

Eurodollar University
Jeff Snider
Jeff Snider will guide you through the realm of monetary science. Multiple episodes uploaded each week, discussing big news and key current events, the state of markets and what they are telling you, as well as historical summaries and deep background material so that you can understand what’s really going on in this eurodollar’s world.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Apr 14, 2021 • 1h 5min
The Gospel of Bernanke's Global Savings Glut
Karen King of the Harvard Divinity School wasn't the first 'professor' to discover "the long-buried secret of Jesus' marriage." That distinction belongs to fellow Harvard faculty member Robert Langdon, protagonist in Dan Brown's 2003 novel, The Da Vinci Code. Langdon was a fiction. King on the other hand was not; she held the very real Hollis Professorship of Divinity established in 1721 - the oldest, and arguably most prestigious, endowed chair in America. And there she was, in Rome, just seven years after serving as a consultant for the novel's film adaptation, to present at the International Congress of Coptic Studies. Like Langdon she would cast a stone at 2,000 years of patriarchal tradition.King had in her possession a business-card-sized papyrus, bearing 30-some Coptic words, including this astounding sequence: "Mary is worthy of it... Jesus said to them, My wife... she is able to be my disciple..." King proposed the fragment was a fourth-century Coptic translation of a late-second-century Greek gospel. She called it the Gospel of Jesus' Wife - "something that would stick", she later explained.Incredulous complaints emerged almost immediately: the handwriting appeared blatantly modern, misspellings were "monstrous". One bemused Egyptoligist noted the copyist would, "have benefited from one more semester of Coptic." Still King persisted; she leveraged her institution's reputation and that of her office to engineer a defense from the prestigious Harvard Theological Review. Not until two years later, when the forger was revealed, did she conditionally concede the scrap was "likely a fake". Ariel Sabar, the author of Veritas, the 2020 book which chronicles the affair, summarized King's behavior thusly: “[I]deological commitments were choreographing her practice of history. The story came first; the dates managed after. The narrative before the evidence; the news conference before the scientific analysis.” In this, the 63rd episode of Making Sense, we review the latest scholarship that questions the Gospel of Bernanke's Global Savings Glut. We note that ideological commitments are choreographing monetary practice. Expectations before the evidence; the forward guidance before the scientific analysis.-----PART 01 SUMMARY------In the early 2000s, bond markets ignored the Fed. Alan Greenspan called it a "conundrum". Ben Bernanke blamed a "Global Savings Glut". But recent Federal Reserve research notes events since 2008 upend the Bernanke glut and instead suggest economic weakness and financial fear as causal.-----PART 02 SUMMARY------Economic recovery? Then why aren't US Treasury Securities being OBLITERATED by the combined power of vaccines, fiscal stimulus and monetary easing? Maybe because stimulus is really 'stimulus' and easing is 'easing'. Indeed, US Treasury Bills are being bid and signalling angst.-----PART 03 SUMMARY------America's unemployment rate is a miraculously low 6% - a remarkable achievement. But behind the headlines is the sad fact that labor force participation is awful.---------SEE IT-----------Twitter: https://twitter.com/JeffSnider_AIPTwitter: https://twitter.com/EmilKalinowskiAlhambra YouTube: https://bit.ly/2Xp3royEmil YouTube: https://bit.ly/310yisLArt: https://davidparkins.com/---------HEAR IT----------Vurbl: https://bit.ly/3rq4dPn Apple: https://apple.co/3czMcWNDeezer: https://bit.ly/3ndoVPEiHeart: https://ihr.fm/31jq7cITuneIn: http://tun.in/pjT2ZCastro: https://bit.ly/30DMYzaGoogle: https://bit.ly/3e2Z48MSpotify: https://spoti.fi/3arP8mYPandora: https://pdora.co/2GQL3QgBreaker: https://bit.ly/2CpHAFOCastbox: https://bit.ly/3fJR5xQPodbean: https://bit.ly/2QpaDghStitcher: https://bit.ly/2C1M1GBPlayerFM: https://bit.ly/3piLtjVPodchaser: https://bit.ly/3oFCrwNPocketCast: https://pca.st/encarkdtSoundCloud: https://bit.ly/3l0yFfKListenNotes: https://bit.ly/38xY7pbAmazonMusic: https://amzn.to/2UpEk2PPodcastAddict: https://bit.ly/2V39Xjr--------REFERENCES--------Slight, But Only Slight, Movement In the Understanding of Rates: https://bit.ly/3t9B37QThe Global Saving Glut and the Fall in U.S. Real Interest Rates: https://bit.ly/39WgTq0Global Imbalances Tracker: https://on.cfr.org/3mIWx7WRechecking On Bill And His Newfound Followers: https://bit.ly/39Ysh4YReopening 2: https://bit.ly/3s0w9skAlhambra Investments Blog: https://bit.ly/2VIC2wWRealClear Markets Essays: https://bit.ly/38tL5a7---------WHO-----------Jeff Snider, Head of Global Investment Research for Alhambra Investments and Emil Kalinowski. Art by David Parkins.

