Dear reader, this week’s weekly update only features four days worth of analysis and snide commentary. So if Europe dissolves on Friday, or China dumps treasuries on Thursday night, you won’t discover that below…

Build America Balance Sheet Bonds

On Monday, Dan wrote about the disappointing lack of government debt in Australia…

By that he meant that there isn’t enough outstanding government issued bonds to go around that fulfill the new Basel requirements. Think about that for a moment. You’ll have a situation where capital requirement laws institutionalise the ownership of government debt on bank balance sheets. During a sovereign debt crisis! Imposed by politicians who brought on the sovereign debt crisis!

It sounds too outrageous to be true.

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I had another comment I was going to make. You won’t be able to resolve it for me but I’ll raise it anyway. It strikes me that when one looks at the banking system, never before in our lifetime has the industry been under so much competitive pressure with declining market share in many areas and a feeling of intense strain, yet at the same time, the industry never has been so profitable with so much apparent strength. How do I reconcile those two observations? (Paul Volcker, 1997)

Lots of interesting follow-up to Tyler Cowen’s article on financial regulation and inequality. Kevin Drum, Arnold Kling, Falkenblog, Tyler Cowen, and others.

I’d recommending splitting the argument into three questions: (1) Why is the financial sector so big? (2) Why

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Today’s top news headlines feature high economic growth projections for 2011 and staggering declines in loan modification applicants. Also, find out how much baby boomers inherited over the course of their lifetimes. Economic Growth Surpasses Expectations The Wall Street Journal The economy grew stronger in the third quarter than economists previously projected, prompting them to raise growth expectations for 2011. Data from the Department of Commerce shows the economy grew 2.6 percent in the third quarter, up from the 2.5 percent economists expected.

Baby Boomers Receive $8.4 Trillion Inheritance CBS Money Watch New data shows the baby boomer generation took in $8.4 trillion in inheritances during throughout their lifetimes, amounting to a median inheritance of $64,000 per individual per the Center for Retirement Research. H

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Credit cards are a staple of modern life. Like a telephone, television, or computer, you can live without credit cards but few people do, most have more than one, and many have specific purposes for each one (e.g. sitting room, travel, work). If you pay them off each month, or use them to self-finance purchases that you could not readily afford, credit cards are a great addition. Convenient, secure, and flexible, credit cards really do have a lot in their favor, but they are not all they seem. The true cost of credit cards is not the annual percentage rate (APR) alone. Fees also need to be included, and when they are, the true cost of credit is closer to 35 percent (regardless of your APR).

Most credit card issuers will add one or more of the following fees and charges:

ANNUAL FEE: Many credit card issuers, and more every day, require an annual fee for carrying certain credit cards.

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Back when I was writing my post on the worst return policies, I almost lumped in every contractual wireless service provider due to their pesky early termination fee penalties that are enforced in order to lock you into false brand loyalty. However, EVERY ONE of the four national carriers make early termination fees a central part of their contractual agreements.

I understand the business reason behind early termination fees. However, if my service or device is awful and you’re a customer focused company, you will try to make things right and not add insult to injury by stinging me with hundreds of dollars in early termination fees. For that reason (and lower costs elsewhere), I decided a few years ago to make the move to prepaid, no-contract cell plans. A

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Citibank is reporting a drop in consumer credit card charge-offs for November. In October, the Citibank reported charge-offs at the rate of 10.27 percent , but charge-offs for November fell to 9.4 percent. Charge-offs provide a method for credit card issuers to remove uncollectible accounts from their books, and the process typically occurs after a credit card account becomes 180 days delinquent.  Citibank, a major issuer of consumer credit cards is also reporting that its delinquency rate for credit card accounts also fell during November. This news could signal a trend toward a consumer “wake up call” and continued efforts toward liquidating credit card debt. Debt consolidation can be a first step toward reducing the cost of existing credit card debt. Is debt consolidation good for resolving debt? The ans

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With the emergence of handset-driven e-commerce technology, banks, mobile-phone sellers and telecom-service providers are working feverishly to cook up a profitable recipe for the fast-growing mobile-banking business. But with so many players setting up shop – and so many potential new mobile-payment services on the menu – the safest profit play for investors may be the one that’s able to deliver all these services to end -users. And we’ve identified a clear early leader.

Killer Apps

Whenever new technologies are applied to an old-line business, you can expect several things to happen. The sector incumbents – most of them hulking giants with a long history – will do everything they can to protect their market position. And some “giant killers” will emerge and make a bid to grab a slice of the business for themselves.

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The Wrexham & Shropshire, Grand Central and Heathrow Express lines currently give passengers travelling in standard class the option of unlimited internet at no cost (see the Cheap Train Tickets guide).

This means not only will passengers have speedier access but they can avoid the sometimes costly data charges levied by mobile providers (see the Free Wireless Internet guide).

The survey by the website MyTrainTicket.co.uk shows that as well as the trio that offer free WiFi only four more operators provide, or will soon have, access at all.

Here is what the other four firms charge in standard class (temporary offers not included):

• Virgin Trains charges 5 per hour or 10 a day.

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