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Kaushik Basu

Kaushik Basu

Writing for PS since 2002
85 commentaries

Kaushik Basu, a former chief economist of the World Bank and chief economic adviser to the Government of India, is Professor of Economics at Cornell University and a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

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  1. The Muddled Politics of US Inflation
    basu85_Scott OlsonGetty Images_inflation prices Scott Olson/Getty Images

    The Muddled Politics of US Inflation

    Nov 3, 2022 Kaushik Basu explains why soaring prices fuel popular anger in a way that no other economic indicator can.

  2. All the King’s Games
    basu84_ContributorGetty Images_russiaprotest Contributor/Getty Images

    All the King’s Games

    Oct 3, 2022 Kaushik Basu sheds light on the shadowy machinations and oppressive tactics that help authoritarian rulers stay in power.

  3. The Fed Is Overreacting
    basu83_Graeme Jennings-PoolGetty Images_jerome powell Graeme Jennings-Pool/Getty Images

    The Fed Is Overreacting

    Sep 1, 2022 Kaushik Basu argues that the US central bank’s aggressive policy tightening reflects a misreading of the labor market.

  4. Why Sri Lanka Imploded
    basu82_Buddhika WeerasingheGetty Images_sri lanka Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty Images

    Why Sri Lanka Imploded

    Jul 20, 2022 Kaushik Basu traces the country’s spiraling economic crisis to political hubris and authoritarianism.

  5. Beacons of Hope in the Indian Wilderness
    basu81_Sukhomoy SenPacific PressLightRocket via Getty Images_indiaschool Sukhomoy Sen/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images

    Beacons of Hope in the Indian Wilderness

    Jul 5, 2022 Kaushik Basu reports on an uplifting recent tour of innovative education programs for poor rural children.

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  1. sierakowski91_Omar MarquesGetty Images_ukrainian refugees Omar Marques/Getty Images
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    Resentment on the Western Front

    Sławomir Sierakowski thinks the Polish public needs a more open and honest conversation about refugees before resentment spirals.
  2. vives17_ Leon NealGetty Images_ftx Leon Neal/Getty Images
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    Crypto’s Well-Worn Path to Crisis

    Xavier Vives writes that, despite the novelty of the assets, the narrative of FTX’s collapse was established long ago.
  3. roubini171_Spencer PlattGetty Images_recession looming Spencer Platt/Getty Images
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    The Unavoidable Crash

    Nouriel Roubini anticipates a stagflationary debt crisis, owing to a dangerous combination of inflation and over-borrowing.
  4. nye236_SAUL LOEBAFP via Getty Images_biden xi SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images
    1

    War Over Taiwan?

    Joseph S. Nye, Jr. considers whether a deterrence arrangement that has worked for 50 years is still sufficient.
  5. op_livingston1_Anna MoneymakerGetty Images_fed Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
    2

    The Contested Fed

    James Livingston

    By all accounts, central banks – particularly the Fed, because the dollar is still the world’s dominant currency – already act as investment authorities. But their recent bailouts have exacerbated economic inequality, and have done little or nothing to address climate change.

     reviews three books that, each in its own way, reveal a central truth about the world’s leading central bank.
  6. pisaniferry140_Sean GallupGetty Images_cop27 Sean GallupGetty Images
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    The Economics of Mainstreaming Climate Action

    Jean Pisani-Ferry & Selma Mahfouz identify the risks and short-term costs associated with the energy transition over the next decade.
  7. haldar15_ Tayfun CoskunAnadolu Agency via Getty Images_twitter Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
    2

    Killing Twitter

    Antara Haldar explains what Elon Musk fundamentally misunderstands about the platform – and about free speech.
  8. emmott41_musk
    2

    The Napoleons of Big Tech

    Bill Emmott

    Recent events in the technology sector suggest that investors and lenders should be demanding a premium to cover the risk that a star entrepreneur will become an egomaniacal dictator. With each business cycle, it seems, old lessons must be relearned.

     sees in the industry’s harsh reckoning this year lessons that apparently can’t be learned often enough.
  9. BP - ftx NurPhoto / Contributor via Getty Images
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    The Crypto Emperor’s New Clothes

    The collapse of several crypto platforms this year – including the spectacular crash of the second-largest cryptocurrency exchange, FTX – has raised fundamental questions about the credibility of a digital innovation once hailed as the key to democratizing finance. Has crypto finally been exposed as a scam, or will a new, stronger crypto industry emerge from the current turmoil?

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