Archive
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News
White’s INET working paper is cited in the Balance
Apr 28, 2021
“But ultra-low interest rates may be doing more harm than good, economist William White says in a working paper published last month by the Institute for New Economic Thinking. White, a former economic adviser at the Bank for International Settlements, has a number of arguments against this central bank policy. First, while lower borrowing costs do initially accomplish their goal of spurring spending, much of it is on “unproductive purchases” by both households and corporations that only wind up increasing the debt burden. Second, low interest rates can actually destabilize financial markets and the institutions surrounding them, either through inflated prices, encouraging fund managers to take on riskier investments, or hindering how banks and lenders are supposed to do business, White argues. And then there’s the exit problem. Once central banks lower interest rates, it’s very hard to tighten the flow of easy money. “Each cycle of monetary easing contributes to a buildup of undesired side effects that raises the likelihood of future instability,” White writes. “Central banks are then lured into a ‘debt trap’ where they refrain from tightening, to avoid triggering the crisis that they wish to avoid, but that restraint only makes the underlying problems worse.” — Diccon Hyatt, The Balance
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News
Storm and Naastepad’s INET working paper was cited in LSE’s blog on wages in the Eurozone
Apr 28, 2021
“Some authors argue that the German export success has nothing to do with wage or unit labour cost moderation and is instead due to the country’s high non-price competitiveness.” — Lucio Baccaro and Tobias Tober, LSE
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News
Thomas Ferguson's article is featured in the International Economy Magazine
Apr 28, 2021
“The much-touted “new thinking” on fiscal policy and debt is actually very thin and little of it is new. In the 1990s, economist Luigi Pasinetti clarified the folly of the proposed Maastricht criteria for public finances and forecast the coming disaster with those. Subsequently, many economists, including more than a few working with the Institute for New Economic Thinking, showed in detail how austerity reduces potential output over time and how absurd theories about Phillips Curve trade-offs lead to big underestimates of real rates of unemployment. Running below full employment for long periods blows big holes in public finances and thus piles on debt.” – Thomas Ferguson
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News
INET funded research was cited in the American Families Plan
Apr 28, 2021
“A study by Nobel Laureate James Heckman found that every dollar invested in a high-quality, birth to five program for the most economically disadvantaged children resulted in $7.30 in benefits as children grew up healthier, were more likely to graduate high school and college, were less likely to be involved in crime, and earned more as adults.” — The White House
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Article
Long-Term Unemployment Is Reversible
Apr 26, 2021
Contrary to the New Keynesian paradigm, long-term unemployment can be reversed without a significant uptick in inflation
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Working Paper
Working Paper SeriesOn the Non-Inflationary Effects of Long-Term Unemployment Reductions
Apr 2021
Contrary to the New Keynesian paradigm, long-term unemployment can be reversed without a significant uptick in inflation
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Webinars and Events
Law, Economics & Policy Conference (LEPC) 4.1
ConferenceCapsule One: Strategic Patience and Flexible Policies: How India Can Rise To the China Challenge
6:00pm-7:30pm (IST)
Apr 22, 2021
A new age virtual conference series in 2021 that aims to bring together legal, economic, and public policy thinkers to consider a variety of real world issues in India in a holistic manner.
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News
Wolff’s INET funded research on household wealth is the methodology used to determine top wealth gains during the pandemic
Apr 21, 2021
“For more on this methodology, see Wolff’s National Bureau of Economic Research paper Household Wealth Trends in the United States, 1962-2013” — Chuck Collins
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Video
Demystifying China’s Economic Miracle
Apr 21, 2021
How does the Chinese economy actually work?
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Webinars and Events
Debt Talks Episode 7 | The Case for Household Debt Relief
Webinarwith Erica Jiang, Johnna Montgomerie, and Jialan Wang; moderated by Moritz Schularick
Hosted by Private Debt
Apr 20, 2021
Large-sale debt relief for indebted households could be a game changer.
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Article
Covid Is Hitting Workers Differently Than the 2008 Financial Crisis
Apr 19, 2021
Unlike the Great Recession, the pandemic has hit women workers harder than men, and disproportionately hurt the job prospects of lower education workers.
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Working Paper
Working Paper SeriesUS Employment Inequality in the Great Recession and the COVID-19 Pandemic
Apr 2021
Unlike the Great Recession, the pandemic has hit women workers harder than men, and disproportionately hurt the job prospects of lower education workers
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Article
How China Is Offering an Alternative to the IMF
Apr 15, 2021
The People’s Bank of China’s network of local currency swap arrangements provide Asian countries with a much-needed safety net, while also strengthening China’s diplomatic position.
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Working Paper
Working Paper SeriesThe Long Search for Stability: Financial Cooperation to Address Global Risks in the East Asian Region
Apr 2021
The People’s Bank of China’s network of local currency swap arrangements provide Asian countries with a much-needed safety net, while also strengthening China’s diplomatic position
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Article
“Young African People See No Clear Future for Themselves”
Apr 14, 2021
An interview with African development specialist Bara Guèye