Latest topics
Zimbabwe’s Hyperinflation: The Correct Number Is 89 Sextillion Percent
2 posters
Page 1 of 1
Zimbabwe’s Hyperinflation: The Correct Number Is 89 Sextillion Percent
June 3, 2016 3:33PM
By Steve H. Hanke
Most press reports about Zimbabwe’s fantastic hyperinflation are off the mark – way off the mark. Even our most trusted news sources fail to get the facts right. This confirms the “95 Percent Rule”: 95 percent of what you read in the financial press is either wrong or irrelevant.
When it comes to the reportage about hyperinflation, there are no excuses. All 56 of the world’s hyperinflations have been carefully documented in “World Hyperinflations”. This record is available in the Routledge Handbook of Major Economic Events in Economic History (2013) and has been available online since 2012 at the Cato Institute.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is the main culprit, a prominent source of the faulty data. EvenThe Economist magazine has fallen into the trap of uncritically accepting figures pumped out by the IMF and further propagating them. It’s no wonder that there is a massive gap between the public’s perception and economic reality. A gap that, ironically, The Economist reports on this week.
The Economist’s most recent infraction on Zimbabwe’s hyperinflation appeared in the May 2016 issue. The magazine claimed that the hyperinflation peaked at an annual rate of 500 billion percent. Where did this figure originate? You guessed it. That figure is buried in the IMF’s 2009 Article IV Consultation Staff Report on Zimbabwe.
In reality, Zimbabwe’s annual inflation rate in September 2008 was 471 billion percent, not 500 billion percent. More importantly, Zimbabwe’s hyperinflation peaked in November, not September. It was then that Zimbabwe recorded the second-highest hyperinflation in history: a whopping 89.7 sextillion percent. This is 179 billion times greater than the IMF’s figure.
That said, the IMF did attempt to cover its backside from questions about its hyperinflation guestimate. 2009 Article IV Staff Report on Zimbabwe states clearly that “data have serious shortcomings that significantly hamper surveillance due to capacity constraints.” Despite the red flag, The Economist continues to blindly propagate a figure that is neither reliable nor replicable. I stress the word “continues”.
It turns out that The Economist is a serial propagator of inaccurate IMF figures. The magazine has cited IMF’s incorrect figure of 500 billion percent before, in June 2009 and October 2015.
For accurate estimates of Zimbabwe’s fantastic hyperinflation that are used in the professional literature – estimates that are reliable and replicable – the IMF and the financial press corps should take a look at the following table from “On the Measurement of Zimbabwe’s Hyperinflation”, which was published in The Cato Journal, (2009):
Creative Commons License
This work by Cato Institute is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
By Steve H. Hanke
Most press reports about Zimbabwe’s fantastic hyperinflation are off the mark – way off the mark. Even our most trusted news sources fail to get the facts right. This confirms the “95 Percent Rule”: 95 percent of what you read in the financial press is either wrong or irrelevant.
When it comes to the reportage about hyperinflation, there are no excuses. All 56 of the world’s hyperinflations have been carefully documented in “World Hyperinflations”. This record is available in the Routledge Handbook of Major Economic Events in Economic History (2013) and has been available online since 2012 at the Cato Institute.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is the main culprit, a prominent source of the faulty data. EvenThe Economist magazine has fallen into the trap of uncritically accepting figures pumped out by the IMF and further propagating them. It’s no wonder that there is a massive gap between the public’s perception and economic reality. A gap that, ironically, The Economist reports on this week.
The Economist’s most recent infraction on Zimbabwe’s hyperinflation appeared in the May 2016 issue. The magazine claimed that the hyperinflation peaked at an annual rate of 500 billion percent. Where did this figure originate? You guessed it. That figure is buried in the IMF’s 2009 Article IV Consultation Staff Report on Zimbabwe.
In reality, Zimbabwe’s annual inflation rate in September 2008 was 471 billion percent, not 500 billion percent. More importantly, Zimbabwe’s hyperinflation peaked in November, not September. It was then that Zimbabwe recorded the second-highest hyperinflation in history: a whopping 89.7 sextillion percent. This is 179 billion times greater than the IMF’s figure.
