Subprime Bulls Trim Bets as Rally Raises 2011 Specter: Mortgages
This article is for subscribers only.
A rally in the mortgage securities that blew up in the crash of 2008 is leading firms to trim bets in the $1.1 trillion market for home-loan bonds without government backing after similar gains a year ago evaporated.
Some of the securities are up 12 percent this year, and have been outperforming the Standard & Poor’s 500 stock index, corporate bonds and gold. Western Asset Management Co. and Pine River Capital Management LP have sold after starting 2012 among the most bullish on the debt. In last year’s rally, the notes gained the same amount to peak in February before crashing as Europe’s fiscal crisis curbed risk-taking across markets.