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by Terrence MdKenna’s voice that this is from “DocZone,” a CBC.ca
The credit crunch
The global financial crisis (GFC) or global economic crisis is commonly believed to have begun in July 2007 with the credit crunch, when a loss of confidence by US investors in the value of sub-prime mortgages caused a liquidity crisis. This, in turn, resulted in the US Federal Bank injecting a large amount of capital into financial markets. By September 2008, the crisis had worsened as stock markets around the globe crashed and became highly volatile. Consumer confidence hit rock bottom as everyone tightened their belts in fear of what could lie ahead.
The sub-prime crisis and housing bubble
The housing market in the United States suffered greatly as many home owners who had taken out sub-prime loans found they were unable to meet their mortgage repayments. As the value of homes plummeted, the borrowers found themselves with negative equity. With a large number of borrowers defaulting on loans, banks were faced with a situation where the repossessed house and land was worth less on today’s market than the bank had loaned out originally. The banks had a liquidity crisis on their hands, and giving and obtaining loans became increasingly difficult as the fallout from the sub-prime lending bubble burst. This is commonly referred to as the credit crunch.
Although the housing collapse in the United States is commonly referred to as the trigger for the global financial crisis, some experts who have examined the events over the past few years, and indeed even politicians in the United States, may believe that the financial system was needed better regulation to discourage unscrupulous lending.
The global financial crisis enters a new phase
The collapse of Lehman Brothers on September 14, 2008 marked the beginning of a new phase in the global financial crisis. Governments around the world struggled to rescue giant financial institutions as the fallout from the housing and stock market collapse worsened. Many financial institutions continued to face serious liquidity issues. The Australian government announced the first of it’s stimulus packages aimed to jump-start the slowing economy.
The U.S. government proposed a $700 billion rescue plan, which subsequently failed to pass because some members of US Congress objected to the use of such a massive amount of taxpayer money being spent to bail out Wall Street investment bankers who some people may have believed could be one of the causes of the global financial crisis.
By September and October of 2008, people began investing heavily in gold, bonds and US dollar or Euro currency as it was seen as a safer alternative to the ailing housing or stock market.
In January of 2009 US President Obama proposed federal spending of around $1 trillion in an attempt to improve the state of the financial crisis. The Australian government also proposed another stimulus package, pledging to give cash handouts to tax payers, and spend more money on longer-term infrastructure projects.
Australia’s response to the global financial crisis – the first stimulus package
Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd and Treasurer Wayne Swan delivered their first budget in response to the global financial crisis, with the main objective being to fight inflation – a major problem in the local economy at the time.
The global financial crisis enters a new phase
The collapse of Lehman Brothers on September 14, 2008 marked the beginning of a new phase in the global financial crisis. Governments around the world struggled to rescue giant financial institutions as the fallout from the housing and stock market collapse worsened. Many financial institutions continued to face serious liquidity issues. The Australian government announced the first of it’s stimulus packages aimed to jump-start the slowing economy.
The U.S. government proposed a $700 billion rescue plan, which subsequently failed to pass because some members of US Congress objected to the use of such a massive amount of taxpayer money being spent to bail out Wall Street investment bankers who some people may have believed could be one of the causes of the global financial crisis.
By September and October of 2008, people began investing heavily in gold, bonds and US dollar or Euro currency as it was seen as a safer alternative to the ailing housing or stock market.
In January of 2009 US President Obama proposed federal spending of around $1 trillion in an attempt to improve the state of the financial crisis. The Australian government also proposed another stimulus package, pledging to give cash handouts to tax payers, and spend more money on longer-term infrastructure projects.
Duration : 0:44:58
Jan. 20 (Bloomberg) — Steven Blitz, an economist at ITG Investment Research, Daniel Alpert, managing director at Westwood Capital LLC, and Stephen Wood, chief market strategist at Russell Investments, talk about the U.S. housing market, increased lending standards at banks and the European sovereign debt crisis.
How should you reevaluate your long-term investment plan in light of the subprime mortgage crisis?
Mortgage Broker, Yamila Ayad, shares her views on the San Diego housing crisis and how easy it used to be to get a home loan and how difficult it can be today.
December 6, 2011: In a Brooklyn neighborhood hard hit by the foreclosure crisis, Occupy Wall Street joins local community groups to reclaim a bank-owned property for a homeless family.
A new report finds more homeowners are struggling to pay their mortgages. Terrell Brown reports.
The U. S. subprime mortgage crisis was one of the first indicators of the late-2000s financial crisis, characterized by a rise in subprime mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures, and the resulting decline of securities backed by said mortgages. The ratio of lower-quality subprime mortgages originated rose from the historical 8% or lower range to approximately 20% from 2004-2006, with much higher ratios in some parts of the U. S. A high percentage of these subprime mortgages, over 90% in 2006 for example, were adjustable-rate mortgages. These two changes were part of a broader trend of lowered lending standards and higher-risk mortgage products. Further, U. S. households had become increasingly indebted, with the ratio of debt to disposable personal income rising from 77% in 1990 to 127% at the end of 2007, much of this increase mortgage-related. 
Nov. 8 (Bloomberg) — Michael Cloherty, head of U.S. interest rate strategy at RBC Capital Markets, talks about his investment strategy for bonds.
Investors Business Daily: Smoking-Gun Document Ties Policy To Housing Crisis
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