In The News

Challenges for China at Sixty – Part I

Pranab Bardhan September 25, 2009
China is in many ways a land of contradictions, confounding outside observers. And such contradictions are nowhere more obvious than in China’s economy: a market-driven allocation of resources overseen by the Communist Party. But as Berkeley Economics Professor Pranab Bardhan notes, the contradictions lie at an even deeper level. Simply establishing private ownership of some of China’s largest...

Thai Workers Fly to Sweden Where the Wild Berries Are

Bertil Lintner September 23, 2009
Wet summer weather in Northern Sweden has affected not only the yield of wild berries growing there, but also the economic well-being of the berry pickers, which, in this case, happen to be temporary workers from Thailand. Journalist Bertil Lintner writes that in 2007, Sweden began to give Thais temporary work visas to pick berries, encouraging close to a five-fold increase in workers by 2009. It...

Obama's Trade Policy Taking Shape – Part I

Edward Gresser September 14, 2009
For all the furor about the US’ proposed tariff on Chinese car tires, the end result is more likely to be a whimper, according to trade specialist Edward Gresser of the Democratic Leadership Council in Washington. It is unlikely that this tariff will set off the next trade war, igniting a global depression similar to the 1930s precisely because such tariffs are usual and allowed by the WTO....

China and US: Tire-d of Fighting

Gady Epstein September 14, 2009
China and the US seem like Siamese twins that hate each other – joined at the hip by trade but pushed apart by issues as diverse as human rights, climate change, and security. The current financial crisis makes some believe focus on trade may take center stage. Gady Epstein from Forbes argues that the decision by President Obama over the influx of cheap Chinese tires reflects the deepening...

The Noodle Bowl

September 8, 2009
Large economies like China, Japan and India have signed free trade agreements (FTA) with the regional grouping ASEAN. But in the absence of a comprehensive, multi-lateral free trade agreement, Asian countries are settling for bi-lateral FTAs. But this trend is not necessarily in response to the stalled Doha round of trade talks. Bi-laterial FTAs have increased from six in 1991 to 166 by mid-year...

Numerous Foreign Trainees Forced to Work under Harsh Conditions in Japan

September 1, 2009
Far away from home and eager to work, migrant workers can be easy targets for exploitation. In Japan, the story is no different. Foreign vocational trainees in Japan, especially from China, have been forced to work overtime at little or no pay and are often paid illegally low wages. Even worse, foreign employment agencies charged exorbitant fees to send trainees to Japan, leaving many indebted...

Globalization – A Setback

Fahed Fanek August 28, 2009
Globalization, once hailed as the solution for economies seeking to grow through free-markets, has suffered a setback in the current crisis. Many countries have enacted inward-looking policies that threaten to reverse globalization or foster protectionism. Meanwhile, some countries less open to the world seem to have weathered the storm better than the rest, challenging the notion of the benefits...