economics essays 2021 to 2023

Economics Essay Topics: 162 Practical Ideas & Useful Tips

Essay writing is an inherent part of the economics studying process. Nevertheless, it is quite a challenging task. Are you a high school or college student who is struggling with an economic essay topic choice? Or maybe you are unsure about your writing skills?

We know how to help you .

The following article will guide you in choosing the best topic for your essay on economics. Here, you can find a variety of ideas for high school or college. The economic essay topics are divided into several categories that will help you with your research. And a pleasant bonus from our team! We have created a great guide on how to write an economics essay.

So, don’t miss your chance to write an outstanding economic paper! Check out our essay ideas, read our tips carefully, and be ready to receive your grade A!

• ⭐ Best Economic Topics
• 🤝 Socio-Economic
• 🗺️ International Economics
• 🛠️ Labor Economics
• 🌆 Urban Economics
• ⚽ Sports Economics
• 💉 Health Economics
• 💼 Business Economics
• 🏤 Globalization
• 🧮 Economic History
• 💫 How to Write?

⭐ 15 Best Economic Essay Topics

• 2008 Economic Crisis.
• Socio-economic policy.
• Economic systems – Singapore.
• Racial pay gap.
• Economic globalization.
• History of online trading.
• Child labor policies.
• The Economic Naturalist.
• Foundations of economic theory.
• Impact of unemployment.
• Universal Basic Income.
• The role of consumerism.
• Healthcare economics – Canada’s Medicare.
• Reasons for recession.
• Cryptocurrency & environmental issues.

✨ Excellent Economic Essay Topics

Has economics always been a subject of meticulous research? The question is quite controversial, right? There is no specific time when economics started its rapid progress. Generally, economics remains the topic of interest since the establishment of capitalism in the Western world.

Nowadays, the economy is the main engine that moves our world forward. The way we do business determines the geopolitical situation in the world. Moreover, it influences many other parts of our lives.

Economics studying is of utmost importance nowadays. It helps to gain a better understanding of processes that put everything in motion.

Economics is quite broad, so it has a great variety of subfields. And this is a fantastic opportunity for us to generate as many essay ideas as possible. Here, you will find great economic topics for your paper. As mentioned before, we have divided them into several sections to ease your selection process. There’s a wide selection of free college essays samples on economics in our database, too. So be sure to check that out.

🤝 Socio-Economic Essay Topics

• The economic impact of racial segregation in America in the 1950s.
• Designing a just socio-economic system.
• Socio-economic status of Hong Kong in modern-day China. Explain how the city of Hong Kong gained a special status in China. Why did it emerge as one of the most important cities in its economy? Comment on the significance of Hong Kong in the international economic arena.
• Economic growth in the United States in the post-World War 2 period.
• Mobile banking in Saudi Arabia: towards understanding the factors that affect the sector.
• The importance of Dior’s bar suit to the women’s fashion industry.
• Economic problems in the 1980’s Soviet Union. Talk about the significant problems with the economy the USSR had in the 1980s. What role did they play in its collapse?
• What socio-economic problems did segregation in South Africa cause?
• History of economic development in the UAE. Discuss the economic miracle in the UAE and Dubai. Explain how the government could turn the city of Dubai into one of the most famous tourist destinations. What strategies were applied?
• Gender inequality and socio-economic development .
• The problem of poverty in Venezuela.
• How the socio-economic and political position of women changed between 1880 and 1940.
• The economic impact of COVID-19 on global trade.

• How do the three main economic groups interact with each other? There are three critical economic groups: – Consumers – Producers – Government Analyze the interaction of these groups with each other.
• Extended essay: how the study of economic data helped our society to advance?
• Western industrialization socio-economic impacts.
• Inequality at the top: not all billionaires have the same powers. Analyze billionaires’ net worth, liquidity, political power, and wealth security. Explain why they have unequal social status. What factors determine the influence of billionaires?
• An analysis of systems that help us measure agricultural development in a country.
• Is social media a useful tool for brand promotion?
• The phenomenon of dualism in economic development.

🗺️ International Economics Essay Topics

• Globalization and its impact on international economic relations. Define the term globalization. What role does globalization play in international economic relations? Provide specific examples of globalization’s impact on the global political economy.
• The lack of justice for the cheap international labor market. Discuss the issue of cheap labor in various countries. Why do some workers often lack fundamental human rights while others abuse moral norms? Analyze the causes and effects of inequality in the workplace.
• Japan macroeconomics: problems and possible solutions.
• The issue of mercantilism in the history of Great Britain. Analyze the rise and development of mercantilism in the history of Great Britain. To solidify your ideas, provide persuasive arguments, and appropriate examples of mercantilism.
• Why does the problem of environmental protection remain unresolved among global economies?
• Nissan Motor company’s international business.
• International environmental concerns in economics: the case of China .
• The issue of international criminal justice in industry. Explain why international businesses often avoid criminal justice after wrongdoings. Select one case of unethical behavior of a company’s CEO or regular employee. Briefly introduce the problem. What were the causes and effects? How was the issue resolved? Express your own opinion regarding the lack of criminal justice in business.
• The economy of Singapore and its role in international trade.
• International microeconomics trade dispute case study: US-China dispute on the exportation of raw materials.
• The phenomenon of the “gig economy” and its impact on the global economy.
• The effect of population growth in the international economy.
• International economics in the context of globalization.

• How does Brexit affect the economy of the European Union? Analyze the immediate impact of Brexit on the EU’s economy. Predict future advantages and disadvantages of Brexit for both: Great Britain and the EU.
• South Africa: international agribusiness, trade, and financing.
• Historical essay: the economy of the Dutch East India company.
• The issue of Mozambique’s economy and possible solutions. Investigate the issue of extreme poverty in Mozambique. What are some possible solutions to the problem of poverty? Base your suggestions on the country’s cultural, historical, and geographical aspects.
• Imbalances in the global economy. Discuss the imbalances between trading countries on the scale of the global economy. What solutions would you suggest to deal with this issue?
• How will global economies adapt to China’s growing power?
• Etihad Airways company managerial economics.

🛠️ Labor Economics Essay Topics

• Ford Motor company’s labor economics.
• Labor economics: child labor.
• The UPS firm perspective: the labor market.
• Gender inequality of wage rate in modern business. Research how and why gender inequality is still an issue in the modern world of economics. What are some ways to deal with the problem? Present your ideas accurately and effectively. Provide solid arguments and appropriate examples to prove your position.
• What are the best ways to increase labor productivity in business?
• Labor unions adverse effects on economics.
• The decrease of the labor force in modern industries. Talk about the rising rates of robotization in the majority of industries. How will it affect the traditional labor force? Comment on the problem of unemployment caused by labor automatization.
• Violations of labor rights of workers.
• Modern labor essay: how can an entrepreneur guarantee the minimum wage to their workers?
• How can labor geography help develop a special economic zone? Talk about labor geography and its effects on developing an exclusive economic zone. How does the geopolitical location of a particular country influence its level of economic development?
• Entrepreneurship in the organic cosmetics sphere.
• Gender-oriented labor trade unions. A case study. Discuss the gender-oriented trade unions and analyze their impact on our society.
• Child labor in the Turkish cotton industry.

• The connection between economic growth and demography. Analyze the connection between economic growth and its demographic context. Investigate both sides: – The issue of overpopulation – The problem of low birth rate. From an economic perspective, what problem is more dangerous?
• The issue of sex discrimination in the workplace.
• The effects of Landrum-Griffin Labor Act. Explore the labor Act of Landrum-Griffin that was passed in the US Congress in 1959. Discuss its implications and consequences. Discuss its implications and consequences.

