Peter's Blog

Banning “Price Gouging” Hurts More Than It Helps

Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a state of emergency for 33 Florida counties on Saturday in anticipation of Hurricane Idalia, thus activating one of the most misguided and counterproductive economic policies imaginable. Yes, with the sweep of his pen, DeSantis banned “price gouging.”

Americans Have Nearly Depleted Their Excess Savings

One of the reasons Americans were able to continue spending even as price inflation raged was they saved a lot of money during the pandemic lockdowns. But those savings are nearly depleted, according to a study released by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. Aggregate savings peaked at $2.1 trillion in August 2021. As […]

The Global Bank Credit Crisis

Globally, further falls in consumer price inflation are now unlikely and there are yet further interest rate increases to come. Bond yields are already on the rise, and a new phase of a banking crisis will be triggered. This article looks at the factors that have come together to drive interest rates higher, destabilising the […]

Silver Price Inexcusably Low Given the Market Dynamics

Silver is significantly undervalued right now. One analyst called the current price in the $22 an ounce range “inexcusably low.” But many analysts are bullish on silver in the medium term with projections of prices climbing to $50 to $100 an ounce over the next two to five years. The question is when will we […]

Price Inflation Down But Not Out

The annual increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) ticked up in July, after two months of big drops, revealing that price inflation might be down, but it certainly isn’t out. On an annual basis, CPI rose 3.2% in July, a tick higher than the 3% yearly increase in June, according to the latest data […]

Debt Chickens Are Coming Home to Roost

After the Federal Reserve incentivized borrowing with more than a decade of artificially low interest rates and easy money, the debt chickens are coming home to roost. Last week, Fitch Ratings downgraded the US’s long-term credit rating from AAA to AA+, and on Monday, Moody’s cut the credit rating of 10 small and midsize banks.

Australia Ratcheting Up War on Cash

Australia has become the front line in the war on cash with an aggressive effort to ring physical money out of the economy. Over the last financial year, more than a billion dollars worth of physical cash disappeared from circulation, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). The Australian news service […]

The Real Threat Is a Market-Driven Dollar Downgrade

Last week, Fitch Ratings downgraded the US’s long-term credit rating from AAA to AA+. While the downgrade won’t significantly impact the US government’s ability to borrow, it should serve as a wake-up call because there is a much bigger problem looming on the horizon: a market-driven downgrade of the US dollar.

Easing Price Inflation Is Transitory

Is price inflation really heading back toward the Federal Reserve’s 2% target? Most people in the mainstream seem to think so, and the recent drop in the consumer price index (CPI) appears to support this belief. Price inflation has trended downward over the last several months, with the annual CPI falling from a high of […]

The Fed Follows Its Script and Hikes Again; What’s Next?

I’ll say this about the Federal Reserve: it tends to follow the script. Everybody expected that the central bank would hike rates at the July FOMC meeting, and that’s exactly what it did. The Fed boosted the federal funds rate another 25 basis points to 5.25 to 5.5%.