T HE P ENNSYLVANIA S TATE U NIVERSITY E CONOMICS A SSOCIATION P RESENTS :

T HE O PTIMAL B UNDLE
F ALL 2013:
WEEK OF

D ECEMBER 5 TH

E DITOR : C OLE LENNON P RINT EDUCATION COORDINATOR C ONTRIBUTORS : B EN R OWLES , C ADY B OUCHER , C OLE L ENNON , L EAH G ALAMBA , R YAN S OSNADER

Upcoming Events: General Body Meeting: 12/05

Employment Report: 12/06

Psuea.org EA Homepage Psuea.org/blog Education Blog

BIDDING ADIEU TO THE E.U.

Ukraine recently rejected an offer to enter the European Union, and other Eastern European countries are divided on whether or not to join. The alternative is to enter the Eurasian Customs Union, led by Russia. Armenia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus will join this second union with Ukraine. Georgia and Moldova will be the only two countries signing agreements with the European Union as planned. Other countries such as Turkey and Iceland initially hoped to join the European Union, but their plans for entering the European Union appear to be ending. Creating a larger European Union now seems increasingly out of reach.CL
Check out the article: qz.com/151034

A bigger E.U. seems like a dream for some, a nightmare for others.

BLACK FRIDAY: MORE DROP THAN SHOP

Stocks dropped slightly during the final hour of trading on Monday after sales data from Black Friday failed to meet expectations. This drop signifies that consumers may not be as optimistic as previously hoped. Amazon, a company that hopes to profit from Cyber Monday given the bleak Black Friday data, announced an early plan for a new drone-based delivery system. Though this announcement made headlines, shares of Amazon dropped slightly, as many investors questioned whether the idea makes economic sense. Shares of one of Amazons competitors, eBay, rose, as many believe that they stand to gain if more people do their holiday shopping online. RS

Black Fridays relative lack of success is surprising.

Check out the Article: cnnmon.ie/1aqwC7K

T HE G REAT G RADSBY
Studies show that college students graduating today are taking jobs with significantly lower salaries than pre-recession. Post-recession students are often overqualified for their jobs, which might not even require their degrees. However, recent grads who find jobs are reporting higher job satisfaction, according to The Bright Side of Bad Times in Administrative Science Quarterly. The study found a positive correlation between the unemployment rate and recent grads job satisfactionperhaps because students are grateful to obtain any job at all. Interestingly, their higher job satisfaction tends to last into subsequent jobs. It seems that economic conditions have generated a greater appreciation for work.BR
Check out the article: buswk.co/1irTIVJ

Some graduates appear happier than others.

S LO - T O R ECOVER -V ENIA
Within the next few weeks, the depth of Slovenias financial troubles will be revealed. Starting in the middle of 2012, the nations ratio of non-performing to total loans ratio spiked to 17.4%, one of the highest levels in the euro-zone. Slovenias government has set aside $1.6 billion dollars to plug the hole in the balance sheets from these unpaid loans, but speculations indicate that this amount of money may be inadequate. Public debt is already 63% of Slovenias GDP, and recapitalizing the countrys banks may increase it an additional 11%. Slovenia, along with Cyprus, is one of two nations in the euro-zone projected to stay in recession for 2014. CB CHECK
OUT THE ARTICLE: ECON . ST /I N C J N H

Unhappiness over lack of growth is growing.

N OT C RYING O VER S PILLED M ILK

The consequences of the current congressional gridlock may soon be seen in your local grocery store. If the Senate cannot pass the farm bill by January 1st, milk prices could nearly double to $7 a gallon. This is due to the lack of subsidies for dairy and other commodities such as corn, soybeans, and wheat that will expire at the end of the year. The current hold up stems from Congress inability to agree on the bill for food stamp funding. A bipartisan divide has been evident the entire year, but a drastic rise in milk prices will make these political problems more obvious to the everyday consumer. LG
Check out the Article: cnnmon.ie/IEyFii

Heres to hoping that this milk will not spoil.