Dave Stockton
Chief Economist and Director of Research and Statistics, The Federal Reserve Board (2000-2011)
Fee Range
$32,500
Dave Stockton
Biography
David J. Stockton has been a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics since 2012. He is also chief macroeconomist at LH Meyer, a monetary policy and macroeconomic consulting firm.
In May 2012, Stockton was commissioned by the Court of the Bank of England to conduct a review of the forecasting capability of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC). That review encompassed the forecast performance of the MPC, the analyses underlying the forecast, and processes used to produce and communicate the forecast. The review was delivered to the Court in October 2012. More recently, Stockton conducted a review in 2015 of macroeconomic modeling efforts at the European Central Bank (ECB) and the contribution of those efforts to the monetary policy process. The report was delivered to the Executive Board of the ECB in December 2015.
David Stockton is the former Director of the Division of Research and Statistics at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The 325 members of the Division of Research and Statistics carry out a wide range of economic analysis, forecasting, and research activities related to the domestic economy and financial markets. Macroeconomic and financial market analyses and forecasts are prepared by the Division for the Board of Governors and the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) to assist them in decisions related to monetary policy. The Division also maintains a number of statistical programs used within and outside the Federal Reserve System, including the Industrial Production and Flow of Funds programs. In addition, the Division is engaged in research and policy analysis in support of the Federal Reserve's financial stability responsibilities and supervisory and regulatory activities. The Division also provides statistical, administrative, computer, and library services to staff in the Division and to others at the Board.
Prior to joining the Board staff in 1981, Mr. Stockton was an instructor and lecturer at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut and at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. He began his career at the Board as an Economist in the Wages, Prices, and Productivity Section of the Division of Research and Statistics with responsibility for the forecasting and analysis of inflation. He later was a member of the Economic Activity Section, where he coordinated the staff economic projection for the FOMC.
Appointed an officer of the Board in 1987, he held the position of Assistant Director and Chief of the Economic Activity Section. He held various positions within the Division before being appointed the Director in 2000. Mr. Stockton also holds the position of Economist for the Federal Open Market Committee and regularly briefs the Committee on the economic and financial outlook for the U.S. economy.
Since 2000, Mr. Stockton has served on the Board of Directors of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC). SIPC is a private nonprofit corporation chartered by the federal government to protect investors in the event that a brokerage firm is closed due to bankruptcy or other financial difficulties.
Mr. Stockton has published numerous papers in the areas of macroeconomics and labor markets. In addition, he makes frequent presentations to various professional organizations, including the American Economic Association, the Econometric Society, the National Bureau of Economic Research, and many foreign central banks. Mr. Stockton has also been a visiting researcher at Georgetown University. Mr. Stockton has represented the Federal Reserve Board at many international meetings.
Mr. Stockton received his B.A. and M.A. (1976) from the University of Connecticut and his M.Phil. (1978) and Ph.D. (1983) from Yale University. He resides in Springfield, Virginia with his wife.
Dave Stockton
Featured Keynote Programs
The U.S. and Global Economy
Where Do We Go From Here?
Through the financial crisis, former Federal Reserve Chief Economist and top advisor to the Board of Governors, Dave Stockton, has repeatedly been asked two questions about the economic headwinds that have plagued the world for the last few years: 1) What did we know? and 2) When did we know it? But Stockton, well known for understanding the inherent uncertainty of any forecast, believes the questions we should be asking are: “How do we ensure a sound recovery?” and “How do we limit the potential for future international financial crises to destabilize the U.S. and global economy?” These questions are at the core of his compelling presentations. Others pivotal issues he tackles include: Has the Great Recession left a lasting imprint on our behavior as consumers, employers and employees? What are the long-term consequences for individual and family income? When things seem most bleak, how do we restore confidence and take the time needed for effective repair and improvement? Drawing on his unparalleled experience and the analytic acumen that he gained during his 30 years at the Fed, Stockton explores the Fed’s forecasting and decision-making process, the global economic forces that led to the Great Recession and what we can do to reduce the probability of future financial disruptions and to contain their fallout should they occur.
Forecasting at the Fed
How the Great Recession Is Changing the Way the Central Bank Does Business
As the U.S. economy slowly and painfully rebuilds after the longest contraction since the Great Depression, the vast majority of Americans—from financial leaders to foreclosed homeowners—have been asking what went wrong and how the vast majority of market watchers missed the signs of trouble to come. Was the conventional economic framework embodied in the models commonly employed by central banks and the private sector up to the task? What have we learned about how increasingly complex financial institutions and financial markets interact with each other and with businesses and households to shape global economic developments? In light of recent developments in Europe and Asia, was sufficient attention paid to how foreign economies have the potential to feed back into the performance of the U.S. economy? Were we probing the vulnerabilities posed by model uncertainty? Dave Stockton, who helmed the Federal Reserve’s Division of Research and Statistics from 2000 to 2011, addresses these complex questions and discusses recent structural changes within the Fed—including the creation of a multidisciplinary committee tasked with studying large financial institutions and key markets—as well as how the Fed assesses risk and monitors foreign economies. A 30-year veteran of the Fed who is known for his penetrating analyses, impeccable judgment and winning sense of humor, Stockton illuminates the impact of the recession and its aftermath on the Fed’s internal operations and shares his forecast for future economic policymaking.
The Policy Challenges Ahead
Monetary, Fiscal and Regulatory Policies and their Interaction
The recent financial crisis resulted in unprecedented policy responses from monetary and fiscal policymakers, and has led to widespread changes to the regulatory structure of the financial industry that are still in the process of unfolding. Those changes have left a legacy of historically low interest rates, still-tight credit conditions, massive federal budget deficits and burgeoning federal debt. How will these highly unusual and almost certainly unsustainable circumstances evolve over the next few years? Will the efforts to normalize monetary policy, reduce federal deficits and adjust the regulatory environment be mutually reinforcing and supportive of recovery, or will they be in some conflict with the potential to slow the process of adjustment and repair? How will the process of rebalancing monetary, fiscal and regulatory policies influence the economic environment in which businesses and households operate? Dave Stockton, during his 30 years in the Federal Reserve and his 11 years as its Chief Economist, observed and participated in the policymaking process in the United States. Using the perspectives that he gained from those experiences, he will lay out a variety of scenarios for the courses of monetary, fiscal and regulatory policies and their respective consequences for the course of financial and economic developments both here and abroad.
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