Dear IFRTT Forum subscriber,
the weather is beautiful but times are gloomy. The current crisis is deep,
less demand for transport work, very low sales of new trucks (heavy vehicle
manufacturers are in the red or almost so), suppliers are hurt all the way
back to the iron ore mines.
Manufacturers have grown accustomed to the sudden downturns every seven or
eight years, but this one is bigger than any in memory. Since transport and
truck sales with great precision are correlated to economic activity and GDP,
one has to look into economic theory to understand. How come there are sudden
corrosion and thrombosis in the global financial arteries, always to the
surprise of finance ministers and wise men?
By chance, I searched Wikipedia for "the invisible hand", the metaphor of
Adam Smith in the Wealth of Nations 1776 book. There were some quotes from
economist Joseph E. Stiglitz:
- the reason that the invisible hand often seems invisible is that it
is often not here
- recent research has shown that these externalities (where the actions
of an individual have impacts on others for which they do not pay or for
which they are not compensated) are pervasive, whenever there is imperfect
information or imperfect risk markets - that is always
Fair enough, but makes you wonder about economics as a science.
Preparations for the 11th International Symposium of Heavy Vehicle Transport
Technology, HVTT11, "Heavy Vehicles - Balancing Competing Needs", are underway.
March 15-17 2010 in Melbourne, immediately followed by the Melbourne Truck,
Trailer and Equipment Show. The subsequent week will have the F1 trials and
contest. Keep yourself informed at the site www.hvttconference.com
Papers will be accepted based on a two pages extended abstract, giving unusual
time for updating and finalizing the papers once accepted. In case you have
hesitated to submit: http://www.hvttconference.com/abstract/indexcopy.html
Drive safely,
Anders Lundstrom, IFRTT president
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