Analysis Topic: Interest Rates and the Bond Market
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Friday, May 06, 2011
ECB Interest Rates, Nothing New, No Problems / Interest-Rates / ECB Interest Rates
By: Axel_Merk
After raising interest rates by 0.25% a month ago, the European Central Bank (ECB) left interest rates unchanged at today's meeting of its Governing Council. The press conference that followed was held in Helsinki; Finland just elected a new government that may block the aid package put together for Portugal. Adjusting to the Nordic spirit of not wasting time with small talk, ECB head Trichet was very much to the point with his answers:
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Sunday, May 01, 2011
U.S. Treasury And Fed Put Out Cash, Raising Fist Pumping Crowd For Ben / Interest-Rates / US Interest Rates
By: PhilStockWorld
Courtesy of Lee Adler at the Wall Street Examiner : The market waltzed through a week of heavy Treasury auction supply, but it did not have to pay the piper until Friday and Monday, May 2, when all the new paper was due to settle. Thursday’s settlement actually saw bills paid down by $11 billion. That and $16 billion in POMO gave the markets plenty of juice for Ben’s coming out party. The US Government, just like Colonel Kadaffy, sent out wads of cash to its minions to insure that cheering, fist pumping crowds would show up for Ben’s appearance before the scripted, adoring mob of ink stained wretches. It was sickening. And I’m not even talking about the so called reporters in the room with him. I’m talking about the security market apparatus. Anyone who dared protest that the market show had gone too far was beaten to a pulp. Even venerable bear David Rosenberg of Gluskin Sheff was cowed into submission.
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Sunday, May 01, 2011
Emerging Markets Central Banks Continue Trend of Tightening Interest Rates / Interest-Rates / International Bond Market
By: CentralBankNews
The past week saw 11 central banks announce monetary policy decisions, with just 3 making adjustments to interest rates. All 3 policy moves were tightening from emerging markets: Colombia + 25bps to 3.75%, Vietnam +100bps, and Russia +25bps to 8.25%. Meanwhile those that held rate unchanged were: Israel 3.00% Botswana 9.50% US 0.25% Namibia 6.00% New Zealand 2.50% Japan 0.10% Hong Kong 0.50% and Egypt 8.25%.
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Friday, April 29, 2011
Fed Launches the Most Fraudulent Market Manipulating Scheme Yet / Interest-Rates / Market Manipulation
By: Dr_Jeff_Lewis
The Federal Reserve is up to its fraudulent games. In this latest round of open market operations, the Federal Reserve is not only engaging in manipulation of the credit default swap market, but also paying off its allies in the ultimate scam of creating low-risk, high returns for hedge fund managers.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Plummeting U.S. Dollar, A New Wave of Treasuries and Toxic Waste / Interest-Rates / US Bonds
By: Bob_Chapman
We believe there will be something similar to a QE3 by another name and the Fed will probably have to create some $2.5 trillion to buy Treasuries, Agencies, and toxic waste and perhaps inject funds into the economy. Japan certainly won’t be a buyer and probably will be a seller. China has indicated that they won’t be purchasers in the future either. The question also arises concerning the continued purchase of these securities by countries in the oil producing Gulf States, which are in turmoil. The three countries make up 45% of Treasury purchases.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Did Ben Bernanke Hint at QE3 During Fed Press Conference? / Interest-Rates / Quantitative Easing
By: Money_Morning
Keith Fitz-Gerald writes:
While the first press conference ever held by U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke grabbed most of the headlines this afternoon (Wednesday), it was the post-meeting statement issued earlier in the day that grabbed my attention.
In particular, I zeroed in on the part about the policymaking Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) regularly reviewing "the size and composition of its securities holdings in light of incoming information and is prepared to adjust those holdings as needed to best foster maximum employment and price stability."
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Thursday, April 28, 2011
US Debt Limit Cognitive Dissonance / Interest-Rates / US Debt
By: Brian_Bloom
Cognitive dissonance is an uncomfortable feeling caused by holding conflicting ideas simultaneously. The theory of cognitive dissonance proposes that people have a motivational drive to reduce dissonance. They do this by changing their attitudes, beliefs, and actions.[2] Dissonance is also reduced by justifying, blaming, and denying. It is one of the most influential and extensively studied theories in social psychology. (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_dissonance )
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Fed Holds Policy Rate Steady, Signals Intention to Complete Asset Purchases and Maintain Balance Sheet Size / Interest-Rates / US Interest Rates
By: Asha_Bangalore
Yesterday's post-FOMC meeting analysis has two components: policy statement and Chairman Bernanke's press conference. Starting with the policy statement, the Fed held the federal funds rate unchanged at the narrow band of 0 to ¼ percent. There were no dissents, although in recent speeches, Fed Presidents Plosser and Fisher (both voting members) had voiced their concern about imminent inflationary pressures.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
U.S. Debt Saturation and Money Illusion / Interest-Rates / US Debt
By: Gordon_T_Long
Most of the clearly evident financial problems that surround us today stem from one cause - Debt Saturation.
Most, intuitively, sense this to be a correct assessment but few can either prove it or articulate it to the less sophisticated. Let me arm you to be the "Nostradamus" amongst your friends and colleagues in explaining the problem and what the future therefore foretells.
