Shadow Banks – are they a problem?
A Debunking Economics listener asked for a podcast on the role of Shadow Banks. In particular, he wanted to know if shadow banks create money in the same way as conventional banks. The quick answer is...
17 Maj 201719min
Energy – the missing function of economics
Economists have always seen wealth as a function of capital and labour. In effect, people and machines create things which makes them money. But Steve Keen believes there’s a far more important consid...
8 Maj 201730min
If shares had a use-by date.
Imagine if shares had a use by date. If you pass the shares issued by a company on to a secondary market, the clock starts ticking. What would that do to the valuation of shares – and why do we need t...
3 Maj 201722min
Should short selling be banned?
A big chunk of the trades that happen in shares are sold short. In other words, the trader takes a punt that the price will go down. In effect you sell something that you don’t own yet – like shares i...
24 Apr 201717min
Regional wealth diversity – how economics ignores the dimension of space
London and the southeast accounts for a third of the UK’s gross disposable household income. The rest of the country somehow scrapes by. But it’s clear to see why. The proximity to other businesses me...
20 Apr 201723min
Does Modern Monetary Theory make sense?
Modern Monetary Theory states that’s, because the government of a country is the monopoly supplier of money, it has an unlimited capacity to pay for things and provide funds for other sectors. If the ...
17 Apr 201731min
Lies, damn lies and employment statistics
Figures out in the US last week showed the unemployment rate had dropped to just 4.5 percent, a long way from the 10% rate back in 2009. Yet Donald Trump won an election, in part, because he was there...
13 Apr 201719min
Do minimum wages reduce inequality?
Mark Perry, Professor of Economics and Finance at the University of Michigan, believes that raising the minimum wage will push costs up so high companies won’t be able to afford them. He wrote in his ...
10 Apr 201727min
