I have argued many times here that the US is in many ways responsible for the “lost decade” in the Japanese economy. Back in the 80s the Japanese occupied the villain role for xenophobic US politicians who needed a scapegoat to blame for the trade deficit. Whether a trade deficit is even a problem is [...]
The Economist asks: Should Government take any steps to boost exports? The overwhelming answer of the economists who were asked? No, the government should find ways to encourage savings. What the politicians would have us believe is that the Chinese are taking advantage of Americans by keeping their currency cheap. That’s the same argument they [...]
The Washington Post says the Korea free trade pact is back on the US agenda. Reading the headline I thought maybe there was some kind of movement on actually getting the damn thing passed but the article indicates nothing of the sort. The Koreans have been pushing for ratification and the Obama administration has talked [...]
When was the last time you heard a US politician talk positively about doing business with China? Yeah, I can’t remember that either. As a contrast take a look at what Chile’s finance minister has to say:
“Chile expects China’s economy to continue growing steadily … which would be very good for the world economy [...]
