The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting ended today (Wednesday) with word that the Fed plans to the stay the course on QE for now, backtracking from earlier hints it might begin tapering this fall.
There’s a key market-moving event this week investors can’t miss: the semi-annual Ben Bernanke monetary policy testimony before Congress on Wednesday (House) and Thursday (Senate).
Congressional legislation known as Humphrey-Hawkins (now expired) required the Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee to report to Congress on both the state of the U.S. economy and monetary policy twice a year (February and July). The Fed Chairman testifies before Congress in conjunction with the report.
When Ben Bernanke speaks, the gold market listens – closely.
The Federal Reserve chairman’s comments late Wednesday that the central bank would continue its QE3 economic stimulus for now drove gold prices higher, and they’re likely to keep rising.
The Federal Reserve is fully committed to its asset-propping strategy: It will raise the economy by lifting asset numbers.
Today (Thursday), Money Morning Chief Investment Strategist Keith Fitz-Gerald spoke with Stuart Varney on FOX Business about Ben Bernanke and the deep plunge today from the Fed’s continued easing.
Legendary bond guru Bill Gross doesn’t think too highly of the Federal Reserve and Ben Bernanke’s monetary policies.
“There comes a point when no matter how much blood is being pumped through the system as it is now, with zero-based policy rates and global quantitative easing programs, that the blood itself may become anemic, oxygen-starved, or even leukemic, with white blood cells destroying more productive red cell counterparts,” Gross writes in his June investment outlook titled Wounded Heart.
Nothing lasts forever, apparently not even quantitative easing.
Uncle Sam has an unfunded pension liability of $800 billion.
As usual, the markets were hanging on every word of the Bernanke testimony to Congress today (Wednesday).
Thomas M. Hoenig, the Vice Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, wrote an editorial today in the Washington Post complaining it is unfair that…
