Macro Musings with David Beckworth

Jerusalem Demsas is a policy reporter for Vox and joins David on Macro Musings to discuss the state of housing in America and its implications for policy. Specifically, Jerusalem and David discuss the current state of the housing market, whether there is a housing bubble, how the housing shortage creates avenues for discrimination, the dynamics of racism in the US housing market, the impact of zoning laws, and much more.   Transcript for the episode can be found here.   Jerusalem’s Twitter: @JerusalemDemsas Jerusalem’s Vox archive: https://www.vox.com/authors/jerusalem-demsas   Related Links:   *Housing Constraints and Spatial Misallocation* by Chang-Tai Hsieh and Enrico Moretti https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/mac.20170388   *Is There a Housing Bubble?* by Jerusalem Demsas https://www.vox.com/22464801/housing-bubble-market-crash-supply-shortage-great-recession   *Stuck! The Law and Economics of Residential Stagnation* by David Schleicher https://www.yalelawjournal.org/article/stuck-the-law-and-economics-of-residential-stagnation   *The Housing Shortage Makes Housing Discrimination Much Easier* by Jerusalem Demsas https://www.vox.com/2021/5/26/22453293/housing-supply-shortage-discrimination-real-estate-cover-letters   *America's Racist Housing Rules Really Can Be Fixed* by Jerusalem Demsas https://www.vox.com/22252625/america-racist-housing-rules-how-to-fix   *The Fight Over Housing Segregation is Dividing one of America's Most Liberal States* by Jerusalem Demsas https://www.vox.com/22335749/housing-prices-connecticut-segregation-zoning-reform-democrats-adu-parking-minimum   *Why Does it Cost so Much to Build Things in America* by Jerusalem Demsas https://www.vox.com/22534714/rail-roads-infrastructure-costs-america   David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Scott Sumner is the Ralph G. Hawtrey Chair of Monetary Policy at the Mercatus Center. Scott joins David on Macro Musings to discuss Milton Friedman's views and what he might say about some of the recent developments in monetary policy. Specifically, Scott and David talk about nominal interest rates as indicators of the stance of monetary policy, fiscal austerity as means of reducing excessive aggregate demand, Friedman’s critique of the Phillips curve and wage and price controls, what Friedman might have said about the recent inflation numbers, and much more.   Transcript for the episode can be found here.   Scott’s automated Twitter: @MoneyIllusion Scott’s blog: https://www.themoneyillusion.com/ Scott’s Mercatus profile: https://www.mercatus.org/scholars/scott-sumner   Related Links:   *Friedman's Smashing Success­­* by Scott Sumner https://www.econlib.org/friedmans-smashing-success/   *Inflation is a Nominal Phenomenon* by Scott Sumner https://www.econlib.org/inflation-is-a-nominal-phenomenon/   *The Role of Monetary Policy* (1968) by Milton Friedman https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-349-24002-9_11   *What Would Milton Friedman Have Thought of Market Monetarism?* by Scott Sumner https://oxford.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198704324.001.0001/acprof-9780198704324-chapter-15   David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Skanda Amarnath is the executive director of Employ America and a former hedge fund economist. He rejoins Macro Musings to talk about the fate of the Phillips Curve, the inflation outlook, the Fed’s new framework, and his vision for a better monetary policy future. David and Skanda also discuss the Fed’s flawed assessment of maximum employment, how to modify the central bank’s Summary of Economic Projections, and the significance of capacity constraints vs labor utilization.   Transcript for the episode can be found here.   Skanda’s Twitter: @IrvingSwisher Skanda’s Employ America archive: https://employamerica.org/author/skandaamarnath/ Skanda’s Medium profile: https://medium.com/@skanda_97974   Related Links:   *Beyond the Phillips Curve: A Dynamic Approach to Communicating Assessments of 'Maximum Employment'* by Skanda Amarnath and Alex Williams https://employamerica.medium.com/beyond-the-phillips-curve-a-dynamic-approach-to-communicating-assessments-of-maximum-employment-c3eff48b2fcf   David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Agustin Carstens leads the Bank for International Settlements or the BIS in his role as general manager and previously served as the governor of the Bank of Mexico. He also served as the deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund. Agustin joins David on Macro Musings to discuss the new BIS 2021 annual report. Specifically, David and Agustin discuss the macroeconomic developments of the past year, the distributional footprint of monetary policy, the evolving role of central banking, and the outlook for central bank digital currency (CBDC).   Transcript for the episode can be found here.   Agustin’s BIS profile: https://www.bis.org/author/agust%C3%ADn_carstens.htm   Related Links:   *Annual Economic Report 2021* by the BIS https://www.bis.org/publ/arpdf/ar2021e.htm   U.S. Monetary Policy and the Global Financial Cycle* by Silvia Miranda-Agrippino and Hélène Rey https://academic.oup.com/restud/article/87/6/2754/5834728?login=true   David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Jason Furman is a former chair of the Council of Economic Advisers and is currently a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. Jason is also a professor at Harvard University and he rejoins Macro Musings to talk about overheating, the inflation outlook, and the right way to think about fiscal policy in an era of low interest rates.   Transcript for the episode can be found here.   Jason’s Twitter: @jasonfurman Jason’s Harvard profile: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/faculty/jason-furman Jason’s PIIE profile: https://www.piie.com/experts/senior-research-staff/jason-furman   Related Links:   *A Reconsideration of Fiscal Policy in the Era of Low Interest Rates* by Jason Furman and Larry Summers https://www.hks.harvard.edu/centers/mrcbg/programs/growthpolicy/reconsideration-fiscal-policy-era-low-interest-rates-jason   David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Steffen Murau is a political economist at the Global Development Policy Center at Boston University and specializes in international money and finance. He joins Macro Musings to talk about the Eurozone, its role within international monetary architecture, and the future of the dollar zone. They also discuss balance sheet hierarchies, the roles of European banks compared to their American counterparts, and the fiscal ecosystem present within the Eurozone.   Transcript for the episode can be found here.   Steffen’s Twitter: @steffenmurau Steffen’s website: https://steffenmurau.com/ Steffen’s GDPC profile: https://www.bu.edu/gdp/profile/steffen-murau/   Related Links:   *A Macro-Financial Model of the Eurozone Architecture Embedded in the Global Offshore US-Dollar System* by Steffen Murau https://www.bu.edu/gdp/files/2020/07/Murau-Eurozone-architecture.pdf   *The Hierarchy of the Offshore US-Dollar System: On Swap Lines, the FIMA Repo Facility and Special Drawing Rights* by Steffen Murau, Fabian Paper, and Tobias Pforr https://www.bu.edu/gdp/files/2021/02/Steffen-Murau-GEGI-Study-2-Feb-2021.pdf   *The Evolution of the Offshore US-Dollar System: Past, Present, and Four Possible Futures* by Steffen Murau, Joe Rini, and Armin Haas https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-institutional-economics/article/evolution-of-the-offshore-usdollar-system-past-present-and-four-possible-futures/B36ED9082CECE54F3F5B8E8F40D15148   David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Dan Smith is an associate professor of economics at Middle Tennessee State University and directs the Political Economy Research Institute at MTSU. Alex Salter is an associate professor of economics at Texas Tech University. Dan and Alex join David on a special live episode of Macro Musings to discuss their new book, Money and the Rule of Law: Generality and Predictability in Monetary Institutions. Specifically, they discuss knowledge and incentive problems in setting monetary policy, what is meant by “rule of law,” how to make monetary policy accountable, centralized versus decentralized forms of digital currencies, thoughts on free banking, and much more.   Transcript for the episode can be found here.   Alex’s Twitter: @alexwsalter Alex’s website: https://www.awsalter.com/ Alex’s Free Market Institute profile: https://www.depts.ttu.edu/freemarketinstitute/people/salter.php   Daniel’s Twitter: @smithdanj1 Daniel’s website: http://www.danieljosephsmith.com/about.html Daniel’s MTSU profile: https://www.mtsu.edu/faculty/daniel-j-smith   Related Links:   *Seigniorage in a Cross-Section of Countries* by Reid W. Click https://www.jstor.org/stable/2601207   *Money and the Rule of Law: Generality and Predictability in Monetary Institutions* by Peter J. Boettke, Alexander William Salter, and Daniel J. Smith https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/money-and-the-rule-of-law/C825E982EDE5BD2BE41A99464DC885DB   David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

