Category Archives: Monetary Policy

Is Gold Money?

Posted on July 13, 2011 by macromon

During today’s Congressional testimony Fed Chairman, Ben Bernanke, was confronted by Rep. Ron Paul with the question, “Is gold money”?  (see video below)  The Chairman answered, “no” and went on to say the reason why central banks hold gold is … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Swan Watch, Crude Oil, Currency, Dollar, Gold, Monetary Policy, Video | Tagged , , , | 15 Comments

Is the Fed the World’s Largest Fixed-Income Hedge Fund?

Posted on June 24, 2011 by macromon

The following data is taken from Congressional testimony of the well respected banking analyst, Bert Ely, illustrates how the Federal Reserve has gone from being a taxpayer subsidized monetary authority to one of the world’s largest and most profitable bank/fixed-income … Continue reading →

Posted in Bonds, Economics, Inflation/Deflation, Monetary Policy | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

U.S. Macro in Three Charts: Credit Flows

Posted on June 13, 2011 by macromon

The U.S. is suffering from insufficient aggregate demand the result of the bursting of the 2004-07 credit bubble.   The consumer led economy financed by borrowing, much of it backed by home equity,  has given way to massive private sector deleveraging … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Fiscal Policy, Monetary Policy, Sovereign Debt, State and Local Government | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

The Great QE2 Flush Out

Posted on June 10, 2011 by macromon

We’ve updated our Treasury flow charts with new data from today’s release of the Federal Reserve’s Flow of Funds Accounts.   The quarterly data are seasonally adjusted and annualized.    They reveal quite an interesting picture. In Q1 2011, the Fed’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Bonds, Budget Deficit, Charts, Dollar, Equities, Monetary Policy, Sovereign Debt | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Quote of the Day: Loose Money Sinks Ships (of State)

Posted on May 9, 2011 by macromon

The evidence of the past three decades should be enough, but you can go back further. In fact, every major financial crisis in the four centuries of capitalism has had its origins in loose money.   – The Sydney Morning … Continue reading →

Posted in Monetary Policy, Quote of the Day | Tagged | Leave a comment

Chart of the Day: Dr. Copper Falls Through the Ice

Posted on May 5, 2011 by macromon

Dr. Copper broke through its support at 4.10 and is below 4.00 for the first time since early December.   Lots of flakes in this chart as head and shoulder patterns are ubiquitous.   Copper is a very crowded trade and some … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Swan Watch, China, Commodities, Credit, Currency, Dollar, Monetary Policy | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

10 Questions for Chairman Bernanke

Posted on April 26, 2011 by macromon

If we were attending the Fed’s historic press conference tomorrow,  here are the ten questions we would ask Chairman Bernanke: 1)  Do you think the new monetary policy tool of the Federal Reserve of paying interest on reserves (IOR) is … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget Deficit, Commodities, Credit, Crude Oil, Currency, Food Prices, Gold, Monetary Policy, Policy | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

WalMart Says “Serious Inflation” Cometh

Posted on April 1, 2011 by macromon

Last week we wrote you better “prepare for sticker shock at WalMart, the Gap, and Costco in the near future.”  In our post,  Inflation Cometh: The End of Cheap Chinese Goods, we cited Li Fung, which sources goods for WalMart,  declaring … Continue reading →

Posted in China, Economics, Monetary Policy | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Chart of the Day: QE2 and the Bernanke Curve?

Posted on March 17, 2011 by macromon

Sure there are fundamental reasons or a story for why commodity prices are moving higher, but let’s see what happens, especially to food and energy,  when if the Fed concludes quantitative easing and long-term yields spike.    Negative real interest rates … Continue reading →

Posted in Chart of the Day, Commodities, Crude Oil, Currency, Fiscal Policy, Monetary Policy, Policy | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Is This Why Bill Gross Dumped Treasuries?

Posted on March 17, 2011 by macromon

A couple of revealing charts from the Fed’s Flow of Funds data.   Both show net flows into Treasuries by creditor type and the Federal Government’s borrowing during each quarter.   Note, the quarterly data is annualized. The first chart illustrates how … Continue reading →

Posted in Bonds, Budget Deficit, Charts, Fiscal Policy, Monetary Policy | Tagged , , | 14 Comments