Maybe.

Since central banks began their B.S. back in 2001, when the Bank of Japan first began Quantitative Easing efforts, I’ve warned that it wouldn’t be enough… that none of them would be able to commit to the vast sums of money they’d ultimately need to prevent the Economic Winter Season – and its accompanying deflation – from rolling over us.

Demographics and numerous other cycles, in my studied opinion, would ultimately overwhelm central bank efforts.

Well, $12 trillion later – after the U.S. and Europe jumped on the QE bandwagon in early 2009 – I have to admit I didn’t expect that level of QE…

And here we are, at the start of 2018, with the Dow above 25,000 and flying like a kite on the Trump rally that we called in November 2016!

With U.S. markets not suffering losses more than 5% all throughout 2017!

With the U.S. economy seemingly gathering steam, especially in 2017, and the Japanese economy improving steadily since 2014.

So, was I wrong?

Are such high levels of artificial stimulus more important than demographic trends in spending, workforce growth, and productivity, which clearly dominated in the real economy before QE? Is global stimulus finally taking hold and are we on the verge of 3% to 4% growth again?

Or is there something else going on here?

Yes! Central banks have taken over the markets and economy. They’ve put us on an endless stream of crack and stimulus to keep us going. And now nothing else “seems” to matter as much – not even the most fundamental demographic trends in spending.

As long as the markets see low rates and almost-free money, and companies just buy back their stocks instead of investing in real growth, everything seems to keep chugging along all sunshine and roses.

But I maintain that you cannot live indefinitely off such something-for-nothing policies?

Fundamentals should still mean something in our economy…