Apr 6, 2021 • 1h 15min
The Monetary Shadows
"I glanced at the list, running over names (probably misspelled) that meant nothing to me, with my hand on the butt of my righthand gun. That one now contained a very special load. According to Vannay, there was only one sure way to kill a skin-man: with a piercing object of the holy metal. I had paid the blacksmith in gold, but the bullet he’d made me – the one that would roll under the hammer at first cock – was pure silver." The scene is from The Wind Through the Keyhole, a 2012 Stephen King novel. It's not unheard of for the horror/fantasy-master's characters to call on silver to battle something from the dark and murky gray.From his 1986 novel, IT: "But that, of course, is only a joke, and not a very good one; there is only one story left, at least one he remembers, and that is the story of the silver slugs – how they were made in Zack Denbrough's workshop on the night of July 23rd and how they were used on the 25th." A great yarn, to be sure, but as members of an advanced civilization we KNOW there's nothing in the shadows with blood-red eyes and tentacles. Then again... that's precisely why Count Dracula moved to cosmopolitan London in Bram Stoker's 1897 classic. You see, the superstitious peasants of Transylvania knew the preternatural was real. Not so post-Enlightenment England where mucus-oozing pores and frightful claws were disclaimed. And what better place to hide disgusting aberrations, but in the shadows of denial and willfully forgotten knowledge?Today, enlightened monetary-scientists placate us with soothing expectation policies that the shadows harbor no ill-proportioned beasts. But supposing there were. Is there a silver bullet we could roll under the hammer? In Part 2 of this, the 62nd Episode of Making Sense, Jeff Snider discusses one candidate: the Eurodollar Futures market. But first, two researchers for the Federal Reserve uncover the horror of quantitative easing. Then we conclude with the fantasy of government stimulus.---------SUMMARY----------01: Two Federal Reserve researchers claim the Fed, "can effectively reduce the [fragility] of the financial system by reducing the size of its balance sheet." REDUCING, not growing! To understand their conclusion we discuss: money dealers, interbank loans and collateral.02: If there was A SILVER BULLET, if there was ONE RING TO RULE THEM ALL - if there was ONE MARKET TO FOLLOW to track the health of the global monetary order and world economy - it would be the Eurodollar Futures market. Incredibly, the Federal Reserve has a very low opinion of it.03: The 2007-09 crisis was a permanent shock. Neo-Keynesians do not believe such a thing is possible. But consumers? Not only do they believe in permanent shocks, they KNOW they are very real. Therefore, the Trump and Biden stimulus payments have NO CHANCE of fixing the economy.---------SEE IT-----------Alhambra YouTube: https://bit.ly/2Xp3royEmil YouTube: https://bit.ly/310yisL---------HEAR IT----------Vurbl: https://bit.ly/3rq4dPn Apple: https://apple.co/3czMcWNDeezer: https://bit.ly/3ndoVPEiHeart: https://ihr.fm/31jq7cITuneIn: http://tun.in/pjT2ZCastro: https://bit.ly/30DMYzaGoogle: https://bit.ly/3e2Z48MSpotify: https://spoti.fi/3arP8mYPandora: https://pdora.co/2GQL3QgBreaker: https://bit.ly/2CpHAFOCastbox: https://bit.ly/3fJR5xQPodbean: https://bit.ly/2QpaDghStitcher: https://bit.ly/2C1M1GBPlayerFM: https://bit.ly/3piLtjVPodchaser: https://bit.ly/3oFCrwNPocketCast: https://pca.st/encarkdtSoundCloud: https://bit.ly/3l0yFfKListenNotes: https://bit.ly/38xY7pbAmazonMusic: https://amzn.to/2UpEk2PPodcastAddict: https://bit.ly/2V39Xjr--------REFERENCES--------Seeing Interest Rates Counter To What They Actually Are: https://bit.ly/2QX730xFederal Reserve - What Drives U.S. Treasury Re-use?: https://bit.ly/2PMHCOKHow Does Reflation Look From The Point of View of the One Market That Gets It: https://bit.ly/3cKZKlbYes, Curves Have Been Forced To Speak Japanese: https://bit.ly/3uhsWWWData Downgrading Uncle Sam’s Helicopter: https://bit.ly/3sQefcX---------WHO-----------Jeff Snider, Head of Global Investment Research for Alhambra Investments and Emil Kalinowski. Art by David Parkins. Podcast intro/outro is "Shadow of a Gunman" by Sight of Wonders and "Night Remains" by Farrell Wooten at Epidemic Sound.

