/where-does-wikileaks-description-of-russia-as-a-mafia-state-leave-the-russian-economy-now-it-has-the-2018-world-cup-part-two 2010-12-13T11:17:30Z 2010-12-13T11:17:30Z

In part one we glanced briefly at Russia’s Mafia problem and at the unwholesome blending of Mafiosi with Russian business and political

Anthony Harrington 2010-12-13T11:17:30Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/12/10/where-does-wikileaks-description-of-russia-as-a-mafia-state-leave-the-russian-economy-part-one 2010-12-10T15:39:39Z 2010-12-10T15:39:39Z

There is a clear trajectory which companies in emerging economies follow when it comes to corporate governance. Many start out barely

Anthony Harrington 2010-12-10T15:39:39Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/12/10/dear-paypal-wikileaks-is-not-a-terrorist-organization-transparency 2010-12-10T11:32:45Z 2010-12-10T11:32:45Z

Much of the debate surrounding Wikileaks's release of confidential cables sent by US diplomats to their bosses in Washington D.C. has

Ian Fraser 2010-12-10T11:32:45Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/12/09/debunking-ideas-that-the-us-fed-is-out-of-control 2010-12-09T15:42:15Z 2010-12-09T15:42:15Z

One of the many memorable lines in Casablanca, right up there with Lauran Bacall’s “You do know how to whistle, don’t you? You just put

Anthony Harrington 2010-12-09T15:42:15Z Bill Sharon http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/bill-sharon/2010/12/08/the-risk-of-war-in-korea 2010-12-08T16:52:44Z 2010-12-08T16:52:44Z

Regardless of your opinion about the existence and intent of Wikileaks perhaps the most surprising thing about the internal diplomatic

Bill Sharon 2010-12-08T16:52:44Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/12/07/european-pensions-see-deficits-rise-despite-record-contributions 2010-12-07T16:45:45Z 2010-12-07T16:45:45Z

The pain associated with running a defined benefit (DB) pension scheme could not be more graphically illustrated than it is in the latest

Anthony Harrington 2010-12-07T16:45:45Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/12/06/if-the-fsa-wanted-a-whitewash-pwc-was-well-placed-to-deliver-it 2010-12-06T15:20:04Z 2010-12-06T15:20:04Z

This is the second of a two-part examination of the UK Financial Services Authority's (FSA) recent inadequate response to the collapse of

Ian Fraser 2010-12-06T15:20:04Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/12/06/fsas-attempt-to-rewrite-history-over-rbs-lacks-credibility-bank-regulation 2010-12-06T12:09:50Z 2010-12-06T12:09:50Z

This is the first of a two-part examination of the UK Financial Services Authority’s (FSA) recent response to the collapse of the Royal

Ian Fraser 2010-12-06T12:09:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/12/03/trichet-calls-for-tighter-fiscal-monitoring-of-eu-members-european-economy 2010-12-03T14:54:21Z 2010-12-03T14:54:21Z

In an address to the European Parliament on 30 November, Jean-Claude Trichet, the head of the European Central Bank (ECB) warned the

Anthony Harrington 2010-12-03T14:54:21Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2010/12/03/insider-traders-rogues-or-whistleblowers 2010-12-03T11:52:25Z 2010-12-03T11:52:25Z

Insider trading has been around for eons. Its recent emergence in the slightly more institutionalized form of an “expert network” says more

All About Alpha 2010-12-03T11:52:25Z Bill Sharon http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/bill-sharon/2010/12/02/separation-of-bank-and-state-irish-economy 2010-12-02T10:38:17Z 2010-12-02T10:38:17Z

There is currently a series of commercials on American television promoting an operating system used in many of the new smart phones. In

Bill Sharon 2010-12-02T10:38:17Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/30/imf-gives-hong-kong-a-lesson-in-deflating-property-bubbles 2010-11-30T10:08:03Z 2010-11-30T10:08:03Z

The IMF country inspection team concluded its visit to Hong Kong at the end of October. It found the People’s Republic of China Special

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-30T10:08:03Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/29/spain-on-the-rack-what-price-facts-when-hysteria-rules 2010-11-29T12:28:23Z 2010-11-29T12:28:23Z

The Spanish Government is getting seriously, but rather impotently, annoyed. With Spanish papers running stories saying that the Spanish

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-29T12:28:23Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/26/asia-overtakes-us-on-derivatives-trading-credit-derivatives 2010-11-26T17:30:23Z 2010-11-26T17:30:23Z

Yet another sign of the irresistible shift of economic power from west to east came in the third quarter of 2010 when, for the first time

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-26T17:30:23Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/11/26/qfinance-top-5-stories-of-the-week-8 2010-11-26T12:48:39Z 2010-11-26T12:48:39Z

QFINANCE brings to you its top 5 financial news stories of the week, along with relevant QFINANCE articles and definitions to fill you in

QFINANCE Editor 2010-11-26T12:48:39Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/11/26/the-eus-cack-handed-rescue-plan-may-not-be-enough-to-save-ireland 2010-11-26T11:36:27Z 2010-11-26T11:36:27Z

You know that things must be getting desperate in Ireland when significant numbers of the country's population want to draft in Michael

Ian Fraser 2010-11-26T11:36:27Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/11/25/qfinance-named-one-of-the-top-three-most-innovative-media-outlets-at-the-2010-state-street-institutional-press-awards 2010-11-25T16:46:35Z 2010-11-25T16:46:35Z

London - November 2010 - QFINANCE has been shortlisted in the prestigious ninth annual State Street Institutional Press Awards coming

QFINANCE Editor 2010-11-25T16:46:35Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/25/imf-looks-to-bounce-eu-into-fiscal-union-eu-economy 2010-11-25T12:40:04Z 2010-11-25T12:40:04Z

Just a day or two before ECB president Jean Claude Trichet sketched out how the embryonic European Systemic Risk Board could be a kind of

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-25T12:40:04Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/24/a-half-way-house-to-fiscal-union-in-the-eu-economy 2010-11-24T16:27:06Z 2010-11-24T16:27:06Z

Anyone who thinks that the key figures behind the Eurozone, from heads of state, to finance ministers, to the head of the European Central

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-24T16:27:06Z Bill Sharon http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/bill-sharon/2010/11/24/the-french-and-the-fat-lady 2010-11-24T11:58:29Z 2010-11-24T11:58:29Z

Every American school child learns of the exploits of the Marquis de Lafayette during the Revolutionary War. Some go on to read Alexis de

Bill Sharon 2010-11-24T11:58:29Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/23/gm-is-the-second-largest-ipo-in-us-history-why-gm-ipo 2010-11-23T16:26:50Z 2010-11-23T16:26:50Z

From needing a massive US taxpayer handout at the height of the crash, on November 17 2010 General Motors successfully rose from the ashes,

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-23T16:26:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/23/indias-take-on-the-g20-an-emerging-market-view-global-economy 2010-11-23T12:47:53Z 2010-11-23T12:47:53Z

With the press in the developed markets now more or less resigned to hearing little of substance from G20 meetings it might be useful to

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-23T12:47:53Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/22/if-you-ever-go-across-the-seas-to-ireland-irish-economy 2010-11-22T15:19:09Z 2010-11-22T15:19:09Z

To twist the words of the old song, if you ever go across the seas to Ireland, you are unlikely to find the population in a very forgiving

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-22T15:19:09Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2010/11/22/xerox-parc-rd-and-the-roi-of-long-term-thinking 2010-11-22T11:45:01Z 2010-11-22T11:45:01Z

The former Xerox PARC (Palo Alto Research Center) - now just PARC - recently celebrated its 40th anniversary. And what a track record of

Leslie Kossoff 2010-11-22T11:45:01Z Bill Sharon http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/bill-sharon/2010/11/19/fear-rage-and-bad-decisions-us-economy 2010-11-19T11:36:27Z 2010-11-19T11:36:27Z

I spent the first ten years of my adult life working in psychiatric facilities – in those days called mental institutions or even “loony

Bill Sharon 2010-11-19T11:36:27Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/18/apec-calls-for-free-trade-and-an-end-to-creeping-protectionism 2010-11-18T12:05:14Z 2010-11-18T12:05:14Z

In a recent interview I had with Kleinwort Benson chief investment officer, Jeremy Beckwith, he remarked that while the mid-term elections

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-18T12:05:14Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/17/swaps-market-gets-into-a-spin-over-dodd-frank 2010-11-17T11:53:01Z 2010-11-17T11:53:01Z

History is, at least from time to time, a cyclical thing, it seems, and the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is as alive as

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-17T11:53:01Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2010/11/16/innovation-funding-the-prize-isnt-in-the-box 2010-11-16T14:05:29Z 2010-11-16T14:05:29Z

One of everyone’s favorite corporate phrases is, “Let’s think outside the box.”That’s actually wrong. Because in the real world, there is

Leslie Kossoff 2010-11-16T14:05:29Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/16/china-loosens-its-grip-on-the-renminbi-just-a-tad-chinese-econom 2010-11-16T10:48:04Z 2010-11-16T10:48:04Z

While it is not yet time for celebrating for those who want to see a free-floating, Chinese currency market with minimal restrictions on

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-16T10:48:04Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2010/11/15/will-the-foreclosure-mess-dog-your-bond-fund 2010-11-15T10:58:59Z 2010-11-15T10:58:59Z

Sloppy mortgage record keeping and foreclosure delays have captured headlines lately, but the controversy won't likely have a major impact

Morningstar 2010-11-15T10:58:59Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/11/12/qfinance-top-5-stories-of-the-week-7 2010-11-12T14:52:38Z 2010-11-12T14:52:38Z

QFINANCE brings to you its top 5 financial news stories of the week, along with relevant QFINANCE articles and definitions to fill you in

QFINANCE Editor 2010-11-12T14:52:38Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/11/12/water-wells-up-corporate-agenda-to-become-issue-for-cfos 2010-11-12T11:48:52Z 2010-11-12T11:48:52Z

To a large extent, water has traditionally been taken for granted by the world's largest corporations. They have seen it as just another

Ian Fraser 2010-11-12T11:48:52Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/11/11/blindsided-by-crisis-bush-denies-all-responsibility-for-its-fomentation 2010-11-11T15:38:10Z 2010-11-11T15:38:10Z

George W Bush's memoirs Decision Points provide a fascinating and revealing insight into the thinking - or the lack of it - that helped

Ian Fraser 2010-11-11T15:38:10Z Bill Sharon http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/bill-sharon/2010/11/10/its-the-money-stupid 2010-11-10T17:17:55Z 2010-11-10T17:17:55Z

Some thirty plus years ago I read a book entitled Man's Worldly Goods - The Story of The Wealth of Nations by Leo Huberman. Mr. Huberman

Bill Sharon 2010-11-10T17:17:55Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/11/10/chinese-ratings-agency-says-qe2-is-like-drinking-poison 2010-11-10T11:54:51Z 2010-11-10T11:54:51Z

