A few days ago in London, a senior banker made a striking admission to me: in his long career, he had almost never seen such bubble-like conditions in the credit markets as exist now. "Perhaps back in the 1980s - just before the collapse," he muttered, with a despairing chuckle, over an elegant (and expensive) lunch.

That is alarming stuff. But worse is to follow: this very same banker makes a living by arranging loans and bonds to risky companies - and he freely admits there is little chance that his institution is about to switch off this financial tap.