Felix Salmon pointed out today that Larry Summers is now being touted as the odds-on favorite (65%, to be precise) to be Obama’s nominee as the next Fed chief. Felix stresses that Obama’s reason for favoring Summers is based on the sole criterion on which Summers could conceivably be depicted as preferable to the other widely-touted contender, … Read more
It’s here! The plans for Elon Musk’s much hyped hyperloop concept, which is supposed to radically reduce the travel time between Los Angeles and San Francisco, and create a fifth mode of transport after planes, trains, cars and boats, have finally been revealed: As predicted by many, the concept features a compressed tubular and modular system that … Read more
The latest GDP number out of Greece looks more promising than in the past (assuming it is to be trusted). The GDP contracted by only 0.2% (SA) from the previous quarter and 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Source: Eurostat … Read more
I have posted frequently (most recently in a three-part series that starts here) on the topic of underpricing of energy in the United States, but we are not the only offender. Many countries around the world subsidize consumer energy prices in ways that bring them to levels even lower than what U.S. consumers pay. These … Read more
Minister Mantega’s suggestion to revise the concept of gross debt should be much broadened so that credibility on the Brazilian fiscal accounts could be regained. Minister Mantega sent, last month, a letter to IMF`s managing director Christine Lagarde, requesting a methodological revision of the “…IMF measurement of the Brazilian Gross General Government Debt”. What seems … Read more
Discussions in Japan of the “three arrows” of Abenomics—the three major components of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s economic plan to reflate the economy—are rampant among its citizens as well as economists, journalists and policy-makers worldwide. Even J-Pop groups are recording paeans to the economic policy named after the newly-elected premier. It is clear that “Abenomics” … Read more
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. All … Read more
Today would be Milton Friedman’s 101st birthday. What better way to celebrate his birthday than to recognize that Abenomics is largely a fulfillment of the policy prescriptions he outlined for Japan 13 years ago. Here is Friedman in 2000 (my bold): [T]he Bank of Japan’s argument is, “Oh well, we’ve got the interest rate down to zero; … Read more
The Bureau of Economic Analysis today released its much anticipated advance estimate of second quarter GDP growth, along with rebenchmarked data for earlier quarters. Q2 growth was reported as 1.7 percent, hardly scintillating, but better than some analysts had expected. However, growth for Q1 was revised down from 1.8 percent to just 1.1 percent, and … Read more
Here’s a pretty good piece on MMT, by a “retired career PhD scientist” who has recently “become a serious student of macroeconomics and the role of government in our economy.” What I’d like to know is why this is so hard for PhD macroeconomists? Why can’t heterodox macroeconomists–who studied most of the same economics literature … Read more