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Kaushik Basu

Kaushik Basu

Writing for PS since 2002
101 commentaries

Kaushik Basu, a former chief economist of the World Bank and chief economic adviser to the Government of India, is Professor of Economics at Cornell University and a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

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  1. Globalization vs. Democracy
    basu101_Alfonso Sangiao iStock  Getty Images Plus_voting Alfonso Sangiao/iStock / Getty Images Plus

    Globalization vs. Democracy

    Apr 19, 2024 Kaushik Basu highlights the contradictions and vulnerabilities inherent in the current international order.

  2. The Economic Consequences of Legal Behavior
    basu100_David Dee DelgadoGetty Images_newyork David Dee Delgado/Getty Images

    The Economic Consequences of Legal Behavior

    Mar 15, 2024 Kaushik Basu highlights the potential benefits of emphasizing adherence to the spirit of laws, if not their letter.

  3. Economic Possibilities for Our Overworked Grandchildren
    basu99_Spencer PlattGetty Images_tax wealth Spencer Platt/Getty Images

    Economic Possibilities for Our Overworked Grandchildren

    Feb 21, 2024 Kaushik Basu shows how it is possible to redistribute income from the rich to the poor without undermining individual incentives.

  4. Remembering Robert Solow
    basu98_David L. RyanThe Boston Globe via Getty Images_robertsolow David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

    Remembering Robert Solow

    Jan 15, 2024 Kaushik Basu honors the life and work of the pioneering scholar, who died in late 2023.

  5. The Biggest Threats to Global Economic Stability
    basu97_robertsrobGetty Images_worldeconomy robertsrob/Getty Images

    The Biggest Threats to Global Economic Stability

    Dec 27, 2023 Kaushik Basu highlights the urgency of re-thinking some core assumptions amid debt distress and rapid technological change.

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  1. adda1_ Nicholas KajobaXinhua via Getty Images_hbv Nicholas Kajoba/Xinhua via Getty Images

    A Big Step Forward for Liver Health

    Danjuma Adda explains how new hepatitis guidelines from the World Health Organization could reduce cancer deaths in Africa.
  2. khrushcheva181_ SERGEI BOBYLYOVPOOLAFP via Getty Images)_xi putin SERGEI BOBYLYOV/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

    The Fragile Fraternity of China and Russia

    Nina L. Khrushcheva

    Vladimir Putin’s recent state visit to Beijing – his first trip abroad since being inaugurated for a fifth term – was practically a mirror image of Mao Zedong’s visit to Moscow 75 years ago, when Stalin looked down on his guest. There is little reason to think that the bilateral relationship will prove more resilient this time.

    doubts that two countries with such diverging interests will be able to build a lasting partnership.
  3. subacchi41_ViaframeGetty Images_worldcrackingglobebreaking Viaframe/Getty Images

    The Global Economy Is More Vulnerable Than It Seems

    Bertrand Badré & Yves Tiberghien identify five factors driving a potentially catastrophic trend toward fragmentation.
  4. skidelsky201_Leon NealGetty Images_BOE Leon Neal/Getty Images

    The Myth of Central-Bank Independence

    Robert Skidelsky thinks the time has come to transfer power from technocrats back to elected officials.
  5. vaheesan2_Michael M. SantiagoGetty Images_gigworkersprotest Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

    The Gig Economy vs. America’s Workers

    Sandeep Vaheesan warns that proposed ballot initiatives in Massachusetts would legalize exploitative employment practices.
  6. sherwin13_CURTIS MEANSPOOLAFP via Getty Images_repubicans trump trial CURTIS MEANS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

    King Trump on Trial

    Richard K. Sherwin

    High-ranking Republican politicians have lately been turning up at Donald Trump’s New York City trial to demonstrate solidarity with the former president. But their attendance also serves a more alarming purpose: to validate Trump as a competing source of sovereign power, independent of the US Constitution and the rule of law.

    explains why a parade of Republican leaders have made appearances at the former president’s trial in New York.
  7. spence173_ Joe RaedleGetty Images_power Joe Raedle/Getty Images

    Crunch Time for the Power Sector

    Michael Spence argues that developing flexible, stable, and resilient smart grids requires an expanded industrial policy.
  8. op_janeway16_SAUL LOEBAFP via Getty Images_bidenchips Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

    The Rise of Mesoeconomics

    William H. Janeway details how a long-neglected field of economic study can be applied to today's most pressing policy challenges.
  9. strain27_Philipp von Ditfurthpicture alliance via Getty Images_AIeducation Philipp von Ditfurth/picture alliance via Getty Images

    What the AI Pessimists Are Missing

    Michael R. Strain points out that the technology will help to address many of the risks it creates.

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