national city bank

Sources: FT: Derivatives Reform Will Not Prevent Next AIG ; Lawmakers Warning on Derivatives Rules ; Banks Anxious Over Fed Regulations A group of New York lawmakers recently sent a letter to US financial regulators including the Federal Reserve and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, warning that a newly proposed rule on derivatives under the Dodd-Frank Act would hurt the competitiveness of the US financial institutions. The lawmakers also wrote in a letter that the rule would be “inconsistent with Congressional intent.” It is a margin rule that the lawmakers make an issue of, which applies to US banks as well as their foreign subsidiaries located outside the US. Specifically, the rule requires parties to some derivatives transactions to post cash or securities as collateral or “margin” in order to assure their obligations. Under this rule, foreign subsidiaries also have to collect collateral from their foreign clients. Unless foreign regulators do not adopt a similar approach, ...

Sources: WSJ: SEC Aims to Tighten the Rules on Raters Bloomberg: SEC Credit-Rating Rules, 401(k) Bill, WTO’s Airbus Aid Ruling: Compliance SEC: SEC Proposes Rules to Increase Transparency and Improve Integrity of Credit Ratings On Wednesday, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed more restrictive rules on credit rating agencies (CRAs). CRAs rate the “creditworthiness” of debts as well as financial institutions holding debts. During the financial crisis, CRAs were criticized for contributing to the housing bubble by providing inaccurate and inflated ratings for mortgage-backed securities. Congress, in passing the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, intended to correct such problems, and the SEC’s new rules would implement relevant provisions of the Act. The SEC’s proposed rules aim to “strengthen the integrity and improve the transparency of credit ratings,” said SEC Chairman Mary L. Schapiro. Specifically, new rules would require CRAs to disclose m...

Sources: FT: US Jobless Claims Fall to 409,000 ; Mixed US Economic Picture as Jobless Claims Fall Back Economist: America's Labour Market Perking Up BLS: Commissioner's Statement on the Employment Situation Earlier this month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released its monthly statement explaining the employment situation in the United States. According to the report, the labor market is showing increased recovery and growth. In April, nonfarm payroll employment, which includes the total number of paid U.S. workers of workers of any business excluding government employees, farm employees, and private household employees, increased by 244,000, compared to its average of 104,000 in the previous three months. Likewise, private-sector employment increased by 268,000 jobs, following an average of 250,000 in the previous three months. The increase in employment was prominent in service-providing industries, manufacturing, and mining. The manufacturing sector has added 141,000 ...