The Daily Record from April 6, 2020
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SPECIAL COVIDSECTION KEEPING YOU UP TO DATE WITH SMALL BUSINESS 19RESOURCES ON PAGES 10-11 www.dailyrecord.us DailyApril 6-12, 2020 ServingRecord Central Arkansas since 1925. 50¢ | Vol. 67 | No. 15 SBA leads COVID-19 fi ght in Arkansas Learn more on page 9. CDC’s laboratory test kit for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). CDC tests are provided to U.S. state and local public health laboratories, Department of Defense (DOD) testing facilities, and select international labs. (Photo courtesy of CDC) FIND INSIDE News Briefs » PG 3 Records » PG 5 Games » PG 13 Publisher’s Corner » PG 2 Financial Focus » PG 4 Notices » PG 7 Court Bulletin » PG 20 2 // April 6-12, 2020 Daily Record www.dailyrecord.us Publisher’s Corner ... Brown on Daily Are We Business Record There Yet? BY WESLEY BROWN BY JAY EDWARDS A newspaper of law [email protected] and business information [email protected] The Daily Record is a fully qualified newspaper to serve as a medium for ECONOMIST STRUGGLE FORECASTING publishing legal and official notices LOW ON TP and advertisements in Pulaski, Saline, HOW TO REBOOT ECONOMY Lonoke and Faulkner Counties. AFTER COVID-19 THREAT PASSES Established 1925 he big grocery store seemed crowded for 10 a.m. in the middle Successor to The Daily Legal News Tof the week. I parked my car and walked towards the entrance. www.dailyrecord.us Shoppers who had finished were pushing their full carts toward their s the shock of the COVID-19 crisis wears off and Arkansas and Phone: 374-5103 • Fax: 501-823-9003 cars. One woman had bought so much and had it piled so high that I Athe rest of the nation settle into a possible long hibernation, some couldn’t see her until she’d passed. It was all wrong. This is Lent, not PUBLISHED WEEKLY economists are having difficulty trying to forecast how to get the U.S. Subscription Rates Yearly – $20 Advent. A season of less, not more. economy out of a pandemic-induced recession. One of my friends had texted me the night before, during the bas- COO Before the respiratory illness formerly known as 2019-nCoV began Bobby Burton ketball game, that he was unable to find any toilet paper. We didn’t spreading across the U.S. with unprecedented speed, most U.S. econo- know it then but that was the last basketball game of the year. The mists were making busy making predictions on whether the Federal CFO NCAA cancelled the tournament. No March Madness. Then Disney Robin Hill Reserve could land the nation’s economy softly enough without caus- World shut down. ing a major contraction. Publisher Was this the end? Known in economic forecasting circles as a soft landing, the process Wesley Brown I was somewhat relieved to see the store was full of shoppers. At of shifting the economy from strong to slow to potentially flat GDP Accounts Manager least the rapture hadn’t happened yet. Or maybe it had. But I couldn’t growth while avoiding a recession is sort of the “holy grail” for the Melissa Miller think of that at the moment and headed toward the toilet paper aisle. nation’s central bank. It is usually attempted by Federal Reserve’s in Executive Editor When I got there I found three women and their empty shopping their efforts to holding inflation around 2% by raising interest rates for Karen Dunphy carts, which told me they had also made a beeline for the suddenly several cycles. Data Production precious commodity. An armed security guard stood in front of the According to Investopedia, the concept was first conceived and Amy Sherrill empty shelves. He stared warily at the women, who circled slowly, achieved by Alan Greenspan, former chairman of the Federal Reserve. Assistant Editor ever-moving, like sharks waiting for a human to fall off a boat. I The longtime Fed chief who served under four presidents apparently Caitlin Smith wondered why, if the shelves were empty, why a guard was needed. engineered the only true soft landing in U.S. history in 1994-95, when Contrubutors It could only be that more Charmin was about to be delivered by the Fed raised interest rates enough to slow the economy, but not Dr. Kenneth Bridges Brinks, and the guard was there to quell the likely violence. enough to cause GDP growth to contract. Amber Davis Not confident in my fighting skills against the women I walked About the same time the first known positive coronavirus case in Kim Dishongh out of the store, with just a 12-pack, wondering what the reasons Wuhan, China was reported in late January, some economists were ap- Jay Edwards were behind the sudden run on TP