Economics News

April 15, 2024

Top Headlines

Economist: Tens of Billions of Dollars in Forest Products Are Being Overlooked

Apr. 11, 2024 — Are we missing the forest for the trees? More than timber grows in forests -- including products worth many tens of billions of dollars. Because these goods go unrecorded in official trade ...

Economic Burden of Childhood Verbal Abuse by Adults Estimated at $300 Billion Globally

Apr. 11, 2024 — Childhood verbal abuse by adults costs society an estimated $300 billion a year globally, show recent ...

How Climate Change Will Impact Food Production and Financial Institutions

Apr. 8, 2024 — Researchers have developed a new method to predict the financial impacts climate change will have on agriculture, which can help support food security and financial stability for countries increasingly prone to climate ...

Scientists' Urgent Call: End Destruction and Forge a Just, Sustainable Future

Apr. 2, 2024 — An international team of scientists published a study emphasizing the urgent need to align political will, economic resources, and societal values to ensure a more sustainable and equitable world. ...

Latest Headlines

updated 10:54pm EDT

Food Security in Developed Countries Shows Resilience to Climate Change

Apr. 11, 2024 — A study has found that market forces have provided good food price stability over the past half century, despite extreme weather ...

Atmospheric and Economic Drivers of Global Air Pollution

Apr. 8, 2024 — Carbon monoxide emissions from industrial production have serious consequences for human health and are a strong indicator of overall air pollution levels. Many countries aim to reduce their ...

Research Identifies Characteristics of Cities That Would Support Young People's Mental Health

Mar. 25, 2024 — As cities around the world continue to draw young people for work, education, and social opportunities, a new study identifies characteristics that ...

Study Shows Middle-Aged Americans Are Lonelier Than European Peers, Suggests Loneliness in Midlife Is Endemic

Mar. 18, 2024 — New research has shown that not only are middle-aged Americans lonelier than their same-age peers in Europe, but levels of loneliness are also ...

New Technique Helps AI Tell When Humans Are Lying

Mar. 18, 2024 — Researchers have developed a new training tool to help artificial intelligence (AI) programs better account for the fact that humans don't always tell the truth when providing personal information. ...

The Atlas of Unburnable Oil in the World

Mar. 15, 2024 — In order to limit the increase in global average temperature to 1.5 C, it is essential to drastically reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the atmosphere. This would mean not exploiting most of the ...

Supply Chain Disruptions Will Further Exacerbate Economic Losses from Climate Change

Mar. 13, 2024 — Global GDP loss from climate change will increase exponentially the warmer the planet gets when its cascading impact on global supply chains is ...

Climate Policies to Reduce Motor Vehicle Emissions Can Improve Children's Health, Save Money

Mar. 12, 2024 — A new study finds that policies to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from motor vehicles combined with investments in electric vehicles and ...

Loss of Nature Costs More Than Previously Estimated

Mar. 7, 2024 — Researchers propose that governments apply a new method for calculating the benefits that arise from conserving biodiversity and nature for future ...

How Air Pollution Can Harm Team Performance

Feb. 28, 2024 — High levels of air pollution can affect teams doing complex tasks, which holds implications for emerging ...

Research Shows Direct Link Between State Income Taxes and Migration

Apr. 3, 2024 — A new study looks at 110 years of income tax history across the U.S. and notes out-migration by wealthy ...

Companies Ignoring Climate Risks Get Punished by Markets, New Study Reveals

Apr. 2, 2024 — Companies that proactively manage climate risks boost their valuations, while those with a passive stance are discounted in the equity market, according to new ...

Making the Future Too Bright: How Wishful Thinking Can Point Us in the Wrong Direction

Mar. 28, 2024 — Everyone indulges in wishful thinking now and again. But when is that most likely to happen and when could it actually be harmful? A new study demonstrates unequivocally that the greater the ...

Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Global South Countries Linked With IMF Lending Policies, Study Finds

Mar. 20, 2024 — A study of 130 Global South nations has found that their greenhouse gas emissions were linked with IMF lending policies. The constraints of IMF's structural loans imposed coercive lending ...

