Tag Archive: newsletter

The Importance of Economic Theory in Understanding Historical Data

2020-06-09

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2020-06-09

It is a common belief that sound economics must be based on facts and not on theoretical reasoning as such. Some commentators are dismissive of economic analysis that is not derived from the true data, since it is not describing the facts of reality as depicted by historical data. The use of the free market economy framework, without the central bank and government intervention and with businesses as a foundation to derive valid conclusions, is...

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Lockdown led to big jump in worker productivity

2020-06-08

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2020-06-08

Thanks to more focus and flexibility, productivity per worker increased by up to 16% during the Covid-19 lockdown in Switzerland, a study has calculated. The study by the Swiss Trade Association (SGV), reported in the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper, found that while hours worked dropped by 10% in the first quarter of 2020, GDP sank by just 2.6%.

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What Lies Ahead: Destabilizing Social Stratification

2020-06-08

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2020-06-08

Wealth Inequality
The bill for extreme wealth/income inequality is now overdue, and the penalties for ignoring the bill will be as extreme as the inequality. Our socio-economic-political system--let's call it the status quo--has been hollowed out by extremes of wealth/power inequality driven by financialization and globalization, which have enriched the top 5% and left everyone else behind.

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Why GDP Metrics Won’t Tell Us Much about the Post-COVID Recovery

2020-06-08

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2020-06-08

In seeking to measure everything, econometricians gave us the dubious gift of gross national product and gross domestic product, the latter being in fashion today and the former in times past. Although there are different ways of measuring it, GDP is commonly taken as a measure of spending, comprised of household spending, government spending, investment spending, and net exports.

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WEF unveils dual physical and virtual Davos summit in 2021

2020-06-07

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2020-06-07

The World Economic Forum (WEF) annual conference in Davos will take place in January with fewer physical participants – but with a new “virtual” connection to more than 400 cities around the world.

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Is the lack of inflight social distancing on SWISS airlines a risk?

2020-06-07

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2020-06-07

Over two days last week, Thailand reported a score of new coronavirus cases. All were Thai nationals returning by air from the Middle East. Otherwise, there have been almost no new community or ‘inside country’ cases since mid-May.

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ECB Doubles Its QE; Or, The More Central Banks Do The Worse You Know It Will Be

2020-06-07

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2020-06-07

ECB/Eurostaff Inflation Projections, 2017-2020
A perpetual motion machine is impossible, but what about a perpetual inflation machine? This is supposed to be the printing press and central banks are, they like to say, putting it to good and heavy use. But never the inflation by which to confirm it. So round and round we go. The printing press necessary to bring about consumer price acceleration, only the lack of consumer price acceleration dictates the need for more of the printing press.

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Entrepreneurship in the Time of COVID-19

2020-06-07

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2020-06-07

Per Bylund, author of The Seen, the Unseen, and the Unrealized: How Regulations Affect Our Everyday Lives has commented extensively here at mises.org, and in a variety of entrepreneurship-focused publications, about the economics of entrepreneursip. Editor Ryan McMaken recently asked Professor Bylund to comment on what challenges entrepreneurs face right now in a rapidly changing legal and economic landscape.

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Parliament approves extra CHF14.9 billion for Covid relief

2020-06-06

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2020-06-06

A further CHF14.9 billion ($15.5 billion) has been agreed by parliament to cope with the coronavirus pandemic. Most of it will go towards unemployment insurance, which finances short-time work compensation.

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Coronavirus: Switzerland holds off on open borders with Italy

2020-06-06

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2020-06-06

Switzerland’s Federal Council announced on June 2 that it plans to maintain border restrictions with Italy until further notice as a reciprocal border arrangement with Italy would be premature.

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What Did Everyone Think Was Going To Happen?

2020-06-06

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2020-06-06

Unemployment Insurance, Continued Claims, 2017-2020
Honestly, what did everyone think was going to happen? I know, I’ve seen the analyst estimates. They were talking like another six or seven perhaps eight million job losses on top of the twenty-plus already gone. Instead, the payroll report (Establishment Survey) blew everything away, coming in both at two and a half million but also sporting a plus sign.The Household Survey was even better, +3.8mm during May 2020. But, again, why wasn’t this...

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When Institutions Fail, Fragmentation and Decentralization Become Solutions

2020-06-06

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2020-06-06

Fruit of Financialization: Soaring Income Inequality
That which has failed is unsustainable, no matter how many trillions the Federal Reserve tosses against the tides of history.

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Cool Video: The Liquidity Hypothesis

2020-06-06

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2020-06-06

Jackie Pang from Meigu TV called and wanted to talk about the seeming disconnect between Wall Street and Main Street. In this nearly 4.5 minute clip that she posted here, she gave me plenty of time to explain what I make of it. 

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The Media Has Conveniently Forgotten George W. Bush’s Many Atrocities

2020-06-06

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2020-06-06

Former president George W. Bush has returned to the spotlight to give moral guidance to America in these troubled times. In a statement released on Tuesday, Bush announced that he was “anguished” by the “brutal suffocation” of George Floyd and declared that “lasting peace in our communities requires truly equal justice. The rule of law ultimately depends on the fairness and legitimacy of the legal system. And achieving justice for all is the duty...

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FX Daily, June 5: Greenback Remains Soft Ahead of Employment Report, but Reversal Possible

2020-06-05

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2020-06-05

The modest loss in the S&P 500 and NASDAQ yesterday did not signal the end of the bull run. All the markets in the Asia Pacific region rallied, with the Hang Seng among the strongest with a 1.6% advance that brought the week's gain to around 7.8%. South Korea's Kospi was not far behind with a weekly gain of 7.5%.  In the past two weeks, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index is up nearly 10%. 

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Que fait une banque centrale pour soutenir l’économie locale par temps de confinement? La BNS au menu

2020-06-05

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2020-06-05

Apple Confinement
Voici une vidéo tournée par Christian Campiche lors d’une rencontre matinale autour d’un café. Christian s’est mis à enregistrer alors que nous parlions de ce que la BNS faisait, et surtout ne faisait pas, pour soutenir la population suisse dans cette période de post-confinement.

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Coronavirus: 22,000 Swiss deaths with no shutdown, estimate modellers in Zurich

2020-06-05

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2020-06-05

Based on data from the first wave of Covid-19, epidemic modellers in Zurich estimate Switzerland would have suffered 22,000 deaths without the restrictions on daily life introduced in March 2020.

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NGOs urge Swiss banks to ease developing country debt

2020-06-05

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2020-06-05

A group of 11 NGOs has called on Swiss banks and government ministries to consider offering relief on billions in debt owed by developing nations. The consortium says that the coronavirus pandemic has increased economic pressure on the poorest countries.

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Dollar Firm as Risk-On Sentiment Ebbs Ahead of ECB Decision

2020-06-05

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2020-06-05

ECB Assets
Risk sentiment is taking a breather today after a strong run; the dollar is getting some modest traction. Fed tweaked its municipal bond program; weekly jobless claims are expected to rise 1.843 mln; Brazil and Mexico are seeing record high daily death counts.

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