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Category: Economics

Former WTO chief says China-EU ‘united front’ can counter Trump trade curbs

Former WTO chief says China-EU ‘united front’ can counter Trump trade curbs

The South China Morning Post reported in November: China and the European Union should address their disagreements and form a united front against a “triumphant” Donald Trump, said a former chief of the World Trade Organization, calling the incoming US president a threat to global trade. The assessment from Pascal Lamy – director general of the Geneva-based multilateral trade organisation between 2005 and 2013 – comes as worries mount over the future of globalisation after the US presidential election last…

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Trump imports policy change results in chaos as millions of packages pile up at U.S. points of entry

Trump imports policy change results in chaos as millions of packages pile up at U.S. points of entry

Reuters reports: Days after U.S. President Donald Trump ended duty-free entry for cheap Chinese goods entering the U.S., his administration put the order on hold after more than a million packages piled up at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. It was the result of a rushed, confusing policy change that proved unworkable on short notice. Government officials are now scrambling to implement the order in a way that won’t cripple America’s hyper-efficient import system. Trump’s executive order took…

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How DOGE could spark a financial crash

How DOGE could spark a financial crash

David Dayen writes: It hasn’t gotten much attention, but one of Elon Musk’s major DOGE initiatives is a massive fire sale of federal office space. Despite forcing federal employees back to the office by abolishing telework programs, Musk and company want to unload a large number of unused properties and recoup that money for the budget, a process that could expand if worker purges continue. That theoretical win-win, however, will soon come into contact with the realities of commercial real…

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Musk’s Treasury incursion puts the entire financial system at risk, former officials warn

Musk’s Treasury incursion puts the entire financial system at risk, former officials warn

Graham Steele and Emily DiVito write: Elon Musk’s unprecedented access to the US Treasury’s payment system deserves the public outcry that it has received. As former Treasury officials, we fear the situation is even more dire than it might appear. Musk’s recent actions, days after the Office of Management and Budget’s government funding pause that a federal judge quickly blocked, suggest a big and broad vision for a dramatically consolidated and politicized Treasury. This could have widespread effects on our…

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How climate change could upend the American dream

How climate change could upend the American dream

By Abrahm Lustgarten This story was originally published by ProPublica Houses in the Altadena and Pacific Palisades neighborhoods were still ablaze when talk turned to the cost of the Los Angeles firestorms and who would pay for it. Now it appears that the total damage and economic loss could be more than $250 billion. This, after a year in which hurricanes Milton and Helene and other extreme weather events had already exacted tens of billions of dollars in American disaster…

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Why Trump’s tariffs can’t solve America’s fentanyl crisis

Why Trump’s tariffs can’t solve America’s fentanyl crisis

By Rodney Coates, Miami University Americans consume more illicit drugs per capita than anyone else in the world; about 6% of the U.S. population uses them regularly. One such drug, fentanyl – a synthetic opioid that’s 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine – is the leading reason U.S. overdose deaths have surged in recent years. While the rate of fentanyl overdose deaths has dipped a bit recently, it’s still vastly higher than it was just five years ago….

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Wyden warns Bessent: Political meddling in Treasury payments risks severe economic damage to U.S.

Wyden warns Bessent: Political meddling in Treasury payments risks severe economic damage to U.S.

U.S. Senate Committee On Finance: Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., demanded answers from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent today following a report that personnel affiliated with Elon Musk have sought access to a highly sensitive Treasury Department payment system. That system, which is maintained by non-political staff, disperses trillions of dollars each year, such as Social Security and Medicare benefits, tax credits for individuals and businesses, grants and payments to government contractors, including those that compete directly with…

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Economists agree: Trump’s ‘tariffs will be very bad for America and for the world’

Economists agree: Trump’s ‘tariffs will be very bad for America and for the world’

The Guardian reports: As Donald Trump threatens to slap steep tariffs on many countries, he is boasting that his taxes on imports will be a boon to the US economy, but most economists strongly disagree – many say Trump’s tariffs will increase inflation, slow economic growth, hurt US workers and result in American consumers footing the bill for his tariffs. “Virtually all economists think that the impact of the tariffs will be very bad for America and for the world,”…

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How immigrants contribute to U.S. economic growth

