Jun 26 Did U.S. Tax Policy Contribute to the Housing Bubble? Question: How much does (did) federal tax policy contribute to the housing bubble? If it was a contributing factor, how should that policy be reformed? Paul Solman: Not much, I wouldn’t think. Tax deductibility of mortgage interest has been… Continue reading
Jun 25 Watch Bernanke Faces New Questions Over Role of the Fed Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke faced fresh questions from a House committee Thursday over the central bank's role facilitating Bank of America's purchase of Merrill Lynch. Experts discuss the acquisition, as well as the expanding power of the Federal Reserve,… Continue watching
Jun 25 Watch Other News: Wall Street Rises Off Housing, Retail In other news, markets rose on Wall Street after positive news from the homebuilding and retail sectors, and billionaire banker Allen Stanford pleaded not guilty to to bilking investors out of their investments. Continue watching
Jun 25 How Regulatory Reforms Will Affect Consumers (Cont.) By Business Desk Paul Solman: Last week, we featured a number of economists (and a journalist) responding to the new financial regulations proposed by the Obama administration. But no economic historians were among them. We’ve remedied that omission by asking Eugene… Continue reading
Jun 25 Fed Chief Denies Wrongdoing in BofA Deal By PBS News Hour Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke testified before a House committee Thursday, facing questions on the Fed's role in pushing Bank of America to acquire the struggling Merrill Lynch during the height of the Wall Street meltdown. Continue reading
Jun 25 Will the Actions of the Fed and Treasury Keep Asset Prices Artificially High? Question: It seems to me like the Fed and the Treasury are trying very hard to keep asset prices high. The Fed has vastly increased the money supply, partly by lowering interest rates to zero, and partially through quantitative easing. Continue reading
Jun 24 Fed Keeps Key Rate at Record Low By PBS News Hour The Federal Reserve said Wednesday that the recession is easing, but that the U.S. economy likely will remain fragile and limit the threat of inflation. Continue reading
Jun 24 In Case You Missed It: The Shape of the Recovery On last night’s NewsHour, Paul examined the debate raging over which shape the economic recovery might take. Some economists are predicting a V-shaped recovery — a steep period of decline followed by an equally steep period of growth. Others are… Continue reading
Jun 24 Kodak Retires Iconic Kodachrome Film Eastman Kodak Co. announced this week that it was retiring its iconic Kodachrome film because of declining demand. Introduced in 1935, Kodachrome became the world's first commercially successful color film. Continue reading
Jun 23 Watch Deciphering the Shape of Economic Recovery When economists discuss economic recovery, it's often in terms of the alphabet. In the latest installment of his Making Sen$e series, Paul Solman explains what phrases such as "V-shaped recovery" or "U-shaped recession" say about the economic outlook. Continue watching