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The July 2012 Report by an independent parliamentary panel on the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster and prime minister Naoto Kan's testimony
05/28/2012
The report calls the disaster "a profoundly man-made event," and "a disaster 'Made in Japan,' " citing cultural factors that contributed to the accident. It is sharply critical of TEPCO and the Japanese government's response. Both the report and the testimony of the prime minister at the time of the accident, Naoto Kan, refer to the 'nuclear bloc' or 'nuclear village' in Japan that promotes nuclear energy. Some of its actions are dangerous to safety, such as locating the nuclear safety agency NISA inside the same ministry that promotes nuclear power, a critical flaw. Ironically Germany made the decision to make a gradual shift out of nuclear power after looking at the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster and near collapse in Japan, while Japan is reactivating its nuclear plants to meet energy needs without having obtained public confidence in the system of nuclear energy including the essential safety actions. The result is a profound credibility gap about the nuclear plant industry, and public opposition in Japan.
Linked Articles
Report blasts Japan’s preparation for, response to Fukushima disaster - The Washington Post
Washington Post 07/06/2012
Japan's Ex-Premier, Naoto Kan, Condemns Nuclear PowerNew York Times 05/28/2012
Criticism of Japan's central bank on the lack of an activist monetary policy to support economic growth 2010-2012
05/07/2012
Shinzo Abe of the LDP, the leading candidate for prime minister after general elections in Dec. 2012, says he will appoint a new central bank chief who supports an activist monetary policy. Abe supports the BOJ setting an inflation target of 2% compared to the 1% under current Bank of Japan chief Shirakawa. Both the governing DPJ and the LDP parties are strongly critical of Shirakawa and prefer to see an activist stance against deflation similiar to the one Ben Bernanke is taking against unemployment in the U.S. Abe returns to power after becoming LDP prime minister following the government of Junichiro Koizumi.
Linked Articles
Vote Challenges Japan's Central Bank
Wall Street Journal 12/13/2012
Pressure Rises on BOJ to Reach Inflation TargetWall Street Journal 05/07/2012
De Anza College in Cupertino, California where a Apple co-founder got his start and the implications of tax avoidance strategies
04/28/2012
A U.S. Senate Report in May 2013 points to tax avoidance strategies by Apple, and Apple CEO Tim Cook appears before a Senate hearing. EU leaders meet in Brussels to address the problems of tax avoidance by digital companies which aggravate the budget deficits of EU countries, especially at a time of cutbacks in infrastructure spending and education that supports the digital companies access to to human resources. De Anza College in Cupertino is where on of the Apple cofounders went to school. The head of the college describes the effects of cutbacks in funding on the college. On the other side of the Atlantic Fredrik Reinfeldt, Sweden's prime minister makes a similiar case saying the digital companies need access to infrastructure and educational centres which makes the payment of taxes used to fund this necessary for the whole system not to fall into dysfunction.
Linked Articles
Apple's Tax Strategy Aims at Low-Tax States and Nations
New York Times 04/28/2012
Europe Tackles Tax EvasionWall Street Journal 05/22/2013
The risks to Ford Motor from its European operations in 2013-2014
04/26/2012
Linked Articles
Ford Could Be Slowed by Global Potholes
Wall Street Journal 01/29/2013
Fordâs Challenges Mount in EuropeNew York Times 04/26/2012
India's surging crude oil imports with a depreciating rupee reducing the impact of cuts in fuel subsidies- 2011-2015
04/11/2012
Cuts in fuel subsidies to reduce the current account deficit has less impact with a depreciating rupee. The emerging markets crisis in 2014 focusses attention on the current account deficits of emerging market countries. A decline in foreign investment adds to India's difficulties.
Linked Articles
India Grapples With Soaring Energy Costs
Wall Street Journal 04/11/2012
Rupee Throws Oil on India's Subsidy ProblemWall Street Journal 08/21/2013
Expert opinion and the behaviour of the U.S. stock market in 2009 to 2014- how the shift to a "more normalized growth environment" occurred faster than anticipated
04/02/2012
Expert opinion held that a more normalized growth environment would have to return before a recovery in the U.S. equity markets. This was expected to take a period beyond 2012-2013. The actual situation was a recovery in equity markets earlier than expected with support of $3 trillion in bond buying by the U.S. Fed, and similiar support provided in Europe by the ECB.
