Benjamin Braun
@benbraun.bsky.social
Political economist @ LSE | Finance, central banking & more | benjaminbraun.org
November 10, 2025 at 9:35 AM
Listening now. Hoping to learn more about how the United States’ new growth model is going to work.
November 9, 2025 at 2:54 PM
Listening now. Hoping to learn more about how the United States’ new growth model is going to work.
Amazing sequence of paragraphs in a piece on how dollar volatility has fallen to pre-election levels.
on.ft.com/3JAflat
on.ft.com/3JAflat
November 9, 2025 at 12:31 PM
Amazing sequence of paragraphs in a piece on how dollar volatility has fallen to pre-election levels.
on.ft.com/3JAflat
on.ft.com/3JAflat
This is what deindustrialization in a carbon shock therapy setting looks like. If the state doesn’t do the planning and redistribute any remaining surpluses downward, private equity will do the planning and redistribute any remaining surpluses upward (and out of country).
on.ft.com/3WNWnA9
on.ft.com/3WNWnA9
November 9, 2025 at 11:36 AM
This is what deindustrialization in a carbon shock therapy setting looks like. If the state doesn’t do the planning and redistribute any remaining surpluses downward, private equity will do the planning and redistribute any remaining surpluses upward (and out of country).
on.ft.com/3WNWnA9
on.ft.com/3WNWnA9
"Every week that passes costs the economy anywhere from $10 billion to $30 billion, based on analysts’ estimates, with several landing in the $15 billion range."
Unfathomable.
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
Unfathomable.
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
November 5, 2025 at 10:56 AM
"Every week that passes costs the economy anywhere from $10 billion to $30 billion, based on analysts’ estimates, with several landing in the $15 billion range."
Unfathomable.
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
Unfathomable.
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
He said this literally one day after information about the mass killings in El-Fasher had spread. What absolute monsters. Godspeed, Michael Burry.
November 4, 2025 at 7:27 PM
He said this literally one day after information about the mass killings in El-Fasher had spread. What absolute monsters. Godspeed, Michael Burry.
Do not, under any circumstances, go short ontology.
November 4, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Do not, under any circumstances, go short ontology.
Did not expect this: This December 1945 symposium seems to be the last time the term "full employment" appeared in a research article title in the APSR. Same for AJPS.
November 4, 2025 at 1:55 PM
Did not expect this: This December 1945 symposium seems to be the last time the term "full employment" appeared in a research article title in the APSR. Same for AJPS.
On the one hand: Interesting just how long post-imperial Britain could cling on to its relative economic position. On the other hand: Yikes.
www.ft.com/content/d70c...
www.ft.com/content/d70c...
October 31, 2025 at 8:23 AM
On the one hand: Interesting just how long post-imperial Britain could cling on to its relative economic position. On the other hand: Yikes.
www.ft.com/content/d70c...
www.ft.com/content/d70c...
Me putting on my Arrighi hat (yes that’s an Arrighi hat) to defend my US economy doomerism against yesterday’s @edwardluce.bsky.social column.
October 29, 2025 at 4:29 PM
Me putting on my Arrighi hat (yes that’s an Arrighi hat) to defend my US economy doomerism against yesterday’s @edwardluce.bsky.social column.
Was sagen die vergleichenden PoWi Fachleute hierzu? Contrarianism am Limit?
www.stern.de/politik/afd-...
www.stern.de/politik/afd-...
October 29, 2025 at 9:32 AM
Was sagen die vergleichenden PoWi Fachleute hierzu? Contrarianism am Limit?
www.stern.de/politik/afd-...
www.stern.de/politik/afd-...
The problem, of course, is that Arrighi can only really explain slow relative decline. Not self-sabotage at warp speed.
on.ft.com/47ERrnk
on.ft.com/47ERrnk
October 24, 2025 at 4:25 PM
The problem, of course, is that Arrighi can only really explain slow relative decline. Not self-sabotage at warp speed.
on.ft.com/47ERrnk
on.ft.com/47ERrnk
The Pentagon “inviting in” private equity “to refurbish some real estate, or even raise financing against the real estate” and to develop “financing tools for the army’s supply chain and overall capex”: surely the apotheosis of long-hegemonic-cycle theory. Arrighi undefeated.
on.ft.com/3WPMwcU
on.ft.com/3WPMwcU
October 21, 2025 at 7:42 AM
The Pentagon “inviting in” private equity “to refurbish some real estate, or even raise financing against the real estate” and to develop “financing tools for the army’s supply chain and overall capex”: surely the apotheosis of long-hegemonic-cycle theory. Arrighi undefeated.
on.ft.com/3WPMwcU
on.ft.com/3WPMwcU
an Australian fund trustee. She implies seeking to alleviate the supply shortage, of course. But that's either brazen or naive, or both: Constraining supply is the name of the game for institutional landlords, especially where PE is involved, is is the case here. 2/2
www.ft.com/content/e955...
www.ft.com/content/e955...
October 20, 2025 at 9:08 AM
an Australian fund trustee. She implies seeking to alleviate the supply shortage, of course. But that's either brazen or naive, or both: Constraining supply is the name of the game for institutional landlords, especially where PE is involved, is is the case here. 2/2
www.ft.com/content/e955...
www.ft.com/content/e955...
Frankly, this is madness.
Reeves says "This is about getting Britain building again..."
That flies in the face of the very reason why institutional capital loves residential real estate: The ease with which supply can be constrained. What's bonkers is that this is explicitly stated here by... 1/2
Reeves says "This is about getting Britain building again..."
