Double standards, edition 6,792

The finance ministers of the world's richest countries want to set up rules to govern the investments of sovereign wealth funds from developing and emerging nations. I wonder if they also intend to apply the rules retroactively to entities such as these.

Comments

[Tyler Cowen]

The NYT article refers to billions in these funds but in fact it is *trillions*.

[JIm]

While I do not doubt the financial concerns may be justifiable, it strikes me that a real unspoken concern of these leaders of former wealthy countries is that they fear that these former third world countries may soon be in a position to unfairly exploit the so-called developed countries. The shoe may soon be on the other foot. Touché.

[paine]

notice the article includes
this side story

CONTINUED
OFFICIAL HUFF AND PUFF
OVER THE UNENDING HAN FOREX DIDDLE

rarely has more been said
to less effect eh ??

change beyond the absolute minimum??

get serious
not while the inmates are still running the asylum
ie
the northwest wage rate wrecking
trans global
corporate profit slurry

nope
this high diddle diddle dollups out
too much to too
precious a few

euro-american cross border transactors have yet to find a better bottom line
builder then this
north south / south north
rip dip and ship arrangement

[brad setser]

If the average sov. wealth fund revealed as much information as a nordic state pension -- and, like most state pensions, prefered not to take controlling stakes in companies, I rather suspect sovereign wealth funds would generate far less controversy. Try to find similar information about the GIC (Singapore) or ADIA (Abu Dhabi/ the emirates) on the web. Most state pensions in the G-7 are fairly transparent, if only b/c they manage the money of a lot of voters/ folks who have an interest in knowing where the funds are invested.

I would argue the bigger hypocrisy comes from the G-7's willingness to overlook the fact that SIVs and other off balance sheet vehicles on (or off) the books of the big private banks (at least until now). even Citi's shareholders would have had a hard time understanding what its sponsored SIVs were doing ...

[motorbike helmets]

good point well taken