Once again, Germany and Japan have slipped into recession. Once again, the second and third largest of the world’s major industrial economies are subtracting from, not adding to, growth in the world’s aggregate demand.
From the standpoint of German and Japanese citizens, this is bad news. Rapidly improving global technologies should make it relatively easy to deliver rising levels of output and living standards. Yet the German and the Japanese economies have had a hard time doing so for the past decade and a half. Certainly, everyone anticipated fifteen years ago that the current state of both economies would be much better.
From the standpoint of global political stability, recession and stagnation in Germany and Japan is potentially even worse news. Democratic governments make a bargain with their people, gaining their long-run legitimacy from their ability to deliver rising living standards and high employment.
Once again, Germany and Japan have slipped into recession. Once again, the second and third largest of the world’s major industrial economies are subtracting from, not adding to, growth in the world’s aggregate demand.
From the standpoint of German and Japanese citizens, this is bad news. Rapidly improving global technologies should make it relatively easy to deliver rising levels of output and living standards. Yet the German and the Japanese economies have had a hard time doing so for the past decade and a half. Certainly, everyone anticipated fifteen years ago that the current state of both economies would be much better.
From the standpoint of global political stability, recession and stagnation in Germany and Japan is potentially even worse news. Democratic governments make a bargain with their people, gaining their long-run legitimacy from their ability to deliver rising living standards and high employment.