Publications

College Degrees: Why Aren't More People Making the Investment?

The benefits of a college diploma are many, including higher pay, lower unemployment, maybe even better health. Yet many high school graduates still do not pursue a college degree. This article examines several key reasons why more people aren’t making this investment in themselves.

(16 Ratings)

Many Moving Parts: A Look Inside the U.S. Labor Market

By David Andolfatto and Marcela M. Williams

Almost 8 million jobs were lost in the Great Recession of 2007-09 when the average unemployment rate peaked at over 9 percent. Roughly 1 million jobs have been regained since early 2010, but the unemployment rate remains persistently high. Some policymakers fear a prolonged “jobless recovery”—a period of rising average income, measured by gross domestic product (GDP)—with little or no employment growth.

(9 Ratings)

Paper or Plastic? The Potential Impact of Prepaid Cards on Personal Financial Management

By Lesley Morgan

The true potential of prepaid cards has yet to be discovered, but consumers who are still navigating alternatives to pay off their bills during the slow economy, as well as people who prefer to use options other than traditional banking to manage their finances, are at the heart of this growing market.

(0 Ratings)

The Role of Financing in International Trade during Good Times and Bad

By Silvio Contessi and Francesca de Nicola

The collapse of trade during the financial crisis can be tied, for the most part, to a drop in demand. Less talked about, however, is the role of financing—or lack thereof.

(14 Ratings)

Will Community Bank Returns on Equity Return to Precrisis Levels?

By Gary S. Corner

It is possible ROE will settle in at a lower-than-precrisis historical rate, leading to a resetting of performance expectations by community bank stakeholders.

(0 Ratings)

Is Shadow Banking Really Banking?

By Bryan J. Noeth and Rajdeep Sengupta

To those who don't know, the term "shadow banking" probably has a negative connotation. This primer draws parallels between what has been termed the shadow banking sector and the traditional banking sector—showing that they are similar in many ways.

(0 Ratings)

Questions about the Budget Deficit of the U.S. Have No Easy Answers

By William R. Emmons

This Q&A on the federal deficit is a preview of the "Dialogue with the Fed" that the public is invited to Oct. 18 at the St. Louis Fed.

(0 Ratings)

Rebuilding Household Balance Sheets: Ray Boshara’s Testimony to the U.S. Senate

By Ray Boshara

St. Louis Fed Senior Advisor Ray Boshara has referred to the weak household balance sheet as one of the core economic challenges of our time, suggesting that households must focus on rebuilding their balance sheets—including securing the right levels and types of savings, debts and assets. Read an abridged version of his congressional testimony in the first of a series of articles on this topic.

(21 Ratings)

Why Health Care Matters and the Current Debt Does Not

By Brett W. Fawley and Luciana Juvenal

All of the attention given to raising the debt ceiling this past summer might lead some to believe that spending by the federal government only recently became unsustainable. Hardly. We've been on this path a long time.

(0 Ratings)

Agriculture Banks Are Outperforming Their Peers, But How Long Will It Last?

By Gary S. Corner

With soaring commodity prices and farmland values in recent years, banks with an agricultural focus (where at least 25 percent of total loans are production and farmland loans) have outperformed their community bank peers. Find out what risks agriculture banks may face.

(34 Ratings)

Commodity Price Gains: Speculation vs. Fundamentals

By Brett W. Fawley and Luciana Juvenal

Commodities of all sorts have risen in price over the past few years. Some say that the prices reflect a bubble, driven by low interest rates and excessive speculation. Others say the price gains can be fully explained by supply and demand.

(0 Ratings)

Recent Accounting Standard Update Clarifies and Adds Guidance to Troubled Debt Restructurings

By Jim Warren

Although some believe the changes could lead to more loans reported as troubled debt restructurings, the update’s purpose is to explain and expand on previous guidance.

(22 Ratings)

Replicating the Harlem Children's Zone: How a Charter School Tax Credit Could Bring Human Capital Investment to Scale

By Ian Galloway

Every year, 1.2 million students drop out of high school in the United States. A clear moral and policy failure, this ongoing crisis is also an economic disaster.

(28 Ratings)

The Foreclosure Crisis in 2008: Predatory Lending or Household Overreaching?

At least early in the financial crisis, the high rate of foreclosures seemed to be due more to households' overreaching than to predatory lending. A disproportionate number of those being foreclosed on were well-educated, well-off and relatively young people.

(0 Ratings)

The Mismatch between Job Openings and Job Seekers

By Maria E. Canon and Mingyu Chen

Today's high unemployment rate is often linked to a structural imbalance—a mismatch between the skills and location required to fill vacant jobs and the skills and geographical preferences of the unemployed. But the evidence downplays the role of this mismatch.

(0 Ratings)

Cards, Cards and More Cards: The Evolution to Prepaid Cards

(0 Ratings)

Jobless Recoveries: Causes and Consequences

By Natalia A. Kolesnikova and Yang Liu

(0 Ratings)

Most Community Banks Will Pay Lower Premiums under FDIC Assessment Rules

By Jim Fuchs and Andrew P. Meyer

Find out why community banks will benefit from the new FDIC assessment base as called for under the Dodd-Frank Act.

(0 Ratings)

Prepaid Market is Small But Growing Rapidly

(0 Ratings)

Reflections on Exploring Innovation

By David C. Reiling

This issue of Bridges is devoted to topics covered during the Exploring Innovation conference in St. Louis. For more in-depth coverage of conference happenings, visit 2011.exploringinnovation.org

(34 Ratings)

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