For sure. The author has never seen an actual CME or Eurex order book in his life and obviously doesn't have an inkling about the notional value of the swaps and cash markets that get traded. Incredibly common, routine occurrence for size like that to trade.
oooooh dear.... http://www.cnbc.com/id/43914334 We're getting close to USA = junk status folks! Maybe the gold bugs were on to something How much gold is in Fort Knox anyway? Answers on a post card please. Does the fact that nobody knows the answer raise further concerns on USA's ability to repay its debt? QE3,4,5,6,.....
Put down the pipe, not even close. And FYI, the downgrade has been baked into the cake for quite a while now.
IF YOU ADD UP THE TOTAL NUMBER OF CONTRACTS MENTIONED BELOW (OVER 8 THOUSAND) THE TOTAL REQUIRED MARGIN IS LESS THAN $25 MILLION DOLLAR AS THE MARGIN REQUIREMENTS ARE LESS THAN $2,000 PER CONTRACT. THAT'S REALLY NOT A BIG DEAL SINCE THE BOND FUTURES MARKETS CAN ABSORB MUCH MORE THAN THAT AS FAR AS TRADING SIZE. COULD BE A HEDGE FUND OR SOME HOT SHOT CTA FIRM. NO BIG DEAL IN COMPARISON. BUT WHO KNOWS? HEY WHAT DO I KNOW? THE SCENARIO IS FAR WORSE THAN ANYTHING THIS COUNTRY HAS EVER FACED BEFORE. WE HAVE NOT BEEN HERE BEFORE SO WE HAVE NOTHING TO COMPARE IT TO. WE ARE IN NO MANS LAND.
Dude, with all due respect, having traded through wars and crashes and limit markets in both the pit and on the screen - this is way more political than it is practical. Look at the futures price action for God's sake and chillax. NP.
Couldn't be further from the truth... http://prorevnews.blogspot.com/2011/07/who-holds-americas-debt.html
I WAS NOT SPEAKING ABOUT THE BOND TRADES. I WAS SPEAKING POLITICALLY AND ECONOMICALLY. Like you I too have traded through MUCH. I started out almost 20 years ago on Wall Street and I have worked for several firms and I even ran a trade desk. I was in the market on 9/11 and in the fall of 2008. In all fairness we have "NOT" been here before. <iframe width="425" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/XezKzO6YDRg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>