David Andolfatto is a vice president for the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank and has published widely in the field of monetary economics. David also blogs at MacroMania and is a returning guest to the podcast. He rejoins Macro Musings to talk about his thoughts on macro theory, plumbing issues, central bank digital currency, and more.   Transcript for the episode can be found here.   David’s Twitter: @dandolfa David’s St. Louis Fed profile: https://www.stlouisfed.org/about-us/leadership-governance/bank-officers/executive-bios/david-andolfatto   Related Links:   *Some Thoughts on Central Bank Digital Currency* by David Andolfatto https://www.cato.org/cato-journal/spring/summer-2021/some-thoughts-central-bank-digital-currency   *Minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee: April 27-28, 2021* by the Fed https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/files/fomcminutes20210428.pdf   David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Former governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, Mark Carney, discusses his new book *Value(s): Building a Better World for All* and his career in central banking. They talk about the Great Recession, central bank frameworks, digital currencies, dollar dominance, the shadow banking system, and the role of central banks in combating climate change.

George Selgin is the director of the Cato Institute’s Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives and is a returning guest to the podcast. He rejoins Macro Musings to talk about the Fed’s recent calls for comments on opening up Fed accounts to fintechs and other non-bank financial firms. George and David also discuss monetary plumbing issues, the state of fiscal QE, and more.   Transcript for the episode can be found here.   George’s Twitter: @GeorgeSelgin George’s Cato Institute profile: https://www.cato.org/people/george-selgin   Related Links:   *Keeping Fintech’s Promise: A Modest Proposal* by George Selgin https://thehill.com/opinion/finance/552614-keeping-fintechs-promise-a-modest-proposal   *Central Bank Digital Currency as a Potential Source of Financial Instability* by George Selgin https://www.cato.org/cato-journal/spring/summer-2021/central-bank-digital-currency-potential-source-financial-instability   *Federal Reserve Board Invites Public Comment on Proposed Guidelines to Evaluate Requests for Accounts and Payment Services at Federal Reserve Banks* by the Fed https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/bcreg20210505a.htm   *Aaron Klein on Real-time Payments and Financial Regulation* https://macromusings.libsyn.com/aaron-klein-on-real-time-payments-and-financial-regulation   David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth