Mike Norman Economics

Again, President Trump has escalated the trade war against China (Trump threatens more tariffs and China promises retaliation as trade war intensifies). Again, he is falsely claiming that China is paying for his tariffs (Trump Says China Pays for His Tariffs, He’s wrong)! Again, let me chip in my two cents:  Who are paying for the tariffs? The importers and consumers in America, not the folks in China! Are the manufacturers in China hurt? Yes, but only slightly, as their orders keep...

The recent breakdown in trade talks between the United States and China may in part reflect the two countries’ different approaches to negotiation. Hopefully, this contrast in styles will not cause the talks to fail unnecessarily, given the importance to the global economy of a US-China agreement.... Project SyndicateWhy the US and China See Negotiations Differently Shang-Jin Wei | Professor of Finance and Economics at Columbia University and a visiting professor at the Australian National...

At some point private debt becomes unsustainable by income. There is nothing in the report to suggest that this point is closely approaching from the household side, however, although there has been some noise about rising corporate debt and its quality. Calculated RiskNY Fed Q1 Report: "Total Household Debt Rises for 19th Straight Quarter, Now Nearly $1 Trillion Above Previous Peak"Bill McBride

Video of Bill's May 9, Glascow presentation. A good time was had by all.Bill Mitchell – billy blogTravelling all day today … Bill Mitchell | Professor in Economics and Director of the Centre of Full Employment and Equity (CofFEE), at University of Newcastle, NSW, Australia

A wealth tax is not needed to "pay for" anything, since the US funds itself directly using currency issuance. That is, the US is a currency issuer rather than a user of currency.  The purpose of taxation is to: control for inflation  discourage taxed behavior  address social needs A wealth tax would address 2 and 3. Regarding 2, the negative behavior being discouraged is rent-seeking and a wealth tax would serve to preempt rent extraction. Regarding 3,  the social need being addressed...

Recent remarks by a senior Trump administration official suggest that the United States' current approach to China is dangerously misconceived. The rise of China under a one-party dictatorship should be met with a united front in defense of the liberal order, not talk of a clash of Caucasian and non-Caucasian civilizations.… Of course this is a civilizational conflict. Western imperialism and colonialism were racist at the core — "white-man's burden" and all that— and neoliberalism,...

If true.…Moon of AlabamaSyria - OPCW Engineering Assessment: The Douma 'Chemical Weapon Attack' Was Staged

Branko Milanovic puts his finger on why hierarchical governance can be more effective and efficient than consensual governance.Global InequalityDemocracy or dictatorship: which works better? Branko Milanovic | Visiting Presidential Professor at City University of New York Graduate Center and senior scholar at the Luxembourg Income Study (LIS), and formerly lead economist in the World Bank's research department and senior associate at Carnegie Endowment for International PeaceSee...

There’s one thing the no-holds-barred U.S. economic war against Iran has managed to achieve: internal unity in the Islamic Republic. Team Rouhani’s initial aim for the JCPOA was to open up to Western trade (trade with Asia was always on) and somewhat curtail the power of the IRGC, or Revolutionary Guards, which control vast sectors of the Iranian economy.Washington’s economic war proved instead the IRGC was right all along, echoing the finely-tuned geopolitical sentiment of Supreme Leader...

Beijing’s activity in world affairs has been steadily increasing since the global financial and economic crisis of 2008-2009. There is no doubt that China, which has substantially increased its economic and financial strength, has set off on a path of sustainable growth to play a key role in global economic governance; it is improving its leadership potential on the world stage and gradually building a China-centric system of international rules, norms and institutions. Processing its...