Arab Nations Poised To Snatch Up U.S. Financial Institutions
Sovereign Wealth Funds in six Persian Gulf countries – including Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar – have now amassed $1.7 trillion, positioning them for attempts to control major banks and securities firms in the U.S.
The funds are ready to invest petrodollar earnings worldwide as their managers examine equity plays on businesses around the globe, Business Week reports.
Sovereign Wealth Funds in the Persian Gulf are comprised of government-controlled investment portfolios amassed largely as a result of the windfall profits from oil climbing to record highs.
The Wall Street Journal at the end of December published a list of U.S. companies with earning problems resulting from the sub-prime meltdown, the housing slowdown and the credit crunch experienced as the U.S. economy slowed down in the fourth quarter last year.
The Wall Street Journal list included:
Ambac Financial Group expected a $5.4 billion pretax write-down in the fourth quarter 2007 and planned to cut its quarterly dividend by two-thirds;
American International Group, or AIG, saw a $2.54 billion after-tax drop in the value of investments in assets that are backed at least in part by sub-prime mortgages;
J.P. Morgan Chase reported fourth quarter 2007 net earnings fell 34 percent as it recorded $1.3 billion in markdowns on sub-prime positions and saw higher credit costs;
Washington Mutual expected to record a fourth quarter 2007 loss on a $1.6 billion goodwill write-down on the value of its home loans business;
Wells Fargo announced that fourth quarter net income fell 38 percent on a $1.4 billion reserve for credit losses.
On the list were several financial institutions that have already showed up in the market exploring foreign investment capital, including Bank of America, Bear Stearns, Citigroup, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley.
Read the full World Net Daily article by Jerome R. Corsi here.
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Ready to move with $1.7 trillion in windfall profits from oil-price spike
Yeah, but isn’t that Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) pretty and pristine? What? You haven’t visited there? lol
January 31st, 2008 at 4:32 pmWell they were expected to invest their profits back into America …so they are “bailing out” creditors …
January 31st, 2008 at 7:22 pm