Household and business lending has slowed sharply in recent years, but the anemic growth in loans booked at depository institutions, mortgage companies, and finance companies may overstate the decline in credit originated by these institutions. This article reports measures of credit growth that...

Many analysts predict a resurgence in national savings as baby boomers approach retirement. This analysis of demographic trends and survey measures of savings and income suggests that such expectations may be ill founded. Although baby boomer saving rates will likely rise over the next twenty...

In recent quarters, the capital strength of the U.S. banking system has been improving rapidly in response to both regulatory pressures and business incentives. This article examines the different methods by which individual bank holding companies have increased their capital ratios and the...

Investors and regulators have been increasing their reliance on the opinions of the credit rating agencies. This article shows that although the ratings provide accurate rank-orderings of default risk, the meaning of specific letter grades varies over time and across agencies. Noting that...