E VERYONE KNOWS that data are worth something. The biggest companies in the world base their businesses on them. Artificial-intelligence algorithms guzzle them in droves. But data are not like normal traded goods and services, such as apples and haircuts. They can be used time and again, like public goods. They also have spillover effects, both positive, such as helping to improve health care, and negative, such as breaches of personal information. That makes them far from easy to value.
In case you are keeping track:
A modern Marx - The world's most famous economist sets out the case for socialism | Books and
Capital and Ideology. By Thomas Piketty. Translated by Arthur Goldhammer. Belknap Press; 1,104 pages; $39.95 and £31.95
THOMAS PIKETTY'S "Capital in the Twenty-First Century", first published in 2013, made the French economist a household name. Combining heavy economic theory with data wizardry and commentary on the novels of Jane Austen and Honoré de Balzac, Mr Piketty argued that capitalism almost inevitably generates high and rising inequality.
Mr Piketty's new book is over 1,000 pages long and looks far beyond the West. Austen and Balzac turn up again—joined by "Black Panther", a recent blockbuster film, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's novel "Americanah". Mr Piketty says the tome is "in large part a sequel" to its predecessor, yet in an important way it is a clear change of direction.
Outbreak starts to look more like worldwide economic crisis | Northwest Herald
NEW YORK – The COVID-19 virus outbreak began to look more like a worldwide economic crisis Friday as anxiety about the infection emptied shops and amusement parks, canceled events, cut trade and travel and dragged already slumping financial markets even lower.
More employers told their workers to stay home, and officials locked down neighborhoods and closed schools. The wide-ranging efforts to halt the spread of the illness threatened jobs, paychecks and profits.
In an Environment of Chronic Economic Uncertainty, Trump Is Only Making It Worse | The New Yorker
The hunkering down isn't confined to the financial markets, of course. Much of the vast Chinese economy, a key source of goods and components for other countries around the world, is still on enforced hiatus. In many places, restrictions on travel and group events are being introduced, and not just by governments.
In assessing the economic impact of the virus, some analysts have interpreted the market slide as a temporary shock to production—a "supply shock." Thinking along these lines, a number of Wall Street forecasters have bravely predicted that economic growth, after taking a hit in the first part of this year, will rebound sharply. This matches what happened after the shock of 9/11, and it could happen again.
This may worth something:
Switzerland Will Lower Economic Growth Forecasts Over Coronavirus - The New York Times
VIENNA — The Swiss government will lower its economic growth forecast because of the coronavirus outbreak, an official from its State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) said on Saturday.
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"A correction of the growth forecast is to be expected. How sharp that correction will be is not yet clear," Scheidegger said, adding that it would depend on how the outbreak develops and the effect on countries, including Switzerland's trading partners.
China's Economy Reels as Coronavirus Hits Manufacturing Worse Than Financial Crisis - WSJ
SHANGHAI—China's coronavirus epidemic is depressing its economic outlook, with new government readings on the manufacturing and service sectors validating informal indications that the country is struggling to get back to work.
Virus outbreak starts to look more like worldwide economic crisis - Portland Press Herald
NEW YORK — The coronavirus outbreak began to look more like a worldwide economic crisis Friday as anxiety about the infection emptied shops and amusement parks, canceled events, cut trade and travel and dragged already slumping financial markets even lower.
More employers told their workers to stay home, and officials locked down neighborhoods and closed schools. The wide-ranging efforts to halt the spread of the illness threatened jobs, paychecks and profits.
Coronavirus hasn't hit Alaskans, but economists here are bracing for impact - Alaska Public
Alaska has no known cases of the coronavirus, but the outbreak that began in China has set off economic shockwaves that are already jolting Alaskans. For one, the virus crushed the stock market this week. Looking ahead, economists foresee several grim possibilities, but they're not universally terrible.
One of the biggest unknowns is what the epidemic will mean for Alaska's summer tourism. The vast majority of Alaska's visitors come from other U.S. states, not China. But with a viral infection in the news, will they still want to crowd onto airplanes and cruise ships to get here?
Happening on Twitter
Managing pandemics requires trustworthy and accurate information. That's why this is so disturbing: The Trump Adm… https://t.co/A3Jp0cqI6m RepAdamSchiff (from Burbank, CA) Fri Feb 28 01:16:31 +0000 2020
I blow the whistle on Schiff. He can't be trusted with classified information.... https://t.co/bwWGym3a1V TomFitton (from Washington, DC) Fri Feb 28 05:08:32 +0000 2020
The White House has prohibited public health officials from releasing any information VPOTUS has not approved for r… https://t.co/Uruq6C1q7T waltshaub Fri Feb 28 18:15:08 +0000 2020
Stephen Miller's new wife is in charge of all govt information about the epidemic. So that's nice. https://t.co/Mx1VFBFhER HelenKennedy (from NYC and the North Fork) Fri Feb 28 14:20:41 +0000 2020
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