1/7
This is a little surreal. For years certain countries like Germany saw their productivity-adjusted wages decline dramatically relative to those of their trading partners – especially their EU trading partners in the period before the 2008-08 crisis.
ft.com/content/3c0d03…
This is a little surreal. For years certain countries like Germany saw their productivity-adjusted wages decline dramatically relative to those of their trading partners – especially their EU trading partners in the period before the 2008-08 crisis.
ft.com/content/3c0d03…
2/7
They nonetheless refused any policy that might reduce or reverse the beggar-thy-neighbor impact of this relative wage decline, however, and ended up running huge surpluses as they exported their domestic demand deficiencies abroad.
Now that currency movements are forcing...
They nonetheless refused any policy that might reduce or reverse the beggar-thy-neighbor impact of this relative wage decline, however, and ended up running huge surpluses as they exported their domestic demand deficiencies abroad.
Now that currency movements are forcing...
3/7
those income-distribution adjustments anyway (a stronger euro effectively transfers income from EU manufacturers to EU households), the EU is beginning to complain that other countries may also be implementing beggar-thy-neighbor policies.
those income-distribution adjustments anyway (a stronger euro effectively transfers income from EU manufacturers to EU households), the EU is beginning to complain that other countries may also be implementing beggar-thy-neighbor policies.
4/7
This doesn’t make sense. Massive trade surpluses are not the consequence of manufacturing efficiencies. Improving terms of trade are. Persistent large surpluses mainly reflect income distribution policies designed explicitly or implicitly to improve international...
This doesn’t make sense. Massive trade surpluses are not the consequence of manufacturing efficiencies. Improving terms of trade are. Persistent large surpluses mainly reflect income distribution policies designed explicitly or implicitly to improve international...
5/7
competitiveness. It is unfortunate that countries like France, Spain and Italy will suffer most from a sharp rise in the euro, but the problem isn’t a weakening dollar. It is many years of an excessively weak “German” euro.
The best way to resolve this problem is not by...
competitiveness. It is unfortunate that countries like France, Spain and Italy will suffer most from a sharp rise in the euro, but the problem isn’t a weakening dollar. It is many years of an excessively weak “German” euro.
The best way to resolve this problem is not by...
6/7
continuing to protect Germany’s massive surpluses at the continued expense of German workers and Germany’s trade partners. It is for Germany to increase infrastructure investment in Germany and the EU and to reverse wage policies that undermined the income share of German...
continuing to protect Germany’s massive surpluses at the continued expense of German workers and Germany’s trade partners. It is for Germany to increase infrastructure investment in Germany and the EU and to reverse wage policies that undermined the income share of German...
7/7
workers and middle class. A country that has been running among the largest trade surpluses in history cannot seriously complain when other countries retaliate. Among other things this was the American lesson of the 1930s.
amazon.com/Trade-Wars-Are…
workers and middle class. A country that has been running among the largest trade surpluses in history cannot seriously complain when other countries retaliate. Among other things this was the American lesson of the 1930s.
amazon.com/Trade-Wars-Are…
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