The debate in the air
that the economy has a liquidity-deficit owes a lot of attention because it
would ultimately hinge on the credit cost, investment and higher growth rate,
closest to the potential even when the policy rates are on a downtrend. The central
bank has reduced repo-rate cumulatively by 1.25% or 125 basis-points but the
commercial banks have passed only a 60 basis-points which failed to give a
strike in terms of credit take-off and growth. The commercial banks are
demanding more liquidity to pass on the policy rate transmission because that
would increase the scale by adjusting the rates lower and give investment a fillip.
Lower interest rates would increase the demand for investment, but the banks
are insisting on higher rates which are holding the recovery of the economy
back. In one way it is totally equivalent to the demand for lower policy rates.
Banks put liquidity-deficit as an answer to higher rates even when the policy
rates have gone down and the RBI is in the midst of rate-cut. Policy rate cuts
also mean more liquidity; it means the commercial banks can borrow at lower
rates, besides their own deposits. If banks can borrow lower they should pass
on the benefit to the investor so that they may increase spending. Moreover,
lower borrowing cost would help the banks to increase their market share.
Lower borrowing cost might increase the scale. The banks are looking at the RBI
for more liquidity but the Governor is clueless that the situation rose even
after the rate cuts. However, the commercial banks always persist for higher
rates. Bond traders also demand more liquidity and lower yields because that
increases bond-prices. Commercial banks should revaluate their strategy. RBI is
cutting rates and lower policy rates also mean higher liquidity.
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
Effective action required...
The
monetary-policy-review was along the expected lines because inflation has shown
an upward bias depending on the food inflation which has become a permanent
feature of the agriculture economy devoid of sufficient irrigation facilities.
Every year prices of food items become a headache from the point of view of
inflation, every season. Prices of one or two food items almost always
deteriorate the household expenses. The government and the RBI are aware of the
fact that certain food items are creating hurdle for economic growth because of
delayed rate cuts, but they are largely ineffective in providing solutions. Whenever,
economists propose imports it is sidelined by arguing in favour of domestic
producers to protect them from foreign competition even in the face of
skyrocketing prices and speculation. Sometimes some governments also decline to
curb exports even in the case of higher domestic prices. But, it may work to
keep prices stable and not curbing agriculturists’ profits altogether. It might
try to gauge or expect demand through data in a period to facilitate supply in
the same period. Prices are determined by the interaction of demand and supply.
Imports are an important part of the supply chain and the price-stabilization
fund must be used to curb too much volatility and ensure the price-stability
which is also expected from the monetary-policy. Inflation is closely watched
as an indicator of the health of the economy and investors, especially foreign
investor, prefer low inflation because it would increase the value of
investment in real terms and exchange rate term. Notwithstanding, inflation is
also important to incentivize domestic investors by cutting down real interest
rate (nominal interest rate minus inflation) which reduces the cost of capital
and also labour because inflation would cut down real wages. Recent increases
in inflation with a 125 basis-points rate reduction by the RBI last year have reduced
the real interest rates, but the industry has failed to recognise that opportunity.
The RBI has maintained that it would try to keep real rates around 1-1.5% in a
dovish stance and 1.5-2.0% on a hawkish tone. If we calculate the real interest
rate, it has come down to 1.15% which should catalyse investment spending but
it has not. In INDIA people mostly track nominal interest rate as a cursor for
investment. But probably the show stopper of economy, the construction, is
constrained by bad assets and over-supply because of high inflation and higher
interest rate and lower demand in the past. Nevertheless, house for all by 2022
is a giant step in the direction of keeping the real estate moving. It
generates a lot of employment. The 7th pay panel would also increase demand. Bad
assets/supply of the construction has become a drag on the economy’s demand
which is only likely to revive with incomes and demand which the government spending
might provide when the economy is still picking-up from a down turn. However,
our RBI governor has made a loud pitch to stick to the fiscal-deficit and
inflation targets. Downturns are good for spending and upturns are a moment for
consolidation. If the government spending helps improve incomes during the downturn
it would increase demand for the construction, too...