Mar 31, 2021 • 17min
LIVE! Reaction: Answering Jay Powell
So says Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell in a recent Wall Street Journal opinion column. Jeff Snider listens and reacts to Powell's case that the disruption wasn't the Fed's fault and that the central bank did the best it could.---------SEE IT-----------Alhambra YouTube: https://bit.ly/2Xp3royEmil YouTube: https://bit.ly/310yisL---------HEAR IT----------Vurbl: https://bit.ly/3rq4dPnApple: https://apple.co/3czMcWNDeezer: https://bit.ly/3ndoVPEiHeart: https://ihr.fm/31jq7cITuneIn: http://tun.in/pjT2ZCastro: https://bit.ly/30DMYzaGoogle: https://bit.ly/3e2Z48MSpotify: https://spoti.fi/3arP8mYPandora: https://pdora.co/2GQL3QgBreaker: https://bit.ly/2CpHAFOCastbox: https://bit.ly/3fJR5xQPodbean: https://bit.ly/2QpaDghStitcher: https://bit.ly/2C1M1GBPlayerFM: https://bit.ly/3piLtjVPodchaser: https://bit.ly/3oFCrwNPocketCast: https://pca.st/encarkdtSoundCloud: https://bit.ly/3l0yFfKListenNotes: https://bit.ly/38xY7pbAmazonMusic: https://amzn.to/2UpEk2PPodcastAddict: https://bit.ly/2V39Xjr----EPISODE #61 TOPICS----01:03 Is a central bank's job to prevent crisis or to make the crisis less worse?04:34 The Fed's goal should've been to maintain US dollar exchange rate stability and liquidity06:01 US Treasuries were being sold by the market in March 2020, but why?10:28 Powell says the recovery is continuing apace and on a good trajectory12:21 The employment recovery took place almost entirely in the first months, but sideways since14:34 What role does the mainstream media have in explaining what standard to hold the Fed to?--------REFERENCES--------Jerome Powell on the Pandemic Year: https://on.wsj.com/39kdnp6One Year Later: Why No ‘V’?: https://bit.ly/3dhBaY0Alhambra Investments Blog: https://bit.ly/2VIC2wWRealClear Markets Essays: https://bit.ly/38tL5a7---------WHO-----------Jeff Snider, Head of Global Investment Research for Alhambra Investments with Emil Kalinowski. Art by David Parkins. Podcast intro/outro is "Habitual" by Ava Low at Epidemic Sound.

Mar 29, 2021 • 60min
Commemorating QE's 20th Anniversary
Jeff Snider is in his element in Episode 60, in which he observes the 20th anniversary of quantitative easing and notes the unsettling twist in oil futures; also, he reacts to the Federal Reserve Chairman who recently likened the Fed's actions last year, to the heroic Dunkirk evacuation.Your podcaster on the other hand comes out of the gate staggering by slandering everyone's favorite nation: New Zealand. Operating under the false impression that The Hobbit was a documentary, this podcaster opens the show asserting New Zealand is home to all manner of fantastic creatures like the platypus, narwhal, orcs and elves. The YouTube comments were aflame with polite indignation. The narwhal belongs to the Arctic, not Antarctic. Worse yet, the platypus is endemic to the only country in the world that doesn't care for New Zealand: Australia.To make amends this podcaster watched BBC Planet Earth with New Zealand's fourth most popular guitar-based digi-bongo acapella-rap-funk-comedy folk duo: Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement. So dear audience, please squint your ears at the start of the episode. When you hear "platypus", receive Fiordland Crested Penguin, which is twice the size of a normal-sized man. When you hear "narwhal", instead pick up Kakapo, a parrot that identifies as an owl. When you hear "orcs", perceive Kiwi, like the bald eagle but flightless and with fur. And when you hear "elves", glean Weka another flightless bird with the legs of a witch, a taste for pickled olives and a cholesterol problem.---------SEE IT-----------Alhambra YouTube: https://bit.ly/2Xp3royEmil YouTube: https://bit.ly/310yisL---------HEAR IT----------Vurbl: https://bit.ly/3rq4dPn Apple: https://apple.co/3czMcWNDeezer: https://bit.ly/3ndoVPEiHeart: https://ihr.fm/31jq7cITuneIn: http://tun.in/pjT2ZCastro: https://bit.ly/30DMYzaGoogle: https://bit.ly/3e2Z48MSpotify: https://spoti.fi/3arP8mYPandora: https://pdora.co/2GQL3QgBreaker: https://bit.ly/2CpHAFOCastbox: https://bit.ly/3fJR5xQPodbean: https://bit.ly/2QpaDghStitcher: https://bit.ly/2C1M1GBPlayerFM: https://bit.ly/3piLtjVPodchaser: https://bit.ly/3oFCrwNPocketCast: https://pca.st/encarkdtSoundCloud: https://bit.ly/3l0yFfKListenNotes: https://bit.ly/38xY7pbAmazonMusic: https://amzn.to/2UpEk2PPodcastAddict: https://bit.ly/2V39Xjr----------TOPICS------------PART 01: On March 19, 2001 CNN described quantitative easing by the Bank of Japan as "inject[ing] a large amount of money into the Japanese economy." It wasn't large, it wasn't money, and it never got to the economy. In two decades nothing has changed; not in Japan - not anywhere.PART 02: The headline oil price has been falling since early-March, but insiders were alerted 10 days earlier of possible trouble by the futures curve. What is contango? What is backwardation? Do oil futures tell us the economy is struggling to gain additional liftoff?PART 03: Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell analogized the central bank actions in March 2020 to the heroic evacuation of soldiers from Dunkirk in WW2. A more fitting analogy is the blunderbuss loss at Dunkirk that necessitated the rescue at all.--------REFERENCES--------Central Banks Don't Do Quantities of Money Because They Can't: https://bit.ly/3srNL1jKiwi Busted QE And Its Relation To The Reflation Story: https://bit.ly/3ddL78QOK, NYMEX, Go On…: https://bit.ly/3cqAmknOK NYMEX, Beginning To Notice The Fine Print?: https://bit.ly/3rsmYAsWas Last Month’s Fedwire A Coincidence?: https://bit.ly/3dffKuuNPR's Full Interview With Fed Chairman Jerome Powell: https://n.pr/3crz7SaAlhambra Investments Blog: https://bit.ly/2VIC2wWRealClear Markets Essays: https://bit.ly/38tL5a7---------WHO-----------Jeff Snider, Head of Global Investment Research for Alhambra Investments and Emil Kalinowski, Flight of the Conchords fan. Art by Dunkirk Lil' Ship Capt. David Parkins. Podcast intro/outro is "New Zealand Story" by S.A. Karl at Epidemic Sound.

