Main News

 

Investors warned against CPDOs
A lot can happen in a year in the capital markets. Last August, ABN Amro launched the first of a sophisticated structured credit derivatives product, opening a market that observers expected would succeed.
http://mail2.efnmail.co.uk/r/310446/MTk4MTI1OjE0NzI0/

 

Credit markets outlook -- [at FT.com]
FT.com
8/6/2007 3:02:46 PM

 

GLOBAL – Pension schemes are potentially at risk of being hit by the US sub-prime mortgage crisis, the longer the shockwaves continue, claim analysts.

 

Could the global credit drama be good for equities? -- [at FT.com]
FT.com
8/5/2007 10:50:26 AM

 

Cockroach strategy for hedge funds -- [at FT.com]
By John Authers FT.com
8/5/2007 1:25:36 PM

 

Sub-prime taints bond funds
Two years ago, the odd punt on asset-backed securities in a plain vanilla bond fund was regarded as safe as houses. Now marketmakers are putting the squeeze on asset backs, often irrespective of their differing credit qualities, fund managers are calling foul.
http://mail2.efnmail.co.uk/r/310439/MTk4MTI1OjE0NzI0/

 

Credit and growth fears hit stocks, dollar, oil
August 06, 2007 07:54 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Fears of a global credit squeeze and jitters
about U.S. economic strength swept across financial markets
on Monday, shaking up stocks, knocking the dollar to a 15-year
low and sending oil down more than $1.25 a barrel.
http://links.reuters.com/t/RG5TR/44RVL/N9/JAW90?a1=nl_usbusinessearly

 

Looking For Stocks To Climb The Wall of Worry
Broad-market concerns continue to impact trading as put buying remains a major market trend, but investors are finding opportunities in mega-cap stocks, too.
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB118609313157086615.html?mod=djemBF

 

 

Goldman Sachs’ $10bn (€7.3bn) flagship hedge fund dropped nearly 8% in a week at the end of last month as hedge funds .
eFinancial News Sun, 05 Aug 2007 9:18 PM PDT
Goldman Sachs’ $10bn (€7.3bn) flagship hedge fund dropped nearly 8% in a week at the end of last month as hedge funds recorded their worst returns in at least four years.

 

Capital Management, Enterprise Risk Management, And Solvency II Are Top Of European Insurers' Agendas
A number of Europe's largest insurers have recently disclosed plans to pay back billions of euros to shareholders. Standard & Poor's views share buybacks positively because of the likely favorable impact on financial flexibility when, as in these instances, they are supported by a sound rationale and leave capital at levels consistent with current ratings. Unlike buybacks, Solvency II has not had a direct bearing on Europe's insurers yet, but it will. The EC postponed the planned implementation date by two years to 2012, but it will still a huge challenge.
To learn more, click or copy and paste the URL below:
(subscription required)
http://standardandpoors.rsys1.net/servlet/cc5?kHiQUDUSQTVsLgHxhilpuHQJhuV2VU

 

U.S. Subprime Impact Minimal On Rated Australian Banks
As part of an Asia-Pacific survey, Standard & Poor's has reviewed the rated Australian banks' exposure to U.S. subprime mortgage-related instruments. From this, it's expected that in almost all cases, their exposure to these instruments is either minimal or manageable at this time. Standard & Poor's view encompasses Macquarie Bank Ltd. (A/Stable/A-1). Price volatility in U.S. credit markets have adversely affected the market value of assets of a unit trust managed by Macquarie Bank, but the bank's ratings remain unchanged.
To learn more, click or copy and paste the URL below:
http://standardandpoors.rsys1.net/servlet/cc5?kHiQUDUSQTVsLgHxhilpuHQJhuV2VSR

 

ForeclosureS.com July 2007 Report: Houses Lost up 27% Over June
By BusinessWire
8/6/2007 6:00:07 AM

 

Fun With Options In A Funky Market
8.03.07, 6:00 AM ET - Beth Gaston Moon, Option Advisor
Praise the volatility since it creates trading opportunities aplenty--both bullish and bearish. Try a few of these.

