Topic: Inflation

“Bank of England’s Mervyn King Warns Over Inflation”

– July 28, 2010

“Prices rises have consistently defied the Bank’s expectations of a slowdown, adding to pressure on households as wage growth remains weak and the Government introduces a strict austerity package. The Bank’s rate-setters are charged with keeping inflat …

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“Money Dominates”

– July 27, 2010

“Financial panics are usually followed by sharp economic snap backs. The post-Panic of 2008 has failed to follow this typical “V-shaped” economic recovery pattern. After almost two years, the U.S. economy remains mired in an anemic recovery, with a cur …

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“Some Unpleasant Monetarist Arithmetic”

– July 22, 2010

“In his presidential address to the American Economic Association (AEA), Milton Friedman (1968) warned not to expect too much from monetary policy. In particular, Friedman argued that monetary policy could not permanently influence the levels of real o …

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Summer Reading III

– July 22, 2010

According to Reinhart and Rogoff, “for the advanced economies during 1800-2008, the picture that emerges is one of serial banking crises.” In This Time is Different, the authors bring us up to the present by examining the history of banking crises. Ban …

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The Great Reflation

– July 21, 2010

“The financial crisis, the speculative bubble leading up to it, and the aftermath have proven once again just how true the old saying is that if you want to know what’s going on in the financial system, watch the banks. The banking system has always be …

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“The Gold Standard: A Principled Case”

– July 20, 2010

“In recent months, we have witnessed fierce arguments between, on the one side, those who defend the current system of “fiat money,” in which, as John Maynard Keynes stated, money “is created and issued by the State, but is not convertible by law into …

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“Economic Recovery Slower Than Expected”

– July 14, 2010

“Federal Reserve leaders marked down their expectations for growth and inflation last month, concluding that the economic recovery is proceeding more slowly than they had thought in the spring but that the slowdown did not warrant new policy actions. B …

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Gold Wars

– July 14, 2010

“This book is much more than a chronicle of gold wars. It is also an account of the historical failure of ‘Esperanto money.’ Over a hundred years ago, a Polish physician by the name of Ludovik Lazarus Zamenhof (1859-1917) created a synthetic language i …

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“Pound Rises After Data Show Higher-Than-Expected Inflation”

– July 13, 2010

“The pound rose against the dollar, snapping a three-day drop, as reports showed inflation above economists’ forecasts and higher retail sales, stoking speculation that the Bank of England may raise interest rates. “Although inflation is supposed to be …

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“Honest Money through bearer shares, a proposal”

– July 9, 2010

“Nobody understands money, least of all economists. Too sweeping a statement? Perhaps. But every analysis of the workings of monetary systems that I have ever read has been seriously in error at one or more crucial points. This is true not only of the …

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Hayek on the need to win the ideas war to bring sound money back

– July 8, 2010

In the preface to one of his books, Hayek wrote that “Indeed I must admit that–although I am a convinced believer in the international gold standard–I regard the prospects of its restoration in the near future not without some concern. Nothing would …

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“Britain’s Inflation Pain Poses Risk for Recovery”

– July 7, 2010

“Committee members at the Bank of England and some economists have been puzzled by persistently high inflation in Britain, causing some concerns that the country’s recovery might stagnate. Unlike in the United States and in countries that share the eur …

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