Mar 23, 2021 • 45min
Anniversary Special: Top-10 Podcast Intros
March 23, 2020 is a day that no financial market participant will forget. It was the day that America's S&P 500 put in its low and stock prices began their climb to "what looks like a permanently high plateau." More importantly, it was the day that Making Sense debuted. Yes, Jeff Snider and I decided that what the world really needed in the time of Covid and financial Armageddon was another financial podcast, and that we were going to give it to them. To commemorate the anniversary I proposed to Jeff that we do a retrospective. Jeff responded that he would love to - really. But he was reading through the Federal Open Market Committee's August 20, 1974 Memorandum of Discussion - again.And so instead, let me provide you with a retrospective of sorts, by playing the Top 10 Podcast Introductions as voted on by me, the introducer. Starting with Episode 14 and continuing through Episode 58 I introduce the points of discussion with the purpose of ensnaring you, the dear listener. In two to three minutes I have to convey to you the topics in an educational or funny or poignant or enthusiastic or absurd way. Sometimes I use a metaphor, other times a literary reading. Sometimes it is a suckescess... sometimes I can't pronounce the word success. Either way, it is an adventure. Here are the Top 10 Podcast Introductions of Making Sense, Season 1.---------SEE IT-----------Twitter: https://twitter.com/JeffSnider_AIPTwitter: https://twitter.com/EmilKalinowskiAlhambra YouTube: https://bit.ly/2Xp3royEmil YouTube: https://bit.ly/310yisLArt: https://davidparkins.com/---------HEAR IT----------Vurbl: https://bit.ly/3rq4dPnApple: https://apple.co/3czMcWNDeezer: https://bit.ly/3ndoVPEiHeart: https://ihr.fm/31jq7cITuneIn: http://tun.in/pjT2ZCastro: https://bit.ly/30DMYzaGoogle: https://bit.ly/3e2Z48MSpotify: https://spoti.fi/3arP8mYPandora: https://pdora.co/2GQL3QgBreaker: https://bit.ly/2CpHAFOCastbox: https://bit.ly/3fJR5xQPodbean: https://bit.ly/2QpaDghStitcher: https://bit.ly/2C1M1GBPlayerFM: https://bit.ly/3piLtjVPodchaser: https://bit.ly/3oFCrwNPocketCast: https://pca.st/encarkdtSoundCloud: https://bit.ly/3l0yFfKListenNotes: https://bit.ly/38xY7pbAmazonMusic: https://amzn.to/2UpEk2PPodcastAddict: https://bit.ly/2V39Xjr----EPISODE #59 TOPICS----00:01 Introduction to anniversary, retrospective show about... introductions02:33 #10 - Ep. 43 - Modern Monetary Hypnosis (24-Jan-2021)05:56 #09 - Ep. 15 - Hey Kid, Want Some Communism? (27-Jun-2020)09:13 #08 - Ep. 56 - False Dawn(s) (15-Mar-2021)12:37 #07 - Ep. 34 - Social Contract (11-Nov-2020)16:06 #06 - Ep. 17 - Communism, Don't Call it a Comeback (11-Jul-2020)19:28 #05 - Ep. 24 - The Discovery of Oz (31-Aug-2020)23:11 #04 - Ep. 21 - What's in the Monetary Toolkit? (09-Aug-2020)27:12 #03 - Ep. 39 - Quantum Dollar Mechanics (14-Dec-2020)30:48 #02 - Ep. 30 - QE2 Syndrome: Making Economics Errata (12-Oct-2020)34:57 #11 - Ep. 28 - Interview: Brent Johnson (27-Sep-2020)36:38 #12 - Ep. 58 - Interview: Izabella Kaminska (22-Mar-2021)39:32 #01 - Ep. 33 - Eurodollarween (02-Nov-2020)----------MUSIC-----------#10 - Ep. 43 - "Whispering of the Stars" by Luella Gren at https://bit.ly/31a9ONZ#09 - Ep. 15 - "The Ministry" by Howard Harper-Barnes at https://bit.ly/398LeBg#08 - Ep. 56 - "Departure Lounge" by Brendon Moeller at https://bit.ly/3tOnTgh#07 - Ep. 34 - "All Emotions" by ELFL at https://bit.ly/395Oxti#06 - Ep. 17 - "Callin Shots" by Damma Beatz at https://bit.ly/3rer4MK#05 - Ep. 24 - "So Many Secrets" by Gavin Luke at https://bit.ly/3tOo5Mx#04 - Ep. 21 - "Cornelia" by The Eastern Plain, remixed by Luwaks, at https://bit.ly/3vS2FzZ#03 - Ep. 39 - "Otherworld" by Lama House at https://bit.ly/39b7BX3#02 - Ep. 30 - "A Most Violent Man" by Lofive at https://bit.ly/3d1YHMu#11 - Ep. 28 - "We Just Gotta (Get Together)" by Wanda Shakes at https://bit.ly/3sfVpf7#12 - Ep. 58 - "Canon in D" by Johann Pachelbel at https://bit.ly/3tOu9EI#01 - Ep. 33 - "Fugent" by Lupus Nocte at https://bit.ly/3sh5kRt--------REFERENCES--------Alhambra Investments Blog: https://bit.ly/2VIC2wWRealClear Markets Essays: https://bit.ly/38tL5a7---------WHO-----------Jeff Snider, Head of Global Investment Research for Alhambra Investments with Emil Kalinowski, disc jockey. Art by David Parkins. All intro music found at Epidemic Sound.

