Fed rate cuts come too late to avert a fresh wave of US bank failures

Emergency lending by the US federal authorities has bathed America’s struggling regional banks in short-term liquidity, disguising the slow-burn damage of the US commercial property slump. A sobering analysis by four of the country’s leading finance experts says this comfort blanket has created a beguiling illusion of stability. The underlying crisis in the banking system continues to deepen as $US5 trillion ($7.4 trillion) of commercial real estate debt taken out during the zero-rate era comes due in tranches. The fall in asset values for commercial property could be significant. Credit: Bloomberg “It’s not a liquidity problem; it…