Economic Commentary

ECONOMY AND POLICY February 28, 2020 Chief Economist Scott Brown discusses current economic conditions. The coronavirus has spread to other countries and the CDC issued a stark warning about the possible consequences in the U.S. Stock market participants appear to have entered the panic phase. Bond yields have plummeted to record lows. On Friday, Fed […]

ECONOMY AND POLICY February 28, 2020 Chief Economist Scott Brown discusses the latest market data. The good news is that the spread of COVID-19 in China appears to have slowed. The very bad news is that the coronavirus has shown up in more countries. A wider expanse in the U.S., what health experts call “community […]

ECONOMY AND POLICY February 21, 2020 The Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) has remained a key concern for the financial markets. Unfortunately, there is continued uncertainty regarding how wide the virus will spread and how sharp the economic impact will be. China accounted for nearly a third of global growth in the last two years. While the […]

ECONOMY AND POLICY February 21, 2020 Chief Economist Scott Brown discusses the latest market data. Once again, China adjusted the criteria for recognizing COVID-19 cases (over 76,000 reported cases as of February 21, with 2,248 deaths). The immediate direct impact on the global economy is through supply chain disruptions and reduced travel/tourism (in China and […]