March 27, 2018

Nassim Taleb on Black Monday, Fed, Market Lessons


Oct.16, 2017 -- The Black Monday crash was 30 years ago this week. "Black Swan" author Nassim Taleb was a trader for First Boston at the time. He made a lot of money while others lost fortunes. He recounts the experience with Bloomberg's Erik Schatzker.

Saudi Aramco CEO on IPO, Expansion, Shale Competition


Mar.26, 2018 -- Saudi Arabian Oil Co. Chief Executive Officer Amin Nasser discusses the upcoming initial public offering of the giant energy company, planned expansion in production capacity and competition from U.S. shale oil. He speaks with Bloomberg's Jonathan Ferro on "Bloomberg Markets: European Close."

March 18, 2018

Joseph Stiglitz: "The Price of Inequality" | Talks at Google


Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences recipient (2001) , visited Google on June 12, 2012 to talk about his new book THE PRICE OF INEQUALITY: How Today's Divided Society Endangers Our Future.

Inequality: Of The 1%, By The 1%, For The 1%


VANITY FAIR: Americans have been watching protests against oppressive regimes that concentrate massive wealth in the hands of an elite few. Yet in our own democracy, 1 percent of the people take nearly a quarter of the nation’s income—an inequality even the wealthy will come to regret.

It’s no use pretending that what has obviously happened has not in fact happened. The upper 1 percent of Americans are now taking in nearly a quarter of the nation’s income every year. In terms of wealth rather than income, the top 1 percent control 40 percent. Their lot in life has improved considerably. Twenty-five years ago, the corresponding figures were 12 percent and 33 percent. One response might be to celebrate the ingenuity and drive that brought good fortune to these people, and to contend that a rising tide lifts all boats. That response would be misguided. While the top 1 percent have seen their incomes rise 18 percent over the past decade, those in the middle have actually seen their incomes fall. For men with only high-school degrees, the decline has been precipitous—12 percent in the last quarter-century alone. All the growth in recent decades—and more—has gone to those at the top. In terms of income equality, America lags behind any country in the old, ossified Europe that President George W. Bush used to deride. Among our closest counterparts are Russia with its oligarchs and Iran. While many of the old centers of inequality in Latin America, such as Brazil, have been striving in recent years, rather successfully, to improve the plight of the poor and reduce gaps in income, America has allowed inequality to grow. » | Joseph E. Stiglitz | March 31, 2011

March 13, 2018

The Rise of Jeremy Corbyn and Class Struggle in the UK Labour Party


On Reality Asserts Itself, Prof. Panitch talks about how the Labour Party moved from being a Tony Blair party of class reconciliation and war, to a truly left mass party with more than 600,000 members that may take power

March 02, 2018

Is Donald Trump's Decision on Tariffs Likely to Trigger a Global Trade War? | Inside Story


President Trump said the US will impose costly tariffs on imported steel and aluminium. He says it's to protect US producers.

His plan has sparked outrage around the globe, with investors spooked and stocks taking a dive.

Eight nations, including Canada, Mexico, Japan, Russia and Brazil, all sold one million tons, or more, of steel products to the US in 2016.

The world's top steel producer, China, is not among them. But it is one of the leading exporters of aluminium to the US, which now imports about 90 per cent of its domestic needs.

The EU says Trump's tariffs move amounts to protectionism and is vowing to take action to defend its interests. China is calling on the White House to exercise restraint in applying the charges. But Trump tweeted that trade wars are good and "easy to win."

So how close are we to all-out trade conflict?

Presenter: Elizabeth Puranam | Guests: Philippe Legrain - former special adviser to the Director General of the World Trade Organization; Einar Tangen - an investment banker who regularly advises the Chinese government on economic and development issues; Republican political strategist Joe Watkins, who served as a White House aide to President George H W Bush


February 21, 2018

Ed Miliband on Universal Basic Income - BBC Newsnight


Kirsty Wark is joined by former Labour leader Ed Miliband to discuss the idea of a universal basic income.

Robert Reich: Morality & the Common Good Must Be at Center of Fighting Trump’s Economic Agenda


As a presidential candidate, Donald Trump made a promise to the American people: There would be no cuts to Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. Well, the promise has not been kept. Under his new budget, President Trump proposes a massive increase in Pentagon spending while cutting funding for Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. Trump’s budget would also slash or completely eliminate core anti-poverty programs that form the heart of the U.S. social safety net, from childhood nutrition to care for the elderly and job training. This comes after President Trump and Republican lawmakers pushed through a $1.5 trillion tax cut that overwhelmingly favors the richest Americans, including President Trump and his own family. We speak to Robert Reich, who served as labor secretary under President Bill Clinton. He is now a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. His most recent book, out today, is titled “The Common Good.”

February 18, 2018

BREXIT - UK Prime Minister Theresa May Rules Out Possibility of a Second Brexit Referendum


"There is no question of a second referendum or going back and I think that's important."

UK Prime Minister Theresa May has officially ruled out a second referendum on the country's membership of the European Union, stating there was no going back on the result of the June 2016 vote.

May told the Munich Security Conference: "We are leaving the EU and there is no question of a second referendum or going back and I think that's important."

Upon being asked if Britain would consider the idea of a second vote, the Prime Minister responded: "People in the UK feel very strongly that if we take a decision, then governments should not turn around and say no you got that wrong."

Mrs May was speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday morning, where she also called for a new security treaty with the EU that should be up and running by 2019. The objective for this new treaty is to ensure military, intelligence and counter-terrorism cooperation after London leaves the bloc.

"The key aspects of our future partnership in this area will already be effective from 2019," she said.

She added: "The partnership that we need to create is one that offers UK and EU way to combine our efforts to greatest effect where this is in our shared interest."

Mrs May also spoke of the importance of security matters for both the EU and the UK upon the introduction of Brexit, warning the EU of "damaging real-world consequences" if issues arise over the institutional arrangements Britain will have with the EU after it leaves.

"We must do whatever is most practical and pragmatic in ensuring our collective security," she said.


February 12, 2018

Margaret Thatcher - Capitalism and a Free Society


Margaret Thatcher and William F Buckley Jr. touch on a variety of subjects including economic incentives, minimum wage and redistribution of wealth.

The Wall Street Crash


This BBC documentary from 2009 takes a fresh view of the 'Crash of 1929' and the subsequent global Depression, comparing aspects of that event with the most recent turbulence in 2008. Uploaded for educational purposes only. Any advertising that appears is unbidden.

Black Wednesday (BBC 1997)


February 10, 2018