Econ70

With Dutch Prime Minister Rutte’s defeat of Eurosceptic Geert Wilders, anti-euro populist Marine Le Pen’s chances of winning France’s upcoming presidential election at 19% down from 34%, European businesses reporting the best economic conditions in six years, and inflation at…

With 17Q1 just about done, you would think macroeconomists would know what Q1 GDP growth will be, and you would be wrong! At one end, the Federal Reserve Bank of NY is estimating 3% annualized growth, while at the other…

In 1920, coal mining industry employment peaked at 785,000. By 1980, that level was 228,000, the highest level since 1955. Employment then resumed its steady decline, and by 2000 was 72,000. It then slowly rose to a peak of 90,000…

The inability of Republicans to repeal and replace Obamacare with the AHCA via the relatively easy reconciliation process, bodes poorly for tax reform. This is because the $337 billion in savings over the next decade from gutting Obamacare, was key…

The Friday File: While it’s been 404 days since the death of Antonin Scalia, the longest Supreme Court vacancy isn’t in jeopardy. That record is 841 days and ended when Robert Grier took Henry Baldwin’s seat on 8/10/1846. However, since…

In yet another sign that the labor market has largely recovered, in January 2017 the percentage of the labor force that voluntarily quit their job was 2.2%, or 3.2 million workers. That was the highest rate since September 2005, when,…

Despite a prolonged rise in house prices, bringing them back to where they were prior to the Great Recession, mortgage equity withdrawal (MEW) is a pittance compared to a decade ago. Between 2003 and 2007, MEW averaged 7% of disposable…

One of the most popularly traded commodities is Brent crude oil, which comes from a North Sea field. Starting in 2002, declining Brent production necessitated Brent transactions also including Forties from the UK and Oseberg from Norway. In 2007, Norwegian…

After examining the amount of physician-related spending on various tests, scans, x-rays and examinations ordered by almost 22,000 general internists and hospitalists – doctors that work exclusively in a hospital, but do no invasive procedures – over almost 500,000 distinct…