Danger of being devoured in an all-consuming market

Tokyo

WE'VE been hearing a lot lately about trouble in the market, as financial turbulence has swirled, values gyrated and trading volumes surged. But the real problem is the market - or rather the way in which the size and structure of equity, bond and other markets has developed.

So awed and cowed are central bank governors and finance ministers nowadays by the sheer size and power of financial markets that they rush to pay obeisance by adapting monetary and even fiscal policies to suit every whim and tantrum of the market.

This was clear from the way in which US Federal Reserve members began hinting at extending monetary easing th…