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the New Economy Ticker
The latest news, debates, proposals and developments on new economic thinking at a glance.
Industrial Policy Is Back. Now What? – Article
Project Syndicate Editors, “PS Big Picture”, 12.07.2024
How to design effective industrial policies has suddenly become a hot – and divisive – topic among economists and policymakers. Even those who agree that governments should intervene in the economy to bolster productivity, increase competitiveness, and tackle social and environmental challenges differ sharply on the details.
Infrastructure funding: Can populism really be combated with money? – Article
An interview by Carlotta Wald, Zeit Online, 29.06.2024
Yes, says economist Robert Gold from IfW Kiel. His new study shows that a functioning infrastructure strengthens democracy. Here he explains how.
Germany, finally abolish this absurd debt brake – Article
Guest article by Martin Wolf, Zeit Online, 18.07.2024
The German fear of debt is insane and dishonest. Germany should invest much more and borrow directly from its citizens.
Inheritance tax: Rich company heirs pay almost no tax – Article (Paywall)
Bastian Brinkmann, Süddeutsche Zeitung, 18.07.2024
Children of family entrepreneurs can be exempt from inheritance tax. Critics see this as an unconstitutional tax loophole.
Is it actually true that … a wealth tax destroys jobs? – Article
Mark Schieritz, Zeit Online, 17.07.2024
Billions are missing from the budget for the coming years. Suddenly a majority of Germans are in favor of a tax on high assets. Where it would help and where it wouldn’t.
We will reconnect the UK with the world – Article (Paywall)
Gastbeitrag von David Lammy, Handelsblatt, 18.07.2024
The new British government wants to intensify relations with Europe. This will strengthen both sides, for example in the fight against Putin’s fascism, says Foreign Secretary David Lammy.
Starmer’s people are returning class to the centre of politics – Article
George Eaton, The New Statesman, 17.07.2024
The Prime Minister’s class-conscious and interventionist government owes more to Harold Wilson than to Tony Blair.
US star economist Acemoğlu on Trump and right-wing populism: “It could be much worse now than eight years ago” – Article (Paywall)
An interview by Michael Sauga, Spiegel, 16.07.2024
US economist Daron Acemoğlu accuses the center-left parties of betraying the interests of their core electorate. He says: “If Donald Trump comes to power, America will be threatened by a dictatorship.
Philosopher on radical criticism of the system: “Many are not doing well at all”– Article
An interview by Tobias Bachmann, Taz, 15.07.2024
Philosopher Lea Ypi wants to establish a “moral socialism”. This would also help against the right. A conversation about freedom and responsibility.
Progressive politics: The wrong security – Article (Paywall)
Rainer Forst, Zeit Online, 17.07.2024
Isolation is not the answer to the far-right threat. A new policy of justice is needed, says political philosopher Rainer Forst.
Moving Beyond Neoliberalism? Historical Reflections on Regime Changes in Global Economic Governance – Article
Hagen Schulz-Forberg, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 17.07.2024
Faith in hyper-globalization has collapsed, but what new narrative and institutions will succeed it? A look at the past provides hints of what is to come. This essay is part of a series of articles, edited by Stewart Patrick, emerging from the Carnegie Working Group on Reimagining Global Economic Governance.
From the Washington Consensus to the Berlin Declaration – Article
Dani Rodrik, Laura Tyson & Thomas Fricke, Makronom, 11.07.2024
At their summit near Berlin at the end of May, dozens of leading thinkers adopted a declaration on what could stop new waves of populism. This Berlin Declaration reflects a new vision that could replace decades of market-liberal dominance.
The Berlin Declaration – Winning Back the People – Article
Makronom, 11.07.2024
At the end of May, a number of leading academics and practitioners met at the invitation of the Forum New Economy for a summit near Berlin entitled “Winning Back the People”. At the end of the meeting, the “Berlin Declaration” was adopted, which sets out some key lessons for future economic policy. You can find more background information here. You can read the text of the declaration below.
