News
Bloomberg | U.S. Michigan Consumer Sentiment Decreased to 75.7 in Apr
Confidence among U.S. consumers cooled in April from a one-year high, a sign the moderation in job growth may limit the biggest part of the economy.
WSJ | Euro-Zone's Recession Fears Grow
Industrial production in the euro zone slumped in February by the largest amount in more than two years, Eurostat reported Thursday, adding to evidence that the common-currency bloc is in an economic recession.
Washington Times | IMF calls for ‘rebalancing’ of global economy
The International Monetary Fund chief called for a “rebalancing” of the global economy that will involve a worldwide safety net similar to the reserve fund that European institutions have created to bail out debt-ridden members.
Bloomberg | Frugality Fatigue Spurs Americans to Trade Up
Americans are buying more expensive makeup and sandwiches again as Estee Lauder Cos. (EL) and Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. (DNKN) get a boost from mid- to high-income customers.
Market Watch | Credit union battle with banks heats up
A more than decade-old effort by credit unions to expand into more small-business lending is gaining momentum on Capitol Hill, driving worried bankers to step up their congressional lobbying to protect their turf.
CNN Money | Consumer bureau to ease caps on some credit card fees
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is reversing a rule that would have capped credit card fees associated with opening a new credit card account, in response to a federal court ruling last year.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Heritage Foundation | How the U.S. Can Support Free Trade in the Philippines
The Save Our Industries (SAVE) Act, introduced by Representative Jim McDermott (D–WA) and supported by 20 cosponsors in the House and by Senator Daniel Inouye (D–HI) and three cosponsors in the Senate, would grant duty-free treatment to apparel assembled in the Philippines from American-made fabrics.
Real Clear Markets | The Financial Age of Free Trade
Free trade throughout the 1990's and 2000's was the embodiment of the proverbial free lunch. Except there is no free lunch, not even when you control the printing press and the keys to unfettered fractional credit production.
Fiscal Times | The Surprising Reason Why Colleges Raise Tuition
In the recent op-ed Why Does Tuition Go Up? Because Taxpayer Support Goes Down in The Chronicle of Higher Education, author Gary Fethke's argues that "rising tuition is the obvious consequence of declining state appropriations..." and that "Students are required to pay more because taxpayers are paying less--it's that simple."
WSJ | Patent Trolls vs. Progress
Microsoft announced this week that it's paying America Online $1.1 billion in cash for 800 of its patents. This comes just nine months after Apple, Microsoft and others beat out Google and Intel for control of Nortel Networks' 6,000 patents, paying a then astounding $4.5 billion in cash.
Blogs
Heritage Foundation | More Government Welfare Doesn’t Equal Poverty Relief
A new report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture states that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, more commonly known as food stamps) helps “alleviate” poverty.
Library of Economics | The Ten Pillars of Economic Wisdom
A few times I've referred to "The Ten Pillars of Economic Wisdom" that I teach at the start of every economics course I give. I've usually linked to someone's restatement of them from my book, The Joy of Freedom: An Economist's Odyssey.
Calculated Risk | Trade Deficit declined in February to $46 Billion
Total February exports of $181.2 billion and imports of $227.2 billion resulted in a goods and services deficit of $46.0 billion, down from $52.5 billion in January, revised.
The American | Why pretty much everything Obama is saying about income stagnation and inequality is wrong
Now, I think we all need to pay attention to the 2000s. It had its troubles even before the Great Recession. Crony capitalism finally took its toll on the pro-growth policies begun in the 1980s. Government got too big, and too much of our nation’s human and financial capital was steered into housing and finance.
Poitical Calculations | The Age Demographics of Minimum Wage Earners
In the charts, we see that even though the number of minimum wage earners has more than doubled from 2006's level, from 1,692,000 in that year to 2011's 3,829,000, the relative share of each age group's representation among those earning the U.S. federal minimum wage or less is largely stable from year to year.
Calculated Risk | Freddie Mac: 15-Year Fixed-Rate Mortgage Hits New All-Time Record
The 30-year fixed averaged just above its record low while the 15-year fixed averaged a new all-time record low of 3.11 percent breaking its previous low of 3.13 percent on March 8, 2012.