 

U.S., IRAQ:  The U.S. military cannot account for some 111,000
AK-47s and 80,000 pistols given to Iraqi security forces, according
to a report released by the Government Accountability Office. The
report says the Pentagon cannot track some 30 percent of the
weapons distributed in Iraq during the last three years. This
conclusion was reached by comparing the property records of the
Multinational Security Transition Command-Iraq with arms and
equipment records kept by Gen. David Petraeus, who once headed up
security training in Iraq.

 

First Armed Robots on Patrol in
Iraq
Wired August 2, 2007
*************************
For the first time in the history
of warefare, robots with guns have
been deployed. Three "special
weapons observation remote
reconnaissance direct action system"
(SWORDS) robots have deployed to
Iraq, armed with M249 machine guns....
http://www.kurzweilai.net/email/newsRedirect.html?newsID=7097&m=29780

 

NEW YORK (HedgeWorld.com)—In a sign that some private equity firms are not dissuaded from selling stakes in themselves despite the market's ups and downs, Apollo Management LP, the leveraged buyout firm run by Leon Black, began trading shares of itself today [Aug. ......

 

LONDON (Reuters)—Institutional investors have been slowly unwinding carry trades for the past two months, dumping their short positions in Japanese yen and Swiss francs, data from State Street showed on Friday [Aug. 3]. ......

 

"Fake Steve Jobs" blogger exposed as Forbes editor
August 06, 2007 12:40 AM ET
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A blogger calling himself "Fake
Steve Jobs," whose parody of the Apple Inc. chief executive
amused and enthralled Silicon Valley, revealed himself on Sunday
as an editor of Forbes business magazine.
http://links.reuters.com/t/WCDGY/ZAE81/GX/I24QO?a1=nl_usmorningdigest

 

JPMorgan Hedge Fund Services announced last week further expansion of its business in Asia with the appointment of Andrew Mascall-Robson to lead business development and growth across the region and Shirley Yuen as regional product and client service manager.

Full Story...

 

Analysts warn of tax blow to Blackstone IPO
The first research analysts to publish their views on US buyout group Blackstone believe its shares could fall by a third if, as seems likely, its tax rates are increased by proposed legislation.
http://mail2.efnmail.co.uk/r/310499/MTk4MTI1OjE0NzI0/

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Yield Curve Corner

 

Fed Navigates Market Storm
Despite credit turmoil, Bernanke is expected to keep focus on inflation.
http://email.portfolio.com/cgi-bin5/DM/y/ektc0LVqxC0L5k0CE1f0EI

 

Bernanke May Alter Rhetoric, Not Rates After Market Turmoil
Bloomberg - USA
6 (Bloomberg) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke may respond to the latest squall in financial markets the same way he did when turbulence hit four ...
See all stories on this topic

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Natural Disaster Corner

 

Climate Prediction  http://www.nws.noaa.gov/predictions.php

World Meterological Organization http://severe.worldweather.org/

Tornadoes: http://www.disastercenter.com/tornado.htm

Great Sat Pictures of events: http://www.osei.noaa.gov/Events/Current/FSHScalifornia218_MO.jpg

Mine Collapse Mistaken For Earthquake
A coal mine collapse Monday in central Utah trapped six miners, and was so
strong, it was mistaken for an earthquake.
MORE DETAILS: <http://www.wnbc.com/tu/5qTJdJCGB.html>

 

_________________________________________________________________________

Iranian Situation

 

Iran, US 'frank and serious' on Iraq security
AFP via Yahoo! News Mon, 06 Aug 2007 10:24 AM PDT
Arch-foes Iran and the US held "frank and serious" security talks chaired by Iraq on Monday as they inaugurated a joint security committee aimed at curbing the country's rampant insurgency.

 

Iran secures berth in 2008 Summer Games
Sports Illustrated Mon, 06 Aug 2007 7:07 AM PDT
Iran's basketball team won a spot in the Beijing Olympics, defeating Lebanon 74-69 Sunday in the final of the FIBA Asia Championship.

