CNN Money – The real economy is finally doing better than the money economy Occupy Wall Street rejoice: As more people land jobs, bank earnings are looking down. “It wasn’t an encouraging quarter if you’re looking for evidence that the economy is picking up,” Raymond James bank analyst Anthony Polini told CNNMoney.com. And yet, elsewhere,… Continue reading The Money Economy Versus The Real Economy
The Wall Street Journal – Phil Gramm & Peter Wallison: Worse Than Fannie and Freddie In this era of partisan gridlock, any legislative proposal with significant bipartisan sponsorship should be praised and supported if it simply does not produce a policy worse than the status quo. Given current U.S. housing policy, that’s a six-inch hurdle.… Continue reading Fannie/Freddie
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Comment Yesterday we hosted a conference call titled A Discussion of Recent Market Volatility. If you missed the call, please find the mp3, handout and webcast below. Audio [audio:https://www.biancoresearch.com/bianco/SubscriberArea/041614.mp3|titles=Conference Call ] [pageview class=”PDFViewer” url=”https://www.biancoresearch.com/bianco/wp-content/plugins/PDFViewer/plugin.php?id=182″] [hana-flv-player video=”https://www.biancoresearch.com/bianco/SubscriberArea/041614.flv” width=”600″ height=”495″ description=”” player=”3″ autoload=”false” autoplay=”false” loop=”false” autorewind=”true” splashimage=”https://www.biancoresearch.com/bianco/wp-content/themes/twentyten/images/splash.jpg” /]
The Wall Street Journal – Yellen: Rate Policy Hinges on Three ‘Big Questions’ Federal Reserve officials will weigh three “big questions”—including low inflation and labor-market slack—as they consider when the economy is finally healthy enough for the central bank to begin raising rates, Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen said. In a speech at the Economic Club… Continue reading Yellen Speaks, Forward Guidance Is Dead
The Telegraph (UK) – US financial showdown with Russia is more dangerous than it looks, for both sides The US Treasury faces a more formidable prey with Russia, the world’s biggest producer of energy with a $2 trillion economy, superb scientists and a first-strike nuclear arsenal The United States has constructed a financial neutron bomb.… Continue reading Cyberwar, The U.S. Treasury And Russia
The Wall Street Journal – Big Banks Ramp Up Business Lending Banks are boosting their lending to businesses, providing fuel for companies to increase spending on workers and equipment as the economy improves. The rise is being driven both by banks, which are loosening their lending standards, and companies, which are seeking more money, bank… Continue reading Bank Loans
<Click on chart for larger image> Bloomberg Businessweek – Hedge Funds Post Worst First-Quarter Results Since 2008 It’s time again for another installment of “Hedge Funds Are a Ripoff,” our long-running series chronicling the asset class’s habit of underperforming far less exotic investments while charging more and limiting clients’ access to their own money. Hedge… Continue reading Hedge Funds’ Awful Quarter
The Financial Times – Regulators’ attempts to hold back the financial tide are futile Excessive leverage in the banking system leaves it vulnerable to collapse; authorities know this. Western governments cannot afford a rerun; treasuries know this. The public would not tolerate a repeat performance; politicians know this. So the failure to increase sufficiently the… Continue reading Bank Regulation
The Wall Street Journal – Treasury Turns Its Gaze to Municipal-Bond Market The municipal-bond market long has been seen by many mom-and-pop investors as a reliable source of tax-exempt income and as a vehicle for retirement savings. But that view has been rattled in recent years by episodes including the largest-ever municipal bankruptcy filing last… Continue reading Munis
Spiegel Online – Out of Ammo? The Eroding Power of Central Banks Since the financial crisis, central banks have slashed interest rates, purchased vast quantities of sovereign bonds and bailed out banks. Now, though, their influence appears to be on the wane with measures producing paltry results. Do they still have control? These closed-door meetings,… Continue reading Central Banks Losing Power