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Overall: “Negative interest rates have the effect of monetary tightening,” whispered Takehiro Sato, to his eight fellow board members seated in deep meditation, at the Bank of Japan. And as the paradoxical elegance of this Zen koan washed across their unsettled consciousness, he smiled, serene, a pristine mountain pool. “What is the sound of one hand clapping?” continued Sato, the dissident central banker, trying to

Week-in-Review: Mon: G7 meeting produces no firm actions (Aso/Lew disagree on disorderly Yen moves), Japan manu PMI 47.6, Japan trade surplus 6yr high (exports -10.1%, imports -23.3%), Australia revises inflation forecasts lower, Afghanistan Taliban leader killed by drone, Russia unemp 5.9% (retail sales 6.4%, real wages -1.7%), EU PMI -0.1 to 52.9 (service 53.1, manu 52.4), Greece approves necessary legislation to r

Overall: “It’s an apocalypse!” cried Italian Minister Lorenzin. “If we fail to reverse the trend, in 10 years there will be fewer than 350,000 births annually, 40 percent less than in 2010,” she continued, desperate. “Since 2011 we’ve lost 66,000 births per year, the equivalent of a city the size of Sienna.” Now, let’s be honest, ever since Romulus killed Remus, the average Roman male hasn’t discovered a problem he c

Overall: “I’m deeply shocked and embarrassed by Prime Minister Cameron’s claims,” declared Muhammadu Buhari, former military dictator turned elected President of Nigeria, going for a spin in Africa’s biggest money laundering machine; London. “Is Nigeria as fantastically corrupt as Prime Minister Cameron says?” asked some reporter. “Yes,” answered Buhari, letting it fly. But Cameron didn’t just insult Nigerians. He in

“Not a week goes by without someone extolling the virtues of the equity market because there’s no credible investment alternative with interest rates near zero,” said Stanley Druckenmiller, the investing legend. “If one applied the average interest rate settings of Volker and Greenspan using standard Taylor rules, today’s Fed Funds rate would be 3%; this is the least data-dependent Fed in history,” he continued. “Thi

Overall: “We have created new tools to determine whether an economy may be pursuing foreign exchange policies that could give it an unfair competitive advantage against the United States,” announced the Treasury, late Friday. “China, Japan, Germany, and Korea will be closely monitored as a result of a material current account surplus combined with a significant bilateral trade surplus with the United States. Taiwan w

Here we go again. Iron ore prices surged 15%, extending the rise from December’s low to 70%. Copper jumped 5%, not quite exceeding the March highs. Cement jumped too. As did most things that the Beijing boys need for a building bubble. Even oil exploded higher, climbing 4.8% to new 4mth highs. And remember, just last Sunday the largest conclave of Trustafarians on planet earth failed to limit its production. The Doha

“All major economies need to deploy a full toolkit of economic policy measures to address weak demand, boost employment and raise living standards,” announced Jack Lew. “This includes monetary and fiscal policies and structural reforms,” continued America’s Treasury Secretary. Of course he’s right, it’s obvious. Self-evident. We’ve been here before, quite recently. Which is both a blessing and curse. “Global policy m

Week-in-Review (stats in YoY terms): Mon: Japan monetary base +28.5%, Aussie retail sales 0% MoM (building approvals -9%), Korea FDI +19.3%, Turkey CPI +7.46% (PPI +3.8%), Italian Q4 deficit/GDP 2.6%, EU investor confidence 5.7 (exp 7.0), EU unemploy 10.3% (PPI -4.2%), US factory orders -1.7%, durable goods orders -3.0%, NY ISM 50.4 (exp 54.1), S&P -0.3%; Tue: Japan real cash earnings +0.4%, Abe “countries must a

The apocalyptic newscast rolled. Terrorist-guided drones spread radioactive isotopes across cities. Fifty heads of state watched, aghast. “April Fools,” said Obama, taking the stage. “So many summits are about dealing with things that have already gone wrong and we are trying to put right,” said some attendee, still shaking. “This summit is about something we’re trying to prevent.” Scientists published a paper, model