Australian Trade Minister: TPP “Trade” Deal Unlikely
When a Liberal government in Australia won’t back Obama’s “deal is near” party line on the TPP, you know it’s on the verge of being officially dead.
Read more...Category Archives: Free markets and their discontents
The Decline in Market Liquidity
While the Fed isn’t worried about the fall in market liquidity, experts argue that if investors make abrupt changes in their portfolios, the lack of liquidity could produce a crisis.
Read more...David Sirota: Hillary Clinton Is Running Away from Her “Free Trade” Record
Yet again, HIllary Clinton tries to distance herself from her “sell out the middle class” policies, this time on “free trade”.
Read more...Bill Black: Republican Candidates Agree that the System is Rigged for the Rich
The Republican candidates for President all made shameless appeals for even more plutocracy, in particular preferential treatment for the rich.
Read more...The Economist: The TPP is Dead
Ding dong, not only is the TPP dead, it’s apparently really dead.
Read more...China’s Stock Market Collapse
Those who are looking only at Greece and the crazy behaviour of the European Union may well be looking in the wrong direction to identify the next big crisis as it comes.
Read more...Meet the Hedge Funders and Billionaires Who Pillage Under the Shield of Philanthropy
For every dollar these billionaires give, they take 44 from the rest of us.
Read more...Why Carbon Taxes Would Be the Ultimate Energy Game-Changer
Carbon taxes are one of the most effective ways to curb the use of fossil fuels and promote renewable energy sources. And they also help businesses because providing for a predictable price of carbon encourages investment. Has their time finally arrived?
Read more...John Helmer: Tulip Sanctions – Russia Busts the Dutch Flower Trust, Almost
The Dutch flower market is a monopolist under assault. A case study of an economic and political struggle.
Read more...China’s Stock Market Falling Off a Cliff: Why, and Why Care?
What explains the turmoil in Chinese stock markets, and what does it mean for the rest of the world?
Read more...The Previous Sole Superpower: From the Opium Wars to the Origin of the Species
The Opium Wars illustrate the brutal effectiveness of Great Britain’s use of a particular notion of freedom as a means of conquest.
Read more...Asset Management and Financial Stability
The growth of the asset management industry has raised concerns about its potential impacts on financial stability. This column assesses the systemic risk created by fund managers’ incentive problems and a first-mover advantage for end investors. Fund flows and fund ownership affect asset prices, and fund managers’ behaviour can amplify risks. This lends support to the expansion and strengthening of industry oversight, both at the individual fund and market levels.
Read more...Gaius Publius: California Drought, the “Bigger Water Crisis” & the Consumer Economy
The California drought is exacerbating severe, structural problems with water use in the West.
Read more...Perry Mehrling: Flash Crash Explained by HFT
The official report on the October 15, 2014 “Flash Crash” raises some questions which unfortunately it does not answer.
Read more...The History of European Macroeconomics and Exchange Rate Policy
This is a very readable and important account of how Europe came to embrace some of the key elements of its current monetary policy and exchange rate straitjacket.
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