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Neglect of vital infrastructure needs in Germany and the U.S. 2006-2015
03/15/2013
A decade of neglected infrastructure needs in Germany and the U.S. as both countries face tight budget constraints and postponed priorities.
Linked Articles
A Slowdown on the Road to Recovery
Wall Street Journal 10/14/2013
German Policy Takes Toll on Public WorksWall Street Journal 03/15/2013
Funding infrastructure needs in Asia and the new Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
02/14/2013
Led by China, and with founding members India, S. Korea, Britain, Australia, France, Germany and Italy, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank is intended to provide much needed financing for infrastructure in Asia. Huge bottlenecks for development exist in Asia's developing countries, including India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Philippines, which can only be tackled through innovative methods of financing. China which has moved ahead in infrastructure development is providing the leadership for this bank. Experts say Europe is right to join, and the U.S. should have supported the idea at the early stage.
Linked Articles
Hostility From U.S. as China Lures Allies to New Bank
New York Times 03/19/2015
Hot Topic in Moscow Talks: How to Fund InfrastructureWall Street Journal 02/14/2013
Setting the record straight and restoring the credibility of credit ratings- the U.S. Justice Department's struggle with S&P 2013-2015
02/05/2013
U.S. Associate Attorney General Dillery, the governments top negotiator in a $1.5 billion settlement in Jan 2015, says never has the Justice Department produced 290 million documents in discovery in Justice Department history.This is how many documents were produced in this case which he said showed S&P in serious breach of duty, which affected the U.S. financial system leading to many adverse consequences.
Linked Articles
S&P to Pay $1.5 Billion to Resolve Crisis-Era Litigation
Wall Street Journal 02/04/2015
S. & P. E-Mails on Mortgage Crisis Show Alarm and Gallows HumorNew York Times 02/05/2013
Governor Jerry Brown of California and investing in higher education- Brown's effort to replicate a remarkable feat under Edmund Brown
01/10/2013
Jerry Brown's father, Edmund Brown, was Governor of California in the 1960's when he helped build the UC and Cal State university system into a beacon for other states. The state's higher education system became a gateway into the U.S. middle class and powered the state's tech industry.
Linked Articles
Brown Looks at Reshaping Californiaâs Higher Education
New York Times 01/28/2013
State’s Rare Sight: A Budget SurplusWall Street Journal 01/10/2013
U.S. Fed chairman Bernanke's activist interest rate policies to tackle high unemployment and central bankers from MIT
12/12/2012
A pragmatic activist focus in economic thinking shaped at the MIT economics department in Cambridge, Masachusetts. The ECB's Mario Draghi, Bank of England's Mervyn King, and Bernanke shaped their thinking at MIT. Draghi and Bernanke had the same PhD. advisor- Stanley Fischer. Factors calling for a pragmatic approach include the lack of political agreement on th deficit, the housing and foreclosure crisis effects, higher inequality and unemployment effects on the middle class, the effects of the globalized economy on working class manufacturing jobs, people dropping out of the labor foce, and lower inflation, which called for a larger focus on unemployment. Bernanke emphasized the "enormous waste in human potential and productive resources of the economy" throughout 2009-2012. Draghi emphasized the abnormal nature of excessive borrowing interest rates for Italy and Spain during the ECB's bond buying efforts in 2011-2012. Both efforts had a stabilizing effect on the economies of the U.S. and Europe during a period of political discord about future policy.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 12/13/2012
MIT Forged Activist Views of Central Bank Role and Cinched Central Bankers' TiesWall Street Journal 12/12/2012
The dealmaking that is needed to build an agreement on deficit reduction- the challenge for Obama and Republicans
11/10/2012
The need for Obama and Republicans to build on proposals by Romer, Simpson-Bowles, Toomey, Hensarling, Feldstein, Romney Conrad and others to put dealmaking ahead of futile ideological battles. This would be good for the country and good for jobs and growth, good for building a strong middle class economy.
Linked Articles
Budget Showdown Offers an Opportunity for Progress
New York Times 11/10/2012
Obama the DealmakerNew York Times 11/12/2012
The CEO statement of Oct 2012 calling for action to tackle deficit reduction with tax increases as part of broader reforms
10/26/2012
The CEO statement of Oct 2012 as a pro-growth initiative and not simply a tax increase that does little for setting up a strong economic recovery in the U.S.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 10/26/2012
Pete Domenici and Sam Nunn: Building a better ‘fiscal cliff’ - The Washington PostWashington Post 10/27/2012
Russian president Putin and the Rosneft-BP deal
10/18/2012
An effort by Putin to end the shareholder conflict inherent in the 50-50 TNK-BP joint venture which he says he warned about in the beginning.
