Lynn is business reporter for KGO radio. KGO cancelled Moneytalk. In the opening monologue, Jimenez gave an excellent rundown of all the recent business news.
After listening to the whole show, I think there were two items that Lynn covered that you will find interesting and informative:
1. MONEY MARKET FUNDS RISKY.....Lynn Jimenez said: "I want to give you a heads up about money market funds. Most of us don't think they're risky and we should reconsider that. We really should, here's why. Something unusual happened a few weeks ago. The head of the Securities and Exchange Commission called off a vote on reforming money market funds after two years of study because the reform was going to be defeated. Now that rarely happens, believe me....
According to the head of the SEC, Mary Shapiro, money market funds still pose a risk to the financial system, much as they did in 2008....The reason? Brokerages still promise to pay you $1 fixed price on demand even though the funds assets can fall below the dollar fixed. That can happen because the funds don't hold enough money in reserve to protect against runs -- at least according to the SEC. And especially since the money in those funds is used for short-term loans to other investment banks. What's more, money in money market funds is not insured like a bank deposit. Even though so many of us, like me, treat them as though they are.
And in 2008, the reserve primary fund suffered severe enough losses on loans that their assets fell below a dollar a share. Three hundred billion dollars was pulled out of money market funds in one week. The Fed and the Treasury had to bail them out. Now that can't happen again because the Dodd-Frank Bill forbids another taxpayer bailout.
To protect against what happened in 2008, the reforms would have required money funds either to let their value float like other stock mutual funds, so you aren't guaranteed a dollar. Or reserve money against losses the way a bank does for bad loans. And if you called in all shares, the reform would have held out a small percentage of your cash for 30 days to cut your urge to take the money and run at the first sign of trouble.
Now the decision to stop the reform vote is a big win for all the big money market holders. You know, Vanguard, Fidelity, Charles Schwab, some European banks. They lobbied against it. And you can imagine why. That would leave them less money to use for loans. It would bring home the point that you can loose money on money market funds now, and it would force customers to think before withdrawing everything. And that's not good marketing for a product even if it might be a way to head off another panic.
Now the SEC introduced rules in 2010 to tighten the kinds of investments the fund can use your money for, and it did boost the amount of cash the funds had to keep on hand for shareholder redemptions. The industry says that's working and it's enough to protect from another meltdown. On the other hand, the Fed, the SEC and other top regulators disagree and with more than 1.6 trillion dollars at stake in money market mutual funds, they want more protection.
Now the fight's not over yet because the Financial Stability Oversight Council, with urging from the Federal Reserve, the SEC and the Treasury Department, may yet step in. This is where it gets interesting.....To reflect the real market -- the one where investments in funds go up and down and taxpayers are not expected to guarantee losses, we'd let the value of money market funds fall below the dollar guarantee.
But if we are not willing to accept that risk that money market funds pose and still expect shares to hold a dollar, then the firms are going to face more regulation, and most likely, they'll have to increase those reserves. And guess what, that means the cost of those reserves will still be passed on to the investor. So there is no reward without risk. You better stay tuned to this fight....it's important to your money."
Read more about this at Marketwatch: Money Market Fund Reform is Dead
Read more at WSJ: Broken Money Fund Shifts the Blame
2. NEW 401K REPORTING RULES: Lynn discussed these changes (which began on July 1, 2012) that will give investors real information about the cost of their retirement portfolios. Here are two articles that cover the subject very well:
Forbes: New Rules Provide Greater 401K Transparency
Sacbee: New 401K Rules Could Help 72 Million Americans Save For Retirement
UP TO 10% IN A SINGLE ISSUE STOCK....Jimenez advised a caller to not invest over 10% in one stock. She either doesn't listen to Bob Brinker or doesn't agree with him.
Honey EC: After the monologue, Lynn's stated topic for the day was "Has the government done all it can do to pull the economy out of the doldrums? Is it up to the private sector now and what should it do?"
I think those questions are based on several false premises, but in order to expound on that I would have to get totally political, and that isn't why you are reading this blog. Several times during the program, Lynn said she did not want to talk politics, but that didn't stop her from ever-so-subtly making several very controversial assertions.
I think it's likely that Bob Brinker has asked her (and maybe Neale Godfrey also) to at least pretend to stay in the middle of the road so that KSFO560 doesn't cancel his show -- it's the only station in the San Francisco bay area that carries Moneytalk now.
Jimenez' guest speaker today was William D. Cohan. Cohan has been on Moneytalk at least twice before -- once with Jimenez and once with Brinker: Money and Power: How Goldman Sachs Came to Rule the World
San Francisco, Ca. KSFO 560: 1-4pm (KSFO archives Moneytalk Free on Demand for seven days after broadcast. You can download and listen on the go.)
Jeffchristie's Moneytalk Final Exam Question:
This was William Cohan's fourth voyage on the starship Moneytalk since 2010. Here are the dates:
1. 20 March 2010 with Bob Brinker.
2. 24 April 2011 with Bob Brinker.
3. 12 February 2012 with Lynn.
4. 2 September 2012 with Lynn.
This makes him one of the most frequent third hour guests on the program.
The most frequent caller to Moneytalk is:
A) Lynda Belinda from Yorbalinda
B) Andy from Redwood city
C) Donna Donna the Prima Donna
D) Tony from Brooklyn
Answer in detail in the comments section:
http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8158799431925324931&postID=8979142526429467974
My petunias with some pansies, nasturtiums and portulaca:
17 comments:
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Jeff, LOL.
"or stay on the line and a MarketTimer representative will be with you in a moment, please have your credit card ready."
