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A Few Election Thoughts – Early Warning What I see happening is this: the public is aware, rather inchoately, that things are going badly wrong and that the life they are accustomed to is under threat, but they have no idea what to do. The parties, by and large, have failed to diagnose the roots … Read more

Fed Asks Dealers to Estimate Size, Impact of Debt Purchases – Bloomberg The Federal Reserve asked bond dealers and investors for projections of central bank asset purchases over the next six months, along with the likely effect on yields, as it seeks to gauge the possible impact of new efforts to spur growth. (tags: monetary_policy … Read more

Pound Set for Pain as Cameron Cuts Send King to Printing Press – Bloomberg History suggests sterling’s losses will be sustained while Osborne implements cuts that are bigger than those announced by Geoffrey Howe when he was Margaret Thatcher’s chancellor in 1981, according to UBS. The pound lost 20 percent against the dollar that year … Read more

Kass: More on Screwflation – TheStreet …to the extent that quantitative easing helps increase asset prices, by definition and in fact, this also means that it increases the price of commodities and other inputs as well. (It's already happened again.) Shouldn't the benefit of the wealth effect be offset by an expense effect (not to … Read more

Spain's Solar Deals on Edge of Bankruptcy as Subsidies Founder – Bloomberg …more than 50,000 other Spanish solar entrepreneurs face financial disaster as the policy makers contemplate cutting the price guarantees that attracted their investment in the first place…by failing to control the program’s cost, Zapatero saddled Spain with at least 126 billion euros of … Read more

China Escalates Trade Fight With U.S. on Subsidies – NYTimes.com It is highly unusual for an official of Mr. Zhang’s standing to convene a news conference on short notice and denounce the American government in such blunt terms. Should the Americans pursue the subsidy issue with the World Trade Organization, Mr. Zhang said, “the only … Read more

DEALTALK-5N Plus on First Solar's radar as supply crunch looms | Energy & Oil | Reuters First Solar accounts for about 70 pct of 5N Plus' revenue; GE, others entering will exacerbate CdTe supply crunch; CdTe demand seen at 260 metric tons by yr-end; 5N Plus can produce 250 metric tons annually; 5N Plus seen … Read more

This emerging market carry trade is going to cause serious problems – Moneylife: Personal Finance Magazine According to The Institute of International Finance, the capital flows to emerging markets have risen to $825 billion as a result of the ultra-low monetary policy in rich countries. With meagre yields in their own countries, great herds of … Read more

Firefighters watch as home burns to the ground | WPSD Local 6 – Paducah KY | Local The homeowner, Gene Cranick, said he offered to pay whatever it would take for firefighters to put out the flames, but was told it was too late. They wouldn't do anything to stop his house from burning. Each … Read more

How Fake Money Saved Brazil : Planet Money : NPR (Complete story/podcast is on Planet Money's podcast – see right panel) This is a story about how an economist and his buddies tricked the people of Brazil into saving the country from rampant inflation. They had a crazy, unlikely plan, and it worked… You have … Read more