No one likes to admit defeat. But global policymakers, who continue to insist that there's more they can do to revive growth and inflation, are starting to sound like Monty Python's Black Knight, the limbless and mortally wounded warrior who threatens to bleed on his victorious opponent. The truth is that governments and central banks have very few weapons left -- and have probably lost any chance they once had of averting a prolonged stagnation.
Clearly, the real economy hasn't responded as hoped to zero and now negative interest rates. A whole host of factors continue to depress personal spending -- high debt, stagnant incomes, unemployment and under-employment, and economic uncertainty. Even the rich, who have benefited immensely from the runup in asset prices, can't really spend much more than they already are.
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