Category: Economic Theory
The analysis published under this category are as follows.
Friday, May 03, 2019
Universal Basic Income Would Be a Social and Economic Disaster / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Jared_Dillian
I am never going to retire. Oh sure, I say that now, but what about when I am 80? No. I will never stop working.
Every morning, I get out of bed when the alarm goes off, take a shower, put on dress clothes (a suit, usually), and drive 35 minutes to work in an office that I rent in an office building.
I write newsletters. I can just as easily do that on the couch, in a pair of gym shorts, with a cup of coffee. Why spend over an hour a day commuting and dealing with all the brain damage of putting on a suit and going to work?
Friday, April 12, 2019
America Has a Monopoly Problem / Economics / Economic Theory
By: John_Mauldin
Without realizing it, we’ve become a nation of monopolies. A large and growing part of our economy is “owned” by a handful of companies that face little competition.They have no incentive to deliver better products or to get more efficient. They simply rake in cash from people who have no choice but to hand it over.
This would be impossible if we had true capitalism.
Even if we admit some businesses are natural monopolies, most aren’t. Most of them found some non-capitalistic flaw to exploit.
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Wednesday, March 27, 2019
The Fed Broke This Economic Cycle—and It’s a Game Changer for Investors / Economics / Economic Theory
By: John_Mauldin
Here’s a quote from my friend Peter Boockvar that has drawn an enormous amount of interest:“We no longer have business cycles, we have credit cycles.”
Let’s cut that small but meaty sound bite into pieces. What do we mean by “business cycle,” exactly? Well, it looks something like this.
A growing economy peaks, contracts to a trough (what we call “recession”), recovers to enter prosperity, and hits a higher peak. Then the process repeats.
Tuesday, February 19, 2019
Here’s Why The Left’s New Economic Policies Are Just Stupid / Politics / Economic Theory
By: Jared_Dillian
Somewhere in the last 30–40 years, we have become economically illiterate.Elizabeth Warren wants wealth taxes that would impose asset forfeitures of 2–3% on households with more than $50 million in assets.
There are practical and legal problems with their implementation. But she wants to implement them anyway.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wants a 70% income tax rate on incomes over $10 million. This would be the highest income tax rate in the OECD. And yet, it would affect only 16,000 households and only return marginal rates to historical levels, anyway.
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Thursday, February 14, 2019
Capitalism Isn’t Bad, It’s Just Broken / Economics / Economic Theory
By: John_Mauldin
The Soviet Union’s collapse ended the socialism vs. capitalism argument.
Semi-free markets spread through Eastern Europe. Collectivist economies everywhere began turning free. Capitalism seemingly won.
Even communist China adopted a form of free market capitalism. Although, as they say, it has “Chinese characteristics.”
With all its faults and problems, capitalism generated the greatest accumulation of wealth in human history. It has freed millions of people from abject poverty.
Wednesday, July 11, 2018
Yield Curve Inversion a Remarkably Accurate Warning Indicator For Economic & Market Peril / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Dan_Amerman
Would you have appreciated a single number that could have given you a clear and unmistakable warning before the tech stock bubble collapsed? How about an unequivocal mathematical warning in 2006 that major financial trouble was on the way, well before the problems of 2007 and 2008?
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Sunday, June 17, 2018
The Corruption of Capitalism / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Harry_Dent
I call it “killing the golden goose.”David Stockman, a speaker at this year’s Irrational Economic Summit, calls it “the corruption of capitalism.”
Andrew O’Hehir, a contributor for Salon, recently interviewed Yanis Varoufakis about the story behind Greece’s financial crash. He was the prime minister during the height of the Greek crisis, elected in early 2015 in response to the Greece debt default crisis.
And in July of 2015, Varoufakis resigned after the ECB (European Central Bank) and IMF (International Monetary Fund) forced a bailout package that went against what he and his SYRIZA party had promised the Greek people.
