In his long awaited annual letter to shareholders, Warren Buffet reflected on the economic crisis, the coming inflationary pressures, and his own personal mistakes. “During 2008 I did some dumb things in investments. I made at least one major mistake of commission and several lesser ones that also hurt,” he explains. Speaking of the government [...]

THE real estate market in Manhattan has become so unnerving to buyers that some are forfeiting six-figure deposits rather than close on deals they have made. At 304 Spring Street, a sleek condominium building in SoHo with stunning Hudson River views, the buyer for the duplex penthouse recently decided he would not go through with [...]

By Charlie Weston, Personal Finance EditorFriday February 27 2009LOSSES in pension funds are so large that most of them are now insolvent, pension fund managers told the minister with responsibility for pensions, Mary Hanafin, last night.The Irish Association of Pension Funds (IAPF) told the minister there was an urgent need for an examinership process for [...]

Europe’s Crisis: Much Bigger Than Subprime, Worse Than U.S.Posted Feb 27, 2009 08:00am EST by Henry Blodget John Mauldin, president of Millennium Wave Advisors, was among the few analysts whose forecasts for 2008 proved accurate. Mauldin, author of the popular “Thoughts from the Frontline” e-letter, joined us to discuss the economic situation in Eastern Europe. [...]

In a short period of months, the entire system of global capitalism has screeched to a halt. No one knows what happens next.The worldwide economic meltdown has sent the wheels spinning off the project of building a single, business-friendly global economy. Worldwide, industrial production has ground to a halt. Goods are stacking up, but nobody’s [...]

Icelanders marked their 90th anniversary of sovereignty from Denmark Monday by taking to the streets in protest against the rapid devaluation of their currency and storming their Central Bank, Seðlabanki. The tiny Nordic nation of 300,000, which only last May was named “The Happiest Place On Earth” by the UN, saw its fortunes turn on [...]

A bigger proportion of non-investment grade companies will go bust in the US and overseas in the coming years than during the Great Depression, according to Moody’s, one of the world’s foremost experts on credit. By Edmund Conway, Economic EditorLast Updated: 7:42PM GMT 26 Feb 2009In what will be seen by many as die-cast confirmation [...]

Employers have been dismissing more workers in mass layoffs in recent months, both nationally and in South Florida. BY SCOTT ANDRONSANDRON@MIAMIHERALD.COMAfter 21 years at the same Fort Lauderdale boat company, Robert Mulder lost his job. Mulder was laid off in November along with dozens of his co-workers, and now they face a job market that’s [...]

Globe and Mail UpdateFebruary 26, 2009 at 11:53 AM ESTThe International Monetary Fund says the financial crisis could push as many as 16 nations into default, and that it will need to double its lending capacity to mount an appropriate response. In a 31-page report released today in Washington, the fund argues that it will [...]

The global economic meltdown has already caused bank failures, bankruptcies, plant closings, and foreclosures and will, in the coming year, leave many tens of millions unemployed across the planet. But another perilous consequence of the crash of 2008 has only recently made its appearance: increased civil unrest and ethnic strife. Someday, perhaps, war may follow.As [...]