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AP/NORC poll March 2023 shows 7 out of 10 adults in the US feel that the US is spending too much on development assistance when the budget for USAID is $40 billion. In general Republican administrations prefer foreign aid to be adminstered by the State Department not a separate agency. USAID was setup during the Cold War with the Soviet Union by president John F. Kennedy in 1961. Today it adminsters programs for HIV/Aids and for pandemics, health programs that can be done through the State Department. Attitudes have shifted following the pandemic with 9 out of 10 Republicans opposed to foreign aid through USAID. Some of the criticism is that it funds bureaucrats favorite programs. The actual impact is now uncertain in the developing of an economy. For example Sri Lanka benefits more from aid and development assistance from neighbor India than from programs of USAID as it tackles the current economic crisis following the pandemic. India pulling together the aid through IMF for Sri Lanka, and the investment in energy from India is way more important than the small USAID programs.  ...

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Social isolation, economic isolation is affecting many parts of Japanese society. Mental health decline is seen in working women, part time employed, unemployed workers, and elderly. Prime minister Suga has appointed 71 year old Testsushi Sakamoto to a newly created post- Minister of Loneliness. The pandemic has worsened the social and economic isolation of people.

Another state of emergency is expected for Tokyo and Osaka as coronavirus cases rise in April 2021. Income adversity is affecting many people from women laid off, workers furloughed during the pandemic, students, and others.

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The Bank of Japan started investing in stocks during the financial crisis of 2009. It has increased its investments in Japan's stock market during the pandemic as a way to boost spirits in the stock market to $400 billion as of Sept. 30, 2020.  Of this $56 billion is a gain in the stock market after Japan's stock market gained 60% from a deep low during the early period of the pandemic. In March Governor Haruhiko Kuroda doubled the ceiling for BOJ to $115 billion for purchases of exchange traded funds.

The purpose of this activity is to encourage risk taking in the broader economy, and ensure prices are rising at a small but steady pace. The BOJ now owns 6% of the total value of the Tokyo stock market. The BOJ does not buy individual funds but invests in the market through exchange traded funds. The BOJ purchases were effective in easing uncertainty and promoting confidence as the pandemic surged in Japan and in the rest of the world.

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A difficult period in retail in 2020, with high spending on home and garden maintenance and the bankruptcies of some retailers during the pandemic. Retail sales haven't dropped in 2020 they have shifted to other kinds of spending. And shoppers still go out to do shopping as 16% of their spending happened outside physical retail stores similar to what happened last year.

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Hamburg is the key city in Germany's trade with China. About half of $200 billion in trade between Germany and China passes through the port of Hamburg. The South China Morning Post looks at the dilemma in Hamburg over relations with China in the post Merkel era. Merkel maintained strong and close ties with China signing an agreement with China her last year in office. This was when Mr. Trump was US president. Since then president Biden has changed US policy towards Europe. The South China Morning Post points out that The Greens and the FDP key partners of Scholz in a new coalition government, are critical of Merkel's policy towards China in its overall relationship with the US and the rest of the world. Scholz was mayor of Hamburg, and a partner in Merkel's coalition government in which he was vice chancellor. Scholz has talked very little on what the new German policy would be. China seeks to maintain its economic ties in the next few years with Germany while reducing its dependence on other countries under Xi Jinping's new vision for China that seeks to depend less on trade and real estate for its economy and growth. Yet the pace of change has accelerated during the pandemic with a new global supply chain emerging from the chaotic years of 2020-2021. US policy under president Biden is similar to policies under Franklin Roosevelt in the 1930's during the economic and political crises, and look to be setting a new path to the future for the rest of the world. ...

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During the latter period of the pandemic midsized companies encouraged workers to take minivacations to avoid burnout from excessive hours of work in the pandemic environment. These companies found that happier workers were more productive workers. In 2024 workers are continuing to protect their mental health following the pandemic by adding mini vacations using the opportunities to work remotely. Workers are doing this across the workplace for all ages because this saves their official vacation days and because vacation days are scarce. Only 15 days after working 5 years and 18 days after working 10 years, these vacation days are precious for mental health and for medical situations in the family, and for essential time off work to rejuvenate.

