News
Bloomberg | Lacker Says Markets to Stay Volatile as Fed Debates Tapering
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Jeffrey Lacker, who dissented against additional stimulus at every Fed meeting last year, said financial markets will remain volatile as policy makers debate how and when to curtail the central bank’s asset purchases.
FOX Business | Consumer Sentiment Improves in Late June
U.S. consumer sentiment improved in late June, ending the month close to a near six-year high set in May, as optimism among higher-income families rose to its strongest level in six years, a survey released on Friday showed.
Bloomberg | German Retail Sales Rise Amid Signs of Recovery: Economy
German retail sales rose more than economists forecast in May, adding to signs that a recovery in Europe’s largest economy has gathered pace amid record-low interest rates, while inflation accelerated.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Washington Times | The human toll of the Obama economy
Forget everything you’ve been told by President Obama about the economy getting “stronger,” or what you’ve heard on the nightly news about the “solid” recovery.
Real Clear Markets | Shadow Inventory Could Force a Housing-Market Collapse
For more than 3 years, I have provided compelling evidence that all the talk about a housing recovery is nonsensical. I have shown that the Case-Shiller Index is built on questionable assumptions and gives much greater weight to certain kinds of home sales, which distorts the raw data beyond recognition.
Washington Times | The U.S. is coasting on the fumes of past greatness, following the Roman road to ruins
By A.D. 200, the Roman republic was a distant memory. Few citizens of the global Roman Empire even knew of their illustrious ancestors such as Scipio or Cicero. Millions no longer spoke Latin. Italian emperors were rare. There were no national elections.
Fortune | Prepare for a slowdown in housing prices
For many months now, U.S. home prices have risen to new highs as the housing market recovers from one of the worst crashes in recent history. The rebound comes as more Americans find jobs and as homebuyers work their way through the remaining housing inventory following years of lackluster construction.
WSJ | Monthly Economic Data Aren't Reliable
Today, nearly every useful U.S. economic indicator—from GDP growth to employment to housing data—is incorrect when it is initially released. Better data do become available, and revised estimates are made public as time passes. But economic policy and business decisions are made with initial data that are plainly inaccurate—and this can lead to mistakes, including hasty changes in direction.
Friday, June 28, 2013
Health Care
Blogs
Heritage Foundation | American Public Still Doesn’t Like Obamacare
Despite declarations made by advocates that Obamacare is the “law of the land,” a new Gallup poll shows that a majority of Americans still disapprove of it, with 52 percent of adults generally disapproving.
Heritage Foundation | American Public Still Doesn’t Like Obamacare
Despite declarations made by advocates that Obamacare is the “law of the land,” a new Gallup poll shows that a majority of Americans still disapprove of it, with 52 percent of adults generally disapproving.
Monetary
News
FOX Business | As Growth Slows, Fed Between a Rock and Hard Place
GDP growth was revised downward for the first quarter from 2.4% to 1.8% because consumer spending, business investment and exports grew less than previously estimated.
CNN Money | Fed officials in damage control mode
Federal Reserve officials are still in damage control mode , after comments about winding down stimulus frazzled markets last week.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Forbes | For Suggesting An End To QE, The Bernanke Fed Is Likely Stuck With QE
Usually, when a government starts financing itself with the printing press, it finds it mightily difficult to stop, even if there is some will to do so.
Blogs
WSJ | Low Inflation Highlights Fed Dilemma
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and other central bank officials maintain it’ll pick up. But a substantial band of economists outside the Fed is starting to challenge Mr. Bernanke’s diagnosis.
FOX Business | As Growth Slows, Fed Between a Rock and Hard Place
GDP growth was revised downward for the first quarter from 2.4% to 1.8% because consumer spending, business investment and exports grew less than previously estimated.
CNN Money | Fed officials in damage control mode
Federal Reserve officials are still in damage control mode , after comments about winding down stimulus frazzled markets last week.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Forbes | For Suggesting An End To QE, The Bernanke Fed Is Likely Stuck With QE
Usually, when a government starts financing itself with the printing press, it finds it mightily difficult to stop, even if there is some will to do so.
Blogs
WSJ | Low Inflation Highlights Fed Dilemma
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and other central bank officials maintain it’ll pick up. But a substantial band of economists outside the Fed is starting to challenge Mr. Bernanke’s diagnosis.
Taxes
News
Politico | Tax lobbyists spring into action
The proposal by Senate Finance Committee leaders to move on a foundation for tax reform with a “blank slate” — leaving thousands of provisions on the chopping block — will spark a furious lobbying spree that’s bound to exhaust both K Street and Capitol Hill.
CNN Money | The business traveler tax threat
Ever travel to New York for work, even for a day? How about to any other state? Whenever you do, you're entering into another universe that may require you to pay tax on the income you earn while you're there.
Econ Comments & Analysis
CRS | Tax Provisions Expiring in 2013 ("Tax Extenders")
Dozens of temporary tax provisions are scheduled to expire at the end of 2013 under current law. Most of the provisions set to expire in 2013 have been part of past temporary tax extension legislation.
AEI | Rethinking tax breaks for homeowners
According to the Congressional Budget Office, the effective tax rate on owner-occupied housing is negative, while the effective tax rate on rental housing is around 18 percent.
Blogs
Economist | An unexploited resource
Ask an economist about which are the most efficient kinds of taxes, and property taxes will be high up on the list. They distort behaviour less, and are more growth friendly, than taxes on income, employment or even consumption.
Politico | Tax lobbyists spring into action
The proposal by Senate Finance Committee leaders to move on a foundation for tax reform with a “blank slate” — leaving thousands of provisions on the chopping block — will spark a furious lobbying spree that’s bound to exhaust both K Street and Capitol Hill.
CNN Money | The business traveler tax threat
Ever travel to New York for work, even for a day? How about to any other state? Whenever you do, you're entering into another universe that may require you to pay tax on the income you earn while you're there.
Econ Comments & Analysis
CRS | Tax Provisions Expiring in 2013 ("Tax Extenders")
Dozens of temporary tax provisions are scheduled to expire at the end of 2013 under current law. Most of the provisions set to expire in 2013 have been part of past temporary tax extension legislation.
AEI | Rethinking tax breaks for homeowners
According to the Congressional Budget Office, the effective tax rate on owner-occupied housing is negative, while the effective tax rate on rental housing is around 18 percent.
Blogs
Economist | An unexploited resource
Ask an economist about which are the most efficient kinds of taxes, and property taxes will be high up on the list. They distort behaviour less, and are more growth friendly, than taxes on income, employment or even consumption.
Employment
Blogs
WSJ | Is There Hope for Recent College Grads?
Since the great recession, the labor market has become an especially difficult place for recent college graduates.
Heritage Foundation | A Win for Coal Exports, American Jobs
The Obama Administration has imposed a laundry list of new regulations on the coal industry, making it increasingly difficult to mine coal and to build and operate coal-fired power plants, which are critical to providing Americans with affordable electricity.
WSJ | Is There Hope for Recent College Grads?
Since the great recession, the labor market has become an especially difficult place for recent college graduates.
Heritage Foundation | A Win for Coal Exports, American Jobs
The Obama Administration has imposed a laundry list of new regulations on the coal industry, making it increasingly difficult to mine coal and to build and operate coal-fired power plants, which are critical to providing Americans with affordable electricity.
Budget
News
National Journal | If You Thought the Fiscal Cliff Was Bad, Wait Until This Year’s Debt-Ceiling Showdown
In a week filled with landmark Supreme Court decisions and significant movement in the Senate on overhauling immigration laws, it’s hard to wrap one’s mind around the prospect of yet another budget battle. Yet lurking on the other side of the August recess are more fiscal deadlines and potential chaos, culminating in the need to increase the debt ceiling, probably in October or November.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Politico | The student loan debt perfect storm
With Congress and the Obama administration focused on Monday’s deadline to prevent student loan interest rates from doubling, it is an apt time to examine the larger consequences of America’s staggering student loan debt load.
Washington Post | The left needs to get real on Medicare, Social Security and the deficit
There is a rising chorus on the left, most recently articulated in an op-ed Monday by Neera Tanden and Michael Linden [“Deficits are not destiny”] of the Center for American Progress, that our fiscal conversation should be declared over and plans for meaningful entitlement reforms mothballed.
