In The News

El País: Brussels Pushes for European Version of IMF

Claudi Pérez December 6, 2017
The European Union is proposing its own version of a bailout fund modeled after the International Monetary Fund. “With initial firepower of €500 billion, which could be boosted up to a further 20%, the new European Monetary Fund will bail out member states in exchange for reforms, as the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) has done in the past with Greece, Ireland and Portugal,” reports El País....

Project Syndicate: Climate Leadership Means Ending Fossil-Fuel Production

Tzeporah Berman and Lili Fuhr November 7, 2017
The technology behind renewable energies like solar and wind is improving, and communities that plan for the transition away from reliance on fossil fuels will be cleaner, healthier, less polarized and economically stronger. Some countries resist the notion of not using up every last bit of coal and oil. Canada and Norway should not try to hedge on energy – both investing in renewables while...

National Review: Aren’t Republicans Supposed to Care about the Deficit?

Michael Tanner November 1, 2017
In the United States, Republican candidates promise fiscal discipline and debt reduction. With a new budget resolution and plans to adjust the tax code and reduce the corporate tax rate, US political leaders are on track for annual spending deficits greater than $1 trillion, with total debt reaching $30 trillion within a decade. Michael Tanner, writing for the National Review, explains that the...

Inside Climate News: US Unprepared to Face Costs of Climate Change, GAO Says

Georgina Gustin October 25, 2017
The United States is not saving money by ignoring the risks of climate change. "The Government Accountability Office, in a report issued on Tuesday, cited a range of research concluding that the costs of worsening droughts, floods, wildfires, heat waves and storms will run into hundreds of billions of dollars and threaten many parts of the economy, while hitting some regions particularly...

Project Syndicate: The Risk of a New Economic Non-Order

Mohamed A. El-Erian September 19, 2017
The current global economic order is under strain, and the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund could pursue reforms and take steps to adjust to new economic realities, preventing disintegration and disorder, argues Mohamed A. El-Erian for Project Syndicate. The current order is rooted in “an economic paradigm that aimed to promote win-win interactions among countries, emphasizing trade...

Caixin: Could the Chinese Mainland Be the Next Hong Kong for Filipino Maids?

Luo Ruiyao, Li Rongde and Zhang Congzhi August 11, 2017
The Philippine Statistics Authority reports that about 2.4 million women left the nation to work as domestic help in Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong and elsewhere. China may be the next stop for Filipina staff who provide elder and child care, as officials from the Philippines report negotiations are underway to organize work programs in five Chinese cities. “If it happens, it would mark a huge change in...

Project Syndicate: Explaining Global Recovery Amid Political Recession

Michael Spence August 4, 2017
A disconnect between political dysfunction and strong economies is disconcerting. Michael Spence, Nobel laureate in economics, suggests the global economy may not be reaching its full potential. “Leaders in Europe, as well as in a number of emerging economies, have now concluded that both the UK and the US are unpredictable and unreliable allies and trading partners,” explains Spence. “Asia, with...