News
FOX Business | Refinery Maintenance Weighs on U.S. Crude Demand
Brent crude oil ended nearly a dollar higher on Thursday, supported by a stronger euro, French port closures and tighter supplies from the North Sea.
Bloomberg | German Industrial Output Unexpectedly Fell in December: Economy
German industrial output unexpectedly fell in December, signaling that Europe’s largest economy remains vulnerable to weakness in the rest of the region.
Bloomberg | U.S. Home Sellers Return for Spring as Buyers Get Relief
Suzanne Baker and her siblings bought a foreclosed home in Atlanta two years ago, added a fourth bathroom, then waited for values to rebound before considering a sale. Now, she says, they’re ready to cash in.
WSJ | Energy a Bright Spot for Trade
U.S. exports fell overall in December amid rising volatility in the global economy while petroleum products' role in the nation's trade mix continued to grow, with overseas energy sales for the month posting a record high.
Econ Comments & Analysis
WSJ | Ominous Signs for the Global Recovery
As the feel-good talk emanating from the World Economic Forum gathering at Davos last month fades and equity investors contemplate the possibility of a major market correction, a combination of factors suggests that something ominous may be afoot. Taken together, these three factors—simultaneous liquidity withdrawal by the Federal Reserve and China, a U.S. stock market on a knife's edge, and emerging markets in disarray—indicate that the global economy could be in danger of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.
Forbes | Winning The War Against Poverty Requires More Than Money
Trying to create environments that will lead to increased wealth and reduce poverty is one of the outcomes sought by Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and think tanks. In, “More Than Money: Five Forms of Capital to Create Wealth and Eliminate Poverty” (Stanford Business Books, 2014), Paul C. Godfrey tells his readers the recommendations from noted economists, management experts and other social scientists for eliminating poverty.
NBER | Can You Leave High School Behind?
In recent years, many states, including California, Texas, and Oregon, have changed admissions policies to increase access to public universities for students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. A key concern, however, is how these students will perform.
Heritage Foundation | Economy Better, but Still Growing Too Slowly Because of Anti-Growth Policy
The new Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) report measuring how fast the economy grew in the fourth quarter of 2013 and for the entire year of 2013 confirms that while the U.S. economy has clearly picked up steam, it is still in the grip of a subpar recovery from the recession that ended in 2009.
Blogs
WSJ | Economists React: For Economy ‘Winter From Hell’
U.S. employers added 113,000 jobs in January, and the unemployment rate fell to 6.6%. It was the second straight month of weaker-than-expected job growth, with December’s number revised up a bit to 75,000. Economists disagreed about whether the weather played a role, and some found silver linings in Friday’s report.