🌆 Urban Economics Essay Topics

• Cities and their role in aggregate economics.
• Urbanization in Hong Kong and its effects on citizens.
• The urban planning of the city of New York: a critical analysis. Analyze the urban history of NY. How has the city been developing? Discuss revolutionary solutions to the past and problems of modern times.
• The impact of a city’s design on the local traffic.
• Dubai’s spatial planning: creative solutions for building a city in the desert.
• Globalization, urban political economy, and economic restructuring.
• How do urban areas affect local wildlife? Comment on how modern production technologies in urban areas impact the natural diversity of wildlife. What impact does the rapid economic progress have on the environment? Suggest possible solutions.
• Urban sociology: does the city make us better people?
• Why should people be more careful about investing in real estate? Discuss the issues of overinvestment into real estate. Consider the economic crisis of 2008 as an example.
• How can regional authorities help improve a city?
• Urban life and its effects on education.
• The economic development of a city’s metropolitan area: challenges and solutions.
• Main factors for the emergence of cities in the Middle Ages.
• The ethics of relocation: is it justified? Talk about the case of relocating locals when building projects of great magnitude. To what extent can it be justified? Mention its economic and ethical side.
• The difficulties behind the construction of “green” buildings. Discuss the relatively new phenomenon of environmentally friendly buildings. Analyze both sides: the pros and cons. What obstacles lie behind the “green” building? What opportunities do the “green” buildings offer? Elaborate on your ideas by providing clear arguments or counterarguments.
• What factors play a critical role in the success of retail productivity in cities?

⚽ Sports Economics Essay Topics

• Do teams with higher budgets perform better on the field?
• Corruption in European football leagues: a critical analysis. Investigate the corruption issue in the European football leagues. State reasons and solutions for the problem.
• The managerial catastrophe of Arsenal F.C.

• The NextG sports company’s communication planning.
• Roger D. Blair’s Sports Economics literary review. Write a literary analysis of Sports Economics by Roger D. Blair. Discuss his opinion on the economy of sports. Do you agree or disagree with his position? Provide compelling supportive arguments or strong counterarguments.
• How significant is the impact factor of a local team on a city’s economy?
• Kinsmen Sports Centre: marketing metrics innovation.
• What role does statistical data play in sports? Analyze the part of economic statistical data in different sports organizations. How can statistics help to develop an effective financing plan? Comment on the impact of financing on the performance of a sports club.
• Sports and energy drinks marketing analysis.
• Is there a connection between the lack of money and any contemporary issues in a sports team?
• Performance-enhancing drugs in sports.
• The business of FIFA: a financial analysis. Investigate the finances of FIFA. What economic factors make them so influential in the modern world of football?
• The global sports retail industry.
• The Olympics: logistics and economy. Discuss the logistics behind the Olympics Games event. How the Olympic Games impact the economy of the host country?

💉 Health Economics Essay Topics

• Is bioprinting the new future of medicine? Analyze the new market of organ printing and discuss its challenges. Investigate bioprinting from an economic perspective. Will the outputs cover the inputs? How will bioprinting impact the financial aspect of the health care sector?
• Cost-effectiveness of pharmaceutical products in the United States. Comment on the immense cost-effectiveness of pharmaceuticals. What do you think is the price of pharmaceutical products reasonable? Is it ethical to set extremely high prices on the medicals?
• An economic evaluation of the antibiotics market.
• Health economics-SIC and NAICS.
• The financial side of cancer treatment: is it too expensive? Analyze the market for cancer treatment programs in various countries. Explore its costs and complications. What are some possible ways to reduce the price of cancer treatment and make it more affordable?
• The issue of fast food consumption: a multibillion-dollar market . Fast food has always been one of the notable causes of obesity, diabetes, and other illnesses. Investigate the economic aspect of the issue. Are high profits from fast food production worth peoples’ health conditions?
• History and evolution of healthcare economics.

• The financial management of a hospital: a case study.
• The issue of public healthcare in the USA. Write about the long-standing issue of medical sector operation in the USA. Analyze its history, financial, and social aspects.
• Demand in healthcare economics.
• What are the economic outcomes of a global pandemic? Taking the COVID-19 outbreak as an example, conduct research on the effects of a pandemic on the economy. How does it affect local economies? What impact does the quarantine have on the international economy? Provide appropriate examples to support your ideas.

💼 Business Economics Essay Topics

• When does an advertising campaign become unnecessary?
• Sustainable development of a nation’s economic stability. Discuss how a country can create a sustainable economy. Provide bright examples to solidify your position.
• How can a small business compete with monopolies?
• What are the limitations of the Lewis Model?
• The phenomenon of inflation: inevitable liability or a land of opportunity for our economies? Explore the process of inflation in modern economies. Does it only have adverse effects on the countries’ economies? Are there any advantages of inflation? Analyze it from a positive perspective.
• Economics, business, and sugar in the UK.
• The shadow economy of the finance sector. Dive into the backstage of the finance sector and research various “grey” areas where business can be done.
• Chinese and Japanese business systems comparison.
• Oil demand and its changes in the XXI century: a critical analysis. Analyze the oil sector and write about its fluctuation in the XXI century. How did the changes in oil demand affect the global economy?
• The social and economic impact of mass emigration.

🌠 40 More Good Economic Essay Topics

Scrolled through our ideas, but can’t find a suitable topic for yourself? No worries! We have more issues to share with you.

So, don’t stress out. Take a look at our list of economical essay topics. Here are 40 more ideas focusing on globalization and the history of economics.

🏤 Economic Globalization Essay Topics

• The impact of globalization on the tourist industry in the Caribbean . Analyze both: the positive and negative effects of globalization on the Caribbean. To make your paper well-structured, explore two advantages and two disadvantages. Don’t forget to improve your essay with strong evidence and appropriate examples!
• Toyota Motor Corporation: impacts of globalization.
• What are the effects of globalization on developing countries? To what extent do developing countries profit from globalization? Research the subject by comparing various examples.
• Defining globalization and its effects on current trade.
• Economic growth as a result of globalization: proper financial strategies. How can a country successfully achieve prosperity with globalization? Discuss proper economic strategies.
• The socio-political significance of the IT industry’s globalization.
• Human trafficking in developing nations as a result of globalization.

• Globalization and criminal justice policy.
• What are the advantages and disadvantages of globalization?
• Globalization challenges and countermeasures.
• The effect of globalization on worldwide trade and employment rates.
• Economic integration within the European Union: a critical analysis. Talk about the history of economic integration within the EU. What are the negative and positive outcomes of economic integration?
• Globalization and food in Japan.
• Does globalization bring negative effects to cultural heritage and identity?
• The Industrial Revolution as the first step towards globalization. Focus on the Industrial Revolution in Europe. Discuss its precursors and consequences. Why is the revolution considered to be a starting point of globalization? Provide specific examples of globalization processes that occurred in the economic sector after the Industrial revolution.
• Globalization 2.0 an analysis of a book by David Rieff.
• Globalization effects on fundamentalism growth.
• Does direct investment by foreign businesses come with strings attached? Dive into the shady area of globalization and discuss how to direct foreign investment can bring problems of geopolitical scale.
• Effects of globalization on sexuality.
• Alibaba’s globalization strategy: an economic analysis.

🧮 Economic History Essay Topics

• The rapid economic growth of Europe during the Age of Discovery. Analyze the factors that brought economic growth to Europe during the Age of Discovery. What factors contributed to the dynamic economic progress of that time?
• Brazil’s economic history.
• History of capitalism: from the Renaissance to the United States of America. Discuss the origins of capitalism and its centuries-long path towards XXth century America. How the establishment of capitalism impacted the economy of the USA?
• Max Weber: economic history, the theory of bureaucracy, and politics as a vocation.
• 2008 Economic Crisis: origins and fallout. Talk about the 2008 Financial Crisis. Discuss its causes and outcomes. What should have been done differently to avoid the global crisis? Comment on the economic strategies countries used to recover from it.
• The economic marvel of Communist China: from rags to riches.
• What made world economic growth of the Renaissance possible?

