economics
In practice, the merger between mainstream Keynesian economics and welfare-state policy was exactly what drove most of Europe into its current state of stagnation.
Sven R. Larson —
While the U.S. has its economic problems, the runaway government debt being an ominous example, its unending reliance on domestic spending for domestic prosperity is a winning recipe over time.
Sven R. Larson —
In its press release, the ECB reports that bank credit to euro-area residents grew at 5.9% in March.
Sven R. Larson —
While short-term adjustments in spending can boost government efficiency and eliminate wasteful programs, a permanent solution to economic stagnation and unending budget deficits must focus on the ideological core of the welfare state.
Sven R. Larson —
On an annual basis, three countries exceeded 50% producer-price inflation: Ireland (63.4%), Romania (57.7%), and Denmark (53.8%). At 6.2%, Malta had the lowest in
Sven R. Larson —
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán—refusing to adopt policies that run counter to the interests of the Hungarian people—has agreed to pay Moscow in rubles for gas imports.
Robert Semonsen —
European inflation is now at U.S. levels and all euro-zone member states except Malta now have annual inflation rates above 5%.
Sven R. Larson —
Rather than sinking further into debt to maintain current, high levels of government spending, it is time for Europe’s leaders to fundamentally reconsider their economic and social policies. It is time for them to adopt an entirely new program for economic prosperity.
Sven R. Larson —
To highlight the basic nature of crypto currencies, we will focus on the two most popular: Bitcoin and Ethereum. These two cryptos differ much in the same way as gold-standard currency differs from fiat currency.
Sven R. Larson —
A fiscal crisis would force U.S. Congress into unchartered territory. Never in modern history has this legislative body been forced to be austere with its resources. Tax cuts do not work anymore, and you cannot cut taxes when your creditors are running away from your debt. There are only two options: spending cuts, or tax hikes.
Sven R. Larson —
Now that the Greek Parliament is eager to beef up the nation’s defense, it faces a serious problem: the economy is so weak it can barely keep its population at a standard of living from 20 years ago.
Sven R. Larson —
At $1.0943 per euro on March 14th, the dollar stood at its strongest against the European currency since April 2019.
Sven R. Larson —
Consider what Europe will look like if Russia wins, or loses, the war in Ukraine. Obtaining reliable information, in this case, is nearly impossible. To navigate these uncertain times, the best guidance may be found in the old-school academic discipline of political economy.
Sven R. Larson —
War in the Eurasian breadbasket is causing European countries to have to rethink food security and current agricultural policy for both the immediate and long-term futures.
Bridget Ryder —
Any major monetary expansion causes inflation. This past year, a combination of domestic restrictions on economic activity, speculation in the headwind of uncertainty, and the overall nature of energy markets, created inflationary pressure where under normal economic circumstances none would have existed.
Sven R. Larson —
While total government spending increased, total government revenue fell from 2019 to 2020. The decline of €247 billion was equal to 3.8% of 2019 revenue. A total budget deficit of €77 billion in 2019 widened to €921 billion in 2020.
Sven R. Larson —
It looks like the Chinese are beginning to suffer the consequences of their own central economic planning model.
Sven R. Larson —
Real estate prices on the German market have been skyrocketing for years, which has led to a dangerous overrating of housing. Fragile supply chains have now made the system even more volatile.
David Boos —
The ECB has thus far stayed committed to low, steady interest rates. But there is growing anticipation of a rate increase by the ECB during 2022.
Sven R. Larson —
Reflecting concerns for continued high inflation, a survey of professional forecasters published by the ECB showed a considerable 1.1 percentage-point rise in expected euro-zone inflation for the first quarter of 2022.
Sven R. Larson —
The ECB predicts that for the first three months of 2022, euro-zone inflation will be 3.0%. With 5.1% in January, for their forecast to become reality, a sharp deceleration in consumer prices will have to take place in February and March.
Sven R. Larson —
The Spanish center-right Partido Popular (PP) has complained that the socialist-led government is overwhelmingly directing European funds to municipalities governed by its party, in what seems to amount to systematic political discrimination.
Carlos Perona Calvete —
Despite the strong growth rates in the 4th quarter, the European economy has only barely recovered from the pandemic.
