This page has been archived and commenting is disabled.

Oh Yeah, BABs...

Tyler Durden's picture




 

Remember BABs - the state stimulus that shockingly refuses to be included in the latest example of infinite government largesse? Just in case you have forgotten the program that could soon expose a gaping quater trillion funding hole in state budgets oddly enough refuses to go away. Judging by the chart below, someone is paying attention. But who cares: the full impact of the BABs subsidy will not be felt for at least another 18 days so why worry: it's not like the market even pretends to discount anything anymore.

 

- advertisements -

Comment viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.
Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:21 | 801365 LongSoupLine
LongSoupLine's picture

The market "Santa" is dumping pretty presents with bows on top...and they're all ticking.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:19 | 801477 whatsinaname
whatsinaname's picture

Am convinced BABS & state budget losses will be the epicenter of the next "crisis".

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:27 | 801494 erik
erik's picture

No one is talking about the FOMC meeting this week because there are no expectations.

Bernanke could easily drop the muni and MBS future buying rumor at this meeting in order to supercharge those markets.  I don't expect it, but you have to be aware of the possibility given their track record.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:51 | 801547 SheepDog-One
SheepDog-One's picture

The only question I have is when Ben plans to start making my car payments.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 14:18 | 802022 RockyRacoon
RockyRacoon's picture

Santa is taking a dump alright.   Right down my chimney.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:23 | 801369 Minyan Vince
Minyan Vince's picture

who cares...the shadow banking liabilities have stopped contracting...it's up, up and away for everything...buy it all!

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:25 | 801372 breezer1
breezer1's picture

babs was alright. parents phoned the cops every time i honked the horn. i finally got wise and found goldie.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:25 | 801374 apberusdisvet
apberusdisvet's picture

The Teleprompter will be "toast" for 2012 if CA, NY and Il are bailed out.  The sheeple are getting restless.  Even the MSM can't ignore this one.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:29 | 801382 Sophist Economicus
Sophist Economicus's picture

Complete collapse of CA NY and IL are already priced into the market -- Buy, buy, buy....Just ask Leo

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:37 | 801399 Id fight Gandhi
Id fight Gandhi's picture

Lol. Who's gonna bail them out?

Oh right, the us taxpayer

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:37 | 801400 Ragnarok
Ragnarok's picture

LULU has not been a lemon.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:40 | 801401 john_connor
john_connor's picture

I think the plan is for the Fed to bail out munis so states lose all semblance of territorial and legislative sovereignty to the Wall Street/Washington kleptocracy

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:40 | 801405 the not so migh...
the not so mighty maximiza's picture

same wavelength

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:30 | 801499 MachoMan
MachoMan's picture

Bingo.  Been harping on it for months.  Everyone expects states to come up with their own solutions to reckless federal spending...  however, state issued currency, state banks, et al, all presuppose that states have the power to make these decisions.  Like our regulators, and federal government, our states will promptly turn over their sovereignty.

In the end, its about simple repudiation as they will just keep adding to the debt, with or without our consent. 

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:42 | 801409 doomandbloom
doomandbloom's picture

Hit me BAB's one more time..

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:43 | 801413 RobotTrader
RobotTrader's picture

Looks like TLT might have bottomed.

I'm watching it closely.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 14:19 | 802027 RockyRacoon
RockyRacoon's picture

You do that.  I'll be rolling some American Silver Eagles so keep the noise down.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:44 | 801414 Confused Indian
Confused Indian's picture

Can someone who can reach Sarah Palin do me a favor?

Ihave an excellent idea for the government, which she may use as part of her election campaign too. I suggest that government hires unemployed people for stuffing quotes instead of HFT machines. This serves both the purpose government which government wishes to. The salary of these people can be charged from middle calss by adding a charity tax.

 

If she likes the idea, please ask her to refund the money I lost by going short in the markets (thinking its a technical call) again and again at each juncture for last 6 months. I know going against ben is a serious crime but now that I am helping them, they should treat me as a accomplice.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:46 | 801422 Cyan Lite
Cyan Lite's picture

Ignorant Question: With the yields at 6.37%, couldn't the municipalities still hit the market, just at a higher rate?  And also, most of those bonds that were sold were intermediate duration.  So in other words, this is a ticking timebomb, but we still have another 10-20yrs before it goes off?

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:15 | 801473 Raynja
Raynja's picture

The yield you see is based on price in secondary markets, what the bond issuer pays is fixed. Even though bonds in question aren't due for a few years they roll them over on a continuous basis, so they will have to pay higher yields for 10-20 years from here forward.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 19:13 | 802929 Quantum Nucleonics
Quantum Nucleonics's picture

It's not the already issued BABs that are the problem for the states, it is all the new paper they need to issue to roll maturing debt and cover operating expenses.  As we saw with Greece and Ireland, when investors lose confidence interest rates spike and lock issuers out of the market.  California is a good example.  They will need to issue tens of billions in debt to cover cash flow requirements next spring.  If they can't sell the bonds, they will be forced to get a bail out or implement truly massive spending cuts.

