Music at Work (second in a series): Karen O. and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Karen O. of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs (Photo source: Wikimedia Commons).

From time to time, I enjoy using this space to highlight the artists who provide the soundtrack to my workday. Today's feature: the indie rock band the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and more particularly their lead vocalist, Karen O. Karen's stellar voice and the ensemble's outstanding musicianship make for a very appealing combination. Particularly impressive to me is their ability to combine the raucous and intense with the lyrical and melodic--sometimes all at once, as in their signature tune, Maps. Its combination of pathos and raw power is difficult to top.

My favorite version of the song is actually a much-less-frequently-heard acoustic one, featuring Karen with guitarist Nicolas Zinner. Here it is--enjoy!

Cloud computing, security, and trade: GSA in the crosshairs

A colleague and I are presently researching the role of cloud computing in international trade. The "location independent" nature of cloud computing poses all sorts of complex--and fascinating--challenges for policymakers. Is it possible for them to safeguard the security of data without undermining the very benefits that cloud computing offers through "dynamic assignment" of data to physical servers in various places? The matter is particularly thorny with respect to sensitive data, such as much of the information kept by governments.

The issue came to a head recently in response to a solicitation issued by the U.S. General Services Administration, the U.S. government's chief procurement agency, for a variety of cloud computing services. Two potential bidders for the contract protested that its requirements on the location of data centers were unduly restrictive. The solicitation required that such data centers be located in "designated countries," as specified under the Federal Acquisition Regulations. Those countries include members of the WTO's Government Procurement Agreement, partners to U.S. free trade agreements, least developed countries, and Caribbean nations... but not many of the world's biggest emerging markets, such as China and India. The U.S. Government Accountability Office agreed with the protestors.

The GAO's decision on the matter makes for fascinating reading (really!) for anyone interested in the nexus of cloud computing and trade policy. Here's one of the more interesting nuggets from the decision:


"GSA has provided no explanation for why its security concerns would be less acute in relation to data stored or processed in designated countries, which include, for example, Yemen, Somalia, and Afghanistan, versus data stored or processed in non-designated countries, such as Brazil, India or South Africa. Further, GSA has acknowledged that it has no basis to differentiate between countries with acceptable data rights regulations and those with unacceptable data rights regulations."

It seems likely that this is one of the first words--rather than the last--in the debate over how to structure policies on cross-border data flows so as to facilitate trade, yet safeguard data.There are many, many unsettled areas of policy related to cross-border data flows, such the applicable country/ies of jurisdiction for data moving across multiple countries, protection of intellectual property in the cloud, and how to best protect the privacy of individuals' data. We are exploring these issues and more in our research. I look forward to sharing it here once it is ready.

India Opens the Gates to FDI in Retail

India's decision to allow foreign direct investment of up to 51 percent in "multi-brand" retail businesses could prove to be a significant positive development for the country's retail industry and the broader economy. As we argued here, the move is likely to benefit India's farmers (through supply chain modernization) and consumers (through lower prices, better selection of merchandise, and greater access to outlets with modern amenities). Recent research also suggests that suppliers could experience boosts to productivity and access to new export markets. And large domestic retailers could benefit from infusions of capital from foreign investors (as suggested by the jumps in some of leading domestic retailers' share prices just after the new policy was announced--see the article linked to in the first sentence above). Small-scale, mom-and-pop retailers are the constituency most threatened by, and fearful of, the new policy, but as this paper suggests, the threat that foreign-invested retailers pose to established domestic retailers may be overstated.

It appears that India will attach substantial conditions to proposed foreign investments in retail,  such as requiring large investments in infrastructure, sourcing of a certain percentage of merchandise from small businesses, and allowing the investments only in very large cities (again, see the article linked to in the first sentence above). These conditions could dampen the interest of foreign retailers, thereby attenuating the potential benefits of liberalization. More likely, though, many of the largest foreign retail firms will see the opportunity as too big to miss.

Interesting times ahead.

Price Controls Don't Work - the Evidence from Venezuela

"The law of supply and demand is a lie," said the chief of an agency that was set up to administer Venezuela's new system of price controls. Au contraire. As this article (the source of the regulator's quote) attests, the law of supply and demand is alive, well, and rapidly proving why price controls are not effective against inflation.  When the market price of goods exceeds the regulated price, people will hoard, supplies will run short, and prices will keep rising in the black market.

New research on the effects of multinationals' overseas activities on U.S. employment: request for your comments

Several colleagues and I recently published a working paper in which we explore the relationship between the overseas activities of U.S. services multinationals and employment in the United States, using some novel quantitative methods accompanied by case studies. We find that the effects of service firms' overseas activities on U.S. employment appear to be largely positive. But our methods are experimental, and we need feedback to make our work better. Your comments are heartily welcomed.

The table below (from page 14 of the paper) summarizes one of our main findings: that intrafirm exports of services by U.S. multinationals appear to be a significant supporter and creator of jobs in the US.