That flies in the face of the very reason why institutional capital loves residential real estate: The ease with which supply can be constrained. What's bonkers is that this is explicitly stated here by... 1/2
October 20, 2025 at 9:08 AM
Frankly, this is madness.
Reeves says "This is about getting Britain building again..."
That flies in the face of the very reason why institutional capital loves residential real estate: The ease with which supply can be constrained. What's bonkers is that this is explicitly stated here by... 1/2
Reeves says "This is about getting Britain building again..."
That flies in the face of the very reason why institutional capital loves residential real estate: The ease with which supply can be constrained. What's bonkers is that this is explicitly stated here by... 1/2
Literally: Reading about the House of Tudor tasking officials to engineer evidence against a woman at night; reading about the House of Windsor tasking officials to engineer evidence against a woman in the morning.
October 19, 2025 at 12:25 PM
Literally: Reading about the House of Tudor tasking officials to engineer evidence against a woman at night; reading about the House of Windsor tasking officials to engineer evidence against a woman in the morning.
Great visual story on mega batteries that will go straight onto the PE of the green transition syllabus.
Note the 1GWh cutoff here but nonetheless: a nasty picture for Europe. Chile on the other hand, impressive.
ig.ft.com/mega-batteri...
Note the 1GWh cutoff here but nonetheless: a nasty picture for Europe. Chile on the other hand, impressive.
ig.ft.com/mega-batteri...
October 13, 2025 at 10:19 AM
Great visual story on mega batteries that will go straight onto the PE of the green transition syllabus.
Note the 1GWh cutoff here but nonetheless: a nasty picture for Europe. Chile on the other hand, impressive.
ig.ft.com/mega-batteri...
Note the 1GWh cutoff here but nonetheless: a nasty picture for Europe. Chile on the other hand, impressive.
ig.ft.com/mega-batteri...
I knew it reminded me of something
October 10, 2025 at 9:12 PM
I knew it reminded me of something
Während Politikwissenschaftler*innen unter Höchstanstrengung den Wählerwillen zum Thema Vermögensbesteuerung vermessen, Evidenz zur undemokratischen Willensbildung:
October 9, 2025 at 9:48 AM
Während Politikwissenschaftler*innen unter Höchstanstrengung den Wählerwillen zum Thema Vermögensbesteuerung vermessen, Evidenz zur undemokratischen Willensbildung:
Remember when dense networks of strategic cross-shareholdings among firms, native to coordinated market economies, went the way of the dodo?
The Rhenish model, Germany, Inc. undone by Anglo institutional investors?
Well, the dodo is back. Say hello to USA, Inc.
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
The Rhenish model, Germany, Inc. undone by Anglo institutional investors?
Well, the dodo is back. Say hello to USA, Inc.
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
October 8, 2025 at 9:44 PM
Remember when dense networks of strategic cross-shareholdings among firms, native to coordinated market economies, went the way of the dodo?
The Rhenish model, Germany, Inc. undone by Anglo institutional investors?
Well, the dodo is back. Say hello to USA, Inc.
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
The Rhenish model, Germany, Inc. undone by Anglo institutional investors?
Well, the dodo is back. Say hello to USA, Inc.
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
If you're not reading hundreds of excerpts from Fed speeches on a regular basis you probably have no idea how often technocrats say really crazy stuff. Here's Hoenig, in 2003, praising the US economy's resilience in the face of "continuing concerns about weapons of mass destruction".
October 3, 2025 at 9:20 AM
If you're not reading hundreds of excerpts from Fed speeches on a regular basis you probably have no idea how often technocrats say really crazy stuff. Here's Hoenig, in 2003, praising the US economy's resilience in the face of "continuing concerns about weapons of mass destruction".
For our expert report for the Spanish government on Democracy at Work, I looked up the numbers on employee participation in employee share ownership schemes.
Spain looks good; Poland and UK have made big leaps.
What's striking: Those in the lead in 2005 (BE, IE, LU) regressed, except France.
Spain looks good; Poland and UK have made big leaps.
What's striking: Those in the lead in 2005 (BE, IE, LU) regressed, except France.
October 1, 2025 at 5:36 PM
For our expert report for the Spanish government on Democracy at Work, I looked up the numbers on employee participation in employee share ownership schemes.
Spain looks good; Poland and UK have made big leaps.
What's striking: Those in the lead in 2005 (BE, IE, LU) regressed, except France.
Spain looks good; Poland and UK have made big leaps.
What's striking: Those in the lead in 2005 (BE, IE, LU) regressed, except France.
Taking a step back from day-to-day political news in my new home country.
September 28, 2025 at 7:55 PM
Taking a step back from day-to-day political news in my new home country.
The majority of foreign ETF flows into US assets are now currency-hedged, @katie0martin.ft.com reports. Who’s on the other side of all this hedging, I wonder? And how expensive are those contracts?
on.ft.com/4nCpzoS
on.ft.com/4nCpzoS
September 20, 2025 at 11:50 AM
The majority of foreign ETF flows into US assets are now currency-hedged, @katie0martin.ft.com reports. Who’s on the other side of all this hedging, I wonder? And how expensive are those contracts?
on.ft.com/4nCpzoS
on.ft.com/4nCpzoS
Me when my paper's policy implications still haven't been implemented one year into into the peer review process.
September 16, 2025 at 12:40 PM
Me when my paper's policy implications still haven't been implemented one year into into the peer review process.