Expectations have been building the Fed will finally raise rates in 2014 and "normalize" monetary policy. With the end of Quantitative Easing near, the hope for many market participants is that the economy is accelerating to the point where finally, years after the financial crisis, the Fed will end its zero interest rate policy and favor savers as opposed to asset holders. However, as the Bank of Japan knows, it is extraordinarily hard to raise rates when there is legacy debt that must be paid off, and when deflationary pressures still persist.
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