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 WSJ looks at the story of one Indian engineer 39 years from Bangalore, India on a extraordinary category visa. 79000 H1-B engineers and others keep California's population growing in 2024. The state loses population everyyear from domestic migration WSJ charts show, yet it makes up for this through international migration. Also helpful is the fact that California has more births than deaths by about 110,000. California has the largest percentage of its population as foreign born, about 25%. About half of the international migration of 2.7 million since 2010 is Asian, and one third is Latin American. Pew Research shows only about 17% of California's immigrants in 2023 were undocumented. During the pandemic California lost 400,000 people, the population of Oakland. Net immigration dropped to 44,000 a year in the worst year of pandemic, then rebounded to 300,000 in 2024, but remains uncertain with tighter immigration controls under DJT. ...

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The free food rations programs with 5 kilograms of wheat or rice to 800 million Indians during the pandemic is one of the extraordinary accomplishments of the Modi administration. It has been extended till the end of 2022. Both Finance Minister Sitharaman and prime minister Modi have shown extraordinary empathy for the common man during the pandemic and India's program of wheat rice and vegetables is unprecedented in world history for its scale and efficency. The scene of Nirmala Sitharaman at a vegetable market in Mylapore today is only one aspect of the contact day to day with ordinary Indians and their problems that marks the Mann Ki Baat radio program of Modi and of Sitharaman herself as she tackles the work of the finance ministry with the last person in the line uppermost in mind.

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The Tories are seen shifting their position from working with the unions during the pandemic and Boris Johnson's position that there would be no return to the period of "low wages, low skills, and low productivity," in this analysis in The Guardian. Faced with risks of higher inflation in Britain the conservatives have shifted to supporting no more than a 3% wage increase for rail workers in the face of 8% increase in inflation in Britain in 2022. Rail airline, other workers,, and the government now are on opposite sides on wages after joining together during the pandemic. Shortages of workers have pushed up wages in some sectors but others are lagging behind including transport workers, leading to the rail strike and other strikes of public sector workers.

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About three fifths of workers in 2021 reported having negative impacts of work related stress. Even with these elevated stress levels 50% of workers continued working long hours during the pandemic and ended up leaving paid leave vacation days unused. Then some companies made taking vacation days mandatory or making working from home mandatory for certain number of weeks. This BBC report looks at this trend.

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The US is on track to bring back 350,000 jobs in 2022 that were taken overseas during the two decades of hyper growth in China, according to the Reshoring Initiative. A false idea was created mostly by economists and business that shifted jobs to China during two Democratic and one Republican administration, the Clinton, Obama and the Bush administrations, that this would benefit the American workers and families through lower prices at the retail level. It ignored the severe damage this would do to jobs, incomes and whole communities when factories on which they depended for a living were shipped overseas. It damaged labor in ways that destroyed much of the American working class and the families built during the years of FDR, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy and Johnson. Business failed during this period to meet the challenge of higher American wages and productivity issues by using innovation and other steps to keep manufacturing at home.  This led to the hyper growth that did not benefit China, because a moderate pace of growth would have helped China control the rampant contamination of its air, water and soil. It also was leading China to a dead end reached during the 2016 election campaign with the election of president Trump with deep discontent from workers in midwestern states. The pandemic simply underscored the need for supply chains that were close to home and reliable in crises. By 2020 president  Biden was committing to a restructuring of the supply chains and pushing forward with it with legislation in the $369 billion Climate bill, and SCIENCE and Chips Act, to make solar panels, semiconductors and other products in the US. Reports from China showed that growth was slight or flat during 2022 and youth unemployment at 20%. The policy was to shift people back from the cities to the rural areas and support the informal economy, a sense of nationalist sentiment, and preparing for a future where the supply chain for the US and the European Union had moved away from China. In the long run the policies now look as ones that benefitted neither the US, the European Union, India or China.  ...

