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  • Monthly Review Essays

About Tony Norfield

Tony Norfield, based in London, has academic training in economics and mathematics. He worked for 8 years as an economic consultant, and for close to 20 years in bank dealing rooms in the City, latterly as Executive Director in charge of analysing global FX markets for a major European bank. He is author of The City: London & the Global Power of Finance, Verso.
  • Winston Churchill

    Winston Churchill & British imperialism

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on October 18, 2021 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    Even patriotic Brits know that their hero Winston Churchill did not win World War 2 or fly a Spitfire. What they, and others, may not know is how his statements often shed a clear light on British imperialism.

  • World Power Ranking

    World power

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on September 14, 2021 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    The concentration of global power is extreme, and it rests upon the different ways a country can have influence over how the world works.

  • Bitcoin

    Cryptocrap

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on April 6, 2021 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    Bitcoin’s growth from just being a tech curiosity was driven by popular discontent with banks and banking systems, mainly in the U.S. after 2008.

  • The UK’s Singapore-on-Thames Delusion

    The UK’s Singapore-on-Thames delusion

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on January 20, 2021 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    I will not spend much time on this topic because it is so ridiculous. But the notion that the UK can become a ‘Singapore-on-Thames’ seems to underlie some Brexit fantasies. Do these have any foundation? – Tony Norfield

  • airbnb app logo

    Airbnb’s A’s and B’s

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on December 11, 2020 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    This is most clearly shown in what is allowed by the powers that run the financial system.

  • Hurley telegram to Roosevelt

    The Mao-Roosevelt No meeting, 1945

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on December 2, 2020 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    In January 1945, Mao Tse-tung sent a message to U.S. President Roosevelt asking to visit the U.S. and discuss future relationships with China. The message got blocked by a U.S. diplomat in China, and Roosevelt apparently did not receive it.

  • Trump & Xi, with flags

    China & U.S. power

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on July 14, 2020 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    Can China do much to fight back against the power wielded by the U.S. in the world economy? At first sight, that looks unlikely. China is big, but world trade is conducted in dollars, and the U.S. has economic, political and military influence across the globe.

  • Artsy Mike Mozart | Slam Dunk Success (2017) | Artsy

    Richie Rich & friends

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on July 1, 2020 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    Being the biggest rich capitalist country, the U.S. also has the largest number of wealthy people. Quite how many will come as a bit of a surprise for those who have heard the ‘1% versus 99%’ slogan; it is not just Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos.

  • Flickr No War with Iran- Durham (2020 Jan) | Anthony Crider | Flickr

    Viruses & imperialism

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on June 9, 2020 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    Despite conspiracy theories, there is no evidence whatsoever that the virus was manufactured in or escaped from a laboratory, in China or anywhere else. Such accusations ignore how easy viral transmission can be when other factors come into play.

  • unemployment

    British workers

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on October 22, 2019 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    As we wait impatiently while the Brits go through the interminable travail of Brexit, let us have a look at who they are. Not directly in a social, cultural or political sense, but by reviewing the data on UK employment. Work gives a foundation for people’s daily lives and will, in turn, have an impact on society, culture and politics.

  • Currency

    FX & Imperialism

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on October 7, 2019 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    What affects the exchange rate of a country’s currency? The answer depends on where that country stands in the world economy. Not simply because an exchange rate is the value of one currency versus another, so that you must weigh up two or more countries.

  • China & global trade 2018, BoE Fin Stab rep July2019

    China & World trade

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on July 15, 2019 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    Just in case you had forgotten that China is a major part of the global economy, here is a chart from the Bank of England’s Financial Stability Report.

  • Total Non-Financial Sector Debt, of GDP

    Debt update

    Originally published: Economics of Imperialism on July 18, 2019 (more by Economics of Imperialism)  |

    While the ratio of debt to GDP fell in 2018—for the first time in a decade—for both advanced & emerging market economies it remains high, much higher than at the start of the 2007-08 crisis; and has also continued to rise in some major economies.
    https://mronline.org/2019/07/22/debt-update/

Monthly Review Essays

  • The Migrant Genocide: Toward a Third World Analysis of European Class Struggle
    Iker Suarez A banner at a memorial rally for victims of the 2014 massacre of migrants at Tarajal, 2021.

    Over 10,000 people died in transit to Spain in 2024 alone.[1] On June 2022, the border fence of Melilla, one of two Spanish enclaves in Morocco, was witness to a massacre that killed or disappeared over a hundred African migrants.[2]  A recent BBC investigation revealed that Greek border guards systematically repeal immigrants already on Greek […]

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