Structural and cyclical economic factors

The recent recession and recovery raise important questions about the relative weight of structural and cyclical factors in the economy. A recent San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank conference explored the extent to which different economic variables behaved in a standard cyclical fashion during this episode or were scarred in a more permanent, structural manner. Both cyclical and structural effects appear evident in the recession, suggesting that some features of the U.S. economy can benefit from stimulatory monetary and fiscal policy, while others are more permanently damaged and unlikely to respond to such policies. ; This Economic Letter summarizes papers presented at the “Structural and Cyclical Elements in Macroeconomics” conference, March 16, 2012, at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. Conference papers are available at http://www.frbsf.org/economics/conferences/120316/agenda.php