Geithner plan jeered by economists; cheered by markets

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's $1 trillion plan to encourage private companies to snap up toxic assets that are weighing-down the balance sheets of banks was greeted warmly by Wall Street, even as some economists raised questions about its effectiveness.

Investors who earlier complained about the lack of specificity about the Obama Administration's bank rescue plans got the detail they sought in one of the most complicated government plans announced in recent memory. Stock markets hailed the plan, sending the leading indexes up higher. Morgan Stanley called the program "innovative." Pimco's Bill Gross told CNBC that he thinks that investors have a "civic responsibility" to participate. BlackRock Inc. (BLK) also will participate in the program, the business channel said. A BlackRock spokeswoman could not immediately be reached. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) declined to comment.