Bloomberg.com – Caroline Baum: Keynes, Hayek Preside at Washington Jobs Debate Maybe it was the concurrence of the two articles, or their disparate views, that got me thinking about how little progress we’ve made. I’m not referring to the lack of progress in restoring the U.S. economy to health, but to the failure to reach… Continue reading Jobs
The following video is making the rounds in the blogosphere. We chose to include it in the cartoons section considering its comedic value.
Join us for our webcast/conference call at 9:00 AM CT (10:00 ET, 7:00 PT, and 15:00 BST). We will be discussing the latest with Correlation, Recession And Governments (Register, Handout). If you cannot attend, a replay will be available later today (and will be noted in tomorrow’s edition of newsclips) as well as a transcript… Continue reading Correlation, Recession And Governments
Reuters – Bernanke says Fed would act if inflation falls Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Wednesday the central bank might need to ease monetary policy further if inflation or inflation expectations fall significantly. In his first public remarks since the Fed launched a fresh measure aimed at keeping down long-term borrowing costs, Bernanke… Continue reading Bernanke Hints At QE3, Confusion To Follow
The Wall Street Journal – German Parliament Approves Bailout Fund’s Expansion Germany’s parliament Thursday approved by a wide margin legislation to boost the scope and volume of the euro zone’s rescue fund. Lawmakers passed the reform of the European Financial Stability Facility with 523 ‘yes’ votes, while 85 lawmakers voted ‘no’ and three abstained, in… Continue reading The German Bailout Vote
The Wall Street Journal – Call by Fed for Money-Fund Curbs A key Federal Reserve official called for stricter regulation of the money-market mutual-fund industry, saying its vulnerabilities remain a threat to financial stability. “Given the systemic importance of the [money market mutual fund] industry, it is critical that one way or another we make… Continue reading Money Market Fund Regulation
The Financial Times – Spain, Italy and France extend shorting bans Spain, Italy and France have extended bans on the short selling of select banks and other financial stocks. The French and Italian prohibitions are slated to last until November 11, while the Spanish rule remains in force until “market conditions allow” it to be… Continue reading Short Selling Bans: If At First You Don’t Succeed…
<Click on chart for larger image> The Financial Times – Bullish Baltic Dry? Before the financial crisis, the Baltic Dry did track world trade reasonably closely, providing a timely (if not always accurate) measure. After 2009, that link broke down as a glut of new ships ordered before the credit crunch kept rates low even… Continue reading Ignoring The Baltic Dry Index
Bloomberg.com – Jonathan Weil: What Europe’s Leaders Mean When Their Mouths Move To truly see the meaning of the seismic events rapidly reshaping Europe, you must know what the following 10 Euro terms of art mean in plain American English: Finance ministry: A house of worship where government leaders go to pray for bailouts, economic… Continue reading A Guide To Translating European Leaders
The Wall Street Journal – Frederic S. Mishkin: Politicians Are Threatening the Fed’s Independence Who says bipartisanship in Washington is dead? Although Republicans and Democrats can’t agree on how to tame budget deficits, both want to weaken the Federal Reserve’s independence, which bodes ill for the economy…Why are these attempts to interfere in Fed policy-making… Continue reading The Politics Of The Federal Reserve
Bloomberg.com – Euro Crisis Makes Fed Lender of Only Resort as Funding Ebbs The Federal Reserve, chastised by Congress for lending money to foreign institutions including a Libyan-owned bank, is once again the lender of last resort for banks around the world it knows little about. Three years after the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings… Continue reading The Federal Reserve: Lender Of Last Resort
The Wall Street Journal – John H. Cochrane: Last Chance to Save the Euro The European debt discussions always paint the alternatives as either bail out countries (really, bail out their bondholders) or break up the euro. In fact, the euro and the European economic union would be stronger if countries can default. For that… Continue reading Save The Euro