Data Shows Jones Act Waivers Don't Displace U.S. Mariners
"Claims that Jones Act waivers displace U.S. mariners are contradicted by the data. Every Jones Act–compliant tanker is currently active — underway, in port, or in scheduled maintenance. Waivers fill demand the fleet cannot physically meet." 😯 https://t.co/kbKfcmAbkj https://t.co/aYzEvt63pL
Pentagon Doubts Rare‑earths Deal, Sparking White House Clash
These deals are getting worse all the time: "Pentagon Doubts Over Rare Earths Deal Provoke White House Clash" https://t.co/IYZCwjqctC https://t.co/53rpPevoJu
Trump’s Policies Drain US Economy Amid AI Boom
Some fun/depressing napkin-math from The Economist on how much Trump's trade & immigration policies - and chaotic policymaking overall - are costing the otherwise-solid US economy (thanks mainly to the AI boom): https://t.co/sAdCJvmSaF https://t.co/cDUJmNpHrW
No‑headline US‑China Summit Reveals Bleak Outlook for US
My latest @opinion column looks at what last week's "no headline" US-China summit told us about the bilateral relationship, and little of it is good for the US side: https://t.co/RyxTa0KLuu (🎁) https://t.co/VGS33PAZL2
Idaho's New Zoning Law Sparks Starter Home Boom
"Idaho shows America how to build A new zoning law paves the way for more starter homes." https://t.co/ntdy4gurWs https://t.co/MjE1lKy0qO
China's Solar Overproduction Slashes Prices, Squeezes Profits
"The problem is that China is producing twice as many solar components as the world needs. This flood of supply has pushed down prices, encouraging uptake of the technology but destroying profitability." https://t.co/hNHOIVaDPS https://t.co/15LKS06YsY
Regional Integration Offsets Harm of U.S. Discriminatory Tariffs
"Discriminatory Tariffs, Trade Diversion, and the Economic Impacts of Recent U.S. Trade Policy" https://t.co/s1LB7u7p56 "Regional economic integration emerges as an effective mitigation strategy" https://t.co/QBMsun0Vkh
Boeing's China Orders Plummet Post‑Trump 2017 Visit
"The country's last big order with Boeing was during Trump's November 2017 trip to Beijing.... Relations between the two countries soured after that, and Boeing has received 51 orders, mostly for freighters, since then." https://t.co/CqiKo4fzid https://t.co/Q5hwp5Uocn
China Shifts Export Focus to Brazil, Argentina, Boosts Infrastructure
"exports have moved lower as China diversified sourcing toward South America, particularly Brazil and Argentina, while also investing in port infrastructure, logistics networks and supply chain partnerships across the region" https://t.co/o15bIJ5jMM https://t.co/t2JiS2ZE2r
US, China Eye Tariff Cuts on Non‑critical Goods
"US eyes Board of Trade with China to cut tariffs on non-critical goods" https://t.co/QDdTqLYgnB This, of course, raises more Qs than As. Beyond the obvs when/what, 1) Why do we have tariffs on this stuff rn; and 2) Why are...
AI Exposure Estimates for US Jobs Vary 2.7%‑51.5%
"When the ruler is made of the thing it measures: Multi-model evidence on AI occupational exposure scores" https://t.co/VTJwsuoD0o "The share of US occupations classified as ‘high direct exposure’ to AI differs widely, ranging from 2.7% to 51.5% depending on the model...
Tariffs Hurt Consumers, Ranchers Block Trump’s Trade Gains
Worst of all worlds for Trump, tbh. Admit imports lower prices (and tariffs increase them), but don't get any actual market benefit bc of opposition from profiteering US ranchers & their GOP friends in Congress.
RFS Compliance Cost $252 Billion over 2011‑2025
A new paper estimates that, between 2011 & 2025, the inflation-adjusted cost of complying with Renewable Fuel Standard mandates was a whopping $252.1 BILLION: https://t.co/cySLR4azF1 https://t.co/bSKrWj235t
US Job Growth Shifts to Women, Men Lose Ground
"The American labor market is tilting away from men, with nearly all net job growth over the past year coming from the female-dominated healthcare and social-assistance category. Male-dominated sectors such as manufacturing and transportation and warehousing have been losing jobs,...
