Speaking of the Economy

144 Episodes

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What Yesterday's Economy Tells Us About Today

2024-09-2511:10

Tom Barkin, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, looks back on recent economic trends and how they have shaped the current state of the national economy. Topics include return to work, technology adoption and its implications for labor productivity, the surge in new business formation, and the Richmond Fed's current efforts to understand the economy better. (Note: This episode was recorded before the September 2024 FOMC meeting and the August jobs data release.) Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_09_25_barkin

AI and Automation Adoption in the Fifth District and Beyond

2024-09-1814:07

Pierre-Daniel Sarte and Sonya Waddell share survey results on businesses' use of AI tools and other forms of automation, and research on the potential effects of automation on the nation's overall productivity growth. Sarte is a senior advisor and Waddell is a vice president at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_09_18_automation

Not All Career Ladders Are Created Equal

2024-09-1113:42

Katarína Borovičková and Claudia Macaluso describe their research on differences in wage growth between workers as they progress in their careers. Borovičková and Macaluso are economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_09_11_career_ladders

The Rising Cost of Homeowners Insurance and Its Impact on Housing Affordability

2024-08-2118:19

Sierra Stoney outlines the factors that have recently driven up premiums for homeowners insurance, adding pricing pressure to housing markets. Stoney is a senior research analyst on the Regional and Community Analysis team at the Richmond Fed. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_08_21_homeowners_insurance

Exit Interview: The Richmond Fed's Summer Interns

2024-08-1416:57

David Cox, Adin Hammond and Tyrese Wheaton describe their summer at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond interning in three different departments. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_08_14_summer_interns

Do Employers Have Too Much Power in Labor Markets?

2024-08-0714:15

Chen Yeh discusses the differences in how much power companies have in labor markets and how that affects employees and their wages. Yeh is an economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_08_07_monopsony

Coaching Rural Communities For Economic Opportunity

2024-07-2417:57

Jason Smith, senior community development advisor at the Richmond Fed, discussed the results of the first round of the Bank's Community Investment Training, which helps rural communities obtain funding for their economic and community development projects. He also shared his interview with one of the program's participants, Craig Sewell of the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_07_24_coaching_rural_communities

Will Declines in FAFSA Completions Hurt College Enrollment?

2024-07-1719:32

Stephanie Norris and Laura Ullrich explain how an effort to make it easier for prospective college students to apply for federal financial aid has had ripple effects on enrollment at community colleges and other institutions of higher education. Norris is a senior research analyst and Ullrich is a senior regional economist at the Richmond Fed. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_07_17_fafsa

How is the Economy, Really?

2024-07-1017:06

Andy Bauer and Renee Haltom talk about why consumers and businesses are telling a different story about the economy than the data suggests. They also discuss how economists reconcile such differences between sentiment and data. Bauer and Haltom are regional executives at the Richmond Fed. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_07_10_how_is_the_economy_really

It Matters How Real Estate Agents Get Paid

2024-06-2611:23

Borys Grochulski and Zhu Wang discuss the compensation structure of real estate agents and how that has shaped the homebuying process and the housing market in general. Grochulski is a senior economist and Wang is vice president for research in financial and payments systems at the Richmond Fed. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_06_26_real_estate_agent_compensation

Building and Sustaining Momentum in Rural America

2024-06-1917:27

Host Tim Sablik shares some of the key insights from community development experts at the Richmond Fed's fifth annual Investing in Rural America Conference. The event was held in Roanoke, Va., in May 2024. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_06_19_ira_recap

The Economic Impact of the Key Bridge Collapse

2024-06-1210:59

Jason Kosakow and Adam Scavette review the economic effects of the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on the national, regional, and local level. Kosakow is the Richmond Fed's survey director and Scavette is a regional economist at the Bank's branch office in Baltimore. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_06_12_key_bridge_collapse

The Fed's Inflation Target

2024-05-2214:25

Alexander Wolman discusses the Federal Reserve's establishment of an inflation target in 2012 and how that has fit within the Fed's evolving monetary policy framework. Wolman is vice president for monetary and macroeconomic research at the Richmond Fed. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_05_22_inflation_target

Bringing Abandoned Property to Life in West Virginia

2024-05-1514:39

Taylor Bennett and Kim Reed describe how community development organizations in West Virginia use land banks to bring new economic activity to abandoned property. Bennett is executive director of the West Virginia Land Stewardship Corporation and Reed is executive director of the Nitro Land Reuse Authority. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_05_15_land_banks

Measuring Cyber Risks in the Financial Sector

2024-05-0818:19

Daniel Weitzner, an information security expert at MIT, discusses the cyber threats to the financial services industry and the challenges of measuring and modeling those risks. He also shares learnings from a recent conference co-hosted by MIT, the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, and the Federal Reserve System Board of Governors. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_05_08_cyber_risks_financial_sector

Figuring Out Maryland's Out-Migration

2024-04-1710:551

Adam Scavette, a regional economist at the Baltimore branch of the Richmond Fed, and Keith Waters of George Mason University discuss their analysis of migration patterns in Maryland and how they might help explain a significant reduction in the state's workforce since the COVID-19 pandemic. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_04_17_outmigration_maryland

Is There a Place for Place-Based Policies?

2024-04-1011:02

Richmond Fed economist Santiago Pinto discusses what economists have learned about policies intended to promote economic development in specific communities. He also outlines the intended and unintended spillover effects beyond the targeted communities. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_04_10_place_based_policies

Immigration Policy and the Development of the Tech Sector in the U.S. and India

2024-04-0311:24

Richmond Fed economist Nicolas Morales shares his research on immigration policy and how the regulation of the flow of information technology workers from India to the United States during the 1990s benefited both countries' IT sectors. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_04_03_immigration_it_india

Dual Enrollment: An Alternative Path to College For High Schoolers

2024-03-2014:24

Laura Ullrich and Jacob Walker review data they have gathered from the Richmond Fed Survey of Community College Outcomes about high school students who take dual enrollment classes. They also discuss difference in how these classes are funded. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_03_20_dual_enrollment

Does National Market Concentration Equal Local Market Power?

2024-03-1308:25

Richmond Fed economist Nicholas Trachter shares his research on the market concentration and power of firms and whether the increased concentration in national markets has reduced competition in local markets. Full transcript and related links: https://www.richmondfed.org/podcasts/speaking_of_the_economy/2024/speaking_2024_03_13_market_concentration

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