The U.S. economy faces higher deficits, reduced government benefits and near-zero interest rates unless policymakers act aggressively, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said Thursday.
In a speech to the Cato Institute in Washington, Mester painted a bleak picture driven in part by an aging population and lower productivity. Rising Social Security and health costs already are projected to carve a bigger hole in the federal budget, pushing the deficit to an unacceptable level.
One suggestion she has to accelerate growth and address declining productivity is immigration. Her remarks took direct aim at a priority of the Trump administration to curtail the inflow of foreigners, particularly from countries with large Muslim populations.
"Policies that increase the growth and productivity of the workforce would address not only fiscal imbalances but the downward pressure on longer-run growth from demographics or other sources," she said. "Policies that increase immigration, not reduce it, that support continuing education, that encourage R&D and innovation, and that provide incentives so people work longer should receive attention."
Full article: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/11/16/fed...y-needs-more-immigration-to-save-economy.html
In a speech to the Cato Institute in Washington, Mester painted a bleak picture driven in part by an aging population and lower productivity. Rising Social Security and health costs already are projected to carve a bigger hole in the federal budget, pushing the deficit to an unacceptable level.
One suggestion she has to accelerate growth and address declining productivity is immigration. Her remarks took direct aim at a priority of the Trump administration to curtail the inflow of foreigners, particularly from countries with large Muslim populations.
"Policies that increase the growth and productivity of the workforce would address not only fiscal imbalances but the downward pressure on longer-run growth from demographics or other sources," she said. "Policies that increase immigration, not reduce it, that support continuing education, that encourage R&D and innovation, and that provide incentives so people work longer should receive attention."
Full article: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/11/16/fed...y-needs-more-immigration-to-save-economy.html
