Peter's Blog

The Trump Tariffs: Why Free-Trade Is the Only Way Forward

The United States has taken a very strong protectionist stance on global trade. With the recent tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, which include 10% baseline duties on most imports, a staggering 145% on Chinese goods, and targeted tariffs on European and automotive imports, the debate over the nation’s trade policy has become highly contentious. […]

Hands off! A Case for Price Discrimination

Everyone knows that discrimination is wrong. Of course, everyone in that circumstance would be assuming that discrimination was referring to judging people by their underlying traits, but it becomes very easy for the meaning of the word to take on a negative connotation that can be used to inform policy in unhelpful ways. Price discrimination […]

U.S. Economy Stumbles into Negative Territory Amid Rising Inflation and Imports

America’s economy contracted slightly in the first quarter of 2025, with real GDP slipping 0.3%, reversing from a solid 2.4% growth seen in the previous quarter. According to the advance estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), the downturn was largely driven by surging imports and reduced government spending. Despite underlying resilience in […]

Trump’s Easy-Money Agenda: Empowering Wall Street, Undermining Main Street

Although Jerome Powell appears temporarily safe from President Trump’s ire, it’s only a matter of time before the pressure to cut rates will ratchet up on the Fed. Indeed, Trump– like all other politicians– wants low interest rates to facilitate ever-increasing deficits and obscure the faultlines in the economy.

Jamie Dimon and the boring secret of JPMorgan’s success

At the start of the 2008 financial crisis, the Federal Government reached out to one company they knew could handle the catastrophically managed Bear Stearns. They knew JPMorgan would be able to handle a massive administrative and financial challenge even as others faltered. JPMorgan still suffered from the 2008 crisis, but far less than most […]

Peter Schiff: The Bounce is Just a Bear Market Rally

On Sunday night, Peter returned to the mic to analyze a volatile week on Wall Street. He unpacks the market’s recent surge, the political pressures buffeting the Federal Reserve, and the deeper consequences of unsound economic policy. From the opaque motives driving central bankers to the misleading optimism embedded in public statements about tariffs and […]

Visa, Mastercard, and Russian Commerce

It’s very easy to keep faith in modern electronic payment systems when there is nothing going wrong with them. Russians in March 2022 did not have the same luxury. Due to the country’s involvement in the war with Ukraine, Visa, MasterCard, and several other payment platforms punished all Russians. They did this in three separate […]

Insurance With a Little Shine

Everyone knows that all investments carry some amount of risk. This ranges from highly speculative cryptocurrencies to low return bonds with far lower risk. One area that people do not assign enough risk to is insurance. Insurance is supposed to be a safeguard against risk, so it seems odd to recognize that it also can […]

Did Someone Call the Comex Bluff?

The CME Comex is the Exchange where futures are traded for gold, silver, and other commodities. The CME also allows futures buyers to turn their contracts into physical metal through delivery. You can find more detail on the CME here (e.g., vault types, major/minor months, delivery explanation, historical data, etc.).

13-Week Money Supply Growth Continues to Decelerate

Money Supply is a very important indicator. It helps show how tight or loose current monetary conditions are regardless of what the Fed is doing with interest rates. Even if the Fed is tight, if Money Supply is increasing, it has an inflationary effect.