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<title>The Memri Economic Blog</title>
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<![CDATA[Highlights /News of The Day]]>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[MEMRI Economic Blog Revived]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=41]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ WE ARE PLEASED TO INFORM OUR READERS THAT THE ECONOMIC BLOG IS BEING UPDATED AND NEW MATERIAL WILL BE ADDED ON A REGULAR BASIS. - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Tue, 02 Feb 2010 15:23:50]]>
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<author></author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2010-02-02]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=41]]></guid>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[Announcement]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=40]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ The Editor will be on vacation through August 20. The Memri Economic Blog will be updated upon his return. - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Thu, 07 Aug 2008 13:47:12]]>
</description>
<author></author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-08-07]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=40]]></guid>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[Changes in The MEMRI Economic Blog]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=39]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[Material will next be uploaded on August 5. To subscribe to our free newsletter, click on the Subscribe button above. - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Thu, 31 Jul 2008 11:56:38]]>
</description>
<author></author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-07-29]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=39]]></guid>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[Changes in The MEMRI Economic Blog]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=38]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[Today, July 22, 2008 is the third weekly dispatch of The MEMRI Economic Blog. Material will next be uploaded on July 29. To subscribe to our free newsletter, click on the Subscribe button above. - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Tue, 22 Jul 2008 10:13:38]]>
</description>
<author></author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-07-22]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=38]]></guid>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[Ahmadinejad's Economic Policies: Fantasy Over Substance]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=37]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ Readers are now familiar with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's oft-repeated statement that the Holocaust did not take place, and are aware of the conference of "historians and scholars" he convened in Tehran last year to prove his point.  A few days ago, in a televised speech from the city of Qum, often referred to as "the holy city" because it is the center of religious learning in Iran, Ahmadinejad referred to the terrorism act on 9/11 as "a suspicious event"... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Thu, 17 Apr 2008 06:44:44]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-04-17]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=37]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[The Struggle for Basra: Oil and Militias]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=36]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ The Iraqi government, with help of air cover and air strikes by coalition forces, has launched a major assault, codenamed "Galloping Horses" on Muqtada al-Sadr's militia, otherwise known as Jeish al-Mahdi [The Army of al-Mahdi (al-Mahdi is the Shiite Messiah, a hidden savior whose re-emergence will free the world from injustice)], which has taken control over large swaths of the city of Basra and other key cities in southern Iraq. Basra is the second largest city in Iraq,... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Fri, 28 Mar 2008 11:48:17]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-03-28]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=36]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[US Treasury Makes Two Important Decisions]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=35]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[   Officials from the US Treasury and the governments of Abu Dhabi and Singapore.  The US Treasury Department took two important decisions last week that could have significant impact on the economies at both ends of the Persian Gulf.    The first decision dealt with sovereign wealth funds (SWFs). These funds represent government-owned investment vehicles, funded by foreign exchange assets and commodity export receipts (primarily oil and gas revenues) which invest internationally for financial... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Mon, 24 Mar 2008 13:11:44]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-03-24]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=35]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[The Law of Unintended Consequences-- If I Had Only Invested My Money in Iraqi Dinars]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=34]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ The concept of unintended consequences is one of the building blocks of economics. Adam Smith's "invisible hand," the most significant metaphor in social science, is an example of positive unintended consequence. Smith maintained that each individual, seeking only his own gain, is led by the invisible hand to promote an end which was no part of his intention, that end being the public interest. "It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, or the baker, that we expect... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Mon, 17 Mar 2008 06:09:25]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-03-17]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=34]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Engages in Smuggling]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=33]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC), also known as Pasdaran, was created in 1979 by Ayatollah Khomeini to defend the Islamic revolution from both foreign and domestic enemies, and to assist the ruling clerics in the day-to-day enforcement of the government's Islamic codes and morality.    IRGC has, over the years, developed its own land, air and sea forces and was given responsibility for Iran's missile and nuclear programs. Through its al-Qods Brigade, the IRGC supports... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Tue, 13 May 2008 06:37:49]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-03-03]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=33]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[Dollar Decline May Usher in New Era]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=32]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ This morning, as if on cue, Arab press in the six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council printed lengthy articles and analyses on the need for two interrelated strategic economic policies: ending the Gulf countries' currency peg to the dollar, and ending the pricing of oil in that currency. These two potential developments are the direct result of the sharp decline of the exchange rate of the dollar against the Euro and other major currencies, and the spiraling inflation in the... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Fri, 29 Feb 2008 09:24:46]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-02-29]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=32]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[The Iraqi Economy: From Shocks to Take-off?]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=31]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ Economic Shocks and Their Aftermath    Economic shocks are events that impact the economy and that originate from outside it. They are often unexpected and unpredictable and are caused by external or civil wars, severe price fluctuations, natural disasters and, not uncommonly, man-made disasters generated by the failure or incompetence of political leadership. This is certainly true in the case of Iraq under the Ba'th regime, which imposed its nefarious and repressive ideology upon the... