Mark M. Zandi is an Iranian-American economist who is the chief economist of

Moody's Analytics Moody's Analytics is a subsidiary of Moody's Corporation established in 2007 to focus on non-rating activities, separate from Moody's Investors Service. It provides economic research regarding risk, performance and financial modeling, as well as ...

, where he directs economic research. Zandi's research interests encompass macroeconomics, financial markets and public policy. He analyzes the economic impact of government spending policies and monetary policy response. A trusted advisor to policy makers, he has testified before Congress on the economic outlook, the nation's fiscal challenges, fiscal stimulus and financial regulatory reform. Zandi also publishes on mortgage finance reform and the determinants of foreclosure and personal bankruptcy. He was one of the first economists to warn of the financial crisis of 2008 in 2005.

Early life and education

Zandi was born in Atlanta, Georgia, and is of Iranian descent. The son of Professor Iraj Zandi, he grew up in

Radnor, Pennsylvania Radnor is a community located approximately 13 miles west of Philadelphia, in the Main Line suburbs. It straddles Montgomery and Delaware Counties, Pennsylvania. The community was named after Radnor, in Wales. Radnor is home to Cabrini Universi ...

. Zandi received his B.S. in economics from

The Wharton School The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania ( ; also known as Wharton Business School, the Wharton School, Penn Wharton, and Wharton) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in P ...

the University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

and a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Pennsylvania.

Career

Zandi was a regional economist at Chase Econometrics, prior to co-founding

Economy.com Moody's Analytics is a subsidiary of Moody's Corporation established in 2007 to focus on non-rating activities, separate from Moody's Investors Service. It provides economic research regarding risk, performance and financial modeling, as well as ...

in 1990. Moody's Corporation purchased Economy.com in 2005. Economy.com subsequently became part of Moody's Analytics, a subsidiary of Moody's Corporation. As Chief Economist of Moody's Analytics, Zandi oversees the global economic forecast and directs the activities of the economic research team. He publishes his outlook for the economy monthly, produces research on key topics and conducts regular briefings for clients, businesses, corporate boards and trade associations. Zandi is a regular contributor to

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

and

The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...

. and is a frequent guest on CBS Face the Nation, Fox Business, C-SPAN, CNBC, NPR, Meet the Press, CNN, and various other media outlets. Zandi is on the board of directors of MGIC, the nation's largest private mortgage insurance company, and The Reinvestment Fund, a large

CDFI A community development financial institution (US) or community development finance institution (UK) - abbreviated in both cases to CDFI - is a financial institution that provides credit and financial services to underserved markets and populations, ...

that makes investments in disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Writings and research

In 2008, Zandi wrote the book ''Financial Shock: A 360° Look at the Subprime Mortgage Implosion, and How to Avoid the Next Financial Crisis'' and in 2012 he wrote ''Paying the Price: Ending the Great Recession and Beginning a New American Century.'' Zandi's analysis of the impact of an economic stimulus package on the United States economy was cited by

Christina Romer Christina Duckworth Romer (née Duckworth; born December 25, 1958) is the Class of 1957 Garff B. Wilson Professor of Economics at the University of California, Berkeley and a former chair of the Council of Economic Advisers in the Obama administra ...

and

Jared Bernstein Jared Bernstein (born 1955) is an American economist. He is a senior fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. From 2009 to 2011, Bernstein was the chief economist and economic adviser to Vice President Joe Biden in the Obama Admini ...

in their report on President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

's proposed American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan, which became the

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) (), nicknamed the Recovery Act, was a stimulus package enacted by the 111th U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama in February 2009. Developed in response to the Gr ...

. Zandi has authored multiple studies and op-eds, including: * Protecting Workers and Businesses in the COVID Crisis * A Timely, Simple Idea to Boost Affordable Housing * Solving The Student Debt Crisis: Increase Education Supply * Pride and Protectionism: U.S. Trade Policy and Its Impact on Asia * Fear the Robots? Better to Embrace them and Adjust * A Better Economy Under Trump Seems Unlikely * The Financial Crisis: Lessons for the Next One * A General Theory of G-Fees * Time for the Government to Reduce its Role in the Mortgage Business * Gas Prices and the Economy * Reforming Fannie and Freddie * How the Great Recession Was Brought to an End * Policymaking Through a Panic * Where are the Regulators?

References

External links

Mark Zandi's homepage
at

Economy.com
part of

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zandi, Mark 1959 births American economists American people of Iranian descent Living people Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania alumni Zandi family (United States)