Canada declares an emergency as economic productivity growth lags far behind Published by Hilliard MacBeth on Mar 29, 2024 “Well, it’s time to break the glass,” said Carolyn Rogers from the Bank of Canada in a recent speech, referring to the emergency situation in the lack of improvement in productivity in Canada’s business sector. The Bank of Canada cares about productivity... Read more
The Federal Reserve believes the soft landing myth Published by Hilliard MacBeth on Mar 22, 2024 The Federal Reserve announced that interest rates will remain unchanged. The chairman, Jerome Powell, seemed confident in his remarks that inflation will come down further, while economic growth gets stronger, and unemployment stays at the current low... Read more
Banks are fighting proposals for tougher regulatory rules Published by Hilliard MacBeth on Mar 15, 2024 A battle is underway in the U.S. over new rules requiring higher equity capital for the banks. Enhanced equity capital protects the bank from insolvency in the event of a financial crisis. Bank lobbyists are fighting hard to keep capital requirements... Read more
Apple struggles with slumping sales in China Published by Hilliard MacBeth on Mar 08, 2024 China and the iPhone are closely linked, as sales in that country are a key to Apple’s success. China is going through an economic slump which shows up in sales of Apple’s most successful product, the iPhone. Recently competitors in China have been growing... Read more
Warren Buffett is at a crossroads Published by Hilliard MacBeth on Mar 01, 2024 Berkshire Hathaway, the investment vehicle of Warren Buffett, reported results for 2023 and Buffett left investors with some pearls of wisdom in the accompanying letter to shareholders. As Warren Buffett explains, investing is not easy, but it is very... Read more