Recent Articles
A Primer on Exchange Traded Funds: Costs and Benefits
Ernesto Garcia
April 30, 2018
Exchange traded funds allow investors to cheaply and easily hold diversified portfolios while trading like individual stocks. While ETFs improve access and liquidity, their structure can also transmit shocks across markets and amplify volatility.
April 24: New York State Department of Labor Reported That Employment Statewide Was Flat in March
The New York State Department of Labor reported a gain of only 500 jobs statewide in March, following a gain of almost 30,000 in February. Employment in the state is up 1.1% over a year-ago compared to 1.5% for the nation. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that New York
U.S. Tax Reform: Where Are We Now?
Rubaiyat Tasnim and the ESG
April 12, 2018
Experts debated the 2017 U.S. tax reform, questioning its timing, fiscal sustainability, and distributional effects. While supporters argue it may boost investment and wages, critics warn it will widen deficits and inequality while threatening future funding for social programs.
March 28: U.S. GDP Rose 2.9 Percent in Q4
Real gross domestic product increased at an annual rate of 2.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017, according to the “third” estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Read more
New York City Job Growth: Healthy, but Divergent Across Sectors
James Orr
March 27, 2018
Job growth in New York City remained solid in 2017 but slowed from the rapid pace of earlier years. While major service sectors continued to add jobs, weaker performance in retail and manufacturing highlights a gradual cooling in the city’s labor market.
March 21: Federal Reserve to Raise Fed Funds Target Range to 1.50 to 1.75 Percent
In view of realized and expected labor market conditions and inflation, the Federal Reserve FMOC decided to raise the target range for the federal funds rate to 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 percent. The stance of monetary policy remains accommodative, thereby supporting strong labor market conditions and a sustained return to 2 percent inflation.
March 09: Total Non-Farm Payroll Employment Increased by 313,000 in February
Total non-farm payroll employment increased by 313,000 in February, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.1 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment rose in construction, retail trade, professional and business services, manufacturing, financial activities, and mining.
The Welfare State in the Age of Globalization
Branko Milanovic
March 05, 2018
It has become a truism to say that the welfare state is under stress from the effects of globalization and migration and thus may not be able to provide the same level of income support that it had provided in the past. In my previous post that looked at policies to reduce inequality in the 21st century, I mentioned that I would follow up with a discussion of the welfare state. In this post I want to go back to the origins of the welfare state to understand the origin of the current stress.