capital investment

The Bureau of Economic Analysis' (BEA) first ("Advance") estimate of the annualized growth rate of the first quarter 2011 U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was 1.75%, down significantly from the 3.11% growth rate reported for the fourth…

These Hayek – Keynes videos are hilarious (hat tip Barry Ritholtz). This one is called "Fight of the Century" - sort of like Marvelous Marvin Hagler against Sugar Ray Leonard.

You have seen a few of these videos on ghost malls and ghost cities in China. This one from an Australian broadcast is quite good. It reinforces what I have been saying about the magnitude of non-performing loans and how this constrains…

On Saturday I wrote about the Scylla and Charybdis of anchoring inflation expectations, geared toward developed economies in North America and Europe. You tighten too aggressively and you get unwanted disinflation or deflation. You remain…

By Michael Pettis I just got back from a very interesting but hectic week in New York and Washington, followed by two days at a conference in Hangzhou. During my meetings I noticed that much of the discussion, and many of the questions I…

By Marc Chandler The BOJ's rep office in NY invited a number of analysts to meet the Deputy Director of the stats office and hear a presentation about the economic impact from the recent disaster. The key take away points from the…

Thanks to Iza Kaminska for pointing me to the video below of row after row of incomplete homes in Spanish host towns, las ciudades fantasmas. Spain has the same problem of overbuilding that the U.S. had during its bubble days. Now that…

Our hearts go out to the Japanese because of the human tragedy that resulted from a devastating earthquake and tidal wave. I want to echo Dr. El-Erian's sentiments here. It will difficult and it will have globe-spanning consequences, but…

This post is designed to be a quick hit but I wanted to put up a few thoughts on corporatism, stimulus and austerity. Consider it an extension of my post "Corporatism masquerading as Liberty". I intend to argue that corporatism is…

The Federal Reserve released the quarterly flow of funds report which allows one to see the debt levels outstanding in the U.S. economy. From the looks of it, deleveraging has not continued apace. UBS' Andy Lees writes: The Fed Z1 flow…