RSG U.S. Economic Brief for November 2009

The U.S. Economic Brief for November looks at conditions, trends and policy developments now under discussion in the country:

• Employment trends continue to be a key focus of attention and the Brief reviews the unemployment situation in Virginia and the country. It points out that Virginia is doing better than the rest of the country. It also mentions the difficulty Bank of America is having finding a new CEO.
  
  
• A look at the recent performance of the U.S. economy points to a major crisis in the financial sector and a rapid deterioration in the real economy that may have finally reached a bottom. But major difficulties now describe the economy in terms of high unemployment, unprecedented fiscal imbalances, and continued financial problems that will be difficult to overcome and weigh on the prospects for growth in the foreseeable future.
  
  
• Energy policy has been mentioned as a main focus of Congress’s attention early next year. The Brief looks at the Cap-and-Trade Bill currently before the U.S. Senate and lists the arguments in favor and opposed to this legislation. It also asks some questions intended to provoke thought about how the policies being recommended work and what their effect on the economy, energy markets and emissions of greenhouse gases might be if this legislation were to be enacted.