Firestarter

Fed Governor Richard Fisher’s recent remarks at an Ag Summit in Chicago appeared to have gone almost completely unnoticed by Mr. Market. While we understand that Mr. Fisher is one of the more reasonable Fed Governors, we were taken aback by the veracity of his arguments against further Fed purchases. His exact words were as follows ” …we have a surfeit of excess liquidity sloshing about in the system, the idea of ramping up inflation expectations from their current levels strikes me as short-sighted and even reckless. We already have enough kindling for potential long-term inflation, which will sorely test our capacity to manage policy going forward. I do not wish to add further to that wood pile”.  The markets inattention to this comment was as expected, given the fact that markets prefer to respond to a fire only once it has completely engulfed the residence. This indifference should also not surprise as all forms of fire insurance (inflation protection) have steadily fallen out of favor:gold, precious metals, TIPs, etc.. As with most insurance, it is cheapest to purchase in an environment not seemingly conducive to any potential payout by the insurer. Get your fire insurance, buy stuff.