Desperate times call for desperate measures. Or tyrannical men do tyrannical things when it comes to propping up paper money whose value is circling the drain. The Financial Times headline screams, “Turkey to Target ‘Under the Mattress’ Gold in Effort to Bolster the Lira.” 

The eurozone’s annual price inflation rate hit 5 percent in December 2021 and (as of this writing) the consensus is for 5.1 percent in January 2022.

“You do not have the right to parade through the public streets or to obstruct public thoroughfares. You have the right of assembly, yes, on your own property, and on the property of your adherents or your friends. But nobody has the ‘right’ to clog the streets.” –Ayn Rand

History was made under the Biden administration last week as the Federal Reserve announced Dr. Susan M. Collins to be named President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Her appointment makes her the first African-American female to serve on the Fed’s Board of Directors.

There is a sizeable body of research linking financial development to economic growth. A competitive financial sector is crucial for the strategic mobilization of resources in an economy. Investigations, however, have uncovered that Africa is suffering from a “financial development gap.’ This is because banking platforms in Africa operate below capacity – relative to other developing regions.

The escalation of tension in Ukraine has reminded us of something many investors seemed to have forgotten: geopolitical risk. Sanctions and the inevitable drop in trade have proven to generate a significant negative impact on the different economies involved. We know from the 2014 Ukraine crisis that the economic hit is severe and persistent.

(This past Saturday, February 12, marked the 171th anniversary of the birth of Eugen von Böhm-Bawerk [1851-1914].)