Economics

Storefront window in China
In late April, Beijing reported first-quarter GDP growth of barely above 7%, far lower than the 10 to 11% rates typical for the last decade. The news prompted business headlines full of stark warnings about a continuing slowdown of the Chinese economy at the precise time when most of the developed...
A man casting a voting ballot
You would be hard-pressed to find a story about American politics today without the word “polarized” in it. Talk of greater partisan differences began in the 1980s, heated up after the contentious 2000 election, and continues: Consider media coverage of the deep ideological divisions surrounding...
A sign that announces Bitcoin is accepted
Bitcoin is a stateless, digital currency that allows people to make transactions with no middlemen — no banks, no transaction fees and no governments. Instead of printing banknotes or minting coins, a list of the registration numbers of each of the "bitcoins" and their owners is kept. In the last...
Hands holding a dish
Global poverty is a profound and persistent problem: More than a billion people live on less than $1.25 a day, according to the World Bank. While many Stanford researchers dedicate their work to alleviating poverty, a new university-wide initiative promises them more support. As part of the...
Book cover of "Everything I Ever Needed to Know About Economics I Learned From Online Dating"
When I set up my dating profile, I was upfront about my teenage children and my sweet but impish golden retriever. But I left out the YouTube videos my children introduced me to under “Things I Find Entertaining,” and in the section of OkCupid.com where they ask some very personal questions, I...
Debate in Sierra Leone
In the weeks leading up to the November 2012 elections in Sierra Leone, villagers gathered to watch a 45-minute debate among candidates for parliament. The debaters were not there in person, but rather in a video projected on the outside of the local polling center. For Katherine Casey, an...
A euro banknote
Average wages grew faster than worker productivity in southern European countries during a decade when investors were willing to accept similar interest rates across the eurozone. Source: Stanford GSB Economics Professor Chad Jones, using data from the Federal Reserve Economic Data database....
Vivek Garg and women entrepreneurs
As an officer in the Indian army, Vivek Garg led men into combat for a decade. Now he’s turning his leadership skills to economic development and has founded an organization that is building cooperative enterprises in conflict-torn Kashmir and two other states in Northeast India. Business...

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