Low inflation and high inflation

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin One of the ways that the Biden Administration and the Democratic Congress has tried to deflect the opprobrium for the inflation spike of the last year or so has been to blame the middlemen—those entities that facilitate transactions between buyers and sellers—for contributing to high prices without providing anything of value for what it receives. In the last few months it has investigated the prescription drug market , online platforms operated by big tech companies, oil and gas producers , and food delivery apps , to name but a few. Last week Senator Durbin signaled he is considering adding only Mastercard and Visa to this list by introducing legislation that would mandate that credit cards be enabled with at least two unaffiliated networks, which would require the replacement of every credit card currently in circulation with a new, more expensive card for consumers. The legislation mirrors the so-called … [Read more...] about A Durbin Amendment For Credit Cards Will Reduce Their Ubiquity And Do Nothing To Reduce Inflation

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has cut its gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast for India for the current financial year by 80 basis points to 7.4 percent. A similar downgrade has been made to the growth forecast for FY24, which now stands at 6.1 percent as against 6.9 percent earlier. "For India, the revision reflects mainly less favourable external conditions and more rapid policy tightening," the IMF said on July 26 in an update to its World Economic Outlook report. Russia's invasion of Ukraine in late February disrupted supplies of crucial commodities, pushing up prices globally. Consequently, key central banks in the developed world, such as the US Federal Reserve, have begun tightening their monetary policies in earnest to cut down multi-decade high inflation . This has exerted further pressure on the Indian rupee, which has hurtled to multiple record lows in recent weeks and last week breached the 80-per-dollar mark for the first time . Close … [Read more...] about IMF cuts India’s FY23 growth forecast by 80 bps to 7.4%

Julian Zelizer, a CNN political analyst, is a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University. He is the author and editor of 24 books, including, " The Presidency of Donald J. Trump: A First Historical Assessment ." Follow him on Twitter @julianzelizer . The views expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion on CNN. (CNN) President Joe Biden delivered a bold speech on Thursday night , calling for a ban on assault weapons and other gun policies, including strengthening background checks and enacting new "red flag" laws. "Enough, enough," he told the nation, urging Congress to take action after a slew of mass shootings rocked the country. "We can't fail the American people again." The speech comes at a difficult moment for Biden. The administration is facing multiple escalating crises, which are slowly undermining his leadership and political strength. There's the Russian war in Ukraine, inflation and stock market turbulence, mass … [Read more...] about Opinion: How Biden can avoid Carter’s one-term presidential fate

The Democratic Party won’t allow President Joe Biden to have the final word on whether he’ll be the party’s candidate in 2024. The door is conveniently open for other candidates to make their case on why Biden should step aside, and Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom seems to be doing just that. Newsom is a true Progressive Democrat who handily defeated a recent recall election and looks poised to win reelection for a second term in November. The California Democrat signaled his quest to become the Democratic Party’s 2024 Presidential nominee over the July 4th weekend when he paid Fox News $105,000 to air ads during their Independence Day programing to urge Floridians to move to California, according to CNN. “It’s Independence Day. So let’s talk about what’s going on in America. Freedom is under attack in your state. Your Republican leaders, they’re banning books, making it harder to vote, restricting speech in classrooms, even criminalizing women and doctors,” Newsom … [Read more...] about ANALYSIS: A Dem Dark Horse Has The Power To Trample The GOP In 2024

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin The reconciliation bill Democrats in Congress are about to pass will impose price controls on prescription drugs for Medicare beneficiaries (although they are couched in terms of price negotiation). Critics note that the measure would lead to fewer new drugs , fewer cures, more avoidable deaths, and higher drug prices for the private sector. University of Chicago economist Tom Philipson estimates that because of the price controls there will be 135 fewer new drugs in the next two decades – causing a loss of 331.5 million life-years in the U.S. That is a reduction in life spans about 31 times as large as from Covid-19 to date! Still, public opinion polls show high approval for the proposal. Why is that? In all likelihood it’s because voters realize there are problems that need solving. Here are some better solutions. Give Medicare enrollees access to rational insurance. In a proper insurance … [Read more...] about Better Solutions For Rx Problems