Is Ben Bernanke “Shooting Blanks”?
Summary: Lacy Hunt and Van Hoisington launch into their first-quarter “Review and Outlook,” this week with a statement that some may find eye-opening: “The Federal Reserve (Fed) is not, and has not...
View ArticleExperimental (Reckless) Monetary Policy
In the following article Bill Bonner makes some excellent points about the problem with the current monetary policy. The first is that it is totally ludacris to try to buy real goods with fake money....
View ArticleHighest Grossing Movies Adjusted for Inflation
Traditionally, war films, musicals and historical dramas have been the most popular genres and Gone With the Wind held the record of highest-grossing film for 25 years but doesn’t even make it into the...
View ArticleThe Effects of Tapering Off the FED’s Stimulus Program
Here’s an economic irony for you. Less inflation means lower prices for you and I. However, to some who work for the Federal Reserve, that means things are off target and the economy still needs more...
View ArticleRising Inflation vs. FED Tapering
Up until recently we rarely heard the word “tapering” but now it seems to be everywhere. Why? Because in June FED chairman Ben Bernanke floated a “trial balloon” and mentioned “tapering”. By this he...
View ArticleSyria in the Throes of Hyperinflation
Living in the United States or other “stable” countries, we tend to think that Hyperinflation is a relatively uncommon event but that is far from the truth. In our post What is Hyperinflation? We list...
View ArticleDeflation Warning: Money Manager Startles Global Conference
History shows that the U.S. should pay attention to economies in Europe The economy has been sluggish for five years. There’s no shortage of chatter about “why,” yet few observers mention deflation....
View ArticleA Monetary Master Explains Inflation
Today we’d like to host a discussion between Terry Coxon, a senior editor of The Casey Report and David Galland, a partner in a research firm employing about 40 analysts. David says… Terry is my go-to...
View ArticleTaper Caper: Has the FED Been “Politicized” or “Captured”?
By Ben Hunt, Ph.D. Two things happened this week with the FOMC announcement and subsequent press conferences by Bernanke, Bullard, etc. – one procedural and one structural. The procedural event was the...
View ArticleConsumer Price Index Definition
What is the Consumer Price Index? The Consumer Price Index is simply a basket of goods that is used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics to gauge how much price inflation the economy is experiencing. It...
View ArticleInflation and Your Retirement Nest Egg
Inflation has a big effect on the future value of our nest egg. As we begin to think about retirement we dream of our “magic number” that amount of money that we will need to retire comfortably. But...
View ArticleDeflationary Forces Overpower FED
Despite Bernanke’s famous helicopter speech the FED’s powers really are not unlimited. There is only so much they can do to stimulate the economy. After all they can’t force people who are concerned...
View ArticleThe Language of Inflation
Just the other day I was thinking about language and how it molds our thought processes. In some aboriginal tribes they don’t have words for past, present and future tense. They would just say “I go...
View ArticleUnderstanding Inflation and What to Do About It
Inflation erodes our purchasing power causing manufacturers to have to raise prices or reduce quantities in order to make the same profit margin. Neither consumers nor manufacturers benefit, so who...
View ArticleFED Looks for New Ways to Crank Up Money Supply
With all the talk about “Tapering” you’d think the FED was actually considering reducing it’s money pumping. But in actuality that is not it at all. The FED is afraid that it is creating a a bubble in...
View ArticleInflation Expectations and the FED
As inflation expectations rise the FED has less and less “wiggle room” to stimulate the economy. But how do you measure “inflation expectations”? In today’s article, Chris Ciovacco will show us. ~Tim...
View ArticleHow “Excess Reserves” and the Money Multiplier Could Trigger Inflation
Banks have $2.5 trillion parked in “excess reserves”. This is money on deposit with the FED. The FED pays a miniscule amount of interest on these reserves but the banks are willing to loan it to the...
View ArticleCurrent Inflation Commentary for December 2013
Current Annual Inflation Commentary Annual Inflation: Annual inflation rose was 1.24% in November and rose to 1.50% in December. Monthly inflation for December 2013 was -0.01 or virtually Zero. Going...
View ArticleLawsuit Settlement Inflation
Our society is becoming increasingly litigious with people suing for almost anything. And lawsuit amounts have skyrocketed over the last 50 years. One typical example is in the asbestos litigation...
View ArticleCommodity Prices Falling Despite QE
Traditional wisdom tells us that when the money supply expands the price of commodities rises. Today Robert Prechter takes a look at what has actually happened to commodity prices since 2008 during a...
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