The mood ahead of the G20 summit in Korea is turning ugly. America's actions - especially its policy of deliberate dollar devaluation

Ian Fraser 2010-11-10T11:54:51Z Leslie Kossoff http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/leslie-kossoff/2010/11/09/the-value-of-the-super-angels 2010-11-09T17:18:27Z 2010-11-09T17:18:27Z

Years ago, during the midst of the dotcom boom, I was sitting at breakfast at Buck’s, minding my own business and preparing for a meeting

Leslie Kossoff 2010-11-09T17:18:27Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/11/09/this-is-the-monetary-equivalent-of-a-nuclear-war 2010-11-09T10:42:35Z 2010-11-09T10:42:35Z

The Federal Reserve’s policy of effectively shafting its international creditors by debasing the dollar through the mechanism of

Ian Fraser 2010-11-09T10:42:35Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/11/08/banks-who-bend-the-law-are-serving-capitalism-ill-foreclosure-crisis 2010-11-08T11:09:17Z 2010-11-08T11:09:17Z

Alan Sloan is one of America’s most respected business and financial columnists; he is also a man who genuinely loves capitalism. So when

Ian Fraser 2010-11-08T11:09:17Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/11/05/qfinance-top-5-stories-of-the-week-6 2010-11-05T16:33:37Z 2010-11-05T16:33:37Z

QFINANCE brings to you its top 5 financial news stories of the week, along with relevant QFINANCE articles and definitions to fill you in

QFINANCE Editor 2010-11-05T16:33:37Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2010/11/05/using-options-instead-of-stocks-for-merger-arb-apparently-not-for-the-faint-of-heart 2010-11-05T11:30:27Z 2010-11-05T11:30:27Z

With corporate balance sheets flush with cash, there has been a lot of talk recently about the potential for an M&A bonanza. This, of

All About Alpha 2010-11-05T11:30:27Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/04/qeii-and-gridlock-in-washington-are-we-having-fun-yet 2010-11-04T17:18:48Z 2010-11-04T17:18:48Z

Investment managers contemplating the mixed messages coming from US voters in America’s mid-term elections don’t know whether to breath a

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-04T17:18:48Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/11/04/double-agents-in-the-asset-management-industry 2010-11-04T11:32:49Z 2010-11-04T11:32:49Z

A recent article in the Financial Times’ asset management supplement spoke volumes about what's wrong with the industry it covers. The

Ian Fraser 2010-11-04T11:32:49Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/03/gold-pausing-peaking-or-sliding-a-reverse-indicator-for-the-fate-of-the-west-gold-market 2010-11-03T14:00:16Z 2010-11-03T14:00:16Z

A few weeks ago the price of gold touched $1380. Then, over the week of October 22 to October 28 the lustrous metal has been sliding

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-03T14:00:16Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/11/03/the-global-economy-a-glass-half-full 2010-11-03T11:21:55Z 2010-11-03T11:21:55Z

The famous dictum about the difference between pessimists and optimists seems to apply equally well to views about the global economy. In

Anthony Harrington 2010-11-03T11:21:55Z Bill Sharon http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/bill-sharon/2010/11/01/qe2-the-last-resort 2010-11-01T12:57:42Z 2010-11-01T12:57:42Z

The Federal Reserve’s second round of Quantitative Easing, or QE2, is set to launch next week. Ask yourself and a half a dozen of your

Bill Sharon 2010-11-01T12:57:42Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/11/01/corporate-governance-reform-cable-means-business 2010-11-01T10:47:31Z 2010-11-01T10:47:31Z

The corporate governance model that existed before the crisis may not be entirely broken, but it is certainly in need of a major overhaul.

Ian Fraser 2010-11-01T10:47:31Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/10/29/lord-turnbull-reveals-extent-of-delusion-that-overcame-gordon-brown 2010-10-29T15:22:55Z 2010-10-29T15:22:55Z

I’ve always suspected one of the main reasons the UK economy is in a more parlous state than many of its peers was because of hubristic and

Ian Fraser 2010-10-29T15:22:55Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/10/29/qfinance-top-5-stories-of-the-week-5 2010-10-29T13:12:43Z 2010-10-29T13:12:43Z

QFINANCE brings to you its top 5 financial news stories of the week, along with relevant QFINANCE articles and definitions to fill you in

QFINANCE Editor 2010-10-29T13:12:43Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/29/subprime-debacle-the-truth-emerges-part-3-subprime-mortgage-crisis 2010-10-29T09:00:22Z 2010-10-29T09:00:22Z

Clayton Holdings, a US firm based in Connecticut, which scrutinizes home mortgages for a number of clients, including investment banks and

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-29T09:00:22Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/28/subprime-debacle-the-truth-emerges-part-2-subprime-mortgage-crisis 2010-10-28T08:54:42Z 2010-10-28T08:54:42Z

Amongst the real horrors perpetrated during the subprime disaster, such as the many outright frauds practised on US homebuyers who should

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-28T08:54:42Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/27/subprime-debacle-the-truth-emerges-part-1-subprime-mortgage-crisis 2010-10-27T12:49:16Z 2010-10-27T12:49:16Z

While global liquidity imbalances were, at bedrock, responsible for generating the hunt for yield that pumped up the global asset bubble,

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-27T12:49:16Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2010/10/26/alcoholic-beverage-firms-have-three-shots-for-growth 2010-10-26T13:27:46Z 2010-10-26T13:27:46Z

The Great Recession of last year took its toll on the alcoholic beverages industry. Traffic at bars and restaurants was down, shifting some

Morningstar 2010-10-26T13:27:46Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/26/the-imf-to-asia-nice-work-but-spend-more-asian-economy 2010-10-26T09:07:06Z 2010-10-26T09:07:06Z

The old exhortation to ambitious youth, “Go East, young man!” has lost none of its potency over the century or so since it was first

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-26T09:07:06Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/25/fortune-continues-to-smile-on-sub-investment-grade-corporate-bonds-capital-markets 2010-10-25T09:32:17Z 2010-10-25T09:32:17Z

With near zero returns for prime sovereign debt, wealth managers and fixed income managers have been pouring money into high yield

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-25T09:32:17Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/10/22/qfinance-top-5-stories-of-the-week-4 2010-10-22T10:17:12Z 2010-10-22T10:17:12Z

QFINANCE brings to you its top 5 financial news stories of the week, along with relevant QFINANCE articles and definitions to fill you in

QFINANCE Editor 2010-10-22T10:17:12Z Bill Sharon http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/bill-sharon/2010/10/21/the-means-of-exchange 2010-10-21T10:22:04Z 2010-10-21T10:22:04Z

The past several weeks have seen new revelations about the complexity of the mortgage industry and the astonishing level of sloppy work

Bill Sharon 2010-10-21T10:22:04Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/20/foreclosure-gate-and-the-us-banks-subprim 2010-10-20T09:09:17Z 2010-10-20T09:09:17Z

Watergate seems to have permanently disfigured US English by requiring a mandatory suffix, “gate”, to be appended to every fresh scandal,

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-20T09:09:17Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/19/will-the-currency-wars-make-nonsense-of-the-imf-reforms 2010-10-19T08:34:23Z 2010-10-19T08:34:23Z

Speaking at the Canadian Consulate’s “Invest in Canada” luncheon on October 6, the Nobel Prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz in effect

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-19T08:34:23Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2010/10/18/hedge-fund-transparency-liquidity-risk 2010-10-18T09:16:01Z 2010-10-18T09:16:01Z

Hedge funds continue to bear the brunt of blame for the 2008 credit seizure, market collapse and ensuing Great Recession. Whether part of

All About Alpha 2010-10-18T09:16:01Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/10/15/qfinance-top-5-stories-of-the-week-3 2010-10-15T12:58:40Z 2010-10-15T12:58:40Z

QFINANCE brings to you its top 5 financial news stories of the week, along with relevant QFINANCE articles and definitions to fill you in

QFINANCE Editor 2010-10-15T12:58:40Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/15/can-chile-follow-the-miracle-rescue-of-33-miners-with-a-chilean-economic-miracle-chile-miner 2010-10-15T11:05:14Z 2010-10-15T11:05:14Z

As the world watched the incredible sight of Chile’s 33 miners emerging, one by one, from what might so easily have been their stony tomb

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-15T11:05:14Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/14/morality-the-2010-nobel-peace-prize-and-the-chinese-economy-what-does-history-teach 2010-10-14T12:28:48Z 2010-10-14T12:28:48Z

When the Norwegian Nobel Committee decided to award the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize to Liu Xiaobo “for his long and non-violent struggle for

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-14T12:28:48Z Pensionomics http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/pensionomics-/2010/10/12/public-sector-pension-reform 2010-10-12T09:38:59Z 2010-10-12T09:38:59Z

Lord Hutton’s interim report into the state of public sector pensions in the UK seems measured. This contrasts with the emotionally-charged

Pensionomics 2010-10-12T09:38:59Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/10/11/as-flies-to-wanton-boys-are-we-to-the-central-bankers-currency-wars 2010-10-11T10:19:03Z 2010-10-11T10:19:03Z

The global “currency war” first highlighted by Brazilian finance minister Guido Mantega on September 27 is showing little sign of abating.

Ian Fraser 2010-10-11T10:19:03Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/11/bank-of-japan-explores-the-difference-between-nought-and-nought-japanese-bank 2010-10-11T08:32:58Z 2010-10-11T08:32:58Z

Until its high profile decision on October 5 to cut its overnight call rate from 0.1% to 0.0% plus some fraction less than 0.1%, the Bank

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-11T08:32:58Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/10/08/qfinance-top-5-stories-of-the-week-2 2010-10-08T12:30:34Z 2010-10-08T12:30:34Z

QFINANCE brings to you its top 5 financial news stories of the week, along with relevant QFINANCE articles and definitions to fill you in

QFINANCE Editor 2010-10-08T12:30:34Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/10/08/bullish-about-the-bear-putin-sets-out-stall-to-lure-international-investors-to-russia-russian-economy 2010-10-08T08:29:00Z 2010-10-08T08:29:00Z

The economy of the Russian Federation is on the cusp of major structural change, with the government aiming to limit dependence on raw

Ian Fraser 2010-10-08T08:29:00Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/07/sec-report-into-may-flash-crash-shows-the-system-creaking 2010-10-07T08:41:23Z 2010-10-07T08:41:23Z

So now we know that the “Flash Crash” of May 6, when the S&P plunged almost 1000 points in a few minutes was not caused by a “fat

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-07T08:41:23Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/06/the-rise-and-rise-of-gold-an-enigma-or-just-investor-worry 2010-10-06T12:26:33Z 2010-10-06T12:26:33Z

Writing about a volatile commodity price always runs the risk of having the markets make nonsense of anything one says by the time the

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-06T12:26:33Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/10/06/stiglitz-were-turning-japanese 2010-10-06T08:08:35Z 2010-10-06T08:08:35Z

