John Kay is one of Britain’s leading economists. His interests focus on the relationships between economics and business. His career has spanned academic work and think tanks, business schools, company directorships, consultancies and investment companies. For more details of John’s biography, see the About section.
John’s main current interest is in writing and he publishes a weekly column in the Financial Times. His next book, Obliquity – how our goals are best pursued indirectly – will be published by Profile in March 2010. The Long and the Short of It – finance and investment for normally intelligent people who are not in the industry was published in January 2009 and his major work on the operation of market economies, The Truth about Markets, appeared in 2003 (a US version, Culture and Prosperity, was published in 2004). Two collections of his FT columns are available – Everlasting Light Bulbs covers economic subjects, while The Hare and the Tortoise has a business focus.
Featured Books
Obliquity, John’s latest book will be published in Spring 2010!
“Whether overcoming geographical obstacles, winning decisive battles or meeting sales targets, history shows us that oblique approaches are the most successful, especially in difficult terrain.”
The Long and the Short of It – finance and investment for normally intelligent people who are not in the industry was published in January 2009.
This book provides a guide to the complexities of modern finance. It describes the basics of investment and the sophisticated innovations of the modern financial system.
This book shows how to put your finances in the only hands you can confidently trust – your own. more >
Latest Articles
03 February 2010, Financial Times
“Too big to fail” insurance is likely to leave the non-financial economy with the worst of all possible worlds – less public control of risk and greater potential calls on taxpayers.
30 January 2010, Financial Times
John reviews Joseph Stiglitz’s book on the financial crisis: Freefall: Free Markets and the Sinking of the Global Economy
27 January 2010, Financial Times
Even if economic issues are more central to politics than ever before, argument today is less about the nature of economic systems than about the relative abilities of different politicians to administer a system on whose basic structure all are in agreement.
20 January 2010, Financial Times
Tailgaters think the view that their behaviour is dumb is based on a purely theoretical analysis, which is refuted by the tailgater’s practical experience. And so the culture of self-confident, self-congratulatory tailgaters perpetuates itself.
