The Fed and Treasury

Will Trump Try to ‘Overrule’ Monetary Policy?

By Mark Thoma

How will the Federal Reserve evolve during Donald Trump’s term as president? Presently, three of the seven positions on the Federal Reserve Board are vacant. These vacancies, along with the...
Why the Treasury Is Ending a Low-Income Retirement Saving Program

By Beth Braverman

Less than two years after the Obama administration rolled out a myRA, a savings program aimed at helping the millions of Americans without access to a retirement account through work, the Trump...
Will Janet Yellen Give Wall Street a Scare?

By Anthony Mirhaydari

For years, the Federal Reserve has been unable to convince the market it's serious about aggressively tightening policy. Janet Yellen and her cohorts have been guilty of "crying wolf," constantly...
Is the Fed About to Wage War on the Rich?

By Anthony Mirhaydari

For years, stocks have been driven relentlessly higher thanks to a single statement that summarized the aggressive central bank largesse since the eurozone crisis flared up in 2012: Policymakers...
Is the Fed Fighting the Trump Rally?

By Anthony Mirhaydari

The evidence is growing that the Federal Reserve’s policymakers are actively working to lean against the stock market's rise, a dramatic reversal from the years of policy support stock market bulls...

The Fed’s Big Mistake: Rate Hikes Hurt US Workers

By David Dayen

Protesters rallied in Washington, New York City and Philadelphia yesterday against an imminent government action that would damage the financial prospects of ordinary workers. And no, it had nothing...
The Fed, the Reality of Tax Cuts, and Donald Trump

By Mark Thoma

For many years, Republicans argued that tax cuts for the wealthy pay for themselves. Cutting taxes on the wealthy, according to Republicans, allows them to keep a larger share of anything new they...
Will Unwinding the Fed’s $4.5 Trillion Balance Sheet Kill the Bull Market?

By Anthony Mirhaydari

Over the last decade, investors have grown accustomed to a Federal Reserve that constantly coddled them, allayed their fears and did everything possible to support the financial markets and asset...
The Key to This Market: Here’s What Will Determine if Stocks Rise or Fall

By Anthony Mirhaydari

For now, instead of putting pressure on risk assets, the Fed's newfound hawkishness is bolstering the reflation trade by lifting the dollar higher and attracting global capital into U.S. assets. Same...
Can Wall Street Handle Higher Interest Rates?

By Anthony Mirhaydari

The Federal Reserve just raised interest rates for the second time in three months, signaling a dramatic quickening of its prior pace. For the first time in more than a decade, Fed policymakers are...

Without Further Stimulus, Can the Federal Reserve Jumpstart Growth?

By Bruce Bartlett, The Fiscal Times

Although economists still debate whether further fiscal stimulus is necessary or desirable, as a political matter the debate is essentially over. There is simply too little support in Congress for...
Bartlett: Hoarding Cash Could Stifle Growth and Halt the Recovery

By Bruce Bartlett, The Fiscal Times

The Wall Street Journal reported somewhat breathlessly on June 10 that nonfinancial businesses in the U.S. are sitting on $1.84 trillion in liquid assets, or 12.6 percent of the gross domestic...
For Sale: Government Tower, Ideal for Business Startup

By Elaine S. Povich, The Fiscal Times

President Obama has ordered federal agencies to attempt to sell surplus property to raise $3 billion for the Treasury, but it has never been easy for the government to dump unneeded property.
Prime Numbers:Inflation May Be Ahead Despite Federal Reserve Outlook

By James C. Cooper, The Fiscal Times

Core inflation fell to 0.9 percent in May. A 7 percent unemployment rate could be the turning point. The manufacturing operating rate was 71.5 percent in May. Despite the mild 2 percent overall...
Bernanke Tells Divided Congress to Keep Economy Moving

By Adam Graham Silverman, The Fiscal Times

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke urges Congress to keep the economy moving, but divided lawmakers can’t agree on the short-term or long-term fiscal challenges.

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