WSJ | What's Really 'Immoral' About Student Loans
Unless Congress acts, interest rates for government subsidized student loans will double to 6.8% from 3.4% on July 1. In May, House Republicans passed a bill that would index rates on new loans to the rate on 10-year Treasurys (currently about 2.6%), plus 2.5 percentage points, with an 8.5% cap. But with little Democratic support in the Senate, that bill is dead in the water.
Mercatus | The Federal Fiscal Predicament: What Seems Better Is Actually Worse
Of late there has been a great amount of discussion of whether federal deficit reduction should remain a national policy priority. While bipartisan fiscal watchdog groups like the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget continue to argue that it should be, there have been plenty to argue that it should not. Some of the latter have even suggested that the deficit problem is now essentially under control, and that arguments to contain further federal debt accumulation serve a “political calculus” rather than a substantive need.
NBER | Loans for Higher Education: Does the Dream Come True?
This paper analyzes the impact of student loans for higher education on enrollment, dropout decisions, and earnings. We investigate the massive State Guaranteed Loan (SGL) program implemented in Chile in 2006. Our empirical analysis is based on the estimation of a sequential schooling decision model with unobserved heterogeneity.
National Journal | If You Thought the Fiscal Cliff Was Bad, Wait Until This Year’s Debt-Ceiling Showdown
In a week filled with landmark Supreme Court decisions and significant movement in the Senate on overhauling immigration laws, it’s hard to wrap one’s mind around the prospect of yet another budget battle. Yet lurking on the other side of the August recess are more fiscal deadlines and potential chaos, culminating in the need to increase the debt ceiling, probably in October or November.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Politico | The student loan debt perfect storm
With Congress and the Obama administration focused on Monday’s deadline to prevent student loan interest rates from doubling, it is an apt time to examine the larger consequences of America’s staggering student loan debt load.
Washington Post | The left needs to get real on Medicare, Social Security and the deficit
There is a rising chorus on the left, most recently articulated in an op-ed Monday by Neera Tanden and Michael Linden [“Deficits are not destiny”] of the Center for American Progress, that our fiscal conversation should be declared over and plans for meaningful entitlement reforms mothballed.
WSJ | What's Really 'Immoral' About Student Loans
Unless Congress acts, interest rates for government subsidized student loans will double to 6.8% from 3.4% on July 1. In May, House Republicans passed a bill that would index rates on new loans to the rate on 10-year Treasurys (currently about 2.6%), plus 2.5 percentage points, with an 8.5% cap. But with little Democratic support in the Senate, that bill is dead in the water.
Mercatus | The Federal Fiscal Predicament: What Seems Better Is Actually Worse
Of late there has been a great amount of discussion of whether federal deficit reduction should remain a national policy priority. While bipartisan fiscal watchdog groups like the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget continue to argue that it should be, there have been plenty to argue that it should not. Some of the latter have even suggested that the deficit problem is now essentially under control, and that arguments to contain further federal debt accumulation serve a “political calculus” rather than a substantive need.
NBER | Loans for Higher Education: Does the Dream Come True?
This paper analyzes the impact of student loans for higher education on enrollment, dropout decisions, and earnings. We investigate the massive State Guaranteed Loan (SGL) program implemented in Chile in 2006. Our empirical analysis is based on the estimation of a sequential schooling decision model with unobserved heterogeneity.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
General Economics
News
Bloomberg | Pending Sales of Previously Owned U.S. Homes Jumped 6.7%
More Americans signed contracts in May to buy previously owned homes than at any time in more than six years, a sign of bigger progress in the industry.
Market Watch | Fitch joins others in cutting China forecast
Fitch Ratings on Wednesday cut its forecast on China's 2013 economic growth to 7.5% from its previous projection of 8% in March.
FOX Business | Consumer Spending, Income Rise in May
Consumer spending rebounded in May and new applications for unemployment benefits fell last week, suggesting the economy remained on a moderate growth path.
Bloomberg | European Economic Confidence Improves More Than Forecast
Economic confidence in the euro area improved more than economists forecast in June, adding to indications the 17-nation economy is starting to recover from the longest recession since the debut of the common currency.
CNN Money | Mortgage rates soar to 4.46% - biggest jump in 26 years
Rates on 30-year, fixed-rate home loans spiked 0.53 percentage points to an average of 4.46% this week -- the largest weekly increase in more than 26 years, according to mortgage giant Freddie Mac.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Washington Times | Obama’s argle-bargle on Keystone
In delivering his Georgetown climate speech on Tuesday, Keystone seemed to be an afterthought. It was not in the 21-page climate “plan” the White House distributed or the shorter fact sheet. Reference to it appears in only one paragraph of his prepared text.
Investors | Weak Economy Exposes Obama's Upside-Down Priorities
After running for re-election vowing to make jobs and economic growth his top priority, President Obama has focused on everything but since winning. His misplaced priorities are costing plenty.
WSJ | Regulators Have Created a Mortgage Minefield
Bankers will soon step into a mortgage minefield—a no-win landscape in which every move will be fraught with peril, and in which the ultimate casualties will be the nascent housing recovery and the American home buyer.
Blogs
WSJ | Why Was GDP Revised Down so Much?
The Commerce Department offered an unpleasant surprise Wednesday in its latest estimate of U.S. economic growth: an unusually sharp downward revision to growth in the first quarter.
Bloomberg | Pending Sales of Previously Owned U.S. Homes Jumped 6.7%
More Americans signed contracts in May to buy previously owned homes than at any time in more than six years, a sign of bigger progress in the industry.
Market Watch | Fitch joins others in cutting China forecast
Fitch Ratings on Wednesday cut its forecast on China's 2013 economic growth to 7.5% from its previous projection of 8% in March.
FOX Business | Consumer Spending, Income Rise in May
Consumer spending rebounded in May and new applications for unemployment benefits fell last week, suggesting the economy remained on a moderate growth path.
Bloomberg | European Economic Confidence Improves More Than Forecast
Economic confidence in the euro area improved more than economists forecast in June, adding to indications the 17-nation economy is starting to recover from the longest recession since the debut of the common currency.
CNN Money | Mortgage rates soar to 4.46% - biggest jump in 26 years
Rates on 30-year, fixed-rate home loans spiked 0.53 percentage points to an average of 4.46% this week -- the largest weekly increase in more than 26 years, according to mortgage giant Freddie Mac.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Washington Times | Obama’s argle-bargle on Keystone
In delivering his Georgetown climate speech on Tuesday, Keystone seemed to be an afterthought. It was not in the 21-page climate “plan” the White House distributed or the shorter fact sheet. Reference to it appears in only one paragraph of his prepared text.
Investors | Weak Economy Exposes Obama's Upside-Down Priorities
After running for re-election vowing to make jobs and economic growth his top priority, President Obama has focused on everything but since winning. His misplaced priorities are costing plenty.
WSJ | Regulators Have Created a Mortgage Minefield
Bankers will soon step into a mortgage minefield—a no-win landscape in which every move will be fraught with peril, and in which the ultimate casualties will be the nascent housing recovery and the American home buyer.
Blogs
WSJ | Why Was GDP Revised Down so Much?
The Commerce Department offered an unpleasant surprise Wednesday in its latest estimate of U.S. economic growth: an unusually sharp downward revision to growth in the first quarter.
Health Care
News
Politico | Bipartisan concern on DMEPOS
At a time when bipartisanship is rare in Washington, a majority of members of the U.S. House of Representatives recently came together in an attempt to ensure that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) does not put Medicare beneficiaries at risk, when implementing the Competitive Bidding Program for Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics and Supplies (DMEPOS).
Econ Comments & Analysis
CRS | Comparing Medicaid and Exchanges: Benefits and Costs for Individuals and Families
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA, P.L. 111-148, as amended) expands health insurance coverage primarily through two mechanisms: by expanding the existing Medicaid program and by establishing new health insurance exchanges where certain individuals and businesses can purchase private health insurance.
Politico | Bipartisan concern on DMEPOS
At a time when bipartisanship is rare in Washington, a majority of members of the U.S. House of Representatives recently came together in an attempt to ensure that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) does not put Medicare beneficiaries at risk, when implementing the Competitive Bidding Program for Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics and Supplies (DMEPOS).
