The author covered the arguments for why QE is not inflationary well. However, they failed to address how government spending and fiscal stimulus (which is vastly different from QE) is not inflationary.
I agree that QE causes asset price inflation but normally does not cause much consumer price inflation. However, I believe government spending and fiscal stimulus most certainly will.
Massive amounts of government fiscal stimulus is used to combat deflation, which it seems to do well, at least initially. The threat of deflation is usually caused by a slow in monetary velocity. But when monetary velocity returns inflation is likely to increase at a rate greater than we would see without any stimulus. The whole idea of it seems to be to combat deflation with inflation. So if that is not inflationary then why are governments around the world doing it? And why are we to assume them to be infallible and that they know exactly what the proper medicine is for a broken economy?
I think it's wreckless to dismiss the possibility of inflation when we have already been seeing it in the dramatic decline in the purchasing power of consumer goods by fiat currencies for decades.
Call me old fashioned but I feel like bitcoin is similar to fiat currencies simply because it's not backed by anything. It has invented scarcity. If I just created giraffe coin and there were only 5 coins it doesn't mean it has any value. Would someone please explain why on earth I want to own bitcoin? I really don't understand the bull case for it.
I agree that QE causes asset price inflation but normally does not cause much consumer price inflation. However, I believe government spending and fiscal stimulus most certainly will.
Massive amounts of government fiscal stimulus is used to combat deflation, which it seems to do well, at least initially. The threat of deflation is usually caused by a slow in monetary velocity. But when monetary velocity returns inflation is likely to increase at a rate greater than we would see without any stimulus. The whole idea of it seems to be to combat deflation with inflation. So if that is not inflationary then why are governments around the world doing it? And why are we to assume them to be infallible and that they know exactly what the proper medicine is for a broken economy?
I think it's wreckless to dismiss the possibility of inflation when we have already been seeing it in the dramatic decline in the purchasing power of consumer goods by fiat currencies for decades.