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the New Economy Ticker
The latest news, debates, proposals and developments on new economic thinking at a glance.
Tackling inequality vital for next century of growth, IMF head says – Full Article
Richard Partington, The Guardian, 14.03.2024
The head of the International Monetary Fund has warned that the only way to boost global economic growth over the next century is by tackling soaring inequality to achieve a ninefold increase in living standards.
Why the world cannot afford the rich – Comment
Richard G. Wilkinson & Kate E. Pickett, Nature, 12.03.2024
Reducing economic inequality is not a panacea for health, social and environmental problems, but it is central to solving them all.
Is the rich world stuck in an “upper income trap”? – Article (Paywall)
Tej Parikh, Financial Times, 15.03.2024
The western world has a growth problem. Further economic growth is possible, but the right policies are needed to unlock it.
How Thomas Piketty found politics – Full Article
Quinn Slobodian, The New Statesman, 14.03.2024
Ten years after publication, Capital in the Twenty-First Century remains a landmark study of inequality. Did it change anything?
Who pays for the war, the poor or the rich? – Article (Paywall / German)
Mark Schieritz, ZEIT Online, 10.03.2024
The Minister of Finance wants to cut social spending in order to finance defence spending. But there are alternatives, because defence policy is distribution policy.
What is AI’s Place in History? – Article (Paywall)
Carlota Perez, Project Syndicate, 11.03.2024
Artificial intelligence is almost certainly revolutionary in the sense that it will spawn new technology platforms, transform or eliminate many industries, and create new ones. But it must be understood as belonging to a larger, more mature technological revolution that began a half-century ago.
Do right-wing governments have higher deficits? – Article (Paywall / German)
Lea Elsässer & Leonce Röth, Makronom, 12.03.2024
Against the backdrop of the recent rise of the populist radical right, it is necessary to better understand what their fiscal policy looks like. In a study, Lea Elsässer and Leonce Röth provide new evidence on this.
The two Faces of Free Trade – Article (Paywall)
Dani Rodrik, Project Syndicate, 8.03.2024
Whereas free trade was once the central cause of progressive reformers seeking to combat entrenched interests on behalf of ordinary people, now it is the bête noire of both right-wing nationalists and the mainstream left. To understand why attitudes changed so radically, one must follow the money.
What Super Tuesday tells us about the economy of the mind – Article
Rana Foroohar, Financial Times, 4.03.2024
Feelings, not facts will drive the results of the upcoming US primaries.
Many Americans Believe the Economy is Rigged – Article
Katherine J. Cramer & Jonathan D. Cohen, New York Times, 21.02.2024
If there is a singular explanation for dissatisfaction with the economy, it is a lack of financial certainty.
There is nothing to gloss over: The economic situation is dire – Interview (German)
Interview with Jens Suedekum, WirtschaftsWoche, 1.03.2024
Germany is suffering as a business location and the industry is sounding the alarm. Top economist Jens Südekum warns that the country is facing “huge economic and fiscal policy challenges”.
The days of the debt brake are numbered – Article (German)
Mark Schieritz, Die Zeit, 6.03.2024
Despite all the differences, even the CDU and FDP are ultimately in favour of reforming the budget rules. The only question is how much damage will be done before that happens.
The Case for a European Public-Goods Fund – Article
Age Bakker, Roel Beetsma & Marco Buti, Project Syndicate, 4.03.2024
In a forthcoming paper, the authors propose the creation of a 750 billion dollar EU public goods fund to bridge funding gaps between key areas such as renewable energy and digital infrastructure.
How do we get out of the crisis? – Debate (German, Paywall)
Mark Schieritz & Kolja Rudzio, die ZEIT, 28.02.24
To get the economy moving again, the state should subsidise individual industries, says Robert Habeck’s advisor Simon Jäger. No, the state already distributes far too many subsidies, counters Christian Lindner’s advisor Lars Feld.
Rhine open to talks on debt brake – Article (German)
Süddeutsche Zeitung, 29.02.24
Hesse’s Minister President Boris Rhein (CDU) is open to a discussion about the debt brake.
