Free Republic

The European Central Bank left its stimulus measures on hold Thursday and warned governments in the 19 country euro currency union that they need to do more to help the economy grow and push up inflation to healthier levels. The bank kept its key interest rates unchanged and decided against extending the duration of its existing bond-buying stimulus program. Bank President Mario Draghi seemed relatively confident about the economy and less inclined to hint at more stimulus than some analysts had expected. Instead, he used his news conference to urge governments to do their part. He said that implementation of...

The European Central Bank will plough €1.1 trillion into the eurozone economy in a last-ditch attempt to breathe life into the European economy. At its monthly governing council on Thursday (January 22), the bank’s governing council agreed to start buying up to €60 billion of government bonds from March in an unprecedented quantitative easing program. The program is open-ended, and will run until September 2016 at the earliest. Speaking at a press conference following the governing council meeting, ECB president Mario Draghi said that the bond-buying program would remain in place “until we see a sustained adjustment in the path...

In a recent interview with Salon, outspoken progressive Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL) hailed the rise of what he called “stealth socialism” through America’s recent monetary policy decisions.Asked by interviewer David Dayen whether the financial system has become “safer” in the years since the financial collapse and subsequent government interventions like 2010′s Dodd-Frank bill, Grayson praised the Federal Reserve for its “unconventional” policies that have “put us back on a low-level track toward growth.”Asked about the Fed’s expanding balance sheet, the Florida Democrat said: “We’ve had a government takeover of the bond market. Stealth socialism’s been created. Government simply ends up...