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The crying need for civilian aid and rural development programs in Afghanistan
10/18/2009
Commander Adams describes his experience in Khost province of Afghanistan. Dexter Filkins describes his experience about an irrigation canal that has been neglected through the long years of war.
Linked Articles
Afghanistan Doesn't Need More Troops
Wall Street Journal 10/28/2009
Stanley McChrystal’s Long WarNew York Times 10/18/2009
The new coaltiion governement of Liberals and Conservatives in Britain.
10/08/2009
A common program for the 2 parties to attack the U.K.'s budget deficit with spending cuts. A pragmatic sensible approach from Cameron and Clegg.
Linked Articles
Britain's accidental revolution
Economist 05/13/2010
That's more like itEconomist 10/08/2009
Chuck Hagel and the fresh thinking he brings as leading candidate for U.S. Defense Secretary in 2013-
09/03/2009
Linked Articles
Chuck Hagel - Why Going It Alone No Longer Works
Washington Post 09/03/2009
Defense-Chief Candidate Has Conservatives WaryWall Street Journal 12/14/2012
The cost of production delays in cancellations and renegotated orders on the 787 Boeing Dreamliner program
06/29/2009
Linked Articles
Boeing Feels New Pressure to Placate Its 787 Buyers
Wall Street Journal 06/29/2009
Boeing 787 Profit Plan Strained by Order CutWall Street Journal 08/24/2012
Bernanke's views on how the underutilization of labor in todays markets should make inflation less of a threat.
06/11/2009
Remarks by Bernanke to the Open Market Committee of the Fed in 2003, have a relevance to the situation facing the economy today. Rising raw materials prices and the falling dollar are likely to have a muted effect on inflation. The impact of slowing wages and the high unemployment and growing underutilization of labor, in the midst of a manufacturing capacity utilization rate of 68% and continuing to fall, are likely to be the deciding factors.
Linked Articles
Slack Labor Markets Will Hold Down Prices
Wall Street Journal 06/23/2009
Get Ready for Inflation and Higher Interest RatesWall Street Journal 06/11/2009
S. Korea's second household debt binge in the 15 years since the 1997 financial crisis
05/18/2009
The first period of rising household debt ocurred with the credit card boom when the government promoted consumer spending as a way to stimulate the economy. By 2003 this became a serous problem and the government rescued a credit card issuer in 2003. Household debt is again a major problem in 2012 with the increasing number of companies in financial lending that are not regulated.
Linked Articles
Notes From Another Credit Card Crisis
New York Times 05/18/2009
S. Korea tries to curb mounting debt and avert a crisis - The Washington PostWashington Post 07/09/2012
In the two areas that government can make aserious difference, foreclosure prevention and bank lending it is failing.
04/15/2009
The government has only indirect influence over the other important variables in the equation for economic recovery, consumption and employment. Through foreclosure prevention and bank lending it can influence consumption and employment. Obama's program while admirable may simply fall short of what is required. Through asimple takeover of insolvent banks the administrationcan implement its own programs for goreclosure prevention and aggressive bank lending at attractive rates, but this has to be done early before business go into permanent retrenchment mode and consumers simply revert to a frugal lifestyle of an earlier generation.
Linked Articles
Lending By Bailout Recipients Falls Again
Washington Post 04/16/2009
Banks Ramp Up ForeclosuresWall Street Journal 04/15/2009
Geithner's Plan for Toxic Assets
03/23/2009
Experts are doubtful Geithner's plan of March 23, 2009 for toxic assets will work. Its similiar to plans previously announced by Paulson in the Bush administration. Views of Krugman, Eavis and Reinhart. If lack of confidence and lack of liquidity were the only problems they say, government money as incentives might work, but the problem is more basic and structural. These mortgage securities are from a time of easy money, now investors are shy of risks and would discount them even more as a safety factor, and banks would not want to sell them at that price. Are stress tests and nationalization of failed banks around the corner?
Linked Articles
Why Congress Will Kill the Bank Rescue
Wall Street Journal 03/24/2009
Geithner's Gamble Needs SpeculatorsWall Street Journal 03/23/2009
Child hunger in India and India's Food Security legislation in August 2013
03/13/2009
Food expert Rieff cites figures showing child malnutrition at over 40% in India for children under the age of 5 in 2009. A World Food Program report says 230 million people in India are hungry each year. India's Food Security legilation has to be seen in this context. Rieff says India is in danger of losing its demographic dividend as a result of child malnutrition. All developing countries can learn from each other and their programs to reduce child malnutrition, improve health care and vaccinations, and introduce healthy food and sanitary practices. Programs are in place in Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia, India, and China.