• The economic history of Canada: how did the settlers facilitate economic growth?
• What did the major powers of the XIXth century base their economies on?
• The Rothschilds: political and financial role in the Industrial Revolution. Research the dynasty of Rothschilds and how they came to power. What was their role in Europe’s Industrial Revolution?
• The link between the “oil curse” and the economic history of Latin America.
• Roman Empire’s monetary policy: a socio-economic analysis.
• How did the demand for different goods change their value in the 2000s years? Analyze the demand for goods in the 2000s years and their change in value. Why do these fluctuations in demand for products and services occur?
• The history of economic thought.
• Soviet Union’s economic timeline: from the new Economic Policy to Reformation. Discuss the economic issues of the Soviet Union from the historical perspective. Why did the Soviet Union collapse? What improvements in the financial sector should have been done?
• History of France economics over the past 20 years.
• The history of economic analysis.
• The concept of serfdom and slavery as the main economic engine of the past. Dive into the idea of feudalism and serfdom. Discuss its social and economic aspects.
• The World Bank’s structure, history, activities.
• The history of Islamic banking: concepts and ideas.

💫 How to Write an Economics Essay?

Generally, essay writing on economics has the same structure as any other essay. However, there are some distinctive features of economic papers. Thus, it is essential to figure them out from the very beginning of your work.

You might be wondering what those aspects of the economic paper are. Well, we have an answer.

Below, you will find a detailed plan that explains the fundamental concepts of the essay writing process. So, don’t hesitate to use our tips! They are indeed helpful.

Pick a topic and dissect it. Picking the right topic is the very basis of writing a successful essay. Think of something that you will be interested in and make sure you understand the issue clearly. Also, don’t forget to check our ultimate economics essay topics and samples list!

Research it. After selecting the right idea from our economical essay topics, research your subject thoroughly. Try to find every fascinating and intriguing detail about it. Remember that you can always ask your fellow students, friends, or a teacher for help.

Come up with a thesis statement. A thesis statement is an essential element of your essay. It will determine your focus and guide the readers throughout your paper. Make your thesis secure and try to catch the reader’s attention using context and word choice.

Outline your essay. Never underestimate the power of a well-structured outline! Creating an essay outline can significantly help you to determine your general plan. Evaluate which economic framework you will be using to address the issue. State the main points of your thesis and antithesis. Make sure that they answer the central question of your work.

Write your introduction. First and foremost, a practical introduction should capture the readers’ attention and state the essay’s key topic. So, put enough effort to develop an outstanding introduction. It will create the first impression of your paper.

Moreover, an introduction should include a thesis statement. As we have mentioned above, a thesis plays a crucial role. Thus, make sure it is clearly stated.

Another significant feature of the introduction is its coherence with the body of your essay. Consequently, the introductory paragraph’s last statement has to present the subject of the next section, generically. Also, keep in mind that no more than three key points can be discussed in a paper, even if it is an extended essay.

Thoroughly work on the body paragraphs. Usually, the body of the essay contains several paragraphs. The number of these paragraphs will depend on the nature of your question. Be sure to create one section for every critical point that you make. This will make your paper properly-structured, and the reader will quickly get your ideas. For your convenience, we created a plan to develop your ideas in each paragraph, So, use it and make your writing process easier!

• Argument. Present your argument in the topic sentence of the paragraph in a way that directly answers the question. A hint: the most effective way to introduce the critical point is to place the topic sentence at the beginning of the paragraph. This will help the readers to concentrate their attention on a specific idea.
• Comment and discussion. Explain the meaning of your argument and provide an economic analysis. Present clear evidence and persuasive arguments to solidify your position.
• Connection. Link your comments with the vital point of the paragraph. Demonstrate the coherence of your evidence with the point.
• Diagrams, tables, charts. If necessary, provide the reader with visual aids. Sometimes, an appropriate diagram or a suitable chart can say more than words. Besides, your paper will look more professional if you use any kind of visual aids.

Conclude your essay. In your conclusion, summarize and synthesize your work by restating your thesis. Also, it is crucial to strengthen it by mentioning the practical value of your findings. Remember to make your essay readable by choosing appropriate wording and avoiding too complex grammar constructions.

Thank you for visiting our page! Did you enjoy our article and learned something new? We are glad to help you. Don’t forget to leave a comment and share the article with others!

🔗 References

• High School Economics Topics: Econlib, The Library of Economics and Liberty
• Guide to Writing an Economics Essay: The Economics Tutor
• How to Write the Introduction of Your Development Economics Paper: David Evans, Center For Global Development
• Senior Essay: Department of Economics, Yale University
• Developing A Thesis: Maxine Rodburg and The Tutors of the Writing Center at Harvard University
• Academic Essay Writing, Some Guidelines: Department of Economics, Carleton University
• The Writing Process: Writing Centre Resource Guide, LibGuides at Dalhousie University
• Research Papers: KU Writing Center, the University of Kansas
• Unpacking the Topic: University of Southern Queensland
• Economic Issues: PIIE, Peterson Institute for International Economics
• Areas of Research: EPI, Economic Policy Institute
• Top 100 Economics Blogs Of 2023: Prateek Agarwal, Intelligent Economist
• Current Environmental Economic Topics, Environmental Economics: US EPA, United States Environmental Protection Agency
• Hot Topics in the U.S. Economy: The Balance
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Submissions for Equilibrium are now open! The Semester 2 regular deadline is May 12th, 2024.

Harker Oeconomia

Harvard international economics essay competition, description.

The 2023 Harvard International Economics Essay Contest is sponsored by the Harvard Undergraduate Economics Association (HUEA) in conjunction with the Harvard College Economics Review (HCER). This essay competition is open to high school students of any year and is a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate an accomplished level of writing and understanding of economic theory. Through the contest, student competitors hone their academic and professional skills and exhibit their knowledge to future employers and academic programs.  Competitors must construct a convincing argument using economic theory and real-world examples.  Winning essays will be published in the Harvard Economics Review and will be available for the greater Harvard community to read. Essays should focus on argumentation supported with facts and references, although data-based support is also welcome.

The Global Economic Outlook in five charts

Lucia quaglietti, collette wheeler.

After rebounding to an estimated 5.5 percent in 2021, global growth is expected to decelerate markedly in 2022—to 4.1 percent, reflecting continued COVID-19 flare-ups, diminished fiscal support, and lingering supply bottlenecks.

Although output and investment in advanced economies are projected to return to pre-pandemic trends next year, they will remain below in emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs), owing to lower vaccination rates, tighter fiscal and monetary policies, and more persistent scarring from the pandemic.

Various downside risks cloud the outlook, including simultaneous Omicron-driven economic disruptions, further supply bottlenecks, a de-anchoring of inflation expectations, financial stress, climate-related disasters, and a weakening of long-term growth drivers. Because EMDEs have limited policy space to provide additional support if needed, these downside risks heighten the possibility of a hard landing.

This underscores the importance of strengthening global cooperation to foster rapid and equitable vaccine distribution, calibrate health and economic policies, enhance debt sustainability in the poorest countries, and tackle the mounting costs of climate change.

1. Global growth is projected to decelerate in 2022 and 2023

Contributions of major economies to global growth

Global growth is set to slow sharply, as the initial rebound in consumption and investment fades and macroeconomic support is withdrawn. Much of the global slowdown over the forecast horizon is accounted for by major economies, which will also weigh on demand in emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs).  

2. emdes are projected to experience a weaker recovery than advanced economies   .