There was some good news for US taxpayers from the US Treasury last Tuesday. They were told that the cost of bailing-out US banks had been

Ian Fraser 2010-10-06T08:08:35Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2010/10/05/guest-blog-shining-a-light-on-global-solar-growth 2010-10-05T14:39:17Z 2010-10-05T14:39:17Z

During 2009's fourth quarter, the solar industry was just recovering from the brutal declines in silicon and module average selling prices,

Morningstar 2010-10-05T14:39:17Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/05/fund-managers-relaxed-about-brazilian-elections 2010-10-05T09:50:29Z 2010-10-05T09:50:29Z

Despite the head start given by Brazil’s thriving economy, the country’s ruling party candidate Dilma Rousseff, was unable to win Brazil’s

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-05T09:50:29Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/10/04/asia-europe-and-the-us-not-decoupling-but-recoupling-asian-econom 2010-10-04T10:09:45Z 2010-10-04T10:09:45Z

In 2008, east Asia accounted for getting on for a fifth (18%) of total global GDP, as against just 9% in 1990. The region’s rapid

Anthony Harrington 2010-10-04T10:09:45Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/10/01/qfinance-top-5-stories-of-the-week 2010-10-01T15:21:59Z 2010-10-01T15:21:59Z

QFINANCE brings to you its top 5 financial news stories of the week, along with relevent QFINANCE articles and definitions to fill you in

QFINANCE Editor 2010-10-01T15:21:59Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/10/01/we-need-a-stronger-efsf-to-stop-the-piigs-from-slip-sliding-away-sovereign-debt-crisis 2010-10-01T08:10:28Z 2010-10-01T08:10:28Z

Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, Spain’s prime minister, recently declared the European sovereign debt crisis was over. He told the WSJ, "I believe

Ian Fraser 2010-10-01T08:10:28Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/30/the-imf-ponders-chinas-growth-chinese-economy 2010-09-30T15:00:23Z 2010-09-30T15:00:23Z

A very good working paper from the IMF, which generally does rather good working papers on geopolitical themes, makes the point that China

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-30T15:00:23Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/30/the-rise-and-rise-of-the-asian-middle-classes-asian-econom 2010-09-30T08:44:14Z 2010-09-30T08:44:14Z

With European and US consumers busily engaged in playing down debt and cutting up their credit cards, the great hope for future consumer

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-30T08:44:14Z Pensionomics http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/pensionomics-/2010/09/29/total-financial-reward-higher-in-the-public-than-private-sector-it-is-scandalous-but-not-for-the-obvious-reasons 2010-09-29T10:39:28Z 2010-09-29T10:39:28Z

- Median weekly pay for full-time employees in the public sector was around 15 per cent higher in 2009 than in the private sector. Median

Pensionomics 2010-09-29T10:39:28Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/29/brazil-sees-worlds-biggest-ever-share-issue-brazilian-econom 2010-09-29T10:09:00Z 2010-09-29T10:09:00Z

Until now the record for the world’s biggest ever rights issue has been held by the Japanese telecoms giant, NTT, which raised $36 billion

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-29T10:09:00Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/28/euro-repos-soar-to-record-heights-repo-market 2010-09-28T08:06:01Z 2010-09-28T08:06:01Z

In mid-September the Zurich-based International Capital Market Association (ICMA) issued a very significant press release that went almost

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-28T08:06:01Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/24/regulatory-fears-and-growth-expectations-dominate-derivatives-market-survey 2010-09-24T12:16:23Z 2010-09-24T12:16:23Z

In its latest survey of the attitudes and expectations of players in the derivatives market, ratings agency Fitch found that while just

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-24T12:16:23Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/23/venture-capital-says-goodbye-west-hello-east-global-venture-capital 2010-09-23T14:55:31Z 2010-09-23T14:55:31Z

A survey by Deloitte and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) of more than 500 venture capital firms worldwide, finds a

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-23T14:55:31Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/09/23/basel-iii-will-it-deliver-a-more-stable-financial-system 2010-09-23T09:09:20Z 2010-09-23T09:09:20Z

It's probably too early to say whether the Basel III reforms, unveiled by the Basel Committee of the Bank for International Settlements on

Ian Fraser 2010-09-23T09:09:20Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/09/22/holding-the-auditors-accountable-for-missing-corporate-fraud-auditor-liability 2010-09-22T10:23:01Z 2010-09-22T10:23:01Z

Should accountancy firms be able to walk away from corporate train wrecks Scot-free –  leaving everyone else, including shareholders,

Ian Fraser 2010-09-22T10:23:01Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/21/freddie-mac-and-fannie-mae-the-mother-of-all-us-bailouts-still-to-come 2010-09-21T12:27:08Z 2010-09-21T12:27:08Z

During a recent interview with Fox News Business Editor Neil Cavuto, the Chairman of the Philadelphia Federal Reserve, Charles Plosser made

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-21T12:27:08Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2010/09/20/guest-blog-private-equity-as-victim-leverage-takes-back-seat-to-value-creation-pe-industry 2010-09-20T14:09:38Z 2010-09-20T14:09:38Z

There is no clear-eyed view on the culprits behind the Great Liquidity Meltdown of 2008-2009. But there is a gimlet-eyed view: everybody.

All About Alpha 2010-09-20T14:09:38Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/20/rebalancing-the-global-economy-global-economic-policy 2010-09-20T08:41:37Z 2010-09-20T08:41:37Z

One of the most interesting studies to come out of the Centre for Economic Policy Research is a tome aimed at the world’s politicians and

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-20T08:41:37Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/16/a-lesson-in-economics-how-stock-markets-really-work 2010-09-16T11:28:51Z 2010-09-16T11:28:51Z

One of the most astonishing articles I have come across in a long time is a piece entitled “How the Stock Market and the Economy Really

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-16T11:28:51Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/15/is-japan-at-the-tipping-point-not-if-china-can-help-it 2010-09-15T09:02:54Z 2010-09-15T09:02:54Z

Back in early August I wrote a blog post which highlighted Edward Chancellor’s excellent account of the global sovereign debt crisis. In

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-15T09:02:54Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/09/14/heres-how-the-us-can-get-tough-on-money-laundering 2010-09-14T08:32:46Z 2010-09-14T08:32:46Z

If the US government is serious about tackling money laundering by well-known banks on behalf of drug barons, other big-time criminals and

Ian Fraser 2010-09-14T08:32:46Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/14/bernankes-neoclassical-planet-wanders-out-of-orbit-neoclassical-economists 2010-09-14T08:15:27Z 2010-09-14T08:15:27Z

Steve Keen, an associate professor at the University of Western Sydney, is well known for his attempts to highlight the failings of

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-14T08:15:27Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/13/pc-shipments-bring-some-cause-for-optimism 2010-09-13T08:37:55Z 2010-09-13T08:37:55Z

At the end of August 2010 the technology market watcher Gartner cut what had been a very optimistic forecast for the year-on-year growth of

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-13T08:37:55Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/09/10/as-britain-prepares-to-junk-the-fsa-financial-regulation 2010-09-10T08:20:40Z 2010-09-10T08:20:40Z

The Financial Services Authority—founded by ex-chancellor Gordon Brown in May 1997—is widely regarded as having made a dog’s breakfast of

Ian Fraser 2010-09-10T08:20:40Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/09/supply-chain-financing-supply-financing 2010-09-09T09:18:30Z 2010-09-09T09:18:30Z

One of the well known evils of a deep downturn, though less immediately dramatic than horrors like unemployment, lost homes and blighted

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-09T09:18:30Z Morningstar http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/morningstar-/2010/09/08/guest-blog-brave-new-world-of-financial-legislation 2010-09-08T08:21:38Z 2010-09-08T08:21:38Z

There is still much to be written about and finalized in the specifics of the new United States financial legislation. Since over 200 new

Morningstar 2010-09-08T08:21:38Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/09/07/barely-a-whimper-in-city-as-barnier-ushers-in-pan-eu-financial-regulation 2010-09-07T14:46:42Z 2010-09-07T14:46:42Z

Only a few months ago, Michel Barnier, the European Commissioner for the internal market, was being portrayed as a “bogeyman” in the City

Ian Fraser 2010-09-07T14:46:42Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/09/07/china-overtakes-japan-economies-of-asia 2010-09-07T09:56:31Z 2010-09-07T09:56:31Z

At the end of July, in the height of the usual summer news famine, the business media leapt with delight on the fact that Chinese economy

Anthony Harrington 2010-09-07T09:56:31Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/09/06/thanks-to-ifrs-irish-and-uk-banks-have-lived-in-a-fools-paradise-for-years-ifrs-analysis 2010-09-06T09:26:21Z 2010-09-06T09:26:21Z

Debates about financial reporting and accounting standards can seem arcane, tedious and irrelevant: angels dancing on the heads of pins

Ian Fraser 2010-09-06T09:26:21Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/09/03/betting-on-chinese-equities-as-short-sellers-predict-sino-armageddon 2010-09-03T08:54:15Z 2010-09-03T08:54:15Z

It’s fashionable to be glum about China right now. Harvard University professor Ken Rogoff, along with hedge fund managers Hugh Hendry and

Ian Fraser 2010-09-03T08:54:15Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/09/02/calpers-and-other-activist-investors-to-gain-a-seat-in-the-boardroom 2010-09-02T08:23:13Z 2010-09-02T08:23:13Z

If you believe that increased shareholder engagement is the key to a corporate nirvana in which responsible investors can force companies

Ian Fraser 2010-09-02T08:23:13Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/31/court-actions-see-subprime-carelessness-coming-home-to-roost 2010-08-31T07:37:29Z 2010-08-31T07:37:29Z

In most kinds of business, if I sell you a product that is completely unfit for purpose, you’ll be able to sue me without much difficulty

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-31T07:37:29Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/27/when-the-ecb-looks-at-itself-ec-policy 2010-08-27T08:44:11Z 2010-08-27T08:44:11Z

There is no shortage of commentators out there willing to give the European Central Bank a good kicking. The comments have been trotted out

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-27T08:44:11Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/08/26/dealing-with-the-euro-mood-swings-eurozone-economy 2010-08-26T13:51:42Z 2010-08-26T13:51:42Z

When the PIIGS crisis was at its height in May, many economists believed the eurozone was going to hell in a handcart and that the euro was

Ian Fraser 2010-08-26T13:51:42Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/26/global-food-shortage-fuels-mega-merger-fertilizer-market-bid 2010-08-26T07:54:21Z 2010-08-26T07:54:21Z

Agriculture has been the poor cousin to industry for more than a century, but rising population pressures in the developing world are

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-26T07:54:21Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/08/25/chinas-love-affair-with-us-bonds-is-not-over-yet 2010-08-25T12:13:28Z 2010-08-25T12:13:28Z

I wrote a blog post six months ago saying that Americans should not be paranoid about the possibility that China, the country’s biggest

Ian Fraser 2010-08-25T12:13:28Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/24/fear-adds-lustre-to-gold 2010-08-24T14:08:45Z 2010-08-24T14:08:45Z

On Thursday August 12, after weeks of shall-we, shan’t we, investors finally decided, in large numbers, that equities had reached the point

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-24T14:08:45Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/08/23/turkey-remains-one-of-worlds-hottest-emerging-markets-despite-fiscal-slip-up 2010-08-23T11:41:49Z 2010-08-23T11:41:49Z

On a visit to New York in December 2003, I interviewed Jim Rogers, the renowned investor and ex-colleague of George Soros. Rogers – who,

Ian Fraser 2010-08-23T11:41:49Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/20/baltic-dry-gets-the-punters-in-a-spin 2010-08-20T13:44:58Z 2010-08-20T13:44:58Z

Take an index that many of the “smartest” economic commentators like to use as a bell-weather for the coming ups and downs of the next six

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-20T13:44:58Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/19/globally-mega-merger-deals-are-back 2010-08-19T14:02:40Z 2010-08-19T14:02:40Z

There was a time at the height of the credit crunch when everyone was convinced that the days of the multi billion pound merger were over.

