SNB & CHF

Part I of II by Claudio Grass It might sound like an old-fashioned notion, the sort of thing that one reads about in period novels and romantically sighs “oh, the good old days”. It might sound like old timely advice, perhaps of the kind that our grandparents would have given to our parents: “It doesn’t matter if you make mistakes, even if you lose everything, as long as you still have your honor”. Sure. But in our cynical, jaded and largely pedestrian...

Most readers might not remember Daniel Ellsburg, but for those of us who came of age during the Vietnam War, the maelstrom that formed around him and his actions helped to define that era. Ellsburg, of course, is famous because he leaked a number of internal government documents called the Pentagon Papers in which the writers expressed skepticism about the chances for U.S. success in the Vietnam War. Ellsburg chose to leak to the New York Times and the Washington...

Overview:  A rise in US yields, with the two-year Treasury closing yesterday at its best level in more than three weeks help fuel follow-through dollar buying yesterday after an upside reversal at the end of last week. Key levels were approached, like $1.09 in the euro, $1.2345 in sterling, and JPY135 held, and the dollar has consolidated in Asia and Europe. The euro and sterling recouped around half of the losses seen from the Friday's high to yesterday's lows....

Money supply growth fell again in February, falling even further into negative territory after turning negative in November 2022 for the first time in twenty-eight years. February's drop continues a steep downward trend from the unprecedented highs experienced during much of the past two years. Since April 2021, money supply growth has slowed quickly, and since November, we've been seeing the money supply contract for the first time since the 1990s. The last time the...

Join 2023's Virtual Mises University for only $25—or join free for Mises Institute Members (uses your promo code on the back of your Membership card).  For almost thirty years, Mises Institute scholars have presented at Mises University, a world-class, week-long, intensive event in Austrian Economics. Virtual Mises University is the online component of this seminar for students, professionals, business people, and absolutely anyone, anywhere, who is interested in the...

In a recent NYT column, economist Paul Krugman mocks Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who warned that a central bank digital currency (CBDC) would give the government too much power over Americans. Specifically, DeSantis argued that the feds could use a CBDC to further implement the “woke” agenda, penalizing Floridians if they bought too much gas or guns. Human Action Podcast: Krugman Says It's Paranoid to Worry About a Fed Digital Currency with Robert Murphy and...

Since the Trump administration launched their trade war with China in 2018, “Trump tariffs” have continued to harm not only our international relationships but also the US economy and the pocketbooks of US consumers. Now as global relations with China intensify and we face a national economic downturn, it’s time for the United States to embrace a more cooperative approach to foreign trade and allow free markets to provide a remedy to our economic woes. Although...

What will become of Palestinian refugees in the Middle East if the main UN organisation set up to help them implodes? The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) has been supporting Palestinian refugees in the Middle East for 74 years. Money troubles have constantly plagued the institution. Since around 2010, the situation has steadily worsened as several donors cut their contributions. A big hole was caused in particular by the temporary suspension of US funding under ex-President...

Do Americans have the right to know if the $100 billion in their tax dollars that the Biden administration is delivering to Ukraine is being wasted? No, according to the U.S. Congress - which recently voted against creating an Inspector General to investigate whether handouts to the most corrupt government in Europe were being stolen. Do Americans have the right to know if their own government blew up the Nord Stream pipeline, the biggest act of environmental...

The collapse of California-based Silicon Valley Bank (and Signature Bank in New York) on March 10, 2023, sent shock waves through the international financial system. It not only made bank stocks and bank bonds fall sharply but also finally brought ailing banking giant Credit Suisse to its knees. The Swiss bank had to be rescued and was bought by UBS on March 19, 2023. In another wave of market fear, Deutsche Bank, another global systemically important bank, came...