Econ Comments & Analysis
CRS | Comparing Medicaid and Exchanges: Benefits and Costs for Individuals and Families
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA, P.L. 111-148, as amended) expands health insurance coverage primarily through two mechanisms: by expanding the existing Medicaid program and by establishing new health insurance exchanges where certain individuals and businesses can purchase private health insurance.
Monetary
News
Bloomberg | Dudley Says QE May Be Prolonged If Economy Misses Forecasts
Federal Reserve Bank of New York President William C. Dudley said the central bank may prolong its asset-purchase program if the economy’s performance fails to meet the Fed’s forecasts.
CNN Money | Fed officials: Tapering this year is no sure thing
The Federal Reserve's controversial stimulus program could continue at full blast if the job market doesn't keep improving, two key Fed officials said Thursday.
Bloomberg | Yellen Betting Defies 100-Year Jinx of Fed No. 2 Never Elevated
Janet Yellen, the favorite to lead the Federal Reserve in a survey of economists, would need to overcome 100 years of history in which the central bank’s No. 2 official has never risen to the top job.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Bloomberg | Bernanke Was Clear, Fed’s Crystal Ball Is Cloudy
Shoulda, woulda, coulda. It’s been a week since Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke “surprised” financial markets by telling them exactly what they expected, yet the whining is still going strong.
WSJ | Draghi Says Easy-Money Policy Remains
The European Central Bank's monetary policy will remain accommodative for the foreseeable future, ECB President Mario Draghi said Wednesday during a hearing at the French parliament.
Real Clear Markets | A Dollar Endgame Long Desired By Gold Investors
Gold has reached a new record low. Not in nominal terms, of course. The Coinage Act of 1792 defined the dollar as 24.75 grains of gold, or $17.72 per ounce, gold's original and lowest price. The first major change in the worth of the dollar occurred in 1933. President Roosevelt confiscated Americans' gold and then devalued the dollar to $35 per ounce.
Bloomberg | Dudley Says QE May Be Prolonged If Economy Misses Forecasts
Federal Reserve Bank of New York President William C. Dudley said the central bank may prolong its asset-purchase program if the economy’s performance fails to meet the Fed’s forecasts.
CNN Money | Fed officials: Tapering this year is no sure thing
The Federal Reserve's controversial stimulus program could continue at full blast if the job market doesn't keep improving, two key Fed officials said Thursday.
Bloomberg | Yellen Betting Defies 100-Year Jinx of Fed No. 2 Never Elevated
Janet Yellen, the favorite to lead the Federal Reserve in a survey of economists, would need to overcome 100 years of history in which the central bank’s No. 2 official has never risen to the top job.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Bloomberg | Bernanke Was Clear, Fed’s Crystal Ball Is Cloudy
Shoulda, woulda, coulda. It’s been a week since Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke “surprised” financial markets by telling them exactly what they expected, yet the whining is still going strong.
WSJ | Draghi Says Easy-Money Policy Remains
The European Central Bank's monetary policy will remain accommodative for the foreseeable future, ECB President Mario Draghi said Wednesday during a hearing at the French parliament.
Real Clear Markets | A Dollar Endgame Long Desired By Gold Investors
Gold has reached a new record low. Not in nominal terms, of course. The Coinage Act of 1792 defined the dollar as 24.75 grains of gold, or $17.72 per ounce, gold's original and lowest price. The first major change in the worth of the dollar occurred in 1933. President Roosevelt confiscated Americans' gold and then devalued the dollar to $35 per ounce.
Taxes
News
Politico | Max Baucus and Orrin Hatch tax reform plan: Wipe slate clean
Senate Finance Committee leaders are poised to soon deliver a message to the other 98 members in the chamber: Get prepared to defend your most cherished tax breaks.
CNN Money | Taxpayer advocate: IRS needs more money. Seriously.
The IRS has done itself no favors lately. It has botched how it reviews applications for tax-exempt status, thrown lavish conferences and failed to adequately oversee employee purchase card use.
Econ Comments & Analysis
CNBC | The Real Reason 1Q GDP Took a Hit
The economy grew more sluggishly in the first three months of the year than the government first reported, as higher taxes on payrolls dampened consumer spending and held overall growth down to just a 1.8 percent annual rate.
Blogs
Market Watch | Senators to be asked to defend tax breaks
The Senate Finance Committee’s top Democrat and top Republican will write to their 98 colleagues on Thursday and ask them to detail which tax breaks should be retained as part of an overhaul of the tax code, reports say.
Politico | Max Baucus and Orrin Hatch tax reform plan: Wipe slate clean
Senate Finance Committee leaders are poised to soon deliver a message to the other 98 members in the chamber: Get prepared to defend your most cherished tax breaks.
CNN Money | Taxpayer advocate: IRS needs more money. Seriously.
The IRS has done itself no favors lately. It has botched how it reviews applications for tax-exempt status, thrown lavish conferences and failed to adequately oversee employee purchase card use.
Econ Comments & Analysis
CNBC | The Real Reason 1Q GDP Took a Hit
The economy grew more sluggishly in the first three months of the year than the government first reported, as higher taxes on payrolls dampened consumer spending and held overall growth down to just a 1.8 percent annual rate.
Blogs
Market Watch | Senators to be asked to defend tax breaks
The Senate Finance Committee’s top Democrat and top Republican will write to their 98 colleagues on Thursday and ask them to detail which tax breaks should be retained as part of an overhaul of the tax code, reports say.
Employment
News
FOX Business | Jobless Claims Fall as Labor Market Continues Improving
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell slightly last week in line with the recent moderate pace of jobs growth.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Forbes | Nosebleed Youth Unemployment: Will The U.S. Follow The Sclerotic Lead Of Europe?
When the last reports came out showing that youth unemployment had reached 16.2 % in the United States, alarm bells began to be heard in some quarters. This is more than double the rate of unemployment of the adult population. The rate is fast approaching the average youth unemployment rate in Europe which stands at approximately 24%.
NBER | The Global Decline of the Labor Share
The stability of the labor share of income is a key foundation in macroeconomic models. We document, however, that the global labor share has significantly declined since the early 1980s, with the decline occurring within the large majority of countries and industries.
Blogs
CATO | Why Is European Unemployment So High?
With youth unemployment running at 35% in Italy and annual net pay for a young leather-cutter starting at around €18,000 ($24,000), fashion firms ought to have applicants beating down their doors. …
WSJ | In Your Twenties? Have a Job? Chances Are You’re Feeling Pretty Good
Though the economy has been adding jobs at a steady pace, the effects of the recovery haven’t been spread evenly. According to Bankrate.com’s most recent monthly Financial Security Index, older Americans have seen less improvement in job security and savings over the past year than those in their twenties.
FOX Business | Jobless Claims Fall as Labor Market Continues Improving
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell slightly last week in line with the recent moderate pace of jobs growth.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Forbes | Nosebleed Youth Unemployment: Will The U.S. Follow The Sclerotic Lead Of Europe?
When the last reports came out showing that youth unemployment had reached 16.2 % in the United States, alarm bells began to be heard in some quarters. This is more than double the rate of unemployment of the adult population. The rate is fast approaching the average youth unemployment rate in Europe which stands at approximately 24%.
NBER | The Global Decline of the Labor Share
The stability of the labor share of income is a key foundation in macroeconomic models. We document, however, that the global labor share has significantly declined since the early 1980s, with the decline occurring within the large majority of countries and industries.
Blogs
CATO | Why Is European Unemployment So High?
With youth unemployment running at 35% in Italy and annual net pay for a young leather-cutter starting at around €18,000 ($24,000), fashion firms ought to have applicants beating down their doors. …
WSJ | In Your Twenties? Have a Job? Chances Are You’re Feeling Pretty Good
Though the economy has been adding jobs at a steady pace, the effects of the recovery haven’t been spread evenly. According to Bankrate.com’s most recent monthly Financial Security Index, older Americans have seen less improvement in job security and savings over the past year than those in their twenties.
