Monday, March 2, 2009

HSBC Shares Suspended In Hong Kong

As DJ50 futures are well into 6 handle territory, more bad news out of Asia: HSBC has been suspended from trading in Hong Kong pending the "announcement of a corporate action." MarketWatch claims the announcement is the revelation of the company's pullback from U.S. consumer lending. As no consumer in the U.S. is borrowing currently, this will likely not be a major financial event. Additionally, the bank which in recent weeks has been rumored to be in major headcutting mode in its U.S. operations, will report earnings later in the day, at which time it is expected to cut its dividend and raise $17 billion in a discounted right-issue. HSBC, which was the first subprime shoe to drop in March of 2007, could not have picked a better day to pursue a rights offering: even with a "deep" discount to Friday's close, the offering may easily come to parity based on today's trading price. Sphere: Related Content
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