(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump said it would be wise for China to “act now” to finish a trade deal with the U.S., warning that “far worse” terms would be on offer for them after what he predicted would be his certain re-election in 2020. “I think that China felt they were beaten so badly in the recent negotiation that they may as well wait around for the next election,” Tr... read more

Bengaluru — Gold edged higher on Friday and was en route for a weekly gain, supported by trade concerns after the US hiked tariffs on Chinese goods in the middle of crucial trade talks between the two countries. Spot gold was up 0.1% at $1,285.03 an ounce at 10.01am GMT and is up about 0.5% so far this week. US gold futures were steady at $1,285.60 an ounce. “Tensions in the Middle East... read more

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. banks tightened standards on commercial real estate loans and on credit card borrowing during the first quarter, according to a survey of bank officers published on Monday. The U.S. Federal Reserve’s quarterly survey of senior loan officers also showed banks were taking steps to curb potential losses from loans to firms that are exposed to the risks of economic t... read more

Every government intervention into the economy may not be socialism, but it is a step toward socialism. Interventionists claim to advocate for a ‘third way’ of economic organization, one that preserves the productive nature of capitalism, while merely reining in some of its destructive excesses. For instance, Sen. Elizabeth Warren last year described herself as a “capitalist to the bone... read more

By now you’ve heard that the U.S. economy expanded at an annualized rate of 3.2% in the first quarter of 2019. That was reported by the Commerce Department last Friday morning. That strong growth coming on top of 4.2% in Q2 2018 and 3.4% in Q3 2018 means that in the past twelve months, the U.S. economy has expanded at about a 3.25% annualized rate. That’s a full point higher than the avera... read more

European Central Bank regulators are concerned that Deutsche Bank’s standing has weakened since it flunked U.S. stress tests in 2015, 2016 and 2018 and a repeat would cause a bigger dent in confidence among customers and business partners. The Federal Reserve, which will complete its examination of Deutsche Bank’s U.S. operations in the coming weeks, could also impose conditions curbing... read more

When a recession threatens, the Federal Reserve has a trusty method for either preventing it or minimizing its damage: Cut interest rates — by a lot, if necessary. But what happens when interest rates stay near record lows even in good times? With the economic expansion on track to become the longest on record, one of the most important beneath-the-radar policy conversations in Washingto... read more

Sooner or later, the US will enter a recession. My best guess is it will happen sometime in 2020. I may be off (early) by a year or two, but it’s coming. We know two things will happen. Tax revenues will fall as people’s income drops. Federal spending will rise as safety-net entitlement claims go up. The result will be higher deficits. Keynesian economics says we should run deficits in... read more

Update: Germany has launched into damage control mode on Thursday, with the Bundesbank issuing a statement claiming that Deutsche and Commerzbank are "solid, stable banks". Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank Are Solid, Stable Banks: Bundesbank After more than a month of increasingly fraught deal talks, Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank announced on Thursday that they have abandoned the negotiations a... read more

The leaders of the biggest U.S. banks have a message for Congress: take a closer look at the ballooning markets for student and corporate loans. Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., asked a panel of seven CEOs, brought together Wednesday for a House Financial Services Committee hearing what they thought were the products or markets that could threaten the U.S. financial system. "Leveraged lending and... read more