Justice in exchange: the ideas of the Scholastics
What is a just price? On the face of it, this might seem like a fairly arbitrary question; in a capitalist, free market economy, businesses seek to maximise their profits, and thus charge consumers the highest price that they are willing to pay. However, is it fair for a business to protect their profit margins in a time of inflation and a rising cost of … Continue reading Justice in exchange: the ideas of the Scholastics
Amazon: A Failing Company?
Amazon was founded on July 5, 1994 by Jeff Bezos from his garage in Bellevue, Washington. The company originally started out as an online marketplace for books. However, it has quickly grown into the largest online shopping site globally now worth about $1.75 trillion. In 2023, Amazon made $575 billion through global retail sales. Despite this massive amount of revenue generated on a yearly basis, … Continue reading Amazon: A Failing Company?
Climate change and economic growth: an impossible trade-off?
The first week of June 2023 was the hottest in recorded history. The planet has not seen a hotter week, month or year in the last 120,000 years. At current rates of inaction, temperature rise could reach 1.5°C by the turn of the decade. “We are hurtling towards disaster, eyes wide open,” remarked António Guterres, UN Secretary-General. As climate change looms large, it has become clear … Continue reading Climate change and economic growth: an impossible trade-off?
The Behavioural Economics of Investment
Human behaviour, especially when it deviates from rational decision-making, has become increasingly significant in the realm of modern investment strategy; traditional economic models’ expectations of rationality no longer paint the whole picture. By applying psychological principles to economic analysis, behavioural economics adds nuance to the investment decision-making framework of individual investors. This interdisciplinary approach creates awareness that investors are subject to cognitive biases, emotions, and … Continue reading The Behavioural Economics of Investment
News Briefing – 28/04/2024
UK Economics On 22 April the FTSE 100 index closed at a new all time high of 8023.87 points, surpassing the previous record of 8012.53 in February 2023. UK shares have benefitted from a depreciation of the Pound against the US dollar, which has improved exports. Easing tensions in the Middle East and the prospect of interest rate cuts have also boosted the index. UK … Continue reading News Briefing – 28/04/2024
The Impact of the Net-Zero transition on The World Economy and Global Strategies
At the beginning of 2020, the value of sustainable investment in major financial markets globally stood at $35.3trillion. According to the Global Sustainable Investment Alliance it accounts for 36% of all professionally managed assets across the US, Canada, Japan, Australasia and Europe. Governments and companies are increasingly committing to climate action. The world is moving towards a net-zero emissions future, and this transition is expected … Continue reading The Impact of the Net-Zero transition on The World Economy and Global Strategies
Quantum Economics
In economics today, it is often assumed that human behaviour follows the model of ‘Homo Economicus’ or ‘the economic man’. This refers to a form of behaviour where an individual acts rationally to optimise their own utility, or the total satisfaction gained from the consumption of a good or service. While this approach has stood the test of time, cognitive psychologists have since shown that … Continue reading Quantum Economics
Germany’s economy – Sick or Tired?
It is well documented that Germany’s post world war recovery was remarkable, facilitated by the Marshall Plan (America’s post-war economic aid package to Europe) and its ordoliberal approach to the economy. By the Fall of the Berlin Wall, the economy of West Germany was the world’s second largest. Despite post-war fragility and economic stagnation in the 1990s, under the guidance of Angela Merkel Germany’s economy … Continue reading Germany’s economy – Sick or Tired?
Work vs Leisure: The Backward Bending Labour Supply Curve
Labour refers to all productive forms of human output, mental or physical. As one of the four factors of production, the quantity and quality of labour is a key determinate of an economy’s productive potential. On the surface, this might seem to justify policies aimed at increasing wages and maximising the incentives to work. However, such policies can ironically reduce the availability of labour, due … Continue reading Work vs Leisure: The Backward Bending Labour Supply Curve
Easter Roundup
UK Economics UK inflation fell less than expected from 3.4% in February to 3.2% in March. While the rate of inflation has dropped below the US for the first time in two years, traders and economists are now more cautious about the prospect of interest rate cuts. Jeremy Hunt voiced his ambition to shave an additional 2p off national insurance by September in a pre-election … Continue reading Easter Roundup
