The Class Divide in Marriage
The American Enterprise Institute recently published a new report by Brad Wilcox and Wendy Wang that highlights the class divide in American marriage. As the authors explain, prior to the 1970s family life looked similar across socioeconomic levels, but today there are stark divides across class whe...
Weekly Economic Update November 6 – November 10, 2017
The chart shows how the amount of capital—tools, equipment, and structures—available per hour worked, or “capital deepening,” in the United States has risen over time until 2009. Had private capital investment returned to trend after the 2008-09 recession, workers would have had over 13% more capita...
October 2017 Jobs Review
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports 261,000 nonfarm payroll jobs were added in October, of which 252,000 were in the private sector. The largest private-sector job gains were in leisure and hospitality (+106,000), professional and business services (+50,000), education and health services (...
End of Days to Follow End of Cost Sharing Reduction Subsidies?
The Trump Administration announced that it would cease making Cost Sharing Reduction (CSR) subsidy payments to health insurers because it lacked the legal authority to continue them.
Jerome Powell: A Brief Introduction
On November 2, 2017, President Trump nominated Jerome “Jay” Powell, a current Federal Reserve Governor, to succeed Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, whose term as chair ends in February 2018. The new four-year appointment, which requires Senate confirmation, ends in 2022.
November FOMC Review
The Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) unanimously decided to hold the federal funds rate target at 1.00-1.25%. The Fed sets monetary policy to satisfy its dual mandate to maximize employment and maintain price stability.
The Numbers Behind the Opioid Crisis
In 2016, roughly 64,000 people died from drug overdoses, and opioids accounted for nearly two-thirds of those deaths. It is difficult to comprehend the full scope and magnitude of the opioids crisis, its causes, and its consequences—for families, communities, and workplaces. But better underst...
Weekly Economic Update: October 30 – November 3, 2017
As international corporate tax rates have fallen (blue line) U.S. businesses have been reinvesting an increasing proportion of their income abroad (red line).
GDP Review (Third Quarter 2017)
Real GDP grew at an annualized rate of 3.0% in the third quarter of 2017. Hurricanes Harvey and Irma were anticipated to significantly lower GDP growth, but did not. Real GDP growth easily beat the Blue Chip Consensus’ expectation of 2.4%.
Weekly Economic Update: October 23 – October 27, 2017
This Chart of the Week indicates that many countries have eased product market regulations, but not the United States.
