General Motors’ Market Leadership Has Come Courtesy of the Plunge Protection Team

Eric Englund reports:

Two hedge funds, managed by Bear Stearns, are on the verge of liquidation due to making highly leveraged bets on securities backed by subprime mortgages. Bear Stearns’ woes have investors worried that any negative developments in the credit markets will also drag down the stock market – which has become quite volatile since the bad news, from Bear Stearns, surfaced. To be sure, the ripple effects of the subprime-mortgage implosion will continue to roil the credit and stock markets. But is the subprime-mortgage bust truly large enough to drag down Wall Street, and its precious Dow Jones Industrial Average, with it? If the recent performance of General Motors’ stock is an indicator, the Working Group on Financial Markets (aka: the Plunge Protection Team) is answering this question with a resounding "yes."

A good one to read.