Webinar on Africa and the IMF: 8. and 15. September
Anyone interested can register via the following link . ... More ...
flassbeck economics international
Economics and politics - comment and analysis
Latest posts
The IMF is recommending a harakiri programme for Europe, yet ignores the US’s much higher national debt
Astute writers such as Michael Sauga of *Der Spiegel* realise immediately when things get serious: Europe needs austerity now. If Europe does not implement an austerity programme straight away, it is doomed. Europe must cut spending come what may. The best option would be an austerity programme in the style of Schröder’s Agenda. ... More ...
Talking about Africa and the world
A video tackling African and global economic problems can be found here ... More ...
Interest rate hike during a recession – the Europeans are mad
This week will probably prove it once and for all: the Europeans are mad. The Americans, on the other hand, although generally considered mad, are finally leaving the Europeans far behind when it comes to economic sense. On Thursday, the ECB Governing Council will meet and, ... More ...
The Chinese imbalance – which is just as misunderstood as all the others
I wrote a few days ago in relatively general terms about imbalances in international trade. Now there is increasingly heated debate about the Chinese imbalance, which, according to many pundits, poses a massive threat to the global economy and to Germany. ... More ...
What is an international imbalance?
In the Financial Times, Martin Wolf noted a few days ago that imbalances in international trade are back on the political agenda. Although Wolf reaches entirely reasonable conclusions regarding mercantilism, he nevertheless states that it is nonsense to claim that the US trade deficits can be eliminated solely through trade or exchange rate policy. ... More ...
Romania, a new crisis, an old realisation: Eastern Europe is caught in the appreciation trap
If there is one constant in Eastern Europe, it is the lack of constancy. Nowhere else are there such frequent changes of government or desperate attempts to form a functioning government through one snap election after another. Bulgaria, for instance, had gone through a striking series of snap elections before the vote two weeks ago at least offered hope of forming a government capable of…
Argentina: Why simple figures allow for clear judgements
It is hard to believe the sort of things being circulated about Argentina and its libertarian president. The article that Patrick Kaczmarczyk and I wrote some time ago has generated a particularly strong response. Some (such as Poschardt and Stelter , ... More ...
The real price of oil isn’t particularly high – calculated correctly, it’s even lower
The fuss over oil prices is once again huge. If you dare to call for calm ( which I have done) , a shitstorm is inevitable. In a world where many still claim we are rapidly heading towards a transformation that will lead to the complete abandonment of fossil fuels, ... More ...
Hungary after 16 years of Orbán: Still no escape from the currency appreciation trap
It is quite astonishing: Viktor Orbán’s heyday in Hungary began when, following the end of massive currency speculation (carry trades) that had massively overvalued the Hungarian forint, the forint plummeted and left many homeowners who had taken on debt in foreign currencies (Swiss francs or Japanese yen) due to low interest rates in enormous difficulty. ... More ...