by Calculated Risk on 5/20/2008 10:08:00 AM

From Bloomberg: Credit Crisis Will Extend Into 2009, Oppenheimer Says

The U.S. credit crisis will extend into and even beyond 2009 as banks will write off more than $170 billion of additional reserves by the end of next year, according to Oppenheimer & Co. estimates.

``The real harrowing days of the credit crisis are still in front of us and will prove more widespread in effect than anything yet seen,'' analysts led by Meredith Whitney wrote in a research note today. ``Just as strained liquidity pushed so many small and mid-sized specialty finance companies to beyond the brink, we believe it will do the same with the U.S. consumer.''

From the report titled: Far From Over: We Believe The Credit Crisis Will Extend Well Into 2009

"... in our opinion the "next shoe to drop," is what became an over-reliance on the securitization market for consumer liquidity. Herein, we draw a direct correlation between a shutdown in securitization volumes and accelerating losses on bank balance sheets. As we see no near or medium term come back in securitization volumes, we believe losses will only accelerate further and far worse than even the most draconian estimates."

And the opposite view: TED Spread at Nine-Month Low, Signals Credit Easing

Lending confidence at banks rose to the highest level in more than nine months, according to a key indicator, signaling the global credit crunch may be easing.

The so-called TED spread, the difference between what the U.S. government and banks pay to borrow in dollars for three months, dropped below 78 basis points for the first time since August.
...
``The worst of the fears about the liquidity crisis appear to be alleviating,'' said Peter Jolly, head of markets research in Sydney at NabCapital, the investment-banking arm of National Australia Bank Ltd. ``Liquidity is becoming more available ever since the bold moves by the Fed.''