economists

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Paul Krugman's Final Column: We're in a 'Grim Place'

Nobel-winning NYT economist laments losing optimism of the past, says to rebuff 'kakistocracy'

(Newser) - After nearly a quarter century, Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman has decided to wrap up his opinion column in the New York Times, with a final one dropping on Tuesday —and he's using it as "a good occasion to reflect on what has changed over these past...

What's a Whale Worth? More Than You Might Think
What's a Whale Worth?
More Than You Might Think
new analysis
Sep 25, 2019 10:35 AM CDT

What's a Whale Worth? More Than You Might Think

Team of economists with the IMF do the math

(Newser) - Whales are actually cash cows, or so suggest economists with the International Monetary Fund. A team helmed by Ralph Chami took a look at the economic benefit provided by whales when it comes to carbon sequestration and ecotourism and arrived at a big figure: $2 million apiece. Their analysis hasn'...

What RV Shipments Say About a Possible Recession
What RV Shipments Say
About a Possible Recession
the rundown
Aug 19, 2019 10:00 AM CDT

What RV Shipments Say About a Possible Recession

They're down 2 years in a row, which happened before last 3 recessions

(Newser) - Last week saw Wall Street's worst day in 2019—and also saw President Trump telling a crowd in New Hampshire that their 401(k)s will be in far worse shape if Democrats take the White House in 2020. "I don't think we're having a recession," Trump...

Conservative Economists Praise the New Immigration Bill

Even as GOP senators threaten to kill it

(Newser) - Conservative economists appear to have gotten the memo about the GOP's new immigration-friendly stance. More than 100 of them today signed a letter praising the reform bill coming to the Senate floor, saying it would have a "positive impact on population growth, labor force growth, housing, and other...

2 Americans Win Economics Nobel for Strides in Matching

Winner of African governance prize: No one

(Newser) - Americans Alvin Roth and Peter Shapley have won the Nobel prize for economics on the strength of their work matching players in a wide range of markets, the Wall Street Journal reports. "For example, students have to be matched with schools, and donors of human organs with patients in...

Dear Fellow Economists, Stop Playing Politics
Dear Fellow Economists,
Stop Playing Politics
OPINION
Aug 22, 2012 12:45 PM CDT

Dear Fellow Economists, Stop Playing Politics

Laurence Kotlikoff: Those who take sides demean the profession

(Newser) - Boston University economist Laurence Kotlikoff takes note that 500 of his colleagues have signed a statement supporting Mitt Romney's policies and castigating Barack Obama's. All 500 "owe our profession a sincere apology," he writes at Bloomberg View . But this isn't a partisan rant, it's...

Odds of Second Recession Grow: Economists

And Fed can't do much to stop it, say experts

(Newser) - Economists are citing a one-in-three chance of a new recession—the highest likelihood given in the Wall Street Journal ’s regular survey since the recovery began. The figure is 4 percentage points higher than last month’s as joblessness, a troubled stock market, and fears for Europe continue. “...

AP Poll of Economists: Double-Dip Recession Unlikely, But Growth Will Be Slow
Next 12 Months: No Recession, but Slow Growth
economists say
Aug 23, 2011 2:55 PM CDT

Next 12 Months: No Recession, but Slow Growth

Risk of recession at 26%; unemployment likely 9% at year's end

(Newser) - Despite a bombardment of bad news in recent weeks, economists don’t expect another recession over the next 12 months—but economic growth will barely be perceptible in that period, an AP poll of top economists finds. They expect high unemployment and weak consumer spending to dog the US into...

Only 12% Chance We'll Return to Recession
Only 12% Chance We'll Return to Recession
say economists
Feb 14, 2011 8:39 AM CST

Only 12% Chance We'll Return to Recession

Forecast fastest expansion in years on consumer spending

(Newser) - Economists are growing more optimistic about this year’s climate, predicting it will expand at its fastest pace since 2003, the Wall Street Journal reports. The paper polled 51 economists. Among the highlights:
  • Economists see only a 12% risk of returning to recession, compared to 22% in September.
  • In the
...

Economy Grew Modestly in 3rd Quarter

2.6% rate beats predictions; economics optimistic for year's end

(Newser) - The US economy grew at a moderate pace last summer, reflecting stronger spending by businesses to replenish stockpiles. More recent barometers suggest the economy is gaining momentum in the final months of the year. Gross domestic product increased at a 2.6% annual rate in the July-September quarter, the Commerce...

