ONE-TWENTY TWO: Trading Financial Markets
Exploring the poetry in financial markets for students of money and economy since the year 2000.
(This is a adapted repost from Inflation Watch) Bank of England (BoE) Monetary Policy Committee Member Adam Posen tells CNBC in an interview (see below or click here) that stubbornly high inflation is keeping the Bank of England members up at night. However, Posen prefers this situation to deflation (as all central bankers would). Slack … Read more
I continue to read that the Swiss franc has been gaining on the euro because of the euro’s weakness. This observation appears correct when reviewing the euro’s slide against the dollar since early December (EUR/USD) and the parallel appreciation in the franc versus the euro (EUR/CHF). Yet, the euro has essentially stabilized versus the dollar … Read more
Some fun facts: Gold (GLD) is up 18% for 2009. The S&P 500 is up 17% for 2009. The S&P 500 has essentially gone nowhere in “real gold” terms. The angriest bears out there might declare that the stock market rally is merely a mirage, the result of the decreasing value of paper currency. I … Read more
Last week, I noticed media headlines screaming the horrible news that “Crude steel output in 2009 to hit lowest level in 40 years.” As I searched for the direct source of this quote from Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI), I stumbled upon its “Preliminary Report on Iron and Steel, Non-ferrous metal, and … Read more
On Friday, Federal Reserve Governor wrote an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal titled “The Fed’s Job Is Only Half Over.” In this piece, he suggested that while “…longer-term inflation expectations are stable, and economic conditions are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels of the federal-funds rate for an extended period…prudent risk management indicates … Read more
This morning, the Bank of England released its minutes from the September meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee. From my reading, it contained no new news on the prospects for negative interest rates. The “relief” from the minutes has so far lifted the pound against the euro, the U.S. dollar, and even the yen. I … Read more
I know it seems strange that on another day when it seems like stocks are destined for infinite glory that I am adding to my existing holdings in TIP, the iShares Barclays TIPS Bond Fond (TIPS = Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities). I also remain overall bearish so a steep correction in the stock market will probably … Read more