Английский язык для специальных целей в экономической сфере. Практикум для студентов-магистров

measure of national income grew at an average of 1.3 percent annually — but this aggregate income growth went disproportionately to those at the top of the income ladder. For those in the top 10 percent, income rose by 2 percent while the top 1 percent enjoyed a whopping 2.9 percent rise in annual income. The bottom 90 percent saw its income rise by 1 percent.

What their analysis tells us is that gross domestic product data obscures what is really going on in America. To change that, we need the Bureau of Economic Analysis to modify how it reports the data on national income. The research done by Piketty, Saez and Zucman lays down the groundwork for this, and the bureau’s statisticians and economists have been working with them and other scholars to identify how they could deploy new empirical techniques to show who actually gains when the economy grows. A small number of countries, like Australia, are already doing this, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has formed an expert group to study how best to standardize the technique.

Recently, the Senate Appropriations Committee allotted $1 million to the Bureau of Economic Analysis to develop indicators that will show how people’s incomes grow in each 10 percent swath and not just in the aggregate, which is good

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news. But for the most reliable income statistics, Congress also needs to allow the bureau to access tax-return data from the Internal Revenue Service. Economists can use this data under special agreements with the Treasury Department, but the Bureau of Economic Analysis has access only to corporate tax returns, not those of individuals.

Most important, we need Congress to require quarterly reporting of these estimates alongside gross domestic product. This will give us a full accounting of national income, which should focus the attention of policymakers, financial markets and the media on the need to produce broad-based economic growth. Fixing the way we measure economic success will allow us to demand policies that lead to an economy where growth is strong, stable and more widely shared.

Instead of enacting policies that primarily benefit those at the top and calling it a success every quarter when the aggregate national income rises, we would have a more complete picture of what, if anything, trickles down to the rest of us.

Are these statements true or false? Correct the false ones.

1.The nation’s main indicator of economic performance is GDP (the sum total of all that’s produced in our economy).

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2.If you manage by the correct measurement, it’s worse than having no metrics at all.

3.When policymakers look to gross domestic product as a measure of their success, they are seeing the whole picture.

4.The welfare of a nation can, therefore, scarcely be inferred from a measurement of national income.

5.The economists have done groundbreaking work to disaggregate the national accounts data to show how those at all income levels were faring year to year and over a longer span of time.

6.Analysis has access both to corporate tax returns and to those of individuals.

7.Congress should require quarterly reporting of these estimates alongside gross domestic product.

Questions:

1)What indicator can we use to characterize a country's economic activity?

2)What is the difference in understanding gross domestic product before and today?

3)How did people's incomes change in the post-war period?

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4) Why has gross domestic product become less

informative after the Simon Kuznets report?

Text 8 Hiring cools as virus saps recovery

By Sarah Chaney Cambon

The Wall Street Journal Weekend - December 5/6, 2020,

pages 1, 2

U.S. job growth slowed sharply in November, suggesting the labor-market recovery is losing steam amid a surge in coronavirus cases and new business restrictions.

Employers added 245,000 jobs last month, down from 610,000 jobs in October, the Labor Department reported Friday. The unemployment rate edged down slightly to 6.7% in November from 6.9% a month earlier, but that was partly because fewer Americans were seeking work.

November marked the seventh consecutive month of job gains at a steadily cooling pace. The labor market has regained 12 million of the 22 million jobs lost at the onset of the pandemic.

At November’s pace of job growth, employment wouldn’t return to pre-pandemic levels until 2024, Glassdoor senior economist Daniel Zhao said.

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“We saw positive job gains, but I think the sentiment is largely negative because we know that we’re heading into a dark winter,” Mr. Zhao said.

“There is a long way to go before we actually have a vaccine in hand and make a full economic recovery.”

Employers boosted jobs in transportation and warehousing last month, likely reflecting holiday hiring for e-commerce roles. Government payrolls declined by nearly 100,000, largely reflecting the roll-off of temporary workers hired for the 2020 census. Employment also fell in the retail category that includes bricks-and-mortar stores.

The U.S. economy overall has recovered much of the ground lost earlier this year, even though the expansion has lost momentum since the third quarter’s rapid rebound. Consumers boosted their spending in October for the sixth straight month, and new applications for unemployment benefits—a proxy for layoffs—fell last week after a recent jump.

The nation’s trade deficit widened in October as exports and imports both rose for a fifth straight month, the Commerce Department reported Friday, reflecting a continued recovery in global commerce from the impact of the pandemic.

The trade deficit rose to a seasonally adjusted $63.1 billion in October from $62.1 billion in September. Exports rose 2.2% to

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$182.0 billion from the previous month, while imports rose 2.1% to $245.1 billion.

