Fannie, Freddie stocks and bonds plummet

NEW YORK – A firestorm of anxiety over the ability of US mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to get the capital they need to survive sent their debt and stocks plummeting yesterday.

Stoking concerns, former St. Louis Federal Reserve President William Poole said the two major US mortgage finance companies were “insolvent” and may need a US government bailout, according to Bloomberg News.The outlook was so dire that Bush administration officials were meeting with regulators to discuss contingency plans should they be unable to raise funds and support the worst housing market since the Great Depression, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.Yield spread premiums for the larger Fannie Mae rose to the highest since the days before the Federal Reserve’s orchestrated bailout of Bear Stearns Cos in March.Shares in both companies plunged to their lowest since 1991.Nampa-ReutersLouis Federal Reserve President William Poole said the two major US mortgage finance companies were “insolvent” and may need a US government bailout, according to Bloomberg News.The outlook was so dire that Bush administration officials were meeting with regulators to discuss contingency plans should they be unable to raise funds and support the worst housing market since the Great Depression, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.Yield spread premiums for the larger Fannie Mae rose to the highest since the days before the Federal Reserve’s orchestrated bailout of Bear Stearns Cos in March.Shares in both companies plunged to their lowest since 1991.Nampa-Reuters