Economists still lack a proper understanding of business cycles
The second in our series on the shortcomings of the economics profession
THE aftermath of the 2007-08 financial crisis ought to have been a moment of triumph for economics. Lessons learned from the 1930s prevented the collapse of global finance and trade, and resulted in a downturn far shorter and less severe than the Depression. But even as the policy remedies were helpful, the crisis exposed the economic profession’s continued ignorance of the business cycle. That is bad news not just for the discipline, but for everyone.
This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “Diminished expectations”
Finance & economics April 21st 2018
- After a good run of growth, China’s economy braces for bumps
- A Victorian survivor
- Tax cuts and higher interest rates help boost banks’ earnings
- Coco bonds have not lived up to their promise
- Indicators that signal financial-market trouble are flashing
- America’s Treasury refrains from naming any currency manipulators
- Hong Kong defends its dollar peg in both directions
- Economists still lack a proper understanding of business cycles
From the April 21st 2018 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
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Things may look brighter next year, but the relief will be short-lived
An economics Nobel for work on why nations succeed and fail
Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James Robinson tackled the most important question of all
Why investors should still avoid Chinese stocks
The debate about “uninvestibility” obscures something important
China’s property crisis claims more victims: companies
Unsold homes are contributing to a balance-sheet recession
Europe’s green trade restrictions are infuriating poor countries
Only the poorest can expect help to cushion the blow
How America learned to love tariffs
Protectionism hasn’t been this respectable for decades