Salon – Alex Pareene: How I botched it on CNBC It was fun TV, but I didn’t make an argument that could penetrate the profit-fixated bubble of the finance press I’m not great on television. That’s one reason I don’t do it very often. (Another reason is that, for some reason, the major cable news… Continue reading JP Morgan
The Wall Street Journal – Stock Investors See Slimmer Pickings Stocks at Loftiest Levels in Years Compared With Profits Some investors warn that the air is getting thinner for U.S. stocks, which head into the fourth quarter up 18% for the year and at their loftiest levels in years compared with corporate profits. The Dow… Continue reading Stock Market Sentiment
<Click on chart for larger images> Angelo, Gordan And Co – Blackstone Investor Sees ‘Epic’ Credit Bubble The U.S. is “in the middle of an epic credit bubble,” according to Blackstone Group’s global head of private equity, Joseph Baratta , and that bubble is affecting how one of the world’s largest private equity firm’s invests… Continue reading A Credit Bubble?
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The Wall Street Journal – For Most Presidents, Shutdowns a Rite of Passage Presidents Gerald Ford (1 shutdown), Jimmy Carter (5), Ronald Reagan (8), George H.W. Bush (1), and Bill Clinton (2) each went through periods when parts of the government went unfunded for periods of time, ranging from one day to three weeks. President… Continue reading The Common Occurrence Of A Government Shutdown
The Wall Street Journal – Justin Lahart: The Fed’s Not-So-Great Expectations Central Bank’s Poor Inflation Forecasting Could Have Wide Implications One source of the Federal Reserve’s recent problems may have been an inflated belief in its ability to forecast inflation. At its June meeting, when the Fed raised expectations that it could start reducing bond… Continue reading The Fed’s Faulty Forecasts
Bloomberg.com – Fed Too Familiar With Lost Labor Seeking New Message for Policy It’s becoming increasingly clear why Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke should have avoided linking the central bank’s policy decisions to specific unemployment rates. Bernanke said in June he expected the Fed would complete its bond buying when the jobless level was… Continue reading The Fed’s Guideposts For Tapering
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Spencer Jakab: High Time for Profits to Catch Up to Stock Prices After surging in the early part of the bull market, earnings growth for companies in the S&P 500 has come close to stalling recently. Earnings typically have a big jump early in… Continue reading Earnings Growth
The Financial Times – Janet Yellen record gives pointer to Fed policy if Obama picks her as chair A decision to appoint Ms Yellen could come this week, if there is a window of calm between averting a government shutdown and President Barack Obama’s departure on a trip to Asia. There is still a chance… Continue reading Janet Yellen
Real Time Economics (WSJ Blog) – Kjetil Malkenes Hovland, Victoria McGrane and Michael S. Derby: Fed May Not Start Taper Until January The Federal Reserve could start winding down its controversial bond-buying program as soon as next month or perhaps not until January, a central bank official said Friday, adding to the reasons why investors… Continue reading Timing The Taper
The New York Times – Robert J. Shiller: Housing Market Is Heating Up, if Not Yet Bubbling HOME prices have been rising rapidly, so much so that there is talk that we are entering another national bubble. In fact, according to the S.& P./Case-Shiller Composite-10 Home Price Index, which Karl Case of Wellesley College and… Continue reading Another Housing Bubble?
The Atlantic – All the Reasons Why JP Morgan May Be Facing the Biggest Bank Fine Ever Regulators want the bank to pay $11 billion to possibly settle investigations touching on everything from mortgage fraud to the Madoff scandal. On Tuesday (Sept. 24), the Wall Street Journal reported that JP Morgan was offering the government… Continue reading JP Morgan