Category: US Federal Reserve Bank
The analysis published under this category are as follows.Tuesday, May 07, 2013
Handicapping the Potential Successors to Ben Bernanke / Politics / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Casey_Research
By Paul Brodsky
[Ed. note: This article originally appeared as a guest contribution in the "Midweek Matters" Casey Daily Dispatch.]
A couple of days after the Fed announced Ben Bernanke would not attend the Jackson Hole summit, for the first time in twenty five years, the New York Times (on the first page, no less) ran an in-depth profile of Janet Yellen, the heir apparent to run the Fed. Beneath her profile there were three other candidates "being discussed": Roger Ferguson, Tim Geithner, and Larry Summers.
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Monday, May 06, 2013
Federal Reserve Blows More Market Bubbles / Stock-Markets / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Dr_Ron_Paul
Last week at its regular policy-setting meeting, the Federal Reserve announced it would double down on the policies that have failed to produce anything but a stagnant economy. It was a disappointing, but not surprising, move.
The Fed affirmed that it is prepared to increase its monthly purchases of Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities if things don't start looking up. But actually the Fed has already been buying more than the announced $85 billion per month. Between February and March, the Fed's securities holdings increased $95 billion. From March to April, they increased $100 billion. In all, the Fed has pumped more than a half trillion dollars into the economy since announcing its latest round of "quantitative easing" (QE3) in September 2012.
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Wednesday, March 27, 2013
The Central Bank Lullaby / Politics / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Brady_Willett
Rock-a-bye baby, on the treetop,
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock,
When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall,
And down will come baby, cradle and all.
Why is a song about a severely injured baby and smashed cradle sung to children at night to lull them to sleep? Apparently, because If you sing this popular lullaby often enough the nonsensical violence in the storyline fades and the rhythmically appealing sounds endure.
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Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Do We Really Need the Federal Reserve Bank? / Politics / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Money_Morning
Keith Fitz-Gerald writes: Last week I spent two days speaking to senior government officials and business leaders in Bermuda, which is one of the world's leading international insurance and reinsurance hubs. The men and women in the room are responsible for hundreds of millions in assets worldwide.
I spoke for over an hour on the implications and opportunities of the financial crisis (I'll have specifics for Money Morning readers next week).
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Monday, March 18, 2013
Oz: The Great and Powerful” Perfect Analogy of the Fed / Politics / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Profit_Confidential
Mitchell Clark writes: “Oz: The Great and Powerful” is The Walt Disney Company’s (NYSE/DIS) latest flick about a character named Oscar Diggs who is a con artist. He finds himself in the Land of Oz, where he is a magician that’s ethically challenged. It’s quite the analogy to what’s happening today in the U.S. economy.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Fed's Bubbles to Slaughter Middle Class / Politics / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Michael_Pento
When central bankers dedicate their existence to re-inflating asset bubbles, it shouldn't at all be a surprise to investors that they eventually achieve success. Ben Bernanke has aggressively attempted to prop up the real estate and equity markets since 2008. His efforts to increase the broader money supply and create inflation have finally supported home prices, sent the Dow Jones Industrial average to a record nominal high and propelled the bond bubble to dizzying heights.
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Eating the Fed for Lunch / Politics / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Fred_Sheehan
The lack of interest regarding just how the Federal Reserve will extricate itself and the rest of us may be a matter of self-preservation. There is no way out from its loony, money hypothesis.
It is not ironic that the man responsible for extrication is in a trance. Only such a fuzzy-headed, tweedy thinker would have created the greatest moral hazard in the history of the world.
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Thursday, March 07, 2013
Who Profits From the Fed? / Politics / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: David_Howden
We recently looked at the Federal Reserve’s 2012 results. In particular, we pointed to some positive and negative developments. On a positive note, the Fed managed to shrink down the size of its balance sheet by approximately one-third of a percent. (Hey, it’s a start.) On a negative note, this decrease occurred because banks shifted their holdings of reserves into cash, thus forcing the Fed to sell off some of its assets. I explained that this is a potentially negative result, as the shift into cash brings with it inflationary pressure on prices.
Thursday, March 07, 2013
Bernanke the Crony Bureaucrat / Politics / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Fred_Sheehan
The bureaucrat is similar to the cockroach. Both "species adapt readily to a variety of environments, but prefer warm conditions found within buildings." Both "are among the hardiest insects." (Wikipedia's descriptions, for interested entomologists) Madonna (the exhibitionist) captured the nexus: "I am a survivor. I am like a cockroach, you just can't get rid of me."
Tuesday, March 05, 2013
The Fed’s Monetary Policy of Zero Interest Rates / Politics / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Prof_Rodrigue_Trembl
“If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issuance of their currency, first by inflation and then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the people of all their property until their children will wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered.” Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), 3rd US President
“It is well enough that people … do not understand our banking and monetary system, for if they did, I believe there would be a revolution before tomorrow morning.” Henry Ford (1863-1947), American automobile industrialist
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Saturday, March 02, 2013
Bernanke the Comedian Addicted to Asset Bubbles / Politics / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Joseph_T_Salerno
Ben Bernanke confided on January 14 that he is unaware of any new method of stimulating economic growth. Bernanke said: “As far as I’m aware, there’s no completely new method that we haven’t [already tapped].” So Helicopter Ben has run out of innovative and unconventional ways to create new money. Lest you be tempted to breathe a bit easier, however, rest assured that the now conventional method of quantitative easing, involving the Fed’s monthly purchase of $85 billion worth of mortgage-backed and U.S. government securities, seems to be working just fine according to Bernanke and he foresees its continuation. Noting the stubbornly high unemployment rate combined with the low inflation rate in the U.S. economy, Bernanke stated, “That is the case for being aggressive, which we are trying to do.” Although he is “cautiously optimistic,” he does promise to closely monitor the risks, efficacy, costs, and benefits of this inflationary policy.
Friday, March 01, 2013
The U.S. Fed's Tightening Pipe Dream / Interest-Rates / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Peter_Schiff
Testifying before the US Senate this past Tuesday, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke made an extraordinary claim about its bloated balance sheet: "We could exit without ever selling by letting it run off." What Bernanke means here is that the Fed could simply hold its Treasuries and agency bonds until they mature, at which point the government would then be forced to pay the Fed back the principal amount. Through this process, the Fed's unprecedented and inflationary position will be gradually and placidly unwound.
Friday, March 01, 2013
The Recent Fed FOMC Minutes Should Anger Every Investor / Stock-Markets / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Casey_Research
With gold dropping nearly 3% on February 20, we at Casey Research had to look closely at the FOMC minutes, which were partially responsible for that movement. Since there are quite a few highlights, I have split this analysis into three sections: the confusion over the minutes in the market; the ambiguous language hinting at deep problems; and a few quotes to make your blood boil.
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
No Easy Escape for the Fed / Interest-Rates / US Federal Reserve Bank
By: Michael_Pento
I've said since the beginning of 2009 that any future "recovery" experienced by the markets and the economy would be derived through massive government spending and Federal Reserve debt monetization. Therefore, the logical conclusion must be that when or if fiscal and monetary austerity is eventually adopted, the economy and markets would crash.