Reflections on the global financial crisis (what was I doing – what was I thinking?) a decade after the collapse of Lehman Brothers.

Originally published by FIIG’s The Wire blog.

When Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy on Monday 15 September 2008, I was in what would turn out to be my last year as Chief Economist at ANZ Bank (not that I knew it then – I didn’t decide to leave until almost exactly three months later, and then took another seven months to put that decision into effect). 

Co-authored with Todd Rudsenske & Daniel A. Gofman*.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is the nation’s fastest-growing developmental disorder, one that touches each child and family in unique and complicated ways. A lifelong condition, ASD requires individualized treatments that are now increasingly available in communities across the United States.

This essay was originally published by The Washington Post, October 1, 2018

Despite robust economic numbers during the Trump presidency, the American public has seemed curiously unmoved by good news such as the lowest U.S. unemployment level in nearly half a century. Its enthusiasm might have been dampened by this underappreciated economic reality: The typical working American’s earnings, when properly measured, have declined during the Trump administration.

Last week was the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, held each fall to the dismay of Manhattanites who suffer a weeklong traffic nightmare.  But for policy wonks, it is an opportunity to meet with and listen to world leaders at countless events on the sidelines of the UN meetings: seeing them interact in person can be a useful leading indicator of a country’s future and its political economy.

Healthcare has experienced a parade of surprising megamergers and acquisitions during the last year. At first glance, Best Buy’s August acquisition of GreatCall may be the most startling. At a deeper level, however, Best Buy’s movement into healthcare reflects a nuanced understanding of consumerism, retail market dynamics and America’s need for more connected, holistic care services.
 

President Xi JinPing of China recently celebrated the fifth anniversary of the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI), the centerpiece of China’s global projection of economic, political and financial power.  However, the BRI project is meeting significant obstacles and seems in urgent need of a reboot.  Significantly, the main sources of criticism and reevaluation come from some of the major beneficiaries of the project.

The gap in small business lending, which the easy-money policies of the Federal Reserve were supposed to fill, are well documented. It's more difficult for small businesses to get small loans from banks, in large part because it's less profitable for banks of all sizes to make small-dollar loans.

Co wrote with Dr. Fred T. Davies and first appeared in Singularity Hub.