Don Coxe of BMO on his weekly institutional client conference call, mentioned that after the recent rally in financials, clients have been asking if it is time to buy the banks. Don’s comment: “This is like setting out on a drive across the U.S. from San Diego to Boston with a four-year-old. Before you get to Denver the child has asked three times “Are we there yet?”

He also dished the Negative Basis trade. “The practices that were engaged in during this period of easy credit got sleazier and sleazier.”

At Davos, the World Food Council observed that the inventories normally used to provide relief for earthquakes and other natural disasters had disappeared, as food produced was being sold immediately.