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4 weeks ago | 
brookings.edu | Alexander N. Conner |David Wessel
After the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the U.S. and its allies responded with an economic toolkit designed to strengthen Ukraine and diminish Russia’s war-making capacity. Among the most potent of these tools was to freeze Russia’s foreign exchange reserves and use them as the basis for a large-scale loan to Ukraine. As the Trump administration pursues negotiations without America’s allies, the future of this economic toolkit is highly uncertain.
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Jan 17, 2025 | 
brookings.edu | Alexander N. Conner
The American Economic Association (AEA) celebrated former Federal Reserve Chair and Brookings Distinguished Senior Fellow Ben Bernanke’s contributions to economics at a session at the AEA annual meeting in January.
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Apr 30, 2024 | 
brookings.edu | Alexander N. Conner
Emerging market economies, like advanced economies, suffered a strong increase in inflation at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, but their policymakers raised interest rates much sooner. In contrast to earlier episodes, emerging markets have proven impressively resilient. On April 22, 2024, the Hutchins Center hosted a conference about lessons learned from the COVID inflation in emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs).
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Apr 19, 2024 | 
brookings.edu | Gian Maria Milesi-Ferretti |Alexander N. Conner
The Russian economy has been under trade and financial sanctions since its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. These were designed to limit its export revenues (such as a price cap on its oil sales and reduced purchases of gas) and curtail its access to global capital markets (such as the freezing of its foreign exchange reserves held, mainly, in Europe).
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Mar 18, 2024 | 
brookings.edu | Sam Boocker |Alexander N. Conner |David Wessel
After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Russia’s foreign exchange reserves held by the U.S. and its allies were frozen. Since then, some officials and commentators have proposed seizing those assets, which amount to nearly $300 billion, and using the proceeds to defend and rebuild Ukraine. Russian reserves could provide Ukrainians much-needed support as the war drags into its third year.
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Nov 22, 2023 | 
brookings.edu | Louise Sheiner |Alexander N. Conner
The federal budget deficit—the difference between government spending and revenues—increased from 5.4% of GDP in FY 2022 to 6.3% of GDP in FY 2023. Adjusting for the effects of President Biden’s student loan forgiveness program, which boosted the deficit in FY 2022 when it was announced and decreased it in FY 2023 when it was ruled unconstitutional, the increase was significantly larger—from 3.9% of GDP last fiscal year to 7.5% in 2023. Why did the deficit increase so much?
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Jun 22, 2023 | 
nxtmine.com | Elijah Asdourian |Alexander N. Conner |Moraa Ogendi |Louise Sheiner
By Elijah Asdourian, Alexander Conner, Moraa Ogendi, Louise SheinerWhat’s the latest thinking in fiscal and monetary policy? The Hutchins Roundup keeps you informed of the latest research, charts, and speeches. Want to receive the Hutchins Roundup as an email? Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Thursday. Taxpayers in the 90th to 99th percentile of the income distribution are responsible for the majority of the $500 billion in taxes that go unpaid every year.
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Jun 22, 2023 | 
brookings.edu | Elijah Asdourian |Alexander N. Conner |Moraa Ogendi |Louise Sheiner
What's the latest thinking in fiscal and monetary policy? The Hutchins Roundup keeps you informed of the latest research, charts, and speeches. Want to receive the Hutchins Roundup as an email? Sig...
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Jun 8, 2023 | 
brookings.edu | Elijah Asdourian |Alexander N. Conner |Moraa Ogendi |Louise Sheiner
What’s the latest thinking in fiscal and monetary policy? The Hutchins Roundup keeps you informed of the latest research, charts, and speeches. Want to receive the Hutchins Roundup as an email? Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Thursday.
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May 4, 2023 | 
invesbrain.com | Mark Skousen |Veronika Bondarenko |Elijah Asdourian |Alexander N. Conner
"Whenever the law has attempted to regulate the wages of workmen, it has always been rather to lower them than to raise them." - Adam Smith, "The Wealth of Nations" (1776)Last week in my economics class at Chapman University, I ended my lecture with this promise: "If you want to become wealthy, let me give you one piece of advice you will never forget."I will give the answer at the end of this edition of Skousen CAFÉ. The American dream is full of contradictions - to live long, and to die young.
