The author has been described by News Ltd as an "iconoclast", "Svengali", a pollie's "economist muse", and "pungently accurate". Fairfax says he is a "Renaissance man" and "one of Australia’s most respected analysts." Stephen Koukoulas concludes that he is "85% right", and "would make a great Opposition leader." Terry McCrann claims the author thinks "‘nuance’ is a trendy village in the south of France", but can be "scintillating" when he thinks "clearly". The ACTU reckons he’s "an enigma wrapped in a Bloomberg terminal, wrapped in some apparently well-honed abs."

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Lex on UK inflation problems (+ cool chart)

The FT's Lex comments (with nice charts):

"The UK’s endemic inflation problem is undeniable. It cannot be blamed on transitory factors such as commodity prices or tax changes – although these ensure that it will get worse before it gets better. Rather, embedded inflation seems to be rising. The rate of core inflation (excluding mortgages, fuel and seasonal food) is at its highest since 1997. So is a rolling five-year average of headline inflation, which Credit Suisse suggests as another way to eliminate transitory factors. QE2 looks difficult to support now."

at 8:40 AM