The economy is poised to achieve the 3.25% to 3.5% annual growth rate forecast by the Federal Reserve for 2006. In August, the economy added 128,000 non-farm payroll jobs.

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     WASHINGTON, D.C. - Since 1978, reform has transformed the People’s Republic of China (PRC) from an impoverished autarkic socialist economy into a vibrant mixed economy open to international trade and investment. Real GDP growth averaged 9.7 percent from 1979 to 2005 and 10.9 percent in the first half of 2006.

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    WASHINGTON, D.C. - Productivity may be the most important economic measure because rising productivity will result in a more prosperous future. In the mid-1990s, there was an up-tick in the rate of productivity growth, as shown in Figure 1. Will this favorable trend continue?

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    WASHINGTON, D.C. - A primary objection to reducing or eliminating the federal estate tax is the projected revenue loss.  Although the $28 billion that the estate tax is expected to raise in 2006 is hardly insignificant, it represents just 1.2 percent of total receipts.  However, the actual revenue yield of the estate tax is considerably lower.  There is abundant evidence that the high compliance costs and reduced capital accumulation associated with the tax result in at least partially offsetting revenue losses to the income tax.

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....WASHINGTON, D.C. - The economy is growing at a rapid rate. Employment is likewise expanding. The economy has shown itself to be resilient to significant shocks and most key economic data continue to reflect healthy growth. As Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke recently testified before the Joint Economic Committee, the economic outlook continues to be positive.

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....WASHINGTON, D.C. - Debate over changes in the tax code often focuses on who benefits most from such changes. Most of this debate hinges on tax distribution tables that measure the impact of tax law changes on the tax liabilities of various income groups. However, many newspaper articles and think tank reports fail to consider the current progressivity of the existing tax code when discussing the benefits of tax cuts for various income groups.

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   WASHINGTON, D.C. - In recent years, the U.S. macroeconomy has staged a remarkable recovery from earlier sluggishness, due in part to numerous headwinds or macroeconomic supply-side shocks affecting the economy. Recent GDP growth, for example, has been persistent and robust, trending well above 3 percent.

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....WASHINGTON, D.C. - Recent attempts by the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) to acquire Unocal and Dubai Ports World to acquire operations at six U.S. ports have caused policymakers to reexamine the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). CFIUS is an interagency committee that administers a law empowering the President to block or restrict foreign acquisitions of U.S. companies for national security reasons. This law is known as the Exon-Florio provision of the Defense Production Act of 1950.

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....WASHINGTON, D.C. - The economy continues to create jobs at a solid rate and has shown itself to be resilient to significant shocks. There is no indication that higher energy costs have passed through to the general price level for the economy as a whole. The Federal Reserve's assessment of the economy in its recent Monetary Policy Report to the Congress is upbeat: "The U.S. economy should continue to perform well in 2006 and 2007."

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....WASHINGTON, D.C. - The bursting of the stock market bubble in early 2000 caused the U.S. economy to slow down in late 2000. The terrorist attack on September 11, 2001, exacerbated this slowdown. Pro-growth polices have helped the U.S. economy recover from this slowdown and begin a vigorous expansion. Consequently, the U.S. economy has outperformed its peer group of large developed economies (Canada, the European Union, and Japan) on balance from 2001 to 2005 in terms of real GDP growth, investment, industrial production, employment, labor productivity, and price stability (see table on page 2).

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....WASHINGTON, D.C. - Iran’s vast oil and gas resources undermine the Iranian regime’s claim that its nuclear program is needed for domestic energy generation. Iran holds the world’s third largest known oil reserves, 132.5 billion barrels, and second largest natural gas reserves, 971 trillion cubic feet, representing 10 and 16 percent, respectively, of the totals.

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   WASHINGTON, D.C. - To date, there is no evidence that higher energy costs have "passed through" to the general price level for the economy as a whole. The economy has shown itself to be resilient to significant shocks and continues to create jobs at a steady rate. According to the Conference Board, consumer confidence, which rebounded after the hurricanes, improved further in January. Consumer confidence now stands at its highest level in more than three years. If investment spending returns to trend, the prospects for solid economic growth and job creation remain encouraging for 2006.

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   WASHINGTON, D.C. - Last year, three major hurricanes - Katrina, Rita, and Wilma - struck the U.S. Gulf Coast. In response to these disasters, Congress enacted two supplemental appropriations acts to provide a total of $62.3 billion for rescue, relief, reconstruction, and recovery operations. Federal policymakers are now changing their focus from short-term rescue and relief to long-term reconstruction and recovery. This report identifies some key considerations for evaluating such proposals.

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   WASHINGTON, D.C. - The eleven members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) together hold 902 billion barrels of oil reserves. The world consumed about 30.3 billion barrels in 2005. Thus OPEC alone could meet the world's current rate of oil consumption for nearly 30 years, without developing additional reserves. OPEC's oil production is the least costly on earth. The five largest members of OPEC are Persian Gulf countries with production costs less than $5 per barrel. OPEC members outside the Persian Gulf have somewhat higher costs but still below $9 per barrel.

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