Deviation of output from pre-pandemic trends

In contrast to advanced economies, most EMDEs are expected to suffer substantial scarring to output from the pandemic, with growth trajectories not strong enough to return investment or output to pre-pandemic trends over the forecast horizon of 2022-23.

3. After surprising to the upside in 2021, global inflation is expected to remain elevated this year

Consensus median inflation forecasts

The rebound in global activity, together with supply disruptions and higher food and energy prices, have pushed up headline inflation across many countries. More than half of inflation-targeting EMDEs experienced above-target inflation in 2021, prompting central banks to increase policy rates. Consensus forecasts anticipate median global inflation to remain elevated in 2022.

4. Severe economic disruptions driven by the rapid and simultaneous spreading of the Omicron variant are a key downside risk to near-term growth

Possible Omicron-driven growth outcomes for 2022

The slowdown in global growth from 2021 to 2022 could be sharper if the fast spread of Omicron overwhelms health systems and prompts a re-imposition of strict pandemic control measures in major economies. Omicron-driven economic disruptions could reduce global growth further this year—anywhere from 0.2 to 0.7 percentage point, depending on underlying assumptions The associated dislocations could also aggravate supply bottlenecks and exacerbate inflationary pressures.

5. Global cooperation and effective national policies will be needed to address the severe costs associated with weather and climate disasters

Economic losses from weather and climate disasters

Severe natural disasters and climate-related events could also derail the recovery in EMDEs. Global cooperation is needed to accelerate progress toward meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, and to reduce the economic, health, and social costs of climate change, many of which are born disproportionately by vulnerable populations.

The international community can also help by scaling up climate change adaptation, increasing green investments, and facilitating a green energy transition in many EMDEs. National policy actions can also be tailored to promote investments in renewable energy and infrastructure and to foster technological development. In addition, policy makers can prioritize growth-enhancing reforms that increase preparedness for future climate-related crises. 

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Global Economic Prospects Report

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• Senior Essay

The senior essay for economics majors is optional. However, the senior essay is required for consideration for Distinction in the Major. Most students who write a senior essay find it immensely rewarding and consider it one of their best experiences at Yale.

Senior essays are an opportunity for students to engage in independent, original economic research. Essays are not reviews of the literature, rather they are an examination of an hypothesis using the tools of economics. In particular, the essay must contain original research and/or analysis. They can be theoretical, empirical or computational. The senior essays that receive A’s and are awarded prizes are typically those that use economics tools (and, where appropriate, data) to offer fresh insights on questions. Topics are as diverse as recording and analyzing the behavior of black jack players, the effect of charter schools on student performance, the effect of China’s development on trade, the effect of the Fed on the stock market…. Examples of past essays are available on the department website .

See below for a guide written by thesis writers in the class of 2023.

There are no page requirements or formatting requirements for senior essays in economics. Advice regarding bibliographies, graphs, etc. should be given by your advisor. Generally, essays run about 30 pages.

Senior essay writers may receive a maximum of $500 for legitimate research expenses, provided the student has made a good-faith effort to obtain funding from Yale College. There are many funding opportunities available for research which can be found here: https://funding.yale.edu/find-funding/class-year#toc2 . Funding requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and must be approved by the DUS and Chair.

NOTE: Students must take two econometrics courses (or ECON 135 plus one econometrics course) in order to write a senior essay. The second econometrics course can be taken Cr/D/F for the purposes of the senior essay (but in this case it will not count toward the major requirements). The second econometrics course can be taken in the fall of senior year.

• Undergraduate Program
• Requirements
• Courses Taken Outside of Yale
• Related Course Credit
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• Frequently Asked Questions
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• Women in Economics

Senior essays can be 1-term or 2-term essays. The difference between a 1-term and a 2-term essay is that the 2-term essay is broader in scope and/or goes in greater depth. Most economics majors do 2-term essays.

Senior essays can be done in one of several ways:

1-Term Essays

• Enroll in Econ 491a in the fall of your senior year.
• Expand a term paper from a fall-term seminar in your senior year ( depends on availability of seminar instructor )
• Please note that a 1-term essay cannot be done in the spring term of your senior year.

2-Term Essays

• Enroll in Econ 491a and Econ 492b
• Expand a term paper from a fall-term seminar in your senior year and enroll in Econ 492b ( depends on availability of seminar instructor for both semesters )

For the class of 2024

• Enroll in Econ 491a ( not necessary if you are doing a senior essay out of a fall seminar)
• Choose an advisor and a topic. You should refer to the Potential Advisors webpage for help finding an advisor who is available and is appropriate for your topic. If you have difficulty finding an advisor, see the ECON 491 instructor or the DUS for suggestions. There are many economics faculty members who may be ideal advisors for your topic.  Students may also choose a campus economist from outside of the department. (Permission of the DUS required to choose a non-economist adviser.) In order to do an essay out of a fall seminar, you need the seminar professor to agree to be your advisor (for both semesters in the case of a 2-term essay).
• Meet with your advisor regularly. It is the student’s responsibility to make sure that these regular meetings occur.
• Submit a “Senior Essay Prospectus” on or before Monday, October 2, 2023 by 4:30 pm. The prospectus must be signed by your advisor. All students planning to write a senior essay must hand in a prospectus at this time. Failure to do so results in your not being permitted to write an essay. A late prospectus will not be accepted without a Dean’s note.
• Students enrolled in a 2-term essay must submit a written progress report to their advisor on Wednesday, November 8, 2023. For essays involving substantial data collection and statistical analysis, a description of the research question and the data that has been gathered for analysis may be appropriate. For others, a portion of the essay itself or a detailed outline describing the thesis question, existing literature, and planned method of analysis is suitable. Based on this report, your advisor will be asked to give you a temporary grade of satisfactory or not satisfactory for the fall term. This temporary grade will be replaced by the final grade on your senior essay in April.
• You are allowed to switch advisor, with DUS permission, but no later than the progress report due date . In this case you need to submit a new prospectus form signed by the new advisor by the progress report due date .
• A student who wishes to change a 1-term essay to a 2-term essay must get permission from the advisor and the DUS prior to the Thanksgiving break. To convert, a student must have made satisfactory progress on the essay by that time. No conversions will be allowed after Thanksgiving.
• 1-term senior essays are due to your advisor on Wednesday, December 6, 2023 by 4:30 pm. For students doing a 1-term essay by enrolling in Econ 491a, the advisor will evaluate and grade the paper, which will be your grade for the course. For students doing a 1-term essay out of a seminar, the advisor will evaluate and grade the paper, but the essay grade will not appear on your transcript. The grade and evaluation will be used for determination of distinction and departmental prizes. A final version of the 1-term senior essay must be submitted on or before Wednesday, April 3, 2024 by 4:30 pm via email to Dan Rehberg, Interim Undergraduate Registrar, at [email protected] for grading by the outside anonymous reader. Late essays will not be accepted without a Dean’s Extension. (Note: students doing the 1-term essay may continue to make additional revisions beyond the fall term before the April due date. Please bear in mind, however, that advisors of 1-term essays may have other commitments and are not obligated to advise you beyond the fall term.)

Spring 2024

• For students doing 2-term essays, enroll in Econ 492b.
• 2-term senior essays must be submitted on or before Wednesday, April 3, 2024 at 4:30 pm via email to Dan Rehberg, Interim Undergraduate Registrar, at [email protected] . Late essays will not be accepted without a Dean’s Extension.
• Advisor’s Reports with grades and comments and Reader’s Reports with grades and comments are usually available by the end of reading week in the Economics Undergraduate Registrar’s Office.

