<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – There Is No ‘Structural’ Unemployment Problem The unemployment rate has exceeded 8% for more than three years. This has led some commentators and policy makers to speculate that there has been a fundamental change in the labor market. The view is that today’s economy… Continue reading Examining The Structural Unemployment Rate
The Wall Street Journal – Assessing Fannie’s Past and Future There already is a consensus among Democrats and Republicans that Fannie and Freddie represent a failed experiment in state-sponsored mortgage lending. The Obama administration is forcing them gradually to reduce their mortgage holdings. The Republican platform calls for “scaling back the federal role in the… Continue reading Fannie & Freddie
The Financial Times – Loan rates point to eurozone fractures Interest rates paid by companies in the eurozone’s weaker economies have surged, highlighting the bloc’s fragmentation as the European Central Bank loses control of borrowing costs. ECB data on Monday showed Spanish small businesses face the highest bank borrowing costs in almost four years –… Continue reading The Growing Divide Between EU Countries
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Comment Yesterday we hosted a conference titled The Next Few Weeks. We discussed: The next 2 ½ weeks contain an incredible amount of potentially market-moving events: The Republican National Convention this week; Bernanke’s Jackson Hole speech this Friday; the September 6th ECB meeting; the Democratic National Convention next week; the German High Court Ruling on… Continue reading The Next Few Weeks
The Wall Street Journal – Jon Hilsenrath: Bernanke’s Dilemma Over His Legacy Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke wasn’t expecting he would have to make another speech like the one he will deliver here Friday.A few months ago the Federal Reserve seemed to be on cruise control as the economy healed. Many officials at the central bank… Continue reading Bernanke Speaks Today
Reuters.com – Weidmann resignation report turns up heat on ECB’s Draghi German central bank chief Jens Weidmann’s reported threat to resign has piled pressure on European Central Bank President Mario Draghi to assuage his opposition to a new bond-buying plan without tying it up in so many knots it is rendered ineffective. A Bundesbank spokesman… Continue reading Power Struggle Between Germany And The ECB
<Click on chart for larger image> Bloomberg.com – Euro-Area Unemployment at Record, Inflation Quickens:Economy Euro-area unemployment rose to a record and inflation quickened more than economists forecast as rising energy costs threaten to deepen the economic slump. The jobless rate in the economy of the 17 nations using the euro was 11.3 percent in July,… Continue reading Eurozone Unemployment Reaches New Highs
The Financial Times – Time for eurozone to reach for the gold reserves? Is it time for some eurozone governments to start selling that metaphorical family silver? Or, more specifically look at their all-too-real gold reserves, to find a solution to Europe’s crisis? That is a question which has recently been buzzing around in some… Continue reading Will Europe Look To It’s Gold Reserves?
The Wall Street Journal – Romney Promises to ‘Restore’ U.S. Mitt Romney, whose business success has become his defining credential in a year of economic anxiety, accepted the Republican nomination for president Thursday and took aim at President Barack Obama as a failed steward of the nation’s balance sheet and its economy. Mr. Obama’s 2008… Continue reading Election Update …After The Republican Convention
Bloomberg.com – Roach Says Bernanke Shouldn’t Be Reappointed as Fed Chief Yale University professor Stephen Roach said Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke shouldn’t be given a third term because of his role in managing the U.S. economy before the financial crisis. “I think Bernanke tried his best post-crisis, but he’s part of the problem… Continue reading Should Bernanke Be Reappointed?
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