sell! sell! sell!

[tiznow]

yes, it is a true statement, and dooms dayers like yourself tend to agree as well.

Does not the elite/speculators steal from the middle class and poor when they manipulate markets.

yes this occurs

but OVERALL WEALTH is destroyed when markets collapse hno:

markets don't fall because everybody is selling!!

markets fall because there is no underlying bid, buyers to mop up all the selling!!!

aka a no bid free fall

i can't own say 200,000 shares a be like oops i wanna sell now at such and such a price, no you need a buyer to match it

geesh romo 155 IQ and all :think2:

 

[BASEHEAD]

yes this occurs

but OVERALL WEALTH is destroyed when markets collapse hno:

markets don't fall because everybody is selling!!

markets fall because there is no underlying bid, buyers to mop up all the selling!!!

aka a no bid free fall

i can't own say 200,000 shares a be like oops i wanna sell now at such and such a price, no you need a buyer to match it

geesh romo 155 IQ and all :think2:

lol. Ive never not been able to trade any stock Id like to dump. Youre silly.If the price is right youll always have a buyer.When a market drops its the process of the market looking for the 'right' price.

When everyone sells off at once it floods the markets,then the condition you describe occurs where there arent enough buyers for all of the stock.Supply overruns demand,then prices drop to make supply move.Economics 101.

 

[Romanowski]

tiz you crazy but cool lol

 

[tiznow]

lol. Ive never not been able to trade any stock Id like to dump. Youre silly.If the price is right youll always have a buyer.When a market drops its the process of the market looking for the 'right' price.

When everyone sells off at once it floods the markets,then the condition you describe occurs where there arent enough buyers for all of the stock.Supply overruns demand,then prices drop to make supply move.Economics 101.

i'm talking the OVERALL picture here not you yourself

tell the above to bill gates :nohead:

