At the 16 March FOMC meeting, US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell emphasised the central bank's determination to lower inflation towards the 2% target. To this end, the FOMC raised the Federal Funds rate by 25bp, and Chairman Powell indicated similar rate hikes should be expected at future meetings. Further, he warned the FOMC was [...]
Category: USA
Fed to Tighten Till Markets Pushback
18 January 2022 In December, the US Federal Reserve abandoned its belief that rising inflation was "transitory", and signaled that monetary tightening may commence earlier that expected. In their defense, the extreme imbalances in aggregate supply and demand in both labour and goods markets (e.g. supply chain disruptions) during the 2020/21 economic recovery have complicated [...]
Mid-2021 Review: Inflation, Scarring & Tapering
6 June 2021 Typically, investors must juggle numerous factors while making their global asset allocation decisions. In this regard, the next 12-18 months may be more straightforward. By now, no one doubts massive monetary and fiscal stimulus will produce a sharp, V-shaped 6% global recovery in 2021, with China and the USA leading the way [...]
Bitcoin: What it Is, and What It’s Not!
20 May 2021 In the next few weeks, I will consider the future of money. In particular, I will evaluate the evolution of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC), as well as the potential role crypto-currencies may play in the future monetary system. Today, let's deal with the elephant in the room: Bitcoin! The world's largest [...]