A Close Look at the Celtic Tiger

Academics, economists, politicians and other assorted talking heads usually hold up the Irish economy as a model for Puerto Rico to emulate. In the mid-1980s Ireland was referred to as the “economic basket case of Europe” but by 2001 it was spoken of in reverential tones; it has transformed into the fearsome “Celtic tiger”.

Puerto Rico’s Keynesian Paradox

John Maynard Keynes, the most influential economist of the first half of the 20th century, wrote in his seminal “General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money” (1936) that “practical men, who believe themselves to ve quite exempt from any intellectual influence, are usually the slaves of some defunct economist.”

Caguas: A World Leader in Asset Building

Last week, Mayor William Miranda MarĂ­n presented a voucher for opening a bank account to the mother of a newborn child in Caguas. This was the first installment of a city-wide program whereby the parents of all children born after July 1, 2007 to bona fide residents of Caguas will receive a $250 voucher that can be used to open a children savings account at a financial institution.

Restoring growth in Puerto Rico’s economy

In 1930, the Brookings Institution, a Washington D.C.-based think tank, published a report entitled “Porto Rico and Its Problems.” This report, prompted by various groups of Puerto Rican private citizens, was a thorough examination of the island’s social and economic landscape, covering, among other topics, education, public debt, public health, agriculture, trade and the state public works. It included a long list of recommendations, many of which were eventually implemented by the Puerto Rican government.

Our Bond Rating is a Serious Matter

Last week, members of the Acevedo Vilá administration met with representatives of Moody’s Investors Service and Standard & Poor’s Rating Services, the credit rating agencies informally known as Moody’s and S&P respectively. When the government of Puerto Rico or one of its agencies issues bonds, these rating agencies analyze various quantitative and qualitative factors that may affect the borrower’s ability and willingness to repay, including, but not limited to, the financial condition of the borrower, the prevailing economic conditions in the island, and the political environment at the time of going to the market.

Restructuring the Puerto Rico Electricity Sector

The availability of high quality, reliable and cost efficient electric power is of strategic importance for the future economic development of Puerto Rico. This means that without access to relatively affordable and reliable electric power it will be extremely difficult, if not outright impossible, to promote sustained growth in basically any area of economic endeavor in Puerto Rico, be it in industrial biotechnology, retail commerce, small and medium enterprises, tourism or services because the cost of electric power is usually one of the top cost drivers in each of these industrial or commercial sectors.

The $586 Million Mystery

Recently, the Center for the New Economy, a non-profit, non-partisan think tank where I work, published a study analyzing the state of the Puerto Rico electricity sector.