The Federal Reserve

"In our opinion, the United States has already been defaulting," said Guan Jianzhong, the president of Dagong Global Credit Rating Co. (a Chinese ratings agency), the Straits Times reported. I guess this means congress can stop wasting their time trying to resolve the debt ceiling. Jianzhong...

Gold and silver declined on Friday morning, following data released about Chinese imports. Chinese copper imports declined 3% in May, and oil imports stayed flat at 5 million barrels a month, as reported by Bloomberg. Those investors who have suspected that a global economic slowdown was eminent...

Corn prices moved up on Thursday, after the U.S. Agriculture Department reported that the estimated corn surplus in 2012 would be less than anticipated, according to USA Today. The USDA cited weather patterns—too much rain—as a reason for why farmers have been unable to plant enough corn this...

Robert Shiller told Reuters that he would not be surprised to see home prices fall another 10 to 25%. If Shiller is right in his prediction, that may be extremely bullish for the U.S. dollar as deflation ravages the economy. Deflation means an appreciating dollar. Though investors may see falling...

East Asia has been a hotbed for economic growth in the last few decades. Investors have been lured by prospects of investing in Korea, China, and India. Certainly, the economic growth in these countries has been remarkable, and potentially profitable. However, there may be one country the...

Jean-Claude Trichet, President of the European Central Bank, spoke Thursday morning. In his speech, he used his traditional "strong vigilance" phrase, which investors have interpreted to mean a forthcoming rate hike. Following that speech, the EUR/USD began a sharp sell-off, as currency traders...

On Tuesday, an unusually large solar flare exploded from the surface of the sun. That explosion put a tremendous amount of solar material into space, material which is on a collision course with the Earth. According to National Geographic, that material could disrupt power grids and damage...

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve released its Beige Book, a report on the state of the economy compiled individually by each of the Fed's 12 district banks. In what should be a surprise to exactly no one (at least those that watched Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech on Tuesday), four of the...

A Chinese banking official characterized the continued debate over the U.S. debt ceiling as "playing with fire," Reuters reported. Recently, some Republican congressmen have floated the idea of allowing the U.S. to default on its debt obligations for a short period of time, if such a default would...

Meredith Whitney, founder and CEO of the Meredith Whitney Advisory Group, appeared on CNBC's Squawk Box Wednesday morning. In her appearance, she reiterated her call for municipality defaults. She stated that she anticipated some form of restructuring in the municipal market, as local politicians...

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke spoke to a group of bankers on Tuesday. In his speech, he reiterated much of what he has said in countless speeches over the past several weeks. However, he laid out fairly concrete expectations for the economy in 2011 that smart traders could take advantage of...

The U.S. dollar index declined on Tuesday, as the U.S. dollar depreciated against world currencies. Despite rhetoric from Federal Reserve Bank presidents, traders may have fled the dollar on anticipation that the Fed would continue to keep its policy of loose money in place. The Chairman of the...

Inflation in Turkey is up--way up--accelerating at a rate not seen in almost a decade. The Turkish economy is presently considered to be vulnerable to a financial shock, as its current account deficit is massive. In an effort to prevent the Turkish economy from suffering a shock, the Central Bank...

Want to purchase guns and illegal drugs over the internet but without the traditional hassle of bank records? A new digital technology is making it possible. In the past, most internet transactions required a credit card or an online payment system like PayPal (NASDAQ: EBAY), creating an effective...

Friday's unemployment numbers were grim: the unemployment rate stands at 9.1%. The rate came as a shock to economists, who had anticipated a rate of 8.9%. For unemployed Americans struggling to put food on the table there might be a solution: sell your jewelry. Following the release of the...