News
CNN Money | Home sales hit highest rate in 3 years
Sales of previously-owned homes reached an annual rate of nearly 5 million in February, the strongest pace in more than three years.
Bloomberg | Euro-Area Manufacturing, Services Declined in March
Euro-area services and manufacturing output contracted more than economists estimated in March, adding to signs the currency bloc’s economy is struggling to emerge from a recession.
National Journal | The GOP Disconnect on Economic Policy
The Republican National Committee may want to send a few extra copies of the election postmortem it released this week over to Capitol Hill. Judging by the budget blueprints put forth by congressional Republicans, they didn’t get the memo.
FOX Business | Philly Fed Factory Activity Expands in March
Factory activity in the U.S. mid-Atlantic region grew in March after contracting for two months in a row as new orders and employment improved, a survey showed on Thursday.
Bloomberg | Americans’ View on Economic Outlook Climbs to Three-Month High
Americans’ views of the economic outlook improved in March to the highest level this year as stock prices rallied to a record high.
Econ Comments & Analysis
WSJ | Cuomo's Job-Depletion Plan
President Obama had such fabulous success running for re-election with a lousy jobs record that New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has apparently decided to copy the strategy. If the state's economy continues to fizzle, the Democrat may even have a shot at the White House.
Washington Times | Austerity on rails
Washington is gripped by sequestration fever. Or sequestration chills, depending on the point of view. The White House complains that it’s suffering severe spending withdrawal, and Congress, or at least half of Congress, says it’s suffering the pangs of hunger for more and deeper spending cuts.
WSJ | Biggest Drag on Economy? Washington
Housing is on its way back. Consumers are spending more readily. Nearly two-thirds of U.S. private industries are hiring. The stock market is up. The U.S. economy is healing, albeit slowly.
Washington Times | Reduced regulations a ‘silver lining’ from sequester slashing
Many businesses and conservatives have made no secret that they like the $85 billion of across-the-board federal spending cuts this year because of their long-standing agenda to “starve the beast” of government.
NBER | Does Federal Financial Aid Affect College Enrollment? Evidence from Drug Offenders and the Higher Education Act of 1998
In 2001, amendments to the Higher Education Act made people convicted of drug offenses ineligible for federal financial aid for up to two years after their conviction. Using rich data on educational outcomes and drug charges in the NLSY 1997, we show that this law change had a large negative impact on the college attendance of students with drug convictions.
