Macroscope | How Joe Biden can pull off a US ‘economic miracle’ and secure his legacy

Name: US Covid-19 deaths could increase by another 100,000 unless Americans change their ways
Uploaded: 2021-10-18T19:30:17.000Z
Duration: 3 min 2 s
Description: US Covid-19 deaths could increase by another 100,000 unless Americans change their ways

Biden’s quest is to ensure a higher percentage of US economic demand is met domestically without further inflaming tensions with China

Unemployment is falling and long-term growth prospects are looking up, but there is still much to do to lure lost productive capacity back home

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Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear speaks at the State Capitol in Frankfort, Kentucky, on September 28 during the announcement of Ford Motor Company and SK Innovations’ plans to build two electric battery factories in the state. The US$5.8 billion dollar investment will provide 5,000 full-time jobs in Kentucky. Photo: AP

David Brown

Published: 3:30am, 19 Oct 2021Updated: 5:15am, 19 Oct 2021

Nobody is perfect, least of all US President Joe Biden, but at least his heart is in the right place in getting the economy back up and running. There is much to live up to, especially setting the bar so high on regenerating the economy and fixing the United States’ run-down domestic infrastructure.

It is less a case of “Build Back Better” than “Bringing It Back Home”, returning US industry to its glory days as the powerhouse of the global economy when it is currently threatened with being overtaken by China.

The legacy of the strong US dollar in the 1980s and the impact of globalisation has seen a large chunk of US manufacturing shift overseas. Biden’s challenge is to bring this lost production capacity back home.

That could go a long way towards cutting America’s yawning trade deficit, especially with China. If Biden can pull off a decent trade deal with Beijing and point the US towards an economic resurgence, it could be his lasting legacy.

It might be early days, but his economic scorecard is looking OK so far. Biden has pumped record amounts of money into the economy, long-term growth prospects are looking up and job creation is coming back vigorously after the Covid-19 shock.

03:02

US Covid-19 deaths could increase by another 100,000 unless Americans change their ways

Biden’s objective to spend up to US$3.5 trillion in his ambitious Build Back Better scheme is not just a latter-day New Deal. Rather, it is a Big Deal in terms of long-term sustainable growth for the economy.

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.css-1m2rp1p{color:#34b8b5;}Macroscope | How Joe Biden can pull off a US ‘economic miracle’ and secure his legacy

Macroscope | How Joe Biden can pull off a US ‘economic miracle’ and secure his legacy