Hi Juniors, If you are reading this guide, this means (we hope) that you’re considering writing a senior essay in economics! Writing an economics thesis is an incredibly fulfilling experience, and we hope that if you feel prepared, you write one! To help clarify the process and give advice, the Economics Peer Mentors from the 2022-2023 academic year have made an updated version of this guide from the Class of 2021 that was created by Alya Ahmed and Lara Varela Gajewski, with responses from the Class of 2023.

Link to Class of 2023 Guide

Best of luck, Sarah Moon ‘23, Economics & Mathematics Ayumi Sudo ‘23, Economics

Some Takeaways: 

Most seniors, including all seniors that responded to our survey, wrote a two-term thesis. 

Seniors wrote essays on topics in:

• Labor economics
• Macroeconomics
• Econometrics
• Behavioral economics
• Public economics 
• Environmental economics
• ...and more 

Advisors were chosen from: 

• Herb Scarf RA and Tobin RA positions
• Classes taken in junior year or in the fall semester senior seminars
• Recommended by other professors/ECON 491 TA's
• Cold emailing

Econ thesis advisors are from:

• Yale Economics Department
• Yale School of Management 
• Yale School of Environment
• ...and more

Topics were inspired by: 

• Personal interests 
• Previously taken classes
• Summer research work
• Interesting data sets

Economics 491 counts as a 400 level, senior requirement course. Economics 492 counts as an elective.

Students writing a one-semester essay out of Economics 491 will receive a letter grade at the end of the fall semester based on the quality of their senior thesis. Students writing a one-semester essay out of a senior seminar will only receive a grade for the seminar on their transcript. They will not see their senior essay grade on their transcript, but it will be recorded by the department for distinction purposes. Students writing a two-semester essay by taking 491 and 492, will receive a temporary 491 grade (Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory) at the end of the fall semester. That grade will be replaced by a letter grade given for 491 and 492 based on the quality of the senior essay. Students who write a two-semester essay by taking a seminar and then 492 will receive a grade based on the requirements of the seminar in the fall. In the spring they will receive a grade for 492 based on the quality of the senior essay. Your senior essay will be graded by your advisor.

To qualify for distinction, a senior must receive a grade of A or A- from their advisor on the senior essay and have 3/4 of their economics grades be A’s or A-’s. For the purpose of distinction economics grades include related course credit, but do not include introductory microeconomics, introductory macroeconomics, the math requirement nor courses taken outside of Yale.

Senior Essay Course Lecturer:

Rebecca Toseland will be the Fall 2023 lecturer for The Senior Essay (Econ 491a) course.

Lecturer and TF office hours are by appointment only. Schedule a time on office hours sign-up sheet below.

Senior Essay TF:

Ken Jung will be the Fall 2023 TF for The Senior Essay (Econ 491a) course.

Office Hours Sign-up Sheet

Lecturer and TF office hours are by appointment only. Schedule a time on this sign-up sheet (must be signed-in with Eli Apps to view and edit).

If you would like to request an appointment at a different time, please email the Lecturer or TF.

Senior Essay Prizes

Essays will also be read by an anonymous economics department faculty member. Only the advisor’s grade will appear on the transcript. However, both the advisor and the anonymous readers must nominate an essay for that essay to move on to the awards committee.

Three or more prizes for outstanding senior essays are awarded each year by the economics undergraduate prize committee. The  Charles Heber Dickerman Memorial Prize  is awarded for the best senior essay; the  Ronald Meltzer/Cornelia Awdziewicz Economic Award  is awarded for one or two more outstanding senior essays and the  Ellington Prize  is awarded for one or more outstanding essays in the field of finance.

Senior Essays Nominated for Prizes

Women in Economics 2021 Senior Thesis Spotlight

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[email protected].

Harvard International Economics Essay Contest (HIEEC)

• Last modified 2023-12-01
• Published on 2021-05-14

Competition Details

Introduction : The Harvard Undergraduate Economics Association (HUEA) is organizing its flagship Harvard International Economics Essay Contest with the collaboration of the Harvard College Economics Review. We jointly organize the Essay competition with HUEA, and we also publish the top three essays in our online publications. HIEEC provides students the opportunity to demonstrate an accomplished level of writing and understanding of economic theory. Through the contest, students hone their academic and professional skills and exhibit their knowledge.

2023-2024 Harvard International Economics Essay Contest Topic:

Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have the potential to affect growth, inequality, productivity, innovation, and employment. OpenAI’s ChatGPT, in particular, has greatly increased public awareness about the significance of AI and its implications for the future. What impact will the development of AI have on economic inequality, the composition of the workforce, and economic output as a whole? How can nations prepare for the micro and macroeconomic changes brought about by AI?

Measuring national and global economic activity allows us to understand how economies change in size and structure—how they grow and contract. In addition to Gross Domestic Product (GDP), government budgets, and the money supply, alternatives like the Human Development Index (HDI) and Gross National Income (GNI) are used to assess economic progress. What are the advantages of our current economic indices, including GDP, HDI, GNI, government budgets, and the money supply, and in what areas are they lacking? Which of these indices do you find most helpful, and how can we enhance or combine them to improve our understanding of economic measurement?

Proponents of income redistribution support the idea that redistribution policies will increase economic stability and give more opportunities to the less wealthy. Others, however, are more skeptical and believe it could have negative consequences for economic growth. Current methods of redistribution include taxation, welfare, public services, and other monetary policies. What strategies for income redistribution should the U.S. adopt from other countries? What economic impacts could a wealth tax or super millionaire tax have? What type of redistribution is most effective and feasible? What would be the impacts of the U.S. enacting universal basic income? Discuss the implications of any of these issues and feel free to expand on other areas of economic redistribution.

As the United States weighs the impacts of China’s rise to global prominence, economics and national security have become increasingly intertwined. As a result, the United States government has imposed both tariffs and investment restrictions on China to limit the nation’s access to both US markets and intellectual property (specifically in sensitive industries such as semiconductors). What are the economic implications of these policies for United States firms, consumers, and workers? Discuss the most important perspectives of the US-China trade war and provide suggestions on how both countries can manage the prospect of a changing economic order.

Contest Rule: The word limit of 1500 must be strictly adhered to. Any words past the limit will be truncated. This limit excludes references, footnotes, titles, headers, and footers.

Competition Website : For more information about the competition, click here .

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Is Inflation on the Way Out or Here to Stay?

Since March 2021, inflation has been above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. After peaking in June 2022, inflation—measured as the 12-month change in the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index—trended steadily downward for a year. This decline reversed in July and August 2023, though some other measures of inflation continued to fall. Regardless of how we measure it, inflation remains high.

Do these developments signal the end of high inflation is nigh, or will inflation instead settle at rates higher than in the period prior to the COVID-19 pandemic? In this blog post, I will provide relevant evidence to shed light on this debate, which is central to future monetary policy. In addition, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) recently published a comprehensive update to the national accounts , so this provides a good opportunity to take a renewed look at the data. This blog post is part of a series that started in April 2021 with “Is Inflation Making a Comeback?” ; my most recent posts this year were the May 8 post "Understanding the Recent Behavior of Inflation" and the May 9 post "Where Might Inflation Head?"

The Overall Inflation Picture

Inflation is the change in the price level over a period of time. The Federal Reserve’s preferred measure for the price level is the PCE price index, as published by the BEA. The Federal Reserve also pays close attention to core PCE inflation, i.e., excluding the contribution of food and energy prices, which tend to be very volatile and largely determined by external factors. Core inflation is thus deemed more informative about underlying inflation trends. Note, however, that recent experience and some research  have cast doubt on the appropriateness of excluding food.

The figure below shows inflation rates, measured as the 12-month change in the price index. It includes three measures: one that includes all consumption items (headline), one that excludes energy, and one that excludes both food and energy (core).

