Category «Economy»

Millions of Americans experience poverty outside safety nets

Selling plasma to survive: how over a million American families live on $2 per day by Dylan Matthews on September 2, 2015 – “In early 2011, 1.5 million American households, including 3 million children, were living on less than $2 in cash per person per day. Half of those households didn’t have access to in-kind …

Subjects: Economy, Education, Government Documents, Health Care, Housing, Poverty

Remarks by the President at the GLACIER Conference Anchorage, AK

President Obama, Dena’ina Civic and Convention Center Anchorage, Alaska – September 1, 2015: “…Our understanding of climate change advances each day. Human activity is disrupting the climate, in many ways faster than we previously thought. The science is stark.  It is sharpening. It proves that this once-distant threat is now very much in the present.   …

Subjects: Climate Change, Economy, Energy, Environmental Law, Government Documents

WSJ – Startups Put Data in Farmers’ Hands

Big data moves into the collective sphere of farmers who use it now directly to plan and manage all phases of crop production – WSJ.com: “Farmers and entrepreneurs are starting to compete with agribusiness giants over the newest commodity being harvested on U.S. farms—one measured in bytes, not bushels. Startups including Farmobile LLC, Granular Inc. …

Subjects: Economy, Environmental Law, Knowledge Management

Household Debt and Business Cycles Worldwide

Mian, Atif R. and Sufi, Amir and Verner, Emil, Household Debt and Business Cycles Worldwide (September 3, 2015). Available for download at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2655804 “A rise in the household debt to GDP ratio predicts lower output growth and higher unemployment over the medium-run, contrary to standard macroeconomic models. GDP forecasts by the IMF and OECD …

Subjects: Economy, Financial System, Housing, Knowledge Management

GAO Reports – 401(K) Plans, TARP, Capital Power Plant, Military Personnel Ethics

401(K) Plans: Clearer Regulations Could Help Plan Sponsors Choose Investments for Participants, GAO-15-578: Published: Aug 25, 2015. Publicly Released: Sep 4, 2015: “Employers who sponsor 401(k) plans report using a range of default investment types to automatically enroll employees in their plans based on each type’s design and other attributes. From 2009 through 2013, the …

Subjects: Defense, Economy, Energy, Financial System, Government Documents, Knowledge Management

Foundations of Financial Well-Being

Foundations of Financial Well-Being: Insights into the Role of Executive Function, Financial Socialization, and Experience-Based Learning in Childhood and Youth. Journal of Consumer Affairs – Article first published online: 11 MAR 2015. DOI: 10.1111/joca.12068 “During childhood and youth we build the foundations for financial well-being later in life, acquiring the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and personality traits …

Subjects: Economy, Education, Financial System, Government Documents, Knowledge Management

Employment Situation August 2015

BLS News Release: “Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 173,000 in August, and the unemployment rate edged down to 5.1 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics  reported today. Job gains occurred in health care and social assistance and in financial activities. Manufacturing and mining lost jobs. Household Survey Data – In August, the unemployment …

Subjects: Economy, Financial System, Government Documents

July 2015 Trade Gap is $41.9 Billion

BEA report: “The U.S. monthly international trade deficit decreased in July 2015 according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. The deficit decreased from $45.2 billion in June (revised) to $41.9 billion in July, as exports increased and imports decreased. The previously published June deficit was $43.8 billion. The goods …

Subjects: Economy, Financial System, Government Documents

News Content, Investor Misreaction, and Stock Return Predictability

Hadzic, Muris and Weinbaum, David and Yehuda, Nir, News Content, Investor Misreaction, and Stock Return Predictability (September 2015). Available for download at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2653920 “Using a large dataset of news releases, we study instances of investors’ mistaken reaction, or misreaction, to news. We define misreaction as stock prices moving in the direction opposite to the …

Subjects: Economy, Financial System, Knowledge Management

2015 on its way to record number of acres consumed by fire in US

National Inter Agency Fire Center, September 2, 2015: “The majority of the large fire activity continues throughout Idaho, Montana and Washington. Nationally, 56 large fires burned 1,961,095 acres. No new large fires were reported and one fire was contained in Texas….Year to date statistics for 2015 – Fires: 43,819 – and acres consumed 8,202,557. Washington …

Subjects: Economy, Environmental Law, Government Documents