Prolonged sickness

By taking its medicine, Merrill Lynch has shown that others are suffering from the same severe disease. The ailing Wall Street bank is selling a $30bn slug of mortgage-related slop at a 40% discount to the already written-down valuation. The pricing, at 22 cents on the dollar, is almost certain to put further pressure on how rivals value their own remaining exposures. Most banks have been writing down their CDOs and other residential mortgage-backed securities all year, while selling off bits w...