News
CNN Money | U.S. growth expected to slow
U.S. economic growth at the end of last year was as strong as everyone thought, but most economists expect things to slow in the next couple of years.
USA Today | Feb. consumer spending up, income lags
U.S. consumers boosted their spending in February by the most in seven months. But Americans' income barely grew and the saving rate fell to its lowest point in more than two years.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Forbes | The Failed Stimulus Zombie: It's Baaaackkkk!
This year’s John Maynard Keynes award for the most valiant attempt to prove the patently untrue goes to J. Bradford DeLong and Lawrence H. Summers for their paper “Fiscal Policy in a Depressed Economy”, published in draft form on March 20, 2012.
Blogs
WSJ | Fed’s Plosser: Additional Stimulus Would Be Bad Idea
The current and likely future path of the economy means the Federal Reserve shouldn’t provide any fresh stimulus to the economy, and monetary policy may even have to be tightened earlier than many expect, a central bank official said Thursday.
The American | America’s missing $845 billion in income—updated
Yes, I know the amount of missing income, $845 billion, almost perfectly matches the cost of President Obama’s stimulus, $831 billion. Just a coincidence, though an amusing one. (Of course, the failure of the stimulus to stimulate a return to prosperity does link it to the weak income numbers.)
Daily Capitalist | No Change GDP Q4 2011: Are The Numbers Believable?
In their “final” revision of their estimate of the fourth quarter 2011 GDP, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) found that the annualized rate of U.S. domestic economic growth was 2.97%, down a mere 0.01 percent from their last estimate for the fourth quarter and still more than a percent higher than their “final” estimate of 1.81% for the third quarter of 2011.
WSJ | GDI: An Alternate Measure Showing Stronger U.S. Growth
The GDP gets all the attention (partly because it comes out earlier), but some economists argue that the GDI may be a more meaningful measure, particularly at turning points in the economy.
