Inflation has inched higher in the past six months, but that's not a danger sign, but rather a harbinger of improving economic conditions and a strengthening recovery. And that, in turn, should lead to higher wages and more hiring in the year ahead.
As earlier bouts of alarmism over Europe, then a double-dip recession and then deflation fade away, a new bogeyman is taking their place: Inflation, and the damage it could do to profits and stocks. Yes, prices are rising, but the main pain will be felt most among America's poorest.
After years of exhorting China to increase the value of its yuan, the currency is finally rising. Why that's so is the result of the Fed's quantitative easing program. Here's how Bernanke managed to succeed where political wrangling fell short.
The U.S. economy has strengthened, but not enough for the government to pare down its bond-buying program, according to the latest Fed minutes. In late 2010, investments rose and the job market improved -- but the housing market remained depressed.
While most of the world's central banks are still fighting the last war, Sweden's Riksbank has moved on to the next one. Rather than looking at conventional inflation gauges, the world's oldest central bank is basing its actions on asset-price growth in an effort to prevent the next bubble.
Gold is on a record bull run, up from $328 in 2002 to $1,375 an ounce today. What caused that steep rise wasn't any inherent increase in gold's value to society, but a clever marketing scheme that allowed it to be traded easily without the hassle of physical delivery: The SPDR Gold ETF.
Republican leaders may be worried about the Federal Reserve's second round of quantitative easing, but the stock and credit markets are delighted: They've improved significantly since the plan was announced. But can the rally be solely attributed to QE2?
A rapidly growing list of reports shows a U.S. economic recovery that's far stronger than most had anticipated just months ago. And both deflation and inflation seem less likely to explode. All this is boosting the dollar -- and could soon dim the gold bugs' argument.
For the 22nd-straight month, the central bank kept its target interest rate at 0% to 0.25%. It made no new asset purchases and no changes to QE2, its $600 billion, eight-month bond-buying program. Housing and hiring are two main areas of concern in a slow-growth economy.
Led by a jump in energy, producer prices rose 0.8% in November -- a gain that suggests policymakers may be winning their battle to avoid deflation. It's the straight monthly rise. However, minus energy and food increases, inflation pretty much vanishes.
Noted economist Gary Shilling just released a new book, The Age of Deleveraging, in which he explains why inflation isn't what investors should be fearing, but rather deflation. He also recommends 10 investments investors should now make. [Video]
The Fed says it expects the U.S. economy to grow weakly in both 2010 and 2011, with as many as six years needed to return unemployment to normal levels.
When the economic gurus at the Fed move the levers of U.S. monetary policy, they do so with two often-conflicting goals in mind: promoting maximum employment and keeping prices stable. Many critics are now arguing that that Fed should focus solely on prices.
Manufacturing activity in the mid-Atlantic region unexpectedly surged in November. The Philly Fed's Business Outlook Survey index jumped to 22.5 in November from 1 in October, its highest reading since December 2009.