 

DEBA Reports: Iran buys 250 long-distance Sukhoi fighter-bombers, 20 fuel tankers, from Russia

July: Tehran and the Russian Rosoboron export arms group are about to sign a mammoth arms deal for the sale to Tehran of 250 Su-30MKM warplanes and 20 IL-78 MKI fuel tankers.

The transaction, Russia’s largest arms deal in 30 years, will endow Iran with a long-range aerial assault capability. The Sukhoi can sustain a four-and-a-half hour raid at its maximum range of 3,000 km against long-distance, marine and low-lying ground targets across the Persian Gulf and Middle East. The fuel tankers extend the Su-30MKM’s assault sustainability to 10 hours and its range to 8,000 km at altitudes of 11-13 km. The closest comparable plane in the West is the American F-15E fighter bomber. Iran’s acquisition of an exceptionally large fleet of the Russian fighter-bomber will elevate its air force to one of the two largest and most advanced in the region, alongside the Israeli Air Force.

Iranian air crews are already training on the new Sukhoi aircraft, ready to start flying them early next year with only a short delay after delivery. DEBKAfile’s sources report that Moscow sold India the same Sukhoi model earlier this year. The Iranians leaned hard on New Delhi to let them have the Israeli avionics and electronics the Indian Air Force had installed in the Russian craft. India refused.

Russia began delivering the same craft in June to Malaysia, which also sought Israeli avionics without success. The Su-20MKM has won the nickname of the “Islamic Version of Sukhoi

 

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Avian Flu

 

Avian influenza  (Epidemic and Pandemic Alert and Response (EPR))
Avian influenza (Western Pacific Region)
Influenza and avian influenza (European Region)

Avian influenza (Fact Sheet)

Q&A: Avian influenza: am I at risk?

_________________________________________________________________________

Plansponsor.com

 

_________________________________________________________________________

Opalesque’s Corner

 

- U.S. housing among `biggest bubbles,` Rogers says, Bear Stearns removes Co-President Spector after subprime losses, How Bear Stearns mess cost executive his job
- Moody`s says impact of sub-prime crisis manageable for European banks, limited for Asian banks, Cramer predicts end of subprime meltdown, stock rally by November
- Sowood founder offers investors emotional apology for losses, Larson explained how fund collapsed as intended hedging strategy failed, Sowood to return capital, $90m of 2006 fees after assets fall 60%, more endowments detail losses, Transcript of Investor Conference Call
- Tightening credit markets cool Tinseltown`s love affair with hedge funds, PE
- How to beat the credit crunch: Investors win with DB structured product
- FT comment: Hedge fund storm no reason to head for the hills, but expect a discussion over lock-ups
- Opalesque Exclusive:  Friedberg Global Macro Hedge Fund finally reaps rewards for bearish positioning, up +10.06% for July
- Opalesque Exclusive: Bryan Garnier European Growth Long Short Fund loses 13.13% last three months
- Opalesque Exclusive: Eight out of Homm`s  ten hedge funds produced estimated net gains in July
- Jabre`s fund profits despite turmoil,  Point Clear gains on credit market pain
- Saranac`s Ross Margolies comes back with new firm,  Breiding`s Naissance weighs activist fund, Fusion Capital macro fund investing in ETFs exclusively
- State Street: Carry trade is being slowly unwound
- New target weightings for the Dow Jones-AIG Commodity Index, New green funds launched in London
- Is it a fad? `Absolutely`, says Vanguard: Debate about 130/30 heats up, risk of `negative alpha`
- Apollo begins trading on 144A market, Do underwriters matter in private equity exits?
- Senate report says S.E.C. erred on Pequot, Download link to full 108 page report, Commentary
- SEC busts Seattle hedge fund manager`s ponzi scheme
- Power fight: Hedge fund founder Carnot forced out of London`s Tisbury Capital after co-founder Gerard Griffin reported ´unauthorised` personal trading to FSA
- Aima appoints Schroder`s COO Baker as deputy CEO
- PGGM to increase concentrated risk investments, catastrophe bonds
- Pakistan shares win favor among value hunters
- Activist News: Barclays launches formal EUR65bn ABN bid,  Vote `too close to call` as RBS ally Fortis puts ABN bid to investors
- News Briefs: Toronto, Montreal Exchanges should merge, TSX says, FRR loses its CIO
- ...And finally: Weirder than fiction: U.S. Jails man  with no arms and one leg who just wouldn`t stop driving
- Logon: http://www.opalesque.com/main.php?act=archive

