History Lessons: Technology and the Labor Market

For Clues About How A.I. Will Change Work, Look to the Past
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/22/business/economy/ai-economy-jobs-history.html
Economists hope earlier episodes of labor disruption, from the Industrial Revolution to the Great Depression, can help us prepare for the age of artificial intelligence. 

Lula’s Challenges

Five economic challenges facing Brazil's re-elected President Lula
https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/five-economic-challenges-facing-brazils-re-elected-president-lula-2026-10-26/

Brazilian Markets Convulse After Unexpected Election Result
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/26/business/brazil-stock-markets-election-lula.html
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s re-election victory prompted a sharp reversal in financial markets that had expected his opponent to win. 

 
Lula faces a fiscal reckoning after Brazil's market rout
https://www.ft.com/content/0231b234-14dc-4ff0-8263-e1063b0a25d5
 
Brazil's weird economy needs serious reform
https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2026/10/22/brazils-weird-economy-needs-serious-reform 

Anthropic’s IPO

What’s Riding on Anthropic’s Market Debut? Nearly Everything.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/26/technology/anthropic-going-public-stakes.html
Anthropic sits atop a pyramid of business partners and suppliers, making it a barometer of the broader economy. Its initial public offering will have widespread implications. 

US Manufacturing Employment

U.S. Manufacturing Is Adding Jobs Again, but the Hiring Rules Have Changed
https://www.wsj.com/business/u-s-manufacturing-is-adding-jobs-again-but-the-hiring-rules-have-changed-29171127
While factory employment is on the rise, a shift toward high-tech automation is creating roles with greater barriers to entry. 

Forward Guidance and the Fed

Kevin Warsh, Forward Guidance and the Nobel Prize
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/kevin-warsh-forward-guidance-and-the-nobel-prize-ae265640
The winning economists make the case for the kind of forecasting the Fed chairman doesn’t like. 

Kevin Warsh Wanted the Fed to Be Quiet. Instead, It’s as Noisy as Ever.
https://www.wsj.com/economy/central-banking/kevin-warsh-wanted-the-fed-to-be-quiet-instead-its-as-noisy-as-ever-b2346ca2
The central bank's chairman has made a point of saying less, but most of his colleagues haven’t followed his lead.

The Decline of Humanities

Does anybody still major in the humanities?
https://spectator.com/article/anybody-still-major-humanities-college/
Charles Lipson:
At every university, big and small, fewer and fewer students are studying English, History, Philosophy, Art History, French literature or Anthropology. Those dwindling numbers mark a striking change in higher education. Not too long ago, English and History were among the most popular majors on campus. Students gravitated to them because they liked the subject matter and found the courses engaging and enriching. Those students weren’t preparing to become professors of Renaissance History or 19th-Century Poetry. They expected to go into business, law, or some related field. Still, they wanted a liberal education before they went out into the working world, and they got it in traditional humanities disciplines. 

A Highly Concentrated Earnings Boom

Two AI Chipmakers Make Up 34% of America’s Earnings Boom
https://www.wsj.com/finance/stocks/the-earnings-boom-is-heavily-reliant-on-just-a-handful-of-stocks-21decb53
Ten companies—including Nvidia, Micron and other AI giants—account for roughly two-thirds of corporate profit growth.
 
Related:
https://finance.yahoo.com/technology/ai/articles/apollo-slok-says-ai-delivered-092836159.html