Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research - UT

Thank you UT President Randy Boyd for visiting Dr. Michael Kofoed's labor economics class this week! Dr. Kofoed's students are learning the value of education and the role of human capital in workforce development, and President Boyd's visit kicked off that section of the class.

How is inflation affecting business leaders in Tennessee? “The pressures of inflation are still very much with us," Boyd Center director Don Bruce told WKRN News 2. "Prices are higher than they were and not really projected to come back down, but the day-to-day pressures in terms of how businesses respond to that, they’re easing quite a bit."

Inflation is still at the top of everyone's mind, especially those who responded to our biannual survey of Tennessee business leaders in August. Compared to early 2024, however, respondents were a little more optimistic about inflation and the state's economy. Three out of four business leaders think there's a less than 50% chance of a recession in 2024. Two-thirds of respondents accurately predicted the Federal Reserve would lower rates within three months. That came true in mid-September when interest rates fell by half a point. More Tennessee workers are returning to the office, with 43 percent of respondents saying they no longer offered remote work, up from 36% in the January survey. Read more about this and other results in the summer survey: https://lnkd.in/eGg6GMQB

The Boyd Center's Michael Kofoed went on KSL's Inside Sources show last week to discuss his new research about online learning during the pandemic at the United States Military Academy, West Point.

Tennessee population projections by the Boyd Center and the Tennessee State Data Center show the state's population will grow to almost 8 million by 2040, and the population will continue to get older and more diverse. Read more about the projections: https://lnkd.in/esjHXFRi So what does the population change in your county look like over the years? Will your county be growing older or younger? Will it become more diverse? TN_SDC created an interactive dashboard with the new Tennessee population projections: https://lnkd.in/eB5VBdSJ

What's the best way to go about student loans? WalletHub recently posed this question to the Boyd Center's Michael Kofoed, who said graduating should be the top priority for students but not the only priority.

Boyd Center director Don Bruce told the Tennessean that he "looked at Nashville as a runaway train situation" regarding population growth. Read more from him and the Tennessee State Data Center's Tim Kuhn about growth in Middle Tennessee and why the situation's changing:

Boyd Center director Don Bruce said Chattanooga's uptick in unemployment indicates a slowing, yet still strong, economy and inflation coming back to normal levels. "The goal here is to slow down the economy," Bruce said. "Inflationary growth is what we were experiencing a couple of years ago with an inflation rate of 7, 8 or 9%. On an annual basis, that's simply unsustainable." Read more in the Chattanooga Times Free Press:

The move from manufacturing to a knowledge-based economy means “most workers are going to need to touch higher education in some form,” the Boyd Center's Michael Kofoed told The Salt Lake Tribune. Read more from Kofoed on the value of higher education:

The Boyd Center team had a fine and fancy ramble to the zoo! We volunteered a few hours last week to cut bamboo and had the opportunity to learn more about the zoo through a scavenger hunt. Thanks for having us, Zoo Knoxville!