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...

The authors present a stochastic model of two barter economies, with production, linked by free trade in goods and securities, which generates Pareto-efficient international transmissions of business cycle disturbances. Each country is inhabi ted by an infinitely-lived, representative firm and...

The author finds that the securities industry in the New York-New Jersey region, while vulnerable to stock and bond market fluctuations, is enjoying strong growth in employment and salaries. Benefits from future growth, however, will likely flow predominantly to highly skilled workers as rapid...

Sovereign ratings are gaining importance as more governments with greater default risk borrow in international bond markets. But while the ratings have proved useful to governments seeking market access, the difficulty of assessing sovereign risk has led to agency disagreements and public...