A few worthy reads, from days recently passed:
On the latest economic statistics: Useful summaries can be found in some of the usual places -- The Nattering Naybob Chronicles (here and here) and The Skeptical Speculator (here and here). Tom Blumer is feeling optimistic (here and here), as is Jim Hamilton. The Capital Spectator, meanwhile, is giving feeling good the old college effort (here and here). But Barry Ritholtz does not yet see a "soft landing", arguing that "we should temper our enthusiasm for lower oil prices". William Polley is feeling like the glass is half empty, and Calculated Risk reports that CFO's are feeling gloomy too. Felix Salmon relays the debate among the thinkers at Morgan Stanley.
On the international front, Menzie Chinn takes a stab at measuring the U.S.-China trade balance. EurActiv summarizes the conclusions of a paper on European and Asian Perspectives on Global Imbalances. And no list on this topic would be complete without listing Brad Setser's latest musings. Want more? Wander on over to MacroMouse, and you will find some thoughts on the topic from Sybil Star.
The continuing trials and tribulations of the U.S. auto industry attracted a bit of attention this week. winterpseak, writing at Asymmetrical Information, casts a skeptical eye at proposed employee buyout plans. pgl reviews the evolving state of the automotive industry in China.
At Fistful of Euros, Edward Hugh has a round-up, and his own considered opinions, of a really interesting discussion on the legal feasibility of secession from Eurozone, the candidate departed being Italy. (Edward views Italy's break away as both legally possible and economically inevitable.)
Speaking of Edward, he has some thoughts on the very brisk pace of economic growth in India. Claus Vistesen chimes in as well. (Maybe this story is related?)
Although it may seem a quaint discussion at the moment, Mike Moffatt takes a shot at the question "What Happens If Interest Rates Go To Zero?" The interest rates in question are nominal interest rates -- and if the meaning of the word "nominal" is not readily apparent to you, Mike provides a link to help you out there as well. (If you are interested in some thoughts on the subject from the current chairman of the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors and Federal Open Market Committee, you can find them here.)
Dean Baker discusses the possibility of bias in the Consumer Price Index, and makes a suggestion with which I wholeheartedly agree:
On this story, I argue that we should leave the call to the umpire – in this case the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the agency that constructs the CPI. Of course BLS can and does make mistakes, but they have generally been an honest broker on this issue. When economists have presented solid research showing understatements or overstatements in the CPI, BLS has examined the issue and sought to make the appropriate adjustments... I have my own criticisms of the ump, but at this point, I'm going to defer to the ump's call over the anecdotes of the CPI critics.
Mark Thoma has some (sort of) related remarks.
In the labor market department, there is an interesting post on productivity and wages in Canada and the United States,from Stephen Gordon (hat tip, Economist's View).
A lot of people took notice of the demise of the proposed minimum wage aimed at big box retailers in Chicago. Dave Schuler was one of them. On that theme, Greg Mankiw reminisces on Alan Greenspan's views about the minimum wage, wondering if the current chairman will be as forthright. Actually, I think he already has been.
Speaking of Greg Mankiw, you might be interested in his roll of advocates for Pigouvian taxation.
Tyler Cowen gives a heads up on what will surely be one of the next great policy debates: Have American's incomes become riskier, and if so, what should we do about it?
Finally, I may be the last person to notice this site, but if you are looking for advanced lecture notes from some very good economists, check out Lecture Notes Online (hat tip, Gabriel Mihalache).