Washington Post (June 6)
Japan is not the only place where lawmakers find agreement elusive. In the U.S. “partisan deadlock over trade policy continues. If anything, it’s getting worse.” The current stumbling blocks are trade pacts with South Korea, Colombia and Panama. “What’s especially maddening about all of this is that most Republicans and Democrats claim to agree on the benefits of the trade pacts,” yet there’s no clear sign that the parties will find common ground to break the impasse. “Determining the merits of this increasingly self-referential quarrel between the two parties would take 100 marriage counselors 100 years.”
Tags: Colombia, Democrats, Panama, Republicans, South Korea, Trade pacts, U.S.
New York Times (June 4)
U.S. car buyers may get a new kind of “sticker shock.” New regulations will require automakers to include annual fuel costs and emissions data beginning with the 2013 models. The shock is important. “Labels can help consumers make better choices…. Detroit and other manufacturers make big changes only when regulators force them to.”
Wall Street Journal (June 2)
The yuan is quietly becoming a global currency. 7% or $55 billion of China’s first quarter trade was conducted in yuan. Yuan deposits in the Hong Kong banking system rose to 511 billion ($79 billion) on April 30. As restrictions loosen, a global yuan looks more likely and this will spell change. “A yuan that’s more widely used in international trade and investment could eventually challenge the dollar’s supremacy, correct some of the imbalances that plague the Chinese and global economy, and force a profligate U.S. to live within its means.”
Tags: China, Global currency, Hong Kong, Settlement, U.S., Yuan
The Economist (June 2)
“For most Brazilians life has never been so good.” Brazil’s economy has become the envy of others, but success could be its undoing. “Many of Brazil’s economic officials now have an air of smugness about them, as they argue that the rest of the world has more to learn from Brazil than vice versa.”In fact, Brazil has both pressing short-term problems, most notably inflation, and long-term structural problems such as pension reform. Because these issues require immediate attention, “the timing of such complacency could not be worse.” As the economy overheats, “the government is stalling on a deeper reform agenda that is essential to boost Brazil’s long-term growth and fiscal stability.”
Bloomberg (June 1)
India loses more power than any other nation to electricity theft, almost a third of its annual 174GW supply. “The pilfering of almost enough power to charge California for a year lowers the annual income of Indian distribution companies by $16 billion and cuts output by 1.2 percent in the $1.3 trillion economy.” India hopes to reduce electricity theft with competition and privatization. Compared to state-owned firms, private companies are less tolerant of electricity theft. Their inspectors are less susceptible to bribes to look the other way.
India loses more power than any other nation to electricity theft, almost a third of its annual 174GW supply. “The pilfering of almost enough power to charge California for a year lowers the annual income of Indian distribution companies by $16 billion and cuts output by 1.2 percent in the $1.3 trillion economy.” India hopes to reduce electricity theft with competition and privatization. Compared to state-owned firms, private companies are less tolerant of electricity theft. Their inspectors are less susceptible to bribes to look the other way.
Tags: Competition, Electricity, India, Privatization, Theft
Financial Times (May 31)
Following Fukushima, Germany decided to close its nuclear power plants by 2036. The deadline has now been moved up to 2022. The 17 plants slated for closure generate a quarter of Germany’s supply. To offset this loss, “Angela Merkel committed Germany to doubling the amount of electricity from renewable sources to 35% this decade.”
Tags: Electricity, Germany, Merkel, Nuclear power, Renewable sources
Time (May 30)Time (May 30)
In the U.S., hiring is taking place in an unusual spot. “Amid a lackluster economic rebound, American manufacturing, for the first time in decades, has seen an unlikely updraft. After losing 6 million jobs from 1999 to 2009, the manufacturing sector has been one of the few stars of the sluggish recovery. Nearly 1 in 6 jobs that have been created since the beginning of 2010 has been in manufacturing.” To continue growing the manufacturing sector, it will be important to focus on the “most lucrative — high-end engineering positions that spawn other positions.”In the U.S., hiring is taking place in an unusual spot. “Amid a lackluster economic rebound, American manufacturing, for the first time in decades, has seen an unlikely updraft. After losing 6 million jobs from 1999 to 2009, the manufacturing sector has been one of the few stars of the sluggish recovery. Nearly 1 in 6 jobs that have been created since the beginning of 2010 has been in manufacturing.” To continue growing the manufacturing sector, it will be important to focus on the “most lucrative — high-end engineering positions that spawn other positions.”
Tags: Engineering, Hiring, Job creation, Manufacturing, U.S.
