Peter's Blog

The CPI Mirage

Price inflation continued to cool with March headline annual CPI coming in at 5%. This was lower than expected and may give the Federal Reserve some wiggle room to slow down or even end rate hikes. But it’s a mirage. Despite the cooling trend, price inflation remains well above the Fed’s target and victory in […]

Could the Commercial Real Estate Market Be the Next Thing to Break?

Could the commercial real estate market be the next thing to break in this bubble economy? The rampant money creation and zero percent interest rates during the COVID pandemic on top of three rounds of quantitative easing and more than a decade of artificially low interest rates in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis […]

Fed Adds Another $94 Billion to Its Balance Sheet in Week Two of Bailout

In the week before it raised interest rates another 25 basis points to fight inflation, the Federal Reserve added more than $94 billion to its balance sheet. This was on top of the nearly $300 billion it piled onto the balance sheet in the first week of its bank bailout. The balance sheet reveals that […]

The Federal Reserve Is Walking a Tightrope in a Hurricane

The Federal Reserve is trying to walk a tightrope — in a hurricane. After rate hikes resulted in the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, the Federal Reserve and the US Treasury stepped in with a bailout. With that hole in the dam seemingly plugged for the time being, the Fed pushed forward and […]

FDIC Insurance: To Infinity and Beyond!

In the wake of two major bank failures, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) deposit insurance effectively went to infinity. And there is no reason to believe it will be temporary. As Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank were toppling, the government rushed in to guarantee 100 percent of both banks’ deposits. It was touted as […]

SVB and Signature Bank Were Just the Tip of the Iceberg

The demise of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank was just the tip of the iceberg. As it turns out, hundreds of banks are at risk. This explains why the Federal Reserve and US Treasury rushed to provide what is effectively a bailout for the entire banking system. In the first week, the Federal Reserve […]

Fed Adds Nearly $300 Billion to Balance Sheet in One Week With Bank Bailouts

The Federal Reserve added nearly $300 billion to its balance sheet in a single week as it kicked off its loan bailout program for banks. In effect, the Fed loaned troubled banks $300 billion of new money that was created out of thin air. In other words, we got $300 billion in inflation in a […]

If It Looks Like a Bailout and Walks Like a Bailout It’s Probably a Bailout

As the old saying goes, if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it’s probably a duck. Well, if it looks like a bailout, walks like a bailout, and talks like a bailout, it’s probably a bailout.

February CPI: Six Percent Is Bigger Than Two Percent

The annual rise in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for February came in at 6%. This was down from the 6.4% annual increase charted in January. The eighth straight monthly decline in CPI seems to have restored faith that the Federal Reserve is winning the inflation fight. But everybody should probably stop and remember that […]

If You Can’t Hold It, It’s Not Really Yours

The failure of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank reminds us of a very important truth — if you can’t hold it in your hand, you don’t really own it. That’s why it’s wise to hold at least some of your wealth in hard assets like gold and silver that are in your direct possession […]