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-19T14:02:40Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/18/chinas-green-energy-drive-starts-to-roar 2010-08-18T09:11:01Z 2010-08-18T09:11:01Z

The conventional environmental view of the BRIC developing economies in general and China in particular equates high growth with high

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-18T09:11:01Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/08/17/ukraines-recovery-still-rests-on-shaky-ground 2010-08-17T08:48:58Z 2010-08-17T08:48:58Z

Ukraine was the bread-basket of the Soviet Union but 17 years after gaining its independence, the country became an economic basket case as

Ian Fraser 2010-08-17T08:48:58Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/17/asset-protection-agency-issues-its-first-report-on-toxic-bank-debts 2010-08-17T08:40:49Z 2010-08-17T08:40:49Z

The UK Asset Protection Agency, the body charged with managing the UK’s acquisition of toxic debts from the state owned Royal Bank of

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-17T08:40:49Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/13/hedge-funds-take-a-punt-on-asia 2010-08-13T12:42:50Z 2010-08-13T12:42:50Z

The second quarter of 2010 has proved something of a disaster for the hedge fund sector, with May and June both recording declines in funds

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-13T12:42:50Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/08/13/us-coming-to-terms-with-tax-rises-despite-ryans-road-map 2010-08-13T12:15:21Z 2010-08-13T12:15:21Z

A new front has opened in the war of words over the best macro medicine for the damaged US economy between the neo-Keynsians, who generally

Ian Fraser 2010-08-13T12:15:21Z All About Alpha http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/all about-alpha/2010/08/11/guest-blog-study-reveals-achilles-heel-of-mega-private-equity-funds 2010-08-11T13:17:45Z 2010-08-11T13:17:45Z

A few weeks ago, we told you about a study of US pension funds showing that smaller funds experienced better performance than their larger

All About Alpha 2010-08-11T13:17:45Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/08/11/are-europes-banks-sleepwalking-to-disaster-once-more 2010-08-11T08:57:20Z 2010-08-11T08:57:20Z

It would be crazy if, three years after the start of the last one, Europe was to sleepwalk into another banking and financial crisis. But

Ian Fraser 2010-08-11T08:57:20Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/11/cloud-computing-changes-everything 2010-08-11T08:37:55Z 2010-08-11T08:37:55Z

If you were the CEO or the finance director of a major corporation, would you feel comfortable betting your business on a cloud? Probably

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-11T08:37:55Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/10/imf-gives-greece-the-thumbs-up 2010-08-10T08:34:41Z 2010-08-10T08:34:41Z

For the wealthy in Greece, evading taxes has been as natural as breathing. This attitude, a common strand in all tax-paying economies, but

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-10T08:34:41Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/08/09/samba-set-to-continue-despite-brazils-necessary-slowdown 2010-08-09T08:09:22Z 2010-08-09T08:09:22Z

Brazil's turbocharged economic growth—its GDP grew at 9% in the first quarter of 2010—may be showing signs of slowing but the authorities

Ian Fraser 2010-08-09T08:09:22Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/09/preparing-for-failure-is-the-answer-to-too-big-to-fail 2010-08-09T07:53:37Z 2010-08-09T07:53:37Z

Amongst all the heated rhetoric from politicians and the barbs hurled by commentators of all stripes, the global financial services

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-09T07:53:37Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/04/sovereign-debt-harder-to-judge-than-youd-think 2010-08-04T14:00:58Z 2010-08-04T14:00:58Z

One of the most comprehensive and best articles to appear so far on sovereign debt is undoubtedly Edward Chancellor’s “Reflections on the

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-04T14:00:58Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/08/04/indian-bank-stress-tests-expected-to-provide-only-superficial-reassurance 2010-08-04T13:58:39Z 2010-08-04T13:58:39Z

It seems that bank stress tests are catching on. In the wake of the US tests, whose results were published in May 2009, and the less

Ian Fraser 2010-08-04T13:58:39Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/08/02/dodd-frank-better-suited-than-sarbox-for-rooting-out-accounting-fraud 2010-08-02T07:26:22Z 2010-08-02T07:26:22Z

The recent settlement between Houston-based computer manufacturer Dell and the US Securities & Exchange Commission provides further

Ian Fraser 2010-08-02T07:26:22Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/08/02/mervyn-kings-testimony-highlights-challenges-for-regulators 2010-08-02T07:17:46Z 2010-08-02T07:17:46Z

The recently elected Treasury Select Committee were left with much to ponder after hearing testimony from the Governor of the Bank of

Anthony Harrington 2010-08-02T07:17:46Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/29/china-dont-look-at-the-dollar-look-at-the-basket-what-basket 2010-07-29T09:56:39Z 2010-07-29T09:56:39Z

For a wide variety of reasons, the vast majority of which remain diplomatically unstated, China would like to get away from the US dollar

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-29T09:56:39Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/07/29/clueless-banks-happy-to-drift-in-sea-of-inexactitude 2010-07-29T08:23:18Z 2010-07-29T08:23:18Z

Do the world’s leading banks have a firm grip of the true value of their assets, their true exposure to risk (including the likelihood of

Ian Fraser 2010-07-29T08:23:18Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/07/28/hendrys-eclectic-approach-gives-pointers-to-global-outlook 2010-07-28T08:43:27Z 2010-07-28T08:43:27Z

The Scots hedge fund manager Hugh Hendry has lately become something of a media darling thanks to his sheer outspoken-ness. But he also

Ian Fraser 2010-07-28T08:43:27Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/28/singapore-the-fastest-growing-economy-in-the-world 2010-07-28T07:30:10Z 2010-07-28T07:30:10Z

While the eurozone waits for the other sovereign debt shoe to drop and US commentators fret over a possible double dip recession, Singapore

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-28T07:30:10Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/27/bernankes-testimony-a-lesson-in-the-perils-of-forecasting-gloom 2010-07-27T13:08:50Z 2010-07-27T13:08:50Z

One expects and values honesty and forthrightness from the Chairman of the Federal Reserve. So when Ben Bernanke told the US Senate

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-27T13:08:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/26/a-fresh-look-at-bank-risk-too-integrated-to-fail 2010-07-26T07:16:02Z 2010-07-26T07:16:02Z

Blessed with a laser-like eye for the weaknesses in the US economy and a neat, dismissive way with the sophisms, empty sound-bites and

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-26T07:16:02Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/23/japan-short-term-wins-or-long-term-losses 2010-07-23T08:41:13Z 2010-07-23T08:41:13Z

The Association of Investment Companies (AIC) is the latest organisation to take a stab at anatomising the prospects of Japan’s economy. As

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-23T08:41:13Z John Grange http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/john-grange/2010/07/22/guest-blog-managing-your-business-finances 2010-07-22T08:42:56Z 2010-07-22T08:42:56Z

Managing your business finances is an essential part of running your business.  While a business can survive for a short time without sales

John Grange 2010-07-22T08:42:56Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/21/fsa-brings-an-end-to-liars-loans 2010-07-21T10:50:02Z 2010-07-21T10:50:02Z

The Financial Services Authority’s decision on July 13, 2010, to prevent UK banks from accepting self-certified mortgages, conjures up

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-21T10:50:02Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/07/16/dodd-frank-act-wont-prevent-future-crises 2010-07-16T13:44:56Z 2010-07-16T13:44:56Z

American banks and financial institutions can hardly have expected to have faced no regulatory or enforced structural or behavioral changes

Ian Fraser 2010-07-16T13:44:56Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/15/bank-regulation-firing-at-the-wrong-target 2010-07-15T06:47:35Z 2010-07-15T06:47:35Z

Few would expect the City of London Corporation to be hugely enthused about the current trend around the world for enacting tough new

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-15T06:47:35Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/07/14/fsa-challenges-audit-profession-to-sharpen-up-its-act 2010-07-14T16:00:05Z 2010-07-14T16:00:05Z

Do auditors tend to be so close to the management of the companies whose financial results they’re supposed to be auditing that they are

Ian Fraser 2010-07-14T16:00:05Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/07/13/financial-questions-answered-new-query-on-the-sox-process-related-sec-guidance-answered 2010-07-13T14:02:32Z 2010-07-13T14:02:32Z

Last week a QFINANCE user posed the following question on the SOX process via our Ask the Expert facility:“I read in your SOX information

QFINANCE Editor 2010-07-13T14:02:32Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/12/the-new-emerging-structure-for-derivatives 2010-07-12T08:36:08Z 2010-07-12T08:36:08Z

At the end of April, Deutsche Bank Research (DBR) released its briefing paper on OTC derivatives [PDF, 315 KB]. Without doubt, this is a

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-12T08:36:08Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/07/09/curing-the-worlds-financial-ills-in-four-not-so-easy-steps 2010-07-09T08:53:01Z 2010-07-09T08:53:01Z

The inadequacy of the communiqué from the G20 summit, which made it clear that the high-level talking shop in Toronto had failed to deliver

Ian Fraser 2010-07-09T08:53:01Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/07/g20-in-june-the-subtext-you-go-your-way-and-ill-go-mine 2010-07-07T08:28:49Z 2010-07-07T08:28:49Z

Everyone knows that you can’t impose a stringent new regulatory framework for the banks on a piecemeal, country-by-country basis. That

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-07T08:28:49Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/07/07/the-spin-free-life-of-socgen-analyst-who-cut-himself-off-from-herd 2010-07-07T07:59:19Z 2010-07-07T07:59:19Z

What is it about Sociéte Générale? Not only has the French bank spawned the “rogue trader” Jerome Kerviel, currently on trial for alleged

Ian Fraser 2010-07-07T07:59:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/06/dismal-news-keeps-the-markets-wobbly 2010-07-06T08:33:23Z 2010-07-06T08:33:23Z

The global stock markets are nervous as kittens these days. Investors seem to cycle between bouts of mad optimism and the blackest

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-06T08:33:23Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2010/07/05/the-g20-summit-2010-presented-an-appearance-of-unity-but-not-much-else 2010-07-05T10:04:42Z 2010-07-05T10:04:42Z

Well before the world leaders arrived in Toronto on June 25, speculation over the outcome of the summits had already begun. The major focus

QFINANCE Editor 2010-07-05T10:04:42Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/02/the-warning-bell-on-derivatives-rang-loud-in-1994 2010-07-02T09:32:18Z 2010-07-02T09:32:18Z

There is an elderly document, well, not that elderly—it was written in 1994—that should be mandatory reading for global regulators

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-02T09:32:18Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/07/01/dont-think-g20-think-g160-says-world-bank 2010-07-01T09:24:19Z 2010-07-01T09:24:19Z

Inevitably the constant focus in the world’s media on the G20 group of countries puts the world’s richest and most powerful nations so much

Anthony Harrington 2010-07-01T09:24:19Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/06/30/having-recognized-role-in-crisis-fund-managers-put-themselves-on-the-couch 2010-06-30T08:07:17Z 2010-06-30T08:07:17Z

The villains of the financial crisis, whose aftershocks are now forcing austerity on millions of Europeans, are many and varied.