Thursday, January 28, 2016
The Indian Economy this year...
Inflation is closer to
the upside-target even when we have used a higher price base-year and also a
change in methodology. A change to a higher-price base-year for inflation will
reduce inflation relative to the low base-year. A low price base will show
higher inflation... All these changes in the base-year and methodology have
made our inflation target achievable... And, if we will retreat to original
base year, definitely the inflation rate would be higher... more than 5.61% and
hopefully less than 6%... A rate cut is warranted only when our inflation-rate
is lower than 5%... and, probably the effect of lower oil prices is yet to
show-up in the latest inflation data for the last quarter or later... We are
definitely on a glide-path... an all around lower prices because of low
transport cost/prices... But, no doubt economists and policy makers need data
to decide and justify the course, for more informed decisions, too... It is not
always necessary for the RBI to keep the inflation rate lowest, also because of
price-rigidity, but it is important to keep it low and try to stabilize at that
level... means more consistency in policy, not too much frequent changes...
INDIA is a supply-constrained economy, not only in terms fuel and energy like
the developed countries, but also due to bad marketing of other essentials of
life, mainly food... A rate cut would help exports competitiveness. More
money-supply, more depreciation... Good time to build-reserve, too, more
depreciation...
Public spending in
times of fiscal-consolidation from a rating point of view may be not so good
but we have also ample reasons not to believe the rating agencies. The last
recession we saw in 2008 is largely attributed to banks misconduct and wrong
ratings in the US... They painted a good scene of the economy while debt and
inflation soared at risky levels (the sub-prime-crisis)... Economist criticized
rating-agencies for this. Therefore, if we think that rating agencies have a
credibility-problem that might be true... Public-spending on infrastructure
when the private sector is constrained of capital and infrastructure, itself...
will help pick the economy steam, growth, because we are supplying what the
economy really needs to increase quality of life... We want inclusive
development of all people and regions and that should be best gained when we
increase knowledge and skills, a productive work-force, a true human-capital...
he will also pay taxes, revenue will increase... The government is exploring
ways to finance the infrastructure-deficit... This best way to finance this is
to borrow from the West for long-term where interest rates are record low or
allow near complete FDI... That would also help improving foreign-reserves,
meanwhile... The RBI too can contribute through lending its gold which lying
idle in the reserves, and corporate should be included to bring in private
capital... The GoI is considering PF funds to finance infrastructure in the
long-run, good-idea...
INDIA is a big exporter
of cereals... a big part is going out of the country and prices can go down if
we reverse the situation... if everybody else's expenditure on food will go
down other prices will follow... food inflation in cereals was always high...
but does this price reach the poor farmers pocket... grains are bought at an
earlier date and is sold (by the government) after months... Prices go up every
month, but this gain does not reach to the farmers... our poor farmers are not
very speculative... beside big fishes... those who have control-over storage
and release of food grains to the markets... i do not think the farmers have
all the control to market his produce... the difference between the farmers
price, the storage price, the whole sale market-price and the retailers
price... with-out much value-addition... only increasing the market cost... The
GoI should help farmer store without cost and sell to the whole-sale market
when he thinks prices are right to run the cost and earn profits, not the
middle-man... Our 60% of population lives in villages and dependent on
agriculture for a living... The middle-man chain has depressed agricultural
income... The profits are not reaching the farmers and also cost the GoI
subsidies and MSP determination... All these have made agricultural
unattractive to other professions... Land is most scarce... for housing too...
agriculturalists low income is against demand and growth... Everybody else’s
income is increasing faster...
