Market Manipulation
February 18, 2015
“Market manipulation is a deliberate attempt to interfere with the free and fair operation of the market and create artificial, false or misleading appearances with respect to the price of, or market for, a security, commodity or currency. Market manipulation is prohibited in most countries, in particular, it is prohibited in the United States under Section 9(a)(2)[1] of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, in Australia under Section 1041A of the Corporations Act 2001, and in Israel under Section 54(a) of the securities act of 1968. The Act defines market manipulation as transactions which create an artificial price or maintain an artificial price for a tradeable security. Market manipulation is also prohibited for wholesale electricity markets under Section 222 of the Federal Power Act[2] and wholesale natural gas markets under Section 4A of the Natural Gas Act.[3]“
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Market_manipulation
Along with zero hour contracts JobBridge has now been exposed as a way not to be a bridge returning people to employment, but as a way to displace jobs, provide virtually free “slave labour” for employers. The scheme means if a person is out of work for a certain period of time, eg 6 months that you have to work 20 hrs a week for an extra €50 to stop you from losing the Dole? Primary reason for this is to get people off the live register and manipulate the employment statistics.
“The Department of Social Protection confirmed that 284 interns – roughly divided between the sexes – have worked in various departments since the back-to-work scheme began in 2011. – with 269 completing their internships.
Of those who finished placements, 69 progressed to employment with other companies, but just three were hired at their host departments.
Clearly where there is a recruitment moratorium in the public sector, such departments should be banned from participating in the scheme. Likewise private companies who abuse the scheme should be investigated if complaints and abuses are verified.
This blog has highlighted the “zero hour contract” as another means of manipulating employment statistics. For approx €30 euros employers can download a ready-made document whose highlights include, no normal or fixed working hours, agree to work at any place, termination with one weeks notice. trial period.
‘You may not do other work(even voluntary work) or engage in any other business’. Is this not a charter for slavery?
You may have problems if you see abuse and highlight this to say an ombudsman as you’e signed a contract preventing you from “bringing the company into disrepute/breach confidentiality”.
Of course manipulation goes deeper than manipulation of employment statistics. At the Banking Inquiry John Fitzgerald said ESRI failed ‘to see the economic collapse’. This blog has continuously highlighted the failure of the ESRI to act as an objective and scientific provider of reliable statistics on Ireland’s economic performance.
ESRI continues to make absurd and over optimistic claims of economic performance for this economy with growth rates of 4-5% for the coming year in the face of water charges, property taxes and looming Grexit for eurozone.
The mea culpa of John Fitzgerald should require root and branch changes in ESRI or the creation of a more reliable agency for analysis and economic prediction. Either that or we can propose for each of the eurozone members a bailout of minimum €67bn so we can all avail of 5% growth rates and forget about austerity and recession.
In Business 4, Sunday Times, 15.02.15 Cormac Lucey includes a bar chart with Ireland’s debt to GDP ratio of 390% only slightly behind highest Japan at 400%. Significantly, Japan finances most of its debt from within Japan, itself, so let’s put Ireland top of the chart. On the other hand, large amounts of Irish debt are owned by multinationals, so Lucey rightly proposes GNP as a better denominator. This brings our debt to GNP up to 345%.
This is a huge drag on our economy never mind the externals such as growing deflation in the eurozone. Why are we not complaining like the Greeks? According to Lucey,
“In an interview with the newspaper DerSpiegel abouts Greece’s debt crisis, the former German Central Bank head Karl Otto Pohl said this “was about protecting German banks, but especially the French banks, from debt write-offs. On the day the rescue package was agreed, shares of French banks rose by up to 24%”.
The Irish government has been a significant supporter of Ireland’s debtors and is a direct supporter of NAMA. This ‘bad bank’ is now playing a significant role in manipulating the Irish property sector to the detriment of both debtors and lenders into the Irish economy”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Asset_Management_Agency
‘The National Asset Management Agency (NAMA; Irish: Gníomhaireacht Náisiúnta um Bhainistíocht Sócmhainní) is a body created by the government of Ireland in late 2009, in response to the Irish financial crisisand the deflation of the Irish property bubble.
NAMA functions as a bad bank, acquiring property development loans from Irish banks in return for government bonds, ostensibly with a view to improving the availability of credit in the Irish economy. The original book value of these loans was €77 billion (comprising €68bn for the original loans and €9bn rolled up interest) and the original asset values to which the loans related was €88bn with there being an average Loan To Value of 77% and the current market value is estimated at €47 billion.[1][2]‘ (See earlier blogs for critical analysis).
Vulture fund activity concerning NAMA with large tranches of commercial portfolio property segments laundered into sales abroad have raised eyebrows in the recent past and should be further investigated but secrecy surrounds such transactions.
“”Developers are being banished out of here in the name of the taxpayer. They are being forced and threatened into a state of silence but it is time to speak out. Nama will be proven to be the biggest mistake we ever made.” David Agar
http://quirkeproperty.blogspot.ie/2012/02/nama-treating-developers-like-dirt-says.html
“This weekend, Mr. Flynn described Nama as akin to North Korea: “They are an evil empire, a cancer on the economy and on the country and I believe that, honestly. They are answerable to nobody.
