According to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, the global economy still faces the real prospect of falling even deeper into recession.

Brown considers global complacency to be the preeminent threat of a recovery, as far too many media and government outlets have already begun to claim that the downturn is over. It is popular to say that things are getting better, but most indicators still show a continued and prolonged slowing of the global economy. The worst hit is the United States with a financially and consumer dependent economy, but others have been caught in the wake of the sinking American giant.

What Brown fears is a so-called “W-shaped recession.” His fear is shared with famed NYU economist Nuriel Roubini who predicted the financial downturn more than two years ago. In such a recession all indicators show a pronounced and rapid decline, followed by a short recovery period and yet another period of decline.

Originally posted by stander
The Russians are prematurely losing confidence in the guys at NYMEX. When oil traded above $130 per barrel, the traders at NYMEX were regarded something close to financial divinity. Russia does produce oil – plenty of it -- and the guys who do the pumping know that if you sell a barrel for $45, your company would be still among the ten most profitable ones in the world.

U.S. Considers Curbs on Speculative Trading of Oil

The state of California, nearly paralyzed because of a massive budget shortfall, received even more bad news on Monday as one of the nation’s largest credit rating agencies downgraded California’s long-term bond rating to nearly junk status.

Fitch Ratings lowered the state’s long-term bond rating to BBB, just two steps below junk status, citing the state’s massive budget deficit combined with a lack of reliable revenue streams.