It is a well-documented fact: merger and acquisition waves tend to coincide with stock market peaks and their immediate subsequent downturns.

Unless you are living under a rock, you know by now that current times are nowhere near economic stability. In fact, there has not been such “stability” (regardless of what politicians and central bankers say) since the ending of the Bretton Woods agreement in 1971. What did ending the Bretton Woods agreement mean to the world? Since I am no expert on the topic, I suggest reading this article by the CATO Institute.

The following is a real-world example (and unfortunately not a parable) of what happens when the perils of modern monetary theory (MMT) and price controls both are ignored.

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is the world’s largest free trade area by the number of countries. It is the most ambitious and, given demographic trends, the most promising free trade project on earth. The AfCFTA matters very much to Africa’s economies separately and to the continent’s collaborative and integrated economic development. If successful, it also carries significant implications for the global economy. As such, the AfCFTA matters. Not just for Africans but for everyone. 

In the last few years, it seems as if there has been a hot new story about a different commodity facing some form of shortage every single day. Most recently we have seen a baby formula shortage. However, that is most certainly not the only one we have seen of late. We have seen chicken wing shortages, lumber shortages, medical product shortages—heck, even toilet paper shortages (although I’ll admit that that last one was probably nothing more than goofy panicking).