Bailout winners: Many thanks, Uncle Sam

Uncle Sam’s promised toxic clean-up plan is creating lots of winners. Top of the list is Morgan Stanley. Yesterday the investment bank was on the ropes. It was frantically searching for a partner as hedge funds pulled their business and its credit rating and shares were being pummelled. In early trading today, the cost of credit protection shrank 21%, although it’s still high. And as confidence returned to the market, its shares rebounded. The bank may now cling onto its independence. Even if i...