Yea its just house prices falling by 5% and some poor sub prime people defaulting and a few greedy banks having to make some write downs.
OH WAIT:
[ QUOTE ]
Temperature falls to freezing for junk bonds
By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, International Business Editor
Last Updated: 7:18pm GMT 28/11/2007
Companies in Britain and Europe have failed to place a single high-yield bond since the credit crunch kicked off in August, and may now have to wait until next year before the credit market reopens for business.
Société Générale said the monthly volume of junk bond issues peaked at €6.5bn (£4.69bn) in June, falling to zero in August, September, October, and November as investor flight from the market forced up yield spreads to stringent levels.
Far from returning to normal, the credit markets appear to tightening even further into the Christmas season.
[/ QUOTE ]
I guess the ramifications of financial institutions packaging and selling on sub prime debt in byzantine and value ambiguous vehicles that were all over valued massively by rating agencies are a bit more far reaching than a slight downturn in the US housing market.
Credit is crunching.