The article argues that the Federal Reserve's recent rate hike decision, while justifiable on inflation grounds, highlights a critical lack of an underlying, transparent policy framework. The core problem is that the Fed's decisions appear discretionary, leading to market uncertainty because the committee's judgment, rather than clear data, dictates policy shifts. The author proposes that the Fed adopt a formal monetary policy rule—an algebraic formula linking the target rate to indicators like inflation and unemployment—to replace subjective guidance. Implementing such a rule would provide market predictability, enhance transparency, and shield the Fed from political attacks by making deviations from the standard easily quantifiable.
Washington's Growing Portfolio: Tracking U.S. Government Investments
English Summary
The U.S. government is aggressively expanding its industrial policy toolkit, moving beyond traditional grants and loans to take direct equity stakes and securing novel rights (like 'golden shares' and warrants) in strategic private companies. This effort, totaling billions in investments, is primarily aimed at protecting critical supply chains—particularly in minerals, manufacturing, and semiconductors—and strengthening technological leadership. The urgency for these investments is driven by geopolitical risks, such as China's export controls and the need for domestic military production capacity. Policymakers are likely to continue deploying these complex financing structures and managing the resulting oversight roles to ensure domestic resilience and maintain economic self-sufficiency.
中文摘要
美國政府正積極擴展其產業政策工具箱，其範圍已超越傳統的撥款和貸款，轉向直接取得股權投資，並在戰略性私營企業中確保新型權利（例如「黃金股」和認股權證）。這項總額達數十億美元的投資，主要目標是保護關鍵供應鏈——特別是在礦產、製造和半導體領域——並鞏固技術領導地位。推動這些投資的緊迫性源於地緣政治風險，例如中國的出口管制以及國內軍事生產能力的需求。政策制定者極有可能持續部署這些複雜的融資結構，並管理由此產生的監管職能，以確保國內韌性並維持經濟自主性。
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