Linked Articles
As Indian Growth Soars, Child Hunger Persists
New York Times 03/13/2009
India's Lower House Passes Food Bill to Help PoorWall Street Journal 08/26/2013
Cornell's Frank points out that savings may be good for America once they are chanelled into investment.
02/15/2009
For this to happen some of the excess household debt from the number 96% of GDP, that household debt in the USA has reached, has to be shaved off. This is happening as Americans are shifting to becoming debt free in their finances. This affects consumption through the paradox of thrift. But says Prof. Frank this is OK, as the government steps in in the meantime to give the boost to the economy, till consumers recover from debt. Future savings can then be channelled into new productive investment for modernization's next phase, just as China and India are doing.
Linked Articles
Imbalance in Nations' Savings Clouds Forecasts for Recovery
Wall Street Journal 03/23/2009
Go Ahead and Save. Let the Government Spend.New York Times 02/15/2009
Vaccine Maker Pfizer and the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Compensation Program.
01/26/2009
The limits to litigation risk for vaccines is one reason for the attractiveness and growing investment in the vaccines development. Its also what Pfizer hopes to develop with the Wyeth acquisition for $68 billion.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 02/23/2009
Pfizer Agrees to Pay $68 Billion for Rival WyethNew York Times 01/26/2009
China's strategy of bringing in Smithfield Foods and other western companies to tackle the problem of contaminated food products
01/01/2009
Linked Articles
Former Head of Chinese Dairy Pleads Guilty
New York Times 01/01/2009
On Becoming Chinaâs Farm TeamNew York Times 11/05/2013
How global imbalances in savings were ignored as the risks increased.
12/26/2008
Prof. Portes on global imbalances in savings. What happened and why the risks were not understood by Bernanke, Greenspan, and others. The view that successful models are very hard to change, reluctance in China to disturb the status quo, and the difficulty of getting people to accept the need to move away from this without a crisis.
Linked Articles
Imbalance in Nations' Savings Clouds Forecasts for Recovery
Wall Street Journal 03/23/2009
Chinese Savings Helped Inflate American BubbleNew York Times 12/26/2008
David Rieff provides insights on why all developing countries, Mexico, Brazil, India, Indonesia and China need to take child malnutrition seriously
10/11/2009
The Indian lower house of parliament passed a Food Security bill in August 2013. Rieff says China made serious progress to reduce malnutrition from over 21% for children under 5 years to around 7% today after 1990. In India malnutrition for children under 5 years is above 40%. There is a lot that developing coutnries can learn from each other in this area including the Bolsa Familia program in Brazil which uses the concept of improving vaccination for children and school attendance as requirements for subsidy payments to the poor. Mexico and Indonesia have different versions of programs to help the poorer sections of society. The problem is acute in India because of indifference induced by caste and other considerations and the high level of malnutrition for children. Rief says how good is ademographic dividend when many of these children are permanently and silently impaired by malnutrition by the age of three. India's Congress party leader, Sonia Gandhi, put it differently in parliament: "What is our responsibility to these people?"
Linked Articles
New York Times 10/11/2009
India's Lower House Passes Food Bill to Help PoorWall Street Journal 08/26/2013
As U.S. shoppers become frugal China looks to its own domestic market.
09/29/2009
Linked Articles
Unrest May Signal New Phase in China Economy
New York Times 05/29/2010
China Inc. Looks Homeward as U.S. Shoppers Turn FrugalWall Street Journal 09/29/2009
BP, Shell and other foreign oil companies expand production in Iraq in 2012-2014
07/01/2009
Ambitious goals for oil production are set by the Iraqi government as oil companies from the, U.S., Europe, Russia and China, provide the expertise to increase production from older oil fields. Problems of infrastructure and national oil legislation hinder rapid development.
Linked Articles
Crude Oil Output Is Soaring in Iraq, Easing Markets
New York Times 06/02/2012
Oil Companies Reject Iraq's Contract TermsWall Street Journal 07/01/2009
Failure of HARP refinance program of the Obama adminsitration and rising mortgage rates.
06/11/2009
Rising rates makes refinancing difficult for homeowners. Mortgage rates reached 5.79% on June 10, 2009.
Linked Articles
Get Ready for Inflation and Higher Interest Rates
Wall Street Journal 06/11/2009
Rate Rise Clouds RecoveryWall Street Journal 06/12/2009
As the government sells $5 trillion in new debt by one estimate, the problem of an estimated $ 1 trillion in troubled assets on the banks books is being put off for another day.
