Aug 20 Simon Johnson on Economic Green Shoots By Business Desk Editor’s Note: For the next week, we’ll be featuring video conversations here on the Business Desk with one of our favorite economists, Simon Johnson, former chief economist at the IMF, now at the… Continue reading
Aug 20 Is GDP a Good Metric for Gauging Economic Health? Question: Do you consider GDP a realistic metric for gauging economic health and prosperity? I have some skepticism because two of the three main factors are consumer and government spending, and both can be… Continue reading
Aug 19 Is the Stimulus Working? Question: Is the stimulus working? Paul Solman: Hard to argue otherwise, if what you mean is: Would things be worse right now if there were no stimulus? In the long run, maybe the stimulus will be seen as just having… Continue reading
Aug 19 Watch IRS Deal Pierces Veil of Swiss Banking Secrecy A New York Times reporter assesses the impact of Swiss banking giant UBS agreeing to give the U.S. Internal Revenue Service names of some account holders. Continue watching
Aug 19 UBS to Surrender 4,450 Client Names to IRS UBS AG, Switzerland's largest bank, will provide the names of some 4,450 account holders to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service as part of a tax-evasion settlement reached between the two countries' governments. Continue reading
Aug 18 Why Do Medical Costs Vary So Much Across the Country? Question: Why do medical procedure costs vary so much by region of the country? Paul Solman: I think the best answer I’ve come across is a piece in the June 1 New Yorker by the ever-excellent Atul Gawande, The… Continue reading
Aug 18 Watch Record-setting Cyber Theft Stirs Questions on Security The Justice Department indicted three men on Monday for stealing more than 130 million credit and debit card numbers by hacking into the computer systems of five major companies. Cyber-securiity experts discuss the case with Ray Suarez. Continue watching
Aug 18 Watch Other News: Wholesale Prices Take Surprise Dip in July In other news, the Labor Department reported wholesale prices fell unexpectedly in July, and President Barack Obama met with Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak to discuss jumpstarting Mideast peace talks. Continue watching
Aug 17 Have the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan Hurt the Economy? Question: I often hear that WWII finally ended the Great Depression. How can it be that a relatively short war (WWII) was so helpful to the economy but… Continue reading
Aug 17 Japanese Economy Pulls Out of Recession Japan's economy climbed out of yearlong recession in the second quarter, the government said Monday, expanding 3.7 percent at an annual pace as it joined Germany, France and other regions that appear to be emerging from the global financial crisis. Continue reading