How immigrants contribute to U.S. economic growth

A Council on Foreign Relations brief: According to an American Immigration Council analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data, immigrants—almost 48 million of whom now live in the United States among an overall population of roughly 335 million people—generated some $1.6 trillion in economic activity in 2022, the most recent year for which such data is available. They also contributed more than $579 billion in local, state, and federal taxes. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that increased immigration could reduce the U.S. federal…

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We’re already seeing signs that Trump is tanking the economy

We’re already seeing signs that Trump is tanking the economy

Timothy Noah writes: Donald Trump’s election provides a useful occasion to examine the difference between what rich people want and what constitutes a thriving economy. The stock market, which is where rich people live, has been climbing since Election Day. On November 6, the day Trump was declared the winner, the Dow rose 3.6 percent; the S&P 500 scored its biggest gain in two years; and the world’s 10 richest people, nine of whom live in the United States, saw…

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The art of outlasting: What we can learn from time-proof Japanese businesses

The art of outlasting: What we can learn from time-proof Japanese businesses

Eric Markowitz writes: Picture yourself on a train hurtling toward Nara Prefecture, hours away from the neon-lit frenzy of Tokyo. The urban sprawl gives way to quieter vistas, the journey itself a pilgrimage of sorts. By the time you arrive in Ikaruga, at Hōryū-ji — widely considered one of the world’s oldest wooden temples — the modern world feels like a distant memory. The temple, originally commissioned by Prince Shōtoku in the 7th century, stands as a living testament to…

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Mexico president touts friendly Trump call, but warns tariffs would kill 400,000 U.S. jobs

Mexico president touts friendly Trump call, but warns tariffs would kill 400,000 U.S. jobs

Reuters reports: Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Thursday she and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump had agreed to maintain a good relationship in a friendly phone call that appeared to ease tensions between the top trading partners amid tariff threats. Sheinbaum struck a more conciliatory tone a day after saying Mexico would retaliate if Trump carries out his pledge to impose a 25% tariff on Mexican and Canadian imports. “It was a good conversation and we are going to keep…

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The message to Democrats is clear: you must dump neoliberal economics

The message to Democrats is clear: you must dump neoliberal economics

Joseph Stiglitz writes: As the shock of Donald Trump’s victory sinks in, pundits and politicians are mulling what it means for the future of the US and global politics. Understanding why such a divisive, unqualified figure won again is crucial for the Democrats. Did they go too far left and lose the moderate Americans who make up a majority? Or did centrist neoliberalism – pursued by Democratic presidents since Bill Clinton – fail to deliver, thus creating a demand for…

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Musk asks voters to brace for economic ‘hardship,’ deep spending cuts in potential Trump Cabinet role

Musk asks voters to brace for economic ‘hardship,’ deep spending cuts in potential Trump Cabinet role

NBC News reports: In the home stretch of the 2024 election, voters who’ve been weighing both campaigns’ proposals to tackle living costs are now hearing a new pitch from the Republican side: accept some short-term economic pain to rein in government spending. That message has emerged from former President Donald Trump’s wealthiest backer, Elon Musk, who says that the GOP nominee’s plans to put the U.S. on firmer fiscal footing would likely entail “temporary hardship” for ordinary Americans. At a…

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The little-known factor driving up housing costs: dirty money

The little-known factor driving up housing costs: dirty money

James K. Boyce and Léonce Ndikumana write: The nation’s housing affordability crisis has become so acute that even our presidential candidates are paying attention to it. Former President Donald Trump blames immigrants for driving up prices and vows he will reduce demand by banning mortgages for “illegal immigrants” and deporting them. For her part, Vice President Kamala Harris promises to increase supply by building 3 million new homes. But the number of  housing units in the nation has grown faster…

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How Hurricane Helene could have widespread consequences for homeowners

How Hurricane Helene could have widespread consequences for homeowners

The Washington Post reports: When Hurricane Helene slammed into Florida on Thursday night, it made landfall in the state’s sparsely populated Big Bend, far from the glittering cities with expensive waterfront property to the south. But that didn’t stop Helene from becoming another multibillion-dollar superstorm. The hurricane’s massive size and record-breaking storm surge left an equally massive footprint of destruction across the Southeast, from Florida’s Tampa Bay region to Georgia, Tennessee and the Carolinas. The storm likely caused $15 billion…

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