September 2021
13Sep

Korea’s aging population to sap fiscal health: Fitch

The fast-paced aging of South Korea’s population is likely to undermine the fiscal health of Asia’s fourth-largest economy in the long run amid soaring debt, credit ratings agency Fitch Ratings said Monday. The aging population, coupled with a declining fertility rate of fewer than one child per woman, could leave Korea exposed to higher risks as rising government spending could become a less effective means of boosting nationwide productivity. Read also Australia. Most vulnerable excluded from Disability Support Pension Fitch urged Korea...

September 13, 2021
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10Sep

The Surprising Ingredients of Swedish Success – Free Markets and Social Cohesion

By Nima Sanandaji Sweden did not become wealthy through social democracy, big government and a large welfare state. It developed economically by adopting free-market policies in the late 19th century and early 20th century. It also benefited from positive cultural norms, including a strong work ethic and high levels of trust. As late as 1950, Swedish tax revenues were still only around 21 per cent of GDP. The policy shift towards a big state and higher taxes occurred mainly during the...

September 10, 2021
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August 2021
26Aug

UK. ONS warns early retirement could negatively affect individual finances and wider economy

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has warned that the exit of workers aged between 50 and 65 from the workforce could negatively impact both individuals’ finances and the wider economy. The organisation’s Living longer: impact of working from home on older workers study estimated that if the employment rate of people in the age group matched that of those aged 35 to 49 years, it would add more than 5 per cent to UK gross domestic product (GDP), equating...

August 26, 2021
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06Aug

Thatcher: the Myth of Deregulation

By Philip Booth It is commonly believed that, during the 1980s, Margaret Thatcher presided over a substantial reduction in government regulation of financial services. Indeed, some have blamed this deregulation for the financial crash that took place nearly 30 years after 1979. ‘Big Bang’ in 1986 did remove the restrictive practices and largely private regulation that existed in securities markets. However, this involved the state unwinding systems of private regulation and was not, as such, a simple act of deregulation. Furthermore, not...

August 6, 2021
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July 2021
16Jul

How geopolitics impact global public investors

In the world of institutional investing, geopolitical risk has emerged as a pressing concern. While some asset owners contend that they are fully capable of analysing and managing such risk, they appear to be in the minority. Many public investors are still largely unprepared, lacking proper analytical frameworks and relevant expertise to tackle geopolitics in a structured and rigorous way. However, there is a relatively simple and straightforward solution to this: asset owners can apply some of the same...

July 16, 2021
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12Jul

Emerging markets pushed to the sidelines for now

Emerging markets have become a victim of China's success in 2020, with money managers and investors now underweight and pulling assets from equity and debt allocations as they watch and wait for better times to resume. The recovery in the U.S. dollar, an increase in safe-haven asset yields in the first quarter and China's tighter monetary policy have contributed to the underperformance of emerging market assets vs. developed market assets so far in 2021. On top of that, developed markets continue...

July 12, 2021
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08Jul

From welfare to farewell: the European social-ecological state beyond economic growth

By European Trade Union Institute RPS Submitter, Eloi Laurent This working paper is intended to shed light on a pressing issue: the apparent growth-dependency of European welfare states at a time of weak growth prospects and strong criticisms of growth. Indeed, while the notion of going beyond GDP growth is gaining momentum in the European Union, as elsewhere, and seems rational and desirable to a growing number of citizens and policymakers, it might not be feasible. Highlighting a new ‘welfare-growth-transition...

July 8, 2021
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02Jul

The Economics of Ageing and the Political Economy of Old Age

By William A. Jackson Economic discussion of ageing has been largely neoclassical in approach. Ageing has become a specialism within population economics, which is itself a specialism within the neoclassical mainstream. An alternative view has come from authors in sociology and social policy, who have produced their own 'political economy of old age'. In contrast with neoclassical individualism, sociological depictions of aging have stressed the social construction of old age and the structured dependency of the elderly. Non-neoclassical economists have...

July 2, 2021
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June 2021
29Jun

Australia. IGR shows super will lift living standards and ease burden on aged pension

The Intergenerational Report has once again confirmed Australia’s compulsory super system has lifted living standards for millions while easing the burden on the aged pension. Despite an ageing population, lifting the super rate to 12% and the maturing superannuation system will see fewer future Australians rely on the taxpayer-funded aged pension to support themselves in retirement. The pension cost is expected to drop from 2.8% of GDP today to 2.1% in 2060. The proportional decrease in pension costs occurs even as...

June 29, 2021
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22Jun

Pension Funds and Financial Repression

By Richard Mark Davis, Fiona Stewart, Peter Knaack Pension funds in some economies are used as a captive audience to channel capital at below market rates to government. This policy is only one tool in the financial repression toolkit, but it is receiving increased attention as governments around the world struggle to increase fiscal space and reduce their sovereign debt burden as they rebuild their economies after the pandemic. First, this paper provides an analysis of financial repression using pension funds...

June 22, 2021
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