Optimism About Our Rising Standard of Living

Matthew E. Kahn – Arthur Brooks’ OP-ED focuses on the politics of optimism but I would prefer to recast his focus on what should be the basis of our optimism about our collective future.  In 2015, we live in a world with roughly 7.3 billion people whose life expectancy is higher than it has every been.  Educational attainment is higher than it has ever been. Urbanization both insulates us from climate shocks and facilitates trade and learning. Anticipating a longer life time and lower infant mortality, families are having fewer children and investing more in the human capital of each child. These children (through the dynamic complementarity mechanism of learning begets learning) are more likely than previous cohorts to achieve their full potential.  While many progressives yearn for a return to 1950s America, I have argued (see this post and this post) that those days were not as great as they recall and the rest of the world was not in terrific shape then (think of China). Tiếp tục đọc “Optimism About Our Rising Standard of Living”

Trung Quốc độc quyền khoáng sản quý như thế nào?

02/07/2013 11:35 GMT+7

TTCTCó lợi thế trời phú là nơi tập trung nhiều loại khoáng sản quý cho công nghiệp hiện đại, Trung Quốc đã vận dụng tối đa chiến lược biến lợi thế này thành quyền lực độc quyền để kiểm soát thị trường thế giới.

Mỏ khai thác đất hiếm của Mỹ ở Mountain Pass, California - Ảnh: ifixit.orgPhóng to
Mỏ khai thác đất hiếm của Mỹ ở Mountain Pass, California – Ảnh: ifixit.org

Khoáng sản quý hiếm, đặc biệt là các loại có ứng dụng rộng rãi như vonfram, bismuth và đất hiếm, đang trở thành át chủ bài đối với sự phát triển kinh tế và quốc phòng của mọi quốc gia. Chất bán dẫn trong các thiết bị điện tử làm từ đất hiếm, buồng đốt động cơ phản lực chịu nhiệt cao bằng hợp kim vonfram, vật liệu chuyên chở nhiên liệu trong lò phản ứng hạt nhân làm từ bismuth… Không có các kim loại quý này thì không có nền công nghiệp hiện đại, cũng không có nền quốc phòng hiện đại.

Tiếp tục đọc “Trung Quốc độc quyền khoáng sản quý như thế nào?”

The really worrying financial crisis is happening in China, not Greece

China looks like it is heading for its version of the 1929 stock market crash

An investor watches an electronic board showing stock information at a brokerage office in Beijing, China

Already, there are warning signs of a slowdown, similar to those that front-ran the 1929 crash Photo: Reuters

Global Economic Prospects | June 2015 – East Asia and Pacific

East Asia and Pacific

In the East Asia and Pacific region, growth is expected to ease to 6.7 percent in 2015 and remain stable over the next two years, according to the June 2015 issue of Global Economics Prospects. This reflects a continued slowdown in China that is offset by a modest pickup in the rest of the region. A net oil importer, the region is expected to benefit from lower fuel prices, although commodity exporters Indonesia and Malaysia face pressures from lower global prices of oil, gas, coal, palm oil, and rubber. Growth in China is on course to ease to 7.1 percent this year. Regional growth (excluding China) is projected to be 4.9 percent this year, rising to 5.4 percent by 2016 due to strengthening external demand — notwithstanding slower growth in China, less policy uncertainty in Thailand, and easing domestic pressures elsewhere.

Download analysis (PDF)

Developing Countries Face Tough Transition in 2015 with Higher Borrowing Costs and Lower Prices for Oil & Other Commodities

WORLD BANK Press release
June 10, 2015

Impending rise in US interest rates could reduce capital flows, spur financial market volatility in developing countries 

WASHINGTON, June 10, 2015 – Developing countries face a series of tough challenges in 2015, including the looming prospect of higher borrowing costs as they adapt to a new era of low prices for oil and other key commodities, resulting in a fourth consecutive year of disappointing economic growth this year, says the World Bank Group’s latest Global Economic Prospects (GEP) report, released today. Tiếp tục đọc “Developing Countries Face Tough Transition in 2015 with Higher Borrowing Costs and Lower Prices for Oil & Other Commodities”