Mar 22, 2021 • 1h 48min
Interview: Izabella Kaminska
Welcome to Making Sense. Jeff Snider and I are joined by a very special guest, Izabella Kaminska who has accomplished many accomplished things, including being the editor of FT Alphaville, the Financial Times blog. Though to refer to Alphaville as a mere blog, would be a gross disservice. No ladies and gentlemen, it is much more than that. It is the modern-day equivalent of the 17th-century London coffeehouse. Both, forums for transactions, spirited debate, and the exchange of information, ideas - and lies! - though Alphaville is pointing them out for our benefit. Strangers, no matter what their social standing or political allegiance, are always welcomed into lively convivial company. The topics, then like now: the stock exchange, insurance, auctioneering, politics, arts... Then? The 'not-so-old' masters. Now? NFTs. Both the contents of the 17th-century coffee mug and Alphaville could be described the same way: "'black as hell, strong as death, sweet as love' and shot through with grit."--------SUMMARY--------PART 01: Financial journalism, the necessity of skepticism, public distrust of media, press reticence to cover underclass concerns, reportage to clarify versus to convince and technology's impact on news.01:44 The nature of FT Alphaville relative to mainstream financial media08:55 The importance of skepticism and critique in Alphaville's coverage of markets13:26 According to Gallup, Americans have very little to no confidence in newspapers22:42 Media reticence to cover 'unsophisticated', 'conspiratorial' working class concerns33:41 Drawing attention to and clarifying versus reporting to confirm, conclude and/or convince43:42 Technology's impact on journalism - past, present and prospective.PART 02: Work furlough as proto Universal Basic Income, a labor force under Modern Monetary Theory, naïve accedence of Environmental-Social Governance, socialism, communism and corporate-capitalism.46:37 Political determination of economic outcomes via furlough, UBI and socialism57:36 Good intentions of MMT and ESG act as shields against skepticism; the echoes of communism1:07:52 Political considerations (MMT, UBI, ESG) will result in inescapable market consequences1:13:14 Corporate measurement of customer behavior and its political consequencesPART 03: Bitcoin free-market green energy, non-fungible tokens, cryptocurrency's role in the monetary order, intraday interbank liquidity, central bank command-economy green agendas and more!1:20:49 The astounding impact of intraday real time gross settlement on systemic, global liquidity1:30:43 Green mandates are command-economy solutions; Bitcoin may be the free-market alternative1:34:06 Balancing transparency against privacy with non-fungible tokens and cryptocurrencies---------SEE IT-----------Alhambra YouTube: https://bit.ly/2Xp3royEmil YouTube: https://bit.ly/310yisL---------HEAR IT----------Vurbl: https://bit.ly/3rq4dPnApple: https://apple.co/3czMcWNDeezer: https://bit.ly/3ndoVPEiHeart: https://ihr.fm/31jq7cITuneIn: http://tun.in/pjT2ZCastro: https://bit.ly/30DMYzaGoogle: https://bit.ly/3e2Z48MSpotify: https://spoti.fi/3arP8mYPandora: https://pdora.co/2GQL3QgBreaker: https://bit.ly/2CpHAFOCastbox: https://bit.ly/3fJR5xQPodbean: https://bit.ly/2QpaDghStitcher: https://bit.ly/2C1M1GBPlayerFM: https://bit.ly/3piLtjVPodchaser: https://bit.ly/3oFCrwNPocketCast: https://pca.st/encarkdtSoundCloud: https://bit.ly/3l0yFfKListenNotes: https://bit.ly/38xY7pbAmazonMusic: https://amzn.to/2UpEk2PPodcastAddict: https://bit.ly/2V39Xjr--------REFERENCES--------Izabella Kaminska: https://www.ft.com/izabella-kaminskaAlphaville: https://www.ft.com/alphavilleAlhambra Investments Blog: https://bit.ly/2VIC2wWRealClear Markets Essays: https://bit.ly/38tL5a7---------WHO-----------Jeff Snider, Head of Global Investment Research for Alhambra Investments with Izabella Kaminska, editor of FT Alphaville and Emil Kalinowski, a Financial Times subscriber. Art by David Parkins, the Pasqua Rosée of black ink.Podcast intro/outro is a chamber music version of "Canon in D" by Johann Pachelbel, the 17th-century German composer. Listen at Epidemic Sound. Learn more about "The Lost World of the London Coffeehouse" from Dr. Matthew Green.

