Aviva is trialling a smartphone App that will assess driving style. Using the phone’s built-in accelerometer, the app will measure acceleration, braking and cornering. In many ways this is no different from other permanently installed tracking systems increasingly used for underwriting and assessing risk. Differences include: Since it utilises the policyholder’s existing phone, no installation…
In South Africa we have a major income inequality problem. It’s historical (accumulated wealth, accumulated skills) and current (disastrous public education) and isn’t going away any time soon. The free market argument here is to forget about income inequality per se and focus on economy friendly, business friendly policies that will grow the entire economy…
Here is another interesting story with a gender angle. A study shows that stockholders in companies with women in the Board achieved better returns than those without. The obvious and likely correct point is that women add something valuable to the Board and is the company performs better. Diversity is a good thing in general,…
More women than men get home loans in South Africa up to the age of 39 or so. This is fascinating in itself and needs further analysis. Unfortunately, the analysis in the linked story misses a key point. 30 year old women and 50 year old women differ in that there is a 20 year…
I can’t believe how the same blog post is basically exactly relevant, word for word, 3 years later. Eskom produces electricity for the country and makes a profit or a loss doing so. This profit or loss goes back into treasury, which, inefficiencies aside, belongs collectively to the citizens of South Africa. If prices are…
Clem Sunter outlines some scenarios and gives them probabilities. I’d stay as far away from this assessment as possible. In his explanation he demonstrates several times a pretty flimsy, superficial understanding of economics. I don’t think he knows the first thing about why unemployment rates have dropped in the US. Â He points to the dip…
Brad de Long and Stephen S. Cohen have a new book called The End of Influence: What Happens When Other Countries Have the Money. It’s an interesting, informative, provocative and relevant read, providing context for the economic position the US finds itself in now. Perhaps of more direct interest, the issues of currency manipulation (done…
Some interesting thoughts on what drives Germany’s apparent success. The article does understate the problem that Germany’s success is significantly export driven – not everyone can export for obvious reasons. Also, the author notes that consumption has grown more slowly than economic growth without understanding that is exactly the source of an export-encouraged boom. Growth…
