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Nancy Qian

Nancy Qian

Writing for PS since 2021
37 commentaries
1 videos & podcasts

Nancy Qian, Professor of Economics at Northwestern University, is Co-Director of Northwestern University’s Global Poverty Research Lab and Founding Director of the China Econ Lab.

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  1. Americans Can’t Win from Trump’s Trade War
    qian41_TIMOTHY A. CLARYAFP via Getty Images_NYSE Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images

    Americans Can’t Win from Trump’s Trade War

    Apr 7, 2025 Nancy Qian sees only nonsense in the administration's rationale for “reciprocal” tariffs and the formula for setting them.

  2. Trump’s Trade War Is About More Than Trade
    qian40_MARK RALSTONAFP via Getty Images_UStradewar Mark Ralston/AFP via Getty Images

    Trump’s Trade War Is About More Than Trade

    Feb 10, 2025 Nancy Qian considers the domestic and global implications of the new US administration’s tariff policies.

  3. China’s Economy Has Not Peaked
    qian39_Getty Images Getty Images

    China’s Economy Has Not Peaked

    Dec 16, 2024 Nancy Qian concludes that, with fundamental reforms, another wave of rapid economic growth is possible.

  4. America Needs Political Age Limits
    qian38_ JIM WATSONAFP via Getty Images_biden JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

    America Needs Political Age Limits

    Aug 16, 2024 Nancy Qian sees no good reason for allowing elected officials to cling to office well into old age.

  5. Would Trump Escalate the US-China Trade War?
    qian37_Thomas Peter-PoolGetty Images_uschinaflag Thomas Peter/Pool/Getty Images

    Would Trump Escalate the US-China Trade War?

    Jul 31, 2024 Nancy Qian explains why high tariffs would be all but inevitable even though they would harm average Americans.

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  1. gebert5_Amir LevyGetty Images_netanyahuprotest Amir Levy/Getty Images

    Will Qatari Gold Sink Netanyahu?

    Konstanty Gebert

    Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's decision to fire the country's internal security chief has raised suspicions, given that the move comes just after the launch of an investigation into a new scandal involving his own aides. Israelis are right to worry that they could now be heading for a constitutional crisis.

    explains the latest scandal to hit Israel's increasingly illiberal, norm-breaking government.
  2. khrushcheva191_Anna MoneymakerGettyImages_steve_witkoff Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

    The US and Russia Are Negotiating in Bad Faith

    Nina L. Khrushcheva thinks the Kremlin is laying the groundwork for a highly favorable deal on the Ukraine war.
  3. schaake12_Thierry MonasseGettyImages_henna_virkkunen Thierry Monasse/Getty Images

    Europe’s Tech Sovereignty Demands More Than Competitiveness

    Marietje Schaake & Max von Thun warn that the European Union’s deregulatory push could undermine its autonomy and fundamental values.
  4. nsofor11_GUY PETERSONAFP via Getty Images_africadoctors Guy Peterson/AFP via Getty Images

    How Should Africa Respond to Foreign-Aid Cuts?

    Ifeanyi M. Nsofor touts the potential of foreign remittances to sustain public services as external support shrinks.
  5. huang6_Sawayasu TsujiGettyImages_china_tariffs Sawayasu Tsuji/Getty Images

    How Should China Respond to Trump’s Tariffs?

    Huang Yiping urges Chinese policymakers to fill the leadership vacuum created by America’s protectionist turn.
  6. oneill132_Feature ChinaFuture Publishing via Getty Images_chinashopping Feature China/Future Publishing via Getty Images

    Who Will Drive the Post-American Global Economy?

    Jim O'Neill considers what other large economies can do to offset the effects of the Trump administration's trade warfare.
  7. op_fofack4_Irwin Wong for The Washington Post via Getty Images_elderlypersonworking Irwin Wong for The Washington Post via Getty Images

    Health Is Wealth in a Geriatric World

    Hippolyte Fofack

    The Global South is increasingly at risk of growing old before becoming rich, which implies huge social and economic costs. To avert this outcome, the Hevolution Foundation, a nonprofit backed by the Saudi royal family, has begun to support research focused on lengthening healthspans – the period of life spent in good health.

    explains why increasing “healthspans” to match lifespans is a moral and economic imperative.
  8. przybylski2_Alexander KoernerGetty Images_germanyarmy Alexander Koerner/Getty Images

    Europe’s Democrats Must Forge a Will to Fight

    Wojciech Przybylski & Goran Buldioski think European leaders' most urgent security task is to nurture citizens' resolve to defend their countries.
  9. mazzucato81_Tomas CuestaGetty Images_javiermileichainsaw Tomas Cuesta/Getty Images

    Governments Are Not Startups

    Mariana Mazzucato & Rainer Kattel explain why ongoing efforts to run the state like a business are doomed to fail.

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