Economy
UHERO State Forecast Update: Some Improvement, After Disappointing 2011
Hawaii’s stop-start recovery continued in the fourth quarter. We are a bit more optimistic about prospects for 2012. A summary of this forecast is available as a service to the public. For more detailed analysis, subscribe to UHERO’s Forecast Project.
Read MoreStronger than Expected Employment Report
1. THE US BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS RELEASED ITS MONTHLY EMPLOYMENT REPORT THIS MORNING AND REPORTED ANOTHER DECREASE IN THE US UNEMPLOYMENT RATE? Yes, this was a better jobs report than most economists expected. The consensus was for 135,000 jobs to be created in January and the total nonfarm job count posted an increase of […]
Read MoreGDP Release Adds to Speculation of Further Fed Easing
Q1. THERE HAS BEEN A LARGE AMOUNT OF ECONOMIC NEWS THIS WEEK, CAN YOU SUMMARIZE WHERE THINGS STAND? A1. This was a busy week. On Tuesday we found out that Hawaii’s unemployment rate rose to 6.6% in December; on Wednesday the Federal Reserve released their forecast for the US economy and new forecasts of what […]
Read MoreSumner La Croix to deliver seminar on mainland Chinese travel
This Friday, January 27, UHERO Research Fellow Sumner LaCroix will present “How Big? The Impact of Approved Destination Status on Mainland Chinese Travel”. The seminar will be take place at University of Hawaii, Saunders 515, from 3:00 – 4:15PM. Abstract: China’s Approved Destination Status (ADS) policy governs foreign leisure travel by its residents who are allowed […]
Read MoreKeeping the money at home!
Part of the justification for the pursuit of food and energy self-sufficiency in Hawaii is that it allegedly serves to “keep the money at home.” It just sounds so good as an economic objective, as it has for over 200 years. But consider that the idea of keeping the money at home is crude, modern […]
Read MoreQ & A: Council on Revenues Lowers Forecast for FY2012
1. THE COUNCIL ON REVENUES MET YESTERDAY AND LOWERED ITS FORECAST FOR STATE TAX REVENUES FOR 2012. HOW MUCH WAS THE REVISION, AND WHY DID YOU LOWER THE FORECAST. In the September meeting last year, the Council had forecast tax revenues would grow by 14.5% from FY2011 to FY2012. The council decided to lower its […]
Read MoreQ & A: What Do We Know About Income Inequality in Hawaii?
1. THERE’S BEEN SO MUCH CONTROVERSY ABOUT INCOME INEQUALITY LATELY. WHAT DO THE NUMBERS TELL US ABOUT INEQUALITY IN THE US AND HAWAII? The income numbers tell a simple story: Income inequality in both the United States and Hawaii was stable from the end of WWII until the early 1980s and has been steadily increasing […]
Read MoreBah Humbug for Unemployed Workers
If job seekers are disappointed this Christmas, the New Year may be even less bright unless Congress acts soon. The extended federal unemployment insurance benefits are set to expire in early January 2012. Barring Congressional action, most recently laid off workers will not be able to take advantage of the extended benefits. Currently, the federal unemployment insurance extensions allow […]
Read MoreQ & A: Super Committee Decisions Due Next Week
1. WE HAVE BEEN HEARING ABOUT THE SUPER COMMITTEE AND THEIR WORK ON A DEFICIT REDUCTION PLAN DUE NEXT WEDNESDAY. WHAT IS THE SUPER COMMITTEE? The Super Committee is the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction that was established by deal reached last July to raise the federal debt ceiling. That deal called for reducing […]
Read More