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Highland
Park Michigan Skids Towards Bankruptcy, Public Union Pensions to Blame as
Usual; Fifth Third Bank and Highland Park in Pension Funding Lawsuit - (Mish at globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com)
Highland Park, Michigan is on the brink of bankruptcy. There is no other
realistic way out of the fiscal mess the city is in. As is typically the case,
public union pensions are at the heart of the problem. Michigan Live reports Highland Park pensions in
jeopardy if Fifth Third Bank halts loan payments. The city of
Highland Park is operating on financial fumes and the pensions of its retirees
could be in jeopardy if Fifth Third, one of the banks providing loans to the
municipality, cuts of the money stream. According to the Associated Press, the
bank has threatened to cut off loan payments to the city, which has prompted a
legal battle that may have to be settled in court. At this point, Highland Park
is a risky investment. It's ran nearly $500,000 over budget in 2012, the
Associated Press reports, and under Public Act 436 will soon have to decide
between accepting a consent order with the state, installing an emergency
manager or filing bankruptcy. In any case, the city's creditors could face
losses if the communities finances don't recover. Voters in Highland Park,
which currently owes Detroit $18 million in water bills, voted in 2007 to take
on $27 million in debt in order to maintain pension payments.
Convicted
MI Supreme Court Justice Wants Out Of Camp Cupcake - (www.mfi-miami.com) Former Michigan Supreme Court Justice Diane
Hathaway, who confessed to bank fraud while negotiating the short
sale of her home in the posh Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe
Park is crying that she is out of prison and says her unique status is
keeping her confined longer than what’s normal. In a self-drafted motion,
Hathaway asks U.S. District Judge John Corbett O’Meara to let her out early or
allow her to serve the rest of her sentence at home. O’Meara sentenced Hathaway
on May 28 to 12 months and one day in prison, plus two years’ probation, after
she copped a plea to one count of fraud in connection with the short sale of
her Grosse Pointe Park home. Hathaway began her sentence in August at FPC
Alderson aka Camp Cupcake.
Wall
Street Group Aggressively Lobbied a Federal Agency to Thwart Eminent Domain
Plans | The Nation - (www.thenation.com) One might think these
small, local efforts shouldn't be of much concern to Wall Street--after all,
Richmond's plan affects a mere 624 loans. But one of Wall Street's most
powerful trade groups, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets
Association (SIFMA), has responded with ferocious urgency. SIFMA is the attack
dog the largest Wall Street banks send when they don't want their names attached
to politically controversial lobbying efforts or lawsuits. The group does
everything from denying that "too big to fail" still exists to
drafting lengthy comment letters arguing for weaker financial regulation.
Delinquencies
and Defaults in Spain Hit 13%, a 50-Year Record - (Mish at globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com)
Looking for evidence of a recovery in Spain? So am I, but I sure don't
see any. Via translation from La
Vanguardia, please consider Bank Defaults Hit Record 13% in
November. Delinquency ratio of banks, savings banks,
cooperatives and credit institutions operating in Spain rose again in November
to 13.08%, a level not seen since the data began to be collected, over 50
years. According to provisional data for November released today by the Bank of
Spain, the Spanish financial system stand together a volume of overdue loans of
192.504 billion euros, compared to 190.971 billion in October, largely due to
the economic crisis and high unemployment. Compared to November 2012 the
total volume of loans in November declined by nearly 212 billion, due in large
part to deleveraging holding families and Spanish companies.
[Bloomberg]
Thai Default Risk Soars as Funds Pull $4 Billion: Southeast Asia - (www.bloomberg.com) The risk of Thailand defaulting
on its debt rose to the highest since June 2012 as anti-government protests
prompt money managers to sell the nation’s assets. The cost of protecting the
country’s debt soared after investors including Wells Fargo Inc. pulled more
than $4 billion from Thai stocks and bonds since Oct. 31, as rallies
clogged up Bangkok roads and clashes left nine dead with about 550 injured.
Pacific Investment Management Co., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Kokusai Asset
Management Co. reduced holdings before protests erupted in late October,
regulatory filings show.
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