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Presidents get a lot of the blame, and take a lot of the credit, for the performance of the stock market while they are in office. However, the truth is that the president's ability to impact the economy and markets is generally indirect and marginal. It's Congress that sets tax rates, passes...

President Barack Obama nominated Janet Louise Yellen on Oct. 9, 2013, to become the chair of the Federal Reserve Board.1 She succeeded Ben Bernanke and was scheduled to remain a board member until 2024. Yellen was tasked with keeping the gradual recovery of the economy on track. Obama called...

Other names that were considered for the role include former Federal Reserve Vice Chair Roger Ferguson, Federal Reserve Gov. Lael Brainard, and Ariel Investments Co-CEO Mellody Hobson.2 If confirmed by the Senate, Yellen would be the first woman to hold the job. She would play a leading role in...

Indexes first became popular with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), which was created by Charles Dow in 1896. The DJIA was the second stock index, created after the Dow Jones Transportation Average. The DJIA became a crucial tool for tracking the strength of the broader economy. Since...

What Is the Dow Jones Industrial Index? The Down Jones Industrial Index is a list, or index, of companies considered to be good indicators of the stock market's overall strength. Simply put, these companies are a barometer of the market: when they do well, the economy is doing well, and vice...

The Dow Jones and the Broader Market In the United States, there are three major indicators, or indexes, of market movements: the Nasdaq Composite, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA or "the Dow"), and the Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500). Collectively, these market indexes are referred to...

In a recovery rally that has defied a global health pandemic and a nasty recession, the Dow Jones Industrial Average topped 30,000 for the first time as investors bet on a strong economic recovery. The milestone is even more significant given the depths of the stock market's plunge in late March...

The Fed Balance Sheet Just like any other balance sheet, the Fed's balance sheet consists of assets and liabilities. Every Thursday, the Fed issues its weekly H.4.1 report, which provides a consolidated statement of the condition of all the Federal Reserve banks, in terms of their assets and...

How the U.S. Government Impacts the Economy The U.S. government has always played a role in the economic affairs of the nation. Over the course of its history, many services began to come under the influence or direct control of the public sector. During some periods in U.S. history, however, it...

The Fed as Quasi-Governmental The monetary decisions of the Federal Reserve do not have to be ratified by the President (or anyone else in the Executive Branch). The Fed receives no funding from Congress, and the members of the Board of Governors, who are appointed, serve 14-year terms. These...

1:59 Fiscal Deficit Fiscal Deficit Impact on the Economy Economists and policy analysts disagree about the impact of fiscal deficits on the economy. Some, such as Nobel laureate Paul Krugman, suggest that the government does not spend enough money and that the sluggish recovery from the Great...

The Role of the Federal Open Market Committee The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) sets monetary policy in the United States, with a dual mandate of achieving full employment and controlling inflation. The committee meets eight times a year to set policy, essentially determining whether to...

Monetary Policy Central banks typically have used monetary policy to either stimulate an economy or to check its growth. By incentivizing individuals and businesses to borrow and spend, the monetary policy aims to spur economic activity. Conversely, by restricting spending and incentivizing...

Governments Intervene to Engineer Growth or Prevent Negative Conditions However, the government may decide to regulate some aspects of this economic activity in order to engineer economic growth or prevent negative economic conditions in the future. In general, a government's active role in...

Inverse Correlation Between Interest Rates and Inflation Under a system of fractional reserve banking, interest rates and inflation tend to be inversely correlated. This relationship forms one of the central tenets of contemporary monetary policy: Central banks manipulate short-term interest...

The Role of the Federal Open Market Committee The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) sets monetary policy in the United States, with a dual mandate of achieving full employment and controlling inflation. The committee meets eight times a year to set policy, essentially determining whether to...

A Standard Forex Trade Before you consider whether to trade forex using bitcoin, it's helpful to understand how a conventional forex trade works. A forex trade is simply an exchange of one currency for another at its current rate. Unlike tourists who exchange their home currency for local...

Determining the Money Supply The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) and associated economic advisers meet regularly to assess the U.S. money supply and general economic condition. If it is determined that new money needs to be created, then the Fed targets a certain level of money injection...

Understanding Money Supply Money supply, or money stock, is the total amount of money in circulation or in existence in a country at a given time. Money supply impacts price levels, capital availability, inflation, and the overall business and economic cycle of a country. A high velocity of...

The Rise of the Central Bank Historically, the role of the central bank has been growing, some may argue, since the establishment of the Bank of England in 1694. It is, however, generally agreed upon that the concept of the modern central bank did not appear until the 20th century, in response...