Dear Reader,
tep into a moment of transition with us in Issue 35 of The Economic Tribune, aptly titled “Order within Change.” This issue marks the first under a new editorial team, highlighting a period of change not just in the world we analyse, but within the magazine itself. We take on this responsibility mindful of what has come before, and attentive to what lies ahead.
From the proverbial caterpillar morphing into a butterfly to the Sun rising from the east and setting in the west, change is everywhere. Yet, the process by which change occurs is often restricted by some axiom, some law, some order.
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Rather than treating change as disorder, the pieces that follow explore how systems evolve within boundaries, and how stability and disruption are not opposites but complements.
We start our introspection with the first of three sections, Markets With Borders. Markets may feel borderless, but they are built on jurisdiction. Follow through with Louis, as he explores the challenges both the existence of and lack of borders brought for the United Kingdom with their accession from the European Union. Dimitrios treads similar territory, unravelling the factors that limit the European Union’s levels of growth. Matteo offers a comparatively refreshing outlook for the trade bloc, exploring the implications of the introduction of a digital Euro on a weak retail banking system. Janice and Saksham shift their focus to the American economy. Inspired by “liberation day” (which was far from liberating for many nations), Janice investigates the role of international sanctions as a punitive tool for two things: coercion, and the seemingly kinder use-case of negotiation. Saksham questions the semantics of the word “circular” in the phrase “circular energy”, showing us how chipmakers and AGI companies forge deals that benefit themselves but exclude consumers from the “circle” of prosperity.
Next, we enter a world of alliteration with Booms, Busts, and Belief. The sequence of these forces is often debated, resembling a more complicated version of the classic chicken-and-egg problem - though, true to form, economists rarely resist adding a few extra variables. Sushant and Shreyas explore two sides of the same coin: the artificial intelligence mania in financial markets. Sushant takes a rear-view approach and compares the price action of AI companies to everything from Dutch tulip markets of the early 1600s to the more recent dot-com bubble of the 2000s. Shreyas, on the other hand, uses telling variables like Google Trend searches as a proxy for public excitement in hopes to understand what drives valuations. Alisa explores a complement to equities in her piece on gold, subtly but shrewdly challenging the old-age wisdom of gold acting as a hedge for large swings in market activity. Deniz calls attention to how rate hikes, in conjunction with falling asset prices, have contributed to a ‘silent’ credit crunch in the United Kingdom and how this very environment has allowed private credit providers to prosper. If equities, gold, and credit represent familiar asset classes, Shalin turns to a less conventional one: attention. He examines how attention is increasingly commodified - and how this asset can be misused.
Finally, we turn our attention to the last section: Growth Meets Resistance. As the saying goes, “there are no free lunches”. The pieces that follow examine the constraints and trade-offs that increasingly shape expansion. Samuel opens the section by examining how capitalism absorbs ever more aspects of life, focusing in particular on moments when individuals delegate moral judgement to commodities. In a similar vein, as capitalism and corporate profit become increasingly associated with environmental harm, focus groups emerge in the struggle over climate responsibility. Siddhant spotlights the climate problem, exploring solutions ranging from green bonds to - as ironic as it may sound - creating a ‘market’ for pollution. In wake of recent discourse of immigration, Amba then proceeds by writing on the costs of closing borders to migrants. Through regression analysis, she makes the compelling argument that the world could be “leaving trillion dollar bills on the sidewalk” by restricting labour from easily penetrating the borders. Dhwani compounds research on the role of borders, pointing to the legal and sovereign separation between industrial policy in sanctuary cities embedded within larger nation states. Using the geographically relevant case of London and Westminster, she foregrounds the conflict of interest between the two actors. Atreyi concludes by drawing on the greats - Samuelson and Piketty - in her explanation for why the housing affordability crisis is one that cannot be explained by any given factor; it is systemic.
Order and change are not opposites, but conditions that coexist. As this issue closes, we hope the ideas within have reflected that balance. As a new editorial team, we step forward with that same balance in mind - respecting the foundations that have defined The Tribune, while remaining open to evolution where it is needed. We hope this issue offers clarity amid flux, and perspective in a world in motion.
Through change, with clarity,
Jai Vasandani
Director, 2025/26