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Thu, 14 Feb 2008 06:30:18]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-02-14]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=31]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[Iran's Figures on Foreign Investment-- Fiction Wrapped in Fantasy]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=30]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ Those who follow the economic news in Iran under the regime of President Mahmoud Ahmadenijad are often struck by the boasts regarding huge sums of foreign investments, often quoted in the billions of dollars. A fortnight ago, for example, the Tehran Times stated that the People's Republic of China will be investing $92 billion in Iran's oil and gas industry. These boasts seem to stand counter to reality. The Tehran Times' statement, for example, is undercut by a piece on... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Mon, 04 Feb 2008 05:59:01]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-02-04]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=30]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[Sovereign Wealth Funds: From Obscurity to Front Page]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=29]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ The World Economic Forum (WEF), which concluded its meetings over the weekend in Davos, Switzerland, appears to have devoted an inordinate amount of time and attention to a growing financial phenomenon few people had heard of until recently. Why the sudden interest? Money talks. From a rather low-key and modest beginning, the sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) have burst onto the economic and financial scene as economic powerhouses in control of $2.5 trillion-assets undergoing rapid growth, driven... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Tue, 29 Jan 2008 11:21:47]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-01-29]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=29]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[Thoughts on the Gulf Common Market Launch]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=28]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ In their Summit Meeting in Doha, Qatar, on December 3-4, the heads of the six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)--Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE, Bahrain, Oman and Qatar--launched the Gulf Common Market (GCM), effective January 1, 2008.    The Aim of the GCM    The aim in creating the GCM was to raise production efficiency and make optimal use of available resources. According to the summit's final communiqué, issued on December 4: "The GCM aims at realizing... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Mon, 14 Jan 2008 12:57:34]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-01-14]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=28]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[President Bush Visits the Middle East]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=27]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ President George W. Bush will be embarking this week on one of his presidency's most crucial initiatives, a trip to the Middle East to advance the cause of peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. The cause is noble, but often frustrating, and, as it is for the fisherman casting his line into the tide, the outcome is far from certain. But Israeli-Palestinian issues are outside the frame of reference of this blog.    In addition to his visit to Israel and the Palestinian... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Mon, 07 Jan 2008 06:08:31]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2008-01-07]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=27]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[OPEC's Hypocrisy]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=26]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is an association of thirteen oil producing countries working together for mutual financial interests. OPEC officially describes itself on the organization's website "as a permanent intergovernmental organization" whose objective is "to coordinate and unify petroleum policies among Member Countries, in order to secure fair and stable prices for petroleum producers; an efficient, economic and regular supply of... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Fri, 28 Dec 2007 06:00:43]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2007-12-28]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=26]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[Encouraging Economic News from Iraq]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=25]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ Notwithstanding the doom and gloom that often characterize the news coverage from Iraq, a few recent events show signs of economic revival-- and perhaps even economic energy.    The first good news item comes with the International Monetary Fund statement issued on December 14, 2007, that Iraq has "completed the early repayment of its entire outstanding obligations [ital. added]" to the IMF, amounting to about US $470.5 million. The IMF goes on to say:    IMF Managing Director... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Mon, 17 Dec 2007 06:04:16]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2007-12-17]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=25]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[Viniculture and Jewelry-Two Ironies of Life in the Middle East]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=24]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ Readers of The MEMRI Economic Blog will find today two interesting items--an article about the blooming business of the wine industry in the Middle East, and a news item on the huge regional market for jewelry. Both items represent the ultimate ironies for today's Middle East, with its growing Islamist intolerance and vast pockets of poverty.    The wine industry is thriving in Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco and Tunisia. Syria will join the bandwagon soon. Most of the wine... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Mon, 10 Dec 2007 11:26:05]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2007-12-10]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=24]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[Dollar Peg Remains the Order of the Day]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=23]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ The twin factors of the depreciation of the dollar and the rising inflation in the oil-producing members of the Gulf Council on Cooperation (GCC), have generated an unusual amount of analysis and speculation about the future of dollar peg in five of the six member countries of GCC. (Kuwait, the sixth member, has already decided to abandon the dollar peg in May of this year.). Major media outlets, including the influencial weekly The Economist (November 24-30, 2007) concluded in an article on... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Tue, 04 Dec 2007 07:42:19]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2007-12-04]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=23]]></guid>
</item>

<item>
<title><![CDATA[Ahmadinejad to Attend Summit of GCC Leaders]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=22]]></link>
<description>
<![CDATA[ In a surprise move, the summit of the heads of the six member states of the Gulf Council on Cooperation (GCC) have extended an invitation to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to their summit meeting, to be held in Doha, Qatar on December 3-4. It is the first time that Tehran is invited to attend a meeting with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman. One key item on the agenda is "Gulf security."    Mojtaba Samareh Hashemi, the Iranian... - Last Updated:]]> 
<![CDATA[Tue, 04 Dec 2007 11:18:01]]>
</description>
<author>By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli</author>
<pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-30]]></pubDate>
<guid><![CDATA[/bin/content.cgi?comment=22]]></guid>
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