The Federal Reserve’s Ice Bucket Challenge… Remember a few years ago when people raised money for charity by challenging others to pour buckets of icy water over their heads? Last week, the Federal Reserve poured a bucket of ice water over the United States stock market. Randall W. Forsyth of Barron’s explained: “In the past […]
Here’s a riddle: How can inflation be 8.5 percent and 6.5 percent at the same time? The answer is that it depends on how you measure it. Determining how quickly prices are rising or falling – and where they may be headed in the future – is not simple. In the United States, millions of […]
The first quarter of 2022 was jam-packed with volatility-inducing events: rising inflation, war in Ukraine, rising interest rates, sanctions on Russia, and a new COVID-19 outbreak in China. Here’s a brief review of what happened during: Inflation continued to rise. At the start of the year, consumers and investors were primarily concerned about inflation. In […]
Checking in on the Federal Reserve. Among other things, Congress asks the Federal Reserve to use its tools to promote price stability and maximum employment. Last week, economic data provided information about both. Inflation continued to increase Price stability means ensuring the prices of goods and services increase at a slow and stable pace. Last […]
Be careful what you ask for, you just might get it. In early March, almost two-thirds of Americans who participated in a Nationwide Retirement Institute survey said the Federal Reserve (Fed) should take more aggressive action on inflation. The next week, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) did just that. It increased the target range […]
Markets were reassured by the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC)’s actions last week. The FOMC met on March 16 and did exactly what most people expected them to do. They raised the federal funds target rate by a quarter point. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the Fed expects to continue to raise rates and […]
Investor optimism is quite low. In just two weeks, the war in Ukraine has changed the status of 1.3 million people – approximately the number of people who live in Philadelphia or Phoenix – from citizen to refugee, reported Rachel Pannett and colleagues at The Washington Post. Investors have been sharply focused on the shorter-term […]
The world is adapting to a changing reality. As the war in Ukraine intensified last week, financial markets grappled with uncertainty. “After watching financial markets gyrate from hour to hour as Russia attacked Ukraine, I was getting dizzy myself,” reported Jeff Sommer of The New York Times. “People in Ukraine were dying. The Russian president, […]
Last week, Russia invaded Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision ignited the biggest military conflict in Europe since World War II. The war is already exacting a terrible human toll. It has also disrupted global markets and raised questions about the potential economic impact on Russia, Ukraine and the rest of the world.1,2 The Russia […]