Filed under: Management, Economic data, Housing
Credit Suisse (NYSE: CS) believes that the global credit crisis will bottom in a few months. Brady Dougan, the bank’s CEO, said in an interview in the Neue Zuercher Zeitung that “he was an optimist and it could take three, four, five months before the crisis bottomed out,” according to Reuters. He indicated that an improvement in housing prices in the U.S. would help matters.
Credit Suisse management carries some weight with its predictions. It is one of the few huge global banks that has not taken large write-offs due to the subprime crisis. Its leaders are therefore viewed as being “smart” compared to most of their counterparts at other banks.
The problem with the prediction is that it relies to some significant extent on improvements in the U.S. housing market. This could take some pressure off the subprime lending market. But, many experts believe the real estate problems here could extend well into 2009.
In other words, Mr. Dougan could be off by more than a year.
Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.
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