Peter's Blog

The Tax Man Cometh — Again

Today is tax day. I’m not pleased. I don’t know about you, but that means my bank account balance will be significantly smaller later this evening. I’m going to have to write a big check. But hey, this is the price I pay for a more civilized society.

Joe Biden Is Mucking Up the “Inflation Fight”

By hiking interest rates, the Federal Reserve has pulled some of the monetary stimulus out of the economy. While the Fed hasn’t done nearly enough to put the inflationary fire it lit with more than a decade of easy money, the cooling consumer price index (CPI) indicates that this has put a modest dent in […]

Is the Pivot in Play? SchiffGold Friday Gold Wrap April 14, 2023

With the CPI coming in slightly cooler than expected and producer prices unexpectedly falling, a lot of people think the Fed pivot is now in play and we will soon see an end to monetary tightening. In this episode of the Friday Gold Wrap podcast, host Mike Maharrey talks about the possibility of a pivot, […]

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 […]