You calculate cash flow from ops, roughly speaking, this way: add to net income any noncash charges (such as for depreciation or an allowance for future tax bills), then add favorable changes in such balance sheet items as accounts payable and accounts receivable.

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Not accounted for in these sovereign debt numbers is the banks' exposure to off-balance-sheet items, equities and commercial and residential loans in PIIGS countries.

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"Even with all the transparency in the world you have to be a genius to understand these statements, " referring to the near-impenetrable description of derivative contracts and other off-balance-sheet items included in the financial reports and footnotes filed by the banks and investment banks.

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For most people, the value of their employment exceeds the value of their assets by a wide margin, and this asset has some special characteristics that make it differ from typical items on a balance sheet or brokerage statement.

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One of the many items to augment a personal balance sheet is a reserve for grants to charities.

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So you had a number of things that freed up cash flow for consumers, and it allowed them to not only deleverage their balance sheet but continue to spend, albeit on different items.

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