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Wednesday, June 06, 2018
Who Finances America's Borrowing? Recession Indicator for Independent Thinkers Part 2 / Economics / Economic Theory
By: F_F_Wiley
Have you ever lacked for information about America’s various debt burdens? Twenty-odd years ago, if you paid any attention to debt, you might have relied on original source data to stay current. But the times they are-a-changing, aren’t they? In today’s high-tech, data-rich world, anyone who follows financial news should know roughly where we stand with our borrowings. Whether you’re a mainstream media addict or a blog junkie, your daily dose includes more commentary than ever before on which types of borrowers are increasing their leverage and by how much.
For example, don’t bother to sit down and ready yourself before reading the following observations about debt ratios, they should come as no big surprise (but note that we’re comparing debt to the highest prior GDP reading, or peak GDP):
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Monday, May 21, 2018
5 Effects Of Currency Fluctuations On The Economy / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Submissions
Currency fluctuations are some of the most analyzed aspects of any economy. Slight changes in the value of a currency can send reverberations across the economy. In fact, some currency fluctuations levels can have drastic effects on the health of an economy. Markets like forex and other trading sectors are heavily reliant on how strong or weak a particular currency is. The strength of a currency can also determine how a particular country handles international trade. Indeed, five of the strongest currencies in the world are so influential in the world that many aspects of the global economy are almost tied to them. There are several effects of fluctuations of currencies. Below are some of the most important.
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Monday, February 05, 2018
The Meaning of Economic Philosophy / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Submissions
Dr. Gero Jenner writes:In ‘The Open Society and its Enemies’, Karl Popper strongly defended the position that major interventions in the economy, especially when ideologically motivated, are usually disastrous and should therefore be avoided. Popper wrote his famous work towards the end of the thirties. On the one hand, he saw the devastating effects of textbook-based economies, where the working masses were tied into an economic strait-jacket by a Politburo, on the other hand, Popper was well aware of the dangers of that kind of capitalism, which tended to place the interests of a few monopolists above those of the general population. Against such aberrations, Popper propagated what he called ’social engineering‘, namely, a model of small steps, where every previous economic intervention is painstakingly scrutinized in view of its effects before any further action is embarked upon. Popper seemed to regard the economy in the same way as a highly complex machinery which a layman cannot tackle without causing the greatest damage.
Tuesday, November 28, 2017
Why a Corporate Tax Cut Won’t Boost Economic Growth / Economics / Economic Theory
By: John_Mauldin
BY PATRICK WATSON : The House and Senate are considering tax legislation that will add $1.5 trillion to annual deficits over the next 10 years, according to their own numbers.
This is okay, we're told, because the tax cuts will stoke economic growth, delivering added tax revenue that offsets the rate reductions.
Note the bigger point here.
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Thursday, September 28, 2017
The Koyaanisqatsi Economy / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Raul_I_Meijer
The film Koyaanisqatsi was released in 1982. The title means ‘life out of balance’ in the language of the Hopi, a Native American tribe who live(d) mainly in what is now north-east Arizona. It is directed by Godfrey Reggio with music by Philip Glass and cinematography by Ron Fricke. There are no actors, and no dialogue. Philip Glass’s music underlies a series of film fragments that contrast the beauty of American nature with the noise and pollution mankind has added to it. Wikipedia:
Read full article... Read full article...The film consists primarily of slow motion and time-lapse footage of cities and many natural landscapes across the United States. The visual tone poem contains neither dialogue nor a vocalized narration: its tone is set by the juxtaposition of images and music. Reggio explained the lack of dialogue by stating “it’s not for lack of love of the language that these films have no words. It’s because, from my point of view, our language is in a state of vast humiliation. It no longer describes the world in which we live.”
Monday, July 17, 2017
Too Much Capital / Stock-Markets / Economic Theory
By: Submissions
Henri Schneider writes: Truisms and banalities: Investors must be able to assess the productivity of their capital. This is done by comparing returns to interest rates. But what, if all interest rates are rigged? What if they are artificially lower than they should be? Then, not only too much capital is invested, but it is invested in the wrong places. Even more pressing: what if there is simply too much capital in the financial system?
