Tag Archive: central-banks

Did Central Banks arrive at their Target Inflation Rate by Mere Fluke?

2022-05-26

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2022-05-26

Have you ever questioned why central banks around the world target CPI inflation at 2%? One might think it would be complicated to explain the lengthy calculations, econometric-based research, and late-night debates that went on in order to come to this figure, but no.

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SNBs Maechler will not hesitate to raise rates if inflation remains outside the target

2022-05-25

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2022-05-25

The SNBs Andrea Maechler in a newspaper article has said:The SNB will not hesitate to increase interest rates if inflation remains outside of the target.

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Central Banks…Why Bother?

2022-05-21

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2022-05-21

Central banks…why bother? Inflation is here and it cannot be contained. US inflation is touching a 40-year high, the UK has hit the 40-year high, and the EU’s has already hit an all-time high.

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SNB’s Jordan: Inflation will temporarily rise above target then fall quickly

2022-05-19

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2022-05-19

We take into account the higher inflation rates abroad when deciding monetary policy. We are ready to intervene in FX when necessary. Negative rates and currency interventions necessary for SNB to meet its mandate.

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Martin Schlegel appointed to SNB

2022-05-04

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2022-05-04

Foreign exchange trading carries a high level of risk that may not be suitable for all investors. Leverage creates additional risk and loss exposure. Before you decide to trade foreign exchange, carefully consider your investment objectives, experience level, and risk tolerance. You could lose some or all your initial investment; do not invest money that you cannot afford to lose.

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Central Banks on a Preset Course Reduces Significance of High-Frequency Data

2022-04-16

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2022-04-16

Arguably the most important data next week is the flash PMI.   It is not available for all countries, but for those generally large G10 economies, the preliminary estimate is often sufficiently close to the final reading to steal its thunder.

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SNB’s Zurbruegg: It is not roll of monetary policy to cure risks to financial system

2022-03-30

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2022-03-30

Vulnerabilities have increased and Swiss real estate market. Swiss apartments overvalued by 10% to 35%. SNB continues to monitor developments in real estate market. It is not roll of monetary policy to curb risk to financial system. The  USDCHF  is trading back below its 100 hour moving average at 0.93129 and its 200 hour moving average at 0.93304.

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SNB introduces possibility of repo rate transactions being indexed to policy rate

2022-03-30

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2022-03-30

This will be added to the SNB's monetary policy repertoire moving forward but not before some test operations are conducted. For the time being, the central bank implements monetary policy by setting the SNB policy rate so this just adds to the tools they can play around with. However, I still see the key policy rate as being the main weapon in the armory.

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Ukraine and the Next Wave of Inflation, Part II, Can Russia Enact a Gold Standard?

2022-03-13

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2022-03-13

Can Russia Enact a Gold Standard? In Part I we discussed how the fallout from the Russian invasion of Ukraine will lead to inflation, but not in the way most people think.  In Part II we discuss the possibility of Russia repudiating the dollar and going on a gold standard. Can they do it? How would the world react? Why not enact a Bitcoin Standard instead?

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SNB says remains prepared to intervene in FX market if necessary

2022-03-07

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2022-03-07

Franc is currently sought after as a refuge currency. Franc appreciation also reflects inflation differential between Switzerland and other countries. The franc continues to be highly valued SNB looks at overall currency situationIndividual currency pairs do not play a special role. Some verbal intervention there by the SNB but in typical cases for the franc, actions speak louder than words.

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SNB Jordan: Strong Swiss Franc limits Swiss inflation

2022-02-01

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2022-02-01

SNBs JordanStrong CHF limits swiss inflation See no sign swiss wage price cycle Inflation stubbornly above 2% would lead to policy tightening Difficult to say whether global rates have turned, much still depend on economic development CHF has remained stable in real termsAsked about real estate prices, Jordan says monetary policy aims primarily at price stabilityThe SNB is not investing in crypto currencies The USDCHF has moved...

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SNB says successfully tested use of digital currency to settle transactions with top investment banks

2022-01-15

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2022-01-15

The latest trial could see the introduction of central bank digital currency move a step closer in Switzerland. The SNB says that they integrated the digital currencies into payment systems and used them in simulated transactions involving UBS, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, and Citigroup.

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Testing The Supply Chain Inflation Hypothesis The Real Money Way

2021-12-18

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2021-12-18

Basic intuition says this is a no-brainer. Producer prices rise, businesses then pass along these higher input costs to their customers in the form of consumer price “inflation” so as to preserve profits. This is the supply chain hypothesis. Statistically, we’d therefore expect the PPI to lead the CPI.And this was expected for much of Economics’ history, taken for granted as one of those self-evident truths (kind of like the Inflation Fairy). After...

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Why Governments Hate Gold

2021-11-27

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2021-11-27

Do governments hate gold?  The answer: Yes — Governments hate gold because they cannot print it, and it is difficult for them to control.

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Why Do Central Banks Want Higher Inflation?

2021-10-23

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2021-10-23

Why do Central Banks want higher inflation? The debt ceiling debate in U.S. Congress and related political nonsense brings even more to light the exponential growth in US federal government debt. US government debt has doubled in the 10 years since the last major debacle Congress created over raising the debt ceiling back 2011.

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The Inflation Tide is Turning!

2021-10-09

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2021-10-09

In our post on January 28, 2021 “Gold, The Tried-and-True Inflation Hedge for What’s Coming!” we outlined four reasons that we expect higher inflation over the next several years.

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The Changing Role of Gold

2021-08-20

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2021-08-20

In our post on August 11 titled End of an ERA: The Bretton Woods System and Gold Standard Exchange, we discussed the significance of then-President Nixon’s action of closing the gold window thereby ending the Bretton Woods Monetary system. Under the Bretton Woods monetary system, central banks could exchange their US dollar reserves for gold. This also ended the gold fixed price of US$35 per ounce. This week we explore the two...

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A Look Back at Nixon’s Infamous Monetary Policy Decision

2021-08-17

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2021-08-17

Putting the World on a Paper Standard Half a century ago one of the most disastrous monetary policy decisions in US history was committed by Richard Nixon.  In a television address, the president declared that the nation would no longer redeem internationally dollars for gold.  Since the dollar was the world’s reserve currency, Nixon’s closing of the “Gold Window” put the world on an irredeemable paper monetary standard.

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Gold, Stocks & Commodities- A Complicated Correlation

2021-08-07

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2021-08-07

In our July 29 post titled How Gold Stacks Up Against Stocks, Property, Commodities and Big Macs! we showed readers charts of gold as a ratio to other assets and products. We discussed that gold competes with crypto and stocks for the investment dollars.

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Quantitative Easing: A Boon or Curse?

2021-07-24

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2021-07-24

Central banks’ massive Quantitative Easing (QE) programs have come under scrutiny many times since the central banks fired up the printing press and began quantitative easing programs en masse after the 2008-09 Great Financial Crisis. However, the increase in central bank assets due to quantitative easing programs during the crisis pale in comparison to the QE programs during the Covid pandemic. As economies recovered after the...

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