In the News

Economists for Ukraine, a non-partisan think tank of more than 400 top economists, including Assistant Professor Anastassia Fedyk, challenged President Trump's claims that the U.S. has provided $350 billion in support to Ukraine. They countered that US aid delivered to the Ukrainian government has amounted to $50.9 billion. About $18.3 billion of that amount is military aid, and the remaining $32.6 billion represents direct budget support in the form of reimbursement of expenses through the World Bank and loan guarantees.

Denise Liu, MBA/MPH 23, shared that the MBA/MPH dual degree program, school location, and Haas community were key factors in her decision to attend Berkeley Haas. Haas' location provided "direct access to leaders shaping the industry" and she appreciated the smaller cohort size. "Haas fosters a tight-knit culture where people are not only passionate about their work but also deeply supportive of each other, and that sense of shared values was really important to me." she said.

Amid record-high electricity rates, officials argue that solar owners don’t pay their fair share of grid costs, citing a cost shift that allegedly raises bills for non-solar customers. But solar advocates are accusing utilities and regulators of scapegoating solar to deflect attention from corporate profits and other systemic issues. Severin Borenstein, professor of the Graduate School, calculated the “cost shift” from solar owners onto non-solar residential customers at $4 billion.

This article co-written by Assistant Professor Anastassia Fedyk highlights Ukraine's critical geopolitical importance, both historically and in the current conflict with Russia. Fedyk argues that abandoning Ukraine would allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to achieve his neo-imperialist ambitions, potentially transforming Russia into a far more dangerous global adversary. The article emphasizes that supporting Ukraine is not only a moral requirement for Europe but also an existential necessity.

The Trump Administration is placing more tariffs on parts and products coming from China. James Wilcox, professor of the Graduate School, explained the impact of increased tariffs on companies and customers. "With today's announcement that there'll be an extra 20% tariff on China—that no doubt is going to make things more expensive here. It's going to raise costs for businesses and ultimately it's going to raise costs noticeably for consumers." he said.

Ghazaleh Sadooghi, MBA 24, co-founded Rumi, which addresses one of the most pressing challenges in education today: helping schools incorporate AI into the classroom without compromising the integrity of the learning process. Rumi offers a solution that enables schools to set custom AI policies for each assignment. Instead of relying on flawed AI detectors or taking a hands-off approach to AI, instructors can use Rumi to glean insights into students’ writing and thinking processes, rather than just evaluating final submissions.

The "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE) has plans to identify $2 trillion in waste that will leave $400 billion to be distributed to federal taxpayers, resulting in $5,000 "DOGE stimulus checks" by July 2026. Jim Wilcox, professor of the Graduate School and the former chief economist at the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, questioned whether the July 2026 timeline to send checks was realistic. “They’ve given such a short time to do this enormous amount of cutting that in a pretty short amount of time we’ll know whether they did or not,” he said.

Professor Nancy Wallace, chair of the Real Estate Group, the Lisle and Roslyn Payne Chair in Real Estate and Capital Markets, and co-chair of the Fisher Center for Real Estate and Urban Economics, highlighted significant challenges in California's housing, research, and climate adaptation landscape, warning about the impacts of tariffs on construction costs, potential disruptions to university funding, and the increasing wildfire risks to state infrastructure. Wallace questioned whether quick fixes like accessory dwelling units (ADUs) will solve the housing shortage, while also pointing to potential opportunities such as converting malls to housing and developing innovative construction techniques. “[These policies represent] very quickly made, very poorly explained, massive changes in terms of how basic institutions are funded.” she said.

A month after the Feb. 1 fire at the Martinez Refining Company, motorists are starting to see a return to normal pricing. Right after the fire, the price of gas went up to about 50 cents higher than its national counterparts, said Severin Borenstein, professor of the Graduate School. "The good news is that the spot price has now come down to its normal relationship to the rest of the country. The bad news is that it takes a while for that to pass through to retail." he said.

In a recent interview Ulrike Malmendier, the Cora Jane Flood Professor of Finance, discussed Germany's new federal government under Friedrich Merz. Malmendier said she believed economic decline is probable if the federal government fails to act quickly and stand up to the USA.

The 2025 Africa Gate to Growth Forum that took place in February at Berkeley Haas brought together entrepreneurs, investors, and decision-makers with a common goal: to structure a competitive Ivorian digital ecosystem. Economics Professor Alexandre Mas shared thoughts on the forum's purpose. "The real obstacles are access to capital, networks and mentoring opportunities and that is precisely the mission of this forum," he said. "The AGGF bridges these gaps by connecting the brightest African entrepreneurs to Silicon Valley, offering them access to strategic resources and the venture capital ecosystem–my hope is that this meeting will lead to lasting relationships."

Homeowners who use solar are pushing back on Governor Gavin Newsom's Solar Subsidy Reduction Proposal, part of his plan to lower California's rising electricity rates. The California Public Utilities Commission argues that solar users save on grid costs, leaving non-solar customers to shoulder the expense. But solar advocates believe rooftop solar saves money for everyone by reducing dependence on grid electricity and supporting climate goals. Severin Borenstein, professor of the Graduate School, says the solar cost shift is a part of the larger puzzle that needs to be addressed. "A lot of the costs that we pay through our electricity bills are costs that don't actually vary with how much electricity we consume," he said. "When some customers buy less electricity from the grid, we still have to pay for most of the costs of the grid regardless, and that means other customers have to pay more – I think a policy to start to phase out those subsidies makes a lot of sense. We're going to have to attack all of the reasons, including reining in utility expenditures, but this is one of the reasons. Otherwise, we're just not going to have affordable electricity rates." he said.

Why are Californians paying twice the national average for electricity? Is capital investment in renewable technology to blame or are solar panel subsidies responsible for the higher electricity bills? Severin Borenstein, professor of the Graduate School, discusses the cost shift on AirTalk.

Many people remain with low-interest banks due to a lack of awareness and the psychological difficulty of switching to a credit union. Professor Terrance Odean, the Rudd Family Foundation Chair, said bankers realize that money in bank accounts is very ‘sticky.’ "The main reason that banks can offer very low interest when other banks are offering decent interest is because they know that a lot of their customers are either unaware that they can switch, or find it psychologically difficult to switch,” he said.

The article highlights open innovation, a concept introduced by Adjunct Professor Henry Chesbrough, faculty director of the Garwood Center for Corporate Innovation. Open innovation encourages the sharing of knowledge and collaboration across organizational boundaries and can prove key to solving complex problems more efficiently and creating impactful breakthroughs.