Since 2010, the UK economy has been dominated by spending cuts and the desire to run a budget surplus as soon as possible. In the political world, the government deficit is often portrayed as the source of many economic ills and eliminating the deficit one of the highest macro objectives. However the government deficit (see: …
The first admission about writing on the economic policies of Donald Trump is that nobody can be entirely sure what it will be – perhaps even Donald Trump himself. Campaign promises are one thing, but the reality of a Republican controlled Congress, may be something else. I don’t think it unreasonable to think that the …
I recently watched a BBC documentary (No place to call home) about Britain’s housing crisis, focusing on a suburb of London (Dagenham). It was an insight into the desperate situation many find themselves in because of a shortage of housing, very high rents and a feeling the council / government is unable to help with …
Economics combines elements of both science and art. Economists try to develop analytical mathematical models which seek to explain economic behaviour in a way that can be theoretically proved. For example, working out the elasticity of demand through using calculus. In macroeconomic models, there are many models which seek to explain macro variables such as …
As a general rule, I try to avoid politics. But, this summer has not been your typical British summer. Yes, the weather has been typically wet and miserable, but the political and economic climate has changed at a speed, not even found in a Jeffrey Archer novel. I started the referendum campaign a somewhat reluctant …
In 2015, the German current account surplus surged to 8.5% of GDP. A record level and a surplus which has implications for the Eurozone and global economy. Source: Bundesbank The surplus is primarily due to the surplus on trade in goods. Though in recent years, there has also been a surplus in primary income. This …
In 2007, EU economies, on the surface, seemed to be doing relatively well – with positive economic growth and low inflation. Public debt was often high, but (apart from Greece) it appeared to be manageable assuming a positive trend in economic growth. However, the global credit crunch (see: Credit crunch explained) changed many things. Impact …
The UK saw net migration of 330,000 in the last year. If net migration were to fall significantly – how would this affect the UK economy? Net migration is generally difficult to predict, but there are good reasons to assume this is likely to fall in future years. Net migration will likely fall because: Climate …