Commentaries

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: September 19, 2019 |

Short-Term Borrowing Crunch: An Aberration or a Signal of Trouble?

In the course of the last couple of days the Fed has been injecting significant amounts of liquidity (to the tune of $75 billion per day) into the financial system. […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: September 12, 2019 |

A Few Random Thoughts on Economic Structural Integrity: Global Order Meets Finance

The story of humankind has been a long tale of war, tyranny, misery, conflict, and illiberalism. To that extent the recent decades of relative peace and prosperity, along with the […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: August 27, 2019 |

Contemplating the Ramifications of a Slowdown

Last Friday’s trade war escalation may not be substantial in terms of GDP impact but could indicate a turn in the ongoing trade disputes and may inflict significant damage in […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: August 22, 2019 |

At the Crossroads called Hellespont: Recessionary Fears Meet Unapologetic Optimism

The year was 480 B.C.E. and Xerxes (Persia’s king of kings) had gathered his troops and his fleet in the place known as Abydos, a town on the Asian side […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: August 15, 2019 |

Another Perspective on the Recent Market Turmoil: Squandering the Stewardship of the International System

T.S. Elliot pronounced that Virgil’s Aeneid was a universal classic since the poem reflects the foundation of how you create and preserve a world system. The Aeneid displays in a […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: August 7, 2019 |

The Compounding of Risks: Trade Wars in the Midst of Cheapening Currencies

The risks of an economic slowdown is compounded by trade war rhetoric, a Brexit without a deal, the reduction of short-term rates (Asian central banks lowered their rates in the […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: July 30, 2019 |

Center for Financial Stability Roundtable Presentation

The Center for Financial Stability (CFS) recently hosted a roundtable discussion on European Central Bank (ECB) monetary policy with Philipp Hartmann. Philipp is Deputy Director General for research at the […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: July 24, 2019 |

Deglobalization and Disruption Meets Deconstruction: Isaiah Berlin and the Crooked Timber of Trading

Danny Rodrick might have been right after all when he argued in his 1997 book (titled Has Globalization Gone Too Far?) that we should be careful how far we are […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: July 18, 2019 |

Xenophon’s Oeconomicus Meets the Rabbits that Got the Guns

In last week’s commentary, we discussed some perspectives of gathering clouds over the short-term horizon (6-10 months). We expressed the opinion that caution is warranted regarding new market highs given […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: July 9, 2019 |

When the Rabbits Get the Guns

Data from around the world show that economic activity is slowing down. At the same time, the trade uncertainty exacerbates the concerns that a slowdown crowned with an intensifying trade […]