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Weekly Economic News Roundup: From Ethical Cars to Interrupting Women
December 30, 2017
Top Ten Ways To Sound Like An Economist
January 1, 2018
Bananas
No progress on the banana yet…
A deadly fungus is continuing its worldwide march against our everyday banana, the Cavendish. It has hit Asia and Australia and taken the initial leap to Africa and the Middle East. The big worry though is Latin America and the Caribbean. Because bananas are seedless, their clones are especially susceptible to the disease.
You can see that the Latin American/Caribbean Region is where most of our bananas come from:
The tough part now is trying to recreate the bend, the taste, the resilience, and the color in a banana that is fungus resistant. One Cavendish mutation–GCTCV-219–has an “elegant” taste. However, it does not have the right curve. The bend is crucial for consumer comfort and for shipping bigger bunches. Millions are being spent on research.
Our Bottom Line: The importance of innovation
This was one of our original posts.
The Billionaire
The owner of the $450 million da Vinci painting also owns a $300 million home…
We have said that the NY Times thinks the most likely buyer of the da Vinci was Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (heir to the Saudi throne). Again displaying the message from a price. this $300 million home was recently purchased by him. When a developer refurbished the property in 2009, it became a “teardown” rather than a fixer-upper.
That $300 million tells us what to expect. The moat, for example, has a transparent floor through which guests see koi and sturgeon swimming.
Inside the Louis XIV Chateau:
Outside the Louie XIV Chateau:
Our Bottom Line: What a price tells us
This was the original post.
Norway’s Tesla tax
They never did it…
Like no other country, Norway subsidized hybrids and electric vehicles. Last fall though, they were considering somewhat of a policy reversal because affluent car buyers were benefiting. It remained just an idea though as politicians rallied to Tesla’s defense with a host of compelling reasons.
Including more than 15,000 Teslas, Norway has at least 100,000 electric vehicles:
Our Bottom Line: Subsidizing incentives
This was the original post.
My sources and more: Thanks to WSJ and the NY Times for the banana and chateau updates. Meanwhile, qz.org had the new Tesla story.
