Harvard Prof., Former IMF Economist Rogoff: 'We're in a Productivity Recession,' and 'Policies about Fossil Fuels' Are Part of the Problem

On Thursday’s broadcast of the Fox Business Network’s “Mornings with Maria,” Professor of Economics at Harvard University and former International Monetary Fund Chief Economist Ken Rogoff stated that the output growth and labor force numbers show that “we’re in a productivity recession, productivity growth’s just awful.” And said that while some of it is due to the pandemic, part of the reason is that some policies on fossil fuels “aren’t doing a lot to contribute to growth either.” Rogoff said, “Well, there [are] definitely conflicting data. On the whole, if you look at output growth, it’s really slow, maybe even negative. On the other hand, the labor force is red-hot. I think the only way to square the circle is that we’re in a productivity recession, productivity growth’s just awful.” He elaborated that “some of it is coming out of the pandemic.

There is more work from home, where people like it, but they probably produce less. It makes effective wages higher than they seem. Firms have to be more generous in giving time off, etc., etc. I’m not criticizing these things, but they make growth less. And, of course, some of the policies about fossil fuels and such aren’t doing a lot to contribute to growth either.” Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett.

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