Budget
News
National Journal | Up Next in the Senate: A Fight Over Spending
The Senate’s attempt to pass landmark immigration reform has yet to clear the floor, and already senators are drawing battle lines in what is likely to be the next big fight: spending levels.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Forbes | Compromise: The Missing Policy Ingredient Amid Dysfunctional Budgeting
The “Framers” of our Constitution knew they had to abandon the powerless structure of the Articles of Confederation to create a stronger central government. But, at the same time, they wanted to protect state sovereignty and were terrified of too much central power.
National Journal | Up Next in the Senate: A Fight Over Spending
The Senate’s attempt to pass landmark immigration reform has yet to clear the floor, and already senators are drawing battle lines in what is likely to be the next big fight: spending levels.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Forbes | Compromise: The Missing Policy Ingredient Amid Dysfunctional Budgeting
The “Framers” of our Constitution knew they had to abandon the powerless structure of the Articles of Confederation to create a stronger central government. But, at the same time, they wanted to protect state sovereignty and were terrified of too much central power.
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
General Economics
News
FOX News | Economic well-being of American children slips, report says
It wasn't so long ago that David Hutchinson spent a month sleeping under a bridge while his wife and young daughter spent their nights at a domestic violence shelter.
WSJ | U.S. Overtakes China
For the first time since 2001, the U.S. knocked China out of first place in an annual survey of executives rating favorable places for foreign direct investment.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Politico | Facing the truth about entitlements
Our looming entitlement crisis is a complex problem. But it hinges on a very simple choice. We can choose to face the facts — and act on them — or we can choose to face the consequences.
WSJ | The Carbonated President
Mr. Obama's "climate action plan" adds up to one of the most extensive reorganizations of the U.S. economy since the 1930s, imposed through administrative fiat and raw executive power.
WSJ | How Emerging Markets Lost Their Mojo
Emerging economies have lost nearly $2 trillion in stock-market value since the global financial crisis hit in late 2007. The full blame for this meltdown, and then some, can be placed at the door of their state-owned companies, which account for a third of these economies' roughly $9 trillion market capitalization.
Fortune | Building the indestructible metropolis
New York City's plan to bolster its infrastructure to deal with climate change is only the beginning of a long struggle to fortify cities around the world.
Market Watch | Holding bonds today is a disaster in the making
Allocating a significant portion of your assets to bonds, particularly U.S. Treasurys, and other stable income-based assets is one of the cornerstones of modern investing and portfolio practices.
NBER | How Firms Respond to Business Cycles: The Role of Firm Age and Firm Size
There remains considerable debate in both the theoretical and empirical literature about the differences in the cyclical dynamics of firms by firm size.
Blogs
Market Watch | Think 7% growth in China is slow? Try 6%, says Credit Suisse
Credit Suisse has put out a downbeat view of the Chinese economy that stands out even amid the ongoing stampede of China bears.
WSJ | Expect Cheaper Electric Bills This Summer
Americans’ electric bills are expected to shrink this summer, putting a few extra bucks in their pockets as they beat the heat.
FOX News | Economic well-being of American children slips, report says
It wasn't so long ago that David Hutchinson spent a month sleeping under a bridge while his wife and young daughter spent their nights at a domestic violence shelter.
WSJ | U.S. Overtakes China
For the first time since 2001, the U.S. knocked China out of first place in an annual survey of executives rating favorable places for foreign direct investment.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Politico | Facing the truth about entitlements
Our looming entitlement crisis is a complex problem. But it hinges on a very simple choice. We can choose to face the facts — and act on them — or we can choose to face the consequences.
WSJ | The Carbonated President
Mr. Obama's "climate action plan" adds up to one of the most extensive reorganizations of the U.S. economy since the 1930s, imposed through administrative fiat and raw executive power.
WSJ | How Emerging Markets Lost Their Mojo
Emerging economies have lost nearly $2 trillion in stock-market value since the global financial crisis hit in late 2007. The full blame for this meltdown, and then some, can be placed at the door of their state-owned companies, which account for a third of these economies' roughly $9 trillion market capitalization.
Fortune | Building the indestructible metropolis
New York City's plan to bolster its infrastructure to deal with climate change is only the beginning of a long struggle to fortify cities around the world.
Market Watch | Holding bonds today is a disaster in the making
Allocating a significant portion of your assets to bonds, particularly U.S. Treasurys, and other stable income-based assets is one of the cornerstones of modern investing and portfolio practices.
NBER | How Firms Respond to Business Cycles: The Role of Firm Age and Firm Size
There remains considerable debate in both the theoretical and empirical literature about the differences in the cyclical dynamics of firms by firm size.
Blogs
Market Watch | Think 7% growth in China is slow? Try 6%, says Credit Suisse
Credit Suisse has put out a downbeat view of the Chinese economy that stands out even amid the ongoing stampede of China bears.
WSJ | Expect Cheaper Electric Bills This Summer
Americans’ electric bills are expected to shrink this summer, putting a few extra bucks in their pockets as they beat the heat.
Health Care
Blogs
Heritage Foundation | Obamacare’s Shortcomings in Two Charts
Obamacare continues to fall short of the lofty predictions about it — and here are two new charts to prove it.
Heritage Foundation | Obamacare’s Shortcomings in Two Charts
Obamacare continues to fall short of the lofty predictions about it — and here are two new charts to prove it.
Monetary
News
Bloomberg | Draghi Says ECB Ready to Act, Urges Investment Before Taxes
European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said policy makers stand ready to act to support economic growth in the euro area, while calling on national governments to curb tax increases and prioritize investment.
Econ Comments & Analysis
AEI | Taming the megabanks
The gravest of the many problems with Dodd-Frank is that the law is based in a fundamental misunderstanding of how and why the megabanks it seeks to tame grew so large and complex in the first place. That growth was caused not by an unregulated market spun out of control, but by a set of disastrous federal policies.
Bloomberg | Bernanke Is Better Than His Critics at Balancing Risks
The markets’ reaction to the Federal Reserve’s latest policy announcement isn’t what Chairman Ben S. Bernanke wanted: Long-term interest rates have gone up. That’s a problem because the recovery is still tepid.
Fortune | Fed's Bernanke talk tab: $151 billion and counting
Holding $3.3 trillion in bonds when debt prices are falling might end up costing taxpayers money, or, then again, maybe not.
AEI | Troubling taper talk from central banks
With the way central bankers have been behaving over the past month, you would think global inflation is picking up, economies are booming, and financial bubbles are inflating further. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Blogs
Economist | Whose low rates are these?
A long debate has been raging over the nature of low long-term interest rates. In one camp, there are those who say that low rates are mostly a result of the quantitative easing pursued by rich-world central banks.
Bloomberg | Draghi Says ECB Ready to Act, Urges Investment Before Taxes
European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said policy makers stand ready to act to support economic growth in the euro area, while calling on national governments to curb tax increases and prioritize investment.
Econ Comments & Analysis
AEI | Taming the megabanks
The gravest of the many problems with Dodd-Frank is that the law is based in a fundamental misunderstanding of how and why the megabanks it seeks to tame grew so large and complex in the first place. That growth was caused not by an unregulated market spun out of control, but by a set of disastrous federal policies.
Bloomberg | Bernanke Is Better Than His Critics at Balancing Risks
The markets’ reaction to the Federal Reserve’s latest policy announcement isn’t what Chairman Ben S. Bernanke wanted: Long-term interest rates have gone up. That’s a problem because the recovery is still tepid.
Fortune | Fed's Bernanke talk tab: $151 billion and counting
Holding $3.3 trillion in bonds when debt prices are falling might end up costing taxpayers money, or, then again, maybe not.
AEI | Troubling taper talk from central banks
With the way central bankers have been behaving over the past month, you would think global inflation is picking up, economies are booming, and financial bubbles are inflating further. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Blogs
Economist | Whose low rates are these?
A long debate has been raging over the nature of low long-term interest rates. In one camp, there are those who say that low rates are mostly a result of the quantitative easing pursued by rich-world central banks.
Taxes
News
National Journal | New IRS plan: Let Some Groups Give Themselves Tax-Exempt Status
The Obama administration is trying to seize control of the story about the Internal Revenue Service's mismanagement and blundering by releasing a lengthy 60-page report on Monday about the changes it has since made at the agency.
National Journal | New IRS plan: Let Some Groups Give Themselves Tax-Exempt Status
The Obama administration is trying to seize control of the story about the Internal Revenue Service's mismanagement and blundering by releasing a lengthy 60-page report on Monday about the changes it has since made at the agency.
