Archive for Between the Lines
Fed Ends QE, Waits on “Forward Guidance”
Gary D. Halbert Between the Lines Going into this week’s Fed Open Market Committee policy meeting, there were really only two questions on the table. This was the Committee meeting when a vote to halt “quantitative easing” purchases of Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities was expected. Since QE began in…
US Leaning Toward A Bad Nuclear Agreement With Iran
Gary D. Halbert Between the Lines The next deadline for an agreement with Iran on its controversial uranium enrichment program is November 24. Until this week, most observers felt that a deal was not likely and that the talks would have to be extended yet again. However, earlier this week,…
More Older Americans Are Working, But Why?
Gary D. Halbert Between the Lines As you know, I write frequently about the economy and specifically about the unemployment rate, as I did in my E-Letter on Tuesday. While the official unemployment rate fell to a six-year low of 5.9% in September, I emphasized that the “labor force participation…
“King Dollar” Is Back – Or Is It?
Gary D. Halbert Between the Lines The US Dollar has surged higher since the middle of this year. Yet most Americans pay little attention to the fluctuations in our currency, even though most of us get paid exclusively in dollars and spend exclusively in dollars. Since most of us don’t…
ObamaCare Architect: 75 Years is Long Enough to Live
Gary D. Halbert Between the Lines Most Americans probably never heard of or don’t remember the name Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel. He was one of the chief architects of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“ObamaCare”) from the very beginning. If you remember his name at all, it may be…
Fed – No Interest Rate Hike Anytime Soon
Gary D. Halbert Between the Lines The Fed’s latest two-day policy meeting that adjourned yesterday was perhaps the most anticipated of the year. Why? Most Fed-watchers believed that the Fed Open Market Committee (FOMC) might drop a hint in its official policy statement about when it will enact the first…