QE: much promise - little delivery

The programme of US bond purchases, affectionately known as QE2, has only just ended, yet there are already calls in America for a new initiative (presumably to be known as QE3) to be introduced. QE is dead, long live QE!

However, is it not a tad paradoxical that the apparent failure of QE2 should bring calls for more of the same? Einstein’s definition of insanity was doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result. Did it work? It seems highly reasonable that, before embarking on another round of spending, there should be an appraisal of how far the present programme met its objectives. Are there grounds for believing sufficient progress has been made to warrant a supplementary commitment? Fortunately, the President of the Federal Reserve Board, Ben Bernanke, set out clearly at its...