Ian Fraser 2010-06-30T08:07:17Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/29/is-corporate-culture-where-the-danger-lies-and-should-regulators-get-involved 2010-06-29T11:35:09Z 2010-06-29T11:35:09Z

It seems as obvious as a thumb in your eye that corporate culture can have a real bearing on the risks associated with a particular

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-29T11:35:09Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/28/ias-19-redraft-tolling-the-bell-on-final-salary-pensions 2010-06-28T08:12:02Z 2010-06-28T08:12:02Z

One of the truly weird things about the accounting standard setting process is that with nothing but the deepest respect for God, truth,

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-28T08:12:02Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/25/a-lingering-touch-of-old-world-arrogance-at-the-world-cup 2010-06-25T08:21:02Z 2010-06-25T08:21:02Z

The World Cup is such a high octane farrago of emotions, ambitions and noise that attempts to get “serious” about the “meaning” of the

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-25T08:21:02Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/06/24/osbornes-shock-therapy-represents-kill-or-cure-for-english-patient 2010-06-24T08:52:28Z 2010-06-24T08:52:28Z

Britain’s new chancellor, George Osborne, has this week come in a volley of abuse from neo-Keynesian economists, left-wing commentators and

Ian Fraser 2010-06-24T08:52:28Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/06/23/bankers-square-up-to-regulators-over-economic-fallout-of-basel-iii 2010-06-23T08:30:24Z 2010-06-23T08:30:24Z

The war of words between financial regulators, including central bankers, and bankers over the economic impact of the proposed Basel III

Ian Fraser 2010-06-23T08:30:24Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/22/us-and-international-accounting-standard-setters-rekindle-their-vows 2010-06-22T08:08:50Z 2010-06-22T08:08:50Z

On June 2, the US Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) agreed to sharpen up

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-22T08:08:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/21/markets-ignore-ratings-agency-greek-debt-downgrade 2010-06-21T06:57:18Z 2010-06-21T06:57:18Z

With investors at last disposed to take cognisance of some of the “good news” signals being put out by the US and Chinese economies, and

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-21T06:57:18Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/18/saying-no-is-the-key-to-central-bank-independence 2010-06-18T08:50:27Z 2010-06-18T08:50:27Z

When supposedly independent central banks start buying large chunks of their own sovereign debt, usually, the presumption goes, at the

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-18T08:50:27Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/17/ecb-ups-the-ante-on-economic-government-part-1 2010-06-17T10:23:53Z 2010-06-17T10:23:53Z

Not surprisingly, given the turbulence in the markets over the last month, the European Central Bank (ECB) president Jean-Claude Trichet

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-17T10:23:53Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/16/no-printing-of-money-not-on-my-watch-says-trichet 2010-06-16T08:56:03Z 2010-06-16T08:56:03Z

In an earlier blog we looked at the degree to which the European Central Bank (ECB) is throwing its considerable weight behind the idea of

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-16T08:56:03Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/06/15/europes-rush-to-impose-austerity-measures-could-prove-disastrous 2010-06-15T09:57:48Z 2010-06-15T09:57:48Z

Call it the new frugality but deficit reduction has become economic flavour of the month across most of Europe.The turning point came  at

Ian Fraser 2010-06-15T09:57:48Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/15/a-deal-too-far-shareholder-activism-1-pru-0 2010-06-15T08:58:15Z 2010-06-15T08:58:15Z

On the face of it, back when it all started, the Prudential’s $35.5 billion bid for the Asian assets of the troubled US insurance

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-15T08:58:15Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/14/a-frankendeutsche-european-government-a-monster-by-any-name 2010-06-14T08:48:44Z 2010-06-14T08:48:44Z

With every market commentator now well drilled in the idea that the fundamental flaw in the European Union is that it has a monetary union

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-14T08:48:44Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/11/china-unrest-threatens-to-spoil-the-party 2010-06-11T07:51:41Z 2010-06-11T07:51:41Z

There is an inevitable trajectory that any successful developing economy has to traverse. How adroitly it does so determines, ultimately,

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-11T07:51:41Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/06/10/uk-competition-watchdog-nips-at-investment-bankers-heels 2010-06-10T13:02:53Z 2010-06-10T13:02:53Z

It’s pretty much been a one-way street for investment banks since the UK and US governments started to deregulate financial markets in the

Ian Fraser 2010-06-10T13:02:53Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/08/new-sheriffs-get-ready-to-handbag-wall-street 2010-06-08T14:44:27Z 2010-06-08T14:44:27Z

At a recent presentation, US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner began by saying he’d recently seen a headline: “What if Women Ran Wall

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-08T14:44:27Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/06/03/bp-disaster-shows-that-environmental-and-social-risks-are-also-financial-risks 2010-06-03T13:33:33Z 2010-06-03T13:33:33Z

British pension funds are learning some important lessons from the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Until this crisis, pension funds regarded

Ian Fraser 2010-06-03T13:33:33Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/06/02/can-greece-reduce-its-debt 2010-06-02T09:42:44Z 2010-06-02T09:42:44Z

There are about as many views on Greece’s ability to reduce its huge fiscal deficit as there are commentators willing to speak on the

Anthony Harrington 2010-06-02T09:42:44Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/06/02/has-love-of-easy-money-driven-fed-to-distort-inflation-figures 2010-06-02T09:34:32Z 2010-06-02T09:34:32Z

Ben Bernanke is confident America has inflation under control. Speaking in Tokyo last Wednesday the Federal Reserve chairman said: "Despite

Ian Fraser 2010-06-02T09:34:32Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/05/27/ecb-becomes-europes-feudal-overlord 2010-05-27T12:41:04Z 2010-05-27T12:41:04Z

Europe faces a terrible future, with the “welfare socialism” that characterized the post-war years being swept away and a possible return

Ian Fraser 2010-05-27T12:41:04Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/27/the-end-users-case-against-ott-over-the-top-derivatives-regulation 2010-05-27T11:06:06Z 2010-05-27T11:06:06Z

The European Parliament’s Economics and Monetary Affairs Committee (ECON) is a very well respected body and has little difficulty in

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-27T11:06:06Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/25/great-depression-mark-ii-the-wailing-begins 2010-05-25T07:24:35Z 2010-05-25T07:24:35Z

Stability seems to hang by the thinnest of thin threads these days. All it takes is a rush of blood to the head afflicting a few German

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-25T07:24:35Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/05/24/there-is-method-in-merkels-madness 2010-05-24T08:06:04Z 2010-05-24T08:06:04Z

The decision by German chancellor Angela Merkel to unilaterally impose a ban on “naked short-selling” last week was derided by many market

Ian Fraser 2010-05-24T08:06:04Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/24/a-strategic-look-at-the-euro-problem-what-if-greece-stayed-and-germany-left 2010-05-24T07:53:30Z 2010-05-24T07:53:30Z

With so many economists, market watchers, and foreign currency specialists giving their views on the euro crisis, it is refreshing to come

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-24T07:53:30Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/20/the-europe-wide-web-of-debt 2010-05-20T09:33:13Z 2010-05-20T09:33:13Z

The hugely interlinked and interwoven nature of the sovereign bond market in Europe was probably always going to suffer exceedingly badly

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-20T09:33:13Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/05/19/investors-shooting-themselves-in-foot-with-acceptance-of-golden-hellos 2010-05-19T08:18:15Z 2010-05-19T08:18:15Z

The £3.3 million, no-strings-attached “golden hello” recently handed by Unilever to its incoming finance director, Jean-Marc Huet, caused

Ian Fraser 2010-05-19T08:18:15Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/19/basel-ii-the-work-goes-on-despite-the-crisis 2010-05-19T08:05:02Z 2010-05-19T08:05:02Z

The crisis in the euro and the general anxiety in the markets over sovereign debt issues have caused many market watchers to take their eye

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-19T08:05:02Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/17/indian-economy-sets-targets-europe-can-only-envy 2010-05-17T14:58:55Z 2010-05-17T14:58:55Z

With the Indian economy set to grow at an annualized rate of 10% by 2012, according to the Indian Finance Minister, Pranab Mukerjee, the

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-17T14:58:55Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/14/is-price-stability-the-right-target-for-the-eu 2010-05-14T13:13:00Z 2010-05-14T13:13:00Z

If ever a man gave a cool and calm presentation at a press conference and got roundly trashed for it later, Jean-Claude Trichet, the

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-14T13:13:00Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/13/fat-fingers-and-the-log-log-law 2010-05-13T12:10:13Z 2010-05-13T12:10:13Z

On Thursday May 6th the Dow had its biggest ever intraday fall and for 90 seconds the stock market went completely bananas. According to

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-13T12:10:13Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/12/ratings-agencies-under-notice-part-2 2010-05-12T10:02:20Z 2010-05-12T10:02:20Z

In Part 1 we looked at EU President Barroso’s warning to the ratings agencies. A day after President Barroso’s speech, Jean Claude Trichet,

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-12T10:02:20Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/05/12/roubinis-10-part-prescription-for-a-more-stable-financial-future 2010-05-12T09:41:33Z 2010-05-12T09:41:33Z

Nouriel Roubini, the New York-based economist who can justly claim to having foreseen the crisis, has proposed a comprehensive list of 10

Ian Fraser 2010-05-12T09:41:33Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/11/ratings-agencies-under-notice-from-europe-part-1 2010-05-11T08:20:26Z 2010-05-11T08:20:26Z

It has been an interesting week, in the full sense of the Chinese curse, for the big ratings agencies. They have had their cages publicly

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-11T08:20:26Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/05/11/roubini-the-crisis-ripped-the-sleek-shiny-skin-off-what-had-become-a-gangrenous-mess 2010-05-11T07:58:45Z 2010-05-11T07:58:45Z

The economist Nouriel Roubini is astonished that, even though the market-fundamentalist, laissez-faire belief system that dominated

