Watch Out: 2018's World Economy Resembles 2007’s

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in at 1/27/2018 04:59:00 PM
When the music stops, in terms of liquidity, things will be complicated. But as long as the music is playing, you've got to get up and dance. We're still dancing - Former Citibank CEO Charles Prince (2007) At Davos, Barclays CEO Jes Staley expressed something that's been on my mind as of late: the world economy circa early 2018 sure looks a lot like the pre-subprime crisis / global financial crisis one. I'd even go one step further with this comparison: instead of looking like 2006, the world economy looks more like that closer to the eve of that cataclysmic event of a decade ago. Prior to the aforesaid event, there was...
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It's About Time: US Admits Weak Dollar Policy

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in at 1/24/2018 05:52:00 PM
A suitably Lilliputian currency c/o the Munchkin [sic] man. OK, OK so it's Steven Mnuchin, not Steven Munchkin. However, this unfortunate naming semblance is rather appropriate for a United States rapidly receding in influence in the international political economy. Since the time of Robert Rubin as Treasury secretary--when Bill Clinton was president--it's been customary for US officials to proclaim how their country pursued a "strong dollar policy." Sure, some treasury honchos have been more reserved in saying it. Regardless of how various aspects policies affecting the dollar's value--fiscal, monetary and trade policy...
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How Will China Retaliate Against US Trade Penalties?

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in , at 1/23/2018 04:57:00 PM
Here are the washing machine tariffs just imposed by Trump. Together with the rest of the world, I've long been waiting for the real Donald Trump--as his Twitter handle describes--to show up in the international trade arena. There is much on his plate at the start of 2018, from deciding of courses of action to take on the dumping of several products as well as determining the future of US trade agreements like NAFTA and the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)--both of which are under discussion with American counterparts. On Monday, we got our first installment of the trade-hating Trump as the US Trade Representative...
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Captain Caveman Meets Jetsons? Trump@Davos

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in , at 1/21/2018 12:13:00 PM
Unga bunga...build the wall...it's all the same. A few days ago--before the US government shutdown became inevitable at least--Donald Trump was announced as an attendee at the annual Davos shindig of global movers and shakers. Obviously, the leader of the world's wealthiest country hobnobbing with the elites of this world makes sense. However, once you factor in the attitudes and behaviors of Trump, things become rather more interesting. What exactly do Trump and Malala Yousafzai have in common...except that he'd want to ban the Muslim woman from America like all the rest? In most ways, Trump espouses views opposite of...
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Of Sh--holes & Trump-Era USAID

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in , at 1/15/2018 02:08:00 PM
No matter how offensive Trump's opinions of developing countries is, it's probably for the best that the developing world understand the viewpoint held by the leader of the United States. Let's face it: racism is the reason why many Americans voted for Trump in the first place. Trump may claim not to have said the term, but few believe him. So, what's the American institution that's supposedly dedicated to help other countries develop do? The United States' reputation worldwide is going to receive a Trump-sourced battering. The impression made is that Americans pretend to help, but actually couldn't care less if you rot...
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IMF: From ‘Washington Consensus’ to ‘Soak the Rich’

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in at 1/14/2018 02:34:00 PM
Even the IMF has moved on from the 80s-vintage "Washington Consensus." Trump, however, still adores it. In many ways, Donald Trump is a throwback to the past. Unfortunately, he wishes to bring back a lot of what was regrettable and not desirable about the past: militarism, racism, sexism, etc. Even in the international economic realm, he's a throwback to the 80s (your choice: 1980s, 1880s, 1780s or even before that) in bashing massive trade deficits with Japan, wishing for the "return" of American manufacturing, re-prioritizing the burning of fossil fuels over renewable energy sources and so on. Instead of acting on his...
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Trump's USA & Norway: What's the 'Sh--hole' Country?

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in , at 1/12/2018 03:42:00 PM
Trump should dress in more appropriate garb...but we can do more sensible things. (UPDATE: A new poll finds Norwegians have the lowest opinion of American leadership of any country surveyed, to no one’s real surprise.) I am utterly appalled, but not surprised, by American President Donald Trump's reported characterization of a number of developing nations as "shit--hole countries." In his rhetoric, Trump can be argued to subscribe to a global racial hierarchy which goes roughly like this: White American > White European > White Australian/New Zealander > Japanese > Other East Asian > Southeast Asian >...
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Geography Flunkies: UK in Trans-Pacific Partnership?

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in , at 1/07/2018 10:40:00 AM
Can the UK join these Pacific nations in a regional FTA? It's far-fetched. I am utterly befuddled by British officials giving lip service to the idea that they wish to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) deserted last year by the United States. Now formally known as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership or CPTPP with its 11 remaining parties working towards an agreement, its inclusion of the UK would be an eyebrow-raiser in many respects. First off, and this is quite obvious, the UK is an outsider in geographic and organizational terms. Since it's neither in Asia or in the Pacific...
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On CFIUS Dissuading Jack Ma's MoneyGram Purchase

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in , at 1/03/2018 04:27:00 PM
Is this ant a PRC Communist apparatchik? The CFIUS apparently thinks so. There is a long history of Chinese companies being prevented from purchasing American firms on highly questionable "national security" grounds. The source of this discrimination is the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). What is interesting here, though, is that the PRC national attempting to buy an American firm was no less than Chinese multibillionaire Jack Ma. Unlike the often faceless heads of Chinese state-owned enterprises, Ma is a global icon and the founder of his own immense business empire. What's more, he actually...
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Hijab-Wearing Barbie and Social Responsiveness

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in ,, at 1/02/2018 11:52:00 AM
Is so much ado about a Barbie doll warranted? There's a hard-hitting op-ed in al Jazeera criticizing a move one of the United States' largest toymakers has made to produce a hijab-wearing Barbie. On the face of it, this action is a long-overdue one in recognition that the world's population is nearly a quarter Islamic. So yes, any move to make Barbie more "representative" of the countries Mattel sells this toy should include one who is appropriately dressed: Earlier this month, it launched its first Barbie in hijab. Designed after Olympic fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad, this doll is part of its "Sheroes" series....
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