his selling in 2007

Date Shares Stock Transaction
ADVERTISEMENT
6-Nov-07 834,900 MSFT Sale at $35.88 - $36.26 per share.
(Proceeds of about $30,115,000)
6-Nov-07 1,165,100 MSFT Sale at $36.27 - $36.6 per share.
(Proceeds of about $42,450,000)
5-Nov-07 35,646 MSFT Sale at $36.70 - $36.72 per share.
(Proceeds of about $1,309,000)
5-Nov-07 1,964,354 MSFT Sale at $36.73 - $37.05 per share.
(Proceeds of about $72,465,000)
2-Nov-07 21,900 MSFT Sale at $36.60 - $36.69 per share.
(Proceeds of about $803,000)
2-Nov-07 1,509,819 MSFT Sale at $36.70 - $37 per share.
(Proceeds of about $55,637,000)
2-Nov-07 1,468,281 MSFT Sale at $37.01 - $37.29 per share.
(Proceeds of about $54,547,000)
1-Nov-07 2,000,000 MSFT Sale at $36.45 - $37.46 per share.
(Proceeds of about $73,910,000)
31-Oct-07 2,000,000 MSFT Sale at $36.71 - $36.96 per share.
(Proceeds of about $73,670,000)
3-Aug-07 349,200 MSFT Sale at $28.90 - $29.21 per share.
(Proceeds of about $10,146,000)
3-Aug-07 650,800 MSFT Sale at $29.34 - $29.73 per share.
(Proceeds of about $19,221,000)
2-Aug-07 659,192 MSFT Sale at $29.12 - $29.48 per share.
(Proceeds of about $19,314,000)
2-Aug-07 2,340,808 MSFT Sale at $29.49 - $29.78 per share.
(Proceeds of about $69,370,000)
1-Aug-07 1,134,954 MSFT Sale at $28.95 - $29.24 per share.
(Proceeds of about $33,021,000)
1-Aug-07 247,267 MSFT Sale at $28.82 - $28.94 per share.
(Proceeds of about $7,141,000)
1-Aug-07 617,779 MSFT Sale at $29.25 - $29.54 per share.
(Proceeds of about $18,160,000)
31-Jul-07 50,000 MSFT Sale at $28.99 per share.
(Proceeds of $1,449,500)
31-Jul-07 668,710 MSFT Sale at $29.01 - $29.32 per share.
(Proceeds of about $19,503,000)
31-Jul-07 1,281,290 MSFT Sale at $29.33 - $29.69 per share.
(Proceeds of about $37,811,000)
30-Jul-07 743,954 MSFT Sale at $28.99 - $29.14 per share.
(Proceeds of about $21,623,000)
30-Jul-07 2,256,046 MSFT Sale at $29.15 - $29.44 per share.
(Proceeds of about $66,091,000)
27-Jul-07 1,393,585 MSFT Sale at $29.65 - $29.94 per share.
(Proceeds of about $41,522,000)
27-Jul-07 606,415 MSFT Sale at $29.40 - $29.64 per share.
(Proceeds of about $17,901,000)
26-Jul-07 68,600 MSFT Sale at $29.81 - $29.91 per share.
(Proceeds of about $2,048,000)
26-Jul-07 475,776 MSFT Sale at $29.92 - $30.22 per share.
(Proceeds of about $14,307,000)
26-Jul-07 455,624 MSFT Sale at $30.23 - $30.52 per share.
(Proceeds of about $13,840,000)
25-Jul-07 23,460 MSFT Sale at $30.39 - $30.45 per share.
(Proceeds of about $714,000)
25-Jul-07 1,628,518 MSFT Sale at $30.46 - $30.75 per share.
(Proceeds of about $49,841,000)
25-Jul-07 348,022 MSFT Sale at $30.76 - $31.1 per share.
(Proceeds of about $10,764,000)
24-Jul-07 330,670 MSFT Sale at $30.72 - $30.84 per share.
(Proceeds of about $10,178,000)
24-Jul-07 856,530 MSFT Sale at $30.85 - $31.14 per share.
(Proceeds of about $26,548,000)
24-Jul-07 812,800 MSFT Sale at $31.15 - $31.48 per share.
(Proceeds of about $25,453,000)
23-Jul-07 85,200 MSFT Sale at $31.12 - $31.15 per share.
(Proceeds of about $2,653,000)
23-Jul-07 1,914,800 MSFT Sale at $31.16 - $31.45 per share.
(Proceeds of about $59,943,000)
9-May-07 3,000,000 MSFT Sale at $30.58 - $30.9 per share.
(Proceeds of about $92,220,000)
8-May-07 3,000,000 MSFT Sale at $30.58 - $30.9 per share.
(Proceeds of about $92,220,000)
7-May-07 3,000,000 MSFT Sale at $30.50 - $30.75 per share.
(Proceeds of about $91,875,000)
4-May-07 43,000 MSFT Sale at $30.30 - $30.34 per share.
(Proceeds of about $1,304,000)
4-May-07 1,957,000 MSFT Sale at $30.36 - $30.7 per share.
(Proceeds of about $59,747,000)
3-May-07 3,415,599 MSFT Sale at $30.92 - $30.99 per share.
(Proceeds of about $105,730,000)
3-May-07 584,401 MSFT Sale at $30.58 - $30.91 per share.
(Proceeds of about $17,967,000)
2-May-07 49,590 MSFT Sale at $30.33 - $30.37 per share.
(Proceeds of about $1,505,000)
2-May-07 1,950,410 MSFT Sale at $30.38 - $30.67 per share.
(Proceeds of about $59,536,000)
1-May-07 3,000,000 MSFT Sale at $30.09 - $30.41 per share.
(Proceeds of about $90,750,000)
28-Feb-07 1,000,000 MSFT Sale at $27.95 - $28.24 per share.
(Proceeds of about $28,095,000)
27-Feb-07 190,000 MSFT Sale at $28 - $28.53 per share.
(Proceeds of about $5,370,000)
27-Feb-07 810,000 MSFT Sale at $28.58 - $28.96 per share.
(Proceeds of about $23,304,000)
26-Feb-07 2,000,000 MSFT Sale at $28.90 - $29.06 per share.
(Proceeds of about $57,960,000)
23-Feb-07 1,000,000 MSFT Sale at $28.90 - $29.26 per share.
(Proceeds of about $29,080,000)
22-Feb-07 17,600 MSFT Sale at $29.20 - $29.24 per share.
(Proceeds of about $514,000)
22-Feb-07 982,400 MSFT Sale at $29.25 - $29.54 per share.
(Proceeds of about $28,878,000)
21-Feb-07 300,000 MSFT Sale at $28.75 - $28.99 per share.
(Proceeds of about $8,661,000)
21-Feb-07 1,700,000 MSFT Sale at $29 - $29.36 per share.
(Proceeds of about $49,606,000)
20-Feb-07 20,000 MSFT Sale at $28.48 - $28.5 per share.
(Proceeds of about $570,000)
20-Feb-07 1,980,000 MSFT Sale at $28.51 - $28.85 per share.
(Proceeds of about $56,786,000)
16-Feb-07 1,000,000 MSFT Sale at $28.66 - $28.94 per share.
(Proceeds of about $28,800,000)
15-Feb-07 8,800 MSFT Sale at $29.25 - $29.33 per share.
(Proceeds of about $258,000)
15-Feb-07 1,991,200 MSFT Sale at $29.34 - $29.63 per share.
(Proceeds of about $58,711,000)
14-Feb-07 243,803 MSFT Sale at $29.17 - $29.36 per share.
(Proceeds of about $7,135,000)
14-Feb-07 756,197 MSFT Sale at $29.37 - $29.69 per share.
(Proceeds of about $22,330,000)
13-Feb-07 345,000 MSFT Sale at $28.96 - $29.01 per share.
(Proceeds of about $10,000,000)
13-Feb-07 655,000 MSFT Sale at $29.01 - $29.15 per share.
(Proceeds of about $19,047,000)
12-Feb-07 1,000,000 MSFT Sale at $28.85 - $29.06 per share.
(Proceeds of about $28,955,000)
9-Feb-07 288,750 MSFT Sale at $28.93 - $29.01 per share.
(Proceeds of about $8,365,000)
9-Feb-07 711,250 MSFT Sale at $29.02 - $29.36 per share.
(Proceeds of about $20,761,000)
8-Feb-07 1,000,000 MSFT Sale at $29.24 - $29.36 per share.
(Proceeds of about $29,300,000)
7-Feb-07 311,900 MSFT Sale at $29.32 - $29.36 per share.
(Proceeds of about $9,151,000)
7-Feb-07 688,100 MSFT Sale at $29.37 - $29.7 per share.
(Proceeds of about $20,323,000)
6-Feb-07 1,000,000 MSFT Sale at $29.25 - $29.56 per share.
(Proceeds of about $29,405,000)

