"To be, or not to be, that is the question." Shakespeare's line from Hamlet keeps coming to mind whenever there is talk of recession. In February, Global Insight called for a short and shallow downturn for the nation, while the Blue Chip panel predicted a narrow escape.
Download the NewsletterVolume: 16 - Number: 1
Leading Index Title:
Special Topic Title: Michigan Recession
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Even forecasters on occasion hit the nail on the head. A year ago, despite concern over a sputtering U.S. economy, we said that it was "not the time to lose our good cheer."
Download the NewsletterVolume: 15 - Number: 4
Leading Index Title:
Special Topic Title: Gross Domestic Product
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Two-year forecasts are more accurate than ten-year projections, right? Not always. Consider the volatile housing market, a topic of keen interest right now.
Download the NewsletterVolume: 15 - Number: 3
Leading Index Title:
Special Topic Title: Long-Range Forecasting
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A course in regional economics often begins with a deceptively simple question: what is a region? The word is commonly used in the context of politics (the middle-east region), climate (the arctic region), and topography (the Appalachian region).
Download the NewsletterVolume: 15 - Number: 2
Leading Index Title:
Special Topic Title: Regional Forecasting
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Fed chair Ben Bernanke may not like it, but Alan Greenspan has still got it. The day after the former chief uttered the "R"word, the stock market turned south, causing a case of the jitters.
Download the NewsletterVolume: 15 - Number: 1
Leading Index Title:
Special Topic Title: Sports and the Economy
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End of year is a fitting time to sum things up. Economic statistics for 2006 have not been finalized, but so far the numbers look good. The 3.5 percent gain in Puget Sound employment, if it holds up, will be the best showing in eight years.
Download the NewsletterVolume: 14 - Number: 4
Leading Index Title:
Special Topic Title: Population Change
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When a driver taps the brakes, the car slows down but remains under control. The workings of an economy are not so simple. If the economy decelerates in response to an oil price shock, for example, the slowdown may trigger a reaction that further impedes its progress.
Download the NewsletterVolume: 14 - Number: 3
Leading Index Title:
Special Topic Title: Taxable Retail Sales
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The Puget Sound economy, slammed by two Boeing downturns and the dot-com bust, hit bottom in the second quarter of 2003...But what a difference three years make.
Download the NewsletterVolume: 14 - Number: 2
Leading Index Title:
Special Topic Title: Services
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Did Airbus really win last year's skirmish over airplane orders? Excluding cancellations and conversions, the European airplane maker claimed that it booked 1,111 firm orders, 82 more than Boeing.
Download the NewsletterVolume: 14 - Number: 1
Leading Index Title:
Special Topic Title: California
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Typically, it takes more than one thing to lift an economy up or drag it down. In 1997, boosted by strong national growth, a cyclical upturn at Boeing, and the dot-com boom, Puget Sound employment jumped 5.1 percent.
Download the NewsletterVolume: 13 - Number: 4
Leading Index Title:
Special Topic Title: Entrepreneurs
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