The two approaches most often used by government to help the economy grow are the Keynesian approach of stimulus spending and low interest rates, and the more free-market approach of…
JOBS 3.0: More Studies, but Some Deregulation, Too
Yesterday we highlighted features of JOBS 3.0, which combines 32 separate bills into one. Many of the bills are merely housekeeping items with lofty titles, but, taken as a whole,…
Furman: Economy Growing Faster Than Government Says
So how fast is the economy really growing? Estimates for growth in gross domestic product (GDP) for the second quarter of 2018 range from 3.8% to 4.8%, but the Bureau…
Winter Is Coming. But When?
In “Game of Thrones,” the bleak House Stark motto, “Winter is coming,” is practically a theme for the series. And yes, winter finally appears to be coming, but its first…
Faster Growth. But For How Long?
The only thing everyone seems to agree about when it comes to the U.S. economy is that it is in better shape that other economies throughout the world. Estimates for…
When There Are More Jobs than Job Seekers
Yesterday, we looked at the record-breaking (Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey) JOLTS data, which provided good news for American workers. But having more job openings than people looking for…
U.S. Economy Performing Like New England Patriots
The U.S. economy, like The New England Patriots last year, did not perform at its best during the first quarter. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew at a 2.3% annual rate,…
Productivity Growth Still Weak
The economy is growing at a rate of about 3%, which is a significant improvement over the 2% growth during President Obama’s two terms. The unemployment rate has dropped to…
No Surprises from the Fed
To the surprise of no one, the Federal Reserve Board raised interest rates by 0.25% in March. It was the sixth time since December 2015 that the Federal Open Market…
Does the U.S. Have Less Economic Freedom Than Socialist Countries?
On the 2018 Index for Economic Freedom, which we wrote about yesterday, it wasn’t surprising to see that three Communist countries – Cuba (#178), Venezuela (#179) and North Korea (#180)…