Book Reviews

2012 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 184-187

Patrick Pintus of Aix-Marseille School of Economics, Aix-Marseille University reviews “Expectations, Employment and Prices” by Roger E. A. Farmer. The EconLit Abstract of the reviewed work begins: Presents a Keynesian economicsbased analysis of the business cycle and how to control it, focusing on the inefficiency of the equilibrium level of unemployment. Discusses the basic model; an extension to multiple goods; a model with investment and saving; a new way to understand business cycle facts; the Great Depression--telling the Keynesian story in a new way; the wartime recovery--a dynamic model where fiscal policy matters; the U.S. economy from 1951 to 2000--employment and gross domestic product; money and uncertainty; money and inflation since 1951; and how to fix the economy. Farmer is Professor and Department Chair of the Department of Economics at the University of California, Los Angeles. Bibliography; index.

2014 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 538-540 ◽  

Michael Assous of Universite Paris I Pantheon-Sorbonne P.H.A.R.E. reviews “Michal Kalecki: An Intellectual Biography: Volume I, Rendezvous in Cambridge 1899–1939”, by Jan Toporowski. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Presents an intellectual biography of Polish economist Michal Kalecki, focusing on the years 1899–1939. Discusses the early years; the crucible of the Polish Revolution; economic journalism; a move to Warsaw; the Institute for the Study of Business Cycles and Prices; the socialist discussions; the enigma of the business cycle; Sweden; London; from London to Cambridge; seeking work again; the first synthesis of theory; Kalecki and his colleagues at the Cambridge Project; and shared ideas amid mutual incomprehension. Toporowski is with the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.”


2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Ahmed ◽  
Mark Granberg ◽  
Victor Troster ◽  
Gazi Salah Uddin

AbstractThis paper examines how different uncertainty measures affect the unemployment level, inflow, and outflow in the U.S. across all states of the business cycle. We employ linear and nonlinear causality-in-quantile tests to capture a complete picture of the effect of uncertainty on U.S. unemployment. To verify whether there are any common effects across different uncertainty measures, we use monthly data on four uncertainty measures and on U.S. unemployment from January 1997 to August 2018. Our results corroborate the general predictions from a search and matching framework of how uncertainty affects unemployment and its flows. Fluctuations in uncertainty generate increases (upper-quantile changes) in the unemployment level and in the inflow. Conversely, shocks to uncertainty have a negative impact on U.S. unemployment outflow. Therefore, the effect of uncertainty is asymmetric depending on the states (quantiles) of U.S. unemployment and on the adopted unemployment measure. Our findings suggest state-contingent policies to stabilize the unemployment level when large uncertainty shocks occur.


Author(s):  
Craig A. Gallet ◽  
Patricia J. Euzent

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin: 0in 0.5in 0pt; tab-stops: 4.5pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Batang;">Recent game-theoretic models of cartel behavior assess the sustainability of cooperation in the presence of demand fluctuations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>Depending on the stochastic assumptions of demand, different outcomes are predicted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>Accordingly, this paper investigates the effects of demand fluctuations on competition in the U.S. brewing industry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>The results show that competition among brewers is greater during periods associated with significant negative shocks to demand, lower observed demand, lower expected future industry profit, and lower advertising.</span></span></span></p>


2011 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 776-777

Matthew J. Kotchen of Yale University reviews “Climatopolis: How Our Cities Will Thrive in the Hotter Future” by Matthew E. Kahn. The EconLit Abstract of the reviewed work begins “Explores how cities will adapt to the challenges of climate change, focusing on how geographical and socioeconomic factors will affect the quality of urban life in a hotter world. Discusses too much gas; what we've done when our cities have blown up; king of the hill; the case of Los Angeles; whether Manhattan will flood; whether China's cities will go green; effects and adaptations in developing countries; seize the day--opportunities from our hotter future; and the future of cities. Kahn is Professor with the Institute of the Environment, the Department of Economics, and the Department of Public Policy at the University of California, Los Angeles. Index.”


Author(s):  
Javad Gorjidooz ◽  
Bijan Vasigh

The Maquiladora industry was created in the mid-1960 as the United States terminated the Bracero program. The main objective of the Bracero program was to bring in Mexican workers to fulfill U.S. agricultural labor demand. The end of the Bracero program left thousands of unemployed farm workers in Mexican cities bordering the U.S. The Maquiladora programs intent was to subsidize foreign manufacturers that set up plants on the Mexico side of the border to create jobs for the Mexican workers. Mexico allowed plants to temporarily import supplies, parts, machinery, and equipment necessary to produce goods and services in Mexico duty-free as long as the output was exported back to the United States. U.S. firms, as well as other multinational companies, responded enthusiastically to the lure of cheap labor. Mexico experienced high economic growth and become a major player in exporting intra-industry products to the U.S. The NAFTA and other free trade agreements signed by Mexico helped the economic growth of the Maquiladora region. Maquiladora employment increased significantly since the inception of the Maquiladora industry and Maquiladora exports now account for half of Mexicos total exports. The Maquiladora industry is U.S.-demand driven since most of Mexicos Maquiladora production is destined for the U.S. market. The recent recession in the U.S. took a heavy toll on Mexicos Maquiladora industry. Another challenge to the Maquiladora industry is raising global competition, particularly from China. Therefore, the magnitude of the industrys contraction during the most recent recession suggests that there are more factors influencing the industry than just the business cycle. This paper presents the creation of the Maquiladora industry, its success following the NAFTA agreement, and its recent downturn. It also explores the answers to the following questions: How much of the Maquiladora downturn was due to the business cycle? How much was due to structural change? Is the Maquiladora industry ready to face rising global competition?


2020 ◽  
pp. c2-64
Author(s):  
The Editors

buy this issue According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. economy is experiencing an unemployment rate that is at a fifty-year low. Yet, wage growth continues to be weak, with continuing wage stagnation even at the peak of the business cycle. A major and largely undertheorized reason for the sluggish wages in a period of seeming full employment is to be found in the fact that the new jobs being created by the economy do not measure up to those of the past in terms of weekly wages and hours, or in the degree to which they support households or even individuals.


2012 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 809-818

Jeffrey G. Williamson of Harvard University and University of Wisconsin reviews “Economic Development in the Americas since 1500: Endowments and Institutions” by Stanley L. Engerman and Kenneth L. Sokoloff. The EconLit abstract of the reviewed work begins: Eleven papers explore differences in the rates of economic growth in Latin America and mainland North America, specifically the United States and Canada, and consider how relative differences in growth over time are related to differences in the institutions that developed in different economies. Papers discuss paths of development -- an overview; factor endowments and institutions; the role of institutions in shaping factor endowments; the evolution of suffrage institutions; the evolution of schooling – 1800–1925; inequality and the evolution of taxation; land and immigration policies; politics and banking systems; five hundred years of European colonization; institutional and noninstitutional explanations of economic development; and institutions in political and economic development. Engerman is John H. Munro Professor of Economics and Professor of History at the University of Rochester. The late Sokoloff was Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of California, Los Angeles. Bibliography; index.


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