Obama in negotiating with the factional groups in the USAwas big...

Obama in negotiating with the factional groups in the USA
was big on pointing out the real need for strong action.

Did they listen,no. It seems most politicians are more concerned with party or personal preference and maintain a
deep ignorance when it comes to economics or policy that creates unilateral confidence.

After Fridays rout on exchanges worldwide i think they are listening now,Obama correctly advised the outcome of inadequate address in the USA,confidence in the management of the worlds finances is waning fast among the general public.

Australians hammered by the GFC and the current dramatic increases in the cost of living for ordinary Australians(how i love political reference to the bulk of our populace as "the ordinary people") do not know where to turn they are cutting expenditure ,paying down debt as quickly as possible , i know i am and others i know are doing the same,and who really benefits from all this activity--not the general economy thats for sure.

Banks are the major beneficiary,i suspect many people are like myself pushing up short term debt like credit cards to reduce other debt exposure,,,,,,,,,,,,,cash is almost non-existent in these budgets.(and yes i am paying fees for overdue payments , overdrawn--why to kill debt on a very tight budget)

now the whole point of this possibly flawed thinking is,as i see it banks are being progressively hit by offshore hedge positions Westpac appears to be the worst affected, yet it has a strong financial position and substantially expanded its business model over the past 3 years,so if you were a hedgie where would you strike the hardest.

i have been watching wbc for quite a while, itrade on the basis of relative accumulation in stocks that i consider to have good management and are in a sound financial position preferably paying a dividend.

on friday i sold a 2 week old position at a loss simply because i was able to purchase 10% more WBC shares than my capital would provide at any other time ,on a relative basis including the GFC low ,its very difficult to imagine a market that will offer such an extraordinary opportunity in the near future--this is a fundamentally fear driven market being ravaged once again by hedge funds,hedge funds desparate to mitigate risk and what better place than Australia a country that fundamentally is in a good position with ongoing trade with the growing strength of asia


a previous post implied covering the cost of the shares in 7 years ,assuming WBC can maintain dividends inclusive of franking credits Friday will make that a reality.

how i love tanking markets they are so exciting because of the opportunity it presents--however the journey will continue and WBC may or may not remain a holding depending on the relative advantage moody Mr Market is prepared to offer.

confidence is so low that people i know with very substantial assets are no longer confident that retirement
will be pleasant or that the assets they have will be worth anything at all,indeed some are planning how to survive at the most basic level of self sufficiency.

these are the times we live in,i believe we will move forward,that while ever wages afford a reasonable living we will grow in every area of our economy and Westpac will grow with it as a large provider of an essential commodity.