10-22-2003, 07:57 PM
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#1 (permalink)
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Junkie
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The Bush Legacy: Jobs Permanently Gone
http://www.msnbc.com/news/982733.asp
Quote:
RICHMOND, Va., Oct. 20 — Richmond Federal Reserve President Alfred Broaddus said Monday many of the U.S. jobs cut in recent years are gone permanently because of economic changes.
“A LOT OF these job losses are probably permanent structural job losses, but that trend probably has been exacerbated by weakness in the economy,” he told the Kiwanis Club of Richmond in a speech that largely mirrored an address in late September.
During later audience questions, Broaddus said he still feels cautiously optimistic about the economy but this optimism had become less guarded than five to six weeks ago.
The Richmond Fed chief, a voting member of the policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee this year, said the economy is in a “job-challenged recovery” and noted that September’s rise of 57,000 in nonfarm payrolls fell far short of what is needed to cut the unemployment rate given growth in the labor force as the disheartened go back to the job hunt.
Broaddus said a further pickup in the pace of U.S. productivity could push inflation down from already low levels. He added that he was confident the Fed could maintain U.S. price stability despite a risk of disinflation.
“High productivity growth is without doubt over the long run the best thing that could happen to the U.S. economy, but a further acceleration from here could be challenging,” because it could make it harder to work off overcapacity built up in the 1990s investment boom, Broaddus said.
“A persistent output gap ... could produce further disinflation, which we’d just as soon not have now,” he added.
Broaddus later told reporters he felt U.S. business sentiment and activity were on an upswing, although this may partly be due to the impact of recent tax cuts.
“I have a sense that ... some activity and attitudes have improved fairly materially in the last few weeks,” he told reporters after the speech, saying this was based on contacts with numerous business people across his district.
Broaddus said, however, that some of the improvements in the economic climate could be tax-cut inspired. “There’s some question, I think, in how long that stimulus is going to be there,” he said.
Asked about a proposal Friday from Fed Governor Ben Bernanke that the Fed adopt an explicit long-term inflation objective, Broaddus said while he had yet to explore the details, it may well be a helpful move.
“It’s something I want to look at carefully,” he said.
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Thanks to GWB's tax cuts for the rich and lack of investment in USA infrastructure, jobs are leaving the country forever.
Despite GWB's promises, the unemployment rate has hovered at 6% for the last year. Wasn't his first tax cut supposed to fix things?
I guess if you want to get ahead in the future, you'll need to learn Mandarin.
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