Economics

Congressional Democrats voted to raise the debt ceiling, avoiding the risk of default with only hours to spare.

Part of Detroit’s history of racial discrimination is comprised on housing discrimination, which in turn contributed to job discrimination, interpersonal racism, and continued racial inequity…

Through a guided discussion and review of data, students learn that the practice of racial segregation concentrated African Americans in the lowest-graded, or redlined, neighborhoods.

This issue explains how residents in redlined neighborhoods could not afford to become homeowners and accumulate wealth at the rates other groups did.

Proposals that base their remedies primarily on formerly redlined areas do not redress the main racial group that was explicitly targeted.

It turns out that big surpluses have been almost universal across states.

Poultry company executives are indicted on antitrust charges after years of federal investigations into price-fixing on America’s most ubiquitous protein.

From Partridges in Pear Trees to Drummers Drumming...check out how much the quirky gifts from “The Twelve Days of Christmas” cost this year!

COVID-19 hit the global economy hard, but some companies thrived amidst the chaos. Here are the top 100 most valuable brands of 2021.

At-home test kits have been hard to find in my cities across the United States. When they are in stock, their prices seem higher than what they should. One possible explanation comes in the form of monopoly power from the largest producer of the kits: Abbott Labratories.

Inflation accelerated at its fastest pace since 1982 in November, the Labor Department said Friday.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A warehouse worker in Tennessee is running up against price increases that far exceed her modest pay raise. The owner of a pastry business in Massachusetts has had to reduce his product offerings and personally absorb higher costs.

Musk said in an interview that more social spending would just add to the already sky-high federal deficit.

The Federal Reserve could decide to speed up the end of its bond buying and signal that it expects to start hiking interest rates in 2022.

Answer: $346 Questions: Why do you think insurance companies raise a driver’s premium after they get a tlcket for texting while driving? What strategies do you use in order to avoid this temptation while driving? Click here for the ready-to-go slides for this Question of the Day that you can use in your classroom. Behind the numbers (from Carinsurance.com):  A driver texting ticket can increase your rates by an average of 23 percent ($346 yearly), a rate analysis by CarInsurance.com shows.

Hat tip to Jessica for sharing this interactive. Home prices in many markets have rocketed skyward during the pandemic. While many note the supply/demand imbalances that have been driving prices, there's another factor at work here. Namely, the costs of construction materials for new homes have seen significant increases which get passed along to the buyers in the form of higher prices.  In this interactive from Bloomberg, students will be able to see recent price changes in the various components of a home (e.g., foundation, trusses, drywall):  Questions:  Which building materials had the largest increase (in dollars)?

Prices and demand surged, just as supplies dwindled.

Trying to bring some common sense to the world of finance. Book: https://t.co/c53AckMaZF Podcast: https://t.co/GrhZZzIjLv

A virtual bank for students bringing financial education to life

The share of household wealth owned by billionaires has risen by a record amount during the pandemic, with millionaires also coming out of COVID-19 ahead, a study found on Tuesday.

An incredible visualisation of global shipping traffic, created by Kiln.digital and the UCL Energy Institute.

Just one-in-six Michigan voters thinks the state has a long-term strategy for attracting new jobs and business investment.About 71 percent of Michigan voters believe job-creation policy depends on who's in office, according to a new statewide poll commissioned by Business Leaders for Michigan.In…

Amazon's use of Alexa as a wake word for its voice assistant turned the name into a command, impacting daily interactions for people with the name, myself included.

The Justice Department has filed a lawsuit seeking to block a major U.S. sugar manufacturer from acquiring its rival. The department contends that the deal would harm competition and consumers.

Supply chain carnage creates opportunities for companies willing to take a chance on random goods, from cheese to used cars—and maybe even pumpkin seeds.