Economics

Rather than undermine his campaign, Bernie Sanders has made a virtue of the label ‘socialist’ and is riding a wave of opposition to economic inequality that began with the Occupy Wall Street movement. Rather than undermine his campaign, Bernie Sanders...

Europe’s refugee crisis neither began nor ended when the body of a Kurdish boy was found washed up on a Turkish beach in September. In all, he was just one of 3,770 people who lost their lives in 2015 as...

There is growing international interest in the potential of the cultural and creative industries to drive sustainable development and create inclusive job opportunities. An indication of this is a recent set of UNESCO guidelines on how to measure and compile...

One of the remarkable outcomes of the climate change negotiations in Paris is an initiative launched by 28 billionaires on the sidelines of COP21 to push for an increase in funding for clean energy technologies. One of the remarkable outcomes...

The World Economic Forum is underway in Davos.  The global capital markets are off to one of their worst years ever.  The threat of terrorism hangs over us like the Sword of Damocles while GDP growth, except in a few...

The market meltdown is extending into the third consecutive week.  Once again, the attempt to stabilize has failed, punishing the bottom pickers.  The market meltdown is extending into the third consecutive week.  Once again, the attempt to stabilize has failed,...

There are three important economic events tomorrow.  The UK will release its December employment report and November weekly earnings data.  The US reports December CPI.  The Bank of Canada meets, and is widely expected to be the first central bank...

Brazilian central bank President Tombini said it would take into account the IMF’s revised forecasts for a deeper recession when it meets this week to decide on policy. Sorry, but we don’t buy it. IMF forecasts should not affect a...

The China-sponsored Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank formally launched over the weekend.  Many observers have seen it as a rival to the World Bank.  Others saw in another vehicle used to facilitate the internationalization of the Chinese yuan. We have consistently...

The relentless pounding that investors suffered in the first two weeks of the year has subsided.  It is too early to have much confidence that a turn is at hand.  By various measures, the sell-off had stretched the technical condition. ...

Lack of affordable housing is a serious policy concern in many countries. In large prosperous cities such as London, New York, Beijing, or Tokyo, the affordability crisis is particularly acute. In these cities, households often live in excessively expensive and...

For years, the World Bank has represented the only serious player on the block when it comes to raising national level finance needs. However, the World Bank now has a rival in the form of a Chinese organization known as...

The market is trying to get its bearings today. The large decline in the US equities before the weekend has had modest spillover effects elsewhere.  Equity markets, barring the Shanghai and Shenzhen Composites, are mostly modestly lower.  The MSCI Asia-Pacific...

Two weeks into the year and most investors are nursing sizable drawdowns.  The recovery in the US equities on January 14 looked like a potential turning point. However, the coattails proved non-existent, and the bull trap sprung with new downside...

There are three developments today, which while not driving the market, are important for many investors.  The first are comments from German Finance Minister Schaeuble and EC President Juncker.  The second is an important development in Poland.  The third are...