Business Economics articles from July 1996

Business Economics archives from July 1996

Global competition for long-term capital: who will win?
July 1, 1996... If East Asia, with a population of about 1.8 billion, continues its extraordinarily high rate of growth through the 1990s and beyond; if South Asia, with a population of 1.2 billion, ratchets up its recent growth toward that of East Asia; if...

Is there adequate growth of international liquidity?
July 1, 1996... Is there adequate growth of international liquidity to finance international trade and investment? The question is a perennial one as every economic cycle matures and markets worry whether accelerating growth and capital requirements will trigger...

Emerging markets: Central and Eastern Europe.
July 1, 1996... Today, Central and Eastern Europe, i.e., the previous sphere of influence of the Soviet Union, is made up of a very heterogeneous group of countries politically and economically. While Russia is facing a presidential election (June 16) that is of...

Emerging markets: Asia as source and destination of long-term capital.
July 1, 1996... East Asia(1) is both a major user and supplier of the world's capital. As a supplier, East Asia is a "winner," and likely to continue to be one, because of the virtuous circle that characterizes economic behavior. High saving rates are a...

Capital flows into Latin America: stronger than ever.
July 1, 1996... The crisis triggered by the December 20, 1994, devaluation of the Mexican peso initially spread new fears amongst analysts, investors and government officials about the possibility of another prolonged dryout of capital into Latin America,...

International monetary reform: a modest proposal.
July 1, 1996... For many years, the United States has spent more abroad than it has earned through exports of goods and services. This has offset the deflationary bias of the international monetary system and provided it with liquidity, as Figure 1 shows....

Monetary policy: goals and strategy.
July 1, 1996... To provide some background for your thinking about the conduct of monetary policy going forward, I'd like to discuss the appropriate ultimate objectives for the Federal Reserve and the strategies for attaining those goals. A backdrop for my...

The role of business economists in business planning.
July 1, 1996... During the past two decades, several corporations, including IBM, Citibank, American Express and General Electric, eliminated their economics units. Many other companies discharged some of their economists. According to a recent article in The...

The business economist at work: Washington Gas.
July 1, 1996... Coldpack is a mixture of tar and gravel used for temporary repairs to street excavations. It is important to "short chain" the truck when unloading it. Otherwise, there will be too much coldpack dumped on the street, and there is only one way to...

Industry corner: the global demand for heavy construction equipment.
July 1, 1996... Heavy construction equipment consists of earthmovers (bulldozers, loaders, excavators); off-highway trucks; large cranes; mixers, pavers, and related machinery; and components (i.e., parts and attachments). These items are used for the...

The business economist and the World Wide Web.
July 1, 1996... In just a few short years, the World Wide Web has exploded into the world's consciousness as a serious means of communications. What was once an interesting addition to the Internet has now become the dominant part, so much so that it is the...

An Economic Record of Presidential Performance: From Truman to Bush.
July 1, 1996... Politics, said Bismarck, "is the art of the possible, the science of the relative." Clearly, economists have much to learn about how policymakers value their advice. As the recent debates over health care and the minimum wage showed, making...

Presidential Economics: The Making of Economic Policy from Roosevelt to Clinton, 3d ed.
July 1, 1996... Politics, said Bismarck, "is the art of the possible, the science of the relative." Clearly, economists have much to learn about how policymakers value their advice. As the recent debates over health care and the minimum wage showed, making...

The State of Humanity.
July 1, 1996... Life on earth is getting better. Unfortunately, this is not the conventional wisdom. In this collection of essays, a group of respected economists present facts to support the progress of humanity view. They refute the contrary premise, which is...

Good Mood: The New Psychology of Overcoming Depression.
July 1, 1996... Almost everyone in economics knows Julian Simon as the author of twenty professional books and numerous papers in economics. Policy wonks know him because of his internationally famous and winning bet with Stanford's Paul Ehrlich on the future...