The Fed left interest rates unchanged but said improving economic data means it will likely lift them later this year. We asked two scholars – and ex-Fed officials – if it was the right call.
Employment growth remains flat, despite hopes for improvement.
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The 2008 financial crisis exposed major gaps in central banks’ operations. New features like quantitative easing have since emerged.
When attendees at the annual Jackson Hole symposium get a chance to chat, they might muse about central banks targeting nominal GDP instead of inflation.
Reuters/Jonathan Crosby
Paying every citizen a basic living wage sounds costly and counter-intuitive to reducing unemployment. But Finland is about to do it and Australia could too.
African countries are facing a huge problem brought on by a sovereign debt crisis.
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Africa needs to navigate the difficult economic waters that lie ahead without undoing the gains of the past two decades. Success will require difficult political choices.
South Africa’s Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan’s budget fell short on cost-cutting details.
REUTERS/Mike Hutchings
The budget showed some sense of urgency but still fell short on implementation plans. There should have been more, particularly details on cost-cutting initiatives.
Thousands of civil service employees gather during a protest march for higher pay at the Union Buildings in Pretoria in 2010.
EPA/Jon Hrusa
South Africa’s government should urgently announce a moratorium on civil service employment growth. The country has reached its upper limit in the number of civil servants that can be sustained.
The Australian dollar has remained low for some time, but the expected growth uptick is yet to arrive.
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