During last weekend’s Jackson Hole annual conference the main topic of discussion was the Fed’s near imminent reduction of its bond buying program. The program spends 85 billion USD a month and is part of the low interest rate environment the Fed created to help the US economy out of a crisis. Growth has been picking up, but the main debate with tapering has been one of timing. End the stimulus too soon and you risk pushing the US back into a recession. Ben Bernanke was a notable absence this time around. His heart might not be in it as he will not be the Fed’s chairman come next year. The high stakes of starting the ... (full story)