Mar 28 Economic Forecasters: Crow or Eat Crow By Elizabeth Shell Name: Dr. Gene Audette Question: Every year it's prognostications, prognostications. But seldom do "columns" like yours do a retrospective to compare what was predicted to what actually occurred, and to get the same prognosticator to have to defend his/her predictions… Continue reading
Oct 06 Watch Commercial Real Estate May Be Next Victim of Recession Just two years ago an office space in midtown Manhattan could fetch close to $1.7 billion. Today, the same property trades for about $600 million. A sign the commercial real estate market will be the next shoe to drop in… Continue watching
Sep 23 Joe Stiglitz on How the G-20 Should Tackle Global Financial Reform By Business Desk Editor’s note: Paul recently sat down with economist and Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz to talk about the financial reform agenda at the G-20 meetings that begin tomorrow in Pittsburgh. Beyond offering thoughts on just what the G-20 countries can… Continue reading
Mar 06 Do We Need a Kinder, Gentler Bubble? Question: Is the answer to the crisis a kinder, gentler bubble? Paul Solman: I’m posing this question to myself, but let me pass the buck from the outset on this one – to the eerily astute Adam Smith — whose… Continue reading
Mar 04 New Details Emerge on Mortgage Relief Plan By Admin, PBS News Hour The Obama administration on Wednesday announced new details on its $75 billion mortgage relief plan to help those in danger of losing their homes to foreclosure. Continue reading
Nov 05 Do you think Alan Greenspan really thought that the “bubble” would never burst? By Business Desk Question/Comment: It is my belief that Alan Greenspan is a strong follower of Ayn Rand’s philosophy of a free and unfettered economy. Do you think Greenspan really thought that the “bubble” would never burst? Paul Solman: Greenspan IS (or at… Continue reading
Nov 03 Watch Across the World, Woes of Collapsed Bank Spread to Borrowers A European bank that lent millions to borrowers around the world, including a Wisconsin school district, needs a massive bailout, which has triggered financial woes among its clients. Charles Duhigg of the New York Times and Adam Davidson of NPR… Continue watching
Oct 09 How could a U.S. domestic problem become a global liquidity crisis? Question/Comment: How could a U.S. domestic problem (the housing bubble) become a global liquidity crisis between banks putting all banks and consequently the economies worldwide in trouble? What needs to be done to prevent a global economic meltdown? Paul Solman:… Continue reading
Jul 31 Why do some people refer to the current price of oil as a “bubble”? Question/Comment: Why do some people refer to the current price of oil as a "bubble" Paul Solman: Because the nature of bubbles is that they inflate, but inevitably pop. Those who refer to the "oil bubble" expect the price to… Continue reading