Zachary Karabell, Economic Analyst, Political Historian, and Award-Winning Author, on how important it is to take risks in order to grow and achieve success in any industry, and the surplus of capital versus income inequality.
Read moreDeflating Expectations
n a Reuters poll out this week, most economists say they are expecting more robust inflation this year, to the tune of 2 percent. The poll accurately reflects the plethora of emails from research firms in my inbox—a slowly building chorus predicting rising prices along with an uptick in overall economic activity.
Read moreAirbnb Will Hand Over “Anonymized” Records to New York Attorney General
Airbnb and the New York Attorney General's Office announced Wednesday that they had reached an agreement on a months-long conflict over Airbnb hosts in the state. Under the terms of the agreement, Airbnb will hand over "anonymized" data stripped of names, email addresses, apartment numbers, and other personally identifiable information. New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman will have a year to weed out hosts in violation of local laws and can require Airbnb to disclose the identities of those with suspicious activity.
Read moreEconomists Think That Wages Are Going to Rise This Year
The Opportunity in Flat Stock Markets
One obvious consequence of the information technology revolution has been an explosion of news and noise. We are bombarded daily with information and commentary that comes at us online, in print, and over various airwaves. This information overload is especially acute in the world of finance and financial markets.
Read moreAmerica, Meet Alibaba
The largest company you’ve never heard of is about to become a publicly traded U.S. company. After months of heated speculation within the financial world, Alibaba filed papers to list its shares in the United States. Its possible size? Somewhere between $150 billion and $200 billion dollars.
Read moreU.S. vs. China? Grow Up!
Last week, it was reported that China is poised to supplant the United States as the world’s largest economy much sooner than expected, perhaps as early as next year. These reports were derived from a new release by the World Bank that revised previous estimates of the size of China’s gross domestic product
Read moreCassandras Everywhere
All is placid in financeland. Stocks in the U.S. and globally have been in a holding pattern since December; bonds as well. Overall economic data—limited though it may be and flawed though it certainly is—shows steady unspectacular growth in the United States
Read moreRequiem for the Middleman
t hasn’t been a great week for Airbnb. On Tuesday representatives of New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and lawyers for the apartment sublet company Airbnb met in an Albany court. At issue is a broad subpoena issued by the New York AG last fall, demanding that Airbnb turn over information about its “hosts” (those who list their apartments) in the belief that thousands of them are in violation of the law by acting as de facto unregistered hotels. Airbnb has challenged the subpoena on the grounds that it constitutes an invasion of privacy of the thousands of people who use its service. Then, on Wednesday, the San Francisco city attorney brought suit against two local landlords, alleging that they illegally evicted residents in order to convert residential housing into short-term rentals advertised on Airbnb and similar services.
Read moreStop Obsessing Over Exorbitant CEO Pay
Last weekend the New York Times published its annual list of executive compensation, with Oracle’s Larry Ellison topping the charts at $78.4 million (and Disney’s Bob Iger in a distant second, at $34.3 million). Pay packages have increased by an average of 9 percent since 2012, continuing a steady and spectacular rise even as average wages in the United States and throughout much of the developed world have stagnated.
Read moreStatistically Speaking
New York Times review of the Leading Indicators.
Read moreStatistically Speaking: a Review of 'The Leading Indicators'
A review of Zachary Karabell's 'The Leading Indicators' by Diane Coyle of The New York Times.
Read moreThe Leading Indicators: Zachary Karabell
For too long, says author Zachary Karabell, we've adhered to outdated statistics for measuring economic health. Why follow a '50s road map in the 21st century when newer, more useful guides are available?
Read moreBook TV After Words: Zachary Karabell, "The Leading Indicators."
There are a set of five economic indicators that have been guiding U.S. economic policy for decades, but most are not understood by the average citizen and, Mr. Karabell argues, are not as relevant today as when they were created. Gross national product, balance of trade, unemployment, inflation and consumer confidence should no longer be the primary basis for business plans or monetary policy, he says, as the technology revolution has made considerably more data available. He talks with Wall Street Journal reporter Kimberly Strassel.
Read moreReality Has No Partisan Bias
In the wake of last week’s job report, there has been a flurry of new debate about what precisely is keeping job creation in the United States so anemic.The pivotal issue is whether the challenges facing the job market are cyclical or structural. The cyclical hypothesis is that we are still suffering an employment hangover from the financial crisis and sharp recession of 2008–09, made worse by limp or insufficient government responses.
Read moreShocked. Shocked!
The publication this week of Michael Lewis’ new book Flash Boys has led to a heated debate about the role of high-frequency trading in today’s global financial markets. The most contentious spark was Lewis’ claim on 60 Minutes that the prevalence of such trading means that our markets are “rigged,” an accusation that touched a nerve and set off a furious series of discussions in the past few days.
Read moreGDP's Early Relevance
Economist Zachary Karabell explains the historical progression of the leading indicators in use today. Starting with World War II and continuing through the '50s and '60s, Karabell describes how the numbers came to be policymaking tools. This Carnegie Council event took place on March 11, 2014. For complete aud
Read moreStatistical Implications on Policy
Author Zachary Karabell uses an example from an Obama policy speech to illustrate how politicians falsely portray the state of the economy.
Read moreOld Statistics, New Take
Economist Zachary Karabell suggests a different take on the available data and statistics, making it more relevant to the individual. National averages that are often relied heavily upon, he says, are rarely useful in any given individual's life.
Read moreZachary Karabell: What Are You Reading?
Learn more about Leading Indicators at http://books.simonandschuster.com/The... Zachary Karabell on reading new books from novelist Meg Wolitzer and journalist Steve Coll.
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