Emory Report
November 10, 2008
Volume 61, Number 11


 

   

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November 10
, 2008
Election good for economy?

The end of the 2008 election season will be good for the global economy, says Goizueta international finance expert Jeff Rosensweig. “Uncertainty is always bad for an economy, and we live in the most volatile and uncertain of times. Removing this element of political uncertainty will certainly help.”

Executives in finance and business generally fear an era with both U.S. Congress and presidency controlled by Democrats, he says. “Rightly or wrongly, they think this could lead to massive government spending. In this unique case, such fears may be unfounded.

“First, the outgoing administration was one of the most profligate in U.S. history, to the dismay of many Republican fiscal conservatives,” says Rosensweig. “Second, the present time, for the first time since the Great Depression, may call for some direct government spending to stimulate the economy. The job market is fragile at best, and could soon become awful.”

President-elect Barack Obama may work with a Democratic Congress for a second stimulus package.
Already, key economies such as Germany are enacting fiscal stimulus packages, Rosensweig adds. An effort will be made to globally coordinate such packages, as well as to capitalize the financial system.

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