Public money behind the surge in stock market trading

I have blogged before about the role “unproductive” trades are playing in the current stock market boom.

The FT today reports Goldman Sachs only posted one day’s trading loss in the past quarter – the quarter before saw two such days.

On 35 of the 65 days of trading in the last quarter the company made over $100 profits a day. Goldmans’ profit in the last quarter totalled $6 billion.

The surge in stock market trading is credited to the vast amounts of public money being injected into the world economy by governments trying to get bank credit flowing again. But as I reported on Monday, Lord Myners, the City Minister states that 70 per cent of all trading involves the holding of trades for nano seconds.

I commend today’s FT article.