Nobel laureate for Economics Paul Krugman is encouraging the Dominican Republic to ensure it has good infrastructure in place to make the most of any opportunities the Trans Pacific Partnership may bring. However, in an interview with Listin Diario, Krugman expressed doubts that the treaty would actually go into effect.
He made these comments when attending the Santo Domingo Chamber of Commerce luncheon yesterday Thursday 15 October 2015. Krugman believes that if implemented the TPP will affect DR-CAFTA countries because it will give the advantages to the clothing manufacturing industries in Asian countries like Vietnam.
In the interview, he said the DR needed to increase its productivity by attracting investments.
The Nobel laureate said he has not followed up on DR-CAFTA but perceives that the results have been overwhelming for the Dominican economy. He observed that the issue of intellectual property has affected the development of the pharmaceutical industry in the region, and said the treaty could be taken as a model of the failures that a trade regime can have.
Asked about the implementation of a flexible exchange rate regime that is controlled by the monetary authorities, as is the case in the DR, the economist said there is no magic wand that can determine the monetary policy that can solve the problems of an economy like the Dominican Republic.
Speaking on Greece, in his opinion that country would have been better off not joining the European Union. He believes that small economies (including that of the Dominican Republic) need to maintain flexibility in their monetary policy, which is why dollarization is not convenient.
During his visit to Santo Domingo, the winner of the 2008 Nobel Prize for Economics was presented with an honorary doctorate at the Instituto Technologico de Santo Domingo (INTEC), the fourth of these awards the university has granted since 1972.
http://www.diariolibre.com/economia/el-nobel-de-economia-paul-krugman-investido-doctor-honoris-causa-por-intec-DA1570566
http://www.listindiario.com/economia/2015/10/16/392272/krugman-desempeno-rd-es-relativamente-bueno