The economy faces nearterm challenges, including a new wave of virus infections that triggered some states and localities to impose new restrictions on business. The onset of winter could deter spending and job creation in sectors like restaurants that have become more reliant on business outdoors. Food services and drinking places cut jobs in November for the first time since April.

Still, the labor-market recovery from the job destruction this spring has been stronger than most economists forecast. Many expect widespread vaccine distribution to eventually help lift the economy as businesses are allowed to reopen and consumers feel more comfortable traveling, going to the movies and returning to other in-person activities involving proximity to other people.

Economists say there are persistent risks of labor-market scarring.

Many individuals, facing increased child-care responsibilities or limited job opportunities, have stopped looking for work. The labor-force participation rate, or the share of Americans working or looking for work, was 61.5% in November. That is

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up from April’s trough but remains near the lowest level since the 1970s.

The number of individuals out of the labor force who want a job increased in November to 7.1 million, Friday’s Labor

Department report said.

Lon Hoyt, 62 years old, played the keyboard in the Broadway musical “Ain’t Too Proud” in March before the coronavirus forced theaters to close. Mr. Hoyt, who has made a career of directing and playing music on Broadway, said he hasn’t been looking for a new job because theaters remain dark. Instead, he is spending time practicing the piano, cooking and cleaning, or, as he puts it, becoming “a domestic god.”

Mr. Hoyt intends to return to Broadway once widespread vaccine distribution allows people to attend live entertainment.

“You can relax, but there’s also depression that there is no next gig as of now,” Mr. Hoy said. “The only thing that’s helping is my wife is continuing to work. My friends and I have said we’re on wife support.”

President-elect Joe Biden said Friday’s jobs figures reflected economic weakness. “This is a grim jobs report. It shows an economy that is stalling,” he said in a statement.

Larry Kudlow, director of the White House National Economic Council, noted the report also provides evidence of economic

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recovery. “There’s still a lot of suffering out there I agree. But I will also argue the economy has registered a very strong comeback,” he told reporters.

The weaker-than-expected jobs report spurred congressional lawmakers of both parties to continue efforts to craft a coronavirus relief bill. Negotiators are hashing out the details of a roughly $900 billion plan, which includes a $300 weekly unemployment benefits supplement.

That revival of stimulus talks sent U.S. stock indexes to new records Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 248.74 points to 30218.26.

Friday’s report highlighted the growing role of e-commerce hiring this holiday seasonas many consumers opt to order gifts online rather than shop in stores during the pandemic. Companies in transportation and warehousing added 145,000 jobs in November. Meanwhile, employment declined among bricks-and-mortar retailers like sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores.

“There’s still holiday hiring, it’s just not as we know it,” said

Becky Frankiewicz, president of staffing firm ManpowerGroup North America. In previous years, the company would be placing workers in jobs like cashier, clerk or salesperson inside retail stores, she said. But during this holiday season, openings

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are concentrated in roles like delivery driver and warehouse worker, she said.

The number of people on temporary layoff fell last month, suggesting employers continue to rehire workers.

But the number of the long-term unemployed—those without work for 27 weeks or more—rose by 385,000 to 3.9 million in November, accounting for 36.9% of the total counted as jobless.

Aliana Heffernan of Rahway, N.J., began casually exploring job opportunities in mid-April, after she was furloughed from her marketing-specialist role at a New York City ad-tech firm. In June, her furlough turned permanent, and she kicked the pace of her job search into high gear, sending out dozens of applications each day.

“It wasn’t hard to find positions that were a good fit. But most of the time I would find great jobs and never hear a word,” said Ms. Heffernan, 28. “In more than one instance, I interviewed on the phone and then was ghosted.”

The outlook brightened in late October, when an advertising startup that she had interviewed with in early July got back to her with an offer. Ms. Heffernan reported for her first day on the job Nov. 2. The new position, which is fully remote until

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further notice, is a step up from her previous job in terms of

title, responsibilities and compensation, she said.

Are these statements true or false? Correct the false ones.

1.The unemployment rate edged down slightly in November, but that was partly because fewer Americans were seeking work.

2.We saw negative job gains, but I think the sentiment is largely positive because we know that we’re heading into a dark winter.

3.It will take long to get a reliable vaccine in hand and make a full economic recovery.

4.Friday’s report highlighted the growing role of e- commerce as many consumers opt to order gifts online rather than shop in stores during the pandemic.

5.Employment increased among bricks-and-mortar retailers like sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores.

6.The number of people on temporary layoff fell last month.

7.The number of the long-term unemployed—those without work for 27 weeks or more—decreased.

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