Cash from the stimulus bill have run out for the states, so their funding shortfall should come into stark view in 2011.  Many local governments are looking at cutting 10 - 25% of their work force.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 12:04 | 801580 GoinFawr
GoinFawr's picture

"...this is a ticking timebomb..."

"Actually throwers don't worry about ticking 'cause modern bombs don't tick. ..."

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 10:48 | 801427 chistletoe
chistletoe's picture

good idea, but you are too late already.

 

She's already outsourced it to China ....

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:04 | 801447 Confused Indian
Confused Indian's picture

OK, So I have another one.

Ask her to put another clause in the tax cut deal (Obama would bow down anyways) that the tax benefit middle class gets, they will need to buy stocks with that money for (banker's) nation's growth.

 

See, I need my lost money badly. I read Nic's articles with great interest thinking he is really good. He is but with "fair" markets, and I underestimated the fair part grossly.

 

Please pass on this idea to her. we can share the reward.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:06 | 801449 RumCurrency
RumCurrency's picture

Success is not greedy, as people think, but insignificant. That's why it satisfies nobody.

-Seneca

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:58 | 801559 the grateful un...
the grateful unemployed's picture

"and as for success, it shouldn't happen to a dog.." Nabikov??

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:12 | 801450 Widowmaker
Widowmaker's picture

Let's call a spade a spade --

These are Gut and Destroy America Bonds, and have absolutely zero to do with America other than banker bonuses and letting the defrauding of the future continue in perpetuity with intent to divide a nation now.

Dividing fraud and stealing up into pieces is still fraud and stealing.

 

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:14 | 801469 LawsofPhysics
LawsofPhysics's picture

There you go.  The states must be broken anyway before they will accept a world currency, whatever that may be.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:21 | 801478 Widowmaker
Widowmaker's picture

History suggests that taxation without representation ends bloody.

 

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:45 | 801531 SheepDog-One
SheepDog-One's picture

Europe set up nice and broke for 1 world govt/currency, only thing holding them back now is pesky US states, but they can be bankrupted overnite whenever the plan is set for.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 12:08 | 801584 the grateful un...
the grateful unemployed's picture

that's where you're wrong, they do promote economic growth (distortion) my city is shutting off street lights, ambulance service, closing school, and buying property, building a new city halls, and creating redevelopment zones (corporate welfare) which are subsidies. The economic distortions are laughable, but the money (redevelopment) is firewalled off from operating cash. So the city of San Diego has fewer fire and police, but they will probably build a new stadium for their professional football team. but we live in age minus any vision. Obama is the poster boy, short term solutions at the expense of long term solutions.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 12:59 | 801718 robobbob
robobbob's picture

short term band aids, at the expense of long term solutions

there, fixed it for you, from what I see, their short term projects aren't actually fixing anything, even temporarily 

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 13:06 | 801749 Widowmaker
Widowmaker's picture

Do people in your town forget how to drive when the lights are off?

Do people forget how to get themselves to the hospital when ambulance services stop?

Do people forget how to protect themselves when cop-unions aren't bought off?

Quit making others pay for your city's helplessness, but thank you for illustrating my point which is BAB's gut one state to pay for yours - divide and conquer.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:11 | 801459 bania
bania's picture

"did you ever know that you're my hero..."

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:23 | 801485 Midwest Prepper
Midwest Prepper's picture

I am sure that Uncle Ben will do what is best for the states and the American taxpayer. He seems like a really nice guy!

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:30 | 801497 Tic tock
Tic tock's picture

How do I rename my avatar?

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 14:23 | 802036 RockyRacoon
RockyRacoon's picture

You don't, but you can change the image.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 11:35 | 801506 George Costanza
George Costanza's picture

Fed wants inflation and dollar devaluation.  The more shitty bonds they can buy the better for achieving those goals

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 12:02 | 801570 the grateful un...
the grateful unemployed's picture

yeah this may be a more efficient way for the Fed to further distort the economy, let Babs expire, and then buy Muni's. They could have worked around UI that way, but chose not too, do we need UI with SNAP and section 8? If Fed is buying Muni's, and to that I would say, you betcha, you want get you some.

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 12:25 | 801629 dark pools of soros
dark pools of soros's picture

you can get rid of SNAP and UI by just dropping food in 'nutrition zones'

add some more sec8 housing or tents in those areas...  

Mon, 12/13/2010 - 19:17 | 802938 Quantum Nucleonics
Quantum Nucleonics's picture

One of the biggest farces is the political class sighting BABs as a "success" in stabilizing the muni market.  Yes, they kept in on life support, but it would die again as soon as the plug was pulled.  They were sold as "no cost" to the Treasury since in theory the interest subsidy from the federal government would be offset by investors paying taxes on the income from the bonds.  Didn't turn out that way.  BABs were mostly bought by pension funds and the like that don't pay taxes, thus the cost of the BABs over their life is MUCH, MUCH higher than advertised.  If only the Federal government were forced to use GAAP accounting.

Do NOT follow this link or you will be banned from the site!