“They have sold assets and told people to sell assets without hearing them and those assets must be worth more now. So the question is: if they did it and acted unlawfully in doing that – are they going to be liable for damages?”
In particular, NAMA has now been accused of property market manipulation:
http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/oflynn-lifts-the-lid-on-nama-with-letter-to-enda-30993080.html
‘”You are aware of the significant shortfall in housing supply in certain areas. This was 
anticipated by us and others and reflected in our business plan but rejected by Nama who considered themselves to have greater expertise in this area and refused to listen to those who have extensive experience of the market and planning for development,” Mr O’Flynn wrote.
Referring to the responsibility he believes the agency must bear for the current and chronic housing crisis in Dublin and elsewhere, he added: “Nama did not then nor does it now have the expertise or the skills necessary to operate as developers as is evident from the housing shortage which has arisen when Nama was the dominant player in the property market.”
Commenting on Nama’s future direction and indications that the agency will become more directly involved in property development, Mr O’Flynn said: “I note with considerable concern some comments made in relation to the future direction of Nama and wonder if anyone has stopped to consider the impact on the property industry generally and the Competition Law issues which would arise from such a development.’
In order to inflate current house price values and preserve the capital ratios of banks, NAMA is now exposed to charges of denying a generation of young people the right to own property.
Truly the financial paper merchants have succeeded in annexing the democratic freedoms and rights that should be part of our capitalist economy and created in its place an extreme socialist dictatorship of financial manipulation akin to the worst excesses of the USSR. We should not be surprised at signs met on the road to slavery such as “Zero Hour Contracts” in our new socialist state for the banks.
https://inquiries.oireachtas.ie/banking/
till again
Getting Black
February 9, 2015
Noticed Simon Coveney recently being hauled out to make comments on Finance. He’s a great Minister for Agriculture, Food, the Marine & Defence, but to be frank, he hasn’t a clue about economics.
For example, he is now frequently to be heard peddling the view that FG/LB have saved the Irish people over €50bn by renegotiating our debt in particular ‘the terrible deal done by the previous government re the promissory note’.
Unfortunately, though tremendously gifted wearing his other hats above, on economic matters he is dead as a dodo, but not more so than Enda Kenny.
To illustrate my point, let me instantly gift you €60 bn in savings on what you owe me. You owe me €160bn, which means now you only owe me €100bn. Ludicrous isn’t it? Yet its the same 3 card trick peddled by FG/LB propaganda as it attempts to dupe the public. It all depends on how well you can be conned into believing you owe €160bn of debt incurred by the 1%.
Take the promissory note, an odious device used to take the Anglo bondholders to nirvana at the public’s expense approx €31bn to bail out Anglo. Bondholders never liked it. Worried that a future government could repudiate this debt, they wanted it amortized into bonds under contract underwritten by international/global commercial law.
Embarrassed that more favourable interest rate tokens were given to Greece and Portugal they laundered the Promissory Note into long-term bonds and then sold the pup to our morons that extending the pretend, tiny clips to repayment interest tokens, lo and behold we have Simon Coveney & Co telling the audacious propaganda lie, they’ve saved the Irish people €50bn.
Enda Kenny was blowing since 2012 that a bank recapitalisation deal was on the table for Ireland. Never happened. 2 weeks ago FG/LB were supporting a debt conference for Europe to support Greece. Now they’ve uturned and their position is Greece needs to tow the line and do a deal like Ireland’s extend and pretend.
Except with Greece you can’t extend and pretend. They are beyond bankrupt and their economy is unviable beyond redemption under the weight of current obligations. Severe damage through austerity is being inflicted on Greek people to pay for crimes of the 1% in Greece and elsewhere in Goldman Sachs who manufactured their fleecing.
Irish Water
Thomas Molloy writing in the Sunday Independent Business, p1 “Sources said credit approval has now been secured for another €250m from domestic and international banks…..advanced discussions with two other international commercial banks for a further €200m of bilateral loans…the utility has recently signed a €100m loan agreement with Ulster Bank”
WOW, these guys are borrowing left right and center and the money to pay for it is coming out of your pocket! Irish water is a financial paper boy dream. The opposition have called for a Dail Debate to answer q’s as to how it is currently funded. Borrowings above will be added to your bill later.
Think of all the money Irish Water are saving the taxpayer?
Continuing his reign as Ireland’s Don Quixote, Enda Kenny, to outdo the above is currently making a mess of the privatisation of Aer Lingus. He’s looking for cast iron guarantees that if government sell their stake beyond Minister for Finance retaining a shareholding of at least 25.1% that Enda will consider these.
Such guarantees carry as much weight as a Fine Gael / Labour promise before and election. Looting, pillaging, fracking of companies has gone on for time immemorial on foot of such guarantees.
The question is why the airline on foot of guarantees was not sold to Michael O Leary of Ryanair?
