PIIE Experts in the News

Wall Street Journal Interviews Carmen Reinhart at Davos

The Wall Street Journal's Neal Lipschutz conducts a video interview with Carmen M. Reinhart at the World Economic forum in Davos. Reinhart avers that "the notion that one can reduce debt painlessly is like saying you can lose weight without diet and exercise." Reinhart is coauthor of A Decade of Debt.

Bergsten Steps Down from Peterson: On the Bergsten Legacy at CGD

Nancy Birdsall recounts C. Fred Bergsten's instrumental role in the creation of the Center for Global Development.

Wall Street Journal: Peterson Institute's Bergsten to Step Down

The Wall Street Journal covers the announcement that C. Fred Bergsten will step down as director of the Peterson Institute for International Economics at the end of 2012.

Financial Times: Founder Steps Down as US Think-Tank Head

The Financial Times covers the announcement that C. Fred Bergsten will step down as director of the Peterson Institute for International Economics at the end of 2012.

Washington Post: At Peterson Institute, a Founder Steps Down

The Washington Post covers the announcement that C. Fred Bergsten will step down as director of the Peterson Institute for International Economics at the end of 2012.

Kirkegaard on BNN: Can EU Find Way to Show Markets Debt Crisis Is Under Control?

Jacob Funk Kirkegaard discusses the recent French bond auction.

CFR: Kirkegaard and others on Five Economic Trends to Watch in 2012

The Council on Foreign Relations interviews five economists on their economic predictions for 2012. Jacob Funk Kirkegaard says, that with Europe's ineffective political response to the euro area crisis, a new trend will emerge in the financial markets, with investor greed surpassing market fears.

WSJ: Morris Goldstein and other Economists React: China-Japan Currency Pact

Morris Goldstein explains why the new currency accord between China and Japan will not challenge the US dollar's status as the dominant global currency.

Simon Johnson on Marketplace: Recession: Where the Local Is the Global

Simon Johnson explains how a recession in the euro area would be global in nature.

The Economist: Nicholas Lardy Predicts an Economic Slowdown in China

Nicholas R. Lardy delivers his predictions for China in 2012 at the Economist's World in 2012 Festival. His session included Alice Lyman Miller, Hoover Institution at Stanford University; James Mulvenon, Center for Intelligence Research and Analysis; and Carl Walter, coauthor of Red Capitalism: The Fragile Financial Foundation of China's Extraordinary Rise. The discussion was moderated by Tom Easton, US finance editor for the Economist.

Noland on NPR: U.S. Treads Cautiously With North Korean Transition

NPR interviews Marcus Noland on what risks the United States faces as North Korea transitions to a new leader.

Noland on Bloomberg: Outlook for North Korea Following Kim Jong Il Death

Marcus Noland remarks that the risks to stability in North Korea following Kim Jong-il's death stem from his successor Kim Jong-un's relative weakness; either he may not be able to control the military or, to burnish his own credentials, he may engage in military provocations. Noland is considered a foremost expert on North Korea and is author of Korea after Kim Jong-il and coauthor of Witness to Transformation: Refugee Insights into North Korea.

Marcus Noland on Marketplace Radio: North Korea Will Go about 'Business as Usual'

Marketplace Radio interviews Marcus Noland about the implications of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's death. Noland is author of Korea after Kim Jong-il.

Europe's New Pact: Kirkegaard on Planet Money

Jacob Funk Kirkegaard helps Planet Money summarize the euro area's new fiscal pact.

Was The Euro A Mistake To Begin With? Kirkegaard on Planet Money

Jacob Funk Kirkegaard writes that to say the euro area was a mistake ignores the fact that the initial institutional design of the euro, while flawed, can be fixed—provided the political will is present.

Remaking Doha for China | Subramanian cited in Wall Street Journal

Bob Davis of the Wall Street Journal comments on Arvind Subramanian and Aaditya Mattoo's latest working paper, A China Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations.

