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14 JULY
Inflation incoming
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's reputation as an ‘inflation dove’ will be put to the test as the US economy edges nearer to potentially significant inflation. Last month, inflation increased at its fastest pace in 13 years. Since June 2019, consumer prices have increased 6.1 per cent, with used cars clocking in 41.3 per cent higher than two years ago.
As explored in By the Numbers below, surging house prices are contributing to inflation both in the United States and Australia. Housing costs in the United States are up 15 per cent in the United States and in Australia continue exceeding pre-pandemic projections in key Australian cities, doubling the expected rises in Sydney and Brisbane. With some investors in the United States buying up whole neighbourhoods while other businesses still struggle from lockdowns and restrictions, the financial impact of the pandemic continues to have unequal impacts on different parts of society.
NEWS WRAP
Victory for the middle man
The Biden of Brooklyn? | Retired New York police captain Eric Adams has won the Democratic primary for the 2021 New York City mayoral elections. Adams’ win sees another victory for a Biden ‘middle of the road’ style of Democratic politics, beating popular progressive Democrats like Maya Wiley to the nomination by espousing a spirit of pragmatic and personal politics. READ MORE HERE
Get competitive | “Capitalism without competition is not capitalism, it’s exploitation,” President Biden said on Friday upon passing his Executive Order Promoting Competition in the American Economy. The order comes as antitrust legislation is held up in debate in the House, and is a decisive move to break up monopolising big businesses and spur American innovation. READ MORE HERE
Holding Big Tech accountable? | Donald Trump also vowed to hold Big Tech accountable, albeit for different reasons altogether. The former president announced last Wednesday that he would file class-action lawsuits against the CEOs of Facebook, Twitter and Google for violating the First Amendment with the censorship of his social media accounts. READ MORE HERE
Democracy and discord | Two US citizens were implicated in the assassination of Haitian president, Jovenel Moïse, and now Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Cenal is blaming the United States for the latest surge in anti-government protests in the communist island nation. Such events mount pressure on Biden to carry out his foreign policy mantra of carefully promoting democracy without overreaching. READ MORE HERE
There's no reason to think that changing corporate taxes would have some direct impact on prices.
Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen
Quoted in New York Times | 13 July 2021
ANALYSIS
Staying ahead in global tech leadership
Jennifer Jackett
Non-Resident Fellow, Foreign Policy and Defence Program
On the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party, President Xi Jinping reiterated the longstanding Chinese goal of strengthening science and technology to help achieve national rejuvenation. China’s advances in areas such as 5G, artificial intelligence, and facial recognition have already unlocked remarkable economic opportunities, supported China’s rapid military modernisation and mass surveillance capabilities, and enabled it to pursue its preferred digital environment internationally. Xi, as with all great power leaders, understands that technology is central to national power and relationships among states internationally.
While China’s ambitions of becoming a high-tech power are still yet to be fully realised, its progress already poses a challenge to the tech leadership and edge of the United States and its partners. Only last month, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison acknowledged “the technological edge enjoyed historically by Australia and our allies is under challenge.” The stakes could not be higher.
The world faces the prospect of competing technology ecosystems, with the dominant tech power being better placed to secure strategic interests and in line with their values. For the United States, and its partners, this raises the question of what is needed to maintain global tech leadership?
This is an excerpt from an article by Jennifer Jackett first published in The Interpreter. Click below to read the full article.
BY THE NUMBERS
Rising house prices
Sarah Hamilton
Research Associate for Data Insights
Globally, house prices are rising at their fastest rates since 2006. In the United States, the city of Phoenix saw the largest growth, with house prices increasing by 23.9 per cent in May 2021 from the year prior while San Diego came in second with an 18.8 per cent increase.
In Australia, Canberra house prices increased by the greatest proportion at 10.9 per cent from March 2020, with Hobart just below with an increase of 10.2 per cent.
Making up about one-third of standard inflation measurements, housing could boost inflation by two per cent in the United States.
VIDEO
NATO Expert Talk Series - Outcomes of the NATO Brussels Summit
Did you miss the latest webinar from our NATO Expert Talk Series? NATO’s Director for Security Policy and Partnerships Directorate, Political Affairs and Security Policy Division James Mackey sat down with USSC Lecturer and NATO Defense College Partners Across the Globe Fellow Dr Gorana Grgic to discuss the outcomes of this year's NATO Summit for partners like Australia.
The
full event replay is now available to stream. Tune in HERE.
Catch this and other recent webinars on the USSC YouTube channel!
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United States Studies Centre
Institute Building H03
University of Sydney NSW 2006
