Why Do Economists Insist on Single-Entry Bookkeeping? | The New York Sun


This article critiques economists' gloomy economic forecasts, arguing that they overlook positive factors like falling oil prices and potential tax cuts, advocating for a more holistic view beyond 'single-entry bookkeeping'.
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To my friends in the economics profession and business journalists: why do you keep insisting on single-entry bookkeeping?

Your forecasts of bulging inflation and sinking recession are way too gloomy.

As always, the Johnny One Note economists are missing President Trump’s symphony of economic policies.

Consider this: Mr. Trump’s original shock therapy reciprocal tariff charges made on “Liberation Day” last week, will not come to pass.

First of all, as almost everybody knows, the calculations were highly flawed, based on a lot of mumbo jumbo variables pertaining to trade deficits and surpluses that never made any sense.

Second, and more important, Mr. Trump has his Art of the Deal hat back on.

How this turns out and with whom — over the next six to twelve months — remains to be seen.

But the initial tariff charge of roughly $700 billion would’ve come to roughly 2 percent of our $28 trillion economy. That would pose a serious recession risk.

However, and it’s a big however, a likelier scenario is the 10 percent baseline tariff that comes to $300 billion, or only 1 percent of GDP.

And that will be overwhelmed by a budget reconciliation deal that will be passed by the Republican Congress and will include — one way or another — all or nearly all of Trump’s tax cut proposals.

The numerical value of those tax cuts will likely be somewhere around $5 trillion, which is a heck of a lot higher than $300 billion in tariff revenues.

Meanwhile, Elon Musk has already found $150 billion in DOGE budget savings, moving steadily toward their $1 trillion goal.

Also, though it’s a little harder to put a dollar sign on it, Mr. Trump is intent on reversing President Biden’s nearly $2 trillion worth of regulations.

And here’s another point: today’s consumer price index fell by one-tenths of a percent, coming in below consensus expectations.

Gasoline prices in March fell 6 percent, but there’s more of that coming.

A month ago, wholesale oil prices were running just less than $70 a barrel. Today they’re $60.

Retail gasoline today is just over $3.20 a gallon, about where it was a month ago.

But the drop in wholesale prices will translate to a significant drop in the price at your local gas station.

This is Mr. Trump’s “liquid gold” argument.

Oil prices affect every nook and cranny of the economy.

And while OPEC+ and our own domestic producers are opening up the spigots, inflation is likely to stay low.

Even on the tariff front, the taxes are levied at the wholesale level, but when it trickles down to retail, the price is almost a quarter to a half less.

So, once again, I appeal to my respected economic brethren: please look at the whole picture, not simply your single-entry bookkeeping.

From Mr. Kudlow’s broadcast on Fox Business Network.

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Correction: $28 trillion is the size of the American economy. An earlier version misstated the number.

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