What we’re reading (1/28)
“Plummeting Inflation Raises New Risk For Fed: Rising Real Interest Rates” (Wall Street Journal). “Federal Reserve officials start the year with a problem they would ordinarily love to have: Inflation has fallen much faster than expected. It does, nonetheless, pose a conundrum. The reason: If inflation has sustainably returned to the Fed’s 2% target, then real rates—nominal rates adjusted for inflation—have risen and might be restricting economic activity too much. This means the Fed needs to cut interest rates. The question is, when and by how much?”
“Why Strip Malls Are Having A Revival” (WBBM Newsradio). “As shopping malls across America struggle to attract customers, fill floor space and ultimately stay open, strip malls are apparently seeing a surge in value and popularity. And it's basically thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“Falling Inflation, Rising Growth Give U.S. The World’s Best Recovery” (Washington Post). “The European economy, hobbled by unfamiliar weakness in Germany, is barely growing. China is struggling to recapture its sizzle. And Japan continues to disappoint. But in the United States, it’s a different story. Here, despite lingering consumer angst over inflation, the surprisingly strong economy is outperforming all of its major trading partners.”
“‘We’re All Climate Economists Now’” (New York Times). “Nearly every block of time at the Allied Social Science Associations conference — a gathering of dozens of economics-adjacent academic organizations recognized by the American Economic Association — had multiple climate-related presentations to choose from, and most appeared similarly popular. For those who have long focused on environmental issues, the proliferation of climate-related papers was a welcome development. ‘It’s so nice to not be the crazy people in the room with the last session,’ said Avis Devine, an associate professor of real estate finance and sustainability at York University in Toronto, emerging after a lively discussion.”
“What Prevents & What Drives Gendered Ideological Polarisation?” (The Great Gender Divergence). “Across much of the world, men and women think alike. However, in countries that are economically developed and culturally liberal, young men and women are polarising. As chronicled by John Burn-Murdoch, young women are increasingly likely to identify as ‘progressives’ and vote for leftists, while young men remain more conservative. What explains this global heterogeneity?”