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Monday, July 17, 2017
Why Jobs Growth No Longer Induces Wage Growth in America / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Dan_Steinbock
Or The Eclipse of the Phillips Curve in AmericaWhile the Fed’s continued tightening may suppress growth in emerging economies, US labor market may not be as strong as recent reports suggest.
US experienced strong job growth in June, when the economy created 222,000 net new jobs, which exceeded analyst expectations. At the Federal Reserve, the jobs report boosted confidence US economy is on the track for new rate hikes in the fall.
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Thursday, February 09, 2017
Retroeconomics – Global Challenge for Economic Development / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Submissions
Vladimer Papava writes: In many and mostly poor countries, their economies have been using obsolete technologies. As a result, all of these countries do not have a real chance to be successful in any long-term economic growth. The usage of obsolete technologies by any company can create the illusion that this or that business is prosperous. At the level of international competition, however, it is obvious that these types of companies do not have any chance for success.
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Monday, February 06, 2017
Why the Fed Gets Economics Wrong / Economics / Economic Theory
By: John_Mauldin
Economics (in general) is populated at its core by a lot of bad ideas. And these bad ideas have come to be accepted as the correct interpretation of how the economy functions and thus have become the basis for economic policy. This news shouldn’t come as a shock since I’ve written about this many times over the years in Thoughts from the Frontline.
Economics is an enormously useful tool for those of us who are trying to understand business and investments and government policy. But to paraphrase Dirty Harry, “An economist has to know his limitations.”
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Sunday, January 08, 2017
In a Lawless World, Rules STILL Matter / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Andy_Sutton
While economics is a science and should be treated as such, economic forecasting is both a science and an art at the same time. However, anyone can forecast. Just like anyone can forecast the weather. To do so accurately and furthermore to do so frequently is a true talent. We think of it along the lines of the ability to hit a major league fastball; a gift granted to maybe 1 in 500 or a thousand babies each year. Then add to that the ability to hit a major league fastball for an average of .300 over an entire career and we’re talking a few babies in an entire generation.
Wednesday, November 23, 2016
Krugman's Aliens Have Arrived - They Are Called "Trumponomists" / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Gordon_T_Long
Gordon T Long, Co-Founder of MATASII.com sat down with John Rubino to get his views on what the new Trump Administration and its "Trumponomics" policies will mean to the markets and investment strategies in 2017. Here are a few of John's current views on some of the Key Economic headwinds facing "Trumponomics":
A NEW ELECTORAL CLASS
The reason anti-establish politicians like Trump are gaining popularity according to John is because people, more and more, are feeling "the big systems no longer works for the people anymore!"
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Wednesday, November 16, 2016
What Exactly is True Capitalism? / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Frank_Holmes
We’ll begin with this truth: We cannot snap our fingers and have “wants” immediately transformed into “satisfactions.” We are born having to struggle to survive. We must take atomic elements, which are provided gratuitously by nature, and transform them into the goods and services that give us satisfaction. Everything used to build an Italian sports car is provided by nature, but not in a form that can be used directly without modifications. The raw material must be combined by our labor and know-how. Wants require efforts to obtain satisfaction. Man is constantly striving to reduce these painful efforts that consume so much of his energy and time. Unfortunately, the history of mankind has been one of pillage: A plan for less efforts. It is far easier to steal a sack of corn than take the effort to grow it.
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
The Limits of Empirical Economics / Economics / Economic Theory
By: Frank_Hollenbeck
Two separate economic developments over the last 100 years have caused macroeconomics to regress instead of progress. The first is the Keynesian, or more accurately Malthusian, notion of aggregate demand. The second is Friedman’s positive empiricism emphasising the importance of empirical verification of economic theory.
According to positive empiricism, adherence to economic facts is the only way to validate economic theories.