Jason Bram, Research Officer, Regional Analysis Function, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, spoke during the Outlook on the Regional Economy in the Fury Lecture Hall on January 23, 2020.
Overall, the regional economy is in good shape with unemployment rates at or near record lows. That was the message from Jason Bram, a Research Officer with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, during the 9th annual Outlook on the Regional Economy presentation on January 23, 2020 in the Prusmack Center.
There are some signs that the robust economy is slowing, however. Bram pointed out that housing markets have softened, job growth has slowed, and recent business surveys are less positive. “The economy has slowed, but it hasn’t slowed dramatically,” said Bram. “It’s hard to be negative when unemployment is so low and still declining.”
Bram research focuses on the U.S. economy, with a primary emphasis on the Federal Reserve’s Second District, which includes New York State, northern New Jersey, and southwestern Connecticut, as well as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. He produces the regional Beige Book reports, and uses monthly business surveys to monitor and analyze current and emerging economic trends and issues of concern.