EM Currencies: Going Cheap? | Cline and Williamson Study Cited in Financial Times

The Financial Times turns to William Cline and John Williamson's recent update to their ongoing fundamental equilibrium exchange rates (FEERs) study to answer the question of whether emerging market currencies are cheap enough to invest in now.

Anders Aslund: Putin Made Two Mistakes About Medvedev

Anders Åslund spoke at the conference, "Russia's Revolution 20 Years Later: Hopes of the Past, Expectations for the Future," hosted by the American Enterprise Institute.

Russia's Heft in WTO Means More Economic Commitments

RBTH interviews Anders Åslund on what joining the WTO will mean for Russia. See also Policy Brief 11-20: The United States Should Establish Permanent Normal Trade Relations with Russia.

Dire Warnings About the Euro: Kirkegaard on PRI's The World

Jacob Funk Kirkegaard expects European leaders at the EU summit will produce plans for a process of fiscal integration because it is now the only long-term solution to avert a breakdown of the euro area. See also Kirkegaard's post The Approaching "Quantum Leap" in Euro Area Integration.

Gagnon on Reuters: Central Banks' Efforts "Not Enough"

Joseph E. Gagnon says that the coordinated effort by central banks to restore liquidity to the financial system is not enough and that the risk asset rally is an overreaction.

Elliott on NPR: Will International Sanctions Help Syrians?

Kimberly Ann Elliott, visiting fellow at the Peterson Institute, discusses the new economic sanctions imposed on Syria by the Arab League. Elliott is coauthor of the Peterson Institute's seminal study, Economic Sanctions Reconsidered.

Bloomberg: Kirkegaard on Europe Debt Crisis, Italian Bonds

Jacob Funk Kirkegaard says that the new unity government in Italy under Mario Monti is a necessary but not sufficient step; markets will need to see the new government risk implementing necessary reforms, which Kirkegaard believes ultimately will happen.

Schott on Reuters: APEC Leaders to Focus on World Economy in Honolulu

Reuters interviews Jeff Schott on what APEC leaders should focus on at meeting in Honolulu this weekend.

Subramanian on Bloomberg: China's Role in European Crisis, Potential Rescue

Arvind Subramanian, author of Eclipse: Living in the Shadow of China's Economic Dominance, discusses China's economy and the European financial crisis.

Kirkegaard on Diane Rehm Show: New Perils Facing the Eurozone

Jacob Funk Kirkegaard joins Rachel Donadio of the New York Times, Sudeep Reddy of the Wall Street Journal, and Robert Scott at the Economic Policy Institute in a discussion on the Diane Rehm Show about new perils facing the euro area in the wake of Greek Prime Minister George Papandreo's agreement to resign.

C. Fred Bergsten on Diane Rehm Show on Greek Debt Crisis

C. Fred Bergsten (PIIE), Desmond Lachman (American Enterprise Institute), and David Wessel (Wall Street Journal) discuss Greece and the European debt crisis.

Jacob Kirkegaard on Marketplace Radio: The Reasoning Behind Referendum Politics

Marketplace asks Jacob Funk Kirkegaard to explain why Greek Prime Minister Papandreou is asking for a referendum on the euro area debt deal.

See also Kirkegaard's post on the subject, Papandreou's Risky Gambit to Spread the Burden of Austerity.

Reuters: Fed Should Purchase $2 Trillion in MBS, Says Peterson Economist Gagnon

Reuters interviews Joseph E. Gagnon about his proposal that the US Federal Reserve purchase $2 trillion in mortgage-backed securities and notes that his idea is garnering widespread interest and support.

Daily Mail: Adam Posen: Euro Crisis Could Engulf Britain and Plunge Economy Back into Recession

Adam S. Posen warns that a collapse of the euro area would "overwhelm" Britain, and that the Bank of England is therefore justified in sanctioning another round of quantitative easing.

Simon Johnson on Planet Money: What Is GDP? (Video)

NPR's Adam Davidson takes Simon Johnson through the supermarket in this video to understand how GDP is measured.