Global Economy

American and 2 Japanese Physicists Share Nobel for Work on LED Lights

In Africa, millions of diode lamps that run on solar power have been handed out to replace polluting kerosene lamps.

For the same amount of energy consumption, LED bulbs produce four times the light of a fluorescent bulb and nearly 20 times the light of an incandescent bulb.

In its announcement, the academy recalled Alfred Nobel’s desire that his prize be awarded for something that benefited humankind, noting that one-fourth of the world’s electrical energy consumption goes to producing light.

The iEconomy

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How Much Europe Depends on Russian Energy

Russia restricting Austria's gas supplies

According to the energy regulator E-Control, Gazprom supplied Austria 15 percent less gas than had been previously agreed. Similar issues have hit Poland, which has seen their supplies cut by 45 percent, and Slovakia, which has ten percent less gas than expected for the period.

Poland on Thursday accused Russia's Gazprom of slashing gas deliveries by half, which analysts said was likely aimed at sending a message to the EU amid tensions over the Ukraine conflict.

The Problem With Energy Efficiency

Over the past two centuries, the real cost of illumination in Britain has declined by a factor of 3,000, largely because of efficiency improvements, according to the researchers Roger Fouquet of the London School of Economics and Peter J. G. Pearson of Imperial College, London.

Especially in developing economies, cheap, energy-efficient lighting will almost certainly allow poor people to bring modern lighting into their homes much faster than they otherwise would. And that will almost certainly result in faster growth in energy demand globally.

Germany’s Insistence on Austerity Meets With Revolt in the Eurozone

Ms. Merkel and her finance minister, Wolfgang Schäuble, are far more likely to stick to balancing Germany’s federal budget, “a very strange objective to announce in current circumstances,” Mr. Fratzscher, who is president of the German Institute of the Economy in Berlin, said in an interview.

While they may agree to increase spending on roads, bridges and other infrastructure in Germany, he added, the German leaders are not likely to back similar policies for France and Italy, which in Berlin’s view cannot afford it.

Global Billionaires Political Power Index

No miracles in southern Eurozone without resource reallocation

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Back to reality

Four rescue measures for stagnant eurozone

To avoid the cyclical stagnation in the eurozone turning into secular stagnation, four policies are required.

The Broken Model Of The Eurozone

The North is competitive. The South is 20% overvalued.And I realized that's all you need to know about the eurozone and about why it will fail. Or has already failed, to put it more accurately. There's no other information required. Other than a bit of context, perhaps, to clarify.Before the euro and the eurozone, countries like Greece, Spain, Italy, Portugal, would perform 20% or more lower economically than Germany or Holland would. And that was kind of alright, because periodically, their governments and central banks would revalue (devaluate) their currencies down against;

Of course, Germany hated this to an extent, since it made it harder for its industries to compete against Greek and Italian companies. Which may, by the way, well be a mostly hidden reason for them to push the eurozone on the Mediterranean.

Martin Wolf’s Warning

Greece has seen real GDP decline by 25% between the last quarter of 2007 and the last quarter of 2013, while youth unemployment in Italy and Portugal is still at shocking levels of 44% and 35% respectively.

The euro is in greater peril today than at the height of the crisis

Two years ago forecasters were hoping for strong economic recovery. Now we know it did not happen, nor is it about to happen.

Today the eurozone has no mechanism to defend itself against a drawn-out depression. And, unlike two years ago, policy makers have no appetite to create such a mechanism.

Why Switzerland’s currency is going historically crazy

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