] As the chart below shows, Margin has scaled up
] significantly. At present, while Margin debt is 20% below
] its 2000 peak, it's the highest it has been since
] early '01.
]
] It is at the greatest spread relative to the Nasdaq since
] the last time we last addressed the issue. Margin debt
] holds the additional risk of "forced selling"
] into any further weakness. As we saw post-2000, the daily
] liquidations exacerbated the downward movement as the
] markets collapsed.

The Big Picture: Chart of the Week: NYSE Member Firms%u2019 Client Margin