Peter's Blog

Are Digital Dollars a Move Toward Monetary Totalitarianism?

Last month, the New York Fed launched a pilot program for a “digital dollar.” Could this be the first step toward monetary totalitarianism?

The Fed Hikes Rates to Highest Level Since 2007; That’s a Big Problem

As expected, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 50 basis points at the December Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. That pushed the federal funds rate to 4.5%. The last time rates were this high was in 2007. That’s bad news for an economy addicted to easy money. While the pace of rate hikes […]

CPI: History Suggests the Inflation Fight Might Just be Starting

Before digging into history, let’s look at the recent data. The latest seasonally adjusted inflation rate for November came in at 0.08%. The YoY rate was 7.17%, below median forecast of 7.3%.

President Biden Misrepresenting Wage Gains

President Joe Biden claims wages are rising faster than prices. It might be unfair to say he’s lying, but he’s certainly misrepresenting the facts. The fact is price inflation continues to eat away at your wages.

CPI Cools But Inflation Far From Whipped

The Federal Reserve got just the news it needed to plausibly go forward with a soft pivot in its monetary policy and begin to slow its pace of rate hikes. But while price inflation appears to be retreating, it’s far from beat. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for November came in lower than expected, according […]

Budget Deficit: Is the Surge In Tax Revenues Over?

The Federal Government ran a deficit of $249 billion in November. This is the highest monthly deficit since July 2021 if you ignore the one-time student loan forgiveness-driven deficit in September.

Why Are the Markets Obsessed With a Fed Pivot?

Will the Federal Reserve pivot? That’s the question on everybody’s mind. But why does it matter so much?

US Government Runs Another Massive Budget Deficit; This Is Bad News for the Fed Inflation Fight

The US government ran a massive $248.5 billion deficit in November, according to the latest Monthly Treasury Statement. There was only one month in fiscal 2022 with a bigger budget shortfall. This is bad news for the Federal Reserve as it tries to raise interest rates and shrink its balance sheet to fight price inflation.

Producer Prices Rise More Than Expected in November

When the October CPI came out, the mainstream spin was that inflation had peaked. But they might have gotten a little ahead of themselves. The Producer Price Index (PPI) data for November indicates that we may well see more consumer price inflation down the road.

Peter Schiff and Megyn Kelly: The Biden Economy Is a Mess

President Joe Biden said Americans are becoming more optimistic about the economy. He said that’s part of the “broad story about the economy we’re building that works for everyone.” Peter Schiff has a different take on the economy. He recently appeared on The Megyn Kelly Show to talk about it.