“Free Market Money – Instead of Political Manipulation”
“Money is the most important commodity in an economic system Indeed, money ‘makes the world go ’round.’ This is because money is the general medium of exchange. We sell our products and services for money, and then use it to buy the products and servic …
READ MORE“Euro Under Pressure As Greek Bonds Slump”
“The euro is slumping against the dollar Wednesday morning as Greek bond prices tumble and their yields surge higher against their German counterparts. The dollar is split against other major currencies, with little change against the yen, a retreat ag …
READ MORE“The Financial Crisis Grinch”
Our friends at the Cato Institute have offered this podcast on the financial crisis. “The Financial Crisis Grinch” Featuring Gerald P. O’Driscoll, Jr. Novermber 24, 2008.
READ MOREHyperinflation
“Inflation is a sustained increase in the aggregate price level. Hyperinflation is very high inflation. Although the threshold is arbitrary, economists generally reserve the term ‘hyperinflation’ to describe episodes when the monthly inflation rate is …
READ MOREThe Seigniorage Curse
“The Seigniorage Curse appears to hollow out the economy by the following manner: First, the premium charged to holders of dollars becomes a new source of accrued, aggregate revenue. This extra capital flowing into the economy is initially seen as a gl …
READ MOREPoliticising money lending is not the path to prosperity
“One part of Alastair Darling’s Budget that appears to have received little attention from the media is his plan for a ‘Credit Adjudication Service’. This new body, it appears, will provide an appeals process for small and medium businesses that have b …
READ MOREMonetary Policy in a World of Uncertain Productivity Growth
“This paper considers inflation forecasts for 2001 under two different assumptions about productivity growth. One assumption, the optimistic one, is that productivity growth has risen above its long-run historical average and that 2001 will see near pr …
READ MOREInflation
“Inflation rates vary from year to year and from currency to currency. Since 1950, the U.S. dollar inflation rate, as measured by the December-to-December change in the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI), has ranged from a low of −0.7 percent (1954) to a …
READ MORE“Obama Pays More Than Buffett”
“The bond market is saying that it’s safer to lend to Warren Buffett than Barack Obama. Two-year notes sold by the billionaire’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. in February yield 3.5 basis points less than Treasuries of similar maturity, according to data comp …
READ MORE“Something Besides Money Growth Causes Inflation?”
“Some economic phenomena can result from a variety of causes. A temporary increase in unemployment, for example, might be caused by a sudden, disruptive change in production technology, or in trade patterns, or in labor or tax laws; or it could be caus …
READ MORE“Giving the Fed New Powers Ignores History”
“The Fed’s own origins are evidence for this point. It is usually argued that the Fed was created to avoid the banking crises that plagued the United States in the late 19th century. That is true to an extent. What it misses is that those crises were t …
READ MOREThe Global Debt Crisis
Recent developments have clearly demonstrated that “there is no such thing as a Keynesian free lunch.” The grim story of fiscal crises afflicting major economies is something that should not be taken lightly. It could happen sooner than most people think if the governments of the US and other debt-ridden countries don’t get their fiscal houses in order.
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