 

[BASEHEAD]

So they sold?

I thought there were no buyers?

I see an ask,a bid and a sale if Im not mistaken.....

 

[BASEHEAD]

Poor Bill....I remember when he was only a multimillionaire.

Market cap 318B

 

[tiznow]

yen carry trade continuing to unwind

http://www.forexdirectory.net/jpy.html

:monsters-

should make for an interesting monday in asia

 

[VaultedTreehouse]

yen carry trade continuing to unwind

http://www.forexdirectory.net/jpy.html

:monsters-

should make for an interesting monday in asia

Yeah Tiz,I really thought the Euro was the one to watch, and it still is, but Yen carry is more important. Basically the dollar is tanking against almost everything right now....The balance sheet issues are coming a head much faster than I thought they would.

Meanwhile as that chart a few pages back shows, if you are a foreign investor you aren't doing too well in the U.S. Selling securities and putting your money elsewhere is probably what will happen going forward. Not to mention the Chinese continuing to boycott dollars. Really a poor backdrop for our economy and stocks near term. I thought that they would be able to bury it until winter in order to short. I waited too long....Expect FED injections this week.

 

[tiznow]

Yeah Tiz,I really thought the Euro was the one to watch, and it still is, but Yen carry is more important. Basically the dollar is tanking against almost everything right now....The balance sheet issues are coming a head much faster than I thought they would.

