Ben S Bernanke: Trade and jobs Remarks by Mr Ben S Bernanke, Member of the Board of Governors of the US Federal Reserve System, at the Distinguished Speaker Series, Fuqua School of Business, Duke University, Durham, 30 March 2004. The references for the speech can be found on the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System’s website.
*  *  *  Economists are often accused of not being able to agree on anything. Although we are indeed a contentious bunch, one proposition commands almost unanimous assent within the economics community. That proposition is that free trade among nations promotes economic prosperity.