MAPI – Manufacturers Alliance Economic News and Reports

Issues in Brief

U.S. Trade Deficit in Manufactures Surges in the Second Quarter
The second quarter data for U.S. and Chinese global trade in manufactures indicates momentum toward double-digit deficit growth for the U.S. in 2014. The Chinese surplus rose by 9% during the quarter.

Inversion Aversion
Patriotism has little to do with an inversion, a process whereby a company moves its headquarters to another country, but in a mid-term election year, it is easier for politicians to cast corporations as deserters than address root causes — namely, the convoluted tax code.

Four Myths About Social Security Reform
Social Security was not intended to be — and is not viewed by the public as — a means-tested welfare program. Tough decisions need to be made, since beginning in 2020, the program will start paying out more than it collects. Unfortunately, waiting to act increases the cost of fixing the problem.

Economic Update

Economic Roundtable: The Outlook Through 2015
In this video, six of our economists review the manufacturing outlook for key regions and explore what’s ahead for energy prospects in the United States. Cliff Waldman notes that “we are in a slow-growth world.”

U.S. Economy: Growth But No Surge
We recently released our quarterly economic forecast. We see steady growth but it is unlikely there will be a surge in the second half of this year. Right now the economy is somewhat constrained by credit availability and risk aversion. Consumers are driving growth but can’t go much faster.

Is the EU Becoming a More Cohesive Economy?
Economic growth remains feeble across the European Union (EU). Data on gross domestic product for the second quarter indicate the Eurozone has not expanded at all while the wider EU grew just 0.2% on the previous quarter. Over recent past, the EU has been growing at a rate of between a half and a third of that recorded for the United States.