INTRODUCTION LO: While the article below is correct, it is not complete. Americans believe in lowering taxation and increasing spending (eg, military). Even a child should be able to understand that such a situation is - ultimately - unsustainable. Quite possibly, the American solution is to sacrifice the US$, in the line with this (in)famous, bluntly true 1971...
Money
World of Debt
2 Jun, 2023
My blog title has been borrowed from a recent Project Syndicate article: A World of Debt. Early 2018, I published my blog Deficits, Losses, and (Government) Debt. My 2018 diagram (obviously) excluded the impact of the 2019-2023 pandemic, which created lots of new government debt. With hindsight, my 2018 diagram contained too much and too little information. Hence,...
Washington isn’t listening to business on China any more (FT)
17 May, 2023
INTRODUCTION LO: The FT opinion below is an interesting, valid analysis that is worth reading. Until 2020, I would - probably - have agreed with the conclusions below. In my 2019 update of the 7 Belief systems (eg, 2015 original), I had even removed Politics from its Power domain. The subsequent Chinese political crackdown on various business sectors made me...
What is a minimally good life?
26 Apr, 2023
In 2011, I visited a slum near Mombasa, following the invitation from a hotel guard. I asked a local cab driver what I should bring as a present. He said a big bottle of Coca Cola and cookies were enough because more would be embarrassing to them. The cab driver was right and the family was thrilled. My blog title is partly borrowed from a 2020 Aeon-Psyche article:...
The inflation-recession cycle
6 Apr, 2023
My blog of yesterday, Inflation + falling house prices = ?, might have suggested that inflation and a recession are independent. Well, a period of inflation is usually indeed followed by a recession. The diagram below shows their relationship in time. Unfortunately, that diagram does not show the trigger. SOURCE of diagram The missing link between inflation and a...
Inflation + falling house prices = ?
5 Apr, 2023
Many countries are experiencing an apparent anomaly: inflation + falling house prices. IMF-2023: "Global housing markets are retreating after years of steady gains". "Two-thirds of the economies for which the OECD tracks housing prices saw declines for their most recent quarter of available data." Some examples: Australia, Canada, Denmark, Ireland, Netherlands, New...
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