About 7 years ago

02/08/2017 - Midnight Reads – Higher Jobless Rate Suggests Economy Has Room to Run

Higher Jobless Rate Suggests Economy Has Room to Run
– The Wall Street Journal
Fed officials have said they believe the economy is near full employment, meaning the jobless rate is low enough to start driving up wages and inflation. But Friday’s report suggests the broader economy has room to run a little hotter before it produces higher inflation pressures that the Fed policy makers would need to tamp down. That means the era of very low interest rates might not be at an end.

Exporters Tout Benefits of Republicans’ ‘Border Adjustment’ Proposal
– The Wall Street Journal
Retailers such as toy makers and oil refiners are fighting the border-adjustment proposal, which would tax imports while exempting exports. Economists say the importers’ worries are overblown because border adjustment is likely to trigger a rise in the dollar offsetting the border adjustment’s effect on U.S. companies by reducing the cost of imported goods and making exports more expensive overseas.

Trump Aides Might Be Considering a Major Change to The President’s Maternity Leave Plan
– The Washington Post
When Donald Trump pitched his plan to extend paid leave to all new mothers in September, his campaign insisted the benefit would cover only women. But after critics called the proposal unconstitutional and said it would encourage employers to discriminate against women, the Trump administration might be considering a change of course.

Food Politics Have Sparked Another Kind of Populism, and It’s Resulting in Real Reform
– Quartz
Local initiatives on food policy, especially state and municipal ballot initiatives, are increasingly playing a role in reshaping the food system, Quartz reports. It’s unclear with soda taxes, labeling reforms, and the cage-free movement will continue to capture voter interest beyond the initial hotbeds. For now, though, it looks those efforts are gaining steam, and who knows what other issues voters might kick up in the process.