Debunking Economics - the podcast

The EU is debating whether funding to protect economies from the ravages of the Corona virus should come from centrally issued Corona Bonds, or from country-specific debt. In short, should Italy and Spain pay the price of their own misfortune and be landed with the bill to pay off for years to come, whilst totally sovereign nations, like the US, simply issue bonds which can be paid for by the central bank and for which the government has no intention of ever repaying. In this edition of Debunking Economics Phil Dobbie asks Prof Steve Keen whether the inflexibility of the Euro at a time like this will mean countries like Italy will no longer want to be part of it. Could this crisis expedite the demise of the Euro, and, perhaps, the EU itself? If so, is that a good thing? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Italy is getting swamped in corona virus cases, whilst China claims the only new infections now come from visitors from overseas. Donald Trump has gone from calling it a hoax to warning that 200 thousand Americans dying will be the best possible scenario. The UK has seen its death rate step up again today, whilst Germany has seen relatively few deaths and in Sweden folks are still eating out at restaurants. In this FREE edition of the Debunking Economics podcast, Phil Dobbie asks Prof Steve Keen which countries are handling the crisis the best, not just to contain the spread, but also to prepare their economy for the recovery. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How did we allow the spread of the Caronavirus happen? Why were governments and health services so unprepared? In this week’s Debunking Economics podcast entrepreneur and venture capitalist Nick Hanauer joins Phil Dobbie and Steve Keen to look at the inevitability of this crisis. Nick says it’s all down to the preoccupation with small government. How do we solve it? Massive government spending and the creation of new money. What have we learnt? Steve hopes it’ll enable us to focus on the bigger issue, what we’re doing to the planet. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of the questions we might be left with after the virus has left us, will be have we become too reliant on international supply chains. Another might be, are we just too reliant on stuff? If we are to look after the planet do we need to lose our appetite for goods that we keep for a short while then throw away. Why not fix them? Is it time for a repair-based economy? And if so, how do you implement it? Phil Dobbie talks to Prof Steve Keen about the circular economy, hours before he fled Europe to escape the worst of the Corona virus. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Central banks have cut interest rates, some governments have introduced stimulus measures. But still the disease spreads and livelihoods are put at risk. In today’s extra (free) edition of the Debunking Economics podcast Prof Steve Keen argues that stimulus measures are nowhere near enough, and serious sums of helicopter money need to be added to everyone’s bank account. He has been arguing for some time that there’s a need for a debt jubilee to get the economy moving, and now might be the time to do it, starting with the issuance of zero interest debt jubilees and personal bank deposits to cover mortgages and other outstanding commitments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We know what makes up the measure of gross domestic product – it is increases in private or government spending, increases in investment or an improvement in your balance of trade. But are those factors all driven by improvements in productivity driven by technology gains? This week on the Debunking Economics podcast Phil Dobbie asks Prof Steve Keen whether technology improvements are the only real driver of economic growth? Can the economy continually grow without it? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The manufacturing numbers from China at the weekend showed how hard the sector was hit by the lockdown in Wuhan and neighbouring districts. In today’s Debunking Economics podcast Prof Steve Keen says the rest of the world needs to prepare for a similar strategy, that will see production dive as workers don’t show up and consumers don’t go shopping. It seems likely that central banks will cut interest rates, but that won’t stop businesses going bankrupt. So what is the correct policy response? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US government is now running a debt exceeding $23 trillion. When Donald Trump cam rot office it was already at $18.2 trillion. Regular Debunking Economics listeners will know the ability to rack up debt is a privilege for running the world’s reserve currency. There will always be demand for US dollar bonds. But why do so many countries seek US bonds, and how long can this imbalance continue for? Will there be a time when the US dependence on government debt will come back to bite it – or can we just sit and watch it grow? And what about China – can they grow debt ad-infinitum? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The multiplier is a basic concept of economics. If you come across some money and spend it, the person you spend it with then spends a proportion of it again, the recipient of which also spends some of it. In this week’s podcast Phil Dobbie talks to Prof Steve Keen about how savings and taxation influence the multiplier, including how different sectors influence the speed of the multiplier. Plus, the commonly held assumption that if money starts circulating too quickly then it’ll assume less value. And what about those who want to accumulate wealth – do they stop the multiplier working? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Central banks started life as clearing houses and have evolved into instruments to, supposedly, protect the economy. But with interest rates at all time lows, often in the negative, have they gone as far as they can go? And how can they control the economy when governments can implement a fiscal approach at odds with monetary policy. Is it time to consider that Central Banks have a fuller role in the management of the economy, leaving governments to consider ow best to spend the money allocated to them? Or is that a breach of democracy? Phil Dobbie discusses the idea with Prof Steve Keen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.