The Economic Cost of Isolating Immigrants

Hostility Toward Newcomers Has Always Hampered Investment, Innovation, and Growth

Trump’s immigration policies are a problem for the U.S. economy, and in ways you might not think.

Whether it’s crime, security or jobs—Trump has openly and repeatedly linked many of the supposed woes of the nation to immigrants, fanning the xenophobic flames that exist at some level in all societies. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the strong anti-immigrant rhetoric has already slowed the pace of immigration into the United States, whether legal or illegal. And now Trump is working with two senators to slow immigration even more. The RAISE Act (Reforming …

By Christopher Thornberg | August 8, 2017

Marijuana Needs Middlemen to Reach the Mainstream Market

A Cannabis Entrepreneur Wants to Turn an Illicit Ecosystem into an Economic Juggernaut

By Eric Spitz | June 21, 2017

California’s marijuana industry will soon begin its transition from an illicit ecosystem fraught with guns, cash, and cartels into a regulated economic juggernaut.

The stakes of getting it right are …

How Iceland’s Rugged Viking Heritage Helped Salvage Its Economy

The Nordic Nation Fought Back Against Its Creditors, Then Rebuilt Its Wrecked Banking System

By Jerry Nickelsburg | May 23, 2017

What can we learn from the Vikings?

I usually write in this space about the economies of the Pacific Rim, and the lessons they hold for policymakers in the United States. …

If You Want Strawberry Fields Forever, You Need Migrant Labor

A Year-Round Supply of Low-Priced Food Demands Seasonal Workers Free to Cross Borders

By Jerry Nickelsburg | April 26, 2017

Two hundred years ago this year, British economist David Ricardo published his monumental work “On The Principles of Political Economy and Taxation.” In it he outlined a theory of international …

In the New Global Trade Map, China Commands the Center

Asia's Ascendancy Will Test Western Democracies, as It Reshuffles Winners and Losers

By Javier Díaz-Giménez | April 26, 2017

Most maps you see in this country put the Atlantic Ocean at their center, with North America and Europe just off center stage. Asia is on a periphery.

My favorite map …

Want to Really Help Workers? Then Embrace Free Trade

Protectionist Barriers Won't Stop Robots from Taking U.S. Jobs

By Bhagwan Chowdhry | April 18, 2017

Ideas, innovation, exploration, and entrepreneurship make societies rich. When you buy something built elsewhere you are not just buying a fancy new object. You are importing ideas and innovation. When …

Economics