Archive for June, 2008
« Previous EntriesFrom 2 Hrs. to 30 Minutes: Moscow’s Airport Train
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
MOSCOW – I almost cried when I arrived at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo-2 International Airport the other day. Not because I was so sad – I was thrilled to be going on vacation – but because the previously tortured trip to the airport is now remarkably painless.
The new Aeroexpress train from Savyolovsky Vokzal, a [...]
China’s Export Machine: The “China Price” is Dead
Submitted by Businomics Blog
Four months ago I wrote a post entitled “End of the China Price” which noted that China’s inflation rate, plus the depreciation of the yuan, was making it harder for Chinese companies to undercut American manufacturers’ prices. Today the Wall Street Journal is saying the same thing (subscription required).
In addition to rising [...]
Play chess like the pros
Submitted by Econbrowser
While I’m on the subject of the benefits of slowing down I should perhaps mention this hilarious chess game between grandmasters Maxim Dlugy and Hikaru Nakamura.
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ONE OUTCOME, TWO PATHS
Submitted by The Capital Spectator
The jig appears to be up. Many factors have brought us to this point, but it seems that there are two paths left. One or the other will out, eventually.
On the one hand, the Fed may raise interest rates, and thereby support the dollar, which in turn will put downward pressure [...]
Facts About Non-Producing Leases
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
According to the American Petroleum Industry:
When oil and natural gas companies purchase a lease, it is because of the possibility the lease may yield enough oil or natural gas to benefit consumers and become economically viable. A lease is simply a block on a map and until a company actually completes [...]
Paul Krugman Has Two Words: Iron Ore
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
What about those who argue that speculative excess is the only way to explain the speed with which oil prices have risen? Well, I have two words for them: iron ore.
You see, iron ore isn’t traded on a global exchange; its price is set in direct deals between producers and consumers. So [...]
WSJ: Some Remedial Education on Idle Leases
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
“I want you to think about this,” Barack Obama said in Las Vegas last week. “The oil companies have already been given 68 million acres of federal land, both onshore and offshore, to drill. They’re allowed to drill it, and yet they haven’t touched it – 68 million acres that have the [...]
Endless winter
Submitted by Econbrowser
As noted by Calculated Risk, global warming or no, the spring selling season for new homes never seemed to arrive this year.
There is a strong seasonal component to new home sales. In a typical year, the number of homes sold each month in March through May would be 40% higher than in December. [...]
Record High Gas Prices? We’re Still Not Even Close
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
Despite all of the reports about record-high gas and oil prices, we’re still nowhere close to record high gas prices adjusted for the growth in per-capita, disposable income.
The chart above shows the cost of 1,000 gallons of gasoline, as a percent of per-capita disposable income in every month from January 1980 [...]
What Can Onions Teach Us About Oil Prices?
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
Onions have no futures market, yet their recent price volatility makes the swings in oil and corn look tame.
Fortune Magazine — Before the government starts scrutinizing the role that speculators may have played in driving up fuel and food prices, investigators may want to take a look at price swings in a [...]
Victimless Crime of “Ticket Scalping” Now Legal
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
Philadelphia – As you might expect, scalping isn’t a term used much anymore. The buzzword is “secondary ticket market,” and all over the entertainment and sports industry, business is booming, turbo-charged by the technological advances of recent years.
Under a new 5-year revenue-sharing agreement between Major League Baseball and StubHub - where [...]
Welcome to the “OPEC Congress”: 40 Oversight Hearings, 160 Witnesses, But Zero New Supplies
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Now adjourned for its Independence Day recess, the U.S. Congress has convened at least 40 hearings on the issue of skyrocketing energy prices in the first six months of 2008. At least 160 witnesses have been sworn-in and questioned. But, even as consumers suffer, the Congress still has done [...]
Chart of the Day: Finish High School, Finish College
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
The chart above displays unemployment rates by education level from 1993 to 2005, and shows the averages over this period on the right side of the chart. It’s interesting that there are big differences between a) no high school and high school (3.4% difference in averages), and b) some college and [...]
US Energy Secretary: Don’t Blame the Speculators
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia - The U.S. energy secretary said Saturday that insufficient oil production, not financial speculation, was driving soaring crude prices.
Secretary Samuel Bodman said that oil production has not kept pace with growing demand, especially from developing countries like China and India.
“Market fundamentals show us that production has not kept [...]
Blame Governments, Not Speculators for High Oil
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
By preventing production and through inflationary monetary policy, maybe the government should be blamed for high oil prices, not speculators?
Link.
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Don’t Blame the Speculators; Without Futures Markets, Oil Might Be At $200 Instead of $135
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
Excerpts below from the Fortune Magazine article “Don’t Blame the Oil Speculators: A Campaign in Congress to Punish Traders for Record Oil Prices Reveals a Fundamental Misunderstanding of How Futures Markets Work”:
Here’s a suggestion: The next time a Congressional committee wants to hold a hearing on how “speculators” are driving up oil [...]
Markets In Everything: 2 Girls For Every Goal
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
Russia Players Offered Two Girls For Every Goal. Link
HT: Sanil Kori
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Signs of a Bottom to Home Sales?
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
Economists React
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Give Me a Break
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
I say, “Give Me A Break” to police officers who punish motorists for ignoring rules that the police themselves routinely ignore. In Warren, Michigan, one officer alone ticketed almost 4,000 people because he said they didn’t come to a complete stop at stop signs. Reporter Heather Catallo of Detroit’s ABC affiliate took [...]
American Energy Policy
Submitted by CARPE DIEM
Link.
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Escaping from the disaster front
Submitted by unsettling economics
I am now in Toronto for the History of Economics meetings. Lucky timing. The fires are continuing Chico. The American Red Cross Disaster Response Team is set up in one of the campus buildings. Arnold Schwarzenegger came to town yesterday to see how bad it was.
Fires and floods are becoming commonplace. Our [...]
THE BREAKEVEN BLUES
Submitted by The Capital Spectator
The Federal Reserve yesterday talked about fighting inflation by raising rates, but so far it’s only talk. But while the central bank chatters, inflation expectations continue creeping higher.
Consider the yield spread between the conventional 10-year Treasury and its inflation-indexed counterpart, a.k.a., the 10-year TIPS. The difference between the two yields is [...]
Bad News on Housing
Submitted by A Dash of Insight
We continue to believe that the Dodd/Shelby housing bill is important for financial stocks and the market as a whole. Yesterday’s 83-9 vote on cloture, the Senate process for limiting debate, seemed to signal passage.
After the market close today it became apparent that there are additional hurdles, suggesting that the [...]
Kling’s question on oil speculation
Submitted by Econbrowser
Arnold Kling poses a question for Paul Krugman. Here’s how I would answer.
Kling writes:
Early in 2007, the price of oil was $60 a barrel. Recently, it has been above $130 a barrel. Which of the following does Paul Krugman believe:
(a) market fundamentals justified $60 a barrel then, and they justify $130 a barrel [...]
Calculating your savings from slowing down
Submitted by Econbrowser
Ironman has developed a neat tool that allows you to input your vehicle’s typical mileage and then calculate how much money you’re likely to save on a particular trip by driving slower. Pretty cool!
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