On July 19th, 2013, Ben Bernanke said during the Senate Banking Committee hearing, “Nobody understands gold prices and I don’t pretend to either.” This generalization has caused a bit of backlash from financial experts, and raises the question whether anyone can really understand the price of gold? Let’s take a look. Experts agree that the price of gold typically ties closely with the supply of money. In other words, gold follows global liquidity; when gold supply doesn’t change, but more money is chasing the gold, the gold price goes up. Said another way: supply and demand drive … [Read more...]
US Government Resorting to Emergency Borrowing to Meet Obligations
February 1, 2013 by
The US government which is currently facing a deep financial crisis is likely to find it difficult to meet its various obligations after February 14, according to a report released by a Washington based think tank. The Bipartisan Policy Group or BPC has mentioned that the US government has already reached its borrowing limit on the New Year’s Eve and is currently funding its operations through extraordinary measures. The US treasury has been tapping the $200 billion emergency fund to ensure uninterrupted operations of departments or schemes fully funded by it. The report prepared by … [Read more...]
Bad News For The UK taxpayer
January 10, 2013 by
There is indeed some bad news for the UK taxpayer. It appears that the entire amount of £66 billion, which was accumulated from taxpayer money in a bid to revive the sagging fortunes of RBS and Lloyds, could have been lost forever! This is what a report generated by a committee comprising of imminent members of the UK parliament claims. Margaret Hodge, the chairperson of the committee, has issued an official statement in which she warns that the pounds invested for the revival of Lloyds and the Royal Bank of Scotland may be irrecoverable. The same was declared in a report concerning the sale … [Read more...]
Housing Market and Consumer Confidence
August 17, 2012 by
The Case –Shiller index shows that property values on homes are continuing to decrease. Since 2003 homes have hit the lowest value we have seen in 20 major cities and there are a lot of homes in the process of foreclosing which will hit the market soon. It may take years before we come out of this housing crisis. Along with the foreclosure problem, we are also facing an increase in unemployment. Currently unemployment is at 8.3%. It is a lot harder to take out a loan due to stricter guidelines creating a decrease in the amount of homes being purchased. These issues are causing … [Read more...]
The Economy is Prone to Accidents
August 16, 2012 by
An article from the International Monetary Fund recently said that Europe is facing a financial crisis that has started a “dangerous new stage” and has the possibility of paralyzing global economic growth even with the best of circumstances. Things are only looking worse for Europe with warnings of more instability in the near future causing a breakdown in lending, investment and production that would bring forth a brutal recession in Europe, in contrast of what the IMF is expecting which is a mild recession. According to the current World Economic Outlook released by the … [Read more...]
Gold Prices in the Global Economy
November 12, 2010 by
It is often heard that gold functions as a hedge against inflation or that gold prices are correlated to the US dollar. These assertions do not reveal the total behavior or understanding of most Americans who view gold in a broader perspective in the US economy such as the global stock market, the nation’s inflation or even the GDP of US. Gold is as important to an individual as to the US portfolio as the demand for this shiny metal was only 11% in the US between 2004 and 2008 whereas the remaining 89% demand was not accounted for to appreciate the metal’s true worth. There is a … [Read more...]
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