Trumponomics

Latest Episodes:

Most Companies Talk Creativity; Few Walk It. Art Can Help Aug 31, 2017

Show notes

Western Capitalism is supposed to thrive on Joseph Schumpeter's idea of creative destruction. Yet few companies really nurture creativity. Beancounters loom, ready to take away the canvas that the next big thing is sketched on. Take heart: Thinking about art can help business and finance executives get to Point B. They don't always have to know what Point B looks like before they begin. New York University Professor and author Amy Whitaker explains why to Dan and Scott. Along the way she shares anecdotes about investment bankers in pinstripes mucking it up in a London studio. And how did Oscar-winning `Dallas Buyers Club' almost not get made?

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thucydides's Trap Has Implications for Economics, Not Just Conflict Aug 24, 2017

Show notes

What is Thucydides's trap and how does it foretell the future of U.S.-China economic ties? Much has been said about China's strategic challenges to America. Less talked about is the financial tussle between the two. Harvard's Graham Allison walks Dan through his latest book and explains why a conflict is more likely than many people imagine. Along the way, Allison talks about North Korea and how dealing with a "nutty regime" fits into the broader competition between Washington and Beijing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Make America Pay Its Bills. Again. Aug 13, 2017

Show notes

What is the U.S. debt ceiling, where did it come from and why does it matter? This time the familiar Washington ritual has a twist. And investors are starting to anticipate something new: The most critical of deadlines may be missed. How can this happen when the White House and Congress are controlled, nominally, by the same party? Why even have a debt ceiling? Special guests Alex Harris and Brian Chappatta join Dan to explain that this time it actually could be different.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Setting a New Benchmark With Our 100th Episode Aug 10, 2017

Show notes

The Benchmark crew celebrates the podcast's 100th episode with a trip through highlights as picked by hosts and producers, both past and present. From the Nobel Prize to Duke Bootee, Dan and Scott — along with some special guests — share the moments that put a human face on that thing we call economics. And we look forward at what the next 100 episodes will bring.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Where the U.S. Still Rules in Asia Aug 04, 2017

Show notes

Why does the U.S. still dominate discussion in a major Chinese city? On a multi-week trip to Asia, Dan discovers a surprising place where America's dominance in Asia is unparalleled and gains some insight into Japan's labor market during a busy lunch hour in Tokyo's financial district. Guest host Joe Weisenthal from Bloomberg's `Odd Lots' podcast holds Dan to account and road tests some of his theories.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why Everyone Needs to Care About the Fed's Shrinking Balance Sheet Jul 27, 2017

Show notes

The Federal Reserve said this week that it's about to try something that's never been done on this scale in the annals of central banking: reduce its $4.5 trillion stockpile of assets. The ramifications could be felt everywhere from mortgage rates, to the cost of vacationing in Thailand, even to President Donald Trump's attitude toward the Fed. Bloomberg reporter Chris Condon joins Scott to explain what's happening and try to come up with a better name than "balance sheet normalization" for the whole process.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What Our Trump Time Machine Got Right -- and Wrong -- About the Economy Jul 20, 2017

Show notes

One year ago, the Benchmark crew ventured into the future -- July 2017 -- to imagine what was then all but unimaginable: How would the U.S. economy fare in the first six months under President Donald J. Trump? Now that it's all come to pass, Scott and guest co-host Jeanna Smialek speak with our seer from 2016, Neil Dutta from Renaissance Macro Research, to explain what we got right and wrong -- and what we can expect for the rest of the president's term.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You Just Missed Your Chance to Get Rich on Toronto Real Estate Jul 13, 2017

Show notes

Home prices in Canada's largest city have been on a tear. But the party could be on the verge of ending, at least temporarily. The Bank of Canada's decision this week to raise interest rates -- the first hike in seven years -- makes mortgages more expensive. A string of government tightening measures and a liquidity crunch at a Toronto mortgage lender are adding to concerns a price correction is around the corner. This week on Benchmark, Dan, Chris Fournier and Katia Dmitrieva speak to Phil Soper, chief executive officer at Royal LePage, a unit of Brookfield Real Estate Services, about what the latest developments mean for Toronto housing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The One Caveat Hanging Over Jobs in America Jul 07, 2017

Show notes

The U.S. labor market looked pretty strong in June, with more Americans getting jobs and unemployment close to a 16-year low. All strong, with one glaring exception: Wages still just aren't rising that quickly. The question is, why? Yelena Shulyatyeva, a Bloomberg Intelligence senior economist, helps Scott and Dan break it down.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The World's First Modern Financial Crisis: 1997 Edition Jun 29, 2017

Show notes

Twenty years ago this week, a momentous event more than a century in the making finally occurred: Hong Kong's handover to China. Turns out, that wasn't even close to the biggest story that year. What really did transfix the world in 1997 was the financial crisis that exploded a day after the handover -- in, of all places, Bangkok. Today on Benchmark, Dan, a former Malaysia bureau chief, and Hong Kong-based Malcolm Scott look back at the crisis and the wrenching economic and political changes it wrought. They're joined by Alec McCabe, who covered the drama from Hong Kong, and Lee Miller, then Bangkok bureau chief and now a professor at Tsinghua University in Beijing. One conclusion: Asia's convulsions were the first modern global financial crisis and a harbinger of a much greater shakeout in the U.S. a decade later.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected