In this regard, an appropriate value for many bank loans and off-balance-sheet commitments -- the one that reflect the nature of a bank’s business -- is the original acquisition price adjusted for the expectation of performance at maturity. Given the many difficulties of FASB’s task, it is not surprising that their proposal raises a number of complex issues.
The housing services component of the PCE price index rose a bit above 0.7 percent in August, which was slightly above the previous three-month average. And I expect a similar pace to continue for a while, well into next year. Why? Shelter inflation measures the rents actually paid by households.