Capital and Credit Watch

  by Raymond J. Keating- The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) announced today that it has decided to inch up the federal funds rate from the 1.00%-to-1.25% range to 1.25%-to-1.50%. In terms of the impact of such a rate increase on economic activity, there effectively is none. The fed funds rate remains well below the […]

by Raymond J. Keating- The Federal Reserve released its latest Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on November 6, and it pointed to some weakening of business loan demand coupled with easing of standards and terms by banks. Specifically, this quarterly survey of domestic banks and U.S. branches of foreign banks reported regarding commercial and industrial […]

by Raymond J. Keating- The Federal Reserve released its Federal Open Market Committee statement on the afternoon of November 1, and the real question turns out to be: Does anyone really care what the Fed said? The Fed statement pointed to more of the same that we’ve experienced for almost a decade now, that is, […]

Small Business Insider by Raymond J. Keating- It’s not a secret – or at least it shouldn’t be – that the burdens of regulation fall most heavily on small businesses, with consumers in the end footing the ultimate bill via increased costs and/or reduced choices. That is the case, once again, with a recent ruling […]

As a member of the Partnership to Protect Workplace Opportunity, SBE Council signed a joint comment letter to the Department of Labor in response to the Request for Information on the overtime rules. 128 organizations signed the PPWO comment letter.

  by Raymond J. Keating- Government regulations always hit smaller businesses much harder – including by discouraging new entrants into the regulated industry – than their larger competitors. That goes for regulating the financial industry as well, such as via the Dodd-Frank financial regulation law. Perhaps the most glaring problem with the Dodd-Frank law is […]

by Raymond J. Keating- The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) publishes lending data, including bank loans for small businesses. According to the latest numbers from June 2017, both small business loan balances and the number of small business loans continue to grow. However, small business lending still has not recovered to levels before the 2008-09 […]

by Raymond J. Keating- Small businesses always face a tough time in gaining access to credit. But it’s been particularly difficult over the past near-decade, given the recession, the poor economic recovery, and excessive and costly regulation on financial institutions. That has been made clear in various SBE Council analyses – such as here, here […]

NAFTA NEGOTIATIONS  Comments on Negotiations with Canada and Mexico Regarding Modernization of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Submitted to the Office of the United States Trade Representative Raymond J. Keating Chief Economist Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council   On behalf of the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council), I am writing on […]

by Raymond J. Keating- If Members of Congress are serious about supporting small business, then they need to vote in favor of the Financial CHOICE Act of 2017 (H.R. 10). The legislation will be voted on this week by the U.S. House of Representatives. Regulatory Modernization and Sanity The CHOICE Act would bring regulatory relief […]