Major overseas markets are becoming more open, although the degree of openness varies from market to market. “Big bangs” have occurred in major markets, and privatization is the norm in a number of others. Of course, wisely or not, some still demand “national champions”, and others worry about privatizing the “crown jewels”.
As we delve deeper into the questions raised by the developments of recent years, the interplay between structural productivity growth and equity premiums, so evident during the past business cycle, is bound to play a prominent role. We need particularly to determine whether the periodic emergence of market bubbles, which have occurred so often in the past, is inevitable going forward.