Interest Rates: Don't move too soon
Interest rates have been making the headlines in recent weeks, as speculation mounts about a possible change in policy this Thursday. In the UK the Bank of England base rate has been at an all-time low for almost 10 years. Monetary policy has been very loose since the Great Financial Crash of 2008...
Interest Rates: Don't move too soon
Interest rates have been making the headlines in recent weeks, as speculation mounts about a possible change in policy this Thursday. In the UK the Bank of England base rate has been at an all-time low for almost 10 years. Monetary policy has been very loose since the Great Financial Crash of 2008...
Monday Blog: Halloween, plastic-eating chicks and the circular economy
“By 2050, there will be more plastic in the oceans than fish, entangling sea creatures and trapping them, mimicking their food, and releasing toxins that poison them: marine turtles feed on plastic bags because they float in the ocean like jellyfish. Alabtrosses, those vast ocean-going birds, are...
NERI Seminar Dublin: Post Budget Seminar
Slides from NERI Post Budget Seminar held in the INTO Learning Centre on 18th October. The three speakers each made a brief presentation responding to aspects of Budget 2018. The presentations were delivered by Marie Sherlock (SIPTU), Michelle Murphy (Social Justice Ireland) and John FitzGerald...
Monday Blog: Ophelia, Kondratiev and Monday Mornings
Last Monday morning, I looked out the window and it was calm and sunny in the part of Ireland where I was. ‘What storm’? I mumbled. A few hours later made all the difference. Economists are very good at explaining what happened. Lots of econometrics and fitted regression lines work wonders. We are...
NERI Blog: What use is economics?
‘Economics’ is often viewed as a ‘positive science’ that examines choices in a world of constrained resources. One only has so much time or money or capital (including human). There are so many choices and needs. The ‘science’ of economics, it is claimed, involves optimising outcomes or well-being...
Monday Blog: A Budget for the many and not just the few
Much progress has been made in regards to the state of Irish public finances, due in large part, to the recovery in economic activity in recent times. Taxes are flowing under many headings as unemployment continues to inch downwards and there is a broad-based recovery. Yet, many people are scarcely...
Monday Blog: Notes on the margins of the Dublin Economics Workshop
Last weekend marked the 40th anniversary of the Dublin Economics Workshop. The annual event – usually held in the Autumn – is a significant one as it attracts a considerable number of professional economists: academic, sectoral, financial, civil service and freelance. The event is, also, open to...
Monday Blog: As the housing emergency worsens it is still time for a game changer
Six months ago the NERI published a working paper entitled: Ireland’s Housing Emergency: Time for a game changer . Regrettably, but not surprisingly, the depth and scale of the housing emergency has increased over the summer months. While much publicity has focussed on homelessness (as measured by...
The Absence of Devolution - The Economic Costs
Interest rates have been making the headlines in recent weeks, as speculation mounts about a possible change in policy this Thursday. In the UK the Bank of England base rate has been at an all-time low for almost 10 years. Monetary policy has been very loose since the Great Financial Crash of 2008...