USMCA Uncertainty Triggers Stock Market Spillover Effects
"From Trade Agreement to Trade War: USMCA, Tariff Uncertainty, and Stock Market Spillovers" https://t.co/y7YeegL2TO https://t.co/fsDht48TW1
Trump Opens Beef Imports to Curb Soaring Prices
Imports (and tariff cuts) to the rescue, AGAIN: "Trump Clears Way for More Beef Imports, Aiming to Bring Down Record-High Prices" https://t.co/PrVADPxrF7 https://t.co/WqLArEHL6p
California's Job Market Pivots to Healthcare, Lower Wages
"Forget AI. The California job market is powered by healthcare" https://t.co/JtusUDsgVe "States such as Idaho are adding jobs in both high- and low-wage sectors. California is undergoing a great labor market transformation towards lower-paid work." https://t.co/t1r2Ff7Rby
Jones Act Waiver Reveals Cronies' Real-Time Meltdown
An unintended benefit of the current Jones Act waiver is getting to see the cronies melt down in real time https://t.co/pnFrzdrDXJ
Millions Spent on Trump's Gold Phone, None Delivered
"590,000 buyers paid $59 million for Trump's gold phone — not 1 has shipped and refunds look unlikely" https://t.co/EOeoep47XJ Unsurprising, ofc, but still very sketchy/funny: https://t.co/BvlzmHc5hy
Road Injuries Claim 1.3 Million Lives, 2.4% Globally
The Waymos are Good, actually: "Around 1.3 million people die from road injuries across the world every year. That includes the deaths of drivers, passengers, and pedestrians. That’s around 2.4% of deaths from all causes." https://t.co/hZ0DSLZ5Wg https://t.co/7zzpPZZUSm
Policy Barriers, Not Greedy Capitalists, Shrink Labor Share
I'm in @PostOpinions today discussing new research on a big driver of the declining "labor share": not greedy capitalists, but healthcare, labor, tax, licensing, & other policies that discourage employers from hiring/firing & workers from quitting: https://t.co/bHjB5uw6cI (🎁) https://t.co/RpU4QmN7iE
US Ramps up Exports as China Curtails Imports
"the United States has responded by cranking up exports, while China has slashed imports" https://t.co/09kxu4zCqF https://t.co/jQMwClxNcB
Costco’s Signature Butter Sourced From New Zealand
"It might surprise consumers to know their favorite schmear is made in a completely different hemisphere. In 2021, Costco began collaborating with Westland Milk Products in Hokitika, New Zealand, to create the signature butter" 🌎🐮 🌏 https://t.co/wDA2uFjdY9
Firms Reinvest Tariff Refunds Into Growth Plans
"Companies Are Getting Tariff Refunds. Here’s What They Plan to Do With the Money." https://t.co/XNm16mh4Qh Good @WSJ look at a few of the American companies getting some of their own money back from the US government that illegally took it: https://t.co/a1xbURLOXD
Trade Integration Cuts War Risk, De‑risking Limits Peace Gains
"Why ‘de-risking’ may not deliver a large peace dividend" https://t.co/maK8q2CpW8 "Our estimates show that greater trade integration lowers the probability that a dispute escalates to the highest levels of hostility, which involve use of military force and high-casualty wars." https://t.co/NyNiSm6CC6
Switching Flights? Delays Persist, Check Before Moving
Checking on that repeatedly-delayed flight you finally switched from to see it's still delayed an hour after you switched. https://t.co/r6kZ661R7h
Government Could Wield Section 122 Tariffs at Will
"had the government’s position prevailed, it would have meant that it could impose tariffs under Section 122 at any time" https://t.co/mQBaaGOJKY https://t.co/1I8xDv11mZ
Tariffs Dominate Business Discussions, Says NC Governor
NC Gov. Stein on corporate investment: "Some of them are still coming, don't get me wrong … but almost every business meeting I have, one of the first topics they bring up is the challenges of tariffs" https://t.co/A8Cfovlh2b https://t.co/NetY7oVnbT
Tyson Beef Faces $350‑$500M Loss Amid Cattle Shortage
"Tyson’s beef operations posted a wider loss, and the company expects the segment to lose $350M to $500M in 2026... the severity of the current cattle shortage has sent prices so high that meatpackers are losing money on every animal...
Broad Deficit Definition Risks Non-Delegation, Constitutional Challenge
CIT: "I]f the President has the ability to select among the sub-accounts to identify a balance-of-payments deficit, unless every sub-account is balanced, the President would always be able to identify a balance-of-payments deficit…. Such an expansive reading of the statute...
Excel Cuts Costs, Boosts Accountant Numbers
"Excel dramatically lowered the cost of financial analysis, reporting and record-keeping, making these services accessible to a far broader range of businesses and use cases. The result has been more accountants, not fewer" 🔥 https://t.co/fWNlNFkyEa https://t.co/9B7F8Mal4s
Trump's Jones Act Waiver Undermines Security and Economy
🚨 My new @opinion column explains how the Trump administration's lengthy waiver of the Jones Act implodes many of the law's common security & economic defenses - and finally gives critics the data to prove it: /1 https://t.co/g8C9lAMJBO
Tariff‑Heavy Whirlpool Misses Earnings Boost, Faces Inflation Drag
"Analysts at JPMorgan said the lower earnings outlook was driven by higher raw material inflation, a larger net tariff impact and weaker price and product mix benefits." Reminder: Whirlpool heavily lobbied for tariffs and was supposed to be one of the...
