Greenspan Conundrum In Reverse

In remarks broadcast by satellite to a monetary conference in China late Monday, Greenspan ruminated on what he previously described as a “conundrum” — long-term interest rates that have remained low and even fallen despite the Fed’s yearlong campaign to raise short-term rates.

But in classic fashion for the sometimes enigmatic chairman, Greenspan’s comments were ambiguous enough to support both sides of a debate raging in financial markets over whether the low long-term rates signal trouble ahead for the U.S. economy.