This is another instalment in the series on the MMT view of taxes. I’m back from China, participating in the annual Hyman P. Minsky Summer Seminar at the Levy Economics Institute. Yesterday my colleague, Mat Forstater, gave a talk on the job guarantee and “green jobs”. Along the way he made two particularly insightful comments … Read more
Recently Bill Gardner, a contributor to the healthcare policy blog The Incidental Economist, posted a piece titled “Disseminating Research: Translators Needed.” His comments are relevant to economics in general, not just healthcare policy. I would like to pass them along and add some of my own. Gardner writes: Most research papers are rarely read, few … Read more
ISIS, the Islamic terrorists, having taken over Mosul, the second largest city in Iraq, is rushing south. It has just captured Saddam’s hometown of Tikrit and is only 70 miles from Baghdad. Iraqi troops collapse in disarray in the face of their attacks and the seizure of the capital seems imminent. Strengthened by their victories … Read more
Growth is still low … Yet to recover from the 2008-crisis, the global economy faces below-potential growth prospects. Until the developed world pays down sovereign and corporate debt, deleveraging and unemployment will constrain the recovery. Frail consumer confidence, sluggish demand and the ensuing drop in consumption in advanced economies will not be offset by final … Read more
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today that the broad unemployment rate, U-6, fell to 12.2 percent in May. As the following chart shows, that was a new low for the recovery. The decrease was especially welcome because it was accompanied by an increase of 192,000 in the civilian labor force, reversing some of April’s … Read more
There are exactly five things Kiev must do to become energy independent and disentangle itself from the Russian-driven geopolitical gas war: 1. Sell its pipeline system (most importantly); 2. Sell the remaining state interest in oil and gas company Ukrnafta; 3. Aggressively farm out as brown-field developments areas licensed by state-owned Ukrgazproduction; 4. Develop additional … Read more
In the fourth quarter of last year, with tensions rising between Russia and the West over Ukraine, U.S., German, UK, and Swedish banks aggressively dialed down their credit exposures in Russia. But as the graphic above shows, French banks, which have by far the highest exposures to Russia, barely touched theirs. At $50 billion, this … Read more
In previous instalments we have established that “taxes drive money”. What we mean by that is that sovereign government chooses a money of account (Dollar in the USA), imposes obligations in that unit (taxes, fees, fines, tithes, tolls, or tribute), and issues the currency that can be used to “redeem” oneself in payments to the … Read more
Middle East and North Africa (MENA): hard choices needed, but unlikely. For political transitions to be successful, economic fundamentals need to be solid. Yet, MENA countries are facing political change and pressing social demands while enduring economic strains. The sluggish global outlook, the Eurozone (EZ) recession, and China’s deceleration hamper exports, remittances and capital inflows. … Read more
In the immediate aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis, policymakers’ success in preventing the Great Recession from turning into Great Depression II held in check demands for protectionist and inward-looking measures. But now the backlash against globalization – and the freer movement of goods, services, capital, labor, and technology that came with it – … Read more