An Antidote to the Polarization Poison – Article
Ngaire Woods, Project Syndicate, 26.02.24
Political sectarianism, focused on demonizing supporters of opposing parties, is growing increasingly common in the world’s democracies. To reverse this dangerous trend, policymakers should promote sustainable and equitable economic growth, maintain shared public spaces, and prevent information silos.
Has the European Recovery and Resilience Facility fulfilled its promise? – Article (German)
Lukas Betram & Lydia Korinek, Makronom, 26.02.24
Three years have passed since the launch of the European Recovery and Resilience Facility. It has been quite successful in the immediate crisis response. However, further steps are needed to build long-term resilience.
Explaining Americans’ Pessimism About a Strong Economy – Article
Jeffrey Frankel, Project Syndicate, 22.02.24
At least six reasons have been advanced to explain the apparent disconnect between US economic indicators and public-opinion surveys. While some are clearly wrong, others – in particular, the idea that perceptions are simply lagging behind reality – are convincing.
Inheritance tax as a litmus test for liberals – Article (German)
Mario Dübel, der Standard, 26.02.24
In the past, major liberals in particular made radical demands in order to realise the promise of a society based on individual achievement.
The strange lack of electoral reward for the success of Bidenomics – Column (Paywall)
Martin Sandbu, Financial Times, 22.02.24
Why is it not the economy, stupid?
According to the recently published Minimum Wage Report 2024 by the Institute of Economic and Social Research (WSI), there was a significant increase in the minimum wage in most EU countries at the beginning of 2024. The European Minimum Wage Directive adopted in autumn 2022 is cited as a favourable factor. However, Germany is an outlier in this development: the small increase in the minimum wage is lagging behind the price trend.
Most EU countries saw significant increases in minimum wages on 1 January 2024. Despite persistently high inflation rates in the majority of member states, these were sufficient to maintain or even increase the purchasing power of the minimum wage. The minimum wage momentum was also boosted by the European Minimum Wage Directive adopted in autumn 2022. In the course of implementing the EU directive, many member states are endeavouring to achieve the reference values of 60% of the median wage or 50% of the average wage set out in the directive. The development in Germany was different: here, the Minimum Wage Commission argued against the votes of the trade unions in favour of only a small increase in the minimum wage, which falls behind the price trend.
Read the full report (in German) here.
Europe must ask: what if Biden wins in November? – Article (Paywall)
Rana Foroohar, Financial Times, 19.02.24
Traditional allies of the US are pondering a response to Trump 2.0 but they need a plan for a Democratic election victory as well.
America’s economy is thriving like never before – Article (German, Paywall)
Winand von Petersdorff, FAZ, 16.02.24
President Joe Biden’s economic policy has been loudly criticised. Many economists are now surprised by the particularly strong growth of the American economy. They had predicted a deep recession.
Data check debunks “myth of the bloated German state” – Inconspicuous development in international and historical comparison – Press release (German)
IMK Pressemitteilung, 15.02.2024
Contrary to what is sometimes claimed, government and social spending in Germany is not particularly high either in an international or historical comparison – and has by no means grown strongly recently. This is shown by a new data analysis by the Institute for Macroeconomics and Business Cycle Research (IMK) of the Hans Böckler Foundation.
AI Could Actually Help Rebuild The Middle Class – Blogpost
David Autor, NOEMA, 12.02.24
AI doesn’t have to be a job destroyer. It offers us the opportunity to extend expertise to a larger set of workers.
“The firewall still holds in the West”: political scientist Colin Crouch on right-wing extremism – Interview (German)
Michel Hesse, Frankfurter Rundschau, 12.02.2024
Conservatism is in crisis. Political scientist Colin Crouch analyses right-wing extremism and populism in Europe – and the right remedies.
What Was Capitalism? – Article
James Livingston, Project Syndicate, 16.02.24
The economic crisis of 2008-09 and the pandemic of 2020-21 delivered devastating blows to a market society that was already staggering – hollowed out by the “financialization” or “dematerialization” of assets. And those perched at the commanding heights of today’s economy seem no less hollow.
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.