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Nancy Qian

Nancy Qian

Writing for PS since 2021
37 commentaries
1 videos & podcasts

Nancy Qian, Professor of Economics at Northwestern University, is Co-Director of Northwestern University’s Global Poverty Research Lab and Founding Director of the China Econ Lab.

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  1. Americans Can’t Win from Trump’s Trade War
    qian41_TIMOTHY A. CLARYAFP via Getty Images_NYSE Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images

    Americans Can’t Win from Trump’s Trade War

    Apr 7, 2025 Nancy Qian sees only nonsense in the administration's rationale for “reciprocal” tariffs and the formula for setting them.

  2. Trump’s Trade War Is About More Than Trade
    qian40_MARK RALSTONAFP via Getty Images_UStradewar Mark Ralston/AFP via Getty Images

    Trump’s Trade War Is About More Than Trade

    Feb 10, 2025 Nancy Qian considers the domestic and global implications of the new US administration’s tariff policies.

  3. China’s Economy Has Not Peaked
    qian39_Getty Images Getty Images

    China’s Economy Has Not Peaked

    Dec 16, 2024 Nancy Qian concludes that, with fundamental reforms, another wave of rapid economic growth is possible.

  4. America Needs Political Age Limits
    qian38_ JIM WATSONAFP via Getty Images_biden JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

    America Needs Political Age Limits

    Aug 16, 2024 Nancy Qian sees no good reason for allowing elected officials to cling to office well into old age.

  5. Would Trump Escalate the US-China Trade War?
    qian37_Thomas Peter-PoolGetty Images_uschinaflag Thomas Peter/Pool/Getty Images

    Would Trump Escalate the US-China Trade War?

    Jul 31, 2024 Nancy Qian explains why high tariffs would be all but inevitable even though they would harm average Americans.

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  1. przybylski2_Alexander KoernerGetty Images_germanyarmy Alexander Koerner/Getty Images
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    Europe’s Democrats Must Forge a Will to Fight

    Wojciech Przybylski & Goran Buldioski think European leaders' most urgent security task is to nurture citizens' resolve to defend their countries.
  2. mazzucato81_Tomas CuestaGetty Images_javiermileichainsaw Tomas Cuesta/Getty Images
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    Governments Are Not Startups

    Mariana Mazzucato & Rainer Kattel

    By trying to running the state like a private business, Elon Musk and other anti-government types are creating a mess that someone else will have to clean up. Governments and businesses serve vastly different purposes, answer to different constituencies, and operate on entirely different timelines.

     explain why ongoing efforts to run the state like a business are doomed to fail.
  3. jkerry2_Ozgun TiranAnadoluGettyImages_black_sea Ozgun Tiran/Anadolu/Getty Images
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    Dumping Biomass in the Ocean Is Not a Climate Solution

    James Kerry & Lisa Levin warn against the commercialization of unproven climate interventions like one targeting the Black Sea.
  4. eichengreen202_ Stefan Wermuth - WPA PoolGetty Images_churchillsterling Stefan Wermuth/WPA/Pool/Getty Images
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    Sterling’s Past and the Dollar’s Future

    Barry Eichengreen

    US President Donald Trump says he wants to preserve the dollar's international role as a reserve and payment currency. If that's true, the history of pound sterling suggests he should be promoting financial stability, limiting the use of tariffs, and strengthening America's geopolitical alliances.

     applies three lessons from prewar Britain that the Trump administration appears determined to ignore.
  5. wei69_Alex WongGetty Images_trumptariffs Alex Wong/Getty Images
    3

    Trump’s Misguided Tariff Formula

    Shang-Jin Wei criticizes the US administration's crude calculations, which disregard textbook macroeconomic principles.
  6. chellaney186_SAI AUNG MAINSAI AUNG MAINAFP via Getty Images_myanmarearthquake Sai Aung Main/AFP via Getty Images
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    The US Must Change Course on Myanmar

    Brahma Chellaney outlines a policy approach that would promote stability, rather than perpetuating criminality and violence.
  7. fedyk10_Thierry MonasseGettyImages_ec_rearm_eu_annoucement Thierry Monasse/Getty Images
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    Europe Must Move Faster to Defend Itself

    Anastassia Fedyk, et al. outline four steps European leaders can take to accelerate rearmament and mitigate the Russian threat.
  8. guzman19_Tomas CuestaGetty Images_milei Tomas Cuesta/Getty Images
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    Will the IMF Get Played by Javier Milei?

    Martín Guzmán worries that the Fund will damage its credibility by issuing another politically motivated loan to Argentina.
  9. velasco158_Spencer PlattGetty Images_rustbelt Spencer Platt/Getty Images
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    There Is No Method to Trump’s Tariff Madness

    Andrés Velasco sees no merit in any of the rationales the White House has advanced for launching a global trade war.

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