News Headline

White House Hopes Trade Can Bolster Labor Market

Mike Elk — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:28:26 -0800

With the unemployment rate in double-digit territory, the Obama administration is turning to trade policy as a potential balm for the ailing labor market.

By increasing exports to rapidly growing countries like China and India, the U.S. could put a dent in joblessness and foster long-term economic growth without stressing the federal budget. But overhauling export policy is part of a White House approach that is in the early stages of execution.

Obama officials want to change outdated U.S. export controls, make it easier for foreign executives to travel to the U.S. and strengthen protections of intellectual property. One difficulty they face is making it easier for companies shipping products overseas to obtain necessary financing and credit from banks. And firms still face intellectual property rights and foreign-exchange issues.

Some, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, complain that as long as a trio of stalled free trade agreements remain unratified, the administration is shunning the most direct way to quickly lift exports. Its stance on trade agreements with Colombia, South Korea and Panama is still unclear.

World Bank Chief Economist: China Should Leave its Currency Alone

OurFuture.org Staff — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:32:37 -0800

World Bank Chief Economist Justin Yifu Lin staked out a strong position against forcing China to let its currency appreciate as a way to rebalance the world economy.

“Currency appreciation in China won’t help this imbalance and can deter the global recovery,” he said in a lecture Monday at Hong Kong University.

ISM and Employment: Manufacturing Gives, Service Takes Away

OurFuture.org Staff — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:42:36 -0800

Earlier this week there was some discussion about the increase in the ISM Manufacturing employment index.

ISM's Employment Index registered 53.1 percent in October, which is 6.9 percentage points higher than the 46.2 percent reported in September. This is the first month of growth in manufacturing employment following 14 consecutive months of decline. An Employment Index above 49.7 percent, over time, is generally consistent with an increase in the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data on manufacturing employment.

To check this statement, I posted a scatter graph of the relationship between the ISM Manufacturing employment index and the reported monthly change in manufacturing employment. (See: ISM and Manufacturing Employment) Sure enough, the increase in the employment index suggests an improvement in the BLS manufacturing employment numbers.

Wind Farm in Texas Creates 2000 Jobs in China, but Only 300 in the U.S.

Mike Elk — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:13:56 -0800

News last week of the first major influx of Chinese capital and wind turbine manufacturing expertise into the renewable energy market in the United States — a 600-megawatt wind farm planned for the plains of west Texas — had many readers of the Green Inc. blog in a state of agitation.

Fisker to Make Plug-in Hybrids at Former G.M. Plant

OurFuture.org Staff — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:23:01 -0700

Fisker Automotive, a small California-based manufacturer of luxury vehicles, on Tuesday is expected to reveal plans to build plug-in hybrid electric cars at a former General Motors plant in Delaware.

The White House said Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. is scheduled to visit the plant, near his hometown of Wilmington, for an announcement about its future. G.M. closed the plant, which was the last automotive factory on the East Coast, in July as part of its post-bankruptcy restructuring.

Fisker’s plans will mark the first major redevelopment of a piece of the old G.M., which is now a separate company charged with disposing of unwanted assets in order to repay G.M.’s creditors. It also will be among the rare instances in which an automotive plant has resumed building vehicles after being shuttered; most are eventually torn down or converted to other purposes.

4.5 Million 'Net' Green Jobs in America Possible by 2030

OurFuture.org Staff — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 11:56:40 -0700

At a time when rates of joblessness continue to rise in America, a new study upholds the promise of a major jobs boost from a green economy.

The study, released this week by the non-profit American Solar Energy Society (ASES) and Management Information Services (MIS), found that an aggressive and immediate build out of renewable energy and energy efficiency (EE&RE) would net at least 4.5 million new jobs by 2030 (meaning, the figure accounts for the number of jobs that could be lost in the transition to a clean energy economy).

Many of these jobs "could not easily be outsourced," the authors said.

The study arrived at the same time that climate change legislation continued its march through the U.S. Congress. Opponents of the bill claim that its clean energy policies could cost the U.S. trillions of dollars and many millions of jobs over the next several decades. The AES/MIS research refutes both these claims.

The groups' latest study builds on earlier work. In early 2009, ASES and MIS released a report concluding that an aggressive scale up of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies could generate some $4.3 trillion in revenue in the United States by 2030. The analysis was based on an analysis of six technologies: energy efficiency, concentrating solar power, solar photovoltaics, wind power, biomass power, biofuels and geothermal power.

Fed Chief Cites Trade Imbalances’ Role in Crisis

OurFuture.org Staff — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 11:16:39 -0700

In Dollar’s Fall, Upside for U.S. Exports

OurFuture.org Staff — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 08:42:20 -0700

As economists, pundits and politicians debate the reasons for the dollar’s rapid fall, Robert Stevenson and his workers in downtown Buffalo, N.Y., watch the slide with glee.

Mr. Stevenson’s family-owned company, Eastman Machine, has been making cutting tools for the textile industry for 120 years. A year ago, in the depths of the financial crisis, Mr. Stevenson had to lay off a dozen workers, but the dollar’s almost 20 percent decline since March has made his goods much more competitive overseas. Next month, Mr. Stevenson hopes to sign a multimillion-dollar deal in Europe that could enable him to rehire his workers.

“This wouldn’t have happened five years ago, or even two years ago,” he said. “Business conditions are still slow but the dollar has allowed us to be much more aggressive overseas.”

Hidden Costs of Medicare Advantage

OurFuture.org Staff — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 13:34:50 -0700

President Obama has proposed cutting more than $100 billion in subsidies over 10 years, a contentious component of health-care reform that will be fought in earnest as the bills move through Congress. But unlike some issues that touch off partisan sparring, Medicare Advantage has an unlikely band of bipartisan defenders who have already battled to restore $10 billion of the proposed reductions. In a health-care debate defined by big numbers and confusing details, the prospect of losing benefits such as a free gym membership through the Silver Sneakers program is tangible, and it has spooked some seniors, who are the nation's most reliable voters and have been most skeptical about reform.

Health Care Triumph Gives Way To Heightented Battle

OurFuture.org Staff — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:58:05 -0700

The battle over healthcare entered a new, more frenzied stage Wednesday, as lawmakers and powerful interest groups jockeyed for advantage now that most believe some form of an overhaul will ultimately be signed into law. The Senate Finance Committee's passage Tuesday of a sweeping healthcare bill -- with the support of all of its Democratic members, plus Republican Olympia J. Snowe of Maine -- offered powerful evidence that a moderate legislative blueprint can command a majority in the Senate with at least token GOP support. Passage of a major bill by the House also is considered increasingly likely.