When the economy slows, monetary policymakers face pressure to deviate from their longer-term goals to address short-term problems. This Commentary argues that the Fed must stay focused on the long term—maintaining the stable purchasing power of the dollar. The Commentary is adapted from a...

An examination of the nature of economic recovery, with an analysis of the performance of past employment expansions in the Fourth Federal Reserve District, and discussion of the outlook for autos, steel, and capital goods.

We are here today and tomorrow to examine concentrated poverty - that is, poverty that affects more than 40 percent of people living in a particular region or city - through the lens of community development. I think we can all agree that community reinvestment initiatives have done a great deal...

President Pianalto discusses the economic outlook and the Federal Reserve’s recent actions, commenting on changes to the financial regulatory system. She makes the case for a new framework for categorizing financial institutions based on the degree of risk they pose to the financial system,...

Economists at our Bank have concluded that differences in state income levels over the past 75 years can be explained mostly by two factors: innovation and education. In simple terms, those states that enhance their knowledge base are the ones that are likely to prosper in the future.

The Federal Reserve is an adapting, evolving, and learning organization. In the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland's 2012 Annual Report, we take a close look at how it has changed since its creation 100 years ago. Our essay describes some of the seminal episodes that have influenced the Federal...

Developing issues in the labor market are clouding the outlook for both the unemployment rate and the natural rate of unemployment over the next few years. Both rates at their current levels clearly argue for providing an accommodative monetary policy, as long as inflation remains consistent...

President Pianalto began by sharing her views on how financial innovation has reshaped the mortgage market over the past few decades. She spoke about the promises and pitfalls of that innovation and about how the current situation in the mortgage market has unfolded. Finally, she described ideas...

Understanding why the prices of commodities, like copper, increase or decrease is one of the many pieces of the puzzle that we as policymakers try to fit together to help us figure out how the economy and inflation will perform in the future. Inflation is what the Federal Reserve can control -...