Experimental economics is not really a new theory but a (still) relatively new method of studying the kind of questions that economists have studied for ages. However, the addition of the experimental method to the economist’s toolbox is remarkable for at least two reasons.
Unemployment claims jumped in the United States while the Federal Reserve and International Monetary Fund express concerns that global growth is slowing.
The Department of Labor announced Thursday that seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims rose to 297,000 for the week ending July 4, up 5.3% from the prior week. The four-week moving average for unemployment claims rose to 279,500. The rise was far above most analysts’ expectations.
In late June, the US agreed to enter into the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP). The Agreement is the largest trade treaty entered into by the United States in more than two decades. It encompasses a dozen Pacific nations and could equate to billions of dollars for the US economy as well as a boost to the world’s economic health.
Enormous Agreement
The House Committee on Appropriations recently adopted a budget for an assortment of financial agencies. Tucked inside the 150-plus pages of legislative prose is a provision denying the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) funding to issue “any rule, regulation, or order regarding the disclosure of political contributions.”
Analysts and scholars – including Chinese economists and social scientists – have long been critical of Beijing’s development strategy in Tibet. A heavy dependence on state subsidies to maintain high levels of economic growth cause economic inefficiencies and social inequalities. In the wake of unrest in 2008 and the ongoing wave of self–immolations across the region, many observers wondered whether the Hu–Wen administration – in power until 2012 – would re–evaluate its approach of combining subsidies with hard–line tactics.
More people are buying homes in the United States, accelerating price increases throughout the country.
Home prices rose 6.3% year-over-year in May 2015 according to the CoreLogic Home Price Index, marking 39 months of consistent year-over-year increases in house prices throughout the country. Thirty-three states saw home prices at record highs, although the index overall remains below the 2006 peak.
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has noted that growth will likely slow across many of the world’s largest economies, including the U.S. and China. The organization released its warning based on an analysis of information available from May 2015. The latest indicators show slowdowns that could lead to a disappointing year for the global economy.
The global capital markets have stabilized. Chinese and Japanese shares initially sold off, but both recovered. Chinese officials have thrown everything but the kitchen sink at the stock market in hopes of stabilizing it. There was some success today. The Shanghai Composite finished 5.8% higher and the Shenzhen Composite was 3.8% higher.
Celebrity activism and support for African humanitarian causes – such as the Enough Project, Akon’s Lighting Africa and Kony 2012 – has become mainstream. However, what are the consequences, and is this something we necessarily want to promote?
The General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Nguyen Phu Trong, is currently on an official visit to the United States. Later this year, President Obama is also expected to pay a return visit to Hanoi. The visits are among a series of notable events that mark the 20th anniversary of bilateral normalisation this year.