Ian Fraser 2010-05-11T07:58:45Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/05/10/euro-crisis-morphs-into-the-sovereigns-subprime 2010-05-10T14:02:26Z 2010-05-10T14:02:26Z

Hope triumphed over fear with last Sunday night's dramatic €720bn ($1 trillion) EU/IMF intervention to prop up the eurozone, but there

Ian Fraser 2010-05-10T14:02:26Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/10/whatever-happened-to-crm-and-the-idea-of-treasuring-the-customer 2010-05-10T08:49:17Z 2010-05-10T08:49:17Z

Just about the time we were all going through the bubble phase of the dot.com era, a time when technology had an extremely favorable wind

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-10T08:49:17Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/05/10/senates-goldman-dossier-lifts-lids-on-internal-practises 2010-05-10T08:44:29Z 2010-05-10T08:44:29Z

The internal correspondence from inside investment bank Goldman Sachs amassed by the Senate’s Permanent Sub-Committee on Investigations

Ian Fraser 2010-05-10T08:44:29Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/05/05/hell-hath-no-fury-like-a-wall-streeter-scorned 2010-05-05T10:17:46Z 2010-05-05T10:17:46Z

An anonymous memo is doing the rounds of Wall Street and the City of London. It could be a spoof. But it does have the ring of

Ian Fraser 2010-05-05T10:17:46Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/05/the-challenge-of-longevity 2010-05-05T09:17:54Z 2010-05-05T09:17:54Z

Big business and governments are already grappling with the uncomfortable side effects of increasing longevity on actuarial life

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-05T09:17:54Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/05/04/greek-bailout-rewrites-rulebook-for-eu-sovereign-debt 2010-05-04T08:43:10Z 2010-05-04T08:43:10Z

Is the €110bn European Union and the IMF bailout of Greece a good or a bad thing? If you’re a German voter, 57% of whom reportedly oppose

Ian Fraser 2010-05-04T08:43:10Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/05/04/more-ratings-agency-fun-more-market-crashes 2010-05-04T08:13:10Z 2010-05-04T08:13:10Z

It has been said fairly often lately that sovereign debt is the other boot waiting to drop. The Greek financial crisis has been largely

Anthony Harrington 2010-05-04T08:13:10Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/30/in-case-of-greed-break-glass-a-reaction-to-president-clintons-latest-thoughts-on-the-crash 2010-04-30T08:01:37Z 2010-04-30T08:01:37Z

Former US President Bill Clinton’s statement on ABC TV’s “This Week” program that he was wrong in listening to the advice of his advisers

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-30T08:01:37Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/29/vct-funding-for-small-companies-will-the-elections-kill-a-good-idea 2010-04-29T08:15:38Z 2010-04-29T08:15:38Z

A parliamentary election often generates something of an ideas frenzy and with an incoming government potentially set to either change

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-29T08:15:38Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/28/imf-fat-tax-fat-chance 2010-04-28T08:02:39Z 2010-04-28T08:02:39Z

It beggars belief that the biggest banks could come through the worst global recession since the 1930s, caused in no small part by their

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-28T08:02:39Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/04/27/former-president-clinton-concedes-he-got-it-wrong-on-derivatives 2010-04-27T12:51:00Z 2010-04-27T12:51:00Z

Former President Bill Clinton has admitted that he ought to have tightened up the regulation of derivatives when he was in office, but

Ian Fraser 2010-04-27T12:51:00Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/27/the-sec-vs-goldman-to-do-right-do-it-right 2010-04-27T12:40:13Z 2010-04-27T12:40:13Z

Oh dear! If the SEC had only followed its own best practice when it decided to go after Goldman Sachs how much better things would now be.

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-27T12:40:13Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/04/23/sec-vs-goldman-sachs-suggests-changed-days-for-wall-street 2010-04-23T09:35:44Z 2010-04-23T09:35:44Z

The torrent of speculation surrounding the SEC’s chances of succeeding with its attempts to nail the “giant vampire squid” (a.k.a. Goldman

Ian Fraser 2010-04-23T09:35:44Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/23/if-it-aint-broke-dont-fix-it-angel-financing-part-2 2010-04-23T08:29:19Z 2010-04-23T08:29:19Z

While there is much to ponder in Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd’s Finance Bill, the fact that Dodd’s drafting team have

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-23T08:29:19Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/21/oops-we-just-killed-angel-financing 2010-04-21T08:45:51Z 2010-04-21T08:45:51Z

It is one of the facts of business life that one of the prime sources of funding—often the only source of funding—for start-ups is that

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-21T08:45:51Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/20/when-push-comes-to-shove-who-really-defines-the-green-agenda 2010-04-20T07:47:34Z 2010-04-20T07:47:34Z

One of the problems with green politics is that for the leading nations it is always so much easier to instruct others on the necessities

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-20T07:47:34Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/19/innovation-in-europe-does-the-erc-hold-the-key 2010-04-19T08:11:14Z 2010-04-19T08:11:14Z

The present and future struggle to be at the forefront of global manufacturing is all about cornering the market for talent and

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-19T08:11:14Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/16/repo-105-the-case-for-the-defense 2010-04-16T12:54:02Z 2010-04-16T12:54:02Z

This is the fourth of a series of QFINANCE blog posts on the Anton Valukas’s report on the collapse of Lehman Brothers. See also: Time for

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-16T12:54:02Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/04/16/iceland-makes-a-drama-out-of-its-crisis 2010-04-16T10:35:20Z 2010-04-16T10:35:20Z

Iceland’s Truth Report (or “Black” Report) into the October 2008 collapse of its banking sector is exactly the sort of forensic inquiry

Ian Fraser 2010-04-16T10:35:20Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/04/14/breaking-up-is-the-hardest-thing-to-do 2010-04-14T09:52:56Z 2010-04-14T09:52:56Z

Three years since the onset of the crisis, the US Congress has finally got around to debating some serious proposals for reforming

Ian Fraser 2010-04-14T09:52:56Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/12/asia-forges-ahead 2010-04-12T13:15:12Z 2010-04-12T13:15:12Z

According to a recent speech by John Lipsky, the first deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund, global growth should

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-12T13:15:12Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/08/blindsided-by-robots 2010-04-08T13:31:56Z 2010-04-08T13:31:56Z

Businesses always have to have one eye on the metaphorical horizon, watching out for that paradigm-busting innovation, that something

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-08T13:31:56Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/07/greek-tragedy-part-3-deal-some-deal 2010-04-07T08:22:49Z 2010-04-07T08:22:49Z

On the evening of Thursday March 26th, it looked as if the Greek government had been thrown a lifeline supposedly woven out of the combined

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-07T08:22:49Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/04/01/when-the-markets-doubt-government-government-loses 2010-04-01T13:35:06Z 2010-04-01T13:35:06Z

After the success of its US$600 billion fiscal stimulus policy, the Chinese government (PRC) currently needs to dial down the property boom

Anthony Harrington 2010-04-01T13:35:06Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/31/what-to-make-of-japans-record-budget 2010-03-31T09:09:46Z 2010-03-31T09:09:46Z

It is extremely hard to argue against absolute, in-your-face, common-sense logic, except for those rare occasions when there is some wildly

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-31T09:09:46Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/03/30/bankings-new-age-of-experience 2010-03-30T09:19:34Z 2010-03-30T09:19:34Z

The weaknesses of bank boards and particularly the lack of financial industry experience of nonexecutive (or external) directors at banks,

Ian Fraser 2010-03-30T09:19:34Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/30/so-what-if-governments-spend 2010-03-30T08:51:12Z 2010-03-30T08:51:12Z

The scale of government spending in several developed economies has thrown a sharp media spotlight onto the whole topic of government debt.

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-30T08:51:12Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/29/megacities-onwards-and-upwards 2010-03-29T08:29:27Z 2010-03-29T08:29:27Z

In 2007 an extraordinary fact arose which passed completely unremarked by the media and the vast majority of academics. This was the first

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-29T08:29:27Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/03/26/us-rescue-plan-stiglitz-vs-gold 2010-03-26T10:12:13Z 2010-03-26T10:12:13Z

Three years after the crisis began (see Peter Schiff’s March 2007 article*) is as good a time as any to take stock of the US policy

Ian Fraser 2010-03-26T10:12:13Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/25/sovereign-wealth-funds-get-back-to-basics 2010-03-25T10:36:12Z 2010-03-25T10:36:12Z

The financial meltdown did not just devastate Western economies. It also took large bites out of the sovereign wealth funds and inflicted

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-25T10:36:12Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/24/just-an-accounting-gimmick 2010-03-24T10:56:13Z 2010-03-24T10:56:13Z

This is the third of a series of QFINANCE blog posts on the Anton Valukas’s report on the collapse of Lehman Brothers. See also: Time for

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-24T10:56:13Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/23/ucits-iv-adds-polish-to-the-brand 2010-03-23T11:17:28Z 2010-03-23T11:17:28Z

Now that so many of the frauds perpetrated on unsuspecting investors during the heyday of the boom have come home to roost, the unrivalled

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-23T11:17:28Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/22/the-auditors-dilemma-part-1 2010-03-22T10:43:13Z 2010-03-22T10:43:13Z

This is the second of a series of QFINANCE blog posts on the Anton Valukas’s report on the collapse of Lehman Brothers. See also: Time for

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-22T10:43:13Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/03/22/it-was-not-lack-of-regulation-but-lack-of-ethics-that-killed-the-street 2010-03-22T10:07:59Z 2010-03-22T10:07:59Z

The former Salomon Brothers bond trader who lifted the lid on sharp practice in Wall Street with Liar’s Poker in 1989 has returned to his

Ian Fraser 2010-03-22T10:07:59Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/03/18/time-for-sarbox-to-be-rethought-post-valukas 2010-03-18T10:09:35Z 2010-03-18T10:09:35Z

This is the first of a series of QFINANCE blog posts on the Anton Valukas’s report on the collapse of Lehman Brothers. See also: The

Ian Fraser 2010-03-18T10:09:35Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/17/china-delving-into-the-detail 2010-03-17T11:02:15Z 2010-03-17T11:02:15Z

When Western economists talk about China and the growth of the Chinese economy, they tend to talk about the country as a whole. In a

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-17T11:02:15Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/03/16/pension-funds-search-for-climate-change-risks-and-opportunities 2010-03-16T10:13:55Z 2010-03-16T10:13:55Z

Pension funds are increasingly being asked by politicians, non-governmental organizations, campaigners, and pressure groups to mobilize

Ian Fraser 2010-03-16T10:13:55Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/15/insurance-and-pension-funds-systemic-says-ecb-president 2010-03-15T11:32:22Z 2010-03-15T11:32:22Z

In a speech in November 2009, ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet argued that insurance companies and pension funds are “systemically

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-15T11:32:22Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/12/update-on-the-greek-tragedy 2010-03-12T11:55:04Z 2010-03-12T11:55:04Z

One of the most insightful commentators on macroeconomic policy, Joseph Trevisani, chief market analyst for the foreign currency trading