That said, the IMF did attempt to cover its backside from questions about its hyperinflation guestimate. 2009 Article IV Staff Report on Zimbabwe states clearly that “data have serious shortcomings that significantly hamper surveillance due to capacity constraints.” Despite the red flag, The Economist continues to blindly propagate a figure that is neither reliable nor replicable. I stress the word “continues”.
It turns out that The Economist is a serial propagator of inaccurate IMF figures. The magazine has cited IMF’s incorrect figure of 500 billion percent before, in June 2009 and October 2015.
For accurate estimates of Zimbabwe’s fantastic hyperinflation that are used in the professional literature – estimates that are reliable and replicable – the IMF and the financial press corps should take a look at the following table from “On the Measurement of Zimbabwe’s Hyperinflation”, which was published in The Cato Journal, (2009):
Creative Commons License
This work by Cato Institute is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
*****************
Trust but Verify --- R Reagan
"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."1 Thessalonians 5:14–18
Kevind53- Super Moderator
- Posts : 27254
Join date : 2011-08-09
Age : 24
Location : Umm right here!
Re: Zimbabwe’s Hyperinflation: The Correct Number Is 89 Sextillion Percent
So gurus, tell me again how Zimbabwe's currency is about to pay huge returns?
*****************
Trust but Verify --- R Reagan
"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."1 Thessalonians 5:14–18
Kevind53- Super Moderator
- Posts : 27254
Join date : 2011-08-09
Age : 24
Location : Umm right here!
Re: Zimbabwe’s Hyperinflation: The Correct Number Is 89 Sextillion Percent
:tup:
*****************
>>>TNTBS's YouTube Channel<<<
RamblerNash- GURU HUNTER
- Posts : 24270
Join date : 2015-02-19
Page 1 of 1
Permissions in this forum:
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
Yesterday at 6:02 am by Ditartyn
» Dave Schmidt - Zim Notes for Purchase (NOT PHYSICAL NOTES)
Sat Mar 23, 2024 9:25 am by swizzlestick
» ZIGPLACE
Wed Mar 20, 2024 6:29 am by Zig
» CBD Vape Cartridges
Thu Mar 07, 2024 2:10 pm by Arendac
» Classic Tony is back
Tue Mar 05, 2024 2:53 pm by Mission1st
» THE MUSINGS OF A MADMAN
Mon Mar 04, 2024 11:40 am by Arendac
» Minister of Transport: We do not have authority over any airport in Iraq
Mon Mar 04, 2024 11:40 am by Verina
» Did Okie Die?
Mon Mar 04, 2024 11:34 am by Arendac
» Hello all, I’m new
Wed Jan 31, 2024 8:46 pm by Jonny_5
» The Renfrows: Prophets for Profits, Happy Anniversary!
Wed Jan 31, 2024 6:46 pm by Mission1st
» What Happens when Cancer is treated with Cannabis? VIDEO
Wed Jan 31, 2024 8:58 am by MadisonParrish
» An Awesome talk between Tucker and Russell Brand
Wed Jan 31, 2024 12:16 am by kenlej
» Trafficking in children
Mon Jan 29, 2024 7:43 pm by kenlej
» The second American Revolution has begun, God Bless Texas
Mon Jan 29, 2024 6:13 pm by kenlej
» The Global Currency Reset Evolution Event Will Begin With Gold, Zimbabwe ZWR Old Bank Notes
Sun Jan 28, 2024 3:28 pm by Mission1st
» Tucker talking Canada
Wed Jan 24, 2024 6:50 pm by kenlej
» Almost to the end The goodguys are winning
Mon Jan 22, 2024 9:03 pm by kenlej
» Dinar Daily Facebook Page
Mon Jan 22, 2024 3:34 pm by Ponee
» The Fundamentals of Finance and Pimpy Live
Thu Jan 18, 2024 7:17 am by Dinarhater
» Why Won't the Iraqi Dinar Scam Die?
Wed Jan 17, 2024 5:19 pm by RamblerNash