Sven R. Larson —
Government has a negative impact on the economy through spending, taxes, and its budget deficits. The most hard-hitting impact does not come through taxes, as conventional wisdom suggests, but through spending—spending governed by ideological preferences, which determine what money is spent, where, and when.
Sven R. Larson —
Two factors contribute to the decline in the consolidated budget deficit: the tapering of pandemic-related stimulus spending and the gradual return of economic activity to pre-pandemic normal.
Sven R. Larson —
The euro itself is only part of the failure. An entire structure of government institutions, laws, and even constitutional provisions were erected around it in order to secure its success. It all looked impressive two decades ago; today, the structure itself, from the European Central Bank (ECB), to the so-called Stability and Growth Pact, is a package of sordid evidence that even under democratic governments, central economic planning is a bad idea.
Sven R. Larson —
According to the German Economic Institute, statistics from the European Population Projection, the EUROPOP, indicate that, in absence of any migration, the number of 20 to 64 year olds (working ages) could be 11.2 percent lower in 2030 than in 2020. The EU average, the organization claims, would be only 6.9%.
Tristan Vanheuckelom —
High and rising inflation has put yet more pressure on the Turkish lira, but instead of making the hard choices to curb inflation, the response from President Erdogan’s government is likely to aggravate the situation.
Sven R. Larson —
The common currency was a gigantic economic experiment, an application of political preferences rather than the product of sound scholarly research. As is always the case with grand government plans, for every problem they solve a new one is created.
Sven R. Larson —
Spanish political life will polarize around those offering policies that have straightforwardly led to present difficulties, and those whose program has promised to drastically reduce a state whose regional level is notoriously hypertrophic and reindustrializing the country. VOX is the most obviously poised to take advantage of this.
Carlos Perona Calvete —
The British economy has been largely unaffected by its exit from the European Union. That is not to say there will not be other repercussions; there is an ongoing debate about the future of the financial industry in London, with the implication that the British capital may lose its status as a global hub for the financial industry.
Sven R. Larson —
Central banks are recognizing that their own sustained monetary expansion has now awoken the sleeping giant of inflation. The goal now is to avoid trapping us in the same protracted inflation period we experienced 40 years ago.
Sven R. Larson —
How could an ‘innocent’ citizens’ initiative for democracy bring about powers of government that would pose any threat to our freedom? To answer this question, we first need to remember that freedom is not only lost to boots and bayonets. We can, actually, vote away our own freedom. By giving up our rights to government, small slices at a time, we can lose control over our lives just as definitively as if it happened through open oppression.
Sven R. Larson —
President Macron wants the EU to reform budget rules to increase public-sector investments, which, he hopes, would lead to stronger economic growth and higher levels of employment. Macron’s vision is understandable, but his reforms are likely to defeat their own purpose.
Sven R. Larson —
The European Commission’s promotional material makes ‘Next Generation EU’ comes across as oddly remote from the task of actually facilitating Europe’s next generation. Nor is it meant for a specialized audience, as it lacks any reference to how one might actually procure the product being advertised—namely, funding.
Carlos Perona Calvete —
At the heart of Portugal’s budget deadlock are three policy goals: economic growth, a balanced budget, and more funding for the welfare state. The conflict between these three goals is not unique to the Costa budget, nor is it unique to Portugal. This is a Europe-wide volcano that happened to erupt in Portugal, and has led to an attention-grabbing political crisis.
Sven R. Larson —
The proliferation of apps and online platforms where anyone can sign up to provide services ranging from food delivery to language classes has brought attention to the ‘gig economy,’ along with its advantages and disadvantages.
Bridget Ryder —
Elon Musk urged, “Please look at the numbers, if people don’t have more children, civilization is going to crumble.”
Tristan Vanheuckelom —
Angela Merkel did put in place a mechanism to strengthen German government finances. However, there was a price to be paid for this achievement, namely a slowly but steadily rising burden on German taxpayers.
Sven R. Larson —
Caught between Scylla and Charybdis, the choice for our central bankers is hard but simple: which short-term pain comes with the best prospects for prosperity in the future?
Sven R. Larson —
The closer one gets to the source of policy, the less explicitly things are expressed, so I did not expect to find so direct a formulation in print. All the same, it is now worth digging into what is really intended by this conceptual guiding light of ‘resilience.’
Carlos Perona Calvete —