economic theory

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Are ticket scalpers really ripping you off?

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Whenever a high profile event sells out, you can be sure that ticket scalpers are at work, endeavouring to make profits at the expense of those who missed out. Taylor Nugent explores why arbitrageurs succeed and explains the economics behind ticket scalping.

Ficciones

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Elijah reflects on three and a half years of economics, and what it has meant to him.

Spectre of steel

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Elijah discusses how the Zollverein – a customs union and free trade area – played a pivotal role in the economic and political evolution of German-speaking states in the 19th century, eventually leading to the creation of the German Empire.

E-con? Economics and Irrationality

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Economic models of old can’t explain why anyone would buy a lottery ticket. But using behavioural economics, we might one day be able to fully model human behaviour, writes Jesse Condie.

The Hanseatic League

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Elijah takes us to Hamburg and reflects on the city’s heritage as a flourishing centre of the Hanseatic League.

Is competition regulation an oxymoron?

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Australia needs a full-time, focussed competition watchdog that applies the law using state-of-the-art economics, understanding the ambiguities and subtleties of market interactions, writes Professor Stephen King.

Can cash grants help reduce poverty?

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1.2 billion people around the world, or roughly one in every six people, live in extreme poverty – defined as survival on less than $USD1.25 a day according to The World Bank. As a proportion of the global population, however, this number has fallen dramatically over the past few decades. The economic uprising of several key East Asian nations has resulted in over 700 million people, over the past twenty years, breaking free from extreme poverty. Organisations such as the UN have project further decreases in the years to come. Indeed, there are many political, economical, and environmental factors that contribute to the extreme impoverishment of individuals around the world and many argue that this is a deeply complex issue that we cannot afford to merely throw money at – or can we?

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