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CDC Director, Rochelle Walensky, a physician-scientist resigns from her position as CDC Director on June 30, 2023. During her period at CDC about 670 million vaccine doses were given. It was also a period when there were differences of opinion on mask use and other preventive action for covid. As a physician scientist Walensky had no experience managing organizations and difficulty managing CDC's workforce of 11,000 employees, says this report in NYT. CDC guidance was often confusing during the pandemic and management changes in the CDC will continue to affect the organization's effectiveness.

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The effort by prime minister Modi under Rozgar Mela to create 1 million new jobs in 2023 to mitigate the effect of the lockdowns during the pandemic and its effects on jobs. 71,000 new job appointment letters were given in a virtual event. Modi emphasized that "transparency in recruitment and promotion inspires confidence in the youth."  He called the process streamlined and time bound to demonstrate good governance.

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Why are New York City hotel rooms costing $300 a night? This NYT report says there is a shortage of tourist lodging pushing prices up when 20% of hotel rooms go to asylum seekers and migrants. During 2022 hotels found the program of the city of New York at $185 a night to convert hotels to shelters for asylum seekers as away to remain in business during the pandemic. Since then 130 of 680 hotels in New York City have entered the shelter program. This presented a loss of 16,000 rooms leaving 121,000 rooms inventory for tourists, a shortage of about 3000 rooms as demand picked up after the pandemic.65,000 migrants are housed in hotels, tents and dormitories in New York City, as the city is obligated to find housing for people who need it, costing $10 billion over 3 years.

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Zoom calls in the wee hours of the morning or night, and emails at all hours, the scrambling that happened during 2020 and 2021 during work needs some structuring and laying down of boundaries. The work day got kind of crazy. Here Rachel Feintzberg offers tips on getting back to a healthier and more productive worklife by setting clear work boundaries and hours. The key experts say is to be respectful but resolute. Some tips are to follow boundaries such as a 6.00 pm for last calls you take- to do this 80% of the time and compromise on remainder. If pandemic habits are hard to break try innovative ways, like getting out on sports, cycling or gym routines at 6.00 pm. Its alway good to remember and articulate to peers and bosses that you will be most productive and producing higher quality work when you have time for taking care of your health and healthy living. Its hard depending on the boss but over 6 months it gets you to a better place. German practice of Feierabend actually refers to when you stop working for the rest of the day and is done in Germany. It sets a clear demarcation or boundary between work and leisure hours needed for healthy living. ...

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Pennsylvania is one of the critical states in the 2020 U.S. election. It is also one of the states hit hard by the coronavirus. Pennsylvania has also seen the impact of layoffs in the vital steel industry during two decades of neglect by previous administrations till the tariffs on steel from China by president Trump began a reversal of this trend. Unemployment is high in Pennsylvania as a result of the pandemic. 51 of 67 counties in the state recorded unemployment rate increases for 2020 that are in the top 20% for the U.S. Pennsylvania and Michigan are two critical states for the 2020 election. Pennsylvania has done much worse than other states including Michigan when it comes to the impact of the pandemic on unemployment rates in all counties. Voters could decide to blame the Democratic governor for lockdown restrictions  that worsened unemployment or president Trump for his approach to the coronavirus. There is also concern among conservative voters about the kind of change they seek between steady improvement in unemployment and a shift to radical changes in the economy. ...

