Commentaries

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: April 8, 2015 |

White Knights in a Festival of Fools: The Tale of a Dangerous Encounter

Around the globe fundamentals are being ignored. Unsustainable debt keeps rising, the equity markets of dysfunctional economic unions seem to “thrive”, unprecedented monetary measures are implemented and a Leviathan state […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: March 29, 2015 |

Lorca on Headwinds and Tail Risks: It’s Five O’clock at the Crossroads of Liquidity and Volatility

Could the markets suddenly unravel? Of course they could. The fiat monetary system is like a mirage, it can tumble because of underestimated circumstances. Imagine for example Greece abruptly leaving […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: March 11, 2015 |

Drying Up The Collateral Base

Since 1873 the world has suffered two periods of great deflationary pressures: the first one from 1873-1893, and the second during the Great Depression in the 1930s. We may be […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: March 3, 2015 |

“Quanto Sia Vana Ogni, Quanto Fallace Ciaschedum Disegno”: The Economics of Turmoil, and the Financing of Dysfunctionalities in the Midst of Volatile Markets

Lorenzo the Magnificent (the scion of the Medici banking family), whose lending institution dominated not only Florence but much of Europe, was also a poet influenced by Horace and Catullus. […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: February 16, 2015 |

Overfed but Still Malnourished: The Aegean Sea Meets Singapore

About a year ago in a meeting we had in Warsaw, Poland I contrasted Jamaica and Singapore. The contrast was based on a simple observation/fact, which stated that those two […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: February 5, 2015 |

Warning: Head-On Collision Ahead

Close to twenty years ago, the Eurocrats decided to defy the laws of gravity in economics, and they started designing a common currency without a fiscal union. Their thinking was […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: January 21, 2015 |

Fait Accompli: Searching for Answers Where Answers Cannot Be Found

As it is widely expected, the ECB will unveil today its own version of QE. Welcome to a dead-end where central banks may resemble Prometheus bound by chains made by […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: January 11, 2015 |

The Illusion of a European Firewall: Reflections on a Convoluted Expedition

The Euro – the epitome of what is known as a dysfunctional currency- is shaking. It seems that the Fed no longer needs to support it at those irrational levels, […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: December 28, 2014 |

On Foxes and Hedgehogs: Assimilating the Dissimilar while Contemplating the Impalpable and the Imponderable

I boarded the nonstop flight from Miami to Buenos Aires. As in the previous years during this time, it was destined to be an exciting flight. My fellow co-passengers in […]

By: John E. Charalambakis | On: December 23, 2014 |

Existential Market Disruptors, Part II: Contemplating Credit and Currency Scenarios for 2015

The purpose of this commentary is not to convey our outlook for 2015. That will be forthcoming in two parts in the next couple of weeks. Rather its purpose is […]