Reality Bites Wall Street Whiz Kids

Fed cuts, auto loan offer boost

(NEWSER) - Stocks opened mixed today after China cut interest rates and Toyota predicted its first loss in 71 years, the Wall Street Journal reports. Toyota’s US shares dropped 3% after its bleak forecast, and General Motors (16%) and Ford (7%) both fell. The Dow ticked up after the bell but was recently down 40 points. The Nasdaq was off about 1.4%, the S&P down about 1%. More»

Wall Street is facing one of its worst bear markets since World War II

(NEWSER) - An increasingly familiar Wall Street phenomenon—a three-digit swing in the Dow, usually down, in the final hour of trading—is a direct result of population growth in one species: bears. Margin calls are forcing panicked sell-offs, it's true, but the situation is more complicated than that, experts tell the New York Times. More»

Top hedge-fund guru earned $3.7B in 2007 as income gap widens

(NEWSER) - Some Wall Street hedge-fund managers earned billions betting against the market last year, with the top of the class, John Paulson, shaking loose $3.7 billion, the New York Times reports. With the US median family income at $60,500, the booty embarrassed even some of his Wall Street peers. “It’s not illegal,” said Pimco's CIO. “But it’s ugly." More»

(NEWSER) - Wall Street is dizzy after mixed signals threw traders into buy mode despite an abundance of bearish indicators today, making for one of the most volatile days in weeks. The Dow finished up 150.38 points at 13362.37, even after Asian markets plummeted across the board last night, a buyout for Bauch & Lomb failed, and a troubled Bear Stearns put another subprime-backed hedge fund on hold. More»

It's 1998 all over again as Bear Stearns buckle triggers panic

(NEWSER) - The recent collapse of two Bear Stearns hedge funds, and the resulting informal SEC investigation, have once again placed the complex system and its impact on markets under the spotlight. The Washington Post delves into the history and ethos of the powerful funds, comparing them to the Wizard of Oz in both secrecy and influence. More»