The big news right now is that Citigroup has agreed to sell a stake to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. This is having the current effect that Citigroup’s stock, which was in the toilet yesterday, is getting quite a boost. And it’s bringing back the rest of the stock market as the “interpretation” of the move is seen as positive for the financial sector. Reuters reports on the implications of the Citigroup deal:
Investors interpreted Citi’s move as a sign that financial institutions were repairing the damage from a meltdown in the U.S. subprime mortgage market and the resulting credit …read more

While the predatory lending bill introduced into the House earlier this week does, in fact, show some promise in curbing some of the practices that led to the subprime lending crash, it is somewhat low on education.
Even though mortgage lenders and other creditors, such as credit card companies, do deserve some of the blame for the current credit crisis situation, some of the blame does rest on us. After all, we were the ones that bought into the idea of easy money that can help us get what we want now.
The bottom line is that more education is needed in …read more

One of the hardest aspects of financial planning is the discipline it takes to curb your habits and re-focus. And overcoming habit is hard. But at this point, some things seem ingrained in the American consciousness to the point of ridiculousness, as MarketWatch points out:
Yet still, despite falling house prices, soaring energy prices, a credit crisis hitting the financial sector, and increasing concern about more violence in the Middle East, the amazingly resilient American consumer continues to pack malls, restaurants, highways, popular air routes, concerts, and sporting events, as if the bill for all these hijinks will never come due.
More, …read more