Olav Dirkmaat

Olav Dirkmaat

Olav Dirkmaat is professor in economics at the Business School of Universidad Francisco Marroquín. Before, he was VP at Nxchange and precious metals analyst at GoldRepublic. He has a PhD in Economics from the King Juan Carlos University in Madrid. He has a master in Austrian Economics from the same university, as well as a master in Marketing Strategy from the VU University in Amsterdam. He is also the translator of Human Action of Ludwig von Mises into Dutch. He has a passion for investing, and manages funds for relatives, looking for investment opportunities in markets that are extremely over- or undervalued.



Inflation or Deflation: Which Is More Likely?

By Olav Dirkmaat on September 2, 2022

Last year, I wrote that the current inflation has a fiscal rather than a monetary origin. In other words, we would not have the same inflation in the absence of fiscal stimulus, while we would have the same inflation in the absence of monetary stimulus. For the same reason, I have affirmed and continue to affirm that I view it as unlikely for current inflation rates to begin to consistently exceed two digits, as was the case in the 1970s. This same pandemic fiscal stimulus has caused serious problems in a variety of markets: sea, land and air freight, electronic products and their components, automobiles, and others, which have added fuel to the inflationary fire. This is the origin of the current inflation we are experiencing, and I will try to make my case with data. The Current Inflation In recent months, the rise in the general price level has…

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The Battle for the Streaming Market: Netflix, Amazon, HBO and Disney

By Olav Dirkmaat on March 30, 2022

Fever in the cinematographic market: The cost escalation which could bring down giants like Netflix

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How Likely is High Inflation? A Comprehensive Analysis

By Olav Dirkmaat on June 25, 2021

Are government handouts behind rising consumer prices and remittances?

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A Tale of the Two Trade Deficits between the United States and China

By Olav Dirkmaat on September 19, 2018

Why are the figures for the trade deficit between the United States and China different in the two countries? What does this discrepancy mean? Discover the answers to these questions here.

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The Real Reason Behind the U.S. Trade Deficit (and Why Trump’s Trade War Is Insane)

By Olav Dirkmaat on April 9, 2018

Trump’s trade war borders on insanity. Discover the real reason of the U.S. trade deficit.

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The Fed Ignores the Yield Curve (But the Yield Curve Is Warning for a Recession)

By Olav Dirkmaat on December 20, 2017

Why is Fed Chair Janet Yellen wrong about the yield curve?

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Trump’s Tax Reform Dissected

By Olav Dirkmaat on October 17, 2017

Two weeks ago, the Trump administration presented a detailed version of one of Trump’s most important election promises: a tax reform. What are the consequences of Trump’s recent tax proposal for the US budget deficit and public debt?

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The Accounting Cycle and Financial Bubbles: On the Current Indifference on Accounting Methods

By Olav Dirkmaat on September 25, 2017

As long as the stock market is booming, businesses get away with shady accounting practices. What do the recent cases of Netflix, Tesla and Alphabet suggest about what phase of the business cycle we are in?

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US GDP Growth a Solid 3%, But Is Trouble Ahead?

By Olav Dirkmaat on September 4, 2017

The US economy is growing at a 3% annual rate. But are things as they seem?

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How OPEC Became Irrelevant: Traditional Oil Producing Countries Still Fail to Face the New Reality

By Olav Dirkmaat on June 13, 2017

The large traditional oil-producing countries — both OPEC and non-OPEC — are still catching up with the new reality. After deciding to extend the production cuts — agreed upon half a year ago — for another nine months, oil prices plunged below $50/barrel. Not quite the effect these oil giants were hoping for, but nothing out of the ordinary. After all, the fact is that supply and demand dynamics in the oil market have changed for good.

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