From: Adam Rose <Adam-AT-pmel.com>
Subject: RE: M-I: Rate of Profit
Date: Thu, 19 Dec 1996 15:40:02 -0000




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Do you have a GDP series for the last 20 years, say ?
It would be quite interesting. Certainly the level of national
debt in general, across many countries, has risen in the last
twenty years, unless I am very much mistaken. This suggests
to me falling GDP growth, and this is strong evidence for a 
falling rate of profit.

I have a very strong impression that each "peak" has been weaker
in terms of GDP growth than the last, that each recession has been
lower for longer. One sign of this is that unemployment in Britain
is higher now, in a "boom", than it was in 1979 when the Tories
won the election with the slogan "Labour isn't working".

And perhaps you could outline what you think the countervailing
tendencies are - the rate of exploitation ? I am sure, in the US at
least, that this has countered it to a certain extent in the last few
years.

And, a simple question : if the rate of return in productive industry is
so much higher than the rate of return ( asset inflation + dividends )
in the stock market, why is so much money flowing into the stock
market ?

Adam.

Adam Rose
SWP
Manchester
Britain.







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