Idaho Statesman Logo

Peter Crabb: We must innovate to prosper — and Micron shows the way | Idaho Statesman

×
  • E-edition
  • Home
    • Customer Service
    • Mobile & Apps
    • Archives
    • Buy Photos and Pages
    • Contact Us
    • Newsletters
    • Newspaper in Education
    • Subscribe
    • Subscriber Services

    • News
    • Boise
    • West Ada
    • Canyon County
    • Crime
    • State News
    • Nation/World News
    • Databases
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Idahoans in the Military
    • Weather
    • Traffic
    • Helping Works
    • In the Classroom
    • Our Community
    • Sports
    • Boise State Football
    • Boise State Basketball
    • Idaho Vandals
    • High Schools
    • Bronco Beat
    • Chadd Cripe
    • Varsity Extra Blog
    • NFL
    • NBA
    • NHL
    • MLB
    • Golf
    • Idaho Politics
    • Elections
    • Government and Business
    • Capitol & State
    • Letters from the West
    • National Politics
    • Business
    • Business Insider
    • Business Columns & Blogs
    • Personal Finance
    • Legal Notices
    • Opinion
    • Editorials
    • Bill Manny
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Guest Opinion
    • Submit a Letter or Opinion
    • Entertainment
    • Events Calendar
    • Restaurant Reviews
    • Arts and Culture
    • Festivals
    • Movie Reviews
    • Movie Showtimes
    • Music
    • Television
    • Books
    • Comics
    • Puzzles & Games
    • Horoscopes
    • Puzzles
    • Words & Deeds
    • ArtsBeat
    • Outdoors
    • Playing Outdoors Blog
    • Biking
    • Camping
    • Fishing
    • Hiking and Trails
    • Hunting
    • Winter Recreation
    • Living
    • Food & Drink
    • Health & Fitness
    • Home & Garden
    • Treasure
    • Pets
    • Religion
    • Travel
    • Best of Treasure Valley
    • Heart of the Treasure Valley
    • Margaret Lauterbach
    • Tim Woodward
    • Carolyn Hax
  • Obituaries

  • Contests
  • Advertise
  • Classifieds
  • Jobs
  • Cars
  • Homes
  • Place An Ad

  • About Us
  • Mobile & Apps

Business Insider

Peter Crabb: We must innovate to prosper — and Micron shows the way

By Peter Crabb - Northwest Nazarene University

    ORDER REPRINT →

April 02, 2010 08:55 PM

The financial markets always reward innovation and so should we. Idaho’s Micron Technology is at innovation’s leading edge.

Micron’s stock price has been rising in recent months on expectations that rising prices for its computer memory products will improve profitability. The stock, traded under the stock quote symbol MU, has risen 10 percent since the start of March and is 50 percent higher since April of last year.

As Joe Estrella reported in the Idaho Statesman this week, Micron reported strong profits in the most recent quarter. This was Micron’s second straight profitable quarter following years of losses. Even if Micron doesn’t increase hiring, as many U.S. firms are still not doing, the greater profits will increase employee pay and benefits leading to greater spending in the local economy.

Mr. Estrella quoted analysts who believe the chances for continued profit growth are excellent because Micron has been investing in technology. Kevin Jones of Boise-based Harmonic Investment Advisors noted that new technology is lowering manufacturing costs while prices rise. He goes on to say that Micron is a leader in memory chips per wafer – more memory per wafer lowers the cost per unit.

Sign Up