Linked Articles
Moscow Had 'Mixed Feelings' on TNK-BP Deal, Putin Says
Wall Street Journal 10/25/2012
BP Nears Deal to Sell TNK-BP StakeWall Street Journal 10/18/2012
What a difference a year makes for the government bonds of Italy and Spain
10/02/2012
ECB chief, Mario Draghi made the famous statement on July 23, 2012, that he would "do whatever it takes" to bring down the yields on the government bonds of Italy and Spain. These bond yields had reached 7.5%, worsening the debt position of the two countries. A year later in August 2013 the bond yields were down, the gap with German bond yields narrowed, and the first signs of recovery in the eurozone made investment in the bonds of Italy and Spain attractive. Emerging market debt faced the opposite of what they faced in July 2013, as the currencies of India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Turkey, Brazil and other developing countries depreciated significantly. As the U.S. Federal Reserve begins its pull back from its monetary easing policy capital flows and foreign investment to to emerging markets reversed causing grief in countries which depended on these inflows to finance deficits in the current account.
Linked Articles
How ECB Chief Outflanked German Foe in Fight for Euro
Wall Street Journal 10/02/2012
Europe Bonds May Offer More ValueWall Street Journal 08/23/2013
Indian prime minister Singh's economic plan in the face of slowing growth in 2012
09/21/2012
In a televised address Singh says the market opening measures for the retail and other sectors are needed to maintain growth and foreign investment. Finance minister Chidambaram tells the WSJ in an Oct 2012 interview- the risks were too great with India facing a lowering of its credit rating, and the government having reflected on the serious consequences of not acting spelled out in the worst case scenario of the Kelkar committee report. The Indian government actions include lowering diesel subsidies and action to control the deficit, with a plan to bring it down to 3% by 2017.
Linked Articles
Q&A With Finance Minister Chidambaram
Wall Street Journal 10/08/2012
Singh Appeals to India to Support His MeasuresNew York Times 09/21/2012
Lenovo's effort to increase smartphone sales in China and emerging markets
08/14/2012
Lenovo is positioning itself to become the dominant smartphone company in China, second only to Samsung. It is creating a brand presence in China's rural areas for PC's and mobile devices which is likely to further enhance sales. This effort extends to other emerging markets in Asia such as India and Indonesia. Other strategic decisions include bringing in more manufactuing in-house compared to competitors HP and others in the PC industry.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 10/25/2012
HTC Beefs Up China Push as U.S., Europe LagWall Street Journal 08/14/2012
The view that with P5+1 talks with Iran ending in no agreement, the crisis with Iran is reaching a critical stage in August 2012
08/06/2012
Israeli views on the continued development of nuclear weapons capabilities by Iran in the face of tightened sanctions and diplomatic efforts. Oren and Yadlin see this has having reached a critical stage before military action.
Linked Articles
Get ready to fight Iran - The Washington Post
Washington Post 08/18/2012
Time Is Short For Iran DiplomacyWall Street Journal 08/06/2012
Kazuo Inamori's turnaround of Japan Airlines (JAL)
07/30/2012
Kazuo Inamori founded Kyocera and is considered one of Japan's leading corporate leaders along with such names as Sony's Akio Morita, and Honda's Soichiro Honda. At age 77, Inamori took up the task of revitalizing Japan Airlines and turning around the airline after huge losses. The story of how he managed to accomplish this using his unique management philosophy, cost management, JAL's strategies, and employee efforts.
Linked Articles
Japan Airlines Roars Back With an Eye on U.S. Market
Wall Street Journal 07/30/2012
‘Mikoshi’ Management: How Kazuo Inamori Lifted Japan AirlinesWall Street Journal 07/30/2012
The Abe administration's efforts to promote wage increases to fight deflation and increase consumer spending
03/13/2013
Linked Articles
Japanese Prices Rise, Signaling Rebound
Wall Street Journal 07/26/2013
Japan Unions Win Best Raises in YearsWall Street Journal 03/13/2013
The slow process of reform for credit ratings agencies involved in the 2008 global financial crisis six years later in 2014
02/05/2013
Linked Articles
S. & P. E-Mails on Mortgage Crisis Show Alarm and Gallows Humor
New York Times 02/05/2013
The Stone Unturned: Credit RatingsNew York Times 03/22/2014
Greece and living up to euro currency responsibilities- efforts under Papadopoulos 2002, Giannitsis 2001, Manos 1998 and Tsipras's commitment in 2015 15
01/28/2013
Can Greece live up to its euro currency responsibilities, is the question raised inside the eurozone, as Greece renews its commitment to reforms to build a modern economy. A look back at politicians who emphasized euro currency responsibilities and the candid remarks by Tsipras in an intervew with Bret Stephens of the WSJ.
