I noticed the BBC reporting the latest shockingly bad economic figures from Japan. The first three months of 2009 saw the Japanese economy shrink at its quickest pace since records began. Output in the world’s second largest economy contracted by 4% during this period, or by 15.2% on an annualised basis. Given that Britain under Prudence Brown is following the same disastrous path of “quantitative easing” and “stimulus” that is failing in Japan, I look forward to Robert Peston and the rest of the BBC’s crack economic experts flagging this up.
THE SUN SETS IN THE EAST
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DV I think you have made a typo, surely “crap economic experts” not as you published?
I suspect you will have a long wait David.
The BBC reports:
“Output in the world’s second largest economy contracted by 4% during the period, or by 15.2% on an annual basis.
But economists predict a modest growth in the coming months, after a small rise in production in March.”
In other words, the extrapolation to 15.2% annually based on the figures of one quarter is drivel. Note that such idiotic extrapolations are the basis of ‘global warming’ predictions so beloved of the BBC
Denis Healey had form way back in 1974.
He introduced a mini-budget in August (to counter his previous cock-up) and cut VAT from 10% to 8%. He then projected those ‘deflated’ figures to claim that the annual inflation rate was 8.4% instead of 20% !
Another predictable article by BBC female journalist on herself as a (proudly unmarried) mother, and the financial crisis:
‘Evening Standard’ –
“Stephanie Flanders: How I juggle a dream job, world financial crisis and motherhood”.
Japan has been in an economic slump for nearly 20 years – primarily due to the Government’s failure to bite the bullet and allow dinosaur banks and businesses to go to the wall. Rather than allowing the market to cleanse the system and reallocate resources more efficiently, the whole economy has been under a depression because of constant face-saving bailouts.
Sound familiar?
Why doesn’t the BBC Tokyo correspondent Roland Buerk (son of BBC’s Michael – nice to keep it in the family, eh?) tell it like it is?
JohnW
Tokyo, nice cushy number for Roland. I wonder if the BBC would publish his salary and expenses and details of his living accommodation !