More competition, more
supply, even from imports and simple FDI too should keep prices in check for a
larger set of consumers compared to producers subset... farmers are also
consumers... And, a good thing is that a farmer does not buy grain, they are
sellers... it is the excess of what he can consume so his food problems are
partly solved... if any farmer does it he is making a mistake, because he is
then buying it from the market at a higher price... not wise... food problems
are for the rest of us... Villages are full of good and nutritious food... most
farming is done in small villages... but it is devoid of good education and
close markets... The long-run trend found in the west that as money-supply has
increased more supply of goods and services has kept prices in check except
oil... is opposite of what the quantity theory of money says... In short, lower
prices ahead and the region is also ahead in terms of jobs (quality too) and
the standard of living... I do not know about Europe but as far US is
concerned, after Paul Volcker (a former fed chief) inflation remained under
control within the comfort levels below 10 % even after increases in oil
prices... so to reduce subsidy market is the best strategy... Food is problem for those who is not growing
it... it is a problem for others... So food prices rise or fall it does not
impact the rural-population nutrition charts... Extreme poverty is a partial
condition... Not a general observation... mostly attached to cities... More
farmer income will directly benefit the industry... And when 50% population of
INDIA is seasonal occupied by the agriculture... it is major source of
income... a big sector... a lot of population is dependent on agriculture...
alot of demand will be generated... This will work in through the multipliers
(actually accelerator)... The more industry will pay the more it will reap... The
government is increasing cost in the middle... Agricultural subsidies will be
paid by the market... They would invest in storage... Market is competitive it
would cut the costs... When it will become profitable more investment would
follow... INDIA is populated... Scale is too big for investors... Just like a
cheap and volatile share... Volatility increases the risk for investors and
returns high... The more you can buy the more you can sell... more profits...
Very good investment...
If we reduce the
middle-man chain in the supply of food-grains farmers will get higher prices...
It will incentivize farming... INDIA still has to transform agriculture in to a
technology-intensive sector to increase productivity, output... Liberalising
the FDI in the food-supply-chain-management will help increase investment in
agriculture... while domestic investors are reluctant and slow... Without significant
investment to raise farm output our industry will face higher cost of
capital... Agriculture (food) is very
crucial for economic expansion from the view-point of inflation, interest-rate
and human-capital... When we talk about
supply-side constraints in INDIA food is a major point, besides
infrastructure... The government should
not shy away from importing good food to keep prices in check... The whole
argument between the Center and the RBI is about interest-rates and food prices
are the reason for high rates... The government has set aside Rs 500 Crores as
price stabilization funds which should, as sounds, be used to tame prices, but
no doubt we will need foreign reserves for imports... The fund will help
improve supply within the economy but, again, it will stress our current
account deficit that stands low relative to inflation and high interest-rate as
a problem... Foreign trade should be used to increase internal demand and
growth... It is an opportunity...
Controlling CAD at the cost of domestic consumption, prices and interest
rate seems too hawkish...
No organisation can
survive without right skills to produce and market its product... Even our PM
believes in the skills-shortage and economists under-score his vision... Firms,
especially the Indian ones, have not much scope but to employ unskilled and give
them on job training... That is how they are running since inception... but,
now firms are demanding skill-ready employees from the government so that they
do not have to spend time and money to get them job ready... Skills are also
important for productivity, wages/incomes, demand, production, employment and
growth... Therefore, any policy, even FDI, if leads to these conditions within
the domestic economy should be promoted... Moreover, the long-run assumption
that labour-supply is fully elastic on the natural or subsistence-wages/incomes
is not valid and the evidence of the Indian-economy points that the economy
easily starts overheating which is actually very good for wages and income...
Weak bargaining power of labour and inflation is responsible for the
natural-rate or the subsistence theory...
Moreover, more firms relative to the labour-supply will certainly push
wages and income, and will lead to more demand and growth... Therefore, if we
have to breach the subsistence-wages-trap, either Unions should be empowered to
bargain or at best inflation or prices must go down...
