Category Archives: Economics

COTD: Starbucks Latte Cross-Country Index

Posted on July 1, 2017 by macromon

The folowing chart illustrates the price of a tall Starbucks Latte across countries based on the relative prices of other goods.  Note it’s more than just a currency purchasing power parity measure such as the Big Mac Index. But how … Continue reading →

Posted in Charts, Economics, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 1 Comment

History’s Biggest “Butterfly Effect” Occurred On This Day

Posted on June 27, 2017 by macromon

The butterfly effect is the concept that small causes can have large effects. Initially, it was used with weather prediction but later the term became a metaphor used in and out of science. In chaos theory, the butterfly effect is … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Geopolitical, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 37 Comments

Reflexivity And Why The Fed Must Sell The Long End

Posted on June 13, 2017 by macromon

The yield curve is flattening like a pancake.   Tightening cycles tend to do that. Furthermore, the effective float of 10-year and longer U.S. notes and bonds is relatively small and greatly distorts the bond market signal.   We have written … Continue reading →

Posted in Bonds, Economics, Monetary Policy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 31 Comments

Of Course, There’s No Inflation. NOT!

Posted on June 13, 2017 by macromon

Okay,  before the emails hit – it’s peak load pricing or a relative price increase. There, satisfied? Buyer pays $133K for two courtside tickets to Game 5 of NBA Finals A person paid $133,000, including fees, for two floor seats … Continue reading →

Posted in Demographics, Economics, Inflation/Deflation, Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Chart and Quote of the Day: Death and Uncle Joe

Posted on June 5, 2017 by macromon

One death is a tragedy; one million is a statistic.  — Joseph Stalin Man, our spending priorities are out of whack.   Connect the dots.

Posted in Economics, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 3 Comments

The World’s Fastest Growing Economies

Posted on May 2, 2017 by macromon

We have updated with the latest 2017 estimates and 2018-22 average annual forecasts and ranked the world’s country 2017 GDP forecasts in the ginormous table below.  The data are from the April  2017 IMF’s World Economic Outlook.   A little bump … Continue reading →

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QOTD: Inflation Cometh

Posted on April 28, 2017 by macromon

The key takeaway from this morning’s punk GDP report: Meanwhile, Inflation advanced at a 2.4% annual pace in the first quarter, according to the personal-consumption expenditures, or PCE index. The PCE index–the preferred inflation gauge of the Federal Reserve–easily topped … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Inflation/Deflation, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The Great Recession, Debt Growth, and Economic Policy

Posted on March 30, 2017 by macromon

Look no further than the latest Flow of Funds data from the Federal Reserve Board to get a snapshot of what’s happened in the U.S. economy during the new millennium. Because “credit is the mother’s milk of the economy” let’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Politics, Uncategorized | Tagged | 2 Comments

Bad Santa, Bad Globalization

Posted on March 23, 2017 by macromon

Go no further than the following segment on Sunday’s 6o Minutes about imported labor to understand the creation of Trumpism and the mess we find ourselves in today.  UCSF, part of the University of California, the largest private employer in  … Continue reading →

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