A roundup of economic news from around the Web.
- Geithner: Joshua Green of the Atlantic has an interesting profile of Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner. “The antithetical reactions to Geithner — agent of socialism or lapdog of Wall Street — stem partly from how little is known about him. He lacks the fully realized public persona most government officials develop by the time theyre chosen for important Cabinet positions. He doesnt look like a Treasury secretary. He lacks presence. Hes trim and small, practically elfin, and, at 48, young for the job (he looks even younger). He doesnt fit the Treasury secretarys typical profile, either, since he is neither a businessman nor an economist nor a party eminence serving out a comfortable valedictory. Geithner is something else entirelya superstar of the bureaucracy, whose rapid rise during the 1990s came in the Treasury Department he now runs. At heart, hes an institutionalist.”
- Financial Conditions: On Econbrowser, James Hamilton looks at a new index we talked about recently. “Of particular interest at the moment is the fact that the HHMSW index, unlike most other indicators, shows a renewed deterioration subsequent to the initial recovery in the first part of 2009, a somewhat surprising result given the current steeply-sloping yield curve, low TED spread, and booming stock market. The surprising contrary inference from the HHMSW index appears to be due to two factors. First, the HHMSW index is based on the deviation of the financial indicators from what one would have predicted given recent economic conditions. Many indicators have not improved as much as one would have expected given the return to GDP growth, and the departure from a typical recovery pattern is viewed by the index as a highly pessimistic development. Second, the HHMSW index makes use not just of the yields themselves but also of the quantities of various assets, and many of these show little improvement so far. For example, issuance of new asset-backed securities remains quite low. Will real GDP follow the HHMSW index back down? That’s not what I’m expecting. But if it does, it wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been wrong.”
- Best Countries for Women: Writing for Economix, Nancy Folbre looks at the best nations for women. “As Ive explained in more detail in a journal article, its easier to measure rights and achievements than obligations and commitments. Consider for instance, differences in financial responsibility for the care of dependents which are quite substantial in many countries like the United States, where single mothers are raising a large proportion of all children. As women gain more economic independence, they may lose some financial support from the fathers of their children. Nor do any existing indexes measure differences between women in men in the amount of time devoted to unpaid household work or family care, or resulting differences in leisure time. As national statistical agencies begin publishing data on these dimensions of living standards, researchers can move toward the development of expanded indexes. If we want to make progress, we need to measure it as accurately as possible.”
Compiled by Phil Izzo