Mar 18, 2021 • 20min
LIVE! Reaction: Answering Paul Krugman
Will stagnation follow the Biden Boom? So asks New York Times columnist (and Nobel memorial prize winner) Paul Krugman. Jeff Snider listens and reacts to Krugman's lament that, though the relief bill is done, recovery may be harder.---------SEE IT-----------AlhambraTube: https://bit.ly/2Xp3roy---------HEAR IT----------Vurbl: https://bit.ly/3rq4dPnApple: https://apple.co/3czMcWNDeezer: https://bit.ly/3ndoVPEiHeart: https://ihr.fm/31jq7cITuneIn: http://tun.in/pjT2ZCastro: https://bit.ly/30DMYzaGoogle: https://bit.ly/3e2Z48MSpotify: https://spoti.fi/3arP8mYPandora: https://pdora.co/2GQL3QgBreaker: https://bit.ly/2CpHAFOCastbox: https://bit.ly/3fJR5xQPodbean: https://bit.ly/2QpaDghStitcher: https://bit.ly/2C1M1GBPlayerFM: https://bit.ly/3piLtjVPodchaser: https://bit.ly/3oFCrwNPocketCast: https://pca.st/encarkdtSoundCloud: https://bit.ly/3l0yFfKListenNotes: https://bit.ly/38xY7pbAmazonMusic: https://amzn.to/2UpEk2PPodcastAddict: https://bit.ly/2V39Xjr----EPISODE #57 TOPICS----00:01 Paul Krugman, NYTimes columnist, believes the Biden stimulus will not be enough02:31 Will a stimulus bill with a huge sticker price be enough to overcome "Secular Stagnation"?05:28 A growing consensus of economists believes the last decade may not have been very good08:18 Bond markets are not signaling the recovery has been very good so far12:09 What is the solution to secular stagnation?15:38 There is agreement that the economy is very unhealthy, stimulus may not be enough--------REFERENCES--------Will Stagnation Follow the Biden Boom?: https://nyti.ms/2OtQ5pKAlvin Hansen and Secular Stagnation: https://bit.ly/2NkJUnsHey Kid, Want Some Communism? : https://youtu.be/bKHzn2UaqLUCommunism - Don't Call it a Comeback: https://youtu.be/FhBQhRLmTQcAlhambra Investments Blog: https://bit.ly/2VIC2wWRealClear Markets Essays: https://bit.ly/38tL5a7---------WHO-----------Jeff Snider, Head of Global Investment Research for Alhambra Investments with Emil Kalinowski, now hiring interns at below-market rates. Art by David Parkins, on an errand, sent by grocery store clerks, to collect a bill. Podcast intro/outro is "Cool Cat Stumble" by T. Morri at Epidemic Sound.