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Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Financial Press Talking Heads Focus on Bernanke's QE2 Money Printing Speech / Interest-Rates / Quantitative Easing
By: Nadeem_Walayat
The mainstream press talking heads that repeatedly rely on near always wrong ivory tower academics that is further regurgitated at length by the BlogosFear will today be focused on the latest utterances from Fed Chairman, Ben Bernanke, as if by magic he is going to pull new rabbits out of the hat that will surprise the financial markets with rumours of the early end of QE2.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Nominal Yield (minus) TIPS = Inflation Expectations / Interest-Rates / Inflation
By: Tony_Pallotta
One way to determine inflation expectations is to take the treasury or nominal yield (not inflation adjusted) and subtract the TIPS or real yield (inflation adjusted). The difference of the two is the expected inflation.
Nominal Yield (minus) TIPS = Inflation expectation
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Tuesday, April 26, 2011
What Exactly is the Function of the Federal Reserve Bank? / Interest-Rates / Central Banks
By: EWI
What exactly is the function of the Fed? If it's to help the U.S. economy grow steadily, then how come in 2007-2009 we had the biggest stock market crash in decades followed by "the Great Recession" and a worldwide financial crisis?
For answers, let's turn to someone who has spent a considerable amount of time studying the Fed and its functions: EWI's president Robert Prechter.
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Tuesday, April 26, 2011
How the Fed Could Kill the U.S. Dollar Tomorrow / Interest-Rates / Quantitative Easing
By: Money_Morning
Martin Hutchinson writes:
Months or years from now, when analysts are studying the death of the U.S. dollar, they'll look back and see that the greenback's demise began on a specific day - Wednesday, April 27, 2011.
As in ... tomorrow.
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Monday, April 25, 2011
U.S. Waking Up to Economic Realities / Interest-Rates / US Debt
By: Dr_Ron_Paul
Last week the financial markets were roiled by Standard & Poor's announcement that they will change their outlook on the fiscal health of the United States over the next two years from "stable" to "negative". The administration decried this decision as political. However, it seems the only political thing about this decision is the fact that it took so long. The Washington Post recently reported that the White House and the Treasury Department put tremendous pressure on S&P not to do this.
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Monday, April 25, 2011
Warning: Investors Still Confident in the US Bond Market / Interest-Rates / US Bonds
By: Bill_Bonner
First let us catch up with a news report from earlier this week. Bloomberg:
April 18 (Bloomberg) – Standard & Poor’s put a “negative” outlook on the AAA credit rating of the US, citing a “material risk” the nation’s leaders will fail to deal with rising budget deficits and debt.
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Sunday, April 24, 2011
Global Monetary Policy Tightening / Interest-Rates / Central Banks
By: Submissions
centralbanknews writes: Global monetary policy tightening continued through the past week. Central Banks that increased interest rates included those of: Thailand +25bps to 2.75%, Sweden +25bps to 1.75%, and Brazil +25bps to 12.00%. Meanwhile those that opted to hold interest rates unchanged were: Hungary at 6.00%, Iceland at 4.25%, and Turkey at 6.25%. Aside from interest rate changes the week also saw another 50 basis point increase in China's required reserve ratio, bringing the average ratio for large banks to 20.50%, and the Central Bank of Turkey increased two of its reserve ratios by 100bps. Elsewhere the Belarusian central bank instituted a secondary currency market, taking a step in the direction of a freely floating currency.
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Sunday, April 24, 2011
Why the Fed Must End QE2 on April 27th / Interest-Rates / Quantitative Easing
By: Dian_L_Chu
The Federal Reserve has lost all credibility on Wall Street, and most of the American public with the absolute refusal to recognize the dire effects on asset prices that QE2 has created. But the refusal is part of the problem. It reinforces the wide spread belief of investors that the Fed is out of touch with reality, and that they sit in their Ivory Tower implementing an exceedingly loose monetary policy, with the stated goal of inflating asset prices.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Downgrades Galore, U.S. Debt Becomes Scary / Interest-Rates / US Debt
By: Dr_Jeff_Lewis
As if there weren’t already ample reasons not to purchase US Treasury securities, the ratings agency Standard and Poors’ has provided investors with another reason: it may soon be downgraded.
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Friday, April 22, 2011
Bernanke Strikes Again, QE2 sends margin debt soaring to new highs / Interest-Rates / Quantitative Easing
By: Mike_Whitney
Interest rates are the Fed's main tool for implementing policy, but when interest rates are already at zero and activity is still weak, then the Fed may try other unconventional strategies to rev up the economy. Quantitative Easing (QE) is one such strategy. In practice, it works like this; the Fed purchases some type of financial asset (stocks, bonds, mortgage-backed securities) which adds to the money supply thereby creating (in effect) negative interest rates. The Fed believes that this "monetary easing" can stimulate the economy.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Does the United States Still Deserve its "AAA" Credit Rating? / Interest-Rates / Credit Crisis 2011
By: Money_Morning
Kerri Shannon writes: Could the United States lose its status as the world's premier safe harbor for global investors?
Credit-rating heavyweight Standard & Poor's this week threatened to cut the United States' top-tier credit rating, saying the country's political infighting and burgeoning debt may warrant a downgrade.
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