Annualized Inflation Rates

SOURCES: Bureau of Economic Analysis and Haver Analytics.

All three measures of inflation increased significantly since March 2021 and have remained well above 2% annual. Clearly, energy prices contributed to inflation dynamics, making the initial rise in inflation and its subsequent fall more pronounced. The recent increase in energy prices contributed to a reversal in the decline of headline inflation and will likely contribute upward pressure in the months to come. By comparing the series excluding energy and the core series, we can also see the contribution of food to overall inflation during 2022.

Focusing on core goods and services, inflation was below the Federal Reserve’s target in the years prior to the pandemic, averaging 1.7% annual between 2016 and 2019. It remained close to that average during the initial year of the pandemic and then jumped to 5.2% annual in 2021 and 4.9% annual in 2022. So far, the annualized inflation rate for core goods and services in 2023 is 3.6%, lower than in preceding years but still well above the target.

What Are the Key Components Driving Inflation?

The table below decomposes inflation into five major categories: food, energy, core goods, core services excluding housing, and housing. The contribution of these components in total consumption expenditures is, roughly, 8%, 4%, 22%, 50% and 16%, respectively. The table measures inflation rates over various periods of interest. The first, 2016-2019, represents the years immediately prior to the pandemic. Next are the years 2020, 2021, 2022 and, finally, 2023 up to August, the latest date available. All inflation rates are annualized to make them comparable across periods of different length.

The table shows that inflation varies significantly across these broad categories. Prior to the pandemic, food prices were stable, and core goods prices were declining, while core services excluding housing and housing were both growing above the Federal Reserve’s target rate. When combined, these numbers implied an overall inflation rate of 1.6% annually, which is below the target.

All categories contributed to the high overall inflation in 2021 and 2022. So far in 2023, inflation in food, energy and core goods has decelerated markedly, falling below 2% at annual rates. In contrast, inflation in core services excluding housing and in housing decelerated but remain well above 2% annual. Core services, which includes housing, represent two-thirds of consumption expenditures. Hence, inflation in this category will have to fall substantially more before overall inflation can be sustained close to target.

How Widespread Is Inflation?

We can further inspect the distribution of inflation across individual product categories. The disaggregated data published by the BEA consist of 244 product categories with monthly series on expenditures, prices and real quantities. For each product category, I computed the annualized price change and the expenditure share in each period. The figure below estimates the distribution of inflation for 2021, 2022 and 2023 (up to August) across product categories, with annualized price changes on the horizontal axis and the corresponding expenditure shares on the vertical axis. For a full description of the methodology, see my Oct. 19, 2021, blog post  “How Widespread Are Price Increases in the U.S.?”

Estimated Distribution of Annualized PCE Inflation

SOURCES: Bureau of Economic Analysis and author’s calculations.

NOTES: Distributions are computed with kernel density estimation in Stata, using the optimal bandwidth for each period. The 2023 period is the year through August.

So far, the distribution of inflation across product categories in 2023 seems to be somewhere in between the previous two years, but with important differences. Notably, the contribution of outliers to overall inflation is not as significant in 2023 as in previous years; that is, the share of expenditures in items experiencing high inflation rates is now much smaller. Furthermore, about one-fifth of consumption expenditures are in categories experiencing deflation, which contributes to the decline in overall inflation. Had the price of these products remained constant rather than declined, annualized inflation for 2023 through August would have been 0.8 percentage points higher.

The Effects of the Pandemic and Monetary Policy on Consumption

When the pandemic hit in 2020, the Federal Reserve lowered its policy rate to near zero, among other measures designed to support the economy. Beginning in March 2022, as high inflation endured, the Federal Reserve embarked on a series of rapid and sustained increases in the policy rate. As of August 2023, the federal funds rate and the yields on Treasuries at all maturities were above the inflation rate.

When interest rates rise, the demand for consumption is pressured downward, as higher rates make consumer financing more costly and increase the incentives to save. Lower demand then leads to lower inflationary pressures as producers and sellers find it more difficult to hike their prices. What was the response of consumption to the pandemic, inflation and monetary policy?

The figure below shows monthly consumption expenditures, measured in 2017 dollars, as well as their pre-pandemic trend.

Monthly Real Consumption

Real consumption dropped significantly at the onset of the pandemic and took until March 2021 to return to its pre-pandemic trend. Since then, real consumption has remained persistently above trend, just like inflation and despite high interest rates. The boom in real consumption is mainly driven by expenditures on goods, as services have remained below trend though they have almost caught up.

If we take the difference between actual real consumption and its pre-pandemic trend, we get an accumulated consumption deficit of $375 billion (in 2017 prices) since the start of the pandemic. This deficit represents $455 billion in current prices or about a third of monthly consumption.

There are then two opposing forces operating on consumer demand and hence inflation. On the one hand, higher interest rates disincentivize consumption as they promote saving and increase financing costs. On the other hand, consumers may still desire to make up for past privations, especially on services. The ability of households to self-finance consumption affects how these two forces are balanced.

Households Still Hold Excess Personal Savings

Personal savings are defined as disposable personal income minus personal outlays. Before the pandemic, disposable income was growing at a faster rate than outlays. Hence, personal savings had a trend, which is calculated for the years 2016-2019. We then subtract this trend from actual savings to obtain a measure of excess savings. Next, we sum these excess savings to get a measure of accumulated excess savings, as shown in the figure below. Note that excess savings were computed in nominal terms, i.e., in current dollars.

This figure also shows a measure of excess inflation. Specifically, it displays the series of PCE inflation excluding energy (as shown in the first figure) minus the 2% inflation target. As we can see, excess inflation was actually negative in the years prior the pandemic, when PCE inflation excluding energy was averaging 1.6% annually.

Accumulated Excess Personal Savings and Excess Inflation

NOTES: Personal savings are defined as disposable personal income minus personal outlays. Excess personal savings are computed by subtracting the 2016-2019 trend. Accumulated excess personal savings are the sum of excess personal savings since January 2016. Excess inflation is defined as the annual growth rate of the PCE price index excluding energy minus 2%.

Until the onset of the pandemic, excess savings averaged zero as both personal disposable income and outlays grew very close to their respective trends. During the pandemic, the federal government implemented three big rounds of assistance, mainly consisting of direct transfers to individuals and other forms of support that eventually made their way to households.

Accumulated excess personal savings peaked at $2.2 trillion in August 2021 and have been declining ever since. However, they still stood at over $600 billion as of August 2023. This is $150 billion more than the consumption deficit I computed above. In other words, despite the curbing incentives provided by higher interest rates, households on average have the capacity to continue consuming above trend in real terms and more than make up for pandemic-related privations.

As we can see, excess inflation traces accumulated excess savings closely but with a few months’ delay. This underscores the tight connection between fiscal policy during the pandemic and the subsequent inflation. For an articulation of economic theories connecting fiscal policy to inflation, as well as the risks for persistently high inflation surfacing at the time, see my Oct. 7, 2021, post “What Are the Risks for Future Inflation?”   For example, excess savings first jumped in April 2020, with the transfers due to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, while inflation took off several months later. (As mentioned above and shown in the figure, inflation crossed 2% annually in March 2021). Also, accumulated excess savings peaked in August 2021, while excess inflation peaked in September 2022.

Both excess savings and excess inflation have trended down steadily since reaching their peaks, inflation a bit faster than savings, likely due to tighter monetary policy. If these recent trends were to persist, both excesses will have vanished by the end of the first half of 2024. That is, by June 2024 accumulated excess savings will have been depleted, while inflation will have fallen to 2% annually.

The Road Ahead

To recap, inflation has slowed during 2023, after two years at elevated levels, but it remains well above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. Deflation in certain goods has helped bring average inflation down. In contrast, inflation in core services remains an item of concern as it has yet to show a marked and sustained deceleration.

