Yes, roughly speaking. Of course, you can't be too uptight about a tick or two in this trading environment.
Floor Talk: Major averages rally on Blackrock, anti-foreclosure plan After drifting sideways since mid-morning, the market saw a notable afternoon rally that has taken the major averages well off their lows (Dow has gained ~250 pts in the past hour). The timing of the rally coincides with two key events that happened around the same time this afternoon: 1) positive comments from BLK about the Bear Stearn's mortgage portfolio; and 2) Details of an FHFA/GSE plan to accelerate anti-foreclosure efforts by FNM and FRE... Specifically, BLK's Vice Chairman said the Bear Stearns $30 bln mortgage portfolio is generating cash flow as expected, and could end up being worth more than its market value implies. Most importantly, he said the cash flows on these securities predict a higher value than what is currently marked to market. It seems people may be focusing on this last comment, with the thinking being that if the Bear Stearns portfolio (one of the more damaged loan portfolios) is performing as well as or better than expected, there could be positive implications for other marked-down assets in the market. The second item, the joint press conference on anti-foreclosure efforts by FNM and FRE, may be viewed as giving relief to homeowners and potentially easing the foreclosure market. Specifically, the plan accelerate anti- foreclosure efforts with a new loan modification program designed to cut monthly payments for struggling homeowners. Fannie and Freddie will target loans in which borrowers are at least 90 days delinquent and have high loan-to-income ratios. The companies may offer reduced interest rates and longer terms of as much as 40 years to trim monthly payments. BlackRock vice chairman says Bear Stearns portfolio generating more cash than market value would imply - CNBC (112.02 +3.53) CNBC reports that BLK's vice chairman said the Bear Stearns $30 bln mortgage portfolio is generating better cash flows than the market price implies, and they may be worth more than the current market value. Market View -- Following the BlackRock headlines, major averages break higher intraday from midday consolidations -Update- Goldman Sachs squeezes higher back to its morning range highs near 73.25 (73.00 +1.85) -Update- Price recovered midday off its 66.68 low to the $68/69 area, but has rallied over +4 points in the last 20 min. BlackRock: Follow up on comments about Bear Stearns mortgage portfolio (113.37 -2.18) -Update- Following the earlier headlines on BLK's comments about the Bear Stearns mortgage portfolio, a Reuters story summarizes the comments. Reuters reports that a $30 bln Bear Stearns mortgage portfolio backed by the U.S. government is generating cash flow as expected, and could end up being worth more than its market value implies, the portfolio's manager BlackRock said on Tuesday. Speaking at the Reuters Global Finance Summit, BlackRock President Robert Kapito said that "the cash flows are coming in very close to what we had anticipated from the very beginning." If this portfolio performs better than expected, it may indicate that investors were wrong to lose faith in Bear Stearns in March. New questions may also arise regarding mark-to-market accounting, which requires banks to record some assets on their books at their market value. This accounting method, which can trigger big losses and capital hits for banks when asset values decline, has grown controversial. "That's become a very big issue in the market place, is that you have securities where the cash flow is coming in very close to predicted values, but the current mark to market, because of the illiquidity ... has been a big pressure on companies' capital," Kapito said. As of the end of September, the market value of the portfolio was $26.8 bln, compared with its original face value of $30 bln, according to a government report on Oct. 23. "I would say that the cash flows on these securities predict a higher value than what is currently marked to market," Kapito said. Eligible borrowers could see rates cut, loan life extended or principal reduced; loan modifications won't decrease debt but turn it into more affordable payments, according to policymakers - Reuters
Typical media hypes and lies. Haven't we been through this spin-cycle before? Don't believe for a second what these assholes are saying!
This is not "typical media hype" from "assholes" -- this is from a highly respected and highly regarded service - BRIEFING.COM It's paid for and worth every cent!