What the New Left Needs – Article (Paywall)
Dani Rodrik, Project Syndicate, 10.07.2024
The new left that is emerging in Europe and the US must confront head-on both the new structure of the economy and the productivity imperative. Only then will it turn into the genuine political movement of the future and a credible alternative against today’s populist far right.
Labour’s ‘seatslide’ – Article (Paywall)
Martin Sandbu, Financial Times, 11.07.2024
When a landslide is not a mandate. (And a mandate is not a landslide.)
This article is an on-site version of Martin Sandbu’s Free Lunch newsletter.
France’s ‘hard left’ has been demonised – but its agenda is realistic, not radical – Article
Julia Cagé & Thomas Piketty, The Guardian, 03.07.2024
The ‘Nouveau Front populaire’ will improve ordinary people’s lives – and it’s an effective, economically sound alternative to the far right.
When inflation models go wrong – Article (Paywall)
Chris Giles, Financial Times, 09.07.2024
Academic work on display at the ECB forum failed sniff and scale tests.
The German electricity market needs local prices – Article (Paywall)
Twelve energy economists, FAZ, 10.07.2024
The uniform electricity price throughout Germany means that decisions are often made that are not possible in the physics of the grid and make no economic sense. A guest article.
Stern poll on wealth tax: Mrs. Klatten, please pay up! – Article
Lorenz Wolf-Doettinchem, Stern, 09.07.2024
The majority of Germans are in favor of reintroducing wealth tax. Even voters of the CDU/CSU want the rich to contribute more. Why is this failing?
Federal budget sets wrong priorities: Here are some potential savings – Article
Guest article by Marcel Fratzscher, Focus Online, 09.07.2024
The federal government has surprised many with its draft for the 2025 federal budget and the compromise. It is therefore positive that the federal government is reducing uncertainty for companies and citizens. At the same time, the draft for the 2025 federal budget harbors considerable potential for political conflict.
Climate change is pushing up food prices — and worrying central banks – Article
Susannah Savage, Financial Times, 03.07.2024
Shifting weather patterns are reducing crop yields and squeezing supplies, creating what could become a permanent source of inflation.
The next crisis: “shockflation”– Article (Paywall)
Bastian Brinkmann, Süddeutsche Zeitung, 01.07.2024
Interview with Isabella Weber.
Market forces are not enough to halt climate change – Article (Paywall)
Martin Wolf, Financial Times, 02.07.2024
Investor returns imply that the welfare of future human beings is close to irrelevant.
Questions in the wake of the global inflation hit – Article (Paywall)
Martin Sandbu, Financial Times, 04.07.2024
There is still too much we do not know about what happened and why
Coalition agrees on budget and growth package – Article (Paywall)
Martin Greive, Jan Hildebrand, Julian Olk, Handelsblatt, 05.07.2024
After weeks of dispute, the coalition partners have agreed on the 2025 budget. Expenditure amounts to 470 billion euros and the debt brake applies.
This is how much living standards across Germany still differ – Article
Alexander Preker, Der Spiegel, 03.07.2024
The Basic Law speaks of “equal living conditions”. The first government report on this states that the differences between the regions are generally decreasing. But not everywhere.
“Tax the rich”: majority of Germans in favor of wealth tax– Article
Bettina Menzel, Frankfurter Rundschau, 27.06.2024
A special tax on the super-rich is on the agenda for the first time at the G20 finance ministers’ meeting. The majority of people in the world’s largest economies are in favor of such a tax.
Labour is putting its plans for Britain in the hands of private finance. It could end badly – Article
Daniela Gabor, The Guardian, 02.07.2024
Handing vital infrastructure to private investment companies will generate windfalls for investors and leave the rest of us worse off. We need a better plan.
The French soul is wounded – Article (Paywall)
Ein Essay von Annika Joeres, Zeit Online, 01.07.2024
France is admired around the world for its elegance, culture and savoir-vivre. But many citizens are so offended that it is shaking up the balance of power.
Now only political experiments can help – Article (Paywall)
Ein Essay von Georg Diez, Zeit Online, 03.07.2024
The biggest threat to democracy is not right-wing extremists, but the established parties themselves. Because they have stopped believing that politics can achieve anything.