A very useful deal whereby planes could have been maintained at Dublin airport as a central hub of European operations along with guarantees on competitive rates and maintenance of necessary routes and further development, was squandered and squashed by Fine Gael / Labour and FF.
Our hospital ratings have slipped way below the European average and now below some central European countries. Our educational system at 2nd level is under attack with proposals to demolish external regulation and do away with the Junior Certificate. Another austerity money-saving measure masking under the guise of educational reform of all things.
Our employment statistics have been falsely corrupted and falsified with zero hour contract jobs masquerading as real jobs. Zero contract means in any week though you are contracted to be available for work, there may not be any for you that week! Salaries have been decimated with young nurses and young teachers forced to accept pay levels beneath those offered to those colleagues who happen to have other contracts negotiated before the financial meltdown.
Young people have been especially targeted by the soldiers of austerity. Generally, young people have been fairly conservative, compliant and obedient in the wake of salary cuts and increasing taxation increasing up to 75% over recent years compared with previously. 10’s of thousands have endured the brunt of negative equity and because of unemployment or pay cuts their mortgages are insolvent and little has been done to rescue them.
Unbelievably a shortage of housing in urban areas especially in Dublin has been allowed develop in spite of needed construction jobs; this has led to a boom in property prices. Yes, same boom that led to property collapse in 2008. Government have great plans to deal with this, but none for now.
Some believe it has been induced by the financial paper merchants to pretend the economy is recovering, pretend the capital base of the banks is stable and secure, prevent banks from further losses due to property writeoffs at low valuations. Young people have suffered the brunt of this and their salaries are being extorted through high rents.
Government has done little to nothing to prevent property scams selling sub prime mortgages at punitive and extortionate interest rates. The Central Bank has a lot to answer for in stoking the previous bubble and its lack of finger prints on any form of regulation that would have prevented financial meltdown.
One young TD, Paul Murphy, who has done tremendous work to help organise a nationwide peaceful protest against water charges that brought hundreds of thousands onto the streets
in Ireland over the past 6 months, was arrested at 7am this morning by six gardai.
His alleged offence was he was wanted for questioning in regard to an incident where Joan Burton TD, leader of the Labour Party and a member of the Economic Council who run the financial affairs of this country on similar lines to the Politburo standing committee that rules China, was detained by protesters and suffered verbal abuse for a number of hours in her chauffeured car in Jobstown, Dublin.
He was brought to Terenure Garda station for questioning. Democracy is being replaced by police state methods of control and intimidation of democratically elected politicians preaching peaceful protest!
Demise of Euro
Demise of the euro continues its slow titanic disappearance beneath the waves. Trillions in financial paper derivatives sloshing around the world are destabilising currencies around the globe. The ruble, the Swiss franc and currently Greece are targets of speculators with access to mountains of financial paper that manipulates world currency markets.
Such instability is not a recipe for economic sustainability or human progress. The sooner the paper mountain crashes and is replaced with something more solid and secure the better for Greece and the euro.
The euro has been and continues to be an unmitigated disaster. Cormac Lucey in Economic Outlook, Sunday Times, Business P4 08.02.15, writes:
“An 2008 OECD research paper, Monetary policy, Market Excesses and Financial Turmoil, looked at the impact of common eurozone interest rates, inappropriate to national circumstances, over the years 2001-6. The researchers found a correlation in excess of 80% between the inappropriateness of interest rates considering national circumstances and the increase in national housing and construction investment for the 10 eurozone members, including Ireland, surveyed.”
Lets face it, the eurozone is just one big Lehmans full of subprime lending to its own members.
Its been made worse by divide and conquer bailouts that are making matters worse with the 1% moving into more control of the 99%. The real economy flounders while the world of financial paper bubbled by QE masquerades as a false economy pretending it is real through methods that are becoming more police state as time goes by.
The original ideal of the eurozone was to level playing fields between the members in particular those on the outer core vs inner core.
Instead mountains of debt have been driven between outer core and inner core members to unsustainable levels.
Meanwhile the Irish Banking Inquiry continues. If you would like to read transcripts or entertaining videos see them here
http://inquiries.oireachtas.ie/banking/
http://www.rte.ie/news/2015/0205/677996-banking-inquiry/
Transcripts are here: https://inquiries.oireachtas.ie/banking/hearings/ripts/hea
Prof Bill Black starred last week stating Irish Banking guarantee was the worst financial own goal in history; the collapse with decent regulation could easily have been prevented.
He argued behind banking collapse generally you find CEO’s driving collapse.
In Ireland’s case we need to microscope the Central Bank, the ECB, the Regulator and Irish government tampering in economic management and regulatory matters.
Better way of course to do this is to examine the bank executives themselves and follow the trail led by some of their loans….but we won’t get that.
Gresham’s Law describes bad money driving out good money. The euro has brought about ruin for many in Ireland. Perhaps financial meltdown was worth it in terms of our european membership of the euro area.
In terms of loss of sovereignty and our current debt levels and ensuing losses exported onto the shoulders of our unborn, in my view, it has been an unmitigated disaster growing by the day.
End
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