Robin Harding: Warm welcome to Yellen nomination: “Janet Yellen is a terrific choice to lead the Federal Reserve. I have admired and learnt from her ever since she taught my first macroeconomics graduate class in 1976” — Larry Summers “Janet is smart, collegial, and experienced. She is the perfect person to lead the Fed at … Continue reading »
Federal Reserve
Janet Yellen: Clearly the best candidate to head the Federal Reserve
Larry Summers’s withdrawal from consideration, turned Janet Yellen, in my view, from being a close second to clearly best candidate to Chair the Federal Reserve. I have watched her from a distance since she left the corner office next to mine at the Berkeley Economics department and moved across San Francisco Bay to become president … Continue reading »
On Federal Reserve policy: The “taper” and its shadow: Central-Bank policymakers need to better explain what they see as the risks of further Federal Reserve bond purchases
We are live at Project Syndicate. The central banks of the North Atlantic have promised that they will not raise the short-term safe nominal interest rates they control until the economies under their stewardship show substantial economic recovery. So far the economies have not done so: they continue to be battered by the destructive fiscal … Continue reading »
Yes, I am now strongly on team Janet Yellen as far as the Federal Reserve is concerned. Why do you ask?
And we are live at the *Financial Times*: Why Janet Yellen is now best choice to lead the Federal Reserve: There is, in my view, now only one candidate to be chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve. Janet Yellen, the current vice-chair, stands head, shoulders and torso above the rest of those on the shortlist. … Continue reading »
Fiscal policy issues in the United States
At the end of the 2008, the seriousness of the financial crisis and the resulting collapse in production and employment coupled with the Federal Reserve’s exhaustion of its traditional monetary policy-management took, the open-market operation, raised the possibility that the U.S. government should consider using activist expansionary fiscal policy as a stabilization-policy tool. Doubters offered … Continue reading »
The Sword of Greenspan
According to an ancient Greek parable, Dionysius, the tyrant of Syracuse, had a courtier named Damocles who complemented Dionysius on his wealth and power. Dionysius asked Damocles if he would like to experience the kingly lifestyle. Damocles accepted the offer, and was enjoying the great luxury, until he noticed, hanging above him by a single … Continue reading »
Overheating and the Fed
Governor Jeremy Stein of the St. Louis Federal Reserve gave a speech on February 7 called “Overheating in Credit Markets: Origins, Measurement, and Policy Responses.” Overheating is a term he uses to describe a credit market with low interest rates, lax lending standards, and high risk-taking by investors “reaching for yield.” The problem with overheating is that … Continue reading »
The jobs report: Don’t break out the champagne
In brief: The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ household survey shows unemployment at 8.6 percent, and the payroll survey shows 120,000 new jobs in November (140,000 from the private sector, and a loss of 20,000 in the public sector). BLS also revised upward its job numbers for September and October. What does it mean? We’re not … Continue reading »