Former US Federal Reserve Chief Alan Greenspan has been promoting his book "The Age of Turbulence" for the last couple of weeks. Among other things, he is talking about his reasons for supporting the Iraq invasion and his assessment that the Chinese stock market is a bubble waiting to burst. On the question of his support for Iraq invasion, he explains that he was convinced Saddam Husain would block the Strait of Hormuz if not removed from power and that would have severe consequences for the world economy. I think he's just flat wrong on this reasoning. Other than the US or Europeans, the only power that had the capacity to close the Strait is Iran. The removal of Saddam has, in fact, strengthened Iran significantly and made it more likely that the Strait would be closed and oil supplies choked off in the event of war in the Persian Gulf involving Iran.
On the question of Shanghai stock bubble, he is more qualified than most but I still think he is wrong. The Chinese economy is very strong and growing rapidly. China is the factory of the world and it is developing a very large consumer class of its own with a pent-up demand not too different from the US consumer demand right after WW II. So the Chinese markets are backed up a strong economy to justify high valuation of its stock.

Views: 131

Comment by Riaz Haq on March 3, 2012 at 9:43am

Here are "Ten Things for India to Achieve its 2050 Potential", brought out by Jim O'Neill, Head Global Research at Goldman Sachs, and Tushar Poddar, V-P Research, Asia Economic Research Team at Goldman Sachs India, as reported by India's Economic Times:

1. Improve governance

2. Raise educational achievement

3. Increase quality & quantity of universities

4. Control inflation

5. Introduce credible fiscal policy

6. Liberalize financial markets

7. Increase trade with neighbors

8. Increase agricultural productivity

9. Improve infrastructure

10. Improve environmental quality

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/quickiearticleshow/3137357.cms

Comment

You need to be a member of PakAlumni Worldwide: The Global Social Network to add comments!

Join PakAlumni Worldwide: The Global Social Network

Pre-Paid Legal


Twitter Feed

    follow me on Twitter

    Sponsored Links

    South Asia Investor Review
    Investor Information Blog

    Haq's Musings
    Riaz Haq's Current Affairs Blog

    Please Bookmark This Page!




    Blog Posts

    Pakistan Downs India's French Rafale Fighter Jets in History's Largest Aerial Battle

    Pakistan Air Force (PAF) pilots flying Chinese-made J10C fighter jets shot down at least two Indian Air Force's French-made Rafale jets in history's largest ever aerial battle involving over 100 combat aircraft on both sides, according to multiple media reports. India had 72 warplanes on the attack and Pakistan responded with 42 of its own, according to Pakistani military. The Indian government has not yet acknowledged its losses but senior French and US intelligence officials have …

    Continue

    Posted by Riaz Haq on May 9, 2025 at 11:00am — 32 Comments

    Pahalgam Attack: Why is the Indian Media Not Asking Hard Questions?

    A recent terrorist attack on April 22 in Kashmir has killed 26 Indian tourists. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu Nationalist government took no time to blame Pakistan for the attack and vowed to "punish" the neighbor for it. Indian media, also derisively known as "Godi media", immediately went into overdrive to demand action against Pakistan. New Delhi followed up with suspending the Indus Basin Water treaty from the 1960s which guarantees 80% of the water from the three western rivers…

    Continue

    Posted by Riaz Haq on April 28, 2025 at 2:00pm — 19 Comments

    © 2025   Created by Riaz Haq.   Powered by

    Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service