Tag Archives: GDP growth

Our Tragedy of the Commons—Austerity That Doesn’t Work

Popular Economics Weekly There is a longer term fiscal crisis that current budget negotiators are ignoring. It is called the Tragedy of the Commons — the long term neglect of common resources and facilities used by all, including our air, … Continue reading

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Q4 GDP Growth Improving

Financial FAQs We are seeing faster economic growth in the fourth quarter, even after the upward revision of Q3 GDP growth to 2.7 percent from 2.0 percent. The reason? The 146,000 jump in November payroll jobs, soaring retail sales, and … Continue reading

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Fourth Quarter Economic Growth Higher

Popular Economics Weekly We are seeing a boost in Q4 economic growth, in spite of “fiscal cliff” worries. Service sector growth has increased significantly, job formation is accelerating, and real estate is coming back to life, thanks mostly to more … Continue reading

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Two Percent Growth Isn’t ‘New’ Normal

Popular Economics Weekly There are many ways to look at the “weak” 2 percent growth numbers for Q3, though just the ‘Advance Estimate’ and so subject to at least 2 more revisions. But such weak growth isn’t due to excessive … Continue reading

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Housing Construction, Retail Sales Surge

The Mortgage Corner Another sign that the economy is finally recovering—new housing starts surged 15 percent, to their highest levels since 2008 and the beginning of the Great Recession. This is boosting construction employment in particular, but also finance, insurance … Continue reading

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Why Do We Need QE3?

Financial FAQs It’s not hard to see why we need “QE3”, the Fed’s bond buying program to keep long term interest rates low. It’s almost an act of desperation. The Fed is the only game in town to stimulate growth … Continue reading

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August Jobs Report—Manufacturing Slowdown

Popular Economics Weekly The headlines said a “weak” job report on Friday. But it had nothing to do with politics or economic policy, at least directly. The jobs drop was all in manufacturing due to problems in Europe and China. … Continue reading

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Henry Ford’s Arithmetic Would Cure Budget Deficit

The Financial FAQs Why don’t Republicans get it? As President Clinton said in his convention speech, there was one word to explain the difference between Republican and Democrats budget proposals—arithmetic. The numbers had to add up, and as a ‘good … Continue reading

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Consumers Are Doing Fine

Financial FAQs Consumers seem to be doing fine, in spite of their worries about jobs in the latest University of Michigan sentiment survey, the economy and budget deficits (their own more than governments’). June average hourly earnings improved to a … Continue reading

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Manufacturing Continues Expansion (So Austerity Not the Answer)

“Manufacturing continues to lead U.S. recovery”, said the April ISM manufacturing survey that measures overall manufacturing activity. “The PMI registered 54.8 percent, an increase of 1.4 percentage points from March’s reading of 53.4 percent, indicating expansion in the manufacturing sector … Continue reading

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