The extreme volatility in credit derivatives markets since Lehman Brothers collapsed in September has brought sharp leaps and falls in the cost of protecting the debt all kinds of companies.
Banks were hardest hit initially, but the gathering global gloom has hit other industries such as mining, oil and gas, carmakers and retailers. Yet, more than the usual news appears to have been affecting some companies and there is a debate in the market about whether a particular trading strategy, possibly being pursued by hedge funds, is behind some of these moves.
