Category
Topic updates
Risks to inequality from premature fiscal austerity
Premature austerity is self-defeating from both a macro and an equity standpoint according to new research from economists working for the IMF.
How China dominates Pacific mining, logging and fishing
Here is a lengthy but fascinating read about the extent to which China dominates the market for every raw material in the Pacific region, and how it has been able to acquire access to them...
A new report from from the ILO sees employment picking up strongly in countries where vaccination rates are high but risks of labour scarring effects especially in nations where vaccinations are in...
2021 - A Year of Shortages in Global Supply Chains
This is a genuinely interesting clip looking at the fragile nature of the global supply chain, and why shortages came about in the wake of the pandemic.
This long read from the FT provides important insights into the many challenges facing the Northern Ireland economy.
Ken Rogoff argues here that the greatest threat to global stability is inequality between nations, rather than inequality within nations
Experience Curves: Why expanding renewable energy output will lower the cost of supply
For many products, increases in cumulative production are associated with decreasing unit cost as suppliers move down the experience curve.
Moral hazard: Does vaccination increase risk-taking behaviour?
New research finds evidence of increased risk-taking behaviour after flu vaccination, which can counter the vaccine’s effectiveness.
This extended piece by Ijeoma Ndukwe from BBC Business is a superb read on the challenges of overcoming dependency on cocoa growing in Ghana.
Dynamic efficiency - the search for better batteries
Lithium-ion batteries dominate battery storage in the world economy but, as this FT short video explains, the hunt is on for alternatives.
Regional Inequalities in Sub-Saharan Africa
Two IMF economists look at inequality in a sub-Saharan African setting using a variety of measures - traditional measures looking at household incomes, supplemented by newer indicators looking at...
This is a superbly relevant short video on development economics from the Financial Times as part of their series on the food revolution.
This BBC Newsnight clip looks at the problems associated with the Northern Ireland protocol, and the extra costs that this is imposing on Northern Irish businesses.
Sustainable Growth - News Update
Here is a raft of topical stories in the news relating to the economics of sustainable growth.
Structural Economic Change - The Electric Vehicle Charging Problem
I love these Wendover Production clips - just lots of good economics, In this case, they look at the market for electric cars.
This Newsnight clip looks at the issue of child poverty in the UK - and it's depressing viewing.
Covid crisis fuels food price rises for world's poorest
This timely intervention by the President of the World Bank highlights a neglected impact of coronavirus: the impact on food security.
The problem is poverty, however we label it
This is a really insightful piece that highlights the multi-dimensional aspects of poverty in the UK.
General purpose technologies and the productivity gap
One of the most depressing aspects of the decade of the 2010s, well before Covid struck, was the apparently slow growth in productivity.
Could covid-19 cause an inflation spike?
The Economist looks at the nature of inflation - starting from the premise that recent low inflation is difficult to explain in traditional theoretical terms.