EconAir

Famous Headline INTRODUCTION Before reading this essay, I strongly recommend you see the PBS video on YouTube. Type in Stock Market Crash 1929. Look for US – The Crash of 1929 (PBS), ALLHISTORIES – PLAYLIST.  Documentary  broken into 6 parts to show commercials. Or purchase video on Amazon. Great documentary with wonderful photos, videos, and scenes from movies of the 1920s and the crash. Shows what a crazy time this was.    I also recommend you read Frederick Lewis Allen,  Only Yesterday; An Informal History of the 1920’s . This a wonderful popular history on the 1920s and the crash. It shows how the economic, social, and psychological changes in the 1920s contributed to the speculative frenzy in the stock market. The author lived through it all. You can skip some of the chapters the first time through; for example, skip Chapters III, VI, IX, And X.   DEFINITIONS The Stock Market . In the 1920s, this meant the New York Stock Exchange. This is where mo...

                                            Chinese (BYD) Dancing Car Video link in text This is a case study of one country’s relationship with private companies in a major industry.   The central government has made the production of EVs a national priority with massive subsidies. The provincial, county, and local governments compete to attract an EV assembly plant. All levels of government entice new companies with a wide range of incentives and subsidies. The result is that in a short period of time about 100 new plants have been built; a few new ones are planned. The industry may have a total capacity of around 25-30 million cars.    Production was 12.4 million cars in 2024 and 16.5 million in 2025. Growth rates in the future will probably be lowered than in the past; exports will account for more of the growth.   This is a common pat...

All Together Now, Comrades Robot Production and Use in 2024 This is a summary of 2024 statistics from Google AI. Most of the numbers come from the annual report of the International Federation of Robotics. In 2024,  over 542,000 industrial robots were installed globally. This was  a 10% increase from the previous year, with Asia leading installations. China became the largest single market and manufacturer for the first time. China's domestic market share grew to 57%, surpassing foreign suppliers. Other notable trends included a 30% worldwide increase in professional service robot sales and a growing trend in digital twins for robot optimization.   Global Industrial Robot Production and Installation   Global installations:  Installations have been over 500,000 for the last four years, with no trend in growth. Regional dominance:  Asia accounted for 74% of new deployments, with Europe at 16% and the Americas at 9%. Top markets:  China was the largest m...