Tag Archives: energy prices

Why it (sort of) makes sense for the US to impose tariffs

Posted on May 22, 2019 by Gail Tverberg

Nearly everyone wonders, “Why is Donald Trump crazy enough to impose tariffs on imports from other countries? How could this possibly make sense?” As long as the world economy is growing rapidly, it makes sense for countries to cooperate with … Continue reading →

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Raising Interest Rates Is Like Starting a Fission Chain Reaction

Posted on February 21, 2018 by Gail Tverberg

Central bankers seem to think that adjusting interest rates is a nice little tool that they can easily handle. The problem is that higher interest rates affect the economy in many ways simultaneously. The lessons that seem to have been … Continue reading →

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World GDP in current US dollars seems to have peaked; this is a problem

Posted on August 14, 2017 by Gail Tverberg

World GDP in current US dollars is in some sense the simplest world GDP calculation that a person might make. It is calculated by taking the GDP for each year for each country in the local currency (for example, yen) … Continue reading →

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Why energy prices are ultimately headed lower; what the IMF missed

Posted on October 11, 2016 by Gail Tverberg

We have been hearing a great deal about IMF concerns recently, after the release of its October 2016 World Economic Outlook and its Annual Meeting October 7-9. The concerns mentioned include the following: Too much growth in debt, with China particularly … Continue reading →

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