Linked Articles
Goldman Sachs: We Like Stocks, Just Not This Year
Wall Street Journal 04/02/2012
Lessons From the Bull MarketWall Street Journal 03/08/2014
Eliminating all Bush tax cuts to generate the revenue base to support spending programs for the middle class down the road
03/29/2012
Jared Berstein of the Economic Policy Institute, Peter Orszag, former director of the Congressional Budget Office, and Mayor Bloomberg of New York, say eliminating all Bush tax cuts would provide the revenue base needed to support middle class programs for future years. Orszag says making the tax code more progressive is desirable especially considering the inequality but this does not do much good if the revenue base to support middle class programs down the road is insufficient.
Linked Articles
Middle Class Malaise Complicates Democratsâ Fiscal Stance
New York Times 12/12/2012
Federal Budgets and Class WarfareWall Street Journal 03/29/2012
Uncertain future for Australia's mining and commodities powered boom in 2012-2014
03/06/2012
The shift in China's economy towards consumption led growth from infrastructure development led growth is likely to affect mining commodity producing economies such as Australia, Brazil and Chile. The rapid appreciation of the Australian dollar and the real is also affecting the competitiveness of manufacturing in these countries.
Linked Articles
Australia Budget Turns Boom on Its Head
Wall Street Journal 05/09/2012
China Speeds Economic 'Transformation'Wall Street Journal 03/06/2012
Ford to double its manufacturing capacity in Chongqing, China by 2014, making it the largest outside of Michigan
02/27/2012
Ford plans to invest $600 million to more than double manufacturing capacity in Chongqing to 770,000 by 2014. This comes at a time of major slowdown in the market in China after years of hyper growth. Ford lags behing GM and VW in China and missed some of the spurt in growth.
Linked Articles
Ford Plans to Boost Production in China
Wall Street Journal 04/06/2012
Ford Faces China HurdlesWall Street Journal 02/27/2012
Xiaochuan, head of the PBOC, Liu He of the DRC think tank, and Zoellick, former head of the World Bank- driving China's new economic priorities in 2014
02/23/2012
Linked Articles
China's Central Banker Leads Push to Overhaul Economy
Wall Street Journal 11/05/2013
New Push for Reform in ChinaWall Street Journal 02/23/2012
Spain's high jobless rate of 23% in 2011 and new labor laws to make it easier to hire workers
01/28/2012
Linked Articles
In New High, Spain's Jobless Rate Nears 23%
Wall Street Journal 01/28/2012
Spain Approves Changes to Labor PolicyNew York Times 02/10/2012
Obama's 2012 presidential campaign and weak support from financially struggling white voters
01/13/2012
By a 26% margin financially strapped white voters affected by high unemployment favor Romney over Obama. This is wider than the 18% margin by which Obama, Kerry and Gore lost this group in prior elections. It will be crucial in states such as Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan which were hard hit by the economic downturn.
Linked Articles
Romney holds key advantages among financially struggling white voters - The Washington Post
Washington Post 05/25/2012
White Blue-Collar Vote May Be Crucial in ElectionNew York Times 01/13/2012
The wide divergence between ADP jobs estimates and Labor Department BLS figures in 2010-2014
01/05/2012
Linked Articles
Jobs Data May Be Icing on America's Birthday Cake
Wall Street Journal 07/03/2014
Strong ADP Jobs Gain Needs Grain of SaltWall Street Journal 01/05/2012
The $436 million payment by Greece to holdout bondholder Dart Management and the $1.5 billion demanded by holdout bondholder Elliott Management leading to Argentine default in 2014
05/15/2012
Greece made the payment to Dart Management at a time of 20% unemployment and daily protests on Athens streets, a month before elections in June 2012. Greece only did this as a last resort for release of EU funds that were being held up to make pament of interest on debt. This exacerabated discontent inside Greece as pensions were being cut and layoffs taking place, including increase in electricity bills. The Syriza party made gains in that election and the two main parties lost ground to other parties, including a violent anti-immigrant party. Argentina's Christina Kirchner faces a difficult time with the unions and centrist parties in Buenos Aires province, with a shortage of cash and sovereign wealth fund down to $29 billion in May 2014. Stevenson points out the payment to Elliott Management could lead to a situation where Argentina owed $15-$27 billion to all holdout and exchange investors in its bonds.
Linked Articles
Argentina Finds Relentless Foe in Paul Singer's Hedge Fund
New York Times 07/30/2014
Bet on Greek Bonds Paid Off for a Vulture FundNew York Times 05/15/2012
Sanford Weill of Citigroup, former U.S. Fed chairman Volcker, and other voices calling for breakup of the biggest banks
04/29/2012
Weill pushed hard to repeal the Glass Steagall Act. He now says the housing bubble and the financial crisis have proved that this was a mistake. He called for a breakup of the biggest banks on July 23, 2012, in comments to CNBC.
