News FEDS Paper: Predicting College Closures and Financial Distress Date: January 6, 2025 Source: FEDS (Federal Reserve Economic Data System) Summary: The Federal Reserve Board (FRB) has published a new working paper titled “Predicting College Closures and Financial Distress.” The paper develops a financial distress prediction model that can help identify colleges and universities at high … Read more
Fed Paper: Nonparametric Time Varying IV-SVARs: Estimation and Inference Date: January 6, 2025 Source: Federal Reserve Bank (FRB) Authors: Caner, M.; Han, X.; Lee, J.; Ng, S. Abstract: This paper introduces a new methodology for estimating and conducting inference in nonparametric time-varying instrumental variable structural vector autoregressions (IV-SVARs) models. The proposed approach is based on … Read more
DOD Partners with Interagency on Helping Communities Recover from Wildfires January 6, 2025 Washington, D.C. – The Department of Defense (DOD) announced today that it has partnered with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and other interagency partners to provide assistance to communities recovering from wildfires. The DOD will … Read more
DOD Establishes Strategic and Critical Materials Board of Directors January 6, 2025 Washington, D.C. – The Department of Defense (DOD) has established a new Strategic and Critical Materials Board of Directors (SCMBOD) to oversee the development and implementation of a comprehensive strategy to address the challenges associated with the acquisition and use of strategic and … Read more
Guantanamo Bay Detainee Transfer Announced January 6, 2025 The Department of Defense announced today that a detainee held at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility has been transferred to the custody of his home country. The detainee, who was not identified, had been held at Guantanamo Bay for more than 20 years. He was one of … Read more
First Person: Gaza, where starving people are trapped in a land reduced to rubble BY BELAL AL-IDRISI People in Gaza are “starving,” said a resident of the impoverished, war-torn Palestinian enclave on Monday, as he described the relentless Israeli offensive that has reduced the territory to rubble. “We are surrounded by dead bodies. We are … Read more
Famine Conditions Spread as Sudan’s Crisis Worsens, Warns Security Council January 6, 2025 The United Nations Security Council has expressed alarm over the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Sudan, warning that famine conditions are spreading across the country. In a statement following a closed-door meeting, the Council members unanimously condemned ongoing violence, human rights abuses, and … Read more
Gaza War: UN World Food Programme Condemns Israeli Attack on Aid Convoy January 6, 2025 New York, United States – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has strongly condemned the Israeli military’s attack on an aid convoy bound for the Gaza Strip, which resulted in the deaths of at least 10 Palestinian civilians and … Read more
World News in Brief: Communal Violence in South Sudan, Syria and Gaza Updates January 6, 2025 Communal Violence in South Sudan Renewed communal violence has erupted in South Sudan, displacing thousands of people and raising concerns about the country’s stability. Clashes between ethnic groups in the eastern states of Jonglei and Unity have intensified in … Read more
‘Famine conditions are spreading’ as Sudan’s crisis worsens: Security Council 2025-01-06 12:00 NEW YORK – Famine conditions are spreading in Sudan as the country’s political and economic crisis worsens, the UN Security Council warned on Friday. The council, in a statement, expressed “deep concern” about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Sudan, where millions of people … Read more