Employment
News
Bloomberg | Kocherlakota Sees Unemployment Above 7% Until Second Half 2014
Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Narayana Kocherlakota, who doesn’t vote on monetary policy this year, said he favors continuing bond purchases until unemployment falls below 7 percent, which he doesn’t expect until the second half of next year.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Real Clear Markets | We Ignore Joblessness Among the Elderly at Our Peril
The Great Recession's employment crisis is notable for two reasons. First, the number of long-term unemployed has been much higher than in prior recessions. The percent of unemployed who have been out of work for 27 weeks or longer has been above 40 percent since December 2009, far higher than the previous peak of 26 percent in 1983. Second, those over the age of 55 were particularly hard hit by unemployment.
Bloomberg | Kocherlakota Sees Unemployment Above 7% Until Second Half 2014
Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Narayana Kocherlakota, who doesn’t vote on monetary policy this year, said he favors continuing bond purchases until unemployment falls below 7 percent, which he doesn’t expect until the second half of next year.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Real Clear Markets | We Ignore Joblessness Among the Elderly at Our Peril
The Great Recession's employment crisis is notable for two reasons. First, the number of long-term unemployed has been much higher than in prior recessions. The percent of unemployed who have been out of work for 27 weeks or longer has been above 40 percent since December 2009, far higher than the previous peak of 26 percent in 1983. Second, those over the age of 55 were particularly hard hit by unemployment.
Budget
News
Politico | House, Senate go in different directions on appropriations
With no budget talks under way, the Senate and House continue to roll out wildly different spending bills — highlighted this week by back-to-back markups of appropriations for energy, water, transportation and housing programs.
WSJ | Student-Loan Rates Appear Set to Double
Interest rates on some new federal student loans appear increasingly likely to double next week, according to senators who say their chamber remains divided over how to prevent the jump before the July 1 deadline.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Fortune | Sequester shmester? The worst is yet to come.
Just when you thought you'd heard enough about Congressional budget woes, federal employee furloughs -- the biggest spending cuts of the Sequester -- are due to kick in next week and will delay economic growth.
Blogs
Heritage Foundation | Cut Government Spending to Help the Economy? Majority Say Yes
Four years after the official end of the recession in June 2009, the economy is growing sluggishly. As The Wall Street Journal reports today, the economy lately has grown at about 2.2 percent annually—one-third slower than the 3.3 percent average rate in past decades.
Politico | House, Senate go in different directions on appropriations
With no budget talks under way, the Senate and House continue to roll out wildly different spending bills — highlighted this week by back-to-back markups of appropriations for energy, water, transportation and housing programs.
WSJ | Student-Loan Rates Appear Set to Double
Interest rates on some new federal student loans appear increasingly likely to double next week, according to senators who say their chamber remains divided over how to prevent the jump before the July 1 deadline.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Fortune | Sequester shmester? The worst is yet to come.
Just when you thought you'd heard enough about Congressional budget woes, federal employee furloughs -- the biggest spending cuts of the Sequester -- are due to kick in next week and will delay economic growth.
Blogs
Heritage Foundation | Cut Government Spending to Help the Economy? Majority Say Yes
Four years after the official end of the recession in June 2009, the economy is growing sluggishly. As The Wall Street Journal reports today, the economy lately has grown at about 2.2 percent annually—one-third slower than the 3.3 percent average rate in past decades.
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
General Economics
News
Bloomberg | Consumer Confidence in U.S. Increases More Than Forecast
Confidence among U.S. consumers climbed in June to the highest level in more than five years, an indication spending will probably accelerate after cooling this quarter.
Politico | President Obama's energy push could loom large in 2014
The planned carbon emissions crackdown could make the president even more of an anchor on Democrats in deep-red states like West Virginia and Kentucky, where Senate candidates will have no choice but to distance themselves from unpopular policies pushed by the national party. And the new regulations pose a messaging challenge for vulnerable Democratic incumbents already facing competitive Senate races in other energy-rich states, including Alaska, North Carolina and Louisiana.
Bloomberg | Senators to Introduce Bill to End Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac
A bipartisan group of senators is planning to introduce a proposal today for replacing U.S.-owned mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (FMCC) with a newly created government reinsurer.
CNN Money | Home prices jump 12%, new home sales hit a five year high
The housing recovery continues to pick up steam, as home prices jumped in April, and new home sales hit a five year high in May.
Bloomberg | Orders for U.S. Durable Goods Rose More Than Forecast
Orders for U.S. durable goods rose more than forecast in May, reflecting broad-based gains that signal manufacturing is stabilizing.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Real Clear Markets | Relax, The Stock Market Correction Is Your Friend
It's long been a rule of thumb that the economy can't boom when oil is trading above $50 barrel. Conventional wisdom about the latter would be that high gasoline prices erase the diposable income of most consumers.
Investors | So Much For Obama 'Transparency' At CFPB
Governance: In breach of federal law, the "most open and transparent administration" has shut out industry and press from critical meetings crafting new federal financial rules.
Washington Times | A better war on poverty
President Lyndon B. Johnson declared a war on poverty in his 1964 State of the Union address, and Americans have been fighting a losing battle ever since. Fortunately, the broader conservative-libertarian movement has the ability, and the responsibility, to bring forward serious ideas to confront poverty. In fact, conservative causes, such as welfare reform, fiscal responsibility, free enterprise, and supporting local communities and faith-based organizations, have a long history of success.
Mercatus | Keep Up the Pressure to Save Social Security
As with last year, the Trustees continue to estimate that the combined retirement and disability Social Security Trust Funds will become exhausted in 2033, just 20 short years from now.
Blogs
WSJ | Foreigners Boosted U.S. Investments in First Quarter Amid Recovery
Foreign investors boosted their holdings in the U.S. in the first quarter as the American economic recovery lifted domestic markets.
Bloomberg | Consumer Confidence in U.S. Increases More Than Forecast
Confidence among U.S. consumers climbed in June to the highest level in more than five years, an indication spending will probably accelerate after cooling this quarter.
Politico | President Obama's energy push could loom large in 2014
The planned carbon emissions crackdown could make the president even more of an anchor on Democrats in deep-red states like West Virginia and Kentucky, where Senate candidates will have no choice but to distance themselves from unpopular policies pushed by the national party. And the new regulations pose a messaging challenge for vulnerable Democratic incumbents already facing competitive Senate races in other energy-rich states, including Alaska, North Carolina and Louisiana.
Bloomberg | Senators to Introduce Bill to End Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac
A bipartisan group of senators is planning to introduce a proposal today for replacing U.S.-owned mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (FMCC) with a newly created government reinsurer.
CNN Money | Home prices jump 12%, new home sales hit a five year high
The housing recovery continues to pick up steam, as home prices jumped in April, and new home sales hit a five year high in May.
Bloomberg | Orders for U.S. Durable Goods Rose More Than Forecast
Orders for U.S. durable goods rose more than forecast in May, reflecting broad-based gains that signal manufacturing is stabilizing.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Real Clear Markets | Relax, The Stock Market Correction Is Your Friend
It's long been a rule of thumb that the economy can't boom when oil is trading above $50 barrel. Conventional wisdom about the latter would be that high gasoline prices erase the diposable income of most consumers.
Investors | So Much For Obama 'Transparency' At CFPB
Governance: In breach of federal law, the "most open and transparent administration" has shut out industry and press from critical meetings crafting new federal financial rules.
Washington Times | A better war on poverty
President Lyndon B. Johnson declared a war on poverty in his 1964 State of the Union address, and Americans have been fighting a losing battle ever since. Fortunately, the broader conservative-libertarian movement has the ability, and the responsibility, to bring forward serious ideas to confront poverty. In fact, conservative causes, such as welfare reform, fiscal responsibility, free enterprise, and supporting local communities and faith-based organizations, have a long history of success.
Mercatus | Keep Up the Pressure to Save Social Security
As with last year, the Trustees continue to estimate that the combined retirement and disability Social Security Trust Funds will become exhausted in 2033, just 20 short years from now.