Despite the Federal Reserve’s policy of high interest rates, real consumption has remained above trend, though there is still a deficit of consumption from the pandemic. Excess personal savings, boosted by fiscal policy during the pandemic, have been declining slowly but remain high enough to finance above-trend consumption, undermining the effects of tighter monetary policy.

The question remains: Will inflation continue to glide down toward 2%, or will it settle at rates above it? The latter scenario is particularly troublesome as experiencing inflation persistently above the target may erode the Federal Reserve’s credibility, which is an essential tool in the successful conduct of monetary policy.

The so-called “higher for longer” policy—that is, maintaining interest rates high even as inflation declines—is intended to ensure that the mechanism by which high interest rates curb consumption remains active until inflation is successfully brought down to the 2% target. Recent data on output and expectations of future growth have been revised upward, while the unemployment rate has remained near historic lows. These factors have provided the Federal Reserve with enough cover to focus on its fight against high inflation. They have also contributed to the recent rise of long-term interest rates. Ultimately, it is long-term interest rates (e.g., mortgage rates) that most affect consumer behavior and thus are a crucial transmission mechanism for monetary policy.

Several risks remain that could delay or potentially reverse the decline in inflation. First, energy prices have again surged, with oil currently trading at prices similar to those in late 2022. This reversal will likely arrest the momentum in headline inflation and may adversely affect inflation expectations should this rally persist.

Second, inflation in services remains stubbornly high. A simple calculation illustrates the importance of this fact. Suppose the price of goods remains constant while the price of services continues growing at its 2023 annualized rate (4.2% annual). Then, inflation for 2023 ends up at 3.2%. That is, the momentum of inflation in services is enough to keep overall inflation above target. There is the additional risk that, should this momentum persist, services may drag inflation in goods upward, rather than the other way around, as consumers coordinate their expectations on higher inflation.

Third, preliminary estimates indicated that the federal deficit was $1.7 trillion in fiscal year 2023, roughly $300 billion more than in 2022. See the Congressional Budget Office’s September budget review . Consequently, debt in the hands of the public increased by about $2.2 trillion in 2023. The debt is expected to continue growing over the next decade and beyond. An outsized increase in government liabilities, particularly when used to support direct transfers to individuals as was the case during the pandemic, may lead to a sharp rise in prices. Though the effects of pandemic expenditures are dying out, as evidenced by the slow but steady decline in excess savings, persistent large deficits may again put upward pressure on future inflation.

• This blog post is part of a series that started in April 2021 with “ Is Inflation Making a Comeback? ”; my most recent posts this year were the May 8 post “ Understanding the Recent Behavior of Inflation ”; and the May 9 post “ Where Might Inflation Head? ”
• For a full description of the methodology, see my Oct. 19, 2021, blog post “ How Widespread Are Price Increases in the U.S.? ”
• For an articulation of economic theories connecting fiscal policy to inflation, as well as the risks for persistently high inflation surfacing at the time, see my Oct. 7, 2021, post “ What Are the Risks for Future Inflation? ”
• See the Congressional Budget Office’s September budget review .

Fernando M. Martin is an economist and senior economic policy advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. His research interests include macroeconomics, monetary economics, banking and public finance. He joined the St. Louis Fed in 2011. Read more about his work .

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FT Schools competition: Young Economist of the Year

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Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

This article is part of the Financial Times free schools access programme. Details/registration  here .

School students across the UK in years 12 and 13 are invited to enter the Young Economist of the Year competition run by the Royal Economic Society in association with the Financial Times. 

Applicants — who need not be studying economics — have until July 25 to write up to 1,000 words on one of the five questions picked for this year.

The winning article will be published in the Financial Times and on the RES website and the author will receive £1,000, with £200 for each of the runners up. 

Entries will be judged on originality, quality of writing, economic content and quality of the economic argument. 

The five questions are:

When, if ever, is it a good idea for central banks to set interest rates below zero? 

How is Brexit going to change the economic geography of the UK?

Will the legacy of Covid-19 be an economically more unequal world?

Technological change means that the wage gap between the skilled and unskilled will simply keep growing. Do you agree with this assessment? 

We will fail to address climate change because Covid-19 showed we are unable to muster a concerted global response to common crises. Do you agree?

The competition is part of the  FT’s schools programme , which provides free access to the FT for students aged 16-19, their teachers and schools around the world.

Supporting ideas and data for entrants can be found in the FT. Full details and information on submission are available on the  RES competition website .

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The economic outlook for 2023 to 2033 in 16 charts.

CBO summarizes in graphic form its projections of what the economy would look like this year and over the next decade if current laws governing federal taxes and spending generally remained in place.

The Congressional Budget Office regularly publishes its baseline projections of what the federal budget and the economy would look like in the current year and the following 10 years if current laws governing federal taxes and spending generally remained unchanged. This report summarizes—with an emphasis on graphic presentation—the information about CBO’s economic forecast that was published in The Budget and Economic Outlook: 2023 to 2033 (February 2023).

• Economic output (gross domestic product, or GDP) is projected to stop growing early this year in response to last year’s sharp rise in interest rates. Output is projected to start growing again during the second half of 2023 as falling inflation allows the Federal Reserve to reduce interest rates, causing rebounds in sectors of the economy that are sensitive to interest rates.
• Inflation was higher in 2021 and 2022 than in any other years of the previous four decades: 5.7 percent and 5.5 percent, respectively, as measured by the price index for personal consumption expenditures. The annual growth of that price index is projected to remain above the Federal Reserve’s long-term goal of 2 percent through 2024 and then fall near to that goal by 2026.
• Interest rates on Treasury securities are projected to rise further in early 2023 and then gradually fall beginning in late 2023.
• The unemployment rate is projected to increase from 3.6 percent at the end of last year to 5.1 percent at the end of 2023 before gradually declining to 4.5 percent by the end of 2027.

CBO’s projections for the federal budget depend in part on the agency’s projection of the growth of nominal GDP. (That growth reflects both inflation and the growth of real GDP—that is, GDP adjusted to remove the effects of inflation.) Since May 2022, when CBO published its previous baseline projections, the agency has lowered its projection of the growth of nominal GDP in 2023 from 4.5 percent to 3.1 percent. However, CBO is now projecting much faster growth of nominal GDP in the 2024–2026 period than it did last May; after 2026, growth rates for nominal GDP are roughly similar to those in the May projections. CBO has increased, on average, its projections of short- and long-term interest rates over the next five years, mostly because it has raised its near-term projections of inflation since May.

Data and Supplemental Information

• Data Underlying Figures

Related Publications

• The Budget and Economic Outlook: 2023 to 2033 February 15, 2023
• Estimating the Uncertainty of the Economic Forecast Using CBO’s Bayesian Vector Autoregression Model January 19, 2023
• Estimating the Uncertainty of the Economic Forecast Using CBO’s Expanded Markov-Switching Model January 19, 2023

RIP Metaverse

An obituary for the latest fad to join the tech graveyard

The Metaverse , the once-buzzy technology that promised to allow users to hang out awkwardly in a disorientating video-game-like world, has died after being abandoned by the business world. It was three years old.

The capital-M Metaverse, a descendant of the 1982 movie "Tron" and the 2003 video game "Second Life," was born in 2021 when Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg changed the name of his trillion-dollar company to Meta. After a much-heralded debut, the Metaverse became the obsession of the tech world and a quick hack to win over Wall Street investors. The hype could not save the Metaverse, however, and a lack of coherent vision for the product ultimately led to its decline. Once the tech industry turned to a new, more promising trend — generative AI — the fate of the Metaverse was sealed.