Chance of Double-Dip Recession in 2011 Falls to 15%
Chance of Double-Dip Recession in 2011 Falls to 15%
economists predict
Dec 13, 2010 8:25 AM CST

Chance of Double-Dip Recession in 2011 Falls to 15%

GDP will grow 3%, they estimate

(Newser) - The Bush tax cut deal has some economists walking on sunshine. Experts are getting more upbeat in their forecasts for next year, predicting accelerating growth, finds the Wall Street Journal in its latest forecasting survey. The 55 experts who weighed in expect GDP to grow in “nearly every period,...

Economists Agree: Immigration Is Good for US
Economists Agree: Immigration Is Good for US
ANALYSIS
Sep 3, 2010 3:11 PM CDT

Economists Agree: Immigration Is Good for US

Even if politicians can't say so

(Newser) - The political debate on immigration in America has become a game of nativist one-upsmanship, with ever-stricter plans to secure the border topped only by the call to invalidate the 14th Amendment. Economists, meanwhile, seem united in their belief that foreign-born workers are exactly what the US economy needs—the debate...

Economists Demand 'Robin Hood' Tax on Speculators

Fee would go to fight poverty, climate change

(Newser) - Hundreds of the world's leading economists want banks to pay for the mess they've made—with an international " Robin Hood tax " that would raise funds to fight climate change and global poverty. Some 350 economists from 35 countries, including two Nobel prizewinners, have written to G20 leaders urging...

One Quarter of Jobs Lost Are Gone for Good

Recession changing America's mix of employers

(Newser) - One quarter of the jobs lost since the beginning of the recession won't be coming back. Instead, the estimated 8.4 million goner gigs will be replaced with different jobs in growing industries, finds a Wall Street Journal forecast. "Displaced workers won't be rehired unless we have double the...

New 'Cash for Clunkers' Targets Appliances

Feds hope next consumer perk will boost sales

(Newser) - A new federal version of the Cash for Clunkers program will soon target appliances in a bid to convince consumers to replace their leaky dishwashers and grinding refrigerators. The $300 million Cash for Appliances program will offer rebates to buyers who replace worn out appliances with energy efficient models. Just...

Obama's Stimulus Finally Gets Some Respect

Warring economists agree that it has helped—if not enough

(Newser) - Economists are still fighting about whether the economic stimulus was too small, or too big and wasteful, but a consensus is emerging, at least, that the $787 billion package, flawed as it is, is working. With a quarter of the money now spent, the New York Times says a broad...

Don't Apologize, Meg, Voting Is Dumb
Don't Apologize, Meg, Voting
Is Dumb
OPINION
Sep 30, 2009 10:42 AM CDT

Don't Apologize, Meg, Voting Is Dumb

Whitman's ballot wouldn't have made a difference anyway

(Newser) - Meg Whitman has taken heat for her, ahem, spotty voting record—the ex-CEO wasn’t even registered to vote until 2002—and, of course, she has apologized. But she shouldn’t have, writes Christopher Beam for Slate. Economists have long argued that, from an individual’s perspective, voting is irrational....

Fed Has Field of Economics in Its Pocket
Fed Has Field of Economics in Its Pocket
OPINION
Sep 9, 2009 3:09 PM CDT

Fed Has Field of Economics in Its Pocket

Central bank keeps vast number of thinkers on the payroll

(Newser) - The Federal Reserve has essentially bought out the economics profession, writes Ryan Grim in a Huffington Post investigation. The Fed employs or contracts with so many economists that it's a "career liability" for any independent-minded one to criticize policy, writes Grim. This might explain why the Fed has largely...

Krugman: How Economists Blew It
Krugman: How Economists Blew It
OPINION
Sep 4, 2009 11:42 AM CDT

Krugman: How Economists Blew It

Downturn blindsided big brains who thought markets were perfect

(Newser) - Believe it or not, economists were, until about a year ago, congratulating themselves on a job well done. Now the dismal science is in shock, and Paul Krugman thinks he knows why. Economists, he writes in the New York Times Magazine, “mistook beauty, clad in impressive-looking mathematics, for truth....

Fed Holds Rates, Sees Economy 'Leveling Out'

(Newser) - The Federal Reserve has slowed its recovery-minded plan to purchase Treasury securities but said that "economic activity is leveling out," the Wall Street Journal reports. The Fed’s policy committee hopes to complete its $300 billion purchase of Treasury securities by October—originally slated for September—and also...

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