TED: The Economics Daily is a handy website updated each day by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Today’s post has the following map: Take a look; what do you see? In particular, do you see any pattern to the red dots (where employment is shrinking)? Areas dependent on natural resources for employment are hurting. Start nearby, in northeastern Minnesota: A big red dot (2700 lost jobs) … [Read more...]
General Motors Aerotrain, a combination of GM's Electro Motive Division (locomotive) and bus division (carbodies) John Rennie Short recently asked, “Why is the U.S. unwilling to pay for good public transportation?” It’s a classic question, and he has four good answers. Americans’ “early and continuing embrace of the private car as a form of urban transport.” Adoption of the automobile led … [Read more...]
Ronald H. Coase Pfizer and Allergan called off their $150 billion merger this morning. What caused these two companies to call the whole thing off? The headline reason for not going through with the transaction was that the Treasury Department changed the rules on tax inversions. A tax inversion is a situation where a US-headquartered company, in this case Pfizer, merges with a … [Read more...]