Jon-fish-Bernanke

The WSJ’s Jon Hilsenrath has an amusing note in which he plays Bernanke’s Babel-fish.

You can read Jon’s note, or the speech for what Bernanke said. I’ve only left in what Jon says Bernanke meant – for that’s the message to the market.

The short summary is that Bernanke remains a mile away from supporting any policy tightening, which i suspect includes slowing the monthly pace of asset purchases.

WHAT HE MEANT: Just in case you didn’t get it when I testified before Congress this week, I am absolutely sticking to my plans to keep interest rates low. Don’t get too freaked out by the debate playing out …

… You know that $3 trillion stockpile of mortgage and Treasury securities that the Fed has got? You know how we said back in June 2011 that we might sell some of these securities some day? On second thought, maybe we won’t…

… All of you naysayers out there say the Fed has pushed interest rates down too far. You also said the Fed’s low rates caused the housing bubble. If everything is the Fed’s fault, then how come rates are behaving the same way all over the world? I’ll tell you why, because the whole advanced world economy is in the soup…

… Hey banks and traders, you’ve been warned. If you’re out of position when long rates start rising in a few years, don’t blame the Fed … We’re not going to let the financial system reach the brink of collapse again. Trust us.