State and local government pension obligations have been growing at a rapid rate. Payouts from major public pensions rose by 50% from 2000 to 2004 to $118 billion according to the U.S. Census Bureau. While this payout only represented a little less than 2.5% of total 2003 state and local government spending, the picture may worsen as aging government work forces reach retirement age in gr... Read More

Many Midwest businesses are scrambling to adapt to the rise of China's economy in world trade and financial markets. Import competition is especially keen. Some Midwest automotive parts suppliers are watching with concern as China has climbed to the number four exporter to the U.S. behind Japan, Mexico, and Canada (CFL). How can U.S. businesses successfully adapt to the expansion ... Read More

So far this decade, the Chicago metropolitan area's economic performance has been disappointing. As in the surrounding Midwest, job declines during the recent recession were worse here than in the nation as a whole, and this area's job growth during the expansion has since been lagging. With this lackluster performance, there has been a special disappointment for Chicagoans; the metropoli... Read More

From the slow progress being made on the Doha round of global trade liberalization, it would seem that globalization is slowing down. Yet, this is not the case at all. As the 2002 Economic Report of the President articulated, globalization continues to be enhanced by ever-falling costs and technical advancements in communication and transportation. Such developments are magnifying trade f... Read More

The Council of Great Lakes Governors convenes December 13, 2005, in Milwaukee. At that time, the governors will discuss progress on region-wide procedures to regulate, protect, and control diversions of the waters of the Great Lakes basin, the largest single body of surface water in the world. Such actions are laudable for their foresight in sustaining the health of the Lakes ecosystem. I... Read More

The Midwest economy is lagging the U.S., but some states are doing better than others. These differences may help us understand the reasons for the region's lagging economy. Last week in Indiana, I presented some evidence that the entire region is growing more slowly than the nation. Payroll job growth in our Seventh Federal Reserve District is up only 0.6% for September from one ... Read More

In the Midwest and elsewhere, state government financial support for higher education has been eroding. Public colleges and universities are increasingly being left to their own resources; this raises a number of issues for them and for the Midwest economy. In a major conference held here this week, Chicago Fed President Michael H. Moskow summed up one dilemma. “….universit... Read More

Last week, the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) became a publicly traded company. On the first day after offering its stock, its share price ended the day above $80, well above forecasts of a $45-50 value per share. The CBOT development was one of many suggesting that the prospects of Chicago area's futures exchanges have improved in recent years. But to what extent is the turnaround... Read More

Midwestern communities that host automotive plants are especially concerned at the recent bankruptcy actions of Delphi Corporation. Such concerns are not misplaced, since the geography and problems of Delphi's operations are similar to those of some other automotive plants. Delphi, the nation's largest auto parts supplier, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on October 8. The bankrupt... Read More

Earlier this month, Mittal Steel USA announced it will locate its headquarters in downtown Chicago rather than in Northwest Indiana. Mittal USA employs 21,000 workers in 14 states. The parent company, Mittal, headquartered in London, is the largest steel maker in the world. Mittal's U.S. headquarters will employ only about 200 people. Even so, the company will reportedly receive $... Read More