Mar 15, 2021 • 1h 5min
False Dawn(s)
Space, the final metaphor. Why do central bankers offer spirographic, retrograde answers? Because they operate within a Ptolemaic paradigm - a geocentric model of our monetary system in which the central bank is the hub around which all else revolves. Why is unobservable, offshore credit fundamentally important? Because like dark matter and dark energy, this shadow money represents the broad majority of material and heat that constitute our monetary universe.Which brings your podcaster to the 21st chapter of "The Courage to Act" authored by Ben Bernanke. There, the former chairman defends the Fed's second quantitative easing in 2010 because of an economic "false dawn". No mere rhetorical flourish, the false dawn is a regular astral phenomenon. Each autumn and spring, the northern and southern latitudes respectively, will observe a triangular diffusion of light rising above the horizon. It seems to herald recovery from the darkness.But Sol won't come. Not yet at least. Light, yes. But the wrong kind. Instead of a medley of warm colors refracted by the near atmosphere, the false dawn is a sterile white, originating far beyond our Earth, in cold space. Officially known as the Zodiacal Light, we witness interplanetary dust particles reflecting sunlight.Perhaps not surprisingly, Bernanke's book had no further chapters on economic false dawns despite their taking on an astronomical regularity, arriving again and again and again in 2011, 2014 and 2017. Jeff Snider, part-time monetary sleuth and full-time cosmos student, recognizes the difference between reflation's false dawn and recovery's warm glow. In this, the 56th episode of Making Sense, we review the light coming over the horizon from negative repo rates, surging M2 money supply and rising US Treasury yields. We find it cold, fallow and gray.-------SUMMARY------PART 01: Learn why rates in the repurchase agreement market went negative. What might it mean for economic recovery, not only in the United States but globally? Learn about 2013 and 2020 when repo securities also "traded special". Jeff Snider offers two explanations, one benign (sort of). The other? Malign.PART 02: Learn why a HISTORIC surge of M2 money supply is NOWHERE near-enough to rescue the world economy. Across a group of mostly rich nations M2 and M3 are at multi-decade highs. And yet millions remain unemployed. What's missing? Money! PART 03: Learn the difference between an orthodox-economics and a shadow-money view of US Treasuries. The mainstream says, 'Too many Treasuries!' and 'Emerging markets in danger!' Is that true? ---------SEE IT-----------AlhambraTube: https://bit.ly/2Xp3roy---------HEAR IT----------Vurbl: https://bit.ly/3rq4dPnApple: https://apple.co/3czMcWNDeezer: https://bit.ly/3ndoVPEiHeart: https://ihr.fm/31jq7cITuneIn: http://tun.in/pjT2ZCastro: https://bit.ly/30DMYzaGoogle: https://bit.ly/3e2Z48MSpotify: https://spoti.fi/3arP8mYPandora: https://pdora.co/2GQL3QgBreaker: https://bit.ly/2CpHAFOCastbox: https://bit.ly/3fJR5xQPodbean: https://bit.ly/2QpaDghStitcher: https://bit.ly/2C1M1GBPlayerFM: https://bit.ly/3piLtjVPodchaser: https://bit.ly/3oFCrwNPocketCast: https://pca.st/encarkdtSoundCloud: https://bit.ly/3l0yFfKListenNotes: https://bit.ly/38xY7pbAmazonMusic: https://amzn.to/2UpEk2PPodcastAddict: https://bit.ly/2V39Xjr--------REFERENCES--------Deja Vu: Treasury Shorts Meet Treasury Shortages: https://bit.ly/3rJMnGPWhat *Must* Lie Beyond the M’s: https://bit.ly/3rEq19LTaking You, The Fed’s Bank Reserves, And Banks’ Checkable Deposits For A Quick Stroll In The Monetary Zoo: https://bit.ly/2PRhRwEWhat Gold Says About UST Auctions: https://bit.ly/2OqPJA4Standard Textbook Dollar, Or Eurodollar Standard?: https://bit.ly/3cuDNWcUnexpected U.S. Growth Surge Could Unbalance Fragile Global Economy: https://on.wsj.com/3cndEsgHedgeye Investing Summit (2021, Mar-16/18): https://bit.ly/38TkogL---------WHO-----------Jeff Snider, Head of Global Investment Research for Alhambra Investments with Emil Kalinowski, sweet on M1&M2s. Art by David Parkins, on an errand, sent by grocery store clerks, to collect a bill. Podcast intro/outro is "Departure Lounge" by Brendon Moeller at Epidemic Sound.

Mar 10, 2021 • 18min
LIVE! Reaction: Answering Martin Wolf
Wolf ponders what central banks should target (e.g. inflation, asset prices, social justice, nominal GDP). Incredibly at no point in the article was targeting actual money supply considered. WILD!---------SPONSOR----------But first, this from Eurodollar Enterprises! Friends, do you direct the Treasury Ministry? Do your political masters expect foaming asset prices? Are you unsure how to produce lasting froth? Then a box of Bath Suds from Eurodollar Enterprises is for you! Yes, practice blowing bubbles in the gurgling luxury of your free-standing clawfoot tub. Find the perfect mix between liquidity and hot air with our capital markets foam formulation. Our bubble brew line comes in: currencies, commodities, cryptos and collectibles. Blow them all! Orders received today will come with a fussy central banker - typically retailing for the price of "hedge fund general partner" - absolutely free! Simulate the political arena trying to blow it in the presence of an erratic technocrat. Don't blow it! Not without Bath Suds. New! From Eurodollar Enterprises. (Central banker swimsuit not included.)---------SEE IT-----------AlhambraTube: https://bit.ly/2Xp3roy---------HEAR IT----------Vurbl: https://bit.ly/3rq4dPnApple: https://apple.co/3czMcWNDeezer: https://bit.ly/3ndoVPEiHeart: https://ihr.fm/31jq7cITuneIn: http://tun.in/pjT2ZCastro: https://bit.ly/30DMYzaGoogle: https://bit.ly/3e2Z48MSpotify: https://spoti.fi/3arP8mYPandora: https://pdora.co/2GQL3QgBreaker: https://bit.ly/2CpHAFOCastbox: https://bit.ly/3fJR5xQPodbean: https://bit.ly/2QpaDghStitcher: https://bit.ly/2C1M1GBPlayerFM: https://bit.ly/3piLtjVPodchaser: https://bit.ly/3oFCrwNPocketCast: https://pca.st/encarkdtSoundCloud: https://bit.ly/3l0yFfKListenNotes: https://bit.ly/38xY7pbAmazonMusic: https://amzn.to/2UpEk2PPodcastAddict: https://bit.ly/2V39Xjr--------REFERENCES--------What central banks ought to target: https://on.ft.com/38eLtu7Alhambra Investments Blog: https://bit.ly/2VIC2wWRealClear Markets Essays: https://bit.ly/38tL5a7 -----------WHO------------Jeff Snider, Head of Global Investment Research for Alhambra Investments with Emil Kalinowski, targeting cat-video ratings. Art by Master Quillsman, David Parkins. Podcast intro/outro is "Reversed Beginning" by Luwaks at Epidemic Sound.

