The podcast that keeps you up to date with what is happening economy-wise in Northern Ireland. Telling you what you need to know but not necessarily what you want to hear. It is better to be prepared for the economic environment we are operating in and not the world we would like to be in.
COVID lockdowns meant 2020 was a year to forget for the film making industry and the movie watching public. No Time To Die, the latest film in the James Bond franchise was delayed three times because of the pandemic. Unlike 2020, 2021 has seen a steady stream of much anticipated sequels being released such as Top Gun: Maverick, Mission Impossible 7 and last month’s Halloween Kills. Spiderman 3 and Matrix 4 are slated for release in December and next year we can look forward to Scream 5 and Legally Blonde 3 – or so I am told.
Some sequels use the same cast and rehashed plotlines as the original. Others introduce new characters and new storylines to engage the audience and to keep the story fresh.
In the economics world there are plenty of sequels too whether it is stock market crashes, recessions, or financial crisis. Invariably with economic sequels there are similarities with the original but there can also be notable differences.
The latest economic box office release doing the rounds is the Cost-of-Living Crisis 2. This is the sequel to the squeeze on living standards that took place between 2008 and 2014, particularly the period late-2009 to late-2013. This was a sustained period when consumer price inflation significantly outpaced pay growth. It was also a period of austerity with a scaling back of welfare benefits, multi-year benefit freezes and public sector pay caps.