Economics News with a Historical Perspective
March 10, 2010
The Econ Review features a historical perspective on economics news and opinions with daily updates. All original material is copyrighted. Off-site references open in new windows.
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Opinions
Housing Crash?
Is there a housing crash? Commentary from the Economics Roundtable.
In the News
Inflation &
Unemployment
The Phillips Curve
NEW FORMAT now covers
six countries plus the U.S.
Payroll Employment
Employment is down 36,000, but the size of the weather effect is unknown. Recent History Long-Term Chart.
The Chart Room
Charts for GDP and payroll employment show the historical patterns in this relationship. Custom select side-by-side charts for these variables and interest rates and yield curves.
Euro Roller Coaster
Other data pages include Unemployment Rate, Federal Budget Deficit, Real Interest Rates and Inflation, and Fed Funds Rate.
Economics Roundtable
Features
Continental-Illinois Bank "Too Big To Fail"
May 17, 1984. Continental Illinois National Bank and Trust Company is the largest bank failure in the history of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Resolving this crisis pushed to the forefront the "too big to fail" principle that argues in favor of government intervention to avert instability in financial institutions large enough that, were they to fail, the integrity of the financial markets could be in doubt.
Volker Hits Brakes; Recession Follows
1982 In a widely announced policy move, Paul Volker and the Fed slowed the rate of growth of the money supply to curtail the recent inflationary spiral. Although some mathematical proofs exist that anticipated monetary policies have no real effects, the U.S. unemployment rate increased from 7.5% in 1981 to over 9.5% in 1982.
Reagan Tax Cut
August 15, 1981. President Reagan signed into law the Economic Recovery Tax Act, also known as the Kemp-Roth bill after its two principal sponsors, U.S. Representative Jack Kemp and Senator Bill Roth. The Reagan tax cut reduced marginal rates by about 23% over three years and instituted adjustments for inflation in the bracket limits. The latter eliminates "bracket creep" where individuals find themselves in higher tax brackets as incomes increase simply due to inflation even if real incomes do not change.
Models
The Classical Model
The Classical Model of Production and Employment focuses on the supply and demand for a single factor of production, labor, assuming that capital is fixed in the short run. Equilibrium in the labor market then determines the real wage rate and the level of output. This model provides an important reference point for understanding the innovations in the Keynesian models.
Additional models of interest are available at Classic Economic Models.
Econ Clubs
Check the directory of economics clubs to see if your club is listed. Links are free.