130 — Petrodollars

Boston Basic Income

Basic income adds new money to the economy for consumers to spend. And that money has to have somewhere to go. The first place it goes is toward the purchase of goods and services, but where will it end up? Two of the most common answers are savings and taxes.
Even without basic income, the government is always adding new money to the economy. Where *has* it been ending up? For a long time, one part of the answer is that oil exporters sold oil for dollars and liked to accumulate Treasury debt. This so-called "petrodollar recycling" allowed the US to issue extra money thanks to the extra demand for Treasuries. But to what extent is this still true?
For optional reading this week, we have a 2016 Bloomberg article by Andrea Wong entitled "The Untold Story Behind Saudi Arabia's 41-Year U.S. Debt Secret."
Previous related Boston Basic Income topics have included:
BBI #12 — The Nature of Money
BBI #31 — Venezuela Crisis
BBI #103 — Dutch Disease
Original YouTube Recording
Image by Pavel N., RU on Noun Project