Political Economy

Will Wilkinson has a post up at his blog called "The Indeterminacy of Income Growth" (pointer to Steve Randy Waldman). He makes a number of points about inflation indices which leads him to conclude that it really can't be said…

The last post by Win Thin demonstrates that Emerging market countries that are doing the best in this difficult economic environment are feeling serious currency pressure. Brazil is looking for a way to deal with the volatility associated…

The US House Ways and Means Committee approved the Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act before the weekend. The full House of Representatives will vote on the measure, and likely approve it on Wed. It then goes to the Senate. The Senate…

by Edward Hugh According to Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero speaking in an interview with the Wall Street Journal last Tuesday the European sovereign debt crisis is over. "I believe that the debt crisis affecting…

There has been a lot of speculation about what the Federal Reserve will or will not do regarding quantitative easing (QE) in order to boost the economy. With the Obama administration constrained regarding fiscal policy, attention has turned…

So Larry Summers is out. From the Obama economic team, Peter Orszag and Christina Romer  preceded him. This looks to be a wholesale turnover at the top given the departures of Axelrod and Emanuel on the policy side as well. So now…

The Clinton Global Initiative annual conference ended on Thursday. But, I wanted to highlight one issue the conference spotlighted as one of four action areas - and that is the need for empowering girls and women. We know from recent US…

Here are some quick thoughts on what's happening in Ireland. The Irish situation is mostly about the collapse in the economy due to a huge run-up in private sector debts. This has been complicated by Iceland-style bailouts for an outsized…

US President Obama is scheduled to meet Chinese Premier Wen tomorrow on the sidelines of the UN meeting. Reports also suggest a bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Kan may take place. Even though the meetings will be separate,…

I agree with Michael Pettis that removing Larry Summers from the White House should be construed as a sign that the Obama Administration is poised to take a more populist tone with China. In June I wrote (More on China, Trade and…