Comment Jim Bianco was on Bloomberg Asia discussing the IEA’s decision to release oil from the strategic reserves. To view the interview click on the picture above. To view any of our recent interviews click here. Reuters – Bids for 30 mln barrels of SPR oil due by June 29 Companies will submit their bids… Continue reading The IEA Does QE3?
The Big Picture (Blog) – Frederick Sheehan:Sick Minds Social Security payments must be reduced. Promises were made – by lawmakers – that are beyond the government’s (the taxpayer’s) ability to pay. The latest scheme is a ploy by cowardly elected representatives who surreptitiously cut benefits for those most in need: the old and the frail.… Continue reading Measuring Inflation
Bloomberg.com – Bernanke Public Approval Falls to Lowest Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke’s standing with the public has slid to its lowest level in almost two years of polling on the issue, even as faith in the Federal Reserve holds up. Bernanke is viewed favorably by 30 percent of those polled, compared with 26… Continue reading Bernanke
The Financial Times – Treasury yields signal deflation risk In spite of that jump, the yield on five-year notes fell to 1.43 per cent in New York. It means five-year yields are not pricing in any risk premium for inflation, though a measure of core inflation based on personal spending and consumption is running at… Continue reading Yields
The Economist – America’s debt ceiling: The mother of all tail risks A US technical default would convulse markets. Nothing else is certain The possibility has not gone unnoticed. Trading in credit-default swaps (CDSs) on Treasury securities has picked up and the price of protection against default, as measured by the CDS spread, has risen… Continue reading Debt Ceiling Debate
The Economist – Celebrity hedge-fund managers: Kapow! THE superheroes of finance seem to have lost some of their powers. Several of the hedge-fund industry’s most exalted names are beset by problems more associated with mere mortals. Take John Paulson of Paulson & Co, a $37 billion hedge fund. He became famous after he bet against… Continue reading Hedge Funds
The Financial Times – Moody’s warns on Italian banks Moody’s has changed its outlook on 13 mid-sized and smaller Italian banks to negative and warned it could downgrade the long-term debt ratings of 16 others following its announcement last week that it had put the country’s sovereign debt on review for possible downgrade. The move… Continue reading Moody’s And Italian Banks
The Economist – The euro crisis: If Greece goes… The opportunity for Europe’s leaders to avoid disaster is shrinking fast THE European Union seems to have adopted a new rule: if a plan is not working, stick to it. Despite the thousands protesting in Athens, despite the judders in the markets, Europe’s leaders have a… Continue reading Greece
<Click on picture for larger image> Bloomberg.com – Bernanke Leaves Door Open to Further Easing Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke left the door open to a fresh shot of monetary stimulus should the economic rebound he’s predicting fail to materialize. The Fed would be “prepared to take additional action, obviously, if conditions warranted,” including… Continue reading The FOMC Statement
The Wall Street Journal – Bailout Needs Banks’ Help Seeking to head off a potentially destabilizing Greek default, European governments began the delicate task of convincing their major banks to voluntarily accept losses on their holdings of Greek debt. In both Germany and France, finance-ministry officials met with representatives of their respective countries’ leading banks… Continue reading Greece Turns To The Banks
Real Time Economics (WSJ Blog) – NY Fed Releases Details of Reinvestment Program In the wake of the Federal Reserve‘s decision to keep alive a program that reinvests the proceeds of securities held on the central bank’s books into Treasury debt, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York has offered details about how that will… Continue reading The Federal Reserve’s Reinvestment Program