Blogs
WSJ | Foreigners Boosted U.S. Investments in First Quarter Amid Recovery
Foreign investors boosted their holdings in the U.S. in the first quarter as the American economic recovery lifted domestic markets.
Health Care
Econ Comments & Analysis
WSJ | Medicare by the Scary Numbers
Even before the latest Medicare trustees report came out at the end of May, the White House spin masters had already crafted a story to go with it. Medicare's finances have improved, we're being told. The trust fund will last longer. The unfunded liability is lower. One of the reasons is said to be ObamaCare.
Washington Times | When medical secrets become public
Think about the huge damage the IRS has already done to Mr. Obama’s conservative opponents with outrageously lawless tactics — delaying tax-exempt nonprofit status for years, intimidating them with threats of perjury, illegally demanding donor lists, and leaking those lists to liberal media are just a few.
WSJ | Medicare by the Scary Numbers
Even before the latest Medicare trustees report came out at the end of May, the White House spin masters had already crafted a story to go with it. Medicare's finances have improved, we're being told. The trust fund will last longer. The unfunded liability is lower. One of the reasons is said to be ObamaCare.
Washington Times | When medical secrets become public
Think about the huge damage the IRS has already done to Mr. Obama’s conservative opponents with outrageously lawless tactics — delaying tax-exempt nonprofit status for years, intimidating them with threats of perjury, illegally demanding donor lists, and leaking those lists to liberal media are just a few.
Monetary
News
Bloomberg | Coeure Says No Doubt ECB Loose Monetary Policy Exit Distant
European Central Bank Executive Board member Benoit Coeure said loose monetary policy and non-standard measures will remain as long as needed, as the euro area struggles to emerge from its longest-ever recession.
Blogs
Economist | Whose low rates are these?
A long debate has been raging over the nature of low long-term interest rates. In one camp, there are those who say that low rates are mostly a result of the quantitative easing pursued by rich-world central banks. Purchases of assets from banks using newly created money artificially raise bond prices, in this view, thereby holding down interest rates. In the other camp are those who argue that low rates are mostly a result of broader economic forces.
Telegraph | The Bernanke Fed is playing with deflationary fire
I hope the Fed knows what it is doing. It has chosen to tighten monetary policy even though core PCE inflation is actually lower right now than it was when the Fed previously thought it dangerous enough to launch further QE. America is one shock away from a slide into outright deflation, and the eurozone is half a shock away.
Bloomberg | Coeure Says No Doubt ECB Loose Monetary Policy Exit Distant
European Central Bank Executive Board member Benoit Coeure said loose monetary policy and non-standard measures will remain as long as needed, as the euro area struggles to emerge from its longest-ever recession.
Blogs
Economist | Whose low rates are these?
A long debate has been raging over the nature of low long-term interest rates. In one camp, there are those who say that low rates are mostly a result of the quantitative easing pursued by rich-world central banks. Purchases of assets from banks using newly created money artificially raise bond prices, in this view, thereby holding down interest rates. In the other camp are those who argue that low rates are mostly a result of broader economic forces.
Telegraph | The Bernanke Fed is playing with deflationary fire
I hope the Fed knows what it is doing. It has chosen to tighten monetary policy even though core PCE inflation is actually lower right now than it was when the Fed previously thought it dangerous enough to launch further QE. America is one shock away from a slide into outright deflation, and the eurozone is half a shock away.
Taxes
News
CNN Money | States with sweetest corporate tax breaks
States looking to gin up jobs frequently offer sweet tax breaks to lure in new companies or keep businesses from bolting out of state.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Washington Times | New taxes penalize gun owners, threaten Second Amendment
Liberals are trying every tool at their disposal this year to go after guns. They have failed on Capitol Hill to restrict the Second Amendment, so they are moving through the states to enact their agenda.
Blogs
Library of Economics | Atkinson and Krugman on Tax Rates
On May 20, British economist Anthony Atkinson and Paul Krugman had a long discussion about inequality and income tax rates. Atkinson thought the top income tax rate should be 60% and Krugman thought it should be 73%. Apparently, the City University of New York wanted a wide range of views.
CNN Money | States with sweetest corporate tax breaks
States looking to gin up jobs frequently offer sweet tax breaks to lure in new companies or keep businesses from bolting out of state.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Washington Times | New taxes penalize gun owners, threaten Second Amendment
Liberals are trying every tool at their disposal this year to go after guns. They have failed on Capitol Hill to restrict the Second Amendment, so they are moving through the states to enact their agenda.
Blogs
Library of Economics | Atkinson and Krugman on Tax Rates
On May 20, British economist Anthony Atkinson and Paul Krugman had a long discussion about inequality and income tax rates. Atkinson thought the top income tax rate should be 60% and Krugman thought it should be 73%. Apparently, the City University of New York wanted a wide range of views.
Employment
News
WSJ | Some Unemployed Keep Losing Ground
Nearly 12 million Americans were unemployed in May, down from a peak of more than 15 million, but still more than four million higher than when the recession began in December 2007. Millions more have given up looking for work and no longer count as unemployed. The share of the population that is working or looking for work stands near a three-decade low.
CNBC | Americans Hate Their Jobs, Even With Office Perks
If you hate your job, you're not alone. But having in-office access to catered meals, a pingpong table or free massages may not make you any happier at work.
WSJ | Some Unemployed Keep Losing Ground
Nearly 12 million Americans were unemployed in May, down from a peak of more than 15 million, but still more than four million higher than when the recession began in December 2007. Millions more have given up looking for work and no longer count as unemployed. The share of the population that is working or looking for work stands near a three-decade low.
CNBC | Americans Hate Their Jobs, Even With Office Perks
If you hate your job, you're not alone. But having in-office access to catered meals, a pingpong table or free massages may not make you any happier at work.
Budget
News
CNN Money | Deadline nears for higher student loan rates
It's crunch time for students who rely on subsidized government loans -- interest rates on them double to 6.8% on July 1.
Econ Comments & Analysis
WSJ | China's Credit Crunch
Over the past two weeks China's interbank lending rates have spiked, bond auctions have failed and one large bank briefly defaulted. The Shanghai stock market fell 5.3% Monday, on top of big losses last week. This is all evidence that China's leaders have decided to call time on one of the greatest credit expansions in history.
Washington Times | No reason for a victory lap over the debt
“After two years of harrowing confrontations in Washington,” begins a recent article in the Washington Post, “the national debt is no longer growing out of control and policymakers from President Barack Obama to House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, have rushed to take credit.”
Mercatus | CBO Scoring of Farm Bills vs Actual Costs
Despite the recent defeat of the farm bill in the House, it is worth keeping in mind that when proposed in Congress, the 2013 farm bills cost nearly $1 trillion over ten years yet were touted by legislators as a way to save taxpayers money.
CNN Money | Deadline nears for higher student loan rates
It's crunch time for students who rely on subsidized government loans -- interest rates on them double to 6.8% on July 1.
Econ Comments & Analysis
WSJ | China's Credit Crunch
Over the past two weeks China's interbank lending rates have spiked, bond auctions have failed and one large bank briefly defaulted. The Shanghai stock market fell 5.3% Monday, on top of big losses last week. This is all evidence that China's leaders have decided to call time on one of the greatest credit expansions in history.
Washington Times | No reason for a victory lap over the debt
“After two years of harrowing confrontations in Washington,” begins a recent article in the Washington Post, “the national debt is no longer growing out of control and policymakers from President Barack Obama to House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, have rushed to take credit.”
Mercatus | CBO Scoring of Farm Bills vs Actual Costs
Despite the recent defeat of the farm bill in the House, it is worth keeping in mind that when proposed in Congress, the 2013 farm bills cost nearly $1 trillion over ten years yet were touted by legislators as a way to save taxpayers money.
Monday, June 24, 2013
General Economics
News
CNN Money | 2014: When the economy finally takes off
When will America's economy finally stop limping along? 2014. That's what a growing number of economists are predicting.
Bloomberg | World Bank Is Told to Dump Rankings From ‘Doing Business’
The World Bank should stop ranking countries on how business-friendly they are, according to an independent review that said an annual listing creates perverse incentives for governments.
Market Watch | National activity index less negative in May
The national activity index compiled by the Chicago Fed rose to a negative 0.30 from negative 0.52 in April, while the three-month moving average dropped to negative 0.42 from negative 0.13 in April.
