There's a lot of information out there. Some of it is junk, some of it is frame-worthy. For every dozen foam-spewing-from-mouth rants out there, there's a well-thought-out, factual, logical piece of work that deserves your attention.
Here are five you might enjoy:
Wells Fargo on Interest Rate Risk
(Calculated Risk)
If you've wondered why Wells Fargo
Debt and Deleveraging: The Global Credit Bubble and its Consequences
(McKinsey)
This is a long, wonkish paper filled with 94 pages of pretty numbers, but it's very convincing if you're willing to read through it. If not, here's the conclusion: "Historic deleveraging episodes have been painful, on average lasting six to seven years and reducing the ratio of debt to GDP by 25 percent. GDP typically contracts during the first several years and then recovers."
Record Cash Means S&P 500 at Half its 2007 Valuation
(Bloomberg)
Eat this, doomsayers. Measured by price-to-cash-flow, the S&P 500 is half-price compared with 2007. The article uses Google
Unfunded Benefits Dig States' $3 Trillion Hole
(Bloomberg)
There's so much venom thrown at Washington's budget woes (for good reason) without nearly enough criticism of how positively wrecked some state and local budgets are. A great rundown and a really important article.
State Regulators Warn Of Failing Foreclosure Prevention Efforts
(Huffington Post)
A good read with plenty of helpful charts arguing mortgage modification efforts are failing because they rarely reduce a borrower's principal balance. "Given the correlation between negative equity and likelihood of default, the failure to write down principal in connection with loan modifications is a glaring flaw in current efforts."
Got any others? Feel free to share them in the comments section below.