Meanwhile as that chart a few pages back shows, if you are a foreign investor you aren't doing too well in the U.S. Selling securities and putting your money elsewhere is probably what will happen going forward. Not to mention the Chinese continuing to boycott dollars. Really a poor backdrop for our economy and stocks near term. I thought that they would be able to bury it until winter in order to short. I waited too long....Expect FED injections this week.

every currency tanks when yen carry unwinds

for example right now NZ and aussie the strongest currency and most used vechile in the carry trade is down 1.2% vs. the yen, while US is only down 0.16% vs. the yen

the euro/USD will tighten up as it unwinds

all currencies but the yen are overvalued currently, well in theory they all are since they are fiat and have zero intrinsic value

 

[BASEHEAD]

Foreign cash could boost housing market
<!-- END HEADLINE -->
<!-- BEGIN STORY BODY -->By STEPHEN BERNARD, AP Business WriterSat Nov 10, 2:35 AM ET



The weakening dollar has caused many problems for consumers, but it may also be providing the fuel for one unintended — and very welcome — benefit: a rally in the struggling housing market driven by foreign investors.

For an individual or developer trying to sell a home, interested buyers are just as likely to already have a place in London or Paris as they are to be first-timers new to the market.

"European investment is likely to pick up," said Mark Vitner, chief economist for Charlotte, N.C.-based Wachovia Corp. "Now is the time to come over and take advantage."

The theory goes that foreign investors step in and replace first-time home buyers who have been squeezed out of the housing market during the recent downturn. These new investors in turn allow current homeowners to sell and trade up to larger homes.

That will help restart owners moving up the housing ladder, a process that had been key to economic growth in recent years.

Some mortgage brokers are already seeing a boost in inquiries about buying property from overseas. Dan Green, a certified mortgage planning specialist and author of TheMortgageReports.com, said the number of inquiries he's received from outside the U.S. is probably five to 10 times larger than it was a year ago.

A boost in the number of homebuyers would provide needed relief for the beleaguered housing market.

Home sale prices fell every month in 2007 through August, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller index. Existing home sales have declined for eight straight months through September, according to the National Association of Realtors.

As the housing market has plummeted, the dollar has also sunk to record lows compared to other currencies, such as the euro, meaning more spendable cash in the U.S.

"The dollar is on sale," said Susan Wachter, a professor of real estate at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Today, a foreign buyer would need only 34,100 euros to make a $50,000 down payment on a house. At the beginning of the year, the same buyer would have needed 37,920 euros to make the same down payment.
The influx of foreign investors can help set a floor for the real estate market, Green said.

Because lending guidelines have been so restricted in recent months due to rising delinquencies and defaults, it is more difficult for U.S. customers to get a home loan. First-time homebuyers are especially being squeezed right now, Green said, and that is where the foreigners can provide support.

For investors from countries like Ireland, the exchange rate is providing a boost in spending power, said Phillip Hegarty, the sales director for Castleroc Estates, a Dublin, Ireland-based firm that works with Irish investors to buy residential and commercial real estate in the United States.

"It's an enticing investment," Hegarty said.

Hegarty said there is plenty of demand for investment in locations like Chicago and New York, and often that demand exceeds supply.

But New York and Chicago are not the only locations likely to provide popular options for foreign investors. Places like Florida and California are likely to see a surge in foreign investment.


"In a market with great turmoil, (the weak dollar) is one factor supporting some key markets," Wachter said of the weakening dollar.
Wachter said markets like Miami and San Francisco, which are under pressure from the U.S. slowdown, are increasingly being supported by foreign investors.

 

[tiznow]

:lolBIG:

people from london already got caught with their pants down in florida

need pristine credit no matter where you are from to buy a house these days...

UK and spain housing bubble many think is worse than the one in the US

Foreign cash could boost housing market
<!-- END HEADLINE -->
<!-- BEGIN STORY BODY -->By STEPHEN BERNARD, AP Business WriterSat Nov 10, 2:35 AM ET



The weakening dollar has caused many problems for consumers, but it may also be providing the fuel for one unintended — and very welcome — benefit: a rally in the struggling housing market driven by foreign investors.

