(Photo: flood waters in downtown Wilmington, NC after Hurricane Florence / NPR.org)

Guest blogger: Dr. Adam Jones, Associate Professor of Economics, Cameron School of Business, and Regional Economist for the Swain Center (this article originally appeared on WilmingtonBiz.com on October 19)

The Southeastern North Carolina economy was clipping along nicely until Hurricane Florence blew in and bumped us off track, but only temporarily.

Guest Blogger: Dr. Adam Jones, Associate Professor of Economics, Cameron School of Business and Regional Economist for the Swain Center.

Let’s face it, forecasting long into the future with and degree of certainty is difficult to do. The Jetsons originally aired in the 60s and envisioned personal air travel and all kinds of other automated conveniences that are yet to appear.  We have certainly moved in the direction of more automation, and while we don’t have affordable robot housekeepers (yet), Rumba vacuum cleaners are beginning to clean our living rooms, and cars are driving themselves. This dramatic advance in technology raises questions about the future of employment and creates angst in labor markets.

(Photo: Dr. Bill Sackley with students in the Financial Trading Room of the Computer Information Systems building)

Guest Blogger: Dr. Cetin Ciner, professor of finance at the Cameron School of Business 

Stock prices, if determined in rational and operationally efficient markets, should reflect future profits. Since the earnings of corporations should be highly correlated with economic activity, stock-price changes should reflect the market’s expectations of economic growth.

Guest Blogger: Dr. Peter Schuhmann, Professor of Economics, Cameron School of Business

What is clean air worth? Is clean water good for the economy? Do parks, wetlands, beaches and coral reefs have real economic value? 

These are important and timely questions to consider as politicians and policymakers debate the merits of environmental protection.  Arguments for scaling back environmental regulations often include suggestions that environmental protection limits “free” market forces, increases costs to businesses, results in less economic activity and causes the economy to preform worse than it would if such regulations were absent.  

May 2017 Editor's Note: This post was originally published in November 2016 and has been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

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Guest Blogger: Dr. Danny Soques, Assistant Professor of Economics, Cameron School of Business

In June of 2016, the United Kingdom (UK) voted to leave the European Union (EU), move that gave rise to the term, “Brexit.” This successful referendum vote gave rise to fears about the future of the British economy and what it means for the US.

March 2017 Editor's Note: This post was originally published in September 2016 and has been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

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This post was contributed by Dr. Thomas Simpson, Ph.D., Executive in Residence for the Department of Economics and Finance at Cameron School of Business, UNC-Wilmington. The piece is based on research found in the recently published Economic Barometer. Economic Barometer is a quarterly snapshot of local, regional and national economic trends produced by the UNCW Swain Center economic and financial team.