Do they provide a chart? No, of course not. That would require some form of programming and would make for less room advertisements.
So here it is, industrial production.
What also stood out about this chart is something I've been contending for years, but I've literally had people tell me I'm wrong and not to believe my eyes, but that the economy is becoming less and less volatile. The reason I point this out is that I think volatility (or the lack thereof) is a measure or sign as to just how much more we're learning about and implementing economics. As we mature we fine tune the economy, adjust inventory levels more quickly, implement fiscal/monetary policy more quickly, etc.
Call me old school, but I think that the lack of volatility in industrial production or GDP growth makes people lazy.
ReplyDeleteDid you notice that there is a significant drop in volatility in the 60s, which almost coincides with the downturn in productivity growth in the early 70s? When was the time with the biggest amount of innovations that improved our lives? Yes, it was the 30s and 40s, when volatility was extreme.
Today, people wet themselves when they hear that the economy will only grow by .6%. OMFG, now parents have to wait 6 months till "recession" is over, so that they can afford to buy their daughter an Urban Assault Vehicle (I think you once coined that nice term).
Very cool chart. I wish there were more time-dependent charts out there, either in traditional media or on the internet. To me, seeing trends develop over the course of a decade or a century is much more informative than reading a bunch of percentages.
ReplyDeleteHey.
ReplyDeleteYes and no. I think you're right the economy is becoming more and more fine-tuned, but I don't think it's because of increasing understanding. I think computerization and the internet is taking Adam Smith's invisible hand and making it ever quicker. The day they attached the London to Sydney telegraph cable the message time from one end of the empire to the other dropped from six months to six hours, and that process continues. We've always known exactly how to run our own lives. Now, we get the information we need instantly, instead of yearly. Your chart illustrates this perfectly. We will never have another depression unless caused by law, and we may never have another recession.