Sara Hsu asks if All Growth is Good? The Case of China. Of course, not all growth is good. It makes little difference, whether it's economic or human tissue growth. Edward Abbey famously wrote that "growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell". Obesity is another form of high-growth, yet it … Continue reading China, Growth, and the Weakness of Real GDP
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Mr. Daisey Goes to the Apple Factory – A Lesson in Comparative Economic Systems
One of the core lessons that I try to get across in my introductory Comparative Economic Systems classes is that economic systems are complex. Reality is much more complex than either simple theory or ideology. Countries simply cannot be easily categorized with simple labels such as capitalist, socialist, or communist. Those labels usually obscure more … Continue reading Mr. Daisey Goes to the Apple Factory – A Lesson in Comparative Economic Systems
China’s Challenge
A decent article in the LA Times about the challenges facing the Chinese: China tries to put brakes on overheated economy - How well China succeeds in slowing its economy without triggering a slump holds enormous consequences for the rest of the world economy. The essence is that the Chinese economy, which has been … Continue reading China’s Challenge
Two Ways GDP Misleads
There are many flaws and ways in which GDP, Gross Domestic Product, can mislead us in estimating the size of an economy. Michael Pettis of China Financial Markets uses China to illustrate how two factors can easily overstate a country's true GDP. The first way is environmental degradation. GDP doesn't count it, yet is definitely … Continue reading Two Ways GDP Misleads
China and Inflation Update
A lot of the concepts in macro-economics are relatively easy to define in broad, conceptual terms. But when it comes to actually measuring them, things get very, very difficult. Measurement requires precise, observable, countable definitions. Inflation is one of the these concepts. Conceptually it's easy: a general rise in all prices. But it practice it's … Continue reading China and Inflation Update
Not in Your Micro Textbook: The High Price of iPads and iPhones
From Business Week online we get this story: Why Apple and Others Are Nervous About Foxconn The Chinese maker of iPhones and iPads has seen a rash of suicides—which may be a price of turning out low-price, high-quality goods Terry Gou says he has no idea why so many of his employees are killing themselves. … Continue reading Not in Your Micro Textbook: The High Price of iPads and iPhones
China: Working Conditions & Globalization
Interesting Q & A on Labor Compliance in China. Did Anyone Learn Anything from Nike? from All Roads Lead to China. ... what are the biggest compliance issues that exist in china? The more common compliance issue in China is about working time. It is found in almost every factory as the Chinese law is … Continue reading China: Working Conditions & Globalization
China wants to change world financial system
China believes the developing world should have a stronger say in how the international financial system is run via G20 must look beyond the needs of the top 20 | Wang Qishan - Times Online.
EconProph 