I’ve been thinking about why the numbers that are typically bandied about in policy circles (at least that I’m familiar with) have so little impact on the overall general and blogosphere debate (see some examples here and here). I think it’s part ideological, and part methodological. I can’t do much about the first (e.g., tax cuts good, spending on goods and services bad — unless on defense; or alternatively “let the market adjust no matter how long it takes”). But at least I can lay out why reasons why there is disagreement on the size of the multipliers.
January auto sales
Dreadful as 2008 was for the U.S. automakers, 2009 is starting out even worse.
Budget Surplus? Tax Cut! Budget Deficit? Tax Cut! High Energy Prices? Tax Cut! Deep Recession? More Tax Cuts!
I see a pattern. For some people, the answer to every question is…a tax cut! From WSJ on 29 January:
There’s a serious debate in this country as to how best to end the recession. The average recession will last five to 11 months; the average recovery will last six years. Recessions will end on their own if they’re left alone. What can make the recession worse is the wrong kind of government intervention.
Worth reading
Links to a few items I found interesting on non-residential structure investment, the “bad bank” proposal, and separation of powers.
The Consumption Collapse Continues
Jim covered the salient aspects of the 2008Q4 advance release in an earlier post. A few additional points: (i) exports for sure are not adding to growth, (ii) the positive contribution from decreasing imports does not augur well for future growth, and (iii) nonresidential investment has now followed residential investment with vigor. But the key point is consumption is now collapsing at a rate comparable to the 1980 recession…
Oh yes it’s a recession all right
The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported today that U.S. real GDP fell at a 3.8% annual rate in the fourth quarter of 2008.
Multipliers, again
From CBO Director Doug Elmendorf’s testimony yesterday, some numbers relevant to the ongoing debate over fiscal policy efficacy [1] [2]:
IMF: “World Growth Grinds to Virtual Halt…”
Well, that’s the IMF Survey title, describing the IMF’s World Economic Outlook.
Stimulus bill
House Democrats have unveiled their proposal for economic stimulus. Here’s mine.
HR 1 and the Fiscal Impulse over the next 20 months (and an instance of deja vu).
The CBO has posted an actual “cost estimate” on HR 1 (not just a partial examination of Division A, as explained in the Director’s Blog, the locus of great disinformation in previous discussions, as recounted by Dean Baker). Here is a graphical depiction of what CBO believes will be the impact on the deficit (once again, recalling that there is an explicit omission of repercussion effects on tax revenues and transfers that would arise from elevated aggregate demand; in other words, this is the estimated impact on the full employment budget balance).