THE WOLF STREET REPORT: Free Money Turned Brains to Mush. Now Some Banks Fail by Wolf Richter • Mar 19, 2023 • 208 Comments The Fed ended Free Money, and the only thing it broke is the consensual hallucination that spawned during the Free Money era. And look what we got.
After Huge Plunge, Treasury Yields Are Due for a Big Bounce on Monday. Here’s Why by Wolf Richter • Mar 18, 2023 • 269 Comments What we saw on Friday was large-scale fear of taking big uninsured deposits into a potentially gruesome FDIC weekend.
The Most Splendid Housing Bubbles in Canada: March Update on the Housing Bust by Wolf Richter • Mar 17, 2023 • 209 Comments Year-over-year, home prices plunged by the most on record as the seasonal uptick in prices was far smaller than a year ago.
Fed Loaned $160 Billion to Banks and $142 billion to FDIC. But QT-Related Roll-off Continued by Wolf Richter • Mar 16, 2023 • 281 Comments At around 4.75%, plus collateral, these are expensive loans for banks.
Defying Pivot-Mongers, ECB Hikes by 50 Basis Points, QT Continues, Explains Tools to Calm a Bank Panic while Fighting Inflation Simultaneously by Wolf Richter • Mar 16, 2023 • 129 Comments A hugely important concept: “There is no trade-off between price stability and financial stability.”
Retail Sales Dip a Tad in Feb after Huge Spike in Jan. Year-over-Year: +5.4% Despite Price Drops in Durable Goods & Gasoline by Wolf Richter • Mar 15, 2023 • 132 Comments Consumers are still spending like drunken sailors, especially online, now that they don’t have to blow so much on gasoline anymore.
First Republic Downgraded by S&P from Confidence-Inspiring-LOL “A-” Investment-Grade to BB+, One Itty-Bitty Notch into Junk. Shares, Bonds Re-plunge by Wolf Richter • Mar 15, 2023 • 133 Comments We laugh, but it’s a start. SVB Financial collapsed with investment-grade ratings.
Services Inflation Rages at Four-Decade High: Fueled by Rents, Auto Insurance, Repairs, Airfares, Hotels, Pet Services, Food Services, Delivery by Wolf Richter • Mar 14, 2023 • 228 Comments But durable goods prices drop, energy inflation eases, food inflation is less bad.
Free Money = Toxic Money: First Republic Bank and Western Alliance Bank Make it into my Pantheon of Imploded Stocks by Wolf Richter • Mar 13, 2023 • 302 Comments Banks as stock-pump schemes in the era of consensual hallucination.
Silicon Valley Bank’s Uninsured Depositors Bailed Out. Crypto Signature Bank Shut Down, All Depositors Bailed Out. Senior Execs Fired. All Shareholders, Some Bondholders Bailed In by Wolf Richter • Mar 12, 2023 • 581 Comments Treasury/Fed/FDIC issue joint statement with Tough Love for investors in failed banks.
