Economics

Nine Things You Need to Know to Survive the New Economy

"There is a way out. You have to hustle. It's hard. But there's nothing else. You have to choose between being a temp staffer (and I can see this from the front lines) or being an entrepreneur/artist. It's going to sound corny, but you have to stay physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually healthy. You have to work on coming up with ideas every day. You have to be around positive people who love you. You have to be grateful for the abundance you have and invite more into your life. This is not economics. This is the real world and how to survive in it. Not the fantasy land of cubicles and fluorescent lights." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNine Things You Need to Know to Survive the New Economy

Nine Things You Need to Know to Survive the New Economy

"There is a way out. You have to hustle. It's hard. But there's nothing else. You have to choose between being a temp staffer (and I can see this from the front lines) or being an entrepreneur/artist. It's going to sound corny, but you have to stay physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually healthy. You have to work on coming up with ideas every day. You have to be around positive people who love you. You have to be grateful for the abundance you have and invite more into your life. This is not economics. This is the real world and how to survive in it. Not the fantasy land of cubicles and fluorescent lights." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNine Things You Need to Know to Survive the New Economy

Lessons from Economic Crises in Argentina

"Just about every single thing that you could do to screw up a country, they have done. It is comical to see the extremes they have gone to. They are really completely out of control and the country is spinning off into la-la-land. Frankly, I love living right in the midst of all of it. There is a lesson to be learned from all of this, and I think it is a very important one. When it comes right down to it, any government – not just the Argentine government, but the US government as well – will simply do whatever it thinks it needs to do to keep the status quo intact, with no moral or ethical considerations." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLessons from Economic Crises in Argentina

Jim Rogers: 50% Correction in Markets not Uncommon

"Jim Rogers sat down with Kitco News during FreedomFest to talk about gold, the fed and the current state of the markets. Rogers explains his book 'Street Smarts' and shares his experiences living in Singapore. Watch now to hear what he has to say about the US economy and the recent corrections in gold prices." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJim Rogers: 50% Correction in Markets not Uncommon

Illegal gold mining costs Uganda millions in lost revenue

"As a result of Uganda's central bank deregulating gold sales, local production has increased. The precious metal accounts for 30% of Uganda's export revenue. Illegal mining is having such an impact that experts say it must be stopped in order to shore up revenue collection. A government official said the issue is so alarming that the country exported none of its own gold in April, while Kenya exported 40 kilograms of smuggled Ugandan gold. Some citizens have said police are not responding to calls for them to act on illegal activities. Other reports indicate government officials are profiting from illegal operations through illicit tax collection." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIllegal gold mining costs Uganda millions in lost revenue

Unemployment crisis in Italy hits immigrants the worst

"Immigrants are being hit harder than Italians by the country’s unemployment crisis, a new report showed Monday, saying the figures were 'extremely worrying' and could lead to 'major social destabilisation'. The report said the number of unemployed foreigners in the country was currently 385,000 — up from 220,000 at the beginning of the economic crisis in 2008. The report also outlined the importance of immigrants in Italian society and said those who did work were often stuck in low-skill and low-pay jobs. Without migrants, Italian demographic growth would be zero and the population would be ageing at a faster rate, according to the report.." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUnemployment crisis in Italy hits immigrants the worst

Germany fears revolution if Europe scraps welfare model

"German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble warned on Tuesday that failure to win the battle against youth unemployment could tear Europe apart, and dropping the continent's welfare model in favor of tougher U.S. standards would spark a revolution. Germany, along with France, Spain and Italy, backed urgent action to rescue a generation of young Europeans who fear they will not find jobs, with youth unemployment in the EU standing at nearly one in four, more than twice the adult rate. If U.S. welfare standards were introduced in Europe, 'we would have revolution, not tomorrow, but on the very same day,' Schaeuble told a conference in Paris." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGermany fears revolution if Europe scraps welfare model

Why are Brazilian coffee-growers striking and burning sacks of coffee?

"In Brazil, which produces a third of the world's coffee beans, farmers are striking over falling prices and burning sacks of coffee in protest. Why are coffee-growers feeling the strain? [..] Many Brazilian and Colombian farmers invested to boost production of arabica in response to the high prices of 2011, which has added to the oversupply and further depressed prices. And good weather in Brazil means that this year's crop has turned out to be unexpectedly large. That is why Brazil's farmers are striking, and are demanding more protection, in the form of fatter subsidies, from the state." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWhy are Brazilian coffee-growers striking and burning sacks of coffee?

Why are Brazilian coffee-growers striking and burning sacks of coffee?

"In Brazil, which produces a third of the world's coffee beans, farmers are striking over falling prices and burning sacks of coffee in protest. Why are coffee-growers feeling the strain? [..] Many Brazilian and Colombian farmers invested to boost production of arabica in response to the high prices of 2011, which has added to the oversupply and further depressed prices. And good weather in Brazil means that this year's crop has turned out to be unexpectedly large. That is why Brazil's farmers are striking, and are demanding more protection, in the form of fatter subsidies, from the state." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWhy are Brazilian coffee-growers striking and burning sacks of coffee?

Senior Italian parliament economist on Ludwig von Mises and the current economic crisis

"The vision Mises had about inflation as an illusion imposed is not so far from the Ricardian idea that government bonds are not net wealth, since future generations will have to bear their burden. Inflation and public debt, then, are two sides of the same coin, because they create substantial intergenerational redistributive effects that policy makers cannot evaluate ex-ante. We are realising today how accurate Mises was in his predictions. Mises had these issues clear in his mind and implicitly warned central bankers of the risk of losing money to its real meaning and of exposing the economy to the risk of currency devaluation." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSenior Italian parliament economist on Ludwig von Mises and the current economic crisis