What a difference can a few days make! When on February 2 it was announced that wages in the U.S. rose by 2.9 percent (and that, after a revision, wages in December rose a bit more than previously estimated), stock market prices began to swing violently. Stock market indexes lost hundreds of points per minute and long-term interest rates rose to heights last seen in 2014. At times, investors even began to believe that the official rate in the US will be raised four times and not three times, as
... »Fed Must Get Used to Higher Growth, Increasing Inflation
February 28 2018
Cracks Are Beginning to Appear in Credit Markets
February 21 2018
After a tumultuous week on major stock markets (the Dow Jones index fell by more than 1,000 points in a single trading day), stock prices rebounded somewhat. But the damage on credit markets is irreversible. Despite the fact that, for now, it seems that the correction was short-lived, this was only a taste of what is coming. Interest rates, both short-term and long-term rates, are on the rise and the “junk bond” market is starting to implode. It appears that the floodgates have been opened
... »The Stock Market Declines: Correction or Crash?
February 13 2018
Last week on Monday, the Dow Jones index lost more than a thousand points for the first time in history, a drop of 4.6%. This correction followed a decline in stock prices that had already started on the Friday before, although few investors had anticipated that the index would fall by this much.
... »The Crisis Ended but Policy Remains in Crisis Mode
February 7 2018
Finally. After a few disappointing and downright poor years of economic growth, we concluded an economically excellent year a few days ago. And, as it appears now, we will inaugurate an equally strong year. A good moment to celebrate, right?... »