For an individual or developer trying to sell a home, interested buyers are just as likely to already have a place in London or Paris as they are to be first-timers new to the market.

"European investment is likely to pick up," said Mark Vitner, chief economist for Charlotte, N.C.-based Wachovia Corp. "Now is the time to come over and take advantage."

The theory goes that foreign investors step in and replace first-time home buyers who have been squeezed out of the housing market during the recent downturn. These new investors in turn allow current homeowners to sell and trade up to larger homes.

That will help restart owners moving up the housing ladder, a process that had been key to economic growth in recent years.

Some mortgage brokers are already seeing a boost in inquiries about buying property from overseas. Dan Green, a certified mortgage planning specialist and author of TheMortgageReports.com, said the number of inquiries he's received from outside the U.S. is probably five to 10 times larger than it was a year ago.

A boost in the number of homebuyers would provide needed relief for the beleaguered housing market.

Home sale prices fell every month in 2007 through August, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller index. Existing home sales have declined for eight straight months through September, according to the National Association of Realtors.

As the housing market has plummeted, the dollar has also sunk to record lows compared to other currencies, such as the euro, meaning more spendable cash in the U.S.

"The dollar is on sale," said Susan Wachter, a professor of real estate at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Today, a foreign buyer would need only 34,100 euros to make a $50,000 down payment on a house. At the beginning of the year, the same buyer would have needed 37,920 euros to make the same down payment.
The influx of foreign investors can help set a floor for the real estate market, Green said.

Because lending guidelines have been so restricted in recent months due to rising delinquencies and defaults, it is more difficult for U.S. customers to get a home loan. First-time homebuyers are especially being squeezed right now, Green said, and that is where the foreigners can provide support.

For investors from countries like Ireland, the exchange rate is providing a boost in spending power, said Phillip Hegarty, the sales director for Castleroc Estates, a Dublin, Ireland-based firm that works with Irish investors to buy residential and commercial real estate in the United States.

"It's an enticing investment," Hegarty said.

Hegarty said there is plenty of demand for investment in locations like Chicago and New York, and often that demand exceeds supply.

But New York and Chicago are not the only locations likely to provide popular options for foreign investors. Places like Florida and California are likely to see a surge in foreign investment.


"In a market with great turmoil, (the weak dollar) is one factor supporting some key markets," Wachter said of the weakening dollar.
Wachter said markets like Miami and San Francisco, which are under pressure from the U.S. slowdown, are increasingly being supported by foreign investors.

 

[VaultedTreehouse]

Base, eventually that could help a bit. I don't think we are at that point yet.

 

[eek.]

America is so huge we wouldn't make any real impact at the domestic level.

The impact would be at a corporate level, with billion dollar stock market swoops...except as I have already pointed out much of the american industrial base can only be owned by Americans.

Airlines.The Media etc.

Its even difficult for big foreign companies to buy into the usa because of your communist protectionism laws.

 

[cussin'it]

Poor Bill....I remember when he was only a multimillionaire.

Market cap 318B

Bill Gates, lol what a hacker. Couldn't hit a 3-iron to save his life. Reckon he could give a shit too.

Tiz, sho looks like muny changin' hands to me. Petri dishes for everyone (at the right price right, lol)

hola

 

[eek.]

America is quite a high risk venture if you want to buy something important.

Energy. Power. Telecoms. hi-tech stuff.

It all falls under your "national security" umbrella.

And you can forget about those arab oil billions which are desperate for a home somewhere.

Investing in the centre of the muzzie hating universe isn't a priority for those middle east dudes.

-------------------------
Congress is again taking up the issue of foreign investment in U.S. infrastructure, nearly one year after the United Arab Emirates-owned company Dubai Ports World set off heated debate with its purchase of a company that ran U.S. ports. Dubai Ports World eventually sold its U.S. operations to an American company, but the central issues of the foreign ownership debate remain far from settled.

