New York Times (August 2)
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) fined Citigroup $75 million for misleading shareholders. “Too big to fail” author Andrew Sorkin notes the irony. This settlement punishes the shareholders, the very “same people who were arguably defrauded by its [Citigroup’s] failure to disclose its exposure to subprime mortgages in the first place.” The SEC admits this is “awkward,” but claims corporate settlements best encourage companies to obey disclosure regulations. Former SEC Chairman Harvey Pitt has a different opinion, “a class of innocent shareholders is being asked to pay for the misconduct of corporate officers.”
Tags: Citigroup, Disclosure, Fine, SEC, Shareholders
Wall Street Journal (August 1)
The Wall Street Journal concludes “the DPJ’s victory was a false dawn.” The party in power has changed, but Japan remains stuck “with an ineffective government.” The Journal is convinced the DPJ may not be around for long because it is “doomed to fail.”
The Wall Street Journal concludes “the DPJ’s victory was a false dawn.” The party in power has changed, but Japan remains stuck “with an ineffective government.” The Journal is convinced the DPJ may not be around for long because it is “doomed to fail.” \
Financial Times (July 30)
Columnist John Gapper notes that three years ago the British banking system started rumbling with worries over Northern Rock. Then two years ago, “Wall Street went into spasm.” What’s changed since the banking crisis? Not much. Rather than coordinated international measures, “the reforms are not only inconsistent but–particularly in the case of the BIS [the Bank for International Settlements, which delayed implementation of stricter liquidity rules for eight years]–have a lowest common denominator feel.” As a result, bankers can enjoy their summer holidays, but “the rest of us cannot relax so easily.”
Tags: Bank reform, Northern Rock, Wall Street
Newsweek (July 30)Newsweek (July 30)
China’s official quarterly statistics are assembled with breakneck speed. Provinces submit their records to the National Bureau of Statistics in just two weeks, approximately three times faster than the norm in developed countries. The figures usually come quite close to matching official targets because regional “officials have massive incentives to tell Beijing what it wants to hear as regards hitting central targets—whether it be breakneck growth or an engineered slowdown.” Over subsequent years, the statistics are typically revised as more accurate data become available. Yet inaccurate quarterly statistics diminish the capacity “to effectively govern such a vast country.”
China’s official quarterly statistics are assembled with breakneck speed. Provinces submit their records to the National Bureau of Statistics in just two weeks, approximately three times faster than the norm in developed countries. The figures usually come quite close to matching official targets because regional “officials have massive incentives to tell Beijing what it wants to hear as regards hitting central targets—whether it be breakneck growth or an engineered slowdown.” Over subsequent years, the statistics are typically revised as more accurate data become available. Yet inaccurate quarterly statistics diminish the capacity “to effectively govern such a vast country.”
Tags: China, Statistics
