Economics News with a Historical Perspective
January 28, 2012
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
U.S. Budget Deficit
Discussion of the latest CBO budget projections can be found at the Economics Roundtable.
In the News
Payroll Employment
The gain of 200,000 jobs is moderately encouraging.
Recent History
Long-Term Chart
U.S. Budget Deficit
Bar Graph
CBO Budget Projections
Historical Data
Inflation &
Unemployment
The Phillips Curve
John Cochrane uses very similar Phillips Curve charts to review recent history and current issues.
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
The wild ride continues.
Economics Roundtable
The
latest news and views.
Features
Alan Greenspan
August 11, 1987. President Reagan appointed Alan Greenspan to his first term as Chairman of the Federal Reserve. His fourth term as Chairman runs until June 20, 2004, and the rumor is circulating that he would accept a fifth nomination. (PS: Ben Bernanke was sworn in as Chairman on 2/1/2006.)
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.
Models
The IS/LM Model
The IS/LM Model changes the focus from factors of production (i.e. the Classical Model) to demand for output. The equilibrating factor becomes the interest rate instead of the real wage rate. Most importantly, the model demonstrates that the economy can be in a stable equilibrium at less than full employment.
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.