We might be able to divide the world between economic thinkers and everyone else. I noted yesterday that economist Gregory Mankiw, as President Bush’s Council of Economic Advisers chair, said th…
The Norwegian Butter Crisis
Reserves were low, demand was high and prices skyrocketed. No, not oil. Butter. Butter demand surged in Norway several months ago when a low carb high fat diet swept the nation. At the same time, the …
Apple Looks Unappetizing in Argentina
By Mira Korber, guest blogger. While wandering the streets of Buenos Aires, I wondered why the shop windows seemed devoid of any new Apple products. Electronics stores touted the antepenultimate model…
Are X-Men Human?
The U.S. government had to decide whether X-Men are human. Our story starts with the U.S. Customs office. Included in a very long list of items that enter the U.S. are “dolls” and “t…
Chinese Imports
Are you paying more for your clothing? According to NY Times financial journalist Floyd Norris, women’s shirt prices, dresses, sweaters, all that government statisticians consider female “…
Doha Deadlock
Can you convince a Lubbock, Texas cotton farmer (or his Congressman) to forgo his (maybe $150,000) cotton subsidy? Probably not. After all, these U.S. government payments let him profitably compete in…
Free Trade
KORUS has been in the news. The Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, negotiated in 2007 but not ratified by Congress, was in trouble. One reason was Ford. With a 1% share of the South Korean car market, U…
Cotton and Crocodiles
A Malaysian proverb tells us, “Don’t think there are no crocodiles because the water is calm.” Looking at cotton markets, perhaps we should remember the crocodiles. According to The …
A Sweet Free Trade Zone
Economically speaking, Tootsie Rolls are special. In 2009, U.S. sugar beet prices (at 27.2 cents/lb.) were more than double the world price of cane sugar (13.8 cents/lb.) Consequently, almost an…