The Metaverse is now headed to the tech industry's graveyard of failed ideas. But the short life and ignominious death of the Metaverse offers a glaring indictment of the tech industry that birthed it.

Grand promise

From the moment of its delivery, Zuckerberg claimed that the Metaverse would be the future of the internet. The glitzy, spurious promotional video that accompanied Zuckerberg's name-change announcement described a future where we'd be able to interact seamlessly in virtual worlds: Users would "make eye contact" and "feel like you're right in the room together." The Metaverse offered people the chance to engage in an "immersive" experience, he claimed.

These grandiose promises heaped sky-high expectations on the Metaverse. The media swooned over the newborn concept: The Verge published a nearly 5,000-word-long interview with Zuckerberg immediately following the announcement — in which the writer called it "an expansive, immersive vision of the internet." Glowing profiles of the Metaverse seemed to set it on a laudatory path, but the actual technology failed to deliver on this promise throughout its short life. A wonky virtual-reality interview with the CBS host Gayle King , where low-quality cartoon avatars of both King and Zuckerberg awkwardly motioned to each other, was a stark contrast to the futuristic vistas shown in Meta's splashy introductory video .

The Metaverse also suffered from an acute identity crisis. A functional business proposition requires a few things to thrive and grow: a clear use case, a target audience, and the willingness of customers to adopt the product. Zuckerberg waxed poetic about the Metaverse as "a vision that spans many companies'' and "the successor to the mobile internet," but he failed to articulate the basic business problems that the Metaverse would address. The concept of virtual worlds where users interact with each other using digital avatars is an old one, going back as far as the late 1990s with massively multiplayer online role-player games, such as "Meridian 59," "Ultima Online," and "EverQuest." And while the Metaverse supposedly built on these ideas with new technology, Zuckerberg's one actual product — the VR platform Horizon Worlds, which required the use of an incredibly clunky Oculus headset — failed to suggest anything approaching a road map or a genuine vision. In spite of the Metaverse's arrested conceptual development, a pliant press published statements about the future of the technology that were somewhere between unrealistic and outright irresponsible . The CNBC host Jim Cramer nodded approvingly when Zuckerberg claimed that 1 billion people would use the Metaverse and spend hundreds of dollars there, despite the Meta CEO's inability to say what people would receive in exchange for their cash or why anyone would want to strap a clunky headset to their face to attend a low-quality, cartoon concert.

A high-flying life

The inability to define the Metaverse in any meaningful way didn't get in the way of its ascension to the top of the business world. In the months following the Meta announcement, it seemed that every company had a Metaverse product on offer, despite it not being obvious what it was or why they should.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella would say at the company's 2021 Ignite Conference that he couldn't "overstate how much of a breakthrough " the Metaverse was for his company, the industry, and the world. Roblox, an online game platform that has existed since 2004, rode the Metaverse hype wave to an initial public offering and a $41 billion valuation. Of course, the cryptocurrency industry took the ball and ran with it: The people behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT company conned the press into believing that uploading someone's digital monkey pictures into VR would be the key to "master the Metaverse." Other crypto pumpers even successfully convinced people that digital land in the Metaverse would be the next frontier of real-estate investment . Even businesses that seemed to have little to do with tech jumped on board. Walmart joined the Metaverse. Disney joined the Metaverse.

Companies' rush to get into the game led Wall Street investors, consultants, and analysts to try to one up each other's projections for the Metaverse's growth. The consulting firm Gartner claimed that 25% of people would spend at least one hour a day in the Metaverse by 2026. The Wall Street Journal said the Metaverse would change the way we work forever . The global consulting firm McKinsey predicted that the Metaverse could generate up to "$5 trillion in value," adding that around 95% of business leaders expected the Metaverse to "positively impact their industry" within five to 10 years. Not to be outdone, Citi put out a massive report that declared the Metaverse would be a $13 trillion opportunity .

A brutal downfall

In spite of all this hype, the Metaverse did not lead a healthy life. Every single business idea or rosy market projection was built on the vague promises of a single CEO. And when people were actually offered the opportunity to try it out, nobody actually used the Metaverse.

Decentraland, the most well-funded, decentralized, crypto-based Metaverse product (effectively a wonky online world you can "walk" around), only had around 38 daily active users in its "$1.3 billion ecosystem." Decentraland would dispute this number, claiming that it had 8,000 daily active users — but that's still only a fraction of the number of people playing large online games like "Fortnite." Meta's much-heralded efforts similarly struggled: By October 2022, Mashable reported that Horizon Worlds had less than 200,000 monthly active users — dramatically short of the 500,000 target Meta had set for the end of 2022. The Wall Street Journal reported that only about 9% of user-created worlds were visited by more than 50 players , and The Verge said that it was so buggy that even Meta employees eschewed it . Despite the might of a then-trillion-dollar company, Meta could not convince people to use the product it had staked its future on. 

The Metaverse fell seriously ill as the economy slowed and the hype around generative AI grew. Microsoft shuttered its virtual-workspace platform AltSpaceVR in January 2023, laid off the 100 members of its "industrial metaverse team ," and made a series of cuts to its HoloLens team . Disney shuttered its Metaverse division in March, and Walmart followed suit by ending its Roblox-based Metaverse projects. The billions of dollars invested and the breathless hype around a half-baked concept led to thousands — if not tens of thousands — of people losing their jobs .

But the Metaverse was officially pulled off life support when it became clear that Zuckerberg and the company that launched the craze had moved on to greener financial pastures. Zuckerberg declared in a March update that Meta's "single largest investment is advancing AI and building it into every one of our products." Meta's chief technology officer, Andrew Bosworth, told CNBC in April that he, along with Mark Zuckerberg and the company's chief product officer, Chris Cox, were now spending most of their time on AI. The company has even stopped pitching the Metaverse to advertisers , despite spending more than $100 billion in research and development on its mission to be "Metaverse first." While Zuckerberg may suggest that developing games for the Quest headsets is some sort of investment, the writing is on the wall: Meta is done with the Metaverse.

Did anyone learn their lesson?

While the idea of virtual worlds or collective online experiences may live on in some form, the Capital-M Metaverse is dead. It was preceded in death by a long line of tech fads like Web3 and Google Glass. It is survived by newfangled ideas like the aforementioned generative AI and the self-driving car. Despite this long lineage of disappointment, let's be clear: The death of the Metaverse should be remembered as arguably one of the most historic failures in tech history.

I do not believe that Mark Zuckerberg ever had any real interest in "the Metaverse," because he never seemed to define it beyond a slightly tweaked Facebook with avatars and cumbersome hardware. It was the means to an increased share price, rather than any real vision for the future of human interaction. And Zuckerberg used his outsize wealth and power to get the whole of the tech industry and a good portion of the American business world into line behind this half-baked idea. 

The fact that Mark Zuckerberg has clearly stepped away from the Metaverse is a damning indictment of everyone who followed him, and anyone who still considers him a visionary tech leader. It should also be the cause for some serious reflection among the venture-capital community, which recklessly followed Zuckerberg into blowing billions of dollars on a hype cycle founded on the flimsiest possible press-release language. In a just world, Mark Zuckerberg should be fired as CEO of Meta (in the real world, this is actually impossible ). 

Zuckerberg misled everyone, burned tens of billions of dollars, convinced an industry of followers to submit to his quixotic obsession, and then killed it the second that another idea started to interest Wall Street. There is no reason that a man who has overseen the layoffs of tens of thousands of people should run a major company. There is no future for Meta with Mark Zuckerberg at the helm: It will stagnate, and then it will die and follow the Metaverse into the proverbial grave.

Ed Zitron  is the CEO of  EZPR , a national tech and business public-relations agency. He is also the author of the tech and culture newsletter  Where's Your Ed At .

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