Blu Putnam
Chief Economist, CME Group
Bio
Bluford (Blu) Putnam has served as Managing Director and Chief Economist of CME Group since May 2011. He is responsible for leading economic analysis on global financial markets by identifying emerging trends, evaluating economic factors and forecasting their impact. Prior to joining CME Group, Putnam gained more than 35 years of experience in the financial services industry with concentrations in central banking, investment research and portfolio management. He has authored five books on international finance.
This Is Only Act One of U.S.-China Trade Tension
The rising tit-for-tat trade skirmishes between the U.S. and China are giving stock markets serious jitters, as well they should….
The Rise of China as a Global Political Powerhouse
Speaking at CME Group’s 2017 Global Financial Leadership Conference (GFLC) in the session on “Globalism, Populism, and the Wave to…
Negative Rates Are Creating a Tax, Not a Stimulus
In 2016, we have seen the Bank of Japan (BoJ) surprise the markets with a move into negative rates for…
Should China and the U.S. Be Economic Partners?
China’s economy is decelerating and financial and commodity market participants are worried about the prospect of a recession in the…
What Next, If Fed Hikes Rates in December?
The message is now more transparent from Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen. In her many speeches of late, she…
The Arguments for Abandoning a Zero Rate Policy
There is a very good probability, perhaps 60 percent, that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will move at its April…
Why the Spectacular Fall in Oil Prices?
There are powerful dynamics impacting the oil and natural gas markets on a global scale. Our perspective is that the…
FX Volatility and Central Bank Divergence
With former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, and former head of the Bank of England…
Water, Not Economic Reform, is Brazil’s Next Challenge
Brazil re-elected incumbent Dilma Rouseff of the Worker’s Party (PT) as its President for the next four years. The…
Blu Putnam: Abenomics Likely to Disappoint
A spotlight shines very brightly on Japan at the moment – and especially on Prime Minister Abe – not…
Fed Rate Increase Could Come Sooner Than You Think
If the U.S. economy keeps growing, even modestly in the second half of 2014, and that is very likely, a…
Food Price Inflation and El Nino
Food price inflation is increasing sharply in the U.S. Only last December, food prices were just 1.05 percent higher than…