When Obamacare’s exchanges go live this fall, uninsured Americans will have the choice of either purchasing coverage on an exchange or paying a penalty. We’ve known that the penalty was less than the cost of insurance, but as far as we know there hasn’t really been a systematic attempt to quantify the difference (just how […]

Ukrainian firms are squealing that Russia is initiating what amounts to a trade war by putting in place discriminatory and costly border procedures that are delaying Ukrainian goods from reaching their destinations in Russia. Russian leaders have taken care to deny any outright responsibility, seeming to indicate that this is a bureaucratic matter to be […]

German Chancellor Angela Merkel made some comments in a radio interview on Tuesday that have been turning heads in Europe. While noting that the EU needs to work hard to become more competitive, Merkel stated that it would be possible to do this with “less Europe” and that Brussels could “give something back” to national […]

The rise of the BRICS at the expense of the developed world has been a dominant refrain in global economics, but there are signs that the pendulum has swung back to the West. The New York Times reports: Just as economists have begun lowering their forecasts for China and many other developing economies, the American economy is […]

Bills that would allow nurse practitioners to care for patients without doctor supervision are making their way through five state legislatures right now. Pennsylvania, Michigan, Massachusetts, and New Jersey are all in the mix, but it’s in California that the battle has gotten particularly hot. WSJ: The California Medical Association, representing some 37,000 doctors, has spent […]

The Indian government unveiled restrictions on how much money  businesses are permitted to invest outside the country today in what at least one analyst likened to pushing the “panic button.” The FT has the story: Shortly before Manmohan Singh, prime minister, promised a return to high economic growth in a speech to the nation, the […]

The USPS has taken a small step into the 21st century with the rollout of a new priority mail program that may help it compete with other package carriers. After years of catastrophic revenue losses, the beleaguered agency is looking to turn things around by becoming an attractive option for delivering goods purchased online. It hopes […]

Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe chose not to visit the controversial Yasukuni shrine in Tokyo today, but his restraint, it seems, hasn’t placated anyone. China and South Korea continue to decry his administration’s frequent anti-historical, antagonistic statements and actions in recent months.Dozens of lawmakers and at least three cabinet ministers visited Yasukuni in person, Reuters […]

Pundits on both sides of the political spectrum have noted that health care outcomes in Massachusetts are among the best indicators for Obamacare that we have, given the ACA’s similarity to Romneycare. Now a new study is out on MA health care, and it doesn’t paint a pretty picture: A state report says Bay State premiums rose […]

Not to be outdone by the neighbors, many of which have launched powerful new naval assets recently, South Korea introduced a brand new “state of the art” submarine, the Kim Jwa-jin. The 1,800-ton vessel, South Korea’s fourth, was christened by President Park Geun-hye, the Defense Minister, and other senior military officials. President Park had this to say on […]