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This is a story of missteps in retailing that can lead to loss of as many jobs as when large automobile plants close-about 65000 jobs in retail at big box store Bed Bath & Beyond in 2019 down to 32,000 by 2022, and with all stores closing in 2023 all jobs lost. Some of these jobs were replaced with the growth of Amazon in online retailing and warehousing shipment, others permanently lost. Jordyn Holman and Lauren Hirsch of the NYT explain how a major retailer collapses into bankruptcy in 2023. This retail chain started in 1971 thrived on its two founder's concept of building a customer base around a store that piled high the volume of merchandise selection for bedsheets, towels, pillows, kitchen appliances, and offered 20% coupons on brand items. It survived the 2009 crisis and by 2012 its stores were up to 1100 from 350 ten years earlier in 2000. This was a result of 4 acquisitions including Buy Buy Baby and Harmon Stores Its collapse is a textbook case of what can happen. Its financial foundations were weakened by a bond offering $1.5 billion, going into the debt market for the first time.   From its success attracting activist investors and the company according to analysts trying to fend them off. The bond offering was the first step to impending disaster. In 2019 three activist investors won a fight to appoint 4 new board members and hire a new CEO Mr. Tritton from Target.  The big change happening just before the pandemic was the complete change of management with the new CEO. Stores that had made the decisions on what merchandise to buy based on location were no longer allowed to do so. Some stores were closed and there were layoffs reducing employee morale. The big change came to the 20% coupons which was the unique feature of the store getting people back into the store. Coupons were cut back as profits declined. The pandemic introduced new elements of surprise. The supply chains were disrupted, and just at that time new management decided to shift to private labels to increase margins and sales. Kitchen Aid was replaced with private labels. As a result of supply chain disruptions the stores could not be stocked leading to customers moving away, a crisis was brewing. At that very time something concealed the crisis from view. The Biden administration checks to support people during the pandemic led to a sudden increase in sales, a one time spurt. Then as suddenly as the spurt months later a complete dropoff in sales. Management closed more stores, suppliers who were not paid demanded to be prepaid leading to stores being only partly stocked. Bed Bath & Beyond collapsed as its coupons were dropped, its stores poorly stocked, no brand merchandise such as Kitchen Aid, and decisions made at the wrong time including the debt load all taking a toll at once. By the end of 2022 bankruptcy loomed. In April 2023 the company declared bankruptcy after failed efforts to raise additional financing. The same changes also hit Best Buy, another big box retailer, which managed the changes to internet buying by shifting sales to the healthcare sector, and continuing to build on it strengths as a retailer of motivated employees with knowledge of the electronic merchandise. It made it right through the pandemic without the changes in management that happened at Bed Bath & Beyond. ...

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A study by Blanchard and Bernanke shows energy prices and supply chain constraints were key factors in creating the surge in inflation that happened in 2022. The Ukraine war played apart in raising energy prices . How much effect did president Biden's $1.6 trillion American Rescue Plan have on inflation? Bernanke and Blanchard say not what critics had suggested. Once energy prices were brought under control through the president's policies to $75 energy prices played less of a role in inflation. Supply chain effects also eased throughout 2022. The persistent effect remained the mismatch between supply and demand that is called The Great Resignation that came as a response from teachers, nurses, hospitality sector workers with low minimum wage on which it was hard to make a living. President Biden's payments to these workers gave them enough room to make a definite choice that they would not take the risks during the pandemic and the stress and opted for shifting to other jobs. Employers struggled to fill vacancies and raised wages in response. To reduce inflation the Fed opted to raise rates to slow the demand for goods and services in the economy which has led to a moderating of inflation from the high of 7% in 2022 to falling below 5% by April 2023. Fed chairman Powell's aggressive attitude to inflation was based on not letting an inflationary psychology set in, that could damage the interests of workers and families who had already suffered from the pandemic's effects. This is where we are today as the economy adjusts to the fight against climate change, investments in renewable energy and infrastructure, and efforts to reduce the deficit by president Biden in a way that reduces the widening gaps and social divisions in society.   ...

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The unemployment rate of 5.9% in the US in June 2021 is still higher than the pre-pandemic rate of 3.5%. It is also different in other ways that are not so apparent. There are 9 million Americans looking for jobs. They are also looking for jobs outside industries that were hit hard during the pandemic, or pursuing better jobs with less commute and more remote work, and jobs outside of warehousing which requires less of the skills and training they have or in remote locations far from where they live. Economists like to use terms such as "mismatch" to describe this as in this report in WSJ. This does not bring home to us the enormous human toll of the pandemic. A recent survey of US workers for April by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas found that 31% of people do not want to return to their old jobs up from 20% in July 2020. One in three from one in five last year are looking for something different than the the jobs that were hit hard in each successive wave of the coronavirus pandemic. Other surveys have found that 70% of workers who last worked for the leisure and hospitality industries are looking for something in a different industry. Leisure and hospitality that includes restaurants and hotels, airports, were hammered in this pandemic. And 55% of job applicants in one survey were found to be looking for remote work. Economists also see the macroeconomy in terms of supply and demand for labor, in terms of interest rates with low interest rates as a way to tackle unemployment, yet this has limited value in real life situations in the economy when it is affected by a number of factors, including some unusual factors such as the pandemic and man made events such as the global financial crisis of 2009 from banking missteps. The federal government has to take steps of its own to support Americans as these changes take place in the economic situation and Americans are in need of help with adjustments. ...

