Many housing markets have experienced a dramatic rise in house prices and mortgage debt over recent decades that has outpaced average income growth. Increased wealth and increased collateral values have been cited as possible explanations. This column suggests that much of the increase in mortgage debt can be attributed to homebuyers being compelled to borrow […]
The 1980s and 1990s saw a sharp increase in earnings inequality in the US. As new technologies displaced the routine tasks typically performed by less-educated workers, more-educated workers experienced an upturn in their economic position that has endured ever since. This column argues that artificial intelligence could mitigate or even reverse this disparity between low […]
The recent rise of generative artificial intelligence has spurred a heated debate on its potential for economic growth and on the risks of displacing workers. This column uses US patent-level data over 1980-2019 and finds that the aggregate economy can benefit from AI-driven technological progress. Historically, an increase in AI innovation has boosted industrial production […]
Throughout the early modern period, Portugal was a leading European colonial power. But by the 19th and 20th centuries, it was one of the poorest nations in Western Europe. This column explores the resource curse as an explanation for the Portuguese decline. The influx of Brazilian gold in the 18th century shifted production towards land-intensive, […]
The economics of space is no longer the province of science fiction. However, the economics profession has paid little attention to space exploration as a dynamic market. This column argues that economists should turn their attention to the stars, harnessing opportunities that beckon beyond Earth’s limits. A variety of concepts from standard economics can be […]
Russia is seeking to convince BRICS countries to build an alternative platform for international payments that would be immune to Western sanctions when it hosts the group’s leaders at a summit next week. President Vladimir Putin is keen to build up BRICS – which has expanded to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab […]
Lightmatter, a Mountain View, California-headquartered startup building photonic tech in datacenter networking chips, said on Wednesday it has raised $400 million in a Series D funding round at a valuation of $4.4 billion. New investor T. Rowe Price led the funding round, with participation from existing backers including Fidelity and Alphabet’s GV. The latest funding […]
Morgan Stanley’s profit surpassed estimates on a bumper third quarter for investment banking that had also buoyed rivals, sending its stock to a record. A revival in corporate debt issuance, initial public offerings (IPOs) and mergers has bolstered profits for Wall Street banks this year. As markets hover near record highs and the U.S. Federal Reserve begins […]
The rise in gilt yields following the Kwarteng/Truss Budget in September 2022 is commonly held up as a poster child for why an increase in government borrowing is a risky endeavour. This column argues that this popular view might overstate the impact of higher borrowing during that episode. The author finds that once other relevant […]
The exposure of domestic banks in emerging market and developing economies to local sovereign debt has grown rapidly over the last decade. This column analyses the current state and potential implications of the evolving sovereign–bank nexus in these economies. Although most banks appear to have adequate buffers to withstand future shocks, a deterioration of the […]
