A bank says net income almost halved after a litany of writedowns. Its outlook for 2009 stinks, but its shares surge by as much as a quarter, before closing up 16 per cent. What makes Macquarie Group so special? This is a market desperate for good news. Actual numbers for the six months to the end of September from the Australian investment bank did not provide much comfort.

Returns on equity, net loan losses and impaired loans as a percentage of total assets were all at their worst levels for more than a decade. This was an equity rally based on a belief that Macquarie might just survive the storm. Markets seem to agree that the pressure has eased: CDS prices are less than a third of last month’s highs. Still, the buccaneer is undeniably in retreat.