The German economy is not as strong as it looks because of low internal investment and adverse demographic trends

The German economy has generally been perceived as the strongest in the Eurozone, particularly since the start of the financial crisis. Terence Tse argues that while the country has impressive headline economic figures, the situation is not quite as healthy as it appears. He notes that levels of internal investment are relatively low in comparison to other European countries, and that demographic trends are likely to impede future development. He concludes that rather than relying on Germany to pull Europe out of its crisis, helping ‘periphery’ countries to stand on their own feet may be a more productive solution

Youth Unemployment: A crisis on top of another crisis

The financial crisis of 2008 devastated national economies around the world. We are still recovering. But the spotlight is only now beginning to be shone on one issue that could fracture national economies again—the youth unemployment crisis

First step to solving the Eurozone crisis: Change our perceptions

Imagine the following. Your company is on the verge of bankruptcy. The only way to get out of this is to get all your employees to put in more efforts and energy. To do so, you threaten to cut off their pays because you are dissatisfied with the progresses that they have so far been making. On top of that, you are constantly telling them how little they have been contributing to the company and even how useless they are. At the same time, you are pinning high hopes that they would get your company to be prosperous again

Europe’s innovations, China’s Capital

At a recent event held in London, ten start-ups were pitching their ideas for seed funding. This in itself is nothing out of the ordinary, as innumerable pitches by entrepreneurs are made every day across the world, especially these days, when start-ups are the new norm. But what makes this story more special is that these ten companies were showcasing their innovations to a group of Chinese investors. In his opening speech, Sun Wangsong, Deputy Director of China’s Investment Promotion Agency of Ministry of Commerce, mentioned that China is proactively turning itself from the “world’s factory” to a the creator of innovations-driven ideas. While we acknowledge the fact that investment has become a new credo, we find that despite a tremendous amount of capital being poured into R&D, the country has not been getting the results at the pace that it longed for. So, to accelerate this process, China has started to shop for new innovations abroad

Germany, the giant with the feet of clay

On the surface, it stands to reason to think that, as Europe’s largest economy, Germany’s position in Europe can act as the saviour to pull the Eurozone out of its current plight. By many counts, the country’s economy is doing very well. Many people argue that Germany’s model could be the key to strengthening other economies in the EU: Just think the need for Greece to go through the austerity measures demanded by Germany. However, a deeper look into the German economy reveals that it is far more vulnerable than appears on first look

The lost generation: what is true about the myth…

If we were to believe the forecasts from the European Commission, unemployment in the Eurozone appears to have started – at long last – showing signs of small but fragile recovery. However, that does not mean we can rest on our laurels as the economic outlook in the near term remains rather bleak. We can still expect a bumpy ride lying ahead through peaks and troughs, crashes and reboots. This ride is likely to be especially harsh for the growing army of jobless youths

Investing in ‘pockets of excellence’ in periphery countries would help the EU address its lack of competitiveness

The outlook for several European economies has improved over the last year, following the deep recessions experienced across Europe during the financial crisis. Terence Tse and Mark Esposito write that while there has been some progress, the key problem in EU states is still a lack of competitiveness. They argue that promoting investment should be a key priority and that targeting productive areas of EU economies, including those in the periphery, would go some way toward solving the problem

Understanding how finance has moved from “Hubris to Disgrace”

The after-effects of the 2008 financial crisis are still being felt throughout the global economy. In order to help prevent a similar crisis from reoccurring, policymakers need to better understand finance’s continuing problems. Ahead of the publication of their new book, ‘From Hubris to Disgrace’, Mark Esposito and Terence Tse outline a framework to better understand the rise of finance through its mechanics, power relationships, economic rationale, politics, and philosophy

Business schools have lost a staggering amount of credibility in the business community.

Business schools strive to connect academic research to real-world practice. But Terence Tse and Mark Esposito find many institutions are failing to overcome academic silos in order to prepare students for the changing demands of the business world. Standardisation of curricula for accreditation limits the adaptability needed to teach the skillsets employers need and in many cases ivory tower expertise is not sufficient and carries minimal practical applications

Leaders must focus on fixing the inequality of labor income in the U.S.

With income inequality now at levels greater than those seen during the Gilded Age, many have become concerned about the impacts of such societal discrepancies on democracy. Mark Esposito and Terence Tse trace the history capital accumulation and income inequality in the United States and Europe, showing that the working class in the U.S. is getting poorer, even as their productivity increases. They write that American leaders should focus on fixing this trend as extreme inequalities undermine democratic values