Curing COVID-19 Won’t Cure the Economy
We have been making the case for weeks that we aren’t heading for a quick recovery. We’ve reported on the number of people of small business owners who don’t think they’ll survive, the increasing number of over-leveraged zombie companies, and the tsunami of defaults and bankruptcies on the horizon. Yes, we have seen some economic numbers that are better than expected, but it’s all a function of a Federal Reserve-induced sugar high. The ugly truth is that given the amount of stimulus that the Federal Reserve and the US government have pumped into the economy, unwinding it all will be mission impossible. All of this certainly raises serious questions about the possibility of a “v-shaped” recovery.
We’re not alone in making this case. In the following article recently published at the Mises Wire, economist Brendan Brown provides some additional arguments and asserts that even if COVID-19 disappeared today, the economy isn’t going back to “normal.”
The opinions expressed are those of Brendan Brown and for your consideration. They do not necessarily reflect those of Peter Schiff or SchiffGold.
Speculative frenzy in the midst of recession is not a new phenomenon. Yet the extent of the “madness” this time might well beat records in the small sample size available from the history laboratory. The combination of extreme monetary radicalism and a receding supply shock has proved to be a potent toxic, impairing mental processes in ways described by the behavioral finance theorists. The pandemic stock “bubble” and resumed hectic demand for risky credit paper provide illustrations.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
