It looks like Ben Bernanke is a Bridgewater client.
Recall that earlier this week we reported that in the May 31 “Daily Observations” letter to select clients, authored by Bridgewater co-CIO Greg Jensen, the world’s biggest hedge had an ominous, if not dire appraisal of the current economic and financial situation facing the US, and concluded that “We Are Bearish On Almost All Financial Assets” Continue reading
LONDON—The economic recovery in the 19-country eurozone lost steam in January, a closely watched survey found Wednesday, a sign that the turmoil in global financial markets is beginning to weigh on business activity.
Financial information company Markit said its purchasing managers’ index — a broad gauge of activity across both the manufacturing and services sectors — fell to a four-month low of 53.6 points in January from 54.3 the previous month.
According to Markit, that means the region has started off the year growing at a modest 0.4 percent quarterly tick. Rates of growth also diverged, with Spain once again leading the pack, followed by Germany. France appears to be stagnating.
The European Central Bank is getting ready to announce details of the unprecedented programme of government bond-buying it hopes will lift the bloc out of recession and a vortex of falling prices.
Convening in Cyprus on Thursday, President Mario Draghi and his 25-member governing council will be signing-off on plans to purchase €60bn-a-month in government and private sector assets first announced in January.
Some Investors See Single Currency Falling to Parity With U.S. Dollar
…
A day after the European Central Bank unveiled its bond-buying program, the single currency still was in free fall, blowing past analysts’ expectations for how low the euro can go.
Some investors now say the euro could fall to the point where it is on equal footing with the U.S. dollar for the first time since it climbed above the buck in late 2002.
“If you would have asked me a few months ago, I would’ve said that parity could be in the cards in the years ahead. Now, we can’t rule it out anymore even by the end of this year,” said Thomas Kressin, head of European foreign exchange at Pacific Investment Management Co., or Pimco, which has $1.68 trillion under management. Continue reading
Many share markets may be riding higher on hopes of European stimulus this week and overlooking plunging oil prices, and even lower global growth targets, but experts say its time that investors woke up to the fact that central bankers aren’t doing a great job.
The Australian share market rose 0.7 per cent in early trade on Wednesday joining a global rally on expectations that the European Central Bank will announce a 1 trillion bond buying program to help revive economic growth. Continue reading
BRUSSELS — The spillover effects of the U.S. central bank unwinding its policy stimulus risk being greater now than in 1994, and that episode highlights the importance of clearly communicating exit strategies from expansionary policies, an ECB policymaker said.
The Federal Reserve is expected to start slowly reducing its bond purchases when it meets later this month, beginning to unwind a policy that has helped foster recovery in the world’s largest economy and buoyed financial markets.
“In early 1994, when the U.S. recovery gained strength, the Fed started a tightening cycle and bond markets crashed not only in the U.S. but also around the world,” European Central Bank Executive Board member Joerg Asmussen said on Tuesday. Continue reading
The Bank of Japan has launched the most daring monetary experiment of modern times, aiming to double the money base within two years to overpower deflation and catapult the economy out of slump.
The blast of money is expected to reignite the yen “carry trade” and flood global markets with up to $2 trillion (£1.3 trillion) of pent-up savings, giving the entire world a shot in the arm. Continue reading
America faces a seminal reality: We are broke, and we are getting broker by the day. This is the real “fiscal cliff” the country is about to jump off, not the artificial one consuming Washington. Instead of confronting our looming insolvency, the electorate voted to take the plunge. It ratified Mr. Obama’s drive to erect the equivalent of a Franco-German welfare state. Consider Obamacare, the massive stimulus, failed green-energy boondoggles, record numbers on food stamps, constant extensions of unemployment benefits, public housing subsidies, unprecedented government spending and free contraception.
Voters chose economic security over individual opportunity, handouts instead of self-reliance, statism over capitalism. Rather than rebuking Mr. Obama, they rewarded him. Continue reading
Global Geopolitics 