Gold pushed above $1,900 an ounce near the end of the trading day Tuesday (May 25) and closed just below that level. Silver also had a strong day, up about 22 cents, closing just below $28 an ounce. Meanwhile, the dollar index headed in the opposite direction, closing an 89.66. That’s the lowest level for the dollar index since early January. Peter Schiff talked about the rally in gold and how the inflation tax is destroying American’s purchasing power on a recent podcast.
We’ve been talking about the inflation threat for months. But the markets have been acting as if the real threat is the Federal Reserve trying to fight inflation by tightening monetary policy. With every bit of inflation news, gold has sold off. But after last week’s hotter than expected CPI data, it looks like investors may be starting to see the light and realizing that the central bank can’t fight inflation. Peter Schiff talked about this apparent pivot in a recent podcast.
The consumer price index (CPI) came in much hotter than expected. The consensus was for a 0.2% month-to-month increase in price inflation. The actual number was 0.8%. It was the biggest monthly gain in CPI since 1981. Annualized, CPI measured 4.2% – more than double the mythical Federal Reserve target of 2%.
Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Richard Clarida said, “We were surprised by higher than expected inflation data.”
In his podcast, Peter Schiff said the only reason investors and economists were surprised is because they’re clueless.
Everybody expected the jobs report last Friday to show a big increase in employment. It didn’t happen.
Instead of the 978,000 new jobs created in April that economists expected, nonfarm payroll increased by just 266,000. On top of that, the Labor Department revised the March number down from 916,000 to 770,000. The unemployment rate ticked up to 6.1%.
As Peter Schiff put it in his podcast, you don’t need a job to spend printed money handed out by the government.
Inflation is the word of the day.
We’ve been talking about inflation for months, but now the mainstream is starting to pay attention to rising prices. In corporate board rooms, board members are talking about passing along their increased costs to their customers. Consumers are trying to tighten budgets. But the Federal Reserve keeps telling us there isn’t a problem. Inflation – so we’re told – is transitory. In his podcast, Peter Schiff said the central bankers at the Fed have to tell us that because they can’t be honest about inflation.
A lot of the economic data that came out last week looked pretty good. GDP growth came in big in the first quarter. Personal income rose by a record amount in March. The mainstream spun it all as positive, raving as if the economy is earning an ‘A.’ But in his podcast, Peter Schiff argues that the only reason the economy isn’t getting an F is because the Federal Reserve is cheating on the test.
Biden and Company have given us stimulus 3.0. They have unveiled an infrastructure spending plan. But that’s not the end of the spending. Next in the lineup comes the “American Families Plan” — another $1.8 trillion or so of government spending. Peter Schiff talked about it in his podcast, calling it a giant new welfare package. He said ultimately, it’s going to be another giant government boondoggle.
Last week, President Biden announced a plan to significantly hike capital gains taxes on the wealthy. Republicans are predictably opposed to the hikes, but in a recent podcast, Peter Schiff said the GOP is mired in hypocrisy.
The Biden plan would raise long-term capital gains taxes to 39.6%. For those earning $1 million or more, the new top rate, coupled with an existing surtax on investment income, would jack up the tax on wealthy investors as high as 43.4%.
When Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell appeared on 60 Minutes recently, he was asked what it takes to become the head of the central bank. In a clip from podcast episode 679, Peter Schiff said that when you think about the actual qualifications, Bernie Madoff would have made the perfect Fed chairman. Or perhaps the secretary of the US Treasury department.
So, what does qualify one to head up the Federal Reserve? Peter said that apparently, being clueless about economics helps.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell keeps telling us not to worry about rising prices, assuring us that any increase in price inflation is “transitory.” It appears most of the mainstream is buying this hook line and sinker.
The March CPI number was expected to come in hot due to a much lower baseline. Prices tanked last March as governments locked down their economies. As a result, economists expected the year-on-year CPI comparison to show a big increase. But the increase was even bigger than expected. Peter Schiff talked about it in a recent podcast.
