JANUARY 2008
1/31/08 Brazil Adds Compulsory Deposit Rule for Some Accounts, Bloomberg. Brazil's central bank raised deposit reserve requirements to tighten credit, removing about $23 billion from credit markets. Inflation is near the central bank's 4.5 percent target. The requirement goes after the fastest-growing lending sectors. Banks that receive cash deposits from lease underwriters will have to use a portion of the funds to buy government bonds. Those deposits were previously exempt from compulsory deposit rules. The requirement will begin at 5 percent of deposits in May and climb to 25 percent by January 2009. The outlook for inflation in Latin America's biggest economy has worsened recently. The bank targets an annual inflation rate of 4.5 percent, plus or minus 2 percentage points to accommodate price shocks. Consumer prices (the IPCA-15 index) rose 4.55 percent in the 12 months through mid-January. The central bank said the increase in reserve requirements gives equal treatment for leasing companies' interbank deposits and term deposits, which have a 23 percent reserve requirement. Comment: The Central Bank of Brazil is using a tool – varying reserve requirements - that has been in disuse in the United States. This tool may provide an avenue for something not discussed much yet – how do Senators Clinton and Obama propose to reform the regulation of the financial sector to prevent a recurrence of the subprime meltdown in some new sector (say, commercial real estate or alternative energy)?
1/31/08 Employment Cost Inflation 3.3 Percent, BLS. Employment costs rose 3.3 percent in December year-over-year for the second year in a row. Comment: For an employer, this is a major component of costs. Another sign that it will be hard to keep consumer price inflation below 3 percent.
1/30/08 Nader Warns Bloomberg Not to Run for President, HuffPost. Ralph Nader's advice for Michael Bloomberg: Don't screw up this election - that's my job. As allegedly told to humorist Andy Borowitz.
1/30/08 Fed Cuts Rate by Half-Point, NY Times Online, 4:15 pm. Fed statement: “Financial markets remain under considerable stress, and credit has tightened further for some businesses and households." The statement referred to data showing the housing market continuing to worsen and the job market “softening.” Comment: At the end of the day, all three major stock market indicators were down - i.e., the FOMC's reduction in the target fed funds rate was fully anticipated. The dollar weakened because lower interest rates in the United States make investments here marginally less attractive than investments in other countries that are paying a higher interest rate
1/30/08 Government Ethics Issues Persist, Washington Post, A13. A new survey concludes only 30 percent of federal workers and 14 percent of state and local government workers believe their agencies have good ethics and compliance programs. One-fifth or more of federal employees surveyed reported seeing each of the following: abusive behavior, safety violations, lying to employees and putting personal interests ahead of the agency’s. Of those who witnessed misconduct, 58 percent did not report it because they did not believe managers would take action, and 30 percent feared they would face retaliation. Only one percent used anonymous hotlines. Comment – The good news: The new survey compares well with one in 2000 in that reports of stealing, bribery, sexual harassment and discrimination have declined. Also, ethics programs seem to work - in government agencies with well-implemented ethics programs and a culture of compliance, reported lapses fell 60 percent and the reporting to management of such lapses increased 40 percent.
1/23/08 The Nine Leading Candidates on What to Do about the U.S. Economy, NY Times. Clinton, Edwards, Obama and the six Republican candidates. A succinct survey as a starting point for comparing their policy initiatives.
1/22/08 Hillary Clinton's Economic Program, NY Times. Following the practice of the new Democratic Administration in 1993, candidate Hillary Clinton is proposing to raise income taxes for the two highest income-tax brackets to generate about $50 billion in new revenue. She intends if elected to look for ways to reduce or limit corporate executive compensation.
1/21/08 Signs in Kenya that Killings Were Planned, NY Times. Ethnic violence was on the agenda depending on the outcome of the election.
1/14/08 Clinton, Obama Step Back from Race Flap, AP. Obama: "We share the same goals. We're all Democrats, we all believe in civil rights, we all believe in equal rights." Clinton responded that it is time to seek common ground, "and in that spirit, let's come together, because I want more than anything else to ensure that our family stays together on the front lines of the struggle to expand rights for all Americans."
1/13/08 Daley Confronting $10 Billion Pension Underfunding,Chicago Tribune. If the four pension funds don't build up their revenues and assets, Chicago taxpayers will have to pay in to meet liabilities to former city employees.
1/11/08 Agencies Withdraw Funds from Orange County Treasurer, LA Times. Loss of confidence by four public agencies.
1/10/08 Kenya Loses Tourism, CNN video. Empty deck chairs by Kenya's seaside.
1/08/08 Specter of Economic Collapse in East Africa and Kenya Tourism Industry Braces for Cancellations, The East African. Tourists and business travelers cancel their trips to Kenya. The loss has been put at $1 billion and counting.
1/7/08 RGE Monitor reports on the American Economic Association meetings in New Orleans.
1/4/08 December Unemployment Rises to 5 Percent, BLS. The unemployment rate rose to 5.0 percent in December, while the nation added few (18,000) jobs. “Job growth in several service-providing industries, including professional and technical services, health care, and food services, was largely offset by job losses in construction and manufacturing.”
1/4/08, Obama's Plea for Unity Should Be Heard in Kenya, Huffington Post. Barack Obama's plea for national unity should be heard in Kenya, where long-simmering feuds are boiling over. The incumbent president installed himself imemdiately despite widespread reports of election irregularities.
| 1/13/08 (HuffPost): A New Civil Rights Wave Ahead? Too much is being made of the special appeal of a white female candidate and a (half-)black male candidate. Electing either candidate would advance the cause of human rights. America has had universal adult suffrage for 88 years, the luckiest number in most of the world, but for 45 of them More: 1/13/08, Huffington Post, John Tepper Marlin, New Civil Rights Wave? Links to this blog have come from topix, buzztracker, electionbid,keegy, bloglog, blog junkies, Sonoma County Calif. Democracy for America.
1/9/08 (HuffPost): Seneca Falls and the Democratic Party. In July 2004, a commentator on the Presidential election noted that it was 156 years since the Seneca Falls convention for women's rights. Even though Barack Obama was giving the keynote speech that month at the Democratic Convention, the commentator said it would be "ridiculous" to associate the 1848 convention with the Democratic Party. Now it's the 160th anniversary year of Seneca Falls and we have two good reasons for associating that historic event with the Democratic Party - Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. More: 1/9/08, John Tepper Marlin, Huffington Post, Clinton, Obama and Seneca Falls.
1/4/08 (HuffPost): National Unity, Yes. In his victory speech after the Iowa Democratic Caucus yesterday, Sen. Barack Obama seeks to unify the United States. His words should be relayed and listened to in Kenya, where widespread unrest and loss of life is occurring following actions of the incumbent president, Mwai Kibaki, a Kikuyu tribesman. Kibaki rushed to declare his reelection over Luo challenger Raila Odinga, despite signs of election irregularities. More: 1/4/08, John Tepper Marlin, Huffington Post, Obama's Plea for Unity Should Be Heard in Kenya. 1/3/08, Blogspot, John Tepper Marlin, The Irony of Barack Obama's Win in Iowa While Kenya Is in Flames. |