Creating Demand for US products in China

A friend of mine has started an advertising service for US producers who wish to market their products/services in China. He has traveled to China several times and has connections to people in the local economy. His ideas are pure capitalism and his innovation is motivating.



Today I read in USA Today about Asian consumers embracing the use of credit and debit cards. Will these markets open more quickly with the convenience of easy money/credit access? Is this to be a repeat of the American experience? If so, are US producers situated to gain market share?



Apparently General Motors is well on its way to capturing market share in China as reported in the same edition of USA Today. What about your company? Do you have something to market in China? The university where I teach is already positioning itself to serve students in China and not just online.

Finding a job in the new labor market

Today I read a blog I located through a Linkedin group. The blogger describes the path she discovered as she searched for a professional position in this difficult labor market.


Please note, I use the economic term labor market, not job market. Students in my classes will recognize one of my pet topics. Labor is the resource being bought and sold, not the job. I completely understand why job seekers view this as a job market. Much time and effort is being spent on the supplier's side to land that perfect employment opportunity. It feels like the supplier of labor is actually procurring a job. In our classes we discuss the labor market; households supply labor and firms demand labor. Right now there is decreased demand for labor due to multinational recessionary pressure.



In an executive summary from Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce, it is reported that by 2018 there will be a shortage of Americans with college degrees. This is a bright spot on the economic horizon for young college graduates who are currently struggling in their search for gainful employment. The article is careful to point out that this increased demand is for labor possessing human capital in the form of college degrees.



Another point deserving attention is the blogger's use of branding and social networking. The CLC: Callahan Learning Community blog addressed branding in the second post. I am hopeful that future microeconomics classes will show an interest in exploring the branding of self as a marketing concept for their own labor. Next week on Tuesday June 22, Keiser University Sarasota Student Services Office is hosting a seminar entilted Managing YOU, Inc. in our auditorium. Patricia Matthews of HR Audits and Workplace Solutions Consultants will address strategically managing a career like you would a business.




Later today I will be "attending" a webinar on putting e in learning. Perhaps this will tie in with the value of social networking to education.

Living on $18,000 a year by choice

While reading MSN news early this morning, I came across an article about 3 people at various ages who choose to live on only $18,000 per year. The impetus for this article may be the approaching retirement of baby boomers (my generation), many of whom have very little savings.



This artcle makes for interesting dialog for students of both microeconomics and macroeconomics. The obvious interest for microeconomics is choices made by individuals and households. Macroeconomic students might explore the effect on the macroeconomy should many households adopt this personal philosophy.



Reading this article is an interesting follow-up for the video Big Box Mart from Jib Jab and the movie Maxed Out that we view in both economics classes.

Should Mortgage holders be responsible for remaining debt?

In today's Washington Post there is an article by Dina ElBoghdady titled Lenders Go After Money Lost in Foreclosure. It is a puzzling question about which party should bear the cost of price fluctuations. The family home is involved which probably creates more sympathy for the buyer. There is also the question as to whether the middleman, lender, knowingly encouraged the buyer to overextend with debt. In this case the reader's sympathy often turns to demonizing the lender, but what is the buyer's responsibility? Perspective probably plays into the reader's opinion.

Reading the comments is instructive with respect to popular opinion. What is right? What will result in the best future for the market? Is that the correct goal? I know I am teetering on the brink of ethics, but what is good economics for the U.S. economy?

Fed examines unemployment coming out of recession

The Federal Reserve of Atlanta has an interesting report on cyclical versus structural unemployment coming out of the 2009 recession. Specific career areas are identified in the graphs. These findings might point the way for students to make career choices. Opportunity costs, demand for labor, human capital, global economy and of course unemployment both cyclical and structural are economic topics that spring to mind for discussion.


The graphs used to illustrate these trends are unusual and new to me. I found the written description confusing, but as soon as I viewed the graphs, I understood them. This offers an interesting point for discussion of learning styles and perception.

Brand You

While reading information posted on the site of a Linkedin group on behavioral economics, I came across the following article, The Brand Called You by Tom Peters. I thought this might be a grand topic to explore connecting each student to their real, personal world.



Most of the students in my economics classes are there precisely to increase their human capital to enhance the demand for their labor. I first encountered personal branding in a marketing workshop at a career college meeting several years ago. I find the concept fascinating. In a competitive world market each individual needs to take steps to stand out. Like a business product, it would be beneficial to brand ourselves to differentiate us from the competition.

Blog Start

Inspired by Richard Florida's Rise of the Creative Class, I am starting a blog to facilitate 21st Century learning for students in my microeconomics and macroeconomics classes. The next class will begin in August, but I am starting this in June to get a feel for what I can do with this medium. I am helped by the collaboration of a colleague, Dr. Paula Porter.

Economics is obviously my passion , but so too are mathematics, particularly algebra, and education.

Students of economics might notice how these interests converge in human capital.