Member Views

The Global Currency Power of the US Dollar: Problems and Prospects

When the COVID-19 pandemic triggered a “risk-off” flight of capital in the spring of 2020, private investors and financial institutions turned to US Treasury bonds as the alternative “safe asset.” The retreat from financial markets was soon reversed, in part because of the Federal Reserve’s formidable response to the threat of a global financial collapse. Fifty years after President Richard Nixon cut the link between gold and the dollar reserves held by foreign central banks, the US dollar continues to play a predominant role in the global financial system, with enormous spillover effects for US monetary policy.

The United States vs. China: The Quest for Global Economic Leadership

China’s dramatic growth and its implications for the world economy have fueled new books at a pace commensurate with the subject

A recent wave includes an important book by Fred Bergsten, founder of the Peterson Institute for International Economics and an established Washington elder on global economics

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo Appoints Members of U.S. Investment Advisory Council (IAC)

Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo announced the names of 34 international business and economic leaders who will advise the Secretary of Commerce on how government policies and programs affect the United States’ ability to attract and facilitate foreign business investment. Jonathan R. Everhart, CEO, Global ReEnergy Holdings and BWC member was appointed.

Sovereign debt architecture is messy and here to stay. Deal with it.

With severe sovereign debt distress now entrenched and more to come, many analysts and practitioners want to revamp the architecture for sovereign-debt restructurings. To do this they are offering reform proposals that are often incompatible with the facts on the ground.

Avoiding the pain of China’s housing crisis risks infecting the wider economy

o The growing housing crisis threatens to spread like previous financial contagions and damage economies across the globe
o Policymakers need to let poor performers suffer the consequences of bad bets while looking after solvent banks and enacting land and property reforms

The Indo-Pacific Economic Framework and US-China Relations

The eagerness driving the Biden administration’s launch of its Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) is perfectly understandable: the U.S. needs to raise its game and systematically tap into some of the fastest growing economies in the world. Indeed, the countries participating in developing the IPEF are states that have “good bones”:  rapidly rising incomes; a workforce that is young, well-educated, and eager to hone their skills; and governments who understand that “rule of law” begets investment.  

Why Central Banks Cannot Fix the State?

There are many high-profile examples these days of shifting the problems of the “state” on to other institutions, thereby placing the latter in impossible situations. Looking at Europe, we see the European Central Bank grappling with widening bond spreads caused by deeply entrenched fiscal problem, such as those facing Italy. No matter how skillfully the ECB operates in bond markets, it cannot substitute for national actions, including those which raise political uncertainty and then increase spreads within the Eurozone.

Mapping Carbon Neutrality from Words to Deeds

Who would have thought that after 30 years since the UN Convention on Climate Change, the gap between the agreed goals, and delivery on them remains so wide, and that consequently global warming continues unabated?

Harnessing the Metaverse: States of All Sizes

State powers are beginning to make their presence known in the metaverse, as Barbados launches a virtual embassy and China leverages its dedicated blockchain research group to harness data in virtual worlds. Though these two examples are distinct due to the varied size of the nations, the metaverse poses opportunities for state actors to capitalize on access to a captive global audience. With these opportunities comes a variety of concerns around how resources will be controlled from the political economy perspective and how the evolving U.S.-China relationship will be defined in this new realm.

Global food crisis demands urgent Western response

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine shocked the world, forced Western countries to respond, and is driving up the cost of energy and food across the globe. High prices in the United States may spell electoral disaster for President Joe Biden’s administration in November’s congressional elections. However, the most urgent economic, social, and human crises are unfolding in poorer countries where populations face war, spillover-driven inflation, and more expensive foreign-currency debt.