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-12T11:55:04Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/03/11/uks-uncertain-outlook-clouds-stockpicking-picture 2010-03-11T11:25:22Z 2010-03-11T11:25:22Z

The man who took over the reins at Fidelity International’s Special Situations Fund from the legendary investment manager Anthony Bolton

Ian Fraser 2010-03-11T11:25:22Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/10/sec-on-dangerous-ground-with-short-selling-rule 2010-03-10T11:12:51Z 2010-03-10T11:12:51Z

Despite all the evidence pointing to the role of the banks and the mispricing of risk as causal factors in the 2008 credit crunch and

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-10T11:12:51Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/03/09/greek-tragedys-happy-ending-a-european-monetary-fund 2010-03-09T14:20:42Z 2010-03-09T14:20:42Z

The Greek crisis has brought the structural flaws in European Monetary Union (EMU) into sharp relief, as well as weakening the euro and the

Ian Fraser 2010-03-09T14:20:42Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/08/us-economy-signs-of-hope 2010-03-08T11:54:15Z 2010-03-08T11:54:15Z

The challenges facing the US economy are so large and deep-seated that it is often difficult, in fact close to downright impossible, to

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-08T11:54:15Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/03/05/beijing-unlikely-to-go-mad-any-time-soon 2010-03-05T10:07:00Z 2010-03-05T10:07:00Z

Americans (some Americans anyway) remain deeply anxious about China’s ownership of $1–2 trillion of their country’s debt. The fears that

Ian Fraser 2010-03-05T10:07:00Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/03/02/buffett-advocates-more-stick-less-carrot-to-ensure-bank-bosses-shape-up 2010-03-02T14:12:50Z 2010-03-02T14:12:50Z

Legendary Omaha-based investor Warren Buffett often uses his annual letter to shareholders [PDF, 112 KB] in Berkshire Hathaway group to

Ian Fraser 2010-03-02T14:12:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/03/01/is-the-west-mispricing-emerging-market-assets 2010-03-01T09:52:20Z 2010-03-01T09:52:20Z

While the bottom of a global recession is hardly the moment that companies in developed economies can be expected to go on a worldwide

Anthony Harrington 2010-03-01T09:52:20Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/26/pwc-report-predicts-revival-for-fs-ma 2010-02-26T11:08:11Z 2010-02-26T11:08:11Z

There was good news and bad news for mergers and acquisitions watchers in the latest European Financial Services M&A Insight report

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-26T11:08:11Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/02/24/the-wider-consequences-of-greeces-tragedy 2010-02-24T10:42:22Z 2010-02-24T10:42:22Z

It’s time that institutional investors woke up to the wider repercussions of the Greek tragedy and rethought their attitudes to risk as

Ian Fraser 2010-02-24T10:42:22Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/23/taking-the-toxic-element-out-of-spes 2010-02-23T16:54:20Z 2010-02-23T16:54:20Z

One reason why the regulators had no visibility of just how badly the banking sector had over-leveraged itself across the developed world

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-23T16:54:20Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/22/western-science-outgunned-by-emerging-markets 2010-02-22T15:21:41Z 2010-02-22T15:21:41Z

With emerging markets expanding the boundaries of the possible at startling speeds, the old defensive mantra which emphasizes Western

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-22T15:21:41Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/19/barclays-bonuses-keep-the-pot-bubbling 2010-02-19T10:00:06Z 2010-02-19T10:00:06Z

It will be a long time before bankers are forgiven for the excesses that triggered the credit crunch and the global recession so,

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-19T10:00:06Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/18/basel-ii-mark-ii-better-for-the-bruising 2010-02-18T11:26:52Z 2010-02-18T11:26:52Z

It has become fashionable to scoff at Basel II, the key regulatory platform for the international banking community, for its failure to

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-18T11:26:52Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/17/bullish-views-for-2010 2010-02-17T11:35:10Z 2010-02-17T11:35:10Z

Despite severe doubts about the stability of at least a handful of European economies and a stock market that by the end of the first week

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-17T11:35:10Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/02/16/tobin-makeover-not-quite-what-it-seems 2010-02-16T08:42:37Z 2010-02-16T08:42:37Z

Also read the companion blog post on the Tobin tax/Robin Hood tax by Anthony Harrington, and vote in our poll on the Robin Hood tax.The

Ian Fraser 2010-02-16T08:42:37Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/16/tobin-tax-a-fine-idea-for-killing-the-goose 2010-02-16T08:41:59Z 2010-02-16T08:41:59Z

Also read the companion blog post on the Tobin tax/Robin Hood tax by Ian Fraser, and vote in our poll on the Robin Hood tax.There is

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-16T08:41:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/15/greek-tragedy-harrows-the-euro 2010-02-15T10:07:15Z 2010-02-15T10:07:15Z

In his blog for Telegraph.co.uk, Edmund Conway argues that perhaps the biggest flaw in the European Monetary Union was always going to be

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-15T10:07:15Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/02/12/ipo-window-slams-shuts-in-howling-gale-of-fear 2010-02-12T15:14:14Z 2010-02-12T15:14:14Z

The flotations window that has been opened up since the bear market rally kicked in last March has been slammed shut as risk aversion

Ian Fraser 2010-02-12T15:14:14Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/11/xbrl-adds-universal-access-to-corporate-reporting 2010-02-11T16:08:10Z 2010-02-11T16:08:10Z

One of the annoying things about printed documents in this electronic age is that you have to do quite a lot of work to turn them back into

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-11T16:08:10Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/02/05/volckers-right-prop-trading-was-at-heart-of-crisis 2010-02-05T14:07:41Z 2010-02-05T14:07:41Z

There are plenty of powerful voices on Wall Street and in Congress out to rubbish President Obama’s ‘Volcker Rule’ right now. Their main

Ian Fraser 2010-02-05T14:07:41Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/02/05/g20-reform-agenda-knocked-sideways-by-obama 2010-02-05T11:38:18Z 2010-02-05T11:38:18Z

Despite the worthy talk at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, the world is even further from reaching unanimity about how best to

Ian Fraser 2010-02-05T11:38:18Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/03/transparency-could-take-the-heat-off-tax-havens 2010-02-03T09:36:50Z 2010-02-03T09:36:50Z

TMAY75UDGSR4 On January 19, the OECD released its “background briefing” document ambiguously entitled “Promoting transparency and exchange

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-03T09:36:50Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/02/who-pays-when-asian-manufacturing-falters 2010-02-02T16:38:59Z 2010-02-02T16:38:59Z

The reinsurance giant Swiss Re has produced a fascinating study of the dilemma facing US retailers and manufacturers when products they

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-02T16:38:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/02/01/the-alternative-investment-sector 2010-02-01T14:39:36Z 2010-02-01T14:39:36Z

The so-called alternative investment fund industry, or AIF, is a broad church, encompassing such diverse activities as private equity

Anthony Harrington 2010-02-01T14:39:36Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/29/offshore-havens-part-1 2010-01-29T16:08:17Z 2010-01-29T16:08:17Z

Two completely different motives, one paranoid and one somewhat justified, seem to have been at work in the outpouring of outrage against

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-29T16:08:17Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/01/28/turner-turns-fire-on-bean-counters 2010-01-28T15:22:08Z 2010-01-28T15:22:08Z

Lord Turner, chairman of the UK's top financial regulator, angered people in the City of London when he told them last August that much of

Ian Fraser 2010-01-28T15:22:08Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/28/hedge-funds-back-in-favour 2010-01-28T14:35:28Z 2010-01-28T14:35:28Z

Hedge funds had a torrid time through the great crash of 2008/09. Even funds that considerably outperformed the mainstream equity markets

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-28T14:35:28Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/27/a-blow-for-free-speech-or-the-end-of-free-speech 2010-01-27T15:45:02Z 2010-01-27T15:45:02Z

On January 21st the US Supreme Court overturned a long-standing ban on corporate entities using their financial muscle to fund prospective

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-27T15:45:02Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/27/cadbury-the-chairmans-dilemma 2010-01-27T15:35:37Z 2010-01-27T15:35:37Z

It is unfortunate, but often unavoidable, that chairmen and CEOs of household name public companies who are put under the spotlight of a

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-27T15:35:37Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/26/german-economy 2010-01-26T11:58:03Z 2010-01-26T11:58:03Z

As one of the major motors of the eurozone, the health of the German economy is of huge significance to businesses in Europe and beyond. In

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-26T11:58:03Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/26/banking-futures-smaller-and-safer 2010-01-26T11:39:07Z 2010-01-26T11:39:07Z

The notion that banks have learned the lessons of the great crash of 2008/2009 is starting to look a little shaky. US players like Morgan

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-26T11:39:07Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/25/mining-and-insurance-dialogue-or-bust 2010-01-25T14:55:18Z 2010-01-25T14:55:18Z

Insurance is a vital element of any business’s defense against the unforeseen. For “ordinary” high street businesses protection insurance

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-25T14:55:18Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/25/mbos-down-but-not-out 2010-01-25T10:25:49Z 2010-01-25T10:25:49Z

While the MBO figures in the UK for the fourth quarter of 2009 have still to emerge, what is beyond dispute is that the overall value of UK

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-25T10:25:49Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/01/21/hsbc-goes-with-the-economic-flow 2010-01-21T11:32:01Z 2010-01-21T11:32:01Z

If you need tangible evidence that economic power is ebbing away from Western financial centers such as London towards more dynamic

Ian Fraser 2010-01-21T11:32:01Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/21/asset-bubbles-to-act-or-not-to-act 2010-01-21T10:53:56Z 2010-01-21T10:53:56Z

With the global economy struggling to recover from the implosion of the US subprime real estate bubble and the toxic derivatives that fed

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-21T10:53:56Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/20/google-in-china-a-thorny-lesson-unfolds 2010-01-20T10:25:44Z 2010-01-20T10:25:44Z

What to do? Doing business with the world’s second largest economy, which looks like it may become the world’s largest economy within the

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-20T10:25:44Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/01/20/stiglitz-lambasts-obama-over-handling-of-crisis 2010-01-20T10:00:16Z 2010-01-20T10:00:16Z

He may be something of a pariah on Wall Street thanks to his calls for a new tax on “upper income” Americans but, in his latest critique of

Ian Fraser 2010-01-20T10:00:16Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/18/china-buying-buying-busy-buying 2010-01-18T10:36:34Z 2010-01-18T10:36:34Z

While M&A activity in the US, the UK, and Europe is still way below pre-crash levels, China’s “outbound” M&A activity (acquisitions

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-18T10:36:34Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/01/18/how-to-boost-investment-returns 2010-01-18T10:35:11Z 2010-01-18T10:35:11Z

It’s official. Caring for the environment and for society can actually benefit your wealth.And according to a raft of recent surveys, the

Ian Fraser 2010-01-18T10:35:11Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/01/15/bernankes-land-grab-falls-flat 2010-01-15T15:33:30Z 2010-01-15T15:33:30Z

