Morning Brief: Looming Global Shortage of High-Skill Workers

According to the McKinsey Global Institute, the world will face a shortage of up to 40 million college-educated workers in 2020, and a glut of 90 to 95 million more low-skill workers than required. The report argues that advanced economies such as the United States must produce more college graduates, particularly in STEM fields. The report also recommends that businesses increase their efforts to shape public education and training systems.

The report of the CFR Independent Task Force on U.S. Education Reform and National Security highlights the importance of the Common Core State Standards and asserts that fixing the nation’s underperforming K-12 schools is critical to economic competitiveness and national security.

Education and human capital. Read more from experts discussing ways to improve U.S. education and immigration policies.

BRIC Currencies on the Decline

Currencies of the major developing economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China are going through their largest declines since 1998 (Bloomberg). As the U.S. dollar strengthens relative to these currencies, U.S. exporters will face greater difficulty as their products become more expensive abroad. Additionally, the profits of foreign subsidiaries decline when calculated in U.S. dollars. While all four nations are slowing down along with the broader global economy, there are specific reasons for currency falls, such as declining Russian oil exports and a widening Indian budget deficit.

CFR Senior Fellow and Renewing America Director Ted Alden discusses the general lack of trade protectionism in the wake of the Great Recession, and the likelihood that the WTO has restrained this political impulse.

International trade and investment. Read more from leading analysts on the debate over next steps in U.S. trade policy.

Innovate by Asking ‘Why’

Innovation is sometimes sparked by simply asking “why” (HBR). While scientists and engineers often conjure up the new technologies that enable the big next thing, revolutionary products often emerge from the musings of someone like Steve Jobs who thinks about how a technology can be applied in a novel way. From the upside-down ketchup bottle, to automated bike rental kiosks, innovation is often about thinking through a new way to do something.

In the face of persistently high unemployment, policymakers and workers look to innovation and entrepreneurship, the primary engine of U.S. job growth over the past thirty years. This CFR Backgrounder by Steven J. Markovich discusses how entrepreneurs create and finance startups and the ramifications of policies such as the JOBS Act.

Innovation. Read more on how the U.S. capacity to innovate could play a chief role in economic growth.

The Morning Brief is compiled by Renewing America contributor Steven J. Markovich.