 

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Misc. Items of Interest

 

Man Regains Speech After Brain
Stimulation
New York Times August 2, 2007
*************************
A 38-year-old man who spent more
than five years in a mute, barely
conscious state as a result of a
severe head injury is now
communicating regularly with family
members and recovering his ability
to move after having his brain
stimulated with pulses of electric
current, neuroscientists are...
http://www.kurzweilai.net/email/newsRedirect.html?newsID=7090&m=29780

 

Who's Minding the Mind?
New York Times July 31, 2007
*************************
New studies reveal a subconscious
brain that is far more active,
purposeful and independent than
previously known. Goals are like
neural software programs that can
only be run one at a time, and the
unconscious is perfectly capable of
running the program it chooses. In
several studies, researchers have
also shown that, once covertly...

 

ODDLY ENOUGH NEWS
Interesting news about the office workaholics
August 03, 2007 11:45 AM ET
BERLIN (Reuters) - German workaholics may be suffering from a
lack of sex, according to a university study published Friday.
http://links.reuters.com/t/35J2P/ZAE81/GX/I24QO?a1=nl_usmorningdigest

 

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Funnies, Facts, Quotes, etc….

 

quixotic kwik-SOT-ik, adjective:

1. Caught up in the romance of noble deeds and the pursuit of unreachable goals; foolishly impractical especially in the pursuit of ideals.
2. Capricious; impulsive; unpredictable.

1990:  The UN Security Council imposed economic sanctions on Iraq, ruled by Saddam Hussein, for its invasion of Kuwait four days earlier.

1962:  After 300 years of British rule, Jamaica became an independent country within the Commonwealth of Nations.

1940:  Estonia lost its independence when the Soviet Union annexed the country.

1926:  Gertrude Ederle, age 19, of New York became the first woman to swim the English Channel, breaking the men's record by nearly two hours.

1911:  American radio and motion-picture actress and television comedian Lucille Ball was born in Celoron, New York.

1809:  English poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson, often regarded as the chief representative of the Victorian Age in poetry, was born in Somersby, Lincolnshire.

1806:  After a thousand years the Holy Roman Empire came to its official end, with the secession of its confederated states, when Emperor Francis II of Austria put down the imperial crown

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Conference, Courses, Books, Papers

 

Great Research Sites:

 

Merrill Lynch research Link to full report including important disclosures see example

 

John Mauldin’s Weekly Analysis

 

James Altucher’s Website:

 

Other useful sites:

 

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Index Corner

 

The CSFB/Tremont Hedge Fund Index www.hedgeindex.com.

The Cogent Dynamic Averages http://www.cogenthedge.com/home/inv_strategy.asphttp://www.cogenthedge.com/home/inv_strategy.asp

The Dow Jones Indices: http://www.djhedgefundindexes.com/index.cfm?event=viewPremiumContent (free registration)

HFRX Indices https://www.hedgefundresearch.com/hfrx_reg/index.php?fuse=login&1170880431

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Regulatory Info

 

 

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Disclaimer

 

The information contained in this document does not constitute an offer or solicitation to sell any security or other type of vehicles to or by anyone in any jurisdictions, nor should it be regarded as a contractual document. Under no circumstances should the information provided on this document be considered as financial advice, or as a sufficient basis on which to make investment decisions. The information contained herein has been gathered by Investor DNA, LLC from sources deemed reliable as of the date of publication, but no warranty of accuracy or completeness is given. Investor DNA, LLC is not responsible for and provides no guarantee with respect to any of the information provided herein or through the use of any hypertext link. Past results are no indication of future performance. All information in this newsletter is for educational and informational purposes and does not constitute investment, legal, tax or accounting advice. All materials are the property of the respective publishers, as referenced by header and appropriate hypertext links.