It would not be an
overstatement that in the recent times foreign-exchange-rate policy is centered
around exports, employment and growth. The pattern is present everywhere... US,
Europe, Japan, China... Even the Make-in-INDIA initiative of the present
government is a step in giving Indian export sector a push. INDIA’s export
sector, especially manufacturing, is largely underdeveloped and there is a
scope for employment generation with relatively low wages. The country so far
has concentrated on domestic-demand for growth but now with greater emphasis on
manufacturing and exports INDIA is likely to out-pace cooling China which is
going through a slow down much like the Japanese and the US style, a
deflationary bias in the economy... However, INDIA with a sound policy, even in
the exchange-rate... a little
depreciated Rupee to give export and employment a chance... can take advantage of
both the positions... An investment inflow and hardening rupee and investment
outflow and depreciation... Increasing foreign-exchange reserves during inflows
and hardening will help us weather too much depreciation during outflow and
costlier imports and also increase our competiveness... Moreover outflow and
depreciation will, again, increase export competitiveness. We should use our
foreign-exchange rate policy for more productive employment and growth, it
would be helpful as far as demand and growth (external and domestic) is
concerned... The investment-cycle in INDIA too is soon to kick-in with
interest-rate reduction... Good for exports... Depreciation and low
interest-cost...
INDIA in 2015 became
the fastest growing economy in the world after China after change in the
methodology for calculating real-gross domestic-product, but its high inflation
(due to supply-side problems and slow trade-liberalization) and high nominal
interest rate have put brakes on demand-supply, employment and achieving
potential economic growth-rate... Higher growth-rate is important for higher
demand, investment, and profits/wages with price-stability and full-employment.
Monetary-policy is a supply-side tool, but it also increases demand in the
economy by the way of increasing employment, but, again not after
full-employment... Full-employment means we have reached our limits and there
is a scarcity of labour within the economy, and supply cannot be increased with
domestic labour and prices or inflation start rising... This can be called the
labour supply-side problems with structural-factors like education, skills and
productivity... In this situation if we want demand-supply and growth without
increasing inflation we need external supplies or the international-trade
without which the economy will only feel overheating and loss in the value of
money and demand... External sector is as important as the domestic sector in
fulfilling demand, increasing welfare and achieving higher-growth rate... If
trade-liberalization does not reduce domestic employment and help lower prices
and interest rates, it should be promoted, because that might eventually help
us achieve full-employment and full growth... The point is that if we have
achieved full-employment, trade-liberalization will also help achieve
price-stability... More supply and lower prices are important for lower
interest-rate, high investment and high economic-growth...
RBI kept repo-rate
constant at 6.75 with no liquidity injections. Inflation in the recent data,
around more than 5%, after two consecutive months of increase may still
indicate food supply problems due to seasonal problems and rains that INDIA
face almost every year. Inflation in INDIA mainly emanates from the ineffective
supply management of food articles. INDIA suffers from seasonal inflation
because it is too much dependent on rains and also excessive rains in some
parts which lead to flood and crop damage. Every year drought and floods upset
prices of agricultural products. Lack of demand and supply data, and effective
action in order to maintain price-stability and demand puts INDIA in a fix and
delayed monetary-policy action to increase growth for the past several years.
Nevertheless, the situation has improved on account of proper actions to manage
food-supply by the government and retail inflation has come down from double
digits to below five-percent. However, to avoid seasonal inflation there is
alot more to be done to get ontime data and effective actions. Agriculture
needs a lot of planning to reduce the lag between demand and supply adjustment.
The government has a larger role in the supply-side management rather than
tweaking demand by the monetary-policy.
RBI in its
monetary-policy stated that banks still need to pass-on the previous rate cuts
as the interest-rate transmission has been close to half which leaves room for
banks to lower the existing rates. Nonetheless, RBI maintained that the
monetary-policy would remain accommodative as long as disinflation continues.
The RBI proposed to bring methodology to set banking rate as per the
marginal-cost of funds. However, the strategy to set bank rates according to
marginal cost might not work without opening the sector for more investment and
competition. More banks in the market with good regulation may help set rates
according to marginal cost. The competition to increase market share results in
price-competition among firms. It would also improve transmission... The RBI
might try to increase competition in the banking industry...
Any policy is a
dis/incentive for a particular outcome... It is true that the black-money is a
product of tax-evasion... But, the money flows to other countries' banks...
However it may have entered the country from other channels... anyway FDI,
FII... foreign banks do invest in g-secs of other countries... The government
could incentivize return of the money to the Indian-banks which would increase
their lending capacity to lend low... The government might offer zero-tax on
the condition that money will be lent to the Indian banks at zero interest
rate... Taxes might be sacrificed to lower interest rate... There is always a
trade off...
