Writing for The Cobden Centre, I ask “What is money?“: In their working paper “Assessing UK money supply measures in the light of the credit crunch”, Toby Baxendale and Anthony J. Evans provide a better measure of the money supply. In this article, Steven Baker explores the background to the […]
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FTSE 100: stock market has best month in more than six years – Telegraph
Via FTSE 100: stock market has best month in more than six years – Telegraph: The stock market has enjoyed its best month in more than six years, boosting the savings of millions of investors and bringing hope that the worst of the recession may be over. The FTSE 100 […]
Read MoreNorwich North, the Greens and the credit crisis
Today while telling in Norwich North, I was joined by a charming lady from the Green Party. In conversation, she indicated the Green view that the present crisis was caused by the liberalisation of banking and the operation of the free market. I explained the ways in which I disagreed. […]
Read More[bumped up] The economic debate becomes more fundamental
This post has been brought forward for those people who asked me today about money, bank credit and economic cycles while I was telling for the EU and local elections. As the Austrian Theory of the Trade Cycle gains interest for its coherent explanation of our present predicatment, it also […]
Read MoreThe government did it: The Austrian Theory of the Trade Cycle and other essays
This wonderfully short book of just 120 pages explains through four essays, the influence of money and the capital structure of production on the trade cycle. The authors are Mises, Haberler, Rothbard and Hayek. Each essay is short, approachable and insightful, while pointing to more detailed literature. Consider for example, […]
Read More“The Pretence of Knowledge”: how economists come to make astrologers look good
(Update: This post is attracting significant traffic, so I have indicated three Austrian-School primers throughout the text. Please click the images for the publications.) It seems everyone is talking about swine flu and the financial crisis, but they seem to be most persistently interested in what has gone wrong with […]
Read MoreQuantitative easing explained: “Who would be a central banker at the moment?”
From the FT, Quantitative Easing Explained provides an approachable description of the process. However, Dr Anthony Evans writes: Despite the confusing terminology, quantitative easing is nothing new. It is simply an exotic label for a discredited policy. And: The amount of currency in circulation was growing at 12% in January […]
Read MoreThe Credit Crunch Explained
An explanation of the financial crisis for everyone: Linda is the proprietor of a bar in Cork. In order to increase sales, she decides to allow her loyal customers – most of whom are unemployed alcoholics – to drink now but pay later. She keeps track of the drinks consumed […]
Read MoreBanks, economic interventionism and the cause of the credit crisis
(This post is a precis of Huerta de Soto’s Money, Bank Credit and Economic Cycles pp650-653, presenting an argument which was famously expounded by von Mises in Socialism. Among the young idealists who were attracted to socialism after the Great War, who came through these arguments expressed in full to […]
Read MoreThe End of Mainstream Economics: An Interview with Gunnar Tómasson
From an interview with ex-IMF economist Gunnar Tómasson: Does this mean that generations of students have been brought up on nonsense ideology? For this is ideology, of course. Gunnar: Yes, nonsensical ideology. The root of the problem goes back to a point made in the mid-19th century by John Stuart […]
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