Reforestation Schemes Are Not Enough to Recover the Carbon Created by Harvesting Wood

Feb. 26, 2024 — Forests have a critical role to play in capturing and storing carbon from the Earth's atmosphere -- but some models exaggerate their carbon removal potential by almost three-fold, according to a ...

Ag Economists Offer Food for Thought to Improve Baby Formula Supply

Feb. 22, 2024 — Remember the 2022 baby formula crisis? The historic shortage of infant formula that year highlighted the precarious balance between regulation, competition and safety, according to a new study. The ...

Generating 'Buzz' About New Products Can Influence Their Success

Feb. 20, 2024 — The way companies announce new products or build up hype can often influence their success once those new products hit the market, according to new research. Whether it's an upcoming blockbuster ...

Artificial Intelligence: Aim Policies at 'Hardware' to Ensure AI Safety, Say Experts

Feb. 15, 2024 — Chips and datacentres -- the 'compute' power driving the AI revolution -- may be the most effective targets for risk-reducing AI policies as they have to be physically possessed, according ...

Reported Marital Harmony -- Or Conflict -- Accounts for Nearly Ten Percent of the Variation in Mental Health Self-Assessments in a Broad Study of Australian Adults

Feb. 14, 2024 — Australian adults who report a good relationship that meets their original expectations tend to score higher in mental health, while adults who report loving their spouse but wished they had never ...

Benefits of Heat Pumps

Feb. 13, 2024 — Millions of U.S. households would benefit from heat pumps, but the cost of installing the technology needs to come down to make their use a more attractive ...

Older Adults Rely More on Trust in Decision Making. It Could Open Them Up to Scams

Feb. 13, 2024 — Elderly adults lose billions to financial scams by people they trust every year. New psychological research suggests this vulnerability could be linked to older adults' overrliance on initial ...

England's Oldest Became Frailer During Austerity, Study Suggests

Feb. 8, 2024 — The speed at which England's oldest adults became frailer accelerated during the UK Government's era of austerity politics, according to a new ...

Lifting of Federal Funding Ban Tied to Increase in Gun Violence Research

Feb. 8, 2024 — The lifting of a two-decade drought in federal funding for firearm injury prevention research was strongly associated with an increase in both clinical trials and publications on gun violence, ...

Clarity Needed for Businesses to Achieve Greenhouse Gas Mitigation

Feb. 7, 2024 — Despite efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change, companies are not set up for success, due to conflicting national and sectorial targets and differing availability of abatement options, a ...

It's True, Happiness Doesn't Cost Much

Feb. 5, 2024 — Many Indigenous peoples and local communities around the world are leading very satisfying lives despite having very little money. This research shows that many societies with very low monetary ...

Ambitious Roadmap for Circular Carbon Plastics Economy

Jan. 31, 2024 — Researchers have outlined ambitious targets to help deliver a sustainable and net zero plastic economy. The authors argue for a rethinking of the technical, economic, and policy paradigms that have ...

Decarbonizing the World's Industries

Jan. 31, 2024 — Harmful emissions from the industrial sector could be reduced by up to 85% across the world, according to new research. The sector, which includes iron and steel, chemicals, cement, and food and ...

Black Summer Bushfires in Australia Wiped $2.8 Billion from Tourism Supply Chain

Jan. 30, 2024 — First input-output economic analysis of the 2019-20 Australian fires also found 7300 jobs were lost. The study highlights economic vulnerabilities to extremes of climate ...

Education and Information Can Increase the Acceptance of Climate Policies

Jan. 29, 2024 — An important question for policymakers worldwide is how to make climate and environmental policies acceptable among the populations. A new study sheds light on the preferences in five East African ...

Women Farmers Quantitatively Linked to Better Community Well-Being

Jan. 17, 2024 — Having more women in agriculture is associated with greater community well-being, according to researchers. Their work suggests that women farmers approach their operations in ways that positively ...