Project Vault Turns Public Reserve Into Market Manipulator
"How the Project Vault Mineral Reserve Threatens Markets" https://t.co/UXrFHrqChB "it’s less like an emergency stockpile and more like a state-sponsored market" "it blurs the line between public and private roles"😬 https://t.co/lTOxD2untn
Trump Administration Begins Paying IEEPA Tariff Refunds
I've been critical (& skeptical) of the Trump admin's IEEPA tariff refund system, but this is legitimately good news. Much more to do to ensure everyone gets paid, but still... VERY good: "Tariff Refunds Have Started Being Paid by Trump Administration"...
U.S. Precious Metals Overtake Energy as Top Export
Very weird, kinda unsettling data (via @EBGresser): The United States' top export in February 2026 (and also now March) isn't energy or aircraft but... precious metals. And it's a trade that really took off in early 2025: https://t.co/SdVljJBXQC https://t.co/TLWP2ZCoD4
US Government Borrowing Now Mirrors External Deficits
"net US liabilities reached 24 per cent of global output in 2024 against a mere 6 per cent in 2008, and... the US private sector has moved into balance. So, the domestic counterpart of its external deficits today is borrowing...
Tariffs Threaten Small Businesses, Forcing Indiana Music Store to Close
"For some small businesses, tariffs don’t just mean higher costs — they mean shutting down. A music store in Indiana is facing exactly that reality." https://t.co/raU0cyVQzu
Small-Dollar Mortgage Market Has Vanished Since 2008 Crisis
"Since the 2008 financial crisis, the market for small-dollar mortgage loans has collapsed." https://t.co/VNL42Vui9C https://t.co/YZb58oQg2G
Looser Firing Rules Boost Productivity, Wages, Modestly Affect Unemployment
"Labor Market Fluidity and Aggregate Productivity" https://t.co/KoT8flEFKs "easing dismissal restrictions... raises labor productivity, output, and wages, while the unemployment rate responds only modestly" https://t.co/jfr8AjboI2
2026 US Goods Trade Balance Mirrors 2024, Not 2025
New data from the Census today show that, adjusted for inflation, the 2026 US goods trade balance is essentially unchanged vs the same period in 2024. (2025 is wildly distorted bc of an import surge due to tariff front-running.) https://t.co/f779W6FJZL https://t.co/eTPHLFMM9T
Tariffs Alone Won’t Revive U.S. Textile Industry
"It Will Take More Than Tariffs to Bring Back U.S. Textile Manufacturing, Industry Insiders Say" 😯 https://t.co/xrPxylUcmA https://t.co/DDxL6NjUj4
Beef Imports Surge to Record $13.75B, up 28% Yo
"[B]eef imports in total are exploding at $4.5 billion through March, up 28% from a year ago. That comes after record for beef imports at $13.75 billion in 2025, up nearly $2.5 billion from a year earlier." https://t.co/M9mSqQvOq6
Tariffs Yield Minimal Deficit Reduction After One Year
"The figures measure the limited progress made toward the Trump administration’s goal of reducing the deficit in the 12 months after President Trump rolled out steep global tariffs in April 2025." 😯
US Faces Greater Energy Market Pain Than Peers
"Is the US truly resilient to the energy market strife?" https://t.co/46EB0O8i3E "But the main thing that jumped out to Alphaville was how the US is definitely feeling the pain too — and indeed more pain than other regions." https://t.co/jpKZ2aufyn
Net Negative Migration Threatens U.S. Workforce and Growth
"Why 'net negative migration' could spell bad news for the U.S. economy The U.S. is on track to lose more immigrants than it gains in 2026. That means fewer workers paying taxes, building homes, growing food, and caring for an aging...
Tariffs, War, and Anger Spark Massive Aluminum Self‑Sabotage
Sky-high aluminum tariffs + a war that knocks out Middle Eastern aluminum supplies + pissing off one of the world's largest aluminum suppliers (and your nextdoor neighbor) = inarguably one of the biggest industrial own-goals in recent memory https://t.co/dgPngPBWuE
India Accelerates Trade Liberalization with New FTAs and Tariff Cuts
"India this week signed the latest in what’s been a run of rapid-fire free trade agreements.... India also has unilaterally cut tariffs on some key inputs and rolled back QCOs in sectors including steel, textiles and chemicals." https://t.co/AVxgDPYywi https://t.co/oZpPAr08RK
5% Automation Across Sectors Triggers Six-Year Singularity
New @nberpubs: "When Does Automating AI Research Produce Explosive Growth? Feedback Loops in Innovation Networks" https://t.co/TN3XpJafkP "fully automating software research and modest (5%) automation in other sectors generates a singularity within six years" 🤔 https://t.co/YHjzirnvrB
Reliable Statistics Yield $25 Economic Return per Dollar
New @nberpubs: "The Value of Reliable Statistics" https://t.co/o7WjZmZn9g "preserving trust in the integrity and quality of official statistics generates economic benefits of about $25 for every $1 spent on the agency’s budget" https://t.co/TLdaYhyJkh