The Southeast Economy: As Goes the Nation?

So what of the Southeast economy? Are we doing better than, the same as, or worse than the U.S. economy as a whole?Southeast economy, southeast, economy, employment, sales, revenue

Fiscal policy and fickle fortunes: what’s luck got to do with it?

The author contends that luck has played a major role in the fiscal fortunes of the 1990s. He (along with many others) is therefore concerned about the unquestioned presumption that projected budget surpluses are as good as achieved. Such a presumption, he says, is a shaky foundation from which to launch major new budget initiatives.Fiscal policy ; Budget

Some fiscal advice for the new government: don't let the sun go down on BEA

A contention that the federal government's deficit reduction efforts would be greatly aided by extending the Budget Enforcement Act of 1990 through 1996, maintaining distinctions among different categories of discretionary spending, and introducing caps on mandatory expenditures.Budget deficits

Monetary policy: an interpretation of 1994, a challenge for 1995

A perspective on the Federal Reserve's policy moves in 1994 to maintain the desired rate of monetary growth in the face of other rising market interest rates and a suggestion that the Fed adopt formal multiyear commitments to specific inflation objectives to enhance its credibility and allow it to focus on long-term objectives.Interest rates ; Monetary policy

Federal credit and insurance programs: beyond the deficit diversion

An examination of the budgetary and economic effects of federal credit and insurance programs, highlighting the problems inherent in making federal budget deficits the centerpiece of fiscal decisionmaking.Credit ; Budget deficits

An ebbing tide lowers all boats: monetary policy, inflation, and social justice

An argument that attempting to alleviate the burden of unemployment on the less affluent through expansionary monetary policy may hurt the clientele it is supposed to serve if, ultimately, the policy leads to higher long-run rates of inflation.Monetary policy ; Inflation (Finance) ; Unemployment

The case of the missing interest deductions: will tax reform increase U. S. saving rates?

A comparison of U.S. saving rates with those of 15 OECD countries, finding that saving is generally higher in countries that do not subsidize borrowing through interest deductibility.Taxation ; Saving and investment

What is the right inflation rate?

The primary objective of most of the world's central banks these days is to keep inflation low, and the range of inflation rates banks find acceptable appears to be around 2.5 to 3.5 percent. While banks may have hit on this range through trial and error, economic theory and empirical observations suggest a good reason for it.Inflation (Finance) ; Banks and banking, Central

Dollarization: what's in it for US?

Should the United States care if other countries abandon their own currencies and adopt the dollar? Dollarization imparts benefits to the United States as well as costs, and these ought to be weighed as we decide what to do about the growing number of countries turning to dollarization or considering it.Dollar, American ; Currency convertibility

Why is stable money such a big deal?

What do attempts to counterfeit an enemy’s currency during wartime have in common with decisions to adopt another country’s currency during peacetime? Both are inspired by the power of a stable monetary standard and, conversely, the consequences of losing it. Both illustrate why preserving the value of the nation’s currency is a central bank’s most important responsibility.Money