News
Bloomberg | Bernanke Has Few Tools to Heal Economy
Sales of existing homes dropped in July to the lowest since November, and the median price slid 4.4 percent from a year earlier. Rising foreclosures, tighter lending standards and unemployment stuck near 9 percent for more than two years are all weighing on the market. Lower borrowing costs aren’t likely to make a difference.
Bloomberg | Bank of England Policy Makers See Greater Stimulus as Increasingly Likely
Bank of England officials said they may need to buy more bonds to bolster a faltering recovery after holding off adding stimulus this month in a decision that was “finely balanced.”
Econ Comments
WSJ | The Fed 'Twist' That Won't Dance
Bond-buying creates an obvious conflict of interest because the Fed's portfolio loses value if it raises interest rates.
Politico | No more stimulus, Republican leaders say
Republican House and Senate leaders told Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke to “resist further extraordinary intervention in the U.S. economy,” saying in a letter sent Monday that steps intended to boost growth might actually make things worse.
WSJ | Why China Is a Financial Midget
Beijing's economic model will prevent the yuan from replacing the dollar as the world's reserve currency.
Forbes | The Fed is Failing its Unemployment Mandate
Since undertaking the so-called QE2 round of asset purchases last fall, the Fed’s aggressive policy actions have been on hold.
Washington Post | Twisting away our economic woes?
The economy needs robust demand for new products and services, but that won’t materialize until the housing market recovers and the American middle class pays down its accumulated debts.
Blogs
Atlantic: Megan McArdle | Higher Inflation, Lower Real Wages?
What would higher inflation mean for that median worker whose wages, we keep hearing, are stagnating so quickly?
