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  • Capitalism has been embraced in the West for generations, transforming how societies lived

  • and worked in the process. But its time may be running out.

  • Democratic socialists like Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have slammed

  • the economic system, and even billionaires like Warren Buffett, Mark Benioff and

  • Ray Dalio admit the system is failing many.

  • The conversation about capitalism in its current form has been so loud that leaders here at

  • the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland are questioning its relevance in the world

  • we live in today. So will we soon see the end to capitalism as we know it?

  • Capitalism is defined as an economic, political and social system in which property, business

  • and industry are privately owned by individuals and companies, not the state.

  • This means capital assetslike land, machinery and buildingscan be purchased by private

  • individuals or businesses. Companies get you to work for them by offering wages.

  • And your investments in a business that's doing well can grow.

  • Capitalism began in 17th century Europe, during a time when colonial powers including France,

  • England and Portugal had taken control of 84% of the world.

  • By the 20th century, the idea had spread through most of the globe, often with detours and

  • violent societal upheavals along the way.

  • Even China, once a staunch communist country, has adopted state capitalism.

  • This means private enterprise is a large and dynamic part of the economy, but the government

  • still sets the agenda and owns several strategic sectors.

  • The form of capitalism we're most familiar with today is known as shareholder capitalism.

  • This concept has been embraced by the world's business leaders for decades.

  • The main idea?

  • Make money for your investors.

  • The theory originated from American economist Milton Friedman in the 1970s.

  • He argued that maximizing profits for shareholders should be a corporation's only objective

  • while still following the law of course.

  • Corporate boards overwhelmingly took on the message. It made sense at the time.

  • American companies had become bloated and unprofitable.

  • Shareholder activism became a movement, and leaders like Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher

  • stood behind it. The fall of the Soviet Union solidified the message.

  • The mantra became: ”Greed is good.”

  • Many economists agree this form of capitalism had its advantages.

  • Hundreds of millions of people benefited during the following decades, as profit-seeking businesses

  • opened up new markets and created new jobs.

  • But now, more and more voices are saying we've gone too far in the other direction.

  • Critics of shareholder capitalism argue the system has had three major side effects.

  • They say it's harmed the environment, driven inequality and weakened economic growth.

  • Climate change has been a hot topic for decades, but the rise of 17-year-old Greta Thunberg

  • forced world and business leaders to pay attention.

  • In August 2018, she skipped school and camped outside the Swedish Parliament to signal that

  • more needed to be done to combat climate change.

  • Thunberg's demonstration galvanized her peers into action, setting off a wave of protests

  • outside parliaments and city halls worldwide.

  • Some environmentalists argue prioritizing profit has encouraged risky short-term behavior,

  • like drilling for fossil fuels.

  • This has subsequently damaged the planet, and the effects are becoming glaringly obvious.

  • Between 1993 and 2016, Greenland lost an average of 286 billion tons of ice per year,

  • while Antartica lost 127 billion tons.

  • Then there's increasing inequality.

  • Inequality between nations has actually decreased as countries like India and China embraced

  • capitalism and free markets.

  • But inequality between the rich and poor within nations has become much worse.

  • Boards used executive pay to align their CEOs' decisions with shareholder interests,

  • and we've seen their earnings balloon as a result.

  • Since 1978, CEO compensation has grown 940%.

  • The typical worker, on the other hand, has only seen their compensation grow by 12%.

  • Take Amazon for example.

  • Its founder Jeff Bezos is the richest person in the world.

  • At the same time, the tech giant has faced multiple accusations and reports of poor pay

  • and working conditions for its warehouse workers.

  • And it's not just in the United States.

  • Globally, the bottom half of adults account for less than 1% of the world's wealth,

  • while the top 1% owns nearly half.

  • While many may argue this disparity is unfair, some go further and say this obsession with

  • profit is actually slowing economic growth.

  • Even the chief executive of BlackRock, the world's biggest money manager, agrees.

  • In a letter sent to the CEOs of the world's biggest companies, Larry Fink said the pressure

  • to keep share prices high has led to executivesunderinvesting in innovation, skilled workforces

  • or essential capital expenditures.” The bottom line?

  • He says businesses are sacrificing long-term value for short-term financial gain.

  • And as the rich get richer, less money is getting spent and spread throughout the economy.

  • In 2019, the rich cut down their spending on everything from homes and art to jewelry

  • and retail, sparking fears of a trickle-down recession from the top.

  • The average consumer, on the other hand, is more likely to spend their earnings, and drive

  • economic growth as a result.

  • These factors are helping to fuel the backlash against capitalism as we know it.

  • This poll in the U.S. found only about 1 in 5 of 18-34 year-olds have positive feelings

  • about capitalism, with most responding neutrally or even negatively to the concept.

  • This change in sentiment may explain why even some of the one percent are beginning to question

  • the traditional definition of capitalism.

  • Enter conscious capitalism, also known as stakeholder capitalism or inclusive capitalism.

  • The buzzwords all convey something similaran economic system that aims to achieve

  • more than just shareholder profit.

  • It calls for corporations to also consider how their decisions will affect other stakeholders,

  • including their staff, community, collaborators, governments, consumers and suppliers.

  • For example, an oil company needs to also acknowledge the finite nature of fossil fuels

  • and their impact on the environment.

  • Or a retail fashion brand should also be mindful of its supply chain and workers toiling away in factories.

  • Here in the Swiss Alps, the World Economic Forum has launched a new Davos Manifesto as

  • it celebrates its 50th anniversary.

  • It sets ethical principles it hopes will guide companies moving forward.

  • WEF calls for businesses to tackle corruption, prioritize human rights, advocate for a competitive

  • level playing field and pay their share of taxes.

  • Apt as a Dutch historian scolding billionaires for not paying their fair share was one of

  • the conference's viral moments.

  • We've got to be talking about taxes. That's it. Taxes taxes taxes.

  • CEOs in the private sector have already started showing their support.

  • In August of 2019, the Business Roundtable, comprising the Chief Executive Officers of

  • nearly 200 major U.S. companies, declared maximizing shareholder value was no longer

  • the main focus of their corporations.

  • Wall Street is also embracing sustainable investing, which takes environmental, social

  • and corporate governance factors into consideration.

  • According to the Global Sustainable Investment Alliance, these investments grew to more than

  • $30 trillion in 2018.

  • And more and more enterprises focused on social good are springing up by the day, including

  • Patagonia and TOMS Shoes.

  • But is this a load of talk and no action?

  • Skeptics say stakeholder capitalism is just a big PR stunt, something the titans of industry,

  • tech and finance are doing to save themselves.

  • And shareholder capitalism's advocates say having too many objectives means there is

  • no true north for companies, meaning the system will eventually fail.

  • So is capitalism dying?

  • If the conversation here at Davos it to be believed, the answer is no.

  • It's simply evolving.

  • But whether something like stakeholder capitalism can truly take holdremains to be seen.

Capitalism has been embraced in the West for generations, transforming how societies lived

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資本主義は滅びるのか?| CNBCが解説 (Is capitalism dying? | CNBC Explains)

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    Summer に公開 2021 年 01 月 14 日
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