Economy News

from AIER

Established 1999

New England, USA

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Aaron Nathans

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  • •

    COLA: We Forecast Tiny Social Security Benefit Increase

    The American Institute for Economic Research is forecasting the smallest Social Security cost-of-living adjustment since that administration began automatic annual adjustments in the 1970s. We are forecasting with 90 percent confidence that when the increase is announced on Oct. 18, it will be between 0.2 percent and 0.5 percent. Our senior research fellow Max Gulker…

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    The Shrinking Middle Class

    The United States has the smallest middle class among nine major developed countries, according to a new research brief released this week by the American Institute for Economic Research. In the brief, author Steven Pressman points to how many different definitions there have been of the middle class, and develops his own definition. He defined…

  • •

    Money Magazine Features AIER’s Retirement Withdrawal Calculator

    Our Retirement Withdrawal Calculator was featured in Money Magazine on Thursday, as part of Walter Updegrave’s story on making sure you’ve taken the proper steps to prepare for retirement. His story urges readers to consider three things when preparing for retirement: saving enough, investing reasonably, and preparing a plan for how much you’ll withdraw each…

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    AIER’s Beautiful Campus In Early Autumn

    The leaves haven’t changed much yet, but the grass is still a lovely green on AIER’s scenic campus in the Berkshires as autumn sets in. I snapped these photos during a late afternoon earlier this week.

  • •

    The Value-Added Teacher Modeling Conundrum

    “Value-added” teacher models are being used less at the same time that evidence of their usefulness is increasing, according to a new research brief out today from the American Institute for Economic Research. Value-added models show the difference between how students perform on a standardized test, and how they were expected to perform. Such models…

  • The Value of a Sullied Vacation

    •

    The Value of a Sullied Vacation

    Some workers get one vacation per year, so when a vacation goes wrong, the loss beyond money is the distress of losing that trip as well as the loss of benefits from having had a week to relax

  • The Sluggish Expansion Continues

    •

    The Sluggish Expansion Continues

    The United States economy continues to expand, although its pace is well below the long-term average, according to the new edition of Business Conditions Monthly, out today from the American Institute for Economic Research.

  • The Hazy Link Between Elections and Recessions

    •

    The Hazy Link Between Elections and Recessions

    Do recessions often follow elections? That’s the suggestion from this interesting piece in The Wall Street Journal by Josh Zumbrun earlier this week.

  • Business Journals Highlight Our Everyday Price Index

    •

    Business Journals Highlight Our Everyday Price Index

    AIER’s innovative Everyday Price Index was featured by the American City Business Journals last week, in a story that reflected upon why some prices, like health insurance and higher education, have gone far up amid an overall mild inflation rate.

  • What’s Causing Slow Economic Growth?

    •

    What’s Causing Slow Economic Growth?

    We have noted the economy’s slow-growth trajectory in recent months, and as the Federal Reserve meets in Jackson Hole, Wyoming this week for its annual retreat, that’s expected to be a big topic of discussion. The retreat, “Designing Resilient Monetary Policy Frameworks for the Future,” is sponsored by the Kansas City Fed and starts Thursday.

  • •

    COLA: We Forecast Tiny Social Security Benefit Increase

    The American Institute for Economic Research is forecasting the smallest Social Security cost-of-living adjustment since that administration began automatic annual adjustments in the 1970s. We are forecasting with 90 percent confidence that when the increase is announced on Oct. 18, it will be between 0.2 percent and 0.5 percent. Our senior research fellow Max Gulker…

  • •

    The Shrinking Middle Class

    The United States has the smallest middle class among nine major developed countries, according to a new research brief released this week by the American Institute for Economic Research. In the brief, author Steven Pressman points to how many different definitions there have been of the middle class, and develops his own definition. He defined…

  • •

    Money Magazine Features AIER’s Retirement Withdrawal Calculator

    Our Retirement Withdrawal Calculator was featured in Money Magazine on Thursday, as part of Walter Updegrave’s story on making sure you’ve taken the proper steps to prepare for retirement. His story urges readers to consider three things when preparing for retirement: saving enough, investing reasonably, and preparing a plan for how much you’ll withdraw each…

  • •

    AIER’s Beautiful Campus In Early Autumn

    The leaves haven’t changed much yet, but the grass is still a lovely green on AIER’s scenic campus in the Berkshires as autumn sets in. I snapped these photos during a late afternoon earlier this week.

  • •

    The Value-Added Teacher Modeling Conundrum

    “Value-added” teacher models are being used less at the same time that evidence of their usefulness is increasing, according to a new research brief out today from the American Institute for Economic Research. Value-added models show the difference between how students perform on a standardized test, and how they were expected to perform. Such models…

  • The Value of a Sullied Vacation

    •

    The Value of a Sullied Vacation

    Some workers get one vacation per year, so when a vacation goes wrong, the loss beyond money is the distress of losing that trip as well as the loss of benefits from having had a week to relax

  • The Sluggish Expansion Continues

    •

    The Sluggish Expansion Continues

    The United States economy continues to expand, although its pace is well below the long-term average, according to the new edition of Business Conditions Monthly, out today from the American Institute for Economic Research.

  • The Hazy Link Between Elections and Recessions

    •

    The Hazy Link Between Elections and Recessions

    Do recessions often follow elections? That’s the suggestion from this interesting piece in The Wall Street Journal by Josh Zumbrun earlier this week.

  • Business Journals Highlight Our Everyday Price Index

    •

    Business Journals Highlight Our Everyday Price Index

    AIER’s innovative Everyday Price Index was featured by the American City Business Journals last week, in a story that reflected upon why some prices, like health insurance and higher education, have gone far up amid an overall mild inflation rate.

  • What’s Causing Slow Economic Growth?

    •

    What’s Causing Slow Economic Growth?

    We have noted the economy’s slow-growth trajectory in recent months, and as the Federal Reserve meets in Jackson Hole, Wyoming this week for its annual retreat, that’s expected to be a big topic of discussion. The retreat, “Designing Resilient Monetary Policy Frameworks for the Future,” is sponsored by the Kansas City Fed and starts Thursday.