Disinvestment should be
calibrated; otherwise it would reduce investment and growth... Timing of
public-investment is also important... Disinvestment during downturn might
weaken demand and growth... However, timely reallocation to other uses may help
growth... Infrastructure is important... Re-capitalizing PSBs could lower
interest-rate but more investment in infrastructure would also crowd-in more
private investment to improve supply and reduce inflation... Inflation
constrains demand and economic-growth by increasing interest-rates... Money from
disinvestment must be purposefully deployed...
Rupee depreciation
might be sensitive to other factors than a mere increase in money-supply...
Like devaluation in dollar due to Fed's rate hike delay... UK may also increase
only in 2017... Easy money-policy for longer than expected might increase
depreciation of their currencies too... Things have changed alot after China...
Everybody is trying to stay afloat... Strong rupee shows the strength of the
INDIAN economy... It means money is flowing in...
IMF has recently
declared INDIA a hot-spot for global investor and even better among emerging
markets due to its equanimity underscored by its reliance on domestic demand
for growth, low global commodity price regime because it is mainly an importer,
its upcoming rate-cut-cycle, the idea to explore manufacturing and exports
possibility with low wages compared to the peers, its high rate of population
growth rate, a reservoir of labor and demand, low fiscal and current-account
deficit and its pace of expansion and growth, both actual and potential,
present best investment and business returns... However, regulations still
constrain the ease of doing business... Nevertheless, INDIA has improved alot
on competitiveness in a recent rating-report and the government is conscious
about problems of doing business, both foreign and domestic... Businesses
employ people which is good for demand in the market through multiplier which
creates income and tax to improve human-lives... Notwithstanding, the burden of
a large number of poor-people, also due to high population growth-rate and
unskilled and unproductive labor-force could not be underestimated...
Nonetheless, unprecedented public-spending in a developing economy would
increase demand and prices (inflation)... The supply of money either by fiscal
or monetary-policy should match or increase availability of goods and services...
If the policies only aim at increasing money it would not solve the problem,
but might lower demand-supply and growth by increasing inflation and
interest-rate... The economy might start de-accelerating... Higher prices keep
demand and supply low because interest-rate will increase... The question
naturally arises that if inflation is high then why the central-banks restrict
supply by increasing interest-rate when they may actually increase supply by
cutting rates? Low cost of capital might help improve supply and lower
prices... lower cost will also lower prices and inflation... When central-banks
try to decrease demand to lower inflation it also lowers supply which puts the
economy on a down-path... a contraction... Demand and supply are not independent
from each-other rather they are different names to address the same
economic-activity... When central-banks try to regulate demand by increasing
interest-rate it also decreases supply and thereby worsening inflation...
However, zero-lower-bound (of interest-rate) is the limit for interest-rate-cut
to increase domestic supply after that foreign supply comes into play which
might help to store supply and demand and price-stability, actually lower
prices to increase economic-activity and growth-rate... So far economists have
attributed high inflation to high money-supply and demand, and, not to the
actual supply and demand of goods and services which might be positively
correlated with low interest-rates...
Wednesday, January 20, 2016
Consolidation and Spendings...
