Labor Markets and Economic Policy by Ben Casselman
Ben Casselman: Recent months show shift to positive trend in economic data revisions
Ben Casselman points out that the trend in economic data revisions has become positive in recent months, following a period of consistently negative revisions over the past several years. He ...
Gas and food prices climb sharply, Ben Casselman notes
Ben Casselman highlights that while the Federal Reserve may focus on various measures of underlying inflation, everyday consumers are primarily affected by the prices they pay on a daily basis. ...
Ben Casselman: Job gains remained strong in April for a second consecutive month
Ben Casselman, industry influencer, observes that job gains in April were solid for the second month in a row. He suggests it is too early to declare an end to the so-called low-hire, low-fire ...
Expenditure survey data gaps affect Consumer Price Index, Ben Casselman notes
Ben Casselman, industry influencer, reports that missing data from the expenditure survey could pose significant challenges for calculating the Consumer Price Index. This survey determines the ...
Ben Casselman: Regional Fed dissents send a message on interest rate cuts
Ben Casselman, industry influencer, highlights the significance of recent regional Federal Reserve presidents' dissents regarding potential interest rate cuts. Casselman suggests these dissents ...
Record profits persist for U.S. corporations amid disruptions, Ben Casselman notes
U.S. corporations have continued to earn record profits, despite economic and geopolitical challenges in recent years. Ben Casselman observes that factors such as tariffs, inflation, and war have ...
Ben Casselman: Energy prices rose nearly 11 percent in March, lifting overall inflation
Energy prices surged nearly 11 percent in March, contributing 0.7 of the 0.9 percentage point increase in overall inflation. Ben Casselman reports that gasoline prices alone increased by more than ...
U.S. real income dipped in February, Ben Casselman reports
U.S. real income, excluding transfer payments, declined by 0.4 percent in February, as reported by Ben Casselman. The three-month average of real income, also excluding transfer payments, remained ...
Ben Casselman: Hiring data shows sharp decline in February
Hiring activity, as measured by gross hires rather than net job changes, experienced a notable drop in February. Ben Casselman highlighted this downturn, adding that while the decline is ...
Publication issues disrupt CPI legal services index, Ben Casselman states
Ben Casselman draws attention to ongoing problems with the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) legal services index. He notes that the index has not been regularly published since early 2023, making ...
Ben Casselman: Method change leads to lower January PCE inflation, raises disclosure questions
A recent change in the data source for legal services prices resulted in a notable decrease in monthly PCE inflation in January. Ben Casselman reports that this methodological adjustment is now ...
Shutdown last fall disrupted inflation data, Ben Casselman says
The year-over-year U.S. inflation rate remains subdued due to lingering effects from the government shutdown last fall. Ben Casselman explains that the shutdown disrupted data collection and led ...
Ben Casselman: U.S. unemployment rises to 4.4 percent in February
The U.S. unemployment rate increased to 4.4 percent in February. Ben Casselman notes this uptick represents a gradual rise, though the rate remains low by historical ...
