In The News

Managing Climate Change

Nicholas Stern January 8, 2015
Countries have limited resources, and careful planning could reduce waste and poverty while ensuring prosperity and security. Nicholas Stern, an economist who assesses the effects of climate change, focuses on India in this article for Seminar and argues that investing in urban planning and reducing sprawl has value: “Investments in cities, energy and land use have very long-run effects (lock-in...

Danish Canal Customers

Niveen Wahish December 3, 2014
The Suez and Panama canals are in competition as shipping traffic grows and container ships get bigger. With a new growing middle class throughout Asia, shipping containers are increasingly headed west to east rather than the other way around. Writing for Al-Ahram Weekly, Niveen Wahish reviews shippers’ concerns as expressed to Egyptian journalists attending a tour arranged by the Danish-Egyptian...

Creativity, Corporatism and Crowds

Robert J. Shiller November 26, 2014
Inventors and inventions drive economic growth, and it’s not just the titans like Thomas Edison who created new industries by filing hundreds of patents for products like the phonograph, the movie camera, an incandescent light bulb. By experimenting and comparing results, workers at different levels can streamline operations or create new products. Many inventions emerge at the workplace, but the...

The Economics of Inclusion

Ricardo Hausmann November 17, 2014
Both inequality and slow economic growth result from a particular from of exclusion, argues Ricardo Hausmann, director of the Center for International Development at Harvard University, in an essay for Project Syndicate. Growth varies around the world and also within countries, and Hausmann points to fixed costs, especially those linked to infrastructure for water, transportation and electricity...

What If Britain Left the EU?

Michael White, Larry Elliott and Charlotte Higgins November 7, 2014
If the United Kingdom left the European Union, the country would face additional political and social problems including internal divisions and popular disillusionment. The move would also destabilize the EU overall, aggravating tensions between France and Germany and generating pessimism that could recreate the power-feuding Europe of the early-20th century. Some politicians in Britain use EU...

Missing the Prime Suspect in the Global Slowdown

George Melloan November 5, 2014
Inflation is a friend to those in long-term debt, especially those with low interest rates, reducing the value of money that is repaid over time. As the United States ends quantitative easing, Japan and the European Central Bank continue the policy tried since the economic crisis of 2008, purchasing debt to combat deflation, reduce interest rates and encourage spending. “Inflation expectations...

Gloomy Outlook for Ghana Where Gold Does Not Shine Anymore

Vikram Mansharamani October 2, 2014
A country’s fortunes can rise and fall quickly. Ghana was hailed just two years ago as the world’s fastest growing economy, but now struggles with currency devaluation, poor infrastructure and an entrenched bureaucracy, explains Vikram Mansharamani, author, global equity investor and Yale lecturer. Confidence is falling – on stark display after the Ghana World Cup team refused to play without an...