Linked Articles
Big-Bank Pioneer Now Seeks Breakup
Wall Street Journal 07/25/2012
Warren Stephens: How Big Banks Threaten Our EconomyWall Street Journal 04/29/2012
The army and the judiciary supporting democratic processes in Pakistan (2)
04/27/2012
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 04/22/2013
Pakistan Premier Gets 30-Second TermWall Street Journal 04/27/2012
Samsung and Apple strategies in the smartphone market 2011-2014
04/24/2012
Linked Articles
Samsung Widens Lead Over Apple in Smartphone Market
Wall Street Journal 07/27/2012
The Two-Horse Smartphone RaceWall Street Journal 04/24/2012
Nakanishi at Hitachi and Sasaki at Toshiba- a new set of CEO's in Japan breaking from the past
04/09/2012
Linked Articles
Hitachi President Prods Turnaround
Wall Street Journal 05/11/2012
Toshiba's Chief Takes StockWall Street Journal 04/09/2012
Two different pictures of the American consumer- real spending up 2.3% in the 1st quarter 2012 and yet a thin cushion of reserves say researchers
03/29/2012
Lower utility bills from lower natural gas prices and the offset from higher fuel efficiency of newer automobiles help push consumer spending slightly higher in the face of gasoline at average $3.92 per gallon in April 2012. Yet the cushion for American consumers remains weak say researchers at Stanford and the U.S. Federal Reserve.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 04/16/2012
How to Build Buzz for Bud: More Alcohol, Lime-a-RitaWall Street Journal 03/29/2012
The risks facing Spain in 2012 with austerity measures when unemployment is at 23%
03/06/2012
Finance Minister Luis de Guindos sees Spain loosing either way with spending cuts that worsen high unemployment and lower economic growth leading to a worsening debt to GDP ratio in 2012, and this situation in turn raising its borrowing costs on $86 billion in debt issuance for 2012. He estimates the debt to GDP ratio will increase under the 2012 budget of 27 billion euros in cuts and an economy shrinking by 1.7% in 2012, by 10% from 2011 to 78%. Markets are focussing on debt in Portugal and Spain in 2012, after focussing on Greece and Italy in 2011.
Linked Articles
Spain Faces Risks in Budget Refit
Wall Street Journal 04/03/2012
Spain Struggles to Unite Regional Leaders on CutsNew York Times 03/06/2012
John Cochrane on how to build a truly open competitive system of healthcare the day after Obama healthcare
03/05/2012
Cochrane points to regulations and laws that support high prices of medical carein the U.S., by reducing competition and restricting supply of doctors and suppliers of medical care. He says the mandate most likely would not even be necessary under such a system because the costs of healthcare in the U.S. would be so much lower.
Linked Articles
What to Do on the Day After ObamaCare
Wall Street Journal 04/03/2012
Why an MRI costs $1,080 in America and $280 in France - The Washington PostWashington Post 03/05/2012
Zhou Xiaochuan, head of the People's Bank of China, China's central bank, and the Development Research Center (DRC) think tank
02/23/2012
The road map and priorities of the DRC and the PBOC are now the road map and priorities of the Jinping-Keqiang administration A sense of deepening awareness takes hold on party leaders Jinping and Li Keqiang that the current trajectory of Debt to GDP ratios could lead to the kind of situation before the banking crisis in Japan and S. Korea. The importance of striking a balance with growth of private companies to support future growth and move away from reliance on state owned enterprises is part of the change supported by DRC and PBOC.
Linked Articles
China's Central Banker Leads Push to Overhaul Economy
Wall Street Journal 11/05/2013
New Push for Reform in ChinaWall Street Journal 02/23/2012
The risks to GM from its Opel European unit in 2013-2014
02/15/2012
Linked Articles
Europe Remains G.M.'s Weak Spot
New York Times 02/15/2012
GM Sees Expanded European LossesWall Street Journal 07/16/2012
The army and the judiciary supporting democratic processes in Pakistan (1)
01/22/2012
Linked Articles
Pakistan Vote to Test Army's Willingness to Cede Power
Wall Street Journal 05/09/2013
Pakistan High Court Widens Role and Stirs FearsNew York Times 01/22/2012
Steadily growing automobile market in China in 2014-2015 (4)- the buyer preference for better quality of foreign carmakers hurts local carmakers Geely and Cherry
01/06/2012
Linked Articles
Chinese Car Makers Struggle to Lure Buyers
Wall Street Journal 04/21/2014
Car Makers Gauge Shift In China's Auto PolicyWall Street Journal 01/06/2012
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