Report May 1999

In The Levy Report Interview, James K. Galbraith discusses his views on the state of the American economy and the economics profession, including the Federal Reserve’s focus on controlling inflation, monetary policy’s role in lowering unemployment, and the connection between unemployment and inequality in the wage structure.

Contents: Ninth Annual Hyman P. Minsky Conference on Financial Structure * James K. Galbraith on the State of the American Economy and the Economics Profession * New Working Paper topics include: Risk Reduction in the New Financial Architecture * Potential for Financial Instability in the European Union * Union Density and the Minimum Wage * Distributional Effects of Disinflationary Monetary Policy* * New Policy Note topics include: How Negative Can US Saving Get? * Surplus Mania: A Reality Check * Providing for Baby Boomers in Their Old Age * Levy Institute News: Lectures on Computers and the Wage Structure * The Psychology and Institutional Determinants of Foreign Exchange Rates * Social Security: Is There a Real Problem? * Sectoral Changes in Employment