Why do people take out an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) when buying or refinancing a house? Many economists would probably argue that it should depend primarily on one’s expectations for future interest rates: if you think interest rates are very low and are likely to rise, you should lock them in with a fixed rate, […]
Kash discussed the recent good news on compensation last Thursday and the lackluster increase in payroll employment on Friday. Kevin Drum noted how one story thought higher compensation wasn’t good news, and CNN notes one economist found weak employment growth “non-threatening” for investors and policy makers. This economist was likely thinking about monetary policy , […]
When are the folks at the National Review ever going to understand what this footnote in the BLS Household Survey report on employment means: Data affected by changes in population controls in January 2000, January 2003, January 2004, and January 2005. I ask because of who received the first “Jayson Award” from Donald Luskin. David […]
In a comment to Kash’s post, Mark Thoma provided a link to this op-ed by Senators Charles Schumer and Lindsey Graham: DISMAYED by China’s failure to play fair on free trade, we have offered legislation to impose a tariff on Chinese exports to the United States if Beijing continues to keep the value of its […]
I think there’s some validity to these concerns voiced by the head of Toyota: OSAKA, Japan (Reuters) – The outspoken chairman of Toyota Motor Corp. said on Wednesday he feared the possibility that U.S. policy could turn against Japanese auto makers if local giants such as GM and Ford were to collapse. “Many people say […]
Frum argues that Africa does not need financial assistance but might benefit from free trade within the Western Hemisphere: African aid relief is the same. Jeffrey Sachs may imagine that he knows how much it will cost to pull Africa from poverty, but almost nobody outside the UN apparatus and the world of pop culture […]
Via bgreer comes this Washington Post story: For the past three years, the Air Force has described its $30 billion proposal to convert passenger planes into military refueling tankers and lease them from Boeing Co. as an efficient way to obtain aircraft the military urgently needs. But a very different account of the deal is […]
Greenspan made some remarks about the Interest Rate Mystery during a conference yesterday in Beijing. Slightly disconcertingly, none of the prevailing theories as to why long-term rates are so low right now are convincing to him… so he’s left admitting that he doesn’t really have an explanation for it. The pronounced decline in U.S. Treasury […]
This question is not as easy to answer as it may first appear. In working on various posts last week I came across an apparent contradiction in the official data on compensation: some series show it rising in real terms, while others show it barely able to keep up with inflation. This discrepancy was also […]
Yale Economics Professor Dr. Shiller expressed concern on Friday that the bubble is spreading: “… the enthusiasm is infectious and it is starting to spread all over the place.” How widespread is the housing bubble? Looking at the OFHEO House Price Index data released last week: Click on graph for larger image. NOTE: The OFHEO […]