anyway. I got answers later that plauding current Fed Chairman Jerome Powell for bringing the world’s Dwain Hebda evening when I was watching Tucker Carlson interview an expert on largest economy in for a “so-called” soft landing. Victoria Mays economics, about the effects the pandemic could have on goods and After two earlier attempts following the $1.8 trillion stimulus pack- Rob Moritz services. The expert had written a book called something like, “The Melody Turner age in late 2017 pushed U.S. Gross Domestic Product over 3% for Basics of Supply and Demand for Dummies,” and began the inter- several months in the following year, Powell was near to landing on the view by saying that when more people are buying, less is available. Member of: U.S. economy on a smooth runway after adopting the Fed’s accommo- • Arkansas Press Association On the split screen, Carlson had a look on his face that said, “Did dative policy of gradual rate hikes in the fourth quarter after frequent you just really say that?” So he tried to move it along by asking the complaints from President Donald Trump. expert what was on everyone’s mind. In a presentation in late January before the Wisconsin Bankers TC: So we’re hearing there is a shortage of toilet paper. Association, St. Louis Fed President and CEO James Bullard said that Expert: I’m hearing that as well Tucker. Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) led by Powell acted in Postmaster send address changes to: TC: But why? I mean, what does the Coronavirus have to do with 2019 to help ensure a soft landing by dramatically altering the path of THE DAILY RECORD P.O. Box 34007 • Little Rock, AR 72203 needing more toilet paper? monetary policy. Expert: Well, it’s like this. Someone tells you they are getting extra Bullard said that a slowdown in U.S. GDP was widely expected Periodicals Postage paid toilet paper, and you think, ‘Huh, maybe I should too.’ Then you tell because the economy tends to return to its potential growth rate. The at Little Rock, Arkansas. other people and they do the same, and suddenly the shelves begin key risk in 2019, he said, was that a downturn would be sharper than The Daily Record (USPS-145160) emptying so everyone dashes to other stores until it’s all bought up. anticipated and cause the economy to crash land and enter a recession. 2020 W. 3rd St., Suite 320 It’s really got nothing to do with needing it as much as the illusion of Little Rock, AR 72205 In the summer of 2019, the FOMC indicated that a lower policy rate needing it. And it’s one of those things you don’t want to be without might be warranted. The 12-member Fed panel that includes seven NOTICE: Material published in The Daily for very long. Fed governors and five of the 12 Fed district presidents then made re- Record is compiled at considerable expense TC: So is there a shortage of toilet paper? ductions in policy rate at three successive meetings, ending with a net and is for the sole and exclusive use of our subscribers. The contents of The Daily Expert: I really have no idea. reduction of 75 basis points in the federal funds rate in October. Record may not be republished, resold or TC: OK. So did you rush out and buy toilet paper? “The FOMC’s adjustment toward lower rates in 2019 may help reproduced in any manner, in whole or in Expert: Yes I did Tucker. part without the consent of the publisher. facilitate somewhat faster growth in 2020 than what might have Any infringement may be subject to legal TC: Why is that? otherwise occurred,” Bullard said during his speech to the Wisconsin redress. The records contained in The Daily Expert: Because everyone else is. bankers. “One could view this as insurance against the possibility that Record are taken from those filed for public I was talking with Fred about this as I was driving down the road, record and do not necessarily reflect the nonmonetary factors could have larger-than-expected negative effects financial standing of the parties involved. trying to remember how much toilet paper I had and hoping to spot on growth.” Care is taken to publish suits, judgments, a store the other panickers might have overlooked. Bullard also noted possible downside risks to the Fed’s accommoda- other documents exactly as they appear in the public record. However, The Daily Record Fred: There isn’t any toilet paper up here. (Fred lives in Fayette- tive policy, including uncertainty sparked by the Trump administra- assumes no liability for errors or omissions. ville) tion’s ongoing trade war with China, financial market exuberance and Persons who rely solely on these contents do Me: I’ve heard.