Odin's Beard The American Economy Shivers A Federal Reserve Saga!

The Allfather's Economy Is Not Smiling

By Odin's beard! I Ragnar Lothbrok have seen more stable longboats than this American economy. The Federal Reserve speaks of contraction a shrinking like a scared thrall facing a berserker! Six weeks they say? That’s almost enough time to sail from Kattegat to England and back...twice! And what's this 'Beige Book'? Sounds like something Rollo would write about his new Frankish attire. Economic activity declined slightly you say? Slightly is like saying Floki is just a bit eccentric. They’re all worried and hesitant? They sound like Saxons facing my axes!

Hiring? More Like Hiding

Hiring is ‘little changed’? Flat as the ale they serve in York! Seven districts speak of it thus. Even my sons with all their fighting spirit would be bored with such stagnation. Lower labor demand? Declining hours? It’s like the gods are punishing them with endless winters and no raiding! They speak of layoffs but not pervasive HA! They are probably just waiting for the right moment to strike like I do when I plan my raids on England. Perhaps they need a good longboat burning to stimulate the market. The gods favor boldness not this timid shuffling!

Tariffs The New Sea Monster

Ah tariffs! The new sea monster lurking beneath the waves of trade. The Federal Reserve claims they push prices upwards. Is this some sorcery of the East? The report mentions tariffs a great number of times. More than times I've had a proper drink of mead after a good battle. Even I am not sure what to make of this and like I always say 'I don't have to be anything. Who I am is enough.'

Inflation Rising Like Lagertha's Temper

Prices rising 'at a moderate pace'? Moderate is for the weak! Lagertha's temper rises faster than a tidal wave and I'd wager these prices will too. Businesses pondering reducing profits? Adding fees? They sound like merchants haggling over silver. They expect to pass on these tariff costs within three moons. Quick they are but not as quick as my axe meeting an Englishman's skull! 'How I choose to act is who I am' and I would never let tariffs get the best of me just like I have done many times.

Trump's Tariffs A Shifting Landscape

So this Trump relaxes the tariffs and the Wall Street rally happens. Then the fears remain? Seems these traders are as fickle as the weather on the North Sea. One day calm sailing; the next a storm that could sink a fleet. They're just 'afraid of dying'. And I say 'So am I'. No one wants to go to Valhalla before their time but these traders are probably more afraid of their stock prices than death!

Regional Disparities A Land Divided

Boston New York Philadelphia – declining! Richmond Atlanta Chicago – growing! It sounds like a war between the Jarls each vying for power and land. New York suffers from 'heightened uncertainty' and tariff induced costs? They should try raiding; it's a great way to stimulate the economy. Richmond reports a slight increase in hiring despite this Trump trimming the federal payroll? Perhaps they found a clever way to smuggle in new workers under the noses of the gods themselves! It appears I was correct when I said that “The future is not fixed. Act accordingly.”