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In the first 6 months of 2020 about 21 million jobs were lost in the U.S., followed by a recovery following reopening with a third of the jobs regained by July 2020. Women and black people were disproportionately hit by job loss during the pandemic. Hispanics were hit the hardest but also recovered faster.

As the lockdowns dragged on in June, mental health, vaccinations  getting treatment for health conditions, and economic well being, became major objectives. This was accomplished through better incorporation of better practice such as social distancing and face coverings, ventilation, and healthy living practices including food, as more people went back to work. Bars and large gatherings remained a particularly vexing problem, with sports now being played in empty stadiums for television audiences. Offices were completely redesigned to be safe places for work and public transport featured empty seats.

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With higher mortgage rates at 7% from 4% during the pandemic sellers and buyers are not moving forward. There is a sharp drop in US homes for sale by 14% in June over 2022, to 1.1 million homes, according to NAR. Home builders are building new homes to meet demand. Sellers often prefer to rent out existing homes and rent in their new location. Buyers preferring to rent with limited supply to choose from.

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The pandemic came to young German people at a time when the trend was for less opportunity, more inequality. These trends are now aggravated and the loss of opportunities, and the loss of hope is even worse now in 2021. Job searches are being conducted while experiencing intense social isolation, boredom and lack of physical acitivity. The job competition is described here as horrendously competitive, a few roles and so many job seekers jostling to get them as companies have been hammered during the pandemic. 

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The high cost of housing as affluent people from the northeast moved into southern Florida during the pandemic doubling the price of housing by 2024, is covered in this report in WSJ. This is pushing average Floridans making about $66,000 to leave the state or stay in far flung suburbs with long commutes over 2 hours a day. Unemployment at 2.7% is low yet making it in Florida and affording pricey housing is a struggle for many Florida residents.

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Oxford University Wellbeing Research Center has developed Happiness score using Gallup surveys. US score No.10 ranking among 143 countries for older adults over 60 years. Yet it drops off steeply for young people to 62nd of 143 countries. The situation is the same in Canada and to a lesser extent in the European Union. Overall the US dropped out of the top 20 countries  falling from 15th to 23rd. The report is based on Gallup World poll surveys from 2021 to 2023. Young females recording even lower. Normally it starts with youth doing better and higher then in a U curve dropping all the way down during a midlife crisis in 30's and 40's age before rising again for older adults wi have experienced the vicissitudes of life. The US data contradicts this. Why? Jan De Neve of Oxford Wellbeing Center says it could be from social media use and growing health and income disparities. The pandemic also played a role- beginning college or a career in a pandemic was just not the way to start. Housing prices, cost of living, loneliness epidemic, misinformation and social media negative effects add to this. At the same time there is an increase in benevolence among younger people aware of the situation they face and looking for ways to mitigate this. ...

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Teachers are packing up classrooms for the last time says this report in WSJ. Worn out by the covid pandemic, under staffed schools and political battles teachers are leaving in large numbers. About 300,000 public school teachers and other staff left the field during the 27 months of the pandemic, according to Bureau of labor Statistics data. More teachers are thinking of doing the same, A National Education Association poll conducted in 2022 found 55% of teachers saying they would leave earlier than planned. Teachers are finding better pay and working environment in other professions and in business. Teachers of younger students in the early grades say teaching should be about kids learning but that isn't true anymore.