This is second-time
since the stock-market crash in China tremors in August are felt across the
globe and there is a disagreement among the analysts over some fundamental
problem in the economy and that is it signalling a longer correction (?) which
might put the World in a low demand and growth spiral and INDIA is not an
exception. Mainly it is a disagreement about the unemployment in the economy
which determines the level of the problem. But from that point of view the
economy is doing well because the policy-makers have kept pouring money-supply
to achieve full-employment but rising wages are making the economy lose competitiveness
which is a bigger headache. Chinese economy is largely an exports oriented
economy and much of its growth rate is attributed to its high current account
surplus. China is worried about its competitiveness which it is trying to gain
by depreciation or devaluation which would trigger depreciation and out flow
from emerging markets, including China. Falling exports and devaluation through
easing and higher interest rate in the US has resulted in the outflows from
emerging markets which has created shocks over the globe when the chain is, my
exports are your imports and my imports are your exports. Income in one country
is also decided by the income in the other country. China is mingled so well with
other countries through trade that a recession in China would slow down
everyone. China’s share in world trade is huge. A disturbance in the Chinese
exports would affect Chinese people income and imports. China mainly assembles
imports into exports and it might slowdown when Chinese exports become
uncompetitive because of full-employment and higher wages. Moreover slowing in
the working age population is pointed as the economy’s long-run problem. And,
more money-supply after full-employment would worsen the situation because the
market would compete to attract labour offering higher wages. However, debt
situation and over-supply in the housing market also need to be controlled for
which tightening is the remedy and not easing. More and more money-supply after
full-employment may continue to increase debt and over-supply stoking fears of
reinforcing bubble and perpetuate a correction. People may default on their
obligations when debt goes over and start selling assets because of fear of
loss. Speculation should be checked. The correction would entail falling prices
but that would be uncontrolled. Nonetheless, if the fall in the price level has
to be controlled then the monetary-policy may tighten in a controlled way. Chinese
unemployment is lower than 5-percent and it may increase its competitiveness by
tolerating a little higher unemployment and lowering the prices. Higher
unemployment might help reduce wage-pressure by reducing some demand but it
must be controlled and data dependent. The economy must try to avoid extremes,
excessive inflation or excessive deflation. Lower prices also make the exchange
rate favourable and would help demand. The central-banks choose between
inflation and unemployment as required. Economies in recession are targeting
higher inflation delaying the objective of price-stability and over-heating
economies with bubble fear might try to tolerate higher unemployment by
increasing credit cost, and diffuse the bubbles delaying the full-employment
objective. Both lower demand in the economy by increasing inflation and by
reducing employment. Unemployment benefits might help contain the necessities. Trade-cycles are imminent, but the central
banks job is to regulate the cycles with consistent interest-rate movements, a
credible monetary-policy with control.
It is just a
coincidence that China may slowdown at a time when INDIA is expanding which
might affect its trade ambitions and growth rate. Recessions are the time for
spending and boom is a time to consolidate, might be a good-rule to go
forward...
Friday, January 15, 2016
China might help improve the external situation... (edit.)
Chinese policy-makers
are arguing that inflation is not evident so far and that all the easing and
rate-cuts are justified because it is not cutting real wages and domestic
demand, but as long as inflation does not increase it would not increase nominal
exchange-rate and demand for exports, and, buying foreign reserves and
devaluing the domestic-currency would also increase inflation and inflation
expectation but with a lag, whenever money-supply is increased it increases
expected inflation (unless you are in the liquidity-trap) which is observable
in the recent data. Higher inflation expectations show that spending is not a
problem in China when the labour market is almost cleared; unemployment is
close to 5-percent so it is true that the economy is so far stable, but it now
needs to change its approach to stimulate the economy. China is moving away
from an investment led model to a domestic demand driven economy because
external situation is more or less out of an economy’s control and creates
uncertainty. It now needs to concentrate on increasing domestic consumption
which would also increase external demand by increasing imports; income in the
trading partners’ economy would go up. China might stop seeking depreciation and
inflation, also the other way, but work on increasing real wages and exchange
rate by committing lower prices. Lower prices could also increase export
competitiveness. It would increase exports demand by lowering prices and it
would also increase imports because real exchange rate wages would appreciate. And,
it may also increase domestic demand by increasing real wages. It probably
looks good from all the sides... in depreciation exports go up, but imports and
incomes go down, it is contractionary... Lower prices would release domestic
demand and also demand for exports. This is based on the argument that lower
prices increase demand, domestic and external both and higher prices although
help exports via the exchange rate but reduce domestic demand and imports. It
is true that lower prices are more expansionary. No one knows better than China
that lower prices increase demand; depreciation or external-devaluation also
lowers prices relative to the nominal exchange rate. To achieve this China
needs to lower inflation and inflation expectation, and the conventional way of
doing this is to increase interest-rate by tightening money-supply. More
money-supply after full-employment would increase wage cost, because labour is
scarce, and inflation thereby lowering demand. China might change its ideology
because its domestic demand may help improve external demand which is also good
for its exports.