Linked Articles
The Politicians Who Warned Greece—but Were Ignored
Wall Street Journal 07/11/2015
Stephens: The Conscience of a RadicalWall Street Journal 01/28/2013
The Swiss central bank's effort to keep Swiss Franc at 1.20 to the dollar and Japan's Abe government's push for the yen at 90 to the dollar
12/25/2012
A determined effort by the Swiss National Bank to preserve export competitiveness as eurozone economies contract in 2013, by printing francs and buying up euros and foreign assets. The effort is designed to counteract declining wages and prices in Switzerland. The newly elected Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe supports aggressive action by Japan's central bank to keep the yen between 85 yen and 90 yen to the U.S. dollar.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 12/25/2012
Button-Down Central Bank Bets It AllWall Street Journal 01/09/2013
Boeing and lessons learned from the $50 billion Dreamliner project- (2) meeting customer needs for balancing new features with cost
11/16/2012
Linked Articles
Delta Flies New Route to Profits: Older Jets
Wall Street Journal 11/16/2012
Boeing and Its Customers Try to Put a Price Tag on Fuel SavingsWall Street Journal 07/30/2013
The weakness in Ford Motor Company's improved results and recovery in 2011-2013
10/30/2012
Ford Europe is one cause for concern. Another problem is the lower market share in light vehicle sales in 2012 and the deteriorating quality and reliability ratings for cars.
Linked Articles
Ford Results Show Power of U.S. Operations
Wall Street Journal 10/30/2012
Ford's Purring, but Its Cars Aren'tWall Street Journal 10/31/2012
German chancellor Merkel and the EU plan for aid to Spain's banks in Oct. 2012
10/18/2012
Merkel turns down an effort pushed by France and Spain at the Oct. 2012 EU leaders meeting for direct aid to Spanish banks. Instead money has to go from the European Stability Mechanism fund to Spain after a request by Spain for aid. The aid request by Spain would be met under program of conditionality set by the IMF, EU and ECB. Spain is delaying a request for aid as borrowing rates on Spanish bonds declined to about 5% by late October 2012. The Rajoy government in Spain faces regional spending problems and separatis sentiment in addition to high unemployment and a worsening situation with its banks. Merkel faces elections for chancellor in Germany in Sept. 2013 and says more time is needed to setup the eurozone banking supervisory authority- to be set up in the course of 2013 with the legal setup completed by Jan 2013 as a concession to France. This would push banking supervision and financial architecture till after the election.
Linked Articles
German Refusal on Bank Aid Mars European Summit
New York Times 10/19/2012
Europe Seeks a Spain StrategyWall Street Journal 10/18/2012
Dangers facing Turkey's economy with its dependence on foreign capital inflows and excessive growth in domestic credit for growth
10/04/2012
Foreign capital inflows that partly support the sharp growth in domestic credit could slow or reverse as happened in the 1997 Asian financial crisis. The IMF sees a credit to GDP ratio of over 5% as a warning light for developing economies. The IMF forecast is for this rato to be 7.28% for Turkey in 2103.
Linked Articles
No Ticker Tape Parade for Brazil's Currency Heroes
Wall Street Journal 06/06/2013
Syria Isn't Turkey's Only External WorryWall Street Journal 10/04/2012
President Hollande's declining popularity in France after only 6 months in office
09/28/2012
A $26 billion tax rebate for business and a budget that pushes quickly for reducing the deficit to 3% of GDP in 2013 lead to growing unpopularity across the spectrum of opinion from the left, centre and right for France's new president Hollande.
Linked Articles
France’s Hollande struggles to regain popularity - The Washington Post
Washington Post 11/15/2012
France's New Budget Focuses on Cutting DeficitNew York Times 09/28/2012
Boeing and lessons learned from the $50 billion Dreamliner project- (3) a new emphasis on less complexity, efficient manufacturing process, and reliability
08/24/2012
Linked Articles
Boeing 787 Profit Plan Strained by Order Cut
Wall Street Journal 08/24/2012
787 Probe Indicates Fire Was Caused By ShortWall Street Journal 02/08/2013
Canada's DBRS, a little known credit ratings firm that made a large difference for the credit ratings of Italy and Spain
08/09/2012
Canada's DBRS put less weight on the political shifts in Italy and more on the low growth rate. It rated Italy A (low) in November 2013, much higher than the ratings given by Moody's and S&P. This was important in the eurozone crisis because the European Central Bank uses the highest rating on a sovereign country's bonds to decide discounts on collateral pledged by banks to the ECB. DBRS has more faith in the lasting value of the euro and sees through the ups and downs of the crisis. It takes a similiar upbeat long term view of Spain. DBRS has credibility because it did not move ratings up as much before the 2008 financial crisis, and did not move the ratings down as much during the crisis, as the large credit ratings firms.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 08/09/2012
The Key to Italy's Rating Is Kept in CanadaWall Street Journal 11/02/2013
Friedman, Avraham Burg and Morsi- on the way forward for moving beyond the intractable to the possible in the Middle East
08/04/2012
The democracy movement in the Middle East and the yearning for economc and political participation of the people of the Middle East creates new opportunities to move forward beyond the conflicts of the past to a better future for the people of the Middle East. The role of leaders in the U.S., Europe, and the Middle Eastern countries of Egypt, Turkey and the newly democratic states in this region in setting new goals and plans and rising up to the challenges.
Linked Articles
New York Times 11/24/2012
Israel's Fading DemocracyNew York Times 08/04/2012
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