Another day, another development on the subprime front

--SP downgraded 612 bonds backed by subprime mortgages, with a value of $12 billion --Moodys' downgraded 399 MBS and review an additional 32 for downgrade, affecting $5.2 billion. It has slashed ratings on 131 --Moody's latest downgrades affected around 1.2% of the dollar value of subprime bonds it rated in 2006 alone, most of them investment grade. The downgrade of investment grades bonds is a sign of the depth of the fallout. --Both are accused for being too slow to cut ratings --Subprime loans have played an increasingly important role in the mortgage market, accounting for 20% of all mortgages originated in 2006, according to Inside Mortgage Finance. In all, $2.3 trillion of subprime loans were taken out by borrowers between 2002 and 2006, according to Inside Mortgage Finance. --Home Depot and D.R Horton lowered their earning estimates --investors are flying to safety, pushing up Treasuries prices --Investors balked at leverage bond offerings --That triggered a plunge in the ABX(BBB-), touching 50