Business groups have objected to the restrictions that have been placed on some high-profile companies from ally countries. When the French company Alcatel recently purchased Lucent Technologies, for instance, CFIUS approved the purchase but imposed significant provisions allowing for the deal to be ripped apart retroactively should the U.S. government see fit.

http://www.cfr.org/publication/10092/foreign_ownership_of_us_infrastructure.html

 

[cussin'it]

Eek, get some zzz's old bloke, ain't saving the world at this time o' night.

 

[eek.]

I'm waiting for the duty night nurse to bring me some cocoa.

 

[cussin'it]

Lemme guess, Direct TV and the Colts game, couple pints of some thick syruppy ale and the old lady said "no!" lol

 

[eek.]

You've also got to be super squeaky clean if you want to do business in America...unless you have the right friends in high places.

Your snoops hoovering up various members of the business community has received huge publicity over here.

Conrad Black faces $16.9m forfeit
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6948400.stm

NatWest Three bailed by US court
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/5182068.stm

Betonsports boss to stay in jail
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5204176.stm


And your authorities use stuff like the anti-terror laws to extradite people for dodgy business deals.

It's sensible and much safer to conduct business elsewhere, just in case things go pear shaped.

 

[tiznow]

Currency Controls Return as Central Banks Fight Dollar Freefall
By Gavin Finch and Ye Xie



Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Central banks from Bogota to Mumbai are imposing foreign-exchange curbs to take control of their soaring currencies from traders dumping the dollar.



In Colombia, international investors buying stocks and bonds must leave a 40 percent deposit at Banco de la Republica for six months. The Reserve Bank of India created a bureaucratic thicket to curb speculation by foreign money managers. The Bank of Korea is investigating trading of currency forward contracts to limit gains in the won, now at a 10-year high.
Instead of using currency reserves or interest rates to influence foreign exchange markets, central banks and finance ministries are setting up obstacles to keep the falling dollar from threatening company profits and economic growth. The U.S. currency slumped 10 percent this year against its biggest trading partners, the steepest decline since 2003, while Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has reiterated that the U.S. supports a ``strong'' dollar.



``Central banks are struggling to find new ways to intervene against their currencies and some of the proposals simply can't work,'' said Mirza Baig, an analyst in Singapore at Deutsche Bank AG, the world's biggest currency trader. Some plans are ``truly bizarre,'' he wrote in a report.



The U.S. hasn't attempted to stop the decline as the worst housing slump in 16 years forced the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates. The dollar has weakened 19 percent against the Canadian currency this year to a record 90.58 cents, and fell 18 percent versus Brazil's real.



The euro strengthened 1.2 percent last week and reached an all-time high of $1.4752 on Nov. 9. The yen rose 3.6 percent in its biggest weekly gain since December, and touched 110.51 per dollar on Nov. 9, the highest level

since May 2006.



`More Violent Correction'



An index tracking the dollar against seven major trading partners dropped to 71.11 on Nov. 2, the lowest ever, a week after the Fed reduced its target rate for overnight loans between banks by a quarter-percentage point to

an 18-month low of 4.5 percent.



Stephen Jen, head of currency research at Morgan Stanley in London, said on Nov. 2 that the dollar's slide threatens to turn into a ``more violent correction'' that may require joint intervention by the U.S., European Union and Japan. The dollar will trade at $1.51 per euro by year-end, Jen said on Nov. 8.



The extent of the dollar's slump reminds some traders of 1973, when former President Richard Nixon's Treasury Secretary John Connally abandoned the Gold standard while the U.S. was in recession and inflation exceeded 10 percent. The dollar lost 40 percent against the yen in the next five years.
Since 2002, the U.S. currency has fallen 40 percent against the Canadian dollar, 33 percent versus the euro and weakened 24 percent compared with the British pound.



Exports Increase



There's little evidence this year's decline is hurting the economy. Gross domestic product increased 3.9 percent in the third quarter, the highest since March 2006, the Commerce Department said on Oct. 31. The annual inflation rate was 2.8 percent in September, the Labor Department reported on Oct. 17.