WSJ | Slow-Motion U.S. Recovery Searches for Second Gear
Many economists now predict 2014 will be the best year for growth since 2005, while joblessness is expected to click below 7% next year for the first time since 2008. Houses are selling again, the energy sector is booming and jobs, while not plentiful, are being created at a steady pace. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve upped its estimate for next year's expansion as well.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Fortune | Why the economy can't save stocks from Bernanke
Following the two-day 550 point decline in the Dow Jones industrial average last week, a number of commentators recommended stock investors follow Churchill: Keep calm and carry on.
Forbes | 'Welfare State' Doesn't Adequately Describe How Much America's Poor Control Your Wallet
Many people choose to become Democrats when they are young because of a humane belief that government policies in America are stingy in providing resources to the poor. William Voegeli fingered the attitude in his book, Never Enough: America’s Limitless Welfare State: “no matter how large the welfare state, liberal politicians and writers have accused it of being shamefully small” and “contemptibly austere.”
Politico | Undermining immigration reform with high costs
The goal of immigration reform is to make our immigration system rational, accountable and workable. Bringing undocumented immigrants out of the shadows and into the system is a big part of that — it protects families, prevents exploitation and ensures that American workers and good employers are not undercut by unfair competition.
Blogs
WSJ | World Trade Increased in April
The volume of world trade rose in April following two straight months of decline, a reflection of modest growth in the global economy growth.
WSJ | Number of the Week: Will Higher Rates Kill Housing?
$96: How much more your monthly payment would be with a 4.5% 30-year mortgage rate than a 3.5% rate, assuming a 20% down payment on a $208,000 home (the median price in the May existing-home sales report).
CNN Money | 2014: When the economy finally takes off
When will America's economy finally stop limping along? 2014. That's what a growing number of economists are predicting.
Bloomberg | World Bank Is Told to Dump Rankings From ‘Doing Business’
The World Bank should stop ranking countries on how business-friendly they are, according to an independent review that said an annual listing creates perverse incentives for governments.
Market Watch | National activity index less negative in May
The national activity index compiled by the Chicago Fed rose to a negative 0.30 from negative 0.52 in April, while the three-month moving average dropped to negative 0.42 from negative 0.13 in April.
WSJ | Slow-Motion U.S. Recovery Searches for Second Gear
Many economists now predict 2014 will be the best year for growth since 2005, while joblessness is expected to click below 7% next year for the first time since 2008. Houses are selling again, the energy sector is booming and jobs, while not plentiful, are being created at a steady pace. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve upped its estimate for next year's expansion as well.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Fortune | Why the economy can't save stocks from Bernanke
Following the two-day 550 point decline in the Dow Jones industrial average last week, a number of commentators recommended stock investors follow Churchill: Keep calm and carry on.
Forbes | 'Welfare State' Doesn't Adequately Describe How Much America's Poor Control Your Wallet
Many people choose to become Democrats when they are young because of a humane belief that government policies in America are stingy in providing resources to the poor. William Voegeli fingered the attitude in his book, Never Enough: America’s Limitless Welfare State: “no matter how large the welfare state, liberal politicians and writers have accused it of being shamefully small” and “contemptibly austere.”
Politico | Undermining immigration reform with high costs
The goal of immigration reform is to make our immigration system rational, accountable and workable. Bringing undocumented immigrants out of the shadows and into the system is a big part of that — it protects families, prevents exploitation and ensures that American workers and good employers are not undercut by unfair competition.
Blogs
WSJ | World Trade Increased in April
The volume of world trade rose in April following two straight months of decline, a reflection of modest growth in the global economy growth.
WSJ | Number of the Week: Will Higher Rates Kill Housing?
$96: How much more your monthly payment would be with a 4.5% 30-year mortgage rate than a 3.5% rate, assuming a 20% down payment on a $208,000 home (the median price in the May existing-home sales report).
Health Care
Econ Comments & Analysis
Real Clear Markets | Health Care: A Free Lunch Paid For By The Healthy
Two big promises were made in the effort to pass the Affordable Care Act: that insurance coverage would be extended to those with pre-existing conditions,and that subsidies would be provided to people who could not afford insurance. In both cases, the extension of benefits will be accomplished by making other (healthier or richer) people pay for these new free lunches.
Politico | Cure for affordable medical devices
For years, Medicare has been paying sky-high prices for basic equipment like wheelchairs and walkers based on outdated and overpriced payment rates. It was a great deal for the industry, but not a great one for taxpayers and people with Medicare.
Real Clear Markets | Health Care: A Free Lunch Paid For By The Healthy
Two big promises were made in the effort to pass the Affordable Care Act: that insurance coverage would be extended to those with pre-existing conditions,and that subsidies would be provided to people who could not afford insurance. In both cases, the extension of benefits will be accomplished by making other (healthier or richer) people pay for these new free lunches.
Politico | Cure for affordable medical devices
For years, Medicare has been paying sky-high prices for basic equipment like wheelchairs and walkers based on outdated and overpriced payment rates. It was a great deal for the industry, but not a great one for taxpayers and people with Medicare.
Monetary
News
CNN Money | BIS to global central banks: Time to reduce stimulus
Global investors freaked out last week with just a hint from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that the U.S. could pull back on its stimulus program later this year.
Bloomberg | Fed Monetary Course Hard to Undo for Bernanke Successor: Economy
The Federal Reserve under Chairman Ben S. Bernanke has committed itself to a monetary strategy for this year and beyond that will be difficult to undo under a new chairman.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Daily Caller | A deflationary rate hike?
In the aftermath of Ben Bernanke’s announced timetable for ending Fed bond purchases, long-term interest rates have jumped up while stock prices have cratered down.
Fortune | A new era for the U.S. dollar
Against the world's major currencies, the value of the greenback has been strengthening on signs that the U.S. economy is improving -- a development that hasn't happened in recent years. Who knows what might transpire months from today, but some analysts and traders have taken the recent rally as a sign of the beginning of the end of the dollar's slump.
WSJ | Stopping Bank Crises Before They Start
In recent months the realization has sunk in across the country that the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial-reform legislation is a colossal mess. Yet we obviously can't go back to the status quo that produced a financial catastrophe in 2007-08. Fortunately, there is an alternative.
Washington Post | Cheap money can’t buy a strong economy
For more than four years, central banks around the world — led by the Federal Reserve — have aggressively pumped money into their economies to stimulate faster revival. These infusions are huge. From 2007 to today, the assets of major central banks nearly doubled from $10.4 trillion to $20.5 trillion, reports the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in its just-released annual report.
CATO | The Rise and Fall of the Gold Standard in the United States
There is, in informal discussions and even in some academic writings, a tendency to treat U.S. monetary history as divided between a gold standard past and a fiat dollar present. In truth, the legal meaning of a "standard" U.S. dollar has been contested, often hotly, throughout U.S. history, and a functioning (if not formally acknowledged) gold standard was in effect for less than a quarter of the full span of U.S. history.
Blogs
Economist | I'm a central banker, get me out of here
Central banks are unable to repair banks’ broken balance sheets, to put public finances back on a sustainable footing, to raise potential output through structural reform. What they can do is to buy time for those painful actions to be taken. But that time, provided through unprecedented programmes of monetary stimulus since the financial crisis of 2008, has been misspent.
CNN Money | BIS to global central banks: Time to reduce stimulus
Global investors freaked out last week with just a hint from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that the U.S. could pull back on its stimulus program later this year.
Bloomberg | Fed Monetary Course Hard to Undo for Bernanke Successor: Economy
The Federal Reserve under Chairman Ben S. Bernanke has committed itself to a monetary strategy for this year and beyond that will be difficult to undo under a new chairman.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Daily Caller | A deflationary rate hike?
In the aftermath of Ben Bernanke’s announced timetable for ending Fed bond purchases, long-term interest rates have jumped up while stock prices have cratered down.
Fortune | A new era for the U.S. dollar
Against the world's major currencies, the value of the greenback has been strengthening on signs that the U.S. economy is improving -- a development that hasn't happened in recent years. Who knows what might transpire months from today, but some analysts and traders have taken the recent rally as a sign of the beginning of the end of the dollar's slump.
