Sex, BRICS, and PIGS at the IMF
Dominique Strauss–Kahn’s stunning resignation as director of the International Monetary Fund provides Asians and other emerging nations with their best chance yet to break precedent and claim leadership of the IMF. The question is whether these countries are ready to…
China May Not Place Its Big Bets on America
Right now we should begin to worry about one of the following: 1. A flood of Chinese money is coming and Americans will react rather badly, as they did when big Japanese investments arrived in the U.S. 20 years ago. 2. A…
Is What’s Good for GM, Good for China?
General Motors announced months ago that “China is the future.” it is gearing up for a big push into the low end of the Chinese market, making stripped-down cars and minivans that it hopes will double sales in China to 5…
Japan’s Crippled Economy: Signs of a Snap-Back
Not quite two months after the earthquake-tsunami-nuclear disaster entered the record books as Japan’s worst tragedy since World War II, the economic picture is becoming clearer. It’s a bigger-than-expected blow for corporations, suppliers, consumers, taxpayers, and many others. In fact,…
Chinese Democracy-Catching a Moving Target
Few Americans notice these kinds of things, but this week the Chinese marked—we cannot say celebrated—the 92nd anniversary of the May 4th Movement, the groundswell of democratic agitation that began on that date in 1919. May 4 was also a…
Housing Market Still Needs Government Support
There is no immediate action on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the offing, but the knives in Washington are clearly out for the two mortgage behemoths, whose failings and excesses helped foster the housing crisis. In fact, there are…
Following the Fallout from Fukushima
What the hell was anybody doing building six nuclear power plants in an earthquake-prone zone?” Senator John Kerry asked during a speech the other day at the Commonwealth Club of California. “I don’t get it. It’s hubris, if not stupidity.”…
The Next China: A Powerful Consumer Society
It looks like China finally is about to take a great leap forward. Beijing at last recognizes that an overheating economy is threatening to spin out of control and that it has a serious inflation fight on its hands. And…
Developing Countries Plan to Challenge U.S. Dollar
New eras do not announce themselves with billboards or welcoming brochures. They arrive by way of many disparate events. Last week we witnessed one: the gathering in southern China of leaders from the world’s most dynamic emerging economies –the nations we now…
Vermont Leads on Health Care Reform
Having spent part of my childhood in New Hampshire, I always thought there was something a little different about those Vermonters across the river. Now I’m sure of it: The state legislature in Montpelier is considering a single-payer health care…
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