Econ70
The March trade deficit narrowed from $41.9 billion to $40.4 billion; good news. The better news, exports at $193.9 are at their second highest level ever and are 17% above their pre-recession high. Imports, while hitting a new all-time high…
Read MorePfizer’s $106.4 billion buyout offer of British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca is being largely driven by high US corporate taxes. At yearend 2013, Pfizer had $70 billion of overseas earnings that, if repatriated, would result in huge US taxes. Buying AstraZeneca…
Read MoreA rise in the minimum wage is likely to have uneven impacts across states. In states where the minimum is already above the federal minimum wage, such as California, Connecticut, Oregon and Washington, the impacts of a rise will be…
Read MoreThe Friday File: In 2012, all-source betting on the 138th Kentucky Derby and the 12 race undercard totaled a record $187 million, with $133.1 million bet on just the Kentucky Derby. Last year, the totals were slightly lower at $184.6…
Read MoreAccording to one measure, later this year China will overtake the US as the world’s largest economy, a spot held by the US since 1872. The measure used is purchasing power parity and it’s highly subjective and assumption laden. Worse,…
Read MoreThe first estimate of Q1 2014 GDP growth came in at a miserable 0.1%, surprising even the most pessimistic. The good news, household spending was up 3% and boosted GDP by 2.04%, its third best contribution in four years! The…
Read MoreWith his Senate confirmation guaranteed, Stan Fischer will soon become Vice Chairman of the Fed. He brings spectacular credentials. He was most recently Governor of the Bank of Israel where he did a masterful job of aggressively slashing interest rates…
Read MoreThe federal deficit is shrinking fast and is expected to be just $492 billion or 2.8% of GDP in FY 2014. Similarly, state government finances are also rapidly improving. In FY 2013, state governments collected a record $846 billion —…
Read MoreThe Friday File: To encourage academic excellence, prizes are often awarded for outstanding achievement. Turns out that at least for the Field’s Medal (awarded every four years to the world’s top mathematician under 40), winning isn’t helpful. While winners and…
Read MoreWhile new home sales fell in March, they didn’t exactly plunge. The actual number of new homes sold last month was 36,000 down from a whopping 37,000 in February. While bad weather and lack of lots and credit are part…
Read More