http://static.seekingalpha.com/article/115525-the-scariest-chart-ever Here is a chart of borrowing by U.S. banks from the Federal Reserve through Dec. 2007: Now, same chart through December 2008: Anyone still think there are not some rough patches down the road? Editor's note, 1/29/09: The original version of this post indicated that the charts show 'federal borrowing', and not borrowing by banks from the Fed. That has been corrected here. http://eastcoasteconomics.wordpress.com/
the second chart was posted before, it needs to be as a percent of GDP to mean much. I have a related question: can anyone explain to me why someone would buy a CDS on a treasury? The high premium on those has been pointed out as a big problem.