Five years of disastrously low interest rates have left Britain addicted to cheap credit
byThis article originally appeared in The Telegraph on 5 March 2014. It is reproduced by permission of the author. Five years ago today, the Bank…
Interest Rates
The four words that define western economic policy
by“The goods and services traded on the semi-secretive website Silk Road since February 2011 with the virtual currency Bitcoins were so varied that the…
The 80/20 rule
byRecent statistics are confirming “economic recovery” in the UK and even some of the weaker eurozone states. I put this in quotes, because what…
Incredible confusions, Part 2: Of interest and the dangerous habit of suppressing it
byThe idea that the charging of interest is unethical and should be banned has a long tradition in the history of human civilisation. It…
Why real interest rates can’t be calculated?
byWould it be possible in a world without money to establish the rate of return on present goods in terms of future goods? In…
ECB money injection not a reason for optimism
byAre you feeling optimistic yet? Are you confident that policy-makers have things under control? – If so, you must believe that we can solve…
Why do savers distrust the banks?
bySimon Rose and his colleagues at Save Our Savers are good friends of The Cobden Centre. Anyone doubting the rising concern of millions of…
The Chinese and the eurozone
byThe basic market problem is there is too much sovereign borrowing for the money available, which would normally drive interest rates sharply higher. Some…
Reasons to support sound money
bySpeech to the Committee for Monetary Research and Education At the Fall Meeting, 20th October 2011. Before addressing the consequences of today’s macro-economic policies…
Phases of the crisis – are we approaching the endgame?
byPhase 1: Greenspan, the arch money crank The Greenspan “put”, and the collective adoption by most central bankers of low interest rates after the…