The U.S. trade deficit unexpectedly narrowed 0.6 percent in September to $56.5 billion, as exports increased 1.1 percent, the Commerce Department said Nov. 9.



The pain is being felt elsewhere. U.S. sales for Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea's third-biggest exporter, may decline for the first time in nine years with the won the ``No. 1 obstacle,'' Vice Chairman Kim Dong Jin said in an interview last month. The won's 3 percent gain in the past year helped send Hyundai's shares down 9 percent.



Profit Squeeze



Infosys Technologies Ltd., India's second-largest software exporter, cut its full-year earnings forecast on Oct. 11, blaming the rupee's 13 percent rise. The shares fell 24 percent this year.



India may miss its $160 billion target for exports in the year through March 31 as local goods become more expensive abroad, Commerce Secretary G.K. Pillai said on Oct. 8.



Munich-based Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, the world's biggest manufacturer of luxury cars, and Paris-based Hermes SCA, the maker of Kelly and Birkin handbags, blamed the currency market for disappointing profits.



European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said Nov. 8 that the decline in the dollar has been ``brutal,'' while Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said he's ``concerned'' by the surge in his currency. French President Nicolas Sarkozy told a joint session of the U.S. Congress on Nov. 7 that the Bush administration must stem the dollar's plunge or risk a trade war.



In a Corner



``The weaker dollar causes central banks to look at foreign inflows differently,'' Robert Fullem, vice president of U.S. corporate-currency sales at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd. in New York. ``The market is pushing the central banks into corners. I don't have faith in them. They may have to push the envelope further.''



Trading on Colombia's stock exchange fell 27 percent to an average 80 billion pesos ($39 billion) a day as the Finance Ministry struggled to control the dollar's 10 percent decline.



The Finance Ministry imposed controls on short-term capital in May by requiring foreign buyers of stocks and bonds to deposit 40 percent of their purchases with the central bank for six months. If the peso weakens, investors won't be able to pull out until the period has expired unless they pay a fee of as much as 9.4 percent of the investment.



`New Mechanisms'



``New mechanisms need to be considered because the exchange rate is affecting us a lot,'' Colombian President Alvaro Uribe said in a May 9 speech in Medellin.



``It's absolutely frustrating,'' said Urban Larson, who co- manages about $500 million for F&C Investments in Boston. ``The currency control is keeping foreign investors on the sideline. It's unfortunate because there are a lot of attractive stocks in Colombia and the economy is quite good.''
Overseas investors have bought $18.8 billion of stocks and bonds in India this year, double the previous record in 2005. The increase ``is building bubbles'' in the country's stock market and real estate, Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram said last month.



To curb speculative flows, regulators in Mumbai adopted measures in October to bar some funds from investing in Indian equities and imposed investment caps and deposit requirements.



Foreign companies licensed to invest in India can only issue participatory notes, or offshore derivatives linked to local stocks, backed by 40 percent of the shares they hold. They were barred from selling notes backed by other derivatives, contracts whose values are derived from other assets.



Indian Restrictions


Trading on India's Sensitive Index was suspended and $120 billion of its market value was wiped out in a minute on Oct. 17, when the regulator proposed the measures.



The Bank of Korea and the Financial Supervisory Service said Oct. 23 that they will study forward currency transactions by exporters and financial companies. Companies use forward contracts to lock in exchange rates at a future date, helping fuel gains in the currency.



``We need to find out the cause of excessive forward sales,'' said Park Shin Young, an economist at the Bank of Korea. Interbank transactions jumped to $850 million a day in the third quarter, up 35 percent from the previous three months, central bank data show.


Policy makers told parliament in October that they will probably lose more than $1 billion for a third year because dollars purchased to stop the won's advance earn less interest than the bonds sold to control money supply.
``Central banks are trying noninterest rate methods to stabilize growth and capital flows,'' said Bank of Tokyo- Mitsubishi's Fullem. ``It's something extraordinary. They haven't used these venues for a long time. It's sort of the last resort the central banks would like to tap.''