The Relative Price of Oil
Monetary Policy Matters
The Price of Oil and the Value of the Dollar
In much the same way that one can use the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to measure changes in the cost of living, one can index the price of oil, an international commodity that trades in dollars, to the value of the dollar to assess the impact of the dollar’s declining value on the price of oil. ...
Weekly Economic Update: May 9-13, 2011
Overview: The U.S. trade deficit widened 6.2% in March to $48.2 billion. Retail sales increased 0.5% in April. The topline PPI rose 0.8% in April as the core PPI increased 0.3%. The topline CPI was up 0.4% in April as the core CPI rose 0.2%. Business inventories increased 1.0% in March. Initial...
Payroll Employment: Non-Farm +244,000; Private Sector +268,000 Unemployment Rate: 9.0%
April Employment and Unemployment: The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released a report today on employment and unemployment for April (pdf summary available here.)
Weekly Economic Update: May 2-6, 2011
Overview: The economy added 244,000 jobs in April as the unemployment rate rose to 9.0%. The ISM index rose 0.7 points to 60.4 in April as the ISM services index fell 4.5 points to 52.8. Constructing spending increased 1.4% in March. Productivity increased at an annual rate of 1.6% in the 1st qu...
Atlas Shrugs: The Diminishing Returns from Taxing the Rich
President Obama claims there are many reasons to raise taxes on the rich – “It’s only fair…. They can afford it…. They get the most, so they should give the most.”1 But, ultimately, President Obama’s case for taxing the rich rests on the axiom attributed to the notorious bank robber Willie Sutton. J...
Too Loose for Too Long: Has Price Inflation Already Set In
This commentary examines the implications of the Federal Reserve maintaining a record low federal funds target rate of 0.00% to 0.25% for a record 29 month period. It also reviews the implications of the expansion of the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet over the past three years.
Japan after the Earthquake and the Tsunami
On March 11, following an undersea earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale, a massive tsunami devastated portions of the island nation of Japan. Over 27,000 people are dead or missing. This commentary reviews several aspects of the disaster, including the impact on the Japanese economy.
Weekly Economic Update: April 25-29, 2011
Overview: GDP grew at an annual pace of 1.8% in the 1st quarter of 2011. The Fed held constant its target 0.0%-0.25% rate for the federal funds rate. New home sales rose 11.1% in March as pending home sales increased 5.1%. The Case-Schiller home price index edged down 0.2% in February. Personal...
