While commentators throughout this year have generally pointed a finger at the Euro Zone, it's trading statistics in spite of all it's problems are impressive. For calendar year 2014 it will have a current account surplus of €280 billion, this is slightly distorted by a certain amount of aid money from the IMF flowing into …
I have always tended to analyze National Statistics in my own particular way. My interest or purpose is somewhat different, I am not so much interested in the absolute figure for GDP, or the growth inferred, but, the money flows and how well the economy is doing in terms of generating wealth. The 2014 UK …
International trade is a barter system! We pay for our imports, not with money, but, with the goods we export. While we might perceive that we have paid for imports with money, this is an illusion … We can illustrate this best by considering an export. Assume we export some goods to the USA, the …
There has been much said about the potential dividends of fracking to the UK economy. Councils are being offered inducements to give planning permission for fracking in their areas, to counteract the strong opposition or "nimbism" that is evident. We are told it is safe and carries little risk. What about: North Dakota or Exploding …
While I believe in Globalisation as the ultimate route to peace in the world, there are many thorny issues along the bumpy way. UK Economic policy has focused on Government deficit since the credit crunch, instead of the wider issue … our trade deficit. We can only "pay our way" in the world by keeping …
When Salmond first proposed holding a referendum during the current Scottish parliament, it was not going to be a simple in or out vote but a referendum that would allow the Scottish people to express the extent to which they would like a greater say over their affairs. There is little doubt that a referendum …
The general call from politicians and economic commentators is for growth. We all instinctively accept this will solve our economic problems and somehow believe that growth is always possible and within the capability of our politicians to engineer. Alas, sadly our belief is misplaced! Before continuing let us examine growth. Growth like many other words …
In creating our model we saw that its sustainability was dependent on two factors. Firstly imports should equal exports over the medium term, and secondly that a natural flow of money from consumer to producer and back to consumer needed to exist. In the case of the UK, currently, neither of those …
Having read our model, we can take a closer look at our economy and monetary system. It is only once we get rid of all our preconceptions that we can understand and reach rational conclusions, and then only if we can free ourselves from our own vested interests. The economy is about Money. …
To understand economic issues, we need some understanding of GDP and the monetary system. I have constructed a few simple tables based on a primitive economy that should help to show what GDP actually is, and demonstrate how the monetary system works … you might even be able to conclude that “there is no money!” …