I hope the water has subsided without leaving any water moccasins in your yard.
-- Frankj
One benefit when Robert J Brinker Sr chooses to break from his weekly three hour chore is that both Lynn and Neale have multiple guests discussing various topics, instead of callers praising the host from the ability to live a comfortable retirement to curing cancer.
As some of us know, the proper course of action is to enjoy our Sunday afternoons with family and friends (and soon football), then to log on here to read the program summary. If a certain guest or caller is of interest, we go to the KSFO archive to listen at our convenience.
Honeybee. Saving investors time since 2005.
I was out harvesting Harrow Sweet pears today, so I had the radio on listening to the author of "I am an ignorant fool about money" the Spanish person's everyday guide to socialism. I was amazed at the advice dispensed by this redistributionist-socialist, commie wacko. She rallied time and time about the rates of return without expounding on the true root cause a Federal reserve system of fiat currency that systematically and purposefully has decided to rob saver’s of their wealth and force them into riskier assets to prop up the failed socialist policies that forced the crises upon us.
tfb
See hablah stupidity? Today's substitute hostess yearned for More government stimulus to help our economy recover and stop our bridges from collapsing - stimulus like spending President Eisenhower put in constructing the interstate highway system.
This DITZ seems to have forgotten the early stimulus programs arising out of the early days of the current regime were sold to the public based upon so called "Shovel ready Projects". As we have found out, the regime meant by that rewards to supporters of the regime's campaign like Solyndra, Warren Buffet rail car purchases to carry the oil that won't be travelling through the Keystone Pipeline that won't be constructed creating millions of jobs thanks to the regime's rejection of construction permits, Brazilian offshore oil projects in which supporter George Soros was co-invested in, investments in which spouses of supporting members of congress stood to profit.....
ANDTHIS DITZ apparently believes future stimulus would not be misdirected as in the past by incompetant corrupt regime decision makers? She'd likely be interested in buying the Brooklyn Bridge from me.
But she sure has a melodious voice!
Ben Bernanke dangles the QE3 carrot, indicating the Federal Reserve may do more to help the economy along:
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose on Friday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, expressing "grave concern" for the stagnating U.S. job market, said the central bank was prepared to take further steps to strengthen the economy if necessary.
Though Bernanke, speaking in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, dashed some hopes for a signal of quick action, his comments bolstered bets that the central bank was closer to providing more stimulus for an economy that is close to stalling.
Stocks had been flat for much of the week ahead of Bernanke's speech, though expectations of additional stimulus from the Fed helped the market this month. All three indexes posted gains for August.
"I think the debate is how strong growth is and how aggressive the Fed is going to be," said Giri Cherukuri, head trader at OakBrook Investments LLC, in Lisle, Illinois.
"Hopefully the economy will just get better on its own, but I think the Fed is saying they're going to be there and is trying to tell the market that they have some power to help things along."
Bernanke Lifts Wall Street Keeps Stimulus in Play
This Week's Cover Story
WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 1
Tough as Teflon
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424053111903904904577615373858091172.html?mod=BOL_hpp_cover
I'm glad I missed Ms. Lynn. It would not have been as painful as putting Kitty down, which is where I was at the time, but it would surely be a close second!
I sure wish Bob would find someone interesting and knowledgeable to sub for him on his EXTREMELY rare days off! :-)
I agree with Dan -- Lynn's gotta go, and she can take Neale with her. Two condescending liberals who treat callers as though they were their kids.
What are the requirements for the job? You have to know at least as much as Lynn does about finance, and you have to be a Keynesian.
The field is wide open, Bobby. Surely you can do better.
The market is struggling today. The Dow is trying to keep from violating the 13,000 level, but it has dropped slightly below that psychological number.
It's also at the 50-day moving average, so we appear to be at the "moment of truth"!
There is still the uptrending 200-day moving average which could bring in support if we drop to around 12,750 or so. If that point is violated, the "seasonal traders" will probably say, "We told you so!".
One positive is that the long term indicator, the monthly MACD, is still positive and in an uptrend. This has been a pretty good long term indicator, and I would not like to bet against it.
Dear Bob...
Was put off by hostess Lynn Jimenez. Not sure why this
spokesperson was chosen.
Turn channel after a couple of callers questions were handled
by LJ. Seems she has her own
agenda... and apparently has a
standby fact check sheet telling us
how great the economy is doing.
Then to read she was somehow picked
by you as permanent hostess...
We will probably walk the dog
when she shows up in the interim
Pls consider a new co-host.
A few times Bob had Terry Savage fill in for him. She was quite good and popular, which is probably why she has not been asked back!
I emailed Ms Savage once after her broadcast. She said she was not compensated for those weekends! If true, Bob is more of a skinflint than I thought!
I wonder if Lynn is doing her fill-ins pro-bono just to see her name in lights. That would be hard to believe, but maybe it's an ego thing.
Dan,
Wow, that's a surprise to think his fill-in hosts don't get any compensation.
Maybe that explains why Bob Brinker usually has low quality replacements.
Both Neale Godfrey and Lynn Jimenez have books to sell, so it makes one wonder if they sell enough books to make it worthwhile to do the program.
Charlie...I agree with you that Lynn has a personal agenda.
In her "bi-lingual" book -- which has a Spanish title -- she tells her readers how to "send money HOME."
That tells you a lot about Ms. Jimenez.
"Wow, that's a surprise to think his fill-in hosts don't get any compensation."
I can't swear that it's true of all fill-in hosts, but Ms Savage did say she didn't receive any.
She is quite an accomplished lady. Her bio reads like a who's who in the finance world.
Here's the link to her website:
http://terrysavage.com/
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