It seems absurd to have to point out that economic cannibalism, even in the face of a virus, cannot produce anything but devastation, but alas, we live in absurd times.
The Swiss state should end antigold regulations, end negative interest rates, and return to zero rates on bank reserves. These are small steps on their own, perhaps, but would be progress away from the brewing mess that is the eurozone.
Although it is important to recognize that massive price inflation is always the result of massive monetary inflation, there isn’t a stable relationship between the two.
The ECB is now turning to a new mechanism by which a bond’s value can be legally reduced by the issuer in times of hardship. The purpose is to allow central banks and governments new ways of ripping off the private sector.
Americans have benefited mightily by holding and trading with the world’s reserve currency, though most people haven’t given it a thought. No one remembers when the pound sterling held this distinction a hundred years ago.
Central bank digital currencies need to be centralized and manipulable to some extent in order to use them to implement monetary policy, which is central bankers' goal. This characteristic makes them a very risky proposition.
Although many central bankers have claimed the central banks are instrumental in ushering in a more green economy, a closer look suggests the opposite is true.
It seems the reach and influence of central banks has never been higher, yet they are increasingly flying blind in an environment where central bank tools are growing ever more imprecise and dangerous.
