Jun 23 What's the Relationship Between Inflation and Interest Rates? Question: I am confused about the cause/effect relationship between inflation and interest rates. Many economic talking heads claim that interest rates will rise if present monetary policy produces inflation. But the principle of supply and demand suggests that if… Continue reading
Jun 19 Making Sen$e 2.0 Attention all teachers, viewers, readers, skimmers, and occasional passersby: The second edition of our Economics-for-Everyone Web site, Making Sen$e, is now up and running. Please visit and please, please respond with suggestions as to what you’d like to… Continue reading
Jun 19 Billionaire Stanford, Bank Officials Indicted in Massive Fraud Case By PBS News Hour Texas billionaire R. Allen Stanford and several associates have been indicted on fraud and obstruction charges in what U.S. Justice Department officials say was a $7 billion pyramid scheme to defraud more than 5,000 investors over more than a decade. Continue reading
Jun 19 Instead of Capping Pay, Could the Government Police Banks' Risk Models? Question: Instead of the government trying to prevent risky behavior by limiting bonuses and other compensation for the best performers in the finance industry, would it be possible for the government to review risk models that banks use? Paul Solman:… Continue reading
Jun 18 Watch Geithner Defends Plan for Regulatory Overhaul In an interview with Jim Lehrer, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner details the administration's case for a sweeping overhaul of the financial regulation system and discusses the government's role in shaping an economic recovery. Continue watching
Jun 18 Watch Other News: Senate Passes $106 Billion War Funding Bill In other news, the U.S. Senate approved a $106 war funding bill, and a Pakistani intelligence official said a U.S. drone attack killed 13 people at a Taliban encampment. Continue watching
Jun 18 How Will the Regulatory Reforms Affect Consumers? Paul Solman: We asked a number of people in the personal finance business and others close to the credit crisis to weigh in on the Obama administration’s new consumer protection proposal. I’m struck by Doug Elliott’s admonitions, especially his last… Continue reading
Jun 17 Watch Jobless Find a Creative Voice in Southern California In Southern California, a photographer has been documenting the stories of the jobless -- the irony being that he himself was laid off at the end of 2008. Spencer Michels reports on the stories behind the unemployed. Continue watching
Jun 17 Watch Obama's Regulatory Reform Plan Stirs Mixed Reaction Gwen Ifill speaks with a banking expert and an economist about what the administration's plans for reforming financial oversight mean for businesses and consumers alike. Continue watching
Jun 17 Watch Other News: Chrysler to Reopen 7 Plants In other news, Chrysler said it will reopen seven auto plants, and the National Security Administration's domestic surveillance program may have been broader than first realized, according to The New York Times. Continue watching