News and Analysis: 02-13 Feb 2017 | EmergingFrontierMarkets.com

Based in: Manila, Philippines

Posted on Mon, 13 Feb 2017:

What can India teach us about abolishing high-value currency?, NPR, 09 Feb 17:
Ever since Genghis Khan used tree bark as legal tender and backed it up by threatening anyone who didn't use it with death, govts have manipulated paper money to suit their purposes. When India abolished its highest-value rupee notes last Nov, it sought to rein in hoarders of big bills who evade tax

Summers vs. Glaeser - Two Harvard economists debate increased infrastructure investments, Brookings (blog), 18 Jan 17:
As politicians debate the merits of increased federal spending on infrastructure, we asked two prominent economists about the econ case for stepped-up infrastructure spending and their thoughts on how to spend any additional money most wisely

US foreign aid boss highlights success in exit memo, but critics say time to overhaul the agency, Los Angeles Times, 05 Jan 17:
The US foreign aid agency's head highlighted in an exit memo the devt initiatives over the last eight years. The US is the largest donor of foreign aid, representing about 24% of devt assistance from major govts. But the glowing report card faced pushback from some global devt analysts

Posted on Fri, 10 Feb 2017:

Feldstein, Halstead and Mankiw: A conservative case for climate action, NYT, 08 Feb 17 [courtesy Harvard]:
An ideal climate policy would reduce carbon emissions, limit regulatory intrusion, promote econ growth, help working-class citizens and prove durable when the political winds change, write Pres Reagan's CEA chair; Climate Leadership Council founder; and Pres GW Bush's CEA chair

Donald Trump's anachronistic trade strategy, Project Syndicate, by R Baldwin, 09 Feb 17 [via Euronews]:
Many working- and middle-class Americans believe that free-trade agreements are why their incomes have stagnated over the past two decades. So Trump intends to provide them with "protection". But he and his experts have misdiagnosed the problem, writes Graduate Inst (Geneva) economist

Why poor countries should invest first in national trade infrastructure, ADB Inst (blog), by M Olarreaga, 02 Feb 17:
Has too much emphasis been placed in recent years on international trade infrastructure such as ports, customs, and international logistics that reduce international trade costs?, asks Univ Geneva economist

Posted on Wed, 08 Feb 2017:

High-density cities hold the key to transforming economic geography, World Bank, 26 Jan 17:
Location is one of the most important determinants of well-being. Cities pull ahead of the countryside. And different provinces develop at different rates. Cities are driving these differential rates of development through the economies of scale they make possible

Why is Greece back in the headlines?, BBC News, 08 Feb 17:
The IMF says Greece needs more leeway to pay its huge debts before further rescue funds can be released. But the eurozone, which has already given the country significant debt relief, is reluctant to go much further. Can the two sides come to an agreement?

A grim correlation between violence and inequality over the millennia, Stanford Univ, 24 Jan 17:
Surveying long stretches of human history, a Stanford historian says that "the big equalizing moments in history may not have always had the same cause, but they shared one common root: massive and violent disruptions of the established order"

Posted on Mon, 06 Feb 2017:

Richard Portes: The economy according to Trump, London Business School, 31 Jan 17:
It was a slogan that was simple and appealing: Make America great again. Will Trump add to America's greatness? And what are the possible consequences of his promised economic agenda?, asks LBS economist / Ctr Econ Policy Research pres

North Korean economics 101: How much is a dollar worth?, AP, 05 Feb 17:
As capitalist-style markets have grown more important in N.Korea, so has a market-friendly exchange rate for the much-coveted US dollars, euros and Chinese yuan that lubricate its economy (N.Korea can't stamp out its unofficial economy, Bloomberg)

Studying growth in low-income nations - Q&A with economist Mark Rosenzweig, Yale Univ, 10 Jan 17:
The Economic Growth Center at Yale is one of the oldest institutions in the US dedicated to studying econ growth in the developing world. Rosenzweig has directed the center since 2006 and was recently reappointed. He spoke with us about the center and his work

Posted on Sat, 04 Feb 2017:

Fed's Yellen warns against running a "hot" economy, Stanford Univ, 20 Jan 17:
In a pointed rebuttal to what some lawmakers are calling for, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said it would be "risky and unwise" to run a "hot" economy and defended the Fed's current approach of gradual interest rate adjustments

Does Trump want to somehow get rid of global supply chains?, Amer Enterp Inst (blog), by J Pethokoukis, 31 Jan 17:
Trump's new National Trade Council head Peter Navarro said one of the admin's trade priorities was unwinding and repatriating the international supply chains on which many US multinational firms rely, taking aim at one of the pillars of the modern global economy, writes Inst fellow

Unlearning to learn - The path to diversification, Brookings (blog), by A Mahmood, 25 Jan 17:
Many countries have grown rich on natural resources, esp. oil and gas. Success stories include a diverse set of nations, incl Botswana, United Arab Emirates, and Kazakhstan (with an equal number of contrasting failures), writes World Bank lead private sector specialist

Posted on Thu, 02 Feb 2017:

Michael Spence: Four certainties about populist economics, Project Syndicate, 31 Jan 17 [via WEForum (blog)]:
Persistent non-inclusive growth has lately been transforming economies. Outside of developed democracies, it is nearly always devastating for long-term growth and development, and often lead to violence and civil strife, writes 2001 Nobel Laureate

Joseph Stiglitz: One-percenters, pay your taxes, CNN, 16 Jan 17:
If ordinary citizens don't have incomes with which to buy the products made by the world's corporations, how can those corporations prosper? That's consistent with the IMF findings that countries with less inequality perform better, writes 2001 Nobel Laureate (Overcoming the shadow economy)

New evidence shows way forward for SME growth and job creation, World Bank, 30 Nov 16:
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are, by definition, modest in size. But they play an outsized role in developing economies, where they account for about half of employment and the majority of jobs created. Often, though, they are not as productive as large firms

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