Wednesday, January 13, 2016
Constraints on INDIA's growth-rate...
INDIA today has emerged
as an oasis of growth and investment among the economies of the world when
others are facing a tough situation due to weak growth and incomes because of
weak domestic economy and exports. It is mainly an importer therefore lower
prices have helped contain the inflation and exchange rate owing to favourable
oil prices, but unfavourable weather conditions have restrained the economy
from lowering interest rate further after a surprise 50 bps cut by the RBI
Governor. The RBI has set a target of 5-percent inflation by Jan 2017, but the
existing rate of CPI at 5.61-percent is above the target by more than a half-percent.
The CPI inflation has actually increased in the recent months on the account of
rising food prices and to some length to higher duty on petrol and diesel. The
government has tried to improve the fiscal situation by duty hikes but probably
this step has failed the disinflation to run to a higher degree. The government
has increased petrol and diesel duty by around 10 Rs which probably could be
sufficient to lower inflation to the target by the next year. Lower oil prices
have already helped improve the subsidy picture and are likely to touch new
bottom before lower global demand push them far, but the government might
resist any further duty hikes to avoid missing the inflation target. Oil prices
also play an important role in the overall price index through transport
prices. Lower transport cost would make the economy competitive. This same is
also true of for food prices because they help contain wage cost. Both, food
and fuel are a major part of a layman’s basket of consumption. However, food
inflation mainly comes from weather problems, droughts and floods, and also
from the lack of irrigation facilities. But, it is still an irony that we face
drought every year despite of floods every year too. We need to channelize
flood water to drought hit areas which needs massive investment in dams and
irrigation. Our Late Former President of INDIA Dr APJ Abdul Kalam was a
visionary to propose linking rivers to improve the irrigation and agricultural
landscape. INDIA faces floods every year in a big part which could be mobilized
for irrigation if we build dams on rivers that are flooded every year. The
dams’ water might be used for irrigation and for electricity generation, too. Electricity
is also a big constraint on INDIA’s growth rate...
Tuesday, January 12, 2016
Higher wages making China lose competitive edge...
China’s economic
expansion of the last three decades has come to a point where employment and
productivity could not increase with the pace realized during the boom. An
economy swings between boom and busts due to increase in money-supply and
inflation and deflation/disinflation. Monetary-policy cycle of expansion and
tightening decide the level of employment and trade-cycles. Expansion turns the
boom and tightening turns the burst. Every economy goes through booms and bursts.
However, the length of trade cycles might vary from time to time and country to
country, but it may also affect other countries through trade. Moreover, the
economy is also on the knife-edge which means when the policy-makers try to
reduce inflation and growth it would lower them more than expected and when
they choose to increase both, they increase them more than expected. It is true
that the economy goes through boom and bust over a period of time. Booms can go
as long as employment increase, but after full-employment inflation increases
which reduces domestic demand. Depreciation increases exports, but at the cost
of domestic demand. Higher inflation would lower real wages. Full-employment
may increase supply to a level, but productivity may be increased through more
investment in innovation, but it is a natural process of mind and may or may
not happen at once. China is boxed by full-employment but if it manages to
increase productivity it might continue expanding at a higher growth-rate. If
more money supply increases productivity and wages then the expansion is
justified, however if it increases inflation and wages it would reduce
competitiveness. China is trying devaluation of currency for competitiveness when
full-employment and higher wages are working against it...
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Zero Short-Term Real Interest Rates, “Trump Inflation” and the U.S. Economic Outlook.....
Introduction The observation that the Federal Reserve still has to watch President Donald Trump’s reaction to a zero short-term real inter...
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Central banks around the world face a perennial challenge: maintaining price stability while fostering conditions for full employment. Conv...
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Central banks around the world have long relied on adjusting short-run policy rates to steer the economy. Yet traditional approaches often o...
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The nominal effective exchange rate, or NEER, and the real effective exchange rate, or REER, serve as vital barometers of a nation's cur...