Timely Topics

Matuschka Lindo Briggs, senior vice president and regional executive of the Little Rock Branch, is joined by Senior Economist Charles Gascon, who helps compile the qualitative summary of economic activity for the Beige Book. They discuss the anecdotal information that is collected and the way it informs how economists think about the economy.

St. Louis Fed economist Nathan Jefferson discusses highlights from the national Beige Book summary. An overall summary of the 12 district reports is prepared by a designated Federal Reserve Bank on a rotating basis with the St. Louis Fed responsible for this edition. Also, Matuschka Lindo Briggs, senior vice president and regional executive of the Little Rock Branch, provides highlights and the latest perspectives about the Arkansas economy.

In this Timely Topics podcast episode, Matuschka Lindo Briggs, senior vice president and regional executive of the St. Louis Fed's Little Rock Branch, and Nathan Jefferson, associate economist, discuss economic insights about the Arkansas region from the latest Beige Book release.

"Although it isn't exactly new, the most alarming recent feature of financial markets may be the inverted yield curve," says Chris Neely, an economist and vice president at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, explaining that short rates are higher than long rates currently and have been for some time. Neely discusses his research on the yield curve and recession indicators.

In this Timely Topics podcast episode, Matuschka Lindo Briggs, senior vice president and regional executive of the Little Rock Branch, and Nathan Jefferson, associate economist, discuss economic insights about the Arkansas region from the July Beige Book.

"Of particular concern is the extent to which wages have kept up with the rising cost of living," says Victoria Gregory, an economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, in explaining the distinction between real and nominal wage growth. Gregory discusses her research on inflation and real wages in this podcast episode.

"People's tendency to learn more information about the economy during crisis and downturns can actually lead to greater uncertainty," says Yu-Ting Chiang, economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, discussing the effect of macroeconomic uncertainty on information consumption and decision making.

In this Timely Topics podcast episode, Matuschka Lindo Briggs, senior vice president and regional executive of the Little Rock Branch, and Nathan Jefferson, associate economist, discuss economic insights about the Arkansas region from the May Beige Book.

"Wealthy households, by investing mostly in their own businesses … compound their wealth at a much higher rate than the rest of the population," says Serdar Ozkan, a research officer at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, explaining how the wealthiest people became rich.

In this Timely Topics podcast episode, Matuschka Lindo Briggs, senior vice president and regional executive of the Little Rock Branch, and Nathan Jefferson, associate economist, discuss economic insights about the Arkansas region from the April Beige Book.