To conduct international trade and financial transactions, a reserve currency is necessary to eliminate the costs of settling transactions, involving different currencies. Prior to reserve currencies, the gold standard was used to align all currencies, but Gold did not grow at a pace with the real economy and caused crashes as a result. The financial economy has to grow faster than the real economy, otherwise … Continue reading The Euro’s Fundamental Problems
Economics is often criticised for being a reactionary science that predicts nothing and only explains its mistakes (Rodrik, 2015). It is rarely credited with discoveries that help society; and in a random survey, most participants did not trust economists (Economics Network, 2017). Instead, economists are criticised for their resistance to change and for limiting the exploration of real-world practical policy solutions. Moreover, it is true … Continue reading Has Economics Run Out Of New Big Ideas?
In the modern world, we take it for granted that the government should play an essential role in economic and social affairs. The idea that society could ever function smoothly without the apparatus of the state seems preposterous. Indeed, there is good reason to believe this, as mainstream economists today would identify three broad areas of responsibility that the state holds in managing the economy. … Continue reading Anarcho-Capitalism: Utopia or Pipe Dream?
It is January 19th 2017 and Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán has just been extradited to the United States to face charges related to his running of the most powerful drug cartel in Mexico, the Sinaloa Cartel. The United States’ Drug Enforcement Administration, also known as the DEA, claims that this is a monumental victory that will be the beginning of the end for drug smuggling into America. However, … Continue reading Crossing Borders and Crossing lines: The International Impact of the Mexican Drug Trade
The ongoing Energy Crisis has created unprecedented political, economic, and social distress in the UK. Some potential solutions exist to address the immediate issue of significant energy price rises. However, I believe that we must equally focus on implementing effective longer-term solutions to reduce the risk of a future, even more disruptive, energy crises. To do this, the UK needs to shift to a more … Continue reading The Energy Question
The 1997 Asian financial crisis was one of the most devastating economic periods since records began, gripping Southeast Asia for most of the late 1990s. Originating in Thailand in July 1997, this crisis rapidly spread to many other countries with a ripple effect, demonstrating the impact of financial contagion. Nicknamed the Tom Yam Kung crisis (a hot and sour shrimp soup which is seen as representative … Continue reading The Asian Financial Crisis
etonomics.com 