from Fox News
It’s Like the Fed is Being Run by Tony Fauci Now…
by Peter Schiff
Schiff Sovereign
We all remember it. For more than two years, every single person in the United States was subjected to the exasperating melodrama known as Dr. Anthony Fauci.
A career bureaucrat who headed the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, Fauci hypnotized much of the country and convinced people that he was the second coming of Joan of Arc– a saintly, righteous holy warrior who would lead everyone to victory. Except his sword and shield were “science”.
We never heard the end of it. Fauci claimed that he was “following the science” about social distancing, mask mandates, vaccines, school closures, and more.
And rather than accept criticism and debate about his ideas (which is the very foundation of science), Fauci continued to insist that he had all the answers. In one of his most eye-rolling assertions, he even said at one point that any criticism of him was “dangerous. . . because I represent science”.
While Core Inflation May Be Down, Context is Important
Gianluca Sidoti is an Independent Financial Advisor, Founder of TraDetector and Managing Partner at Citadines Capital SCF.
by Gianluca Sidoti
Forbes
In recent months, core inflation has eased to a three-year low, a development many see as a positive sign for the economy. This trend indicates that inflationary pressures may be diminishing, potentially easing the cost of living for consumers and stabilizing the economic outlook.
However, this development comes amid a backdrop of complex economic policies that financial advisors should stay informed about, including President Biden’s tariffs on imported steel, electric vehicles, etc., and his administration’s efforts to manage student debt.
Should the Fed Get Credit for Lower Inflation?
by William J. Luther
The American Institute for Economic Research
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) voted to hold its federal funds rate target at 5.25 to 5.5 percent on Wednesday, marking twelve months with the rate pegged to its current level. The FOMC also hinted in its statement that it could soon start cutting rates.
At the post-meeting press conference, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the FOMC has “made no decisions about future meetings, and that includes the September meeting.” But he made a September rate cut seem likely:
The broad sense of the Committee is that the economy is moving closer to the point at which it will be appropriate to reduce our policy rate. In that, we will be data dependent, but not data point dependent — so it will not be a question of responding specifically to one or two data releases. The question will be whether the totality of the data, the evolving outlook in the balance of risks are consistent with rising confidence on inflation and maintaining a solid labor market. If that test is met, a reduction in our policy rate could be on the table as soon as the next meeting in September.
Powell noted that the FOMC did not revise its economic projections — including those for the federal funds rate — at this week’s meeting. Consequently, he was somewhat limited in providing more explicit forward guidance.
Fed Holds Rates Steady but Sends Mixed Signals About Timing of a Cut Later This Year
by John Carney
Breitbart.com
Federal Reserve officials agreed to hold interest rates steady at a 22-year high and signaled they may cut rates this year if inflation continues to show signs of declining to their two percent target.
Officials held the central bank’s benchmark federal funds rate unchanged Wednesday at a range between 5.25 percent and 5.5 percent, the level it reached last July after 10 consecutive hikes, following a run of mixed economic data that revealed moderating price pressures and a cooling of the labor market even while the economy continues to grow quickly.
The Fed’s statement indicates that it remains patient on rate cuts and is still looking for more data to build confidence that inflation is moving toward its target. This may throw some cold water on investors’ expectations of a September cut.
RFK Jr. Pays Lip Service to the Debt While Pushing Policies That Would Increase It
It’s good to hear a candidate actually talk about our spending problem. But his campaign promises would exacerbate it.
by John Stossel
Reason.com
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. won applause at the Libertarian National Convention by criticizing government lockdowns and deficit spending, and saying America shouldn’t police the world.
It made me want to interview him. This month, I did.
He said intelligent things about America’s growing debt:
“President Trump said that he was going to balance the budget and instead he (increased the debt more) than every president in United States history—$8 trillion. President Biden is on track now to beat him.”
It’s good to hear a candidate actually talk about our debt.
Fed On Course for September Rate Cut as Risks to Job Market Grow
by Catarina Saraiva
Yahoo! Finance
Powell said policymakers are moving closer to lowering borrowing costs from a more than two-decade high, highlighting a growing confidence at the Fed to dial back its restraints on the economy. He was careful, however, not to wed officials to a rate reduction should price data prove disappointing in the coming months.
“The changes in the statement and the press conference today basically tell you that September is going to happen unless the economic outlook changes materially,” former New York Fed President William Dudley said on Bloomberg Television.
This is One of the Only Ways They Can Tame Inflation and Save the Dollar
by James Hickman
Schiff Sovereign
There are only seven countries in the world that have a GDP in excess of $3 trillion: the United States. China. Germany. Japan. India. United Kingdom. And France.
Microsoft’s current market capitalization is also right around $3 trillion… which means that out of the 193 countries in the world that are recognized by the United Nations, 186 of them have an economy that’s smaller than Microsoft. Crazy.
Of course, much of Microsoft’s meteoric growth has taken place over the past three years because of the AI boom. And just like Nvidia is considered the most important hardware company in AI, Microsoft has positioned itself as the most important software company in AI… and they’re pretty much betting the business on it.
Fed Statement Silent About September Rate Cut, Still Waiting for “Greater Confidence” About Inflation, Keeps Rates Unchanged
by Wolf Richter
Wolf Street
Powell has some explaining to do. Only slight concessions about strength of the labor market and improvements in inflation.
FOMC members voted unanimously today to maintain the Fed’s five policy rates, with the top of its policy rates at 5.50%, according to the statement released today after its two-day meeting. The last rate hike occurred in July 2023, and this decision marks the anniversary of the 5.25% to 5.5% rates:
$35 Trillion… and Counting
by Peter C. Earle
The American Institute for Economic Research
Barely halfway through 2024, the rapidly rising tower of US public debt has reached yet another milestone. Two hundred and six days after reaching $34 trillion, America’s debt pile has reached $35 trillion. To put this in perspective, the debt at the end of World War II was about $259 billion, making the current debt more than 135 times that amount. The US has now borrowed amounts larger than the combined GDPs of China, Japan, and Germany.
It is increasingly difficult to grasp that only a bit more than four decades ago the US national debt was $907 billion, and that the surpassing of the $1 trillion mark in 1981 was seen as a watershed moment. The amount of debt undertaken by the Biden administration alone now stands at $7.2 trillion, an amount equal to the amount of national debt incurred between the presidencies of two Georges: Washington (who assumed office in 1789) and the younger Bush (who left office in 2009). This is still less than was taken on by the Trump administration ($7.8 trillion), but if the borrowing needs of the current administration are what they are projected to be, the Biden administration may set a new record by having added over $8 trillion in debt.
Fed Holds Rates Steady but Sends Mixed Signals About Timing of a Cut Later This Year
by John Carney
Breitbart.com
Federal Reserve officials agreed to hold interest rates steady at a 22-year high and signaled they may cut rates this year if inflation continues to show signs of declining to their two percent target.
Officials held the central bank’s benchmark federal funds rate unchanged Wednesday at a range between 5.25 percent and 5.5 percent, the level it reached last July after 10 consecutive hikes, following a run of mixed economic data that revealed moderating price pressures and a cooling of the labor market even while the economy continues to grow quickly.
The Fed’s statement indicates that it remains patient on rate cuts and is still looking for more data to build confidence that inflation is moving toward its target. This may throw some cold water on investors’ expectations of a September cut.