News
CNN Money | Retail sales up despite payroll tax hike
Higher payroll taxes didn't stop U.S. consumers from hitting the malls in January.
Politico | Is exporting natural gas a problem?
Heavy hitters on both sides of the natural gas debate warned senators Tuesday that the natural gas boom could fizzle if the U.S. takes the wrong tack.
Bloomberg | Obama Says U.S. Will Begin Trade Talks With 27 EU Nations
President Barack Obama pledged to pursue a trade agreement with the European Union that would expand the world’s largest economic relationship, while at the same time completing discussions for a Pacific-region accord.
National Journal | The Most Important Policies In President Obama's 2013 State of the Union Address
President Obama on Tuesday challenged Congress to find a way to dodge the sequester and seize the opportunity for more-enduring deficit reduction, using his fourth State of the Union address to paint lawmakers as the obstacle to a more prosperous and inclusive country.
Market Watch | Business inventories up 0.1% in December
Business inventories edged up 0.1% in December to a seasonally adjusted $1.62 trillion, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. That's a 5.1% gain compared to Dec. 2011, and the ratio of inventories to sales was 1.27, down from 1.28 in November. November's inventories growth was lowered to 0.2% growth from a 0.3% gain.
Econ Comments & Analysis
WSJ | The Economic Windfall of Immigration Reform
After months of acrimony, it now appears that immigration reform, and a comprehensive one at that, is within reach. While most of the debates have been about the immediate consequences of any change in policy, the goal should be to promote economic growth over the next 40 years.
Washington Times | Attack on the free
For at least the last 2,500 years, from the time of the Athenian republic, fragile islands of freedom have been under attack. Unfortunately, nothing has changed, except now some of the aggressor states cloak themselves in the mantle of compassionate democratic countries.
Forbes | Obama's State Of the Union: A Blast To a Slow-Growth Past
In his State of the Union preview, Gerald Seib of the Wall Street Journal observed that “Four times, President Barack Obama has stood in the well of the House of Representatives and delivered a State of the Union address—and four times, economic anxieties have largely overshadowed his efforts to push a broad agenda.”
AEI | Get ready, Japan's economy is set to boom
On February 5, BOJ Governor Masaaki Shirakawa announced that he will step down on March 19, three weeks early. Shirakawa's departure accelerates a BOJ (Bank of Japan) leadership transition that will support the push for more aggressive monetary easing by Japan's new Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe. Shirakawa's early exit coincides with the scheduled departures of the BOJ's two Deputy Governors.
Blogs
Neighborhood Effects | Translating the President and the Republican Response
Economic jargon can be difficult to parse. Political speech—often by design—can be just as impenetrable. So, it stands to reason that when politicians are talking economics, it’s easy to get lost. As a guide to this year’s State of the Union and the Republican response, below are some translations of statements each might make.
Calculated Risk | MBA: Mortgage Applications Decrease in Latest Weekly Survey
The Refinance Index decreased 6 percent from the previous week. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 10 percent from one week earlier.
