Links of the Day

Dani Rodrik posts a reply from the ILO on monitoring global stimulus plans:

"We at the International Labour Organization (ILO) have been keeping track of the stimulus efforts of 40 countries (including the G20) for our annual report and other work. While I agree with most of Gallagher's conclusions, there are factual inaccuracies in their work. Here is my quick response (I also posted comments on your blog):"

and Brian Setser shows why the USD is strengthening despite the ongoing US economic malaise:

"Part of it is that other countries are now in worse shape that the US; what started as a US crisis turned into a global crisis. Part of it is that a fall in the price of oil is good for the US (lower oil import bill) and seemingly good for the dollar. And part of it is that — judging from the TIC data — Americans are selling their foreign investments in “risky” assets faster than foreigners are selling their investments in risky US assets...The huge surge in demand for t-bills from central banks and private investors alike hasn’t hurt either."