Category: Business Columnists

On the Path to Hyperinflation

October 7, 2022
Business & MarketsBusiness ColumnistseconomyFederal Reservehyperinflationinflationinterest ratesrecession
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Commentary  I have had a series of conversations lately on how did we, the world, get to this point? I think that it’s a valid question, considering how well things were in the 1990s after the Soviet Union had collapsed. The really interesting follow-up question is: Has this deterioration been a series of mere random…

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The Pink-Collar Worker Crisis

October 7, 2022
AnalysisBusiness & MarketsBusiness Columnistsjob marketlabor participationlabor shortagelockdownsmandatesOpinionPandemic Responsepink-collar workerU.S. economy
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Commentary The first time I heard the phrase “pink collar worker” was two days ago from The Atlantic, which published fascinating data on what it describes as mass burnout among nurses, childcare workers, teachers, and other women-dominated professions. The phrase itself dates from the 1970s—the female version of “blue collar” one supposes—and I’m oddly surprised…

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Federal Financial Mess

October 7, 2022
Business & MarketsBusiness ColumnistsCBOGDPOpinionspendingThinking About ChinaViewpoints
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Commentary Even before the recent spate of spending legislation, the authoritative Congressional Budget Office (CBO) warned of the precarious state of Washington’s finances. Its figures show that the relentless growth in entitlements will push up budget deficits and add to the nation’s already heavy accumulation of public debt. By 2032, the CBO concluded, outstanding government…

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The Eurodollar Is What’s Happening—Not Quantitative Tightening or Rate Hikes

October 6, 2022
Business & MarketsBusiness Columnistseconomic policieseconomyeurodollarFederal Reserveinflationinterest ratesOpinionquantitative tighteningrate hikesrecessionViewpoints
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Commentary  What is wreaking so much havoc all over the world? You’ve probably heard that the U.S. dollar is rising often precipitously, which means any currencies caught on the other side of it—frankly, all of them—are being swept into crisis. This isn’t the first time, either, because during the last eight years or so this…

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Say Goodbye to the Labor Shortage

October 5, 2022
Business & MarketsBusiness Columnistsinflationjob creationjob marketlabor participationlabor shortagerecessionU.S. economyunemployment rate
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Commentary It was good, or at least fascinating, while it lasted. The labor shortage is ending. In the entirety of the post-lockdown period, labor markets have been behaving strangely. We’ve seen incredibly low unemployment numbers (3.6 percent) that everyone has known do not tell the whole story. That figure only calculates people in the market…

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When Will the Fed Blink?

October 4, 2022
AnalysisBank of EnglandBusiness & MarketsBusiness ColumnistsFederal ReserveinflationOpinionrecessionU.S. economy
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Commentary Let’s understand the significance of the Bank of England’s announcement that it would start buying $65 billion in UK public debt. It represents an about-face on the previous policy of using central bank power to sop up excess liquidity in hopes of getting inflation under control. It’s like crossing a river halfway and then…

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Superbubble’s Final Act? Or Is This Time Different?

October 3, 2022
bear marketbubbleBusiness & MarketsBusiness ColumnistscorrectioncryptocurrencyeconomyinflationMarketsOpinionrecessionstocksUSViewpoints
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Commentary Is this the “Superbubble’s Final Act?” Such was a fascinating piece of commentary recently from Jeremy Grantham, famed investor and co-founder of GMO, who wrote: “Only a few market events in an investor’s career matter; among the most important of all are superbubbles. These superbubbles are events unlike any others: while there are only a…

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What Do Zoning Laws and the Fed Have to Do With National Security?

October 3, 2022
Business & MarketsBusiness ColumnistsmortageOpinionrentThinking About ChinaU.S. home pricesViewpointszoning law
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Commentary Inflation is hitting us at the gas pump, supermarket, as well as mortgage and rent. While the Federal Reserve (Fed) tries to beat inflation by increasing interest rates, that actually makes mortgage and rent payments worse, not better. Average mortgage payments at the mean have increased by almost 60 percent since the fourth quarter…

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Hong Kong Economy in Deep Water as Interest Rates Rise in Tandem With China and US Markets

October 3, 2022
Asia & PacificBusiness & MarketsBusiness ColumnistsChinaCPIHK BusinessHong KonginflationUS Federal ReserveWorld
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The economy has been tense all over the world due to fuel and gas price increases, the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, and rampant inflation. In response to the high domestic inflation, the U.S. Federal Reserve increased the interest rate five times this year. Since Hong Kong’s system depends on the linked exchange rate…

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The Biggest Problem China Faces Isn’t Real Estate

October 3, 2022
Business & MarketsBusiness ColumnistsChinafixed exchange rateOpinionSovereign currency policythe USThinking About China
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Commentary After it joined the World Trade Organization in 2000 and anchored the Chinese yuan (a.k.a. renminbi) to the U.S. dollar, China linked its economy to the United States. Enforcing a fixed exchange rate regime with strict capital controls, China benefited from large inflows and relatively low-interest rates due largely to the low-interest rate environment…

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