In his recent State of the Union Address, President Obama unveiled something new: a retirement savings account to “help” Americans build a nest egg, coining it the “MyRA.”
Stanley Fischer is in the pipeline for the vice chairmanship of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. In this capacity, he would bang heads to gather FOMC votes for (Presumptive) Fed Chairman Janet Yellen. According to the New York Times, Fischer would “exert a moderating influence on Ms. Yellen,” (” For No. 2 at Fed, White House Favors Central Banker in the Bernanke Mold.”)
“You never let a serious crisis go to waste… It’s an opportunity to do things you could not do before.” -Rahm Emanuel
The once unthinkable is quickly becoming probable.
Senate leaders finally hammered out a debt ceiling deal today (Wednesday) that avoided a looming potential debt default. It also reopened the government that has been shut down for more than two weeks.
Will gold prices rise in 2013, or will the bear market continue in the second half of the year?
The bears have certainly been loud this year, as short-term bets against gold paid off in the first half of 2013. Gold lost 27% in Q1, the worst first-half performance since 1981.
Last week the International Monetary Fund said it will provide Greece with another installment in the amount of €1.7 billion under the second bailout plan. As the nation complies with troika’s bailout provisions, including dismissing thousands of public-sector employees, economic indicators out of Greece continue to worsen. The latest unemployment rate clocked at 27%, resulting in a spectacular drop in consumer spending.
Americans worried about how rising oil prices might affect prices at the pump are about to get blindsided by looming gas tax hikes that almost guarantee higher gasoline prices.
And it’s not just state governments looking to shake down American motorists.
Alarmingly, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has called for the U.S. government to increase the current federal gasoline tax of $0.184 per gallon by a whopping $1.40.
In a March 26 speech, IMF Deputy Director David Lipton said the gas tax hike would pay for social programs around the world as well as to save the environment.
“The time has come for subsidy reform and carbon taxation,” Lipton said.
This federal gas tax hike, if imposed, would add $14 to a typical 10-gallon fill-up and hundreds of dollars to the annual cost of driving.
Fortunately for U.S. drivers, few in Washington support the IMF proposal.
“Higher gas prices hit those who can least afford it the most as American families are forced to pay a larger percentage of their income on higher energy prices,” Rep. Fred Upton, R-MI, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, told Fox Business. “Drivers across the country are already struggling to pay up to $4.00 a gallon for gas, and further price increases at the pump could be devastating to low- and middle-class families and disastrous to our economic recovery.”
Now if only state legislatures felt the same way…
This is a syndicated repost courtesy of Money Morning. To view original, click here. Reposted with permission. The Eurozone debt crisis that was supposed to…
Why I Cancelled Everything in Germany and Took the Next Flight to Dubai – Kent Moors – Money Morning
This is a syndicated repost courtesy of Money Morning. To view original, click here. Reposted with permission. Something big unfolded on my trip to Frankfurt…
The reign of the United States dollar as the only reserve currency in the world may be coming to an end. Over the last five years, the U.S. centric balance of economic and military power has been destabilized with the crumbling of the social welfare states of the European Union and the rise of the […]
