AltAusterity Digest #9 August 10-16, 2017

Montreal-based grocer Metro has claimed that the minimum wage hike in Ontario will add as much as C$50 million in additional costs next year. The minimum wage increase in Ontario has numerous investors worried about their profit margins and their “competitiveness”.

Changes to the benefits system in Britain has caused many claimants to go hungry due to being unable to afford meals when benefits were delayed. This has caused a major rise in the use of food banks, which are now facing shortages.

The IMF has warned China that its credit growth is on a “dangerous trajectory”. According to IMF research, out of 43 credit booms, only 5 were not followed by either a financial crisis or a slowdown in economic growth.

Japan’s economic policy of Abenomics – where the central bank repeatedly injects money into the economy causing currency devaluation – has benefited the export’s sector, but until recently, domestic consumption has lagged. However, recent data has shown that both consumer spending and business investment have expanded – an early sign that the Japan’s economic policy might be working.

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