Election 2024 Edition #4: It’s the Economy…..

28 October 2024 The US Presidential election is in nearly here, at last. In recent weeks, we have discussed key topics receiving insufficient attention during the bruising campaign: looming fiscal crises, international trade policy, and climate change. In 1992, James Carville famously reminded us the economy is usually the most important determinant of American election [...]

Japan: Now For the Hard Part

28 March 2024 In the past week, two important things happened in Japan. First of all, the Nikkei stock market index hit an all-time high; finally, eclipsing the previous record established 35 years ago. Following decades of underperformance, Japanese equities have left US stocks in the dust during the past two years. Meanwhile, the Bank [...]

Germany: Curing Europe’s Sick Man?

15 October 2023 Once admired as Europe's growth engine, Germany is now being identified as the region's "sick economy". Indeed, Germany's post-Covid recovery has lagged far behind the world's other advanced countries (Chart below). And, the nation's underperformance pre-dates the pandemic. What lies behind Germany's growth malaise, and can Europe's "Sick Man" be cured? To [...]

Asia: Will Global Growth Engine Outperform?

28 May 2023 The IMF's recently released global forecast highlights that Asia will be the only region to experience stronger economic growth this year relative to 2022. Likewise, the Asian economy will outperform all other regions both this year and in 2024 (Chart above). Indeed, the following Chart indicates that Asia will account for over [...]