Who determines interest rates?
byFor most experts the central bank determines short- term interest rates by setting the target to the benchmark policy rate such as the…
Debt, Deficits and the Cost of Free Lunches
byIt seems that every generation or two, fundamental economic ideas are questioned and challenged. The reasonable and important idea that governments should balance their…
The Financial War Escalates
byBehind the scenes, the financial war between America and China is escalating dangerously into a war to secure global financial resources. At a time…
Huawei and the Damaging U.S.-China Trade War
byby Junhua Zhang On June 15, 2019 President Xi Jinping celebrates his 66th birthday. Even if the date remains a state secret, many China…
Mises on 100-Percent Reserve Banking
byBy Edward W. Fuller Economists debate whether Ludwig von Mises advocated free banking or 100 percent reserve banking. This debate is significant. Mises states, “the…
Making sense of correlations in economics
byOften we observe that two pieces of data, which are not supposed to have any relationship, appear to have very high visual correlation….
Statistics and the facts of economic reality
byThe government’s releases of various economic indicators such as GDP, CPI and unemployment receive wide coverage in the media. In a measured and…
Forget velocity of money circulation
byIf there is one concept that illustrates the difference between a top-down macro-economic approach and the reality of everyday life it is the velocity…
Paul Krugman’s Predictions about “Austerity” Aren’t Aging Well
byPaul Krugman’s arguments do not fare well against evidence in a new book written by economists Alberto Alesina, Carlo Favero, and Francesco Giavazzi titled,…
Is deflation about general decline in prices?
byFor most experts deflation is bad news since it generates expectations for a decline in prices. Because of this it is held, consumers…