Economic Commentary

March 26, 2021 Chief Economist Scott Brown discusses current economic conditions. Economic data rarely follow a smooth path. Weather and external events have effects. Consumer spending can be uneven. New orders tend to come in bunches. One should never place a lot of weight on one particular month’s worth of data. The stories behind the […]

March 12, 2020 Chief Economist Scott Brown discusses the latest market data. The $1.9 trillion fiscal package passed both chambers of Congress and was signed by President Biden. In a prime-time speech, Biden promised that vaccines will be available to all adults by May 1, with a return to a sense of “normal” likely by […]

March 12, 2021 Chief Economist Scott Brown discusses current economic conditions. The World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic on March 11, 2020. The global economy shut down soon after. In the U.S., consumers and businesses adapted to life under the pandemic, with some disappointing developments and some unexpected changes. As vaccines become […]

March 5, 2020 Chief Economist Scott Brown discusses the latest market data. In an online discussion, Fed Chair Powell repeated that the central bank is a long way from achieving its inflation and employment goals (implying no change in short-term rates or the money pace of asset purchases anytime soon). Asked about the recent rise […]