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Quick thoughts on Fed policy and the potential for QE
Last August, the Fed went for what I call "rate easing". If the economy weakens this year what will it do? I am not convinced it will be quantitative easing. In general, I think the Fed, while looking to support the growth side of its dual…
Sweden and Norway are reporting strong economic numbers
Sweden reported stronger business and manufacturing confidence numbers earlier this week, but the Feb retail sales report was a more significant catalyst. There are four new developments from Norway today. Individually and collectively,…
Samuelson Flunked Bernanke
The forecasting proficiency of central bankers is a topical issue. At least, a friend asked if I could help with a list of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke's predictions. The list stops in 2008, although he has been no more accurate…
What developments in Spain and the Netherlands mean for European policy outcomes
I have a number of links coming up in today's daily commentary. The likely topic will be US interest rates. But there is a second topic I wanted to riff on so I am posting here separately about fiscal woes in Spain and the Netherlands.
Fixation with QE3 Tells You The Market Sweet Spot Is Ending
A growing number of indicators suggest that the market is running out of steam. Equities have been in a temporary sweet spot where investors have been factoring in a self-sustaining U.S. economic recovery while also anticipating the…
Dollar Under Pressure at Month End
The focus now ahead of the weekend is three-fold. First, Spain is set to unveil its 2012 budget. Full details will not be available until it is presented to parliament next Tuesday. However, the overall savings is what investors are most…
Daily Commentary: Spain
This is a day of the general strike in Spain, so a large number of the links below are about Spain and the situation there, in both English and Spanish.
Video: General Strike in Spain
Below is a video of scenes from the least peaceful parts of today's nationwide general strike in Spain. Other links are below. In general, the protests were peaceful.
Dutch Update: Problem Unresolved, Pressure Mounts
One of our thematic points for Q2 is the increased importance of political factors for the investment climate. Dutch developments are consistent with this and the risk that the government collapses is rising.
Transcript: Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke Interview with Diane Sawyer
Below is a video excerpt of the interview US Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke conducted with ABC News' Diane Sawyer earlier this week. Below that is the transcript.