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Tag: Economics

The Dollar: What Everyone in Higher Ed Needs to Know

Issues run in cycles.  Remember the skills gap?  It was a big deal back when the price of oil was over $80 a barrel.  We haven’t heard so much about it since – and judging by the way oil futures markets are behaving, it may be awhile before we hear it again. But don’t be dismayed: as one cycle disappears, another pops up somewhere else.  With the dollar having dipped slightly below 70 cents US on Tuesday, I think it’s almost certain that we’re

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January 14, 2016 No Comments

H > A > H

I am a big fan of the economist Paul Romer, who is most famous for putting knowledge and the generation thereof at the centre of  discussions on growth.  Recently, on (roughly) the 25th anniversary of the publication of his paper on Endogeneous Technological Change, he wrote a series of blog posts looking back on some of the issues related to this theory.  The most interesting of these was one called “Human Capital and Knowledge”. The post is long-ish, and I recommend you read it

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December 7, 2015 No Comments

Youth Unemployment: Some Perspective, Please

Every once in awhile, you’ll hear folks talking about the scourge of youth unemployment.  If you’re really lucky, you’ll hear them describe it as a “crisis”.  But how bad is youth unemployment, really? Well, the quick answer is that you can’t really separate youth unemployment from general unemployment.  As Figure 1  shows, one is a function of the other. Figure 1: Youth Unemployment Rates, 15 and Over vs. 15-24 Age Groups, Canada, 1976-2015 (Source: CANSIM 282-001.  Seasonlly-Adjusted)      

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September 24, 2015 4 Comments

Oil and Universities

As the price of oil continues to plummet, just a few thoughts on the financial implications for universities. In provinces that are oil importers, the effect is likely net positive, slightly.  Economic growth should be a little bit above trend, inflation will fall a bit, and those factors will make it easier for provincial governments to balance budgets this year, without turning to cuts. In provinces that are exporters, an oil price drop will likely affect the budget in two

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August 25, 2015 No Comments

The Economic Growth Imperative

A quick note: the OTTSYD will be on brief hiatus next week, as I’ll be in Japan and won’t have regular access to my computer.  Not to worry, though, we’ll pick back up on the 18th. Anyways: I was asked recently what I thought was the most important challenge for post-secondary education in Canada at the moment.  Resisting (barely) the flip answer “money”, I eventually settled on the allied concept of “learning how to promote economic growth and prosperity”. Now,

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May 8, 2015 3 Comments

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