The QE haters have it all wrong again

From 2010-2014 we at Jefferies argued quite strongly that the QE policies from the FOMC would work to reflate US risk asset markets, in particular US stocks. And to be sure, during that 5 year period we encountered our fair share of QE haters. Early on, the hater view...

Embrace DCD and respect the price action

Although I think the debate on a Sep, Oct or Dec liftoff could be one of the most banal in Fed watching history, I understand that many investors feel differently. There are plenty of folks who have no choice but to keep an allocation to US assets - and hence a month...

Stop blaming China for everything

This will be my fourth commentary of the week, which I think may be a record. However, given the extraordinary price action, an excessive quantity of verbiage has sadly been necessary. And please remember, my number one rule is to only write when there is something...

The Z-curve

A wise friend and excellent hedge fund manager from DC sent me following fabulous line for a commentary title: "Today's exercise: If spoo > x, then liftoff. Solve for x". It was a play on a commentary I wrote back in June 2011 entitled "Today's exercise: If spoo...

A DSGE model that explains crashes in risk asset markets

I have built and estimated a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) economic model of the global economy which can fully explain the recent market crash dynamics. My model incorporates sticky wages/prices, a monetary sector built around cash in advance...

Flat is the new up

This was always going to be a difficult year in U.S. markets. Turning the interest rate cycle without a market hick-up, after such an unprecedented and aggressive easing, would require near super human policy-making talent. In the end, I'm not sure anyone could have...