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OECD forecasts show an acceleration of US economic growth in 2021 with the $1.9 trillion aid package of the Biden administration. OECD forecasts show pre-pandemic levels of output reached by mid 2021, 6 months earlier than expected. Global output is expected to grow by 5.6% in 2021, after declining 3.4% in 2020. Main reason- US economy is seen expanding at 6.5%, twice as fast as previously forecast and fastest since 1984. OECD sees the importance of stimulus coinciding with vaccination of the population. The pace in the US with 18 million vaccinated in March and the goal of vaccinating the whole population by May is part of the reason given for the vigorous growth. Astonishingly the OECD sees the US economy larger in end of year 2022 now than it had forecast before the pandemic. For other countries such as India with slower vaccination progress and large population, OECD forecast is for 8% shortfall in growth from what was expected before the pandemic at end of 2022.  This is an amazing bit of good news amid all the dismay and confusion surrounding the coronavirus lockdowns. ...

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In this teary incident on the baseball pitch between the pitcher and the batter Little League Baseball shows the way for a decent America and it starts with kids, parents and coaches.

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Spain has under prime minister Pedro built its economy around close relations with China. Here Spanish newspaper El Pais describes the new role of China's chief economic representative He Lifeng sent to negotiate with the US and his success in getting a 90 day reprieve where US brings tariffs to 30% and China to 10%. He replaces Liu He who was educated at US Universities and was fluent in English. Yet because he is only now representing China overseas what is overlooked is Lifeng's extraordinary connections to the economic emergence of China in Asia. He was just graduating as a civil servant in China when president Xi was vice minister of Xiamen, Fujian province. He studied at Xiamen University getting a Ph.D in economics in 1979. He shares the struggles of going through the Great Proleterian Cultural Revolution experienced by Xi in rural areas.  Lifeng has driven development of China's state driven economy, as deputy director of the National Developement and Reform Commission in 2014, and driector in 2017, as Xi emerged as leader of China. ...

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President Obama picks Dartmouth College president, Jim Yong Kim, as the U.S. choice for president of the World Bank. Kim is a physician who co-founded Partners in Health, a nonprofit organization for providing health care to the poor. He was a former director of the Department of HIV/AIDS at the World Health Organization. Working with Partners in Health in Lima, Peru, mid-1990's, he helped establish a large scale treatment program for drug resistant tuberculosis. Such programs are being promoted in 40 countries since then. Under the leadership of Mr. Zoellick, the World Bank provided $57 billion in assistance to low and middle income countries in 2011. About $90 billion was raised in a fund to be used for aid to the poor in developing countries, including China and India.

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If China reduced its automobile tariffs to 2.5% from current 25% it would help German carmakers such as BMW that export from U.S. plants to China. BMW as a premium brand is better able to absorb the transport costs and does not manufacture cars in China. U.S. makers Ford and GM would benefit less as they already have plants making cars in China. By not making cars in China BMW does not have to transfer technology to a Chinese partner.

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Investor Andreesen who grew up in Iowa and rural Wisconsin writes about native born kids cut out of the pipeline in education. When they are cut out of the pipeline over decades whats left he says but for universities to get PhD candidates from Asia and other foreign countries.

Andreesen writes about the injustice of decades of universities isolating their campuses from the mainstream of American life so that they live in a different world unable to relate to the way working class communities across America built around manufacturing have seen a complete collapse.

"They systematically cut most of the children of the working class voters out of any realistic prospect of access to higher education and corporate America."

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Two German military aircraft leave for India Wednesday May 5, with an oxygen plant that can make 400,000 litres of oxygen a day, says the Bundeswehr. Germany's ambassador says German aid is making a difference in saving lives. The central bank of India the RBI announces loans to hospitals, business, the economy and vaccine sector of $6.7 billion. See the video of German aid to India in DW.com. 

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Of the $787 billion stimulus program only $46 billion has gone out so far, mostly to help with unemployment checks and for Medicaid, and only $33 million has gone out for transportation projects.

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A.I.C.F., America-Israel Cultural FOundation was set up in 1939, to foster culture in what was to become the state of Israel, with about $2 million given out each year. It tries to portray Israel in abetter light. It supports dane and visual arts, music, and gives out about 800 scholarships ayear. This year it will go down to 350 scholarhsips, and that too with emergency funds of $1 million coming in from donors. A.I.C.F.'s entire endowment of $14 million was lost in the Madoff financial Ponzi scheme. About two thirds of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra benefitted from the foundation including musicisans like Itzhak Perlman and Pincas Zukerman. It has great influence in developing classical musicians and is renown worldwide.

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Advertising is shifting to basic bread and butter products like Campbell soups, Kraft cheese, Post cereal and down for GM and Ford.

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Analysts at Citigroup predict that Bank of America might record a$3.6 billion loss for fourth quarter 2008. It appears that Bank of America may have overreached in acquiring 2 troubled firms Countrywide and Merrill. WIth $25 billion in TARP funds already given to Bank of America, Bank of America has informed Treasury that without additional funding it may not be able to complete the acquisition of Merrill. Treasury and Bank of America are negotiating these additional funds. Meanwhile Goldman Sachs analysts estimate worsening losses from the credit and financial crisis. Losses says Goldman economists could reach $1.1 trillion from residential mortgages alone up from $780 billion earlier estimate. Adding in losses from commercial real estate, credit cards, auto and business debt could send this figure up to $ 2.1 trillion. And bad overseas loans of US institutions would be additional to this. Not surprisingly Fed Chairman Bernanker would like to see much of the second half tranche of $350 billion in TARP funds ging to stabilize the financial system....

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The graph tell the story, in early 2007 there were close to 4 million homes under water, in early 2008 closer to 8 million homes and in early 2009 closer to 16 million homes under water, close to doubling the number of homes under water. This is why more of the morgage securities become bad assets with each passing year, as their underlying assets the mortgages become high risk for default. During the third quarter the number of homeowners under water, or owing more than their homes were worth, were 11.8 million, and by the end of 2008, 13.6 million, according to Moody's Economy.com They are growing at close to 1.8 million every quarter, or at the rate of over 7 million a year. Which at this rate would reach 21 million homes under water by early 2010, if one assumed that government help only worked to offset the impact of further deterioration of housing prices, by lowering payments for some homeowners. A new housing rescue plan was announced March 4, 2009. This will supplement the $75 billion announced earlier. This plan announced March 4, 2009, is expected by the Obama administration to cover 9 million homeowners. Borrowers who face severe financial hardship that may cause them to lose their homes, are required under this plan to sign affidavits attesting to this. They will in then see their loans modified, payment periods lengthened, and interest rates dropped to as low as 2%, to bring the monthly payment down to 31% of income, the number that experts say is appropriate for sustainable payments. Only first lien mortgages, and homeowners who live in these homes and not homeowners who use them as investments, will qualify. The outstanding principal balance cannot be over $729,750. As incentives loan-servicing companies will get upto $3500 from the government, and the government will also match a portion of the ender's costs dollar for dollar. Homeowners get $5000 in government money to reduce their outstanding balances, as an incentive to them to stay current on these modified mortgages. The administration plans to announce plans to those holding second mortgages on their homes, who have difficulty modifying them. The other component of the plan is for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to refinance loans for borrowers who are under water, owing more than their homes are worth, even if they are wealthy enough to afford current payments. There is no income ceiling for this part of the plan. And these mortgages have to be held or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, with homeowners not owing more than 105% of the current value of their homes. ...