For decades, the Cuban economy has been constrained under strict communist rule. Eddie Go makes an economic case for re-establishing trade and other economic relations between the U.S. and Cuba in light of Obama’s historic visit to the island.
Matthew Rao outlines the two key areas the Obama administration must focus on in its remaining years.
Most of Washington’s economic debate is over the long-standing budget deficit and the national debt, when the focus for policymakers should be on the long-term crisis in unemployment.
What a joke.
Really, there isn’t anything else that can be said about the latest fiscal crisis in the United States. With the federal government shutting down most operations on the 1st of October, as the House of Representatives (controlled by the Republicans) and the Senate (controlled by the Democrats) couldn’t agree on a Continuing Resolution for the 2014 fiscal year.
Note: This article was written before the recent changes in candidacy. Nevertheless, it provides a valuable analysis of important factors to consider when evaluating candidates’ credentials.
On September 15 Lawrence Summers unexpectedly withdrew as a candidate for the next Federal Reserve chairman. His letter to Barack Obama stated, ‘I have reluctantly concluded that any possible confirmation process for me would be acrimonious and would not serve the interests of the Federal Reserve, the Administration, or ultimately, the interests of the nation’s ongoing economic recovery.’ Janet Yellen now faces competition from new candidate Donald Kohn or, some have speculated, an as-yet unnamed economist.
Whether you love or loathe him, there is no question that Ben Bernanke in his last eight years as chairman of the United States Federal Reserve has had his work cut out for him.
Christopher Weinberg sheds light on the worrying plight for American politics, set in motion by the clashes between Democrats and Republicans. Whether the role President Barack Obama has in achieving bipartisan consensus is an achievable one is certainly something that Weinberg causes one to call into question.
Hailed by ‘The Economist’ as catalyst of ‘the third industrial revolution’, 3-D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, looks set to have a significant impact on manufacturing in the near future. What exactly is this technology, touted as the ‘next revolution in manufacturing’?
Throughout the hoopla of the Leadership Spill that wasn’t I was struck by how parlous politics in Australia had become. Then I wandered over to one of my regularly-read blogs, the ever-engaging Ezra Klein on The Washington Post, who highlighted the endemic nature of intransigence in the budget-making process in the US. His broad contention, reinforced by the likes of Jonathan Chait in New York Magazine, is that no matter what President Obama offers in terms of compromise on the budget, it will be met by the same obstinate response from Congressional Republicans to demand more concessions on spending in exchange for any further increases in tax revenue.
No one ever said being President of the United States was an easy job, and that has certainly been the case for the newly re-elected, President Obama. After a bitterly fought re-election over Republican nominee, Fmr. Gov. Mitt Romney, he was literally back to work the next day, beginning the negotiating to avert the Fiscal Cliff.
As I wrote in my article for ESSA’s Equilibrium about this topic, the Fiscal Cliff will involve the expiration of numerous tax cuts, unemployment benefits and across-the-board discretionary spending cuts; a scenario many economists fear will significantly inhibit economic growth in 2013, the exact opposite of what the American economy needs as it slowly emerges out of a sluggish economy recovery and into a more sustained period of economic growth.
Hand picked selection of economics content from around the web. This week: Europe, US election coverage, the RBA’s monetary policy and the cost of free range chickens. ESSA, 7 October 2012 World Economy Europe Greek Prime Minister Warns of Societal Collapse Like Weimar Germany; Citizens Storm Defense Ministry; – Global Economic Analysis Greece is politically …