WSJ | Stopping Bank Crises Before They Start
In recent months the realization has sunk in across the country that the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial-reform legislation is a colossal mess. Yet we obviously can't go back to the status quo that produced a financial catastrophe in 2007-08. Fortunately, there is an alternative.
Washington Post | Cheap money can’t buy a strong economy
For more than four years, central banks around the world — led by the Federal Reserve — have aggressively pumped money into their economies to stimulate faster revival. These infusions are huge. From 2007 to today, the assets of major central banks nearly doubled from $10.4 trillion to $20.5 trillion, reports the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in its just-released annual report.
CATO | The Rise and Fall of the Gold Standard in the United States
There is, in informal discussions and even in some academic writings, a tendency to treat U.S. monetary history as divided between a gold standard past and a fiat dollar present. In truth, the legal meaning of a "standard" U.S. dollar has been contested, often hotly, throughout U.S. history, and a functioning (if not formally acknowledged) gold standard was in effect for less than a quarter of the full span of U.S. history.
Blogs
Economist | I'm a central banker, get me out of here
Central banks are unable to repair banks’ broken balance sheets, to put public finances back on a sustainable footing, to raise potential output through structural reform. What they can do is to buy time for those painful actions to be taken. But that time, provided through unprecedented programmes of monetary stimulus since the financial crisis of 2008, has been misspent.
Taxes
Econ Comments & Analysis
Washington Times | The insatiable governments
The Group of Eight concluded their summit last week with grand promises to pursue “proper tax justice in our world,” in the words of British Prime Minister David Cameron. His Orwellian turn of phrase at first sounds good; who doesn’t like justice? But what “justice” here means is pursuing profitable corporations that seek refuge in business-friendly nations. If implemented, consumers would pay more for just about everything they buy.
Washington Times | The insatiable governments
The Group of Eight concluded their summit last week with grand promises to pursue “proper tax justice in our world,” in the words of British Prime Minister David Cameron. His Orwellian turn of phrase at first sounds good; who doesn’t like justice? But what “justice” here means is pursuing profitable corporations that seek refuge in business-friendly nations. If implemented, consumers would pay more for just about everything they buy.
Employment
News
Washington Post | Unemployment rate rises in Maryland and Virginia in May and holds steady in D.C.
Employment in the Washington region appears to have avoided a sequester-related bruising in May, a Friday report from the Labor Department showed, although the jobless rate rose in Maryland and Virginia and remained high in the District.
Washington Post | Unemployment rate rises in Maryland and Virginia in May and holds steady in D.C.
Employment in the Washington region appears to have avoided a sequester-related bruising in May, a Friday report from the Labor Department showed, although the jobless rate rose in Maryland and Virginia and remained high in the District.
Budget
Econ Comments & Analysis
AEI | Six long-run tax and budget realities
The United States confronts a severe long-run fiscal imbalance. Federal spending on healthcare programs and other entitlements is projected to outstrip federal revenue over the next 50 years and beyond. The decisions of precisely how and when to address the imbalance will be made through the political process and will reflect the values that the American people express through their elected representatives.
AEI | Six long-run tax and budget realities
The United States confronts a severe long-run fiscal imbalance. Federal spending on healthcare programs and other entitlements is projected to outstrip federal revenue over the next 50 years and beyond. The decisions of precisely how and when to address the imbalance will be made through the political process and will reflect the values that the American people express through their elected representatives.
Friday, June 21, 2013
General Economics
News
Politico | Uncertain future for farm policy
The farm bill collapsed in the House on Thursday, the victim of continued divisions over food stamp cuts and the shape of future agriculture subsidies.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Fortune | E-commerce and the global battle for Internet economics
In the next five years, ecommerce competition could determine the world's most valuable company.
Forbes | With Gulliver Asleep, The Lilliputians Are Almost Done Smothering The U.S. Economy
Just as Swift’s fictitious Lemuel Gulliver’s strength wasn’t enough to overcome the cumulative effect of myriad tethers, so the American economy’s tremendous strength and energy have been progressively overcome and subdued by innumerable government (and its partner in crime, the Federal Reserve) interferences with the market economy. Taken individually, each intervention has been a minor nuisance in the economy; taken collectively, though, they have been subduing the American Gulliver.
Washington Times | Government gone wild
With each passing week comes more proof that President Obama’s government is out of control. The past couple of months alone have produced a long list of scandals
AEI | Overzealous intervention dooms the market
Those who want government guarantees for mortgages see them as a path to encourage homeownership and market stability, but instead guarantees pose needless risks to homeowners and taxpayers. Government guarantees suffer from three flaws: the inability and unwillingness to price for risk, asset allocation distortions, and the politicization of lending.
Blogs
WSJ | Boehner: Government ‘Arrogance’ Hurts Economy
House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio), told a business group Thursday that the political controversies surrounding the Obama administration — from problems at the Internal Revenue Service to surveillance of journalists by the Justice Department — are symptomatic of a government “arrogance” that is hurting the economy.
Politico | Fixing the fragile U.S. economy
It's hard for many Americans to look at the economic news of the last few days and not worry about the stability of the American economy. The Wall Street Journal asks this morning whether the drop in markets this week proves that investors are addicted to central bankers' policy of easy money. The question answers itself.
Fortune | Why Europe is a disaster zone for car companies
From cantankerous unions to soft demand, car makers of all stripes are finding the continent a vexing place to do business.
WSJ | Well Being Rises in Every State but Michigan
Michigan is the only state in the U.S. where the average resident’s well-being has declined from 2000 to 2010, according to a Measure of America report published by the Social Science Research Council.
Neighborhood Effects | Does economic freedom matter among wealthy countries?
In other words, at low levels of government spending, additional spending may be able to increase growth by financing things like property protection and public goods. But at higher levels of government spending, marginal increases in government size detract from growth as taxes become more distortionary and as government becomes less effective.
Politico | Uncertain future for farm policy
The farm bill collapsed in the House on Thursday, the victim of continued divisions over food stamp cuts and the shape of future agriculture subsidies.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Fortune | E-commerce and the global battle for Internet economics
In the next five years, ecommerce competition could determine the world's most valuable company.
Forbes | With Gulliver Asleep, The Lilliputians Are Almost Done Smothering The U.S. Economy
Just as Swift’s fictitious Lemuel Gulliver’s strength wasn’t enough to overcome the cumulative effect of myriad tethers, so the American economy’s tremendous strength and energy have been progressively overcome and subdued by innumerable government (and its partner in crime, the Federal Reserve) interferences with the market economy. Taken individually, each intervention has been a minor nuisance in the economy; taken collectively, though, they have been subduing the American Gulliver.
Washington Times | Government gone wild
With each passing week comes more proof that President Obama’s government is out of control. The past couple of months alone have produced a long list of scandals
AEI | Overzealous intervention dooms the market
Those who want government guarantees for mortgages see them as a path to encourage homeownership and market stability, but instead guarantees pose needless risks to homeowners and taxpayers. Government guarantees suffer from three flaws: the inability and unwillingness to price for risk, asset allocation distortions, and the politicization of lending.
Blogs
WSJ | Boehner: Government ‘Arrogance’ Hurts Economy
House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio), told a business group Thursday that the political controversies surrounding the Obama administration — from problems at the Internal Revenue Service to surveillance of journalists by the Justice Department — are symptomatic of a government “arrogance” that is hurting the economy.
Politico | Fixing the fragile U.S. economy
It's hard for many Americans to look at the economic news of the last few days and not worry about the stability of the American economy. The Wall Street Journal asks this morning whether the drop in markets this week proves that investors are addicted to central bankers' policy of easy money. The question answers itself.
Fortune | Why Europe is a disaster zone for car companies
From cantankerous unions to soft demand, car makers of all stripes are finding the continent a vexing place to do business.
WSJ | Well Being Rises in Every State but Michigan
Michigan is the only state in the U.S. where the average resident’s well-being has declined from 2000 to 2010, according to a Measure of America report published by the Social Science Research Council.
Neighborhood Effects | Does economic freedom matter among wealthy countries?
In other words, at low levels of government spending, additional spending may be able to increase growth by financing things like property protection and public goods. But at higher levels of government spending, marginal increases in government size detract from growth as taxes become more distortionary and as government becomes less effective.
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