
At a Loss
The authorities are still at a loss on the best course of action 18 months after the credit crisis broke out. That’s left them pursuing a disjointed approach as the global economy deteriorates further and companies from Microsoft Corp. to Nissan Motor Co. cut jobs.U.S. stocks fell the most this week since November, extending the Dow Jones Industrial Average index’s decline since the start of the year to 11 percent.“The statement ticks all the right boxes, but as expected does not go beyond generic statements of principle and commitments that we have heard before,” said Marco Annunziata, chief economist at Unicredit MIB in London. “The commitment to act in a coordinated way flies in the face of the rather uncoordinated approach that followed similar commitments last October.”Geithner, a former Treasury undersecretary in the Clinton administration, returned to the G-7 stage after a week in which investors complained his $2 trillion plan to revive lending lacked detail. His colleagues today urged him to push ahead.“On paper it looks great and the principles are certainly very good,” said French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde. “The essential thing is now to implement it.”
By Simon Kennedy and Sandrine Rastello
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aTKC4gmSOdIc&refer=worldwide
As in the days of Noah...