December 28

War on Wall Street as Congress Sees Returning to Glass-Steagall (BLM)
Lawmakers in both parties, seeking to prevent future financial crises while soothing public anger over bailouts and bonuses, are turning to an approach that’s both simple and transformative: re-imposing sections of the 1933 Glass-Steagall Act.

Senate Banking Committee Leaders Close to a Deal on Financial Regulatory Reform (WP)
SenatDodd and Shelby had returned to the bargaining table, even amid the partisan rancor of the simultaneous debate over health-care reform.

Fifth Wheel (NewYorker)
Reforming America’s health-insurance system was never going to be an easy task, but what’s made the task even more difficult is that American politicians have a confused, and often contradictory, set of beliefs about how health insurance should work.

2009: The Year Wall Street Bounced Back and Main Street Got Shafted (RobReich)
As long as income and wealth keep concentrating at the top, the Great Recession won’t end.

Mortgage Anxieties Mean Fannie-Freddie Limbo as Fed Pulls Back (BLM)
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the linchpins of the American housing market, continue to bedevil the U.S. financial system.

The Big Zero (NYT)
Let’s bid a not at all fond farewell to the Big Zero — the decade in which we achieved nothing and learned nothing.

More Belt-Tightening for Banks (CNN)
Profits are still shrinking even as costs march higher which means that lenders will have to slash budgets and staff in the new year.

A Cruel College Econ Lesson (WP)
The upheaval in the financial markets ended an era of easy credit for students and their families.

U.S. Retail Holiday Sales Up 3.6 Percent: Report (Reuters)
U.S. retailers posted a better performance during the 2009 holiday shopping season, with sales as tracked by MasterCard Advisors unit SpendingPulse up 3.6 percent.

Faith and Finance: Of Greed and Creed (FT)
More bankers are questioning the basis on which they earn their keep – but is there room for a ‘risk ethic’?

Wen Dismisses Currency Pressure (FT)
Wen Jiabao, China’s premier, has said Beijing would not give in to foreign demands for its currency to strengthen, taking an increasingly defiant tone amid mounting international pressure.

In Southeast Asia, Unease Ahead of Free Trade Zone (NYT)
As China and 10 Southeast Asian nations usher in a free trade area this week, some manufacturers in Southeast Asia are concerned that cheap Chinese goods may flood their markets.