Today we get the CPI data that will finally unleash Trump’s critics and cause them to criticize the war effort to rein in Iran. (Just kidding – obviously Trump’s critics need no excuses!) We see the direct effects of the war on consumer energy prices, which the consensus expects to produce a headline m/m, seasonally adjusted CPI figure of +0.96% (consensus on core is +0.28%)....

We have CPI coming up in a few days, but M2 came out recently and it is worth commenting about, so let me drop some thoughts about the state of money and velocity right now and the context we are operating in.

M2 grew 0.88% in February, causing the y/y change to rise to 4.88% (quarterly, however, it is 6.65% annualized). I saw somebody recently observe that money gr...

For Christmas, my daughter gave me the pamphlet “Inflation in One Easy Lesson,” by Harry Scherman. (Yes, I am that typecast that my daughter gives me inflation memorabilia for Christmas!) It was written during World War II, and distributed by the Council for Democracy. It is so delightfully simple and direct, and makes the main point so obvious, that I want t...