On February 4, former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen and World Bank President David Malpass joined BPC and Marketplace host Kai Ryssdal for a discussion on how America’s economic fortunes affect the world economy and vice versa.

You can stream the recorded webcast here.

In their diagnosis of the world’s economic situation, they addressed topics of low interest rates, political polarization, and even the economic effects of the coronavirus. To explain lagging prosperity in developing economies, Malpass pointed to the reality that “developed countries are not growing fast enough to provide the engine” for progress. While the growing interconnectedness of global markets has helped reduce poverty, depressed trade and recent trade tensions between economic giants like the U.S. and China has resulted in a worrisome outlook.

Adding to this uncertainty is record levels of debt, both in the U.S. and abroad. Yellen specifically pointed to America’s “unsustainable debt path.” Additionally, both speakers emphasized how changing labor markets have escalated inequality, placing greater pressure on those at the bottom end of the income distribution. A memorable moment was Yellen’s assertion that “the structural forces that caused rising inequality in the United States and other developed countries, they're alive and well.”

In a new letter released by BPC and the National Academy of Social Insurance, more than 100 former lawmakers, cabinet secretaries, White House officials, Congressional Budget Office directors, and other experts urge the Senate to take quick action on President Donald Trump’s nominees to fill the Social Security and Medicare public trustee roles.

In a new letter released by BPC and the National Academy of Social Insurance, more than 100 former lawmakers, cabinet secretaries, White House officials, Congressional Budget Office directors, and other experts urge the Senate to take quick action on President Donald Trump’s nominees to fill the Social Security and Medicare public trustee roles.