Economic View: It’s the Fed’s Time to Step Up - Economic View

By Lynn Parramore, a senior editor at Alternet. Cross posted from Alternet

On Friday, the government said that just 88,000 jobs were created in March, a number that came in well below expectations. And yet the unemployment rate fell again, with big drops seen in some key demographics.

The Federal Reserve is, of course, a bank. So after it has a meeting, it issues a statement outlining the discussion — a “bank statement.” Hmm… Now that I think about it, that must be where the acronym “BS” comes from.

Federal Reserve Bank of Boston President Eric Rosengren said he wants to continue the central bank’s bond purchases through year’s end and raise or lower the pace in response to economic data.

By Eric Parnell:The stock market has opened a fresh window of opportunity with the recent sharp rally that began on Monday. The time is now to begin seizing this opportunity, for it may not last for very long.

Ian Fletcher submits: Needed Chinese Currency Reform Bill Is Only a Small First Stepgm

The Mole submits: A poor close on Wall Street last night with the pattern of attempted rallies getting sold into continues, driven in part by the corporate calamity that is BP (BP), which lost another 16% (on fears they may be forced to suspend their dividend). BP CDS is now around 400bp, 12x higher than before the leak.