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Matters Financial |
31 March 2003
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NYSE Bans Al-Jazeera from Exchange Floor, Shame!
The New York Stock Exchange, the very embodiment of Wall Street, banned the Arabic-language TV network, al-Jazeera, from the exchange floor last week. The reason given was a lack of space. Mr. Ray Pellechia said only journalists engaged in "responsible business coverage" could get access to the trading floor. One would have taken him at his word had he been able to define that term. Click here to read more.
Tube Bonds Get Highest Credit Rating
London's Underground is in need of funds, and the debt deal to make that happen is likely to close this week. What has surprised a few is the AAA credit rating has not been accepted by everyone in the market. The consortium that is borrowing the money hasn't got AAA-rated members, but they have arranged for monoline insurance that boosts the rating. However, some market pros doubt that the monoline insurers deserve their AAA. This would all be a tempest in a City teapot except that this could be the thin end of the wedge, leading eventually to higher prices for borrowing for everyone. Click here to read more.
Why War Makes Markets Jumpy
It may be a matter of the painfully obvious, but precisely why war makes markets jumpy is a perfect illustration of what it is markets do. They transmit information about buyers' and sellers' perceptions of value. Whether one deals in oil, or cars, or zero-coupon notes, the market is a mass of information that synthesizes everything everyone believes into a single number, the price. Click here for our view.