Mar 8, 2021 • 1h 7min
It was a dark and stormy depression...
"The pen is mightier than the sword." "The great unwashed." "Pursuit of the almighty dollar." These are prhases we have all heard and they come from a single source: 19th century English writer and politician Edward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton. Bulwer-Lytton was a successful novelist, poet and playwright. His political accomplishments included nine years in Parliament, serving as the British Colonial Secretary, and being offered - AND TURNING DOWN - both a lordship of the Admiralty AND the Crownship of Greece (i.e. king)! Today he is remembered for writing... the worst opening sentence in the history of the English-speaking peoples:"It was a dark and stormy night; the rain fell in torrents — except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust of wind which swept up the streets (for it is in London that our scene lies), rattling along the housetops, and fiercely agitating the scanty flame of the lamps that struggled against the darkness."Episode 54 reviews articles by Jeff Snider covering: the Treasury inflation-protected securities curve inverting, the life span of a post-2008 reflation, the curious appreciation of the Chinese currency, as well as how Fed officials in 1937 convinced themselves of an impending inflationary storm (in the middle of an economic depression). None of those articles open in the Bulwer-Lytton style -- precisely the opposite! And yet many - some, a few... someone... And yet this podcaster wonders, how might a Eurodollar University educated author open their novel? It was a dark and stormy depression; bank reserves fell in torrents — except at occasional intervals, when they were checked by a breath of reflation which swept up economists (for it is in the Eccles Building that our scene lies), rousing along the academics, and fiercely inflating the faith in a recovery that struggled against the darkness.-------SUMMARY------PART 01: The US Treasury inflation-protected security curve has gone upside down. Indeed, it has NEVER been more upside down. What is the Treasury market telling us about the economy's prospects? Also, how long does reflation typically last? Are we closer to its beginning or end?PART 02: The appreciation of the Chinese yuan against the American dollar has paused. A survey of the Chinese services sector scored a historic low. Are these the first indications of an economic slowdown? A slowdown that is not only Chinese but global?PART 03: In 1937, like now, circumstantial evidence and biases of central bankers suggested the impending arrival of fierce inflation: huge government deficits, better economic statistics, rising bond yields and excess bank reserves. Yet the underlying condition was of depression and credit illiquidity.---------SEE IT-----------AlhambraTube: https://bit.ly/2Xp3roy---------HEAR IT----------Vurbl: https://bit.ly/3rq4dPnApple: https://apple.co/3czMcWNDeezer: https://bit.ly/3ndoVPEiHeart: https://ihr.fm/31jq7cITuneIn: http://tun.in/pjT2ZCastro: https://bit.ly/30DMYzaGoogle: https://bit.ly/3e2Z48MSpotify: https://spoti.fi/3arP8mYPandora: https://pdora.co/2GQL3QgBreaker: https://bit.ly/2CpHAFOCastbox: https://bit.ly/3fJR5xQPodbean: https://bit.ly/2QpaDghStitcher: https://bit.ly/2C1M1GBPlayerFM: https://bit.ly/3piLtjVPodchaser: https://bit.ly/3oFCrwNPocketCast: https://pca.st/encarkdtSoundCloud: https://bit.ly/3l0yFfKListenNotes: https://bit.ly/38xY7pbAmazonMusic: https://amzn.to/2UpEk2PPodcastAddict: https://bit.ly/2V39Xjr--------REFERENCES--------TIPS Tipping Over, But Not That Way: https://bit.ly/3sVqgh4Reflation Amplitude, Important, What About Frequency?: https://bit.ly/2MSUa68What If CNY’s Backdoor Still Isn’t A Big Enough Exit?: https://bit.ly/3uT06NwThere’s Two Sides To Synchronize: https://bit.ly/3cm1j7RThere's Precedent for Yellen Demanding a Central Bank Rescue: https://bit.ly/3qoUQxFAlhambra Investments Blog: https://bit.ly/2VIC2wWRealClear Markets Essays: https://bit.ly/38tL5a7---------WHO-----------Jeff Snider, Head of Global Investment Research for Alhambra Investments with Emil Kalinowski, a dark and stormy host. Art by Master Quillsman, David Parkins. Podcast intro/outro is "Nocturne" by Trevor Kowalski at Epidemic Sound.


