School Is Out In Japan
The operative theory behind QE relates to the academic exercise of overcoming the real world constraint of nominal interest rates, called the zero lower bound (ZLB). Once the offending central bank has pushed rates to the ZLB, conventional monetary science posits only extraordinary means to overcome this limitation. After all, central banks cannot be impotent .. read more
Bernanke Warms Up The Helicopter
After last week’s Jackson Hole speech, expect to see Ben Bernanke sporting a sling the next time you see him. There is simply no way he could spend that long patting himself on the back and not suffer at least a sprain. The monetary yoga master asserted that the Fed’s non traditional monetary policies were .. read more
Is The “Bad News” Really Good?
Facebook closed the week on a new low and the press is replete with tales of IPO investors’ woes, the demoralizing effect on employees and whether CEO Zuckerberg is in over his hoodie. Slate even featured a ridiculous article by a University of Washington professor advocating the nationalization of the company because it “has become .. read more
Things We Think We Know
“It ain’t so much the things we don’t know that get us into trouble. It’s the things we know that just ain’t so.” Mark Twain I’ve been writing some more optimistic commentaries recently – or maybe just less pessimistic – and the response has been interesting to say the least. I don’t remember so many .. read more
Could A Slower Growing China Be Good For The Global Economy?
China released a raft of economic data over the weekend and I am struck by how it is being characterized as “mixed”. Exports: Up 15.3% Imports: Up 12.7% Inflation: CPI up 3% year over year, down from 3.4% last month Industrial Production: Up 9.6% Auto Sales: Up 22.6% Retail Sales: Up 13.8% This is mixed? .. read more
Weekly Economic & Market Review
Over the last couple of months I’ve dedicated a good portion of these weekly commentaries to the various headwinds I see facing the global economy and markets. Everyone, it seems, knows what the risks are and I’m beginning to wonder if, being so well known, the actual events may prove less jarring to sentiment than .. read more
Weekly Economic & Market Review
The stock market continued to defy gravity last week in its ongoing attempt to make me look like a fool for trying to predict its movements. We’ve recently moved our portfolios to a neutral risk position from the more aggressive stance we adopted during the great sovereign debt scare of last fall and are contemplating .. read more
Weekly Economic & Market Review
And so another year has passed into the history books – the older I get, the faster they seem to go – and investors must again try to position their portfolios for a profitable year. It hasn’t been easy to do the last few years and this year promises to be just as challenging. The .. read more
