The US House of Representatives recently passed a bill that makes “price gouging” a federal offense:
The legislation would give federal authorities the power during presidentially declared energy emergencies to investigate and prosecute anyone selling fuel at a price that is “unconscionably excessive” or “indicates the seller is taking unfair advantage unusual market conditions.”
President Bush [...]
The February 26th edition of the Washington Post carried an editorial calling for punitive tariffs on Chinese goods. On February 27th, the Chinese stock market fell 8.8% and other Asian markets followed suit. European markets also succumbed and then the US market had its worst one day loss since 9/11, dropping over 400 points on [...]
Paul Rubin has an article that explains opposition to free trade and immigration as being a result of evolutionary psychology:
Economists have argued for more than two centuries that voluntary trade, whether domestic or international, is positive sum: it benefits both parties, or else the exchange wouldn’t occur. Economists have also long argued that the economics [...]
Although the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index is still just below its all time high reached in March 2000, many high-profile market analysts, including Jeremy Grantham of GMO and Cliff Asness from AQR Capital, are pessimistic. They claim that profits are at a cyclical peak and that a low dividend yield will generate poor future [...]