There’s an interesting tussle going on in the US over whether the Federal Reserve should be given more powers—or indeed whether the

Ian Fraser 2010-01-15T15:33:30Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/15/catastrophe-bonds-part-2 2010-01-15T14:28:59Z 2010-01-15T14:28:59Z

In Part 1 we looked at what makes catastrophe bonds an interesting investment option for a wide range of investors. The focus in Part 2 is

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-15T14:28:59Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/01/14/pondering-recovery-amid-the-snow 2010-01-14T12:40:35Z 2010-01-14T12:40:35Z

The picturesque Swiss ski resort of Davos will later this month again play host to the World Economic Forum (WEF), the annual jamboree of

Ian Fraser 2010-01-14T12:40:35Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/14/wto-and-free-trade 2010-01-14T11:51:05Z 2010-01-14T11:51:05Z

On November 20, 2001, the Doha Declaration came into existence. Following the disastrous dot.com crash and the ensuing slowdown (which

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-14T11:51:05Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/08/catastrophe-bonds-part-1 2010-01-08T10:18:58Z 2010-01-08T10:18:58Z

Catastrophe bonds are either complete lunacy or an astounding triumph of statistics and probability theory over common sense, depending on

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-08T10:18:58Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/07/fasb-chairman-hits-out-at-critics 2010-01-07T11:14:07Z 2010-01-07T11:14:07Z

Speaking at the AICPA National Conference on December 8, Robert Herz, chairman of the Financial Accounting Standards Board, decided to

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-07T11:14:07Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/05/dreams-of-a-dollar-alternative 2010-01-05T13:33:36Z 2010-01-05T13:33:36Z

There is nothing surprising about the Chinese getting irritated by the shortcomings of the US dollar as a global reserve currency. If you

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-05T13:33:36Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2010/01/04/tobin-becomes-fashionable 2010-01-04T10:06:22Z 2010-01-04T10:06:22Z

It was recently suggested that the US economist James Tobin renounced his commitment to a globally implemented tax on financial

Ian Fraser 2010-01-04T10:06:22Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/04/sovereign-debt-anxiety-levels-on-the-rise 2010-01-04T10:05:45Z 2010-01-04T10:05:45Z

Dubai jolted the markets. Greece gave the wheel a spin. The ratings agencies joined the game and now everyone is looking at the possibility

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-04T10:05:45Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2010/01/04/chinese-banks-blowing-bubbles 2010-01-04T10:00:16Z 2010-01-04T10:00:16Z

The Chinese banking regulator, worried by an unprecedented volume of loans by Chinese banks, recently let it be known that it expected the

Anthony Harrington 2010-01-04T10:00:16Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/12/18/when-the-baltic-dry-rises-the-sun-comes-out 2009-12-18T12:27:03Z 2009-12-18T12:27:03Z

Imagine an index that shows you the future of the global economy six months hence, virtually uncluttered by the machinations of

Anthony Harrington 2009-12-18T12:27:03Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/12/17/make-hay-while-the-sun-shines 2009-12-17T15:07:26Z 2009-12-17T15:07:26Z

On November 25, the German central bank, the Bundesbank, fired a warning shot across the bows of the German, and by implication the

Anthony Harrington 2009-12-17T15:07:26Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/12/16/between-a-rock-and-a-hard-place 2009-12-16T11:53:30Z 2009-12-16T11:53:30Z

No one in Europe plays the psychological game better than the EU’s Competition Commission, headed up by Commissioner Neelie Kroes. Imagine

Anthony Harrington 2009-12-16T11:53:30Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/12/15/asian-economic-miracle-version-2-0 2009-12-15T11:58:13Z 2009-12-15T11:58:13Z

The flow of economic power from West to East has been massively accelerated by last year’s banking and financial crisis; indeed if

Ian Fraser 2009-12-15T11:58:13Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/12/14/the-only-thing-left-that-glitters 2009-12-14T11:38:59Z 2009-12-14T11:38:59Z

For the last several months, with some minor retreats here and there, investors—and central banks—around the world have been quietly buying

Anthony Harrington 2009-12-14T11:38:59Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/12/11/iasb-grapples-with-weapons-of-mass-destruction 2009-12-11T11:45:32Z 2009-12-11T11:45:32Z

On November 12th the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) issued its latest International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS),

Anthony Harrington 2009-12-11T11:45:32Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/12/10/roller-coaster-ride-for-chinese-equities 2009-12-10T10:57:28Z 2009-12-10T10:57:28Z

With economic recoveries and stock market rallies in the developed world looking shaky, investors are increasingly turning their eyes

Ian Fraser 2009-12-10T10:57:28Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/12/09/joining-hands-across-the-water 2009-12-09T10:06:08Z 2009-12-09T10:06:08Z

In early November, the world’s two major accounting standards setting bodies, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and the

Anthony Harrington 2009-12-09T10:06:08Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/12/08/propping-up-failures-only-prolongs-recession 2009-12-08T10:51:03Z 2009-12-08T10:51:03Z

Are governments too eager to sustain banks that would otherwise have gone bust and are they too keen to lend a hand to the casualties of

Ian Fraser 2009-12-08T10:51:03Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/12/02/dark-pools 2009-12-02T11:43:52Z 2009-12-02T11:43:52Z

The US Securities and Exchange Commission has been exercising itself in recent months over the topic of “dark pools.” What are dark pools?

Anthony Harrington 2009-12-02T11:43:52Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/12/01/no-one-can-afford-too-big-to-fail-banks 2009-12-01T11:04:31Z 2009-12-01T11:04:31Z

The thorny issue of what to do about institutions that are “too big to fail” has been addressed by Mervyn King, governor of the Bank of

Ian Fraser 2009-12-01T11:04:31Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/11/25/manufacturing-gets-acquisitive 2009-11-25T16:53:25Z 2009-11-25T16:53:25Z

On November 10, PricewaterhouseCoopers, one of the big four accountancy firms, announced that the third quarter of 2009 saw the industrial

Anthony Harrington 2009-11-25T16:53:25Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/11/20/certain-as-death-and-taxes 2009-11-20T12:08:58Z 2009-11-20T12:08:58Z

Every business that is not operating in some kind of tax-free zone knows that it is going to have to pay business rates on its business

Anthony Harrington 2009-11-20T12:08:58Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/11/19/eu-derivatives-regulation 2009-11-19T12:24:55Z 2009-11-19T12:24:55Z

The financial derivatives markets, whose instruments were famously labeled by Warren Buffett as “financial weapons of mass destruction,”

Anthony Harrington 2009-11-19T12:24:55Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/11/18/asias-unprecedented-opportunity 2009-11-18T13:15:42Z 2009-11-18T13:15:42Z

Asia has a critical role to play in pulling the global economy out of recession and towards a more sustainable future, according to

Ian Fraser 2009-11-18T13:15:42Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/11/17/carbon-trading 2009-11-17T10:41:27Z 2009-11-17T10:41:27Z

Europe is leading the world in developing a market for carbon trading, using a market formula based on the cap-and-trade technique first

Anthony Harrington 2009-11-17T10:41:27Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/11/11/straight-through-processing-stp 2009-11-11T11:37:55Z 2009-11-11T11:37:55Z

In late September, Mercer, the pensions administration and employee benefits specialist, fired off a press release that was intended to be

Anthony Harrington 2009-11-11T11:37:55Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/11/09/japan-more-moss-or-actual-green-shoots 2009-11-09T17:24:55Z 2009-11-09T17:24:55Z

The Japanese economy took a real thumping through the recession. If you are the world’s second-largest export engine and global demand for

Anthony Harrington 2009-11-09T17:24:55Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/11/05/financial-regulation-and-compliance 2009-11-05T13:29:04Z 2009-11-05T13:29:04Z

The poet Longfellow once famously wrote: “The mills of God grind slowly, yet they grind exceedingly small.” The European Commission’s

Anthony Harrington 2009-11-05T13:29:04Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/11/04/global-warming-the-challenge-for-the-insurance-sector 2009-11-04T17:26:44Z 2009-11-04T17:26:44Z

The fear that our world will be subjected to increasingly violent weather events is one of the major drivers prompting the nations of the

Anthony Harrington 2009-11-04T17:26:44Z Anthony Harrington http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/anthony-harrington/2009/11/03/ing-splits-its-banking-and-insurance-arms 2009-11-03T10:04:52Z 2009-11-03T10:04:52Z

One instance doesn’t make a trend, but the decision by the Dutch financial services group ING to separate out its banking and insurance

Anthony Harrington 2009-11-03T10:04:52Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/10/01/back-to-the-future 2009-10-01T15:01:41Z 2009-10-01T15:01:41Z

Ian Fraser in DohaMorality and business ethics were on the agenda at the closing session of the QFINANCE debates on the future of finance

Ian Fraser 2009-10-01T15:01:41Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/09/30/dont-count-chickens-on-recovery 2009-09-30T16:01:01Z 2009-09-30T16:01:01Z

By Ian Fraser in DohaThere is a danger that central bankers including Jean-Claude Trichet of the European Central Bank and Ben Bernanke of

Ian Fraser 2009-09-30T16:01:01Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/09/30/mark-to-market-a-cure-not-a-cause-of-crisis 2009-09-30T12:01:24Z 2009-09-30T12:01:24Z

By Ian Fraser in DohaIt is wrong to blame fair-value accounting, also known as mark-to-market accounting, for causing the financial crisis

Ian Fraser 2009-09-30T12:01:24Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/09/30/new-dawn-for-gulf-finance 2009-09-30T08:14:18Z 2009-09-30T08:14:18Z

By Ian Fraser in DohaA new era has dawned for financial services, in which Gulf financial centers are well placed to demonstrate their

Ian Fraser 2009-09-30T08:14:18Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/09/29/sovereign-funds-chastened 2009-09-29T16:11:11Z 2009-09-29T16:11:11Z

By Ian Fraser in DohaTransparency has turned out to be something of a doubled-edged sword for the world’s $3 trillion sovereign wealth

Ian Fraser 2009-09-29T16:11:11Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/09/29/challenges-on-talent-front 2009-09-29T12:01:42Z 2009-09-29T12:01:42Z

By Ian Fraser in DohaGulf nations will have to become less rigidly hierarchical if they are going to boost entrepreneurialism and attract

Ian Fraser 2009-09-29T12:01:42Z Ian Fraser http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/ian-fraser/2009/09/29/doha-revisited 2009-09-29T11:11:32Z 2009-09-29T11:11:32Z

By Ian Fraser in DohaProtectionism has become the “crack cocaine” of modern politics and anti-globalization forces have been emboldened by

Ian Fraser 2009-09-29T11:11:32Z QFINANCE Editor http://www.qfinance.com/blogs/qfinance-editor/2009/09/23/welcome 2009-09-23T14:05:39Z 2009-09-23T14:05:39Z

Our blog editors are highly experienced in their fields and are constantly seeking to highlight the relevance of QFINANCE's huge database

QFINANCE Editor 2009-09-23T14:05:39Z