06/04/2009
The FDIC's Legacy Loans Program's $1 billion pilot program attracts no interest. The Public Private Partnership Program of Secretary Geithner, like Secretary Paulson's TARP program before Geithner, is also unlikely to attract much interest as banks are not willing to take the prices that would require them to show large losses on their books. But this means that these problems are postponed for another day.
Linked Articles
Plan to Help Banks Clear Their Books Is Halted
New York Times 06/04/2009
Rising Interest on Nations’ Debts May Sap World GrowthNew York Times 06/04/2009
The smaller stimulus and selective investments in 2012-2014 in China and how this affects construction and heavy equipment manufacturers
04/30/2009
The impact on Caterpillar, Volvo AB, Komatsu, John Deere, Cummins and domestic Chinese manufacturers of the smaller stimulus and selective investments in China in the years ahead. Manufacturers are exporting from China during this period of slowing sales in China.
Linked Articles
China Bets Sour for Heavy Equipment Firms
Wall Street Journal 08/16/2012
China's Stimulus Spurs U.S. BusinessWall Street Journal 04/30/2009
Reinhart's view that the Geithner Public-Private Investment program won't work
03/24/2009
Reinhart, joins Peter Eavis, Rosenfeld and Krugman, in view that this won't work. He thinks the government is just buying time for a favorable opportunity to take stronger action. It may be engaging in this circuitous roundabout plan as away of saying that we tried aprivate sector solution. Krugman warns though that time is running out with the job loss numbers.
Linked Articles
New York Times 04/06/2009
Why Congress Will Kill the Bank RescueWall Street Journal 03/24/2009
Peter Eavis thinks the Geithner plan isn't based on sound logic.
03/23/2009
If only the confidence and liquidity were an issue then maybe the Geithner Public Private Investment Program plan might work. But says Eavis, the underlying price structure for these mortgage securities is gone with this crisis,so that the recovery in their price for banks to avoid huge losses is going to be elusive. He cites Credit Sights which estimates losses of US banks through 2010 of $250- $450 billion.
Linked Articles
Treasury’s Got Bill Gross on Speed Dial
New York Times 06/21/2009
Geithner's Gamble Needs SpeculatorsWall Street Journal 03/23/2009
Politicians who deride "mere spending programs" may have not got it right.
02/15/2009
Republicans in the House, with every single one voting against the Stimulus bill, have derided government spending as wasteful and unnecessary. The impact on the deficit makes it look sensible. However on closer examination Robert Frank, a Cornell economist, points out that in some situtations like this government spending can be not wasteful but productive and efficient, and necessary.
Linked Articles
Go Ahead and Save. Let the Government Spend.
New York Times 02/15/2009
In Gingrich Mold, a New Voice for Solid Resistance in G.O.P.New York Times 02/15/2009
For a Nobel prize winning economist a sick feeling in the stomach in February 2009.
02/13/2009
Is the US going the way of a train wreck as Japan did from the mid 1990's to 2003 with every set of actions falling short of the task of cleaning up the banking system and economic recovery? Krugman and Japanese experts who tackled the Japanese banking crisis sense something like this is happening in the US.
Linked Articles
New York Times 02/13/2009
In Japan’s Stagnant Decade, Cautionary Tales for AmericaNew York Times 02/13/2009
China's search for global and western brands of baby milk powder after contamination of local brands
01/01/2009
Linked Articles
Former Head of Chinese Dairy Pleads Guilty
New York Times 01/01/2009
Chinese Search for Infant Formula Goes GlobalNew York Times 07/25/2013
Sales slowing, inventories piling up of electronics goods, and the Capps and Muirs of Boise, Idaho.
12/31/2008
The dramatic shift to a savings oriented and thrifty lifestyle reminiscent of the thirties and forties in some ways, is seen in the new lifestyles and spending habits of the Capps and Muirs in Boise, Idaho. With its high tech factories Boise has held up well in previous recessions. If things are changing this much in a place like Boise then its aserious sign of changes in the whole country. This is leading to buidup of inventories of cars, electronics goods, and other goods in retail stores. It has a serious global aspect as products made in China are affected, and products made elsewhere that go into these products are affected, and the equipment manufacturers in Germany for these products made in China are also affected.
Linked Articles
BusinessWeek 12/31/2008
Hard-Hit Families Finally Start Saving, Aggravating Nation's Economic WoesWall Street Journal 01/06/2009
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