Are the new EU fiscal rules already in trouble? – Article
Maria Demertzis, Makronom, 27.06.2024
The EU fiscal rules will come into force again in September for the first time since the start of the pandemic. However, it will not be easy for the European Commission to apply the rules – there is a lot at stake.
Déclaration de Berlin in Le Monde – Article
Le Monde, 28.06.2024
Législatives 2024 : l’appel de 70 économistes internationaux pour « regagner la confiance des peuples »
From the Washington Consensus to the Berlin Declaration – Article
Dani Rodrik, Laura Tyson and Thomas Fricke, Project Syndicate, 27.06.2024
Dozens of leading economists and practitioners convened in Berlin at the end of May for a summit organized by the Forum for a New Economy. Remarkably, the summit led to something resembling a new understanding that may replace the decades-long reign of neoliberal orthodoxy.
If Democracy Isn’t Pro-Worker, It Will Die – Article
Daron Acemoglu, Project Syndicate, 20.06.2024
Democracy is in crisis throughout the industrialized world because its performance has fallen short of what was promised. Far-right and extremist parties are benefiting from the fact that the center left and center right are now associated with wage stagnation, rising inequality, and other unfavorable trends.
Europe’s progressives must reclaim ‘security’ and ‘freedom’ from the populist right – here’s how – Article
Florian Ranft, The Guardian, 20.06.2024
People fear threats from terrorism, climate crisis and disruptive technology. By working together, we can give them hope.
How to tax the ultra-rich the same as you and me – Article
Martin Sandbu, Financial Times, 27.06.2024
G20 should give serious consideration to blueprint for global minimum standard of taxing billionaires
Is debt a burden for the young? – Article
Interview by Mark Schieritz and Nike Mosa, Die Zeit, 26.06.2024
Yes, says Max Mordhorst from the FDP: if the state borrows money, future generations will have to pay the interest. No, replies activist Carl Mühlbach: Better more loans than dilapidated schools.
Economist suggests storing grain to prepare for next global emergency – Article
Tom Perkins, The Guardian, 20.06.2024
Isabella Weber, who linked corporate profits to inflation, shares how to prevent food shortages – and price gouging
Can giant warehouses stop inflation?- Artikel (Paywall)
Benjamin Bidder, Spiegel, 21.06.2024
Hoarding against inflation: Economist Isabella Weber calls for new tools to cushion price shocks. Her idea: huge centrally managed warehouses for raw materials. But there’s a catch.
The Queen Bee of Bidenomics – Article
Farah Stockman, The New York Times, 17.06.2024
A portrait of Jennifer Harris, whose economic ideas have a decisive influence on current US economic policy.
A New Economics Playbook is About to Drop in Europe. The U.S. Should be on Notice. – Article
Victoria Guida, Politico, 21.06.2024
The former Italian prime minister is preparing to issue a sweeping report on economic competitiveness.
Shockflation Has Uprooted the European Union: High Time for New Policy Tools – Article
Jens Van’t Klooster & Isabella Weber, Le Grand Continent, 14.06.2024
In the era of “shockflation”, rising prices for households are mainly reflected in higher profits for companies. For Jens van’t Klooster and Isabella Weber, monetary policy cannot be the only answer: the EU must find the solution to contain inflation in its institutional arrangements.
The federal government lacks 40 billion, at least – Article
Christian Endt & Mark Schieritz, Zeit Online, 18.06.2024
If the traffic light coalition fails to agree on a new budget, the government is likely to collapse. These charts show how much money is missing and where it could come from.
Young people are withdrawing their trust from us – Article
Lisa Paus, FAZ, 16.06.2024
Why we urgently need an enhanced intergenerational contract. A guest article by the Federal Minister for Family Affairs.
The Vice-Chancellor’s economist – Article (Paywall)
Alexander Wulfers, FAZ, 14.06.2024
Simon Jäger is Robert Habeck’s new advisor. Can he reconcile the Minister of Economic Affairs with the economy?
Biden’s economy is booming, but a Trump victory is becoming more likely – Article (Paywall)
Katharina Kort, Annett Meiritz, Moritz Koch, Handelsblatt, 18.06.2024
Compared to other nations, the USA is doing extremely well economically. Nevertheless, most US citizens are dissatisfied and many sympathize with Donald Trump. Five developments contribute to this.
Europe must prepare for five years of radical change – Article Paywall)
Laurence Boone, Financial Times, 19.06.2024
It otherwise risks being left behind by the US and China.
A Monetary and Economic Order Fit for the Twenty-First Century – Article (Paywall)
Ulrich Volz, Janak Raj and Monica Herz, Project Syndicate, 14.06.2024
If the international community is to have a chance of addressing twenty-first-century challenges effectively and equitably, the global economic and financial architecture that was created eight decades ago must be radically reformed. Eight priorities stand out.
How Techno-Libertarians Fell in Love with Big Government – Article (Paywall)
Quinn Slobodian, Project Syndicate, 13.06.2024
In recent years, Silicon Valley’s titans, many of whom previously advocated “exiting” the United States, have been queuing to attach themselves, remora-like, to the federal government. Their supposedly principled opposition to the state vanishes as soon as the state becomes a major client.
The life and death of great political narratives – Article
Jean-Louis Missika, Makronom, 17.06.2024
The two great narratives that structured the political landscape of the 20th century no longer sell today – which explains many of the phenomena and problems that characterize contemporary politics. An essay by Jean-Louis Missika.
OUR MAIN TOPICS
New Paradigm
NEW PARADIGM
After decades of overly naive market belief, we urgently need new answers to the great challenges of our time. More so, we need a whole new paradigm to guide us. We collect everything about the people and the community who are dealing with the question of a new paradigm and who analyze the historical and present impact of paradigms and narratives – whether in new contributions, performances, books and events.
Redefining
the role of
the state
REDEFINING
THE ROLE OF
THE STATE
For decades, there was a consensus that reducing the role of the state and cutting public debt would generate wealth. This contributed to a chronic underinvestment in education and public infrastructure. New research focuses on establishing when and how governments need to intervene to better contribute to long-term prosperity and to stabilize rather than aggravate economic fluctuations.
Remaking
finance
REMAKING
FINANCE
More than a decade after the financial crisis there still seems to be something seriously wrong with the financial system. Financial markets still tend to periodically misprice risk and contribute to boom and bust cycles. A better financial system needs to discourage short-termism and speculative activity, curtail systemic risk and distribute wealth more broadly.
Greening
prosperity
GREENING
PROSPERITY
During the high point of market orthodoxy, economists argued that the most 'efficient' way to combat climate change was to simply let markets determine the price of carbon emissions. Today, there is a growing consensus that prices need to be regulated and that a carbon price on its own might not be enough.
Reducing
inequality
REDUCING
INEQUALITY
The rising gap between rich and poor has become a threat to social cohesion in most rich countries. To reverse this trend it will be crucial to better understand the importance of different drivers of income and wealth inequality.
Innovation Lab
INNOVATION LAB
Do we need a whole new understanding of economic growth? What would be a real alternative? How viable are alternatives to GDP when it comes to measuring prosperity? These and other more fundamental challenges are what this section is about.
Globalization
for all
GLOBALIZATION
FOR ALL
After three decades of poorly managed integration, globalization is threatened by social discontent and the rise of populist forces. A new paradigm will need better ways not only to compensate the groups that have lost, but to distribute the gains more broadly from the start.
Europe
beyond markets
EUROPE
BEYOND MARKETS
The euro was planned during a period in which economic policy making was driven by a deep belief in market liberalism and the near impossibility of systemic financial crises. This belief has been brought into question since the euro crisis, which showed that panics do happen. New thinking needs to focus on developing mechanisms to protect eurozone countries from such panics and to foster economic convergence between members.
Corona Crisis
CORONA CRISIS
The current Corona crisis is probably the worst economic crisis of the post-World War 2 era. Economists are working hard on mitigating the economic effects caused by COVID-19 to prevent a second Great Depression, the break-up of the Eurozone and the end of globalisation. We collect the most important contributions.