Bloomberg.com – Will U.S. Avoid a Recession in 2012? (Part 2) Employment in the U.S. has gained in recent months because businesses have, at least temporarily, run out of productivity enhancements that had allowed them to cover output gains with reduced staff. Payroll-employment growth has risen in recent months, though an unseasonably warm winter may… Continue reading Recession Talk
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<Click on picture to view video> Comment Jim Bianco was on Reuters TV yesterday discussing QE3. To view the interview click on the image above. To view any of our recent interviews click here. Bloomberg Businessweek – To QE3 or Not to QE3? With every 200,000-plus jobs report that’s come out over the last few… Continue reading QE3
CNBC.com – The Bernanke Put The Bernanke put: Last week, stocks sold off on concerns the Federal Reserve was in no hurry to implement a third round of quantitative easing (QE3) or, possibly, extend “Operation Twist.” Today, stocks will be sold at the open because…job growth is weaker than expected…and QE3 is more likely? The… Continue reading The Bernanke Put
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Spain Vows Reforms as Yields Soar Spain’s government vowed Tuesday to stick to its reform agenda as investor concerns over the euro zone’s fourth-largest economy sent government borrowing costs to their highest levels since December…The yields on Spanish government 10-year bond yields climbed 0.09… Continue reading Spanish Yields On The Rise Once Again
The Wall Street Journal – Obama to Visit Swing State to Push His Millionaire Tax President Barack Obama and fellow Democrats plan to pressure Republicans this week to support a minimum tax on millionaires to improve the tax system’s fairness, though most economic analysts say the measure would do little to dent deficits or boost… Continue reading The Buffett Rule
Bloomberg.com – Jobs Pose Challenge S&P 500 Has Overcome Nine Times U.S. employment growth that trailed economists’ forecasts in March presents a challenge that stocks have overcome nine times during the bull market that’s driven the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index up 107 percent in three years. The Labor Department’s monthly tally of U.S. hiring… Continue reading Stocks’ Reaction To Poor Jobs Reports In The QE World
Business Insider – Paul Krugman And Steve Keen Got Into A Massive Fight On One Of The Biggest Issues In All Of Economics During the last few weeks, economists Paul Krugman and Steve Keen have engaged in a lengthy (and ugly) blogger debate about the role of banks in expanding the monetary base. But beyond… Continue reading How Much Control Do Central Bankers Actually Have?
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Bonds With Banks Fraying European companies are swarming to the corporate-bond market for financing and vastly reducing their reliance on banks, a move that could mark a significant change in the region’s financial landscape. During the first quarter, European companies borrowed more from the… Continue reading A Shifting Landscape For European Borrowing
The Sydney Morning Herald – China’s inflation rises more than forecast in March China’s inflation accelerated more than forecast in March on a pickup in food prices, signaling that policy makers may exercise caution in adding stimulus to boost growth. Consumer prices rose 3.6 per cent from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics… Continue reading Chinese Inflation
The Financial Times – Lex: P/E ratios: less than meets the eye It’s so easy, but it feels like you’re doing real analysis. Pick a stock. Divide the current year’s estimated earnings into the stock price. Out pops a number revealing if stock is expensive or cheap. Is the ratio anywhere near single digits? It’s… Continue reading The Problem With P/E Ratios
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