Tobin tax etc.

[Chris Burford]

At 03:18 PM 6/1/98 -0700, Michael Perelman wrote:
>The point of Feldstein-Horioka is not that capital flows are unimportant,
>but that NET capital flows are small.  For example, the IMF will give
>Indonesia $40 billion.  Suharto's net worth is about $40.  So if he
>manages to transfer his wealth out of the country, the net flow will be
>zero.

Yes I think I understood this point but I appreciate the confirmation. 

But to ask a fundamental question: why?

Why with all this accelerated movement of financical assets around the
world's computer terminals is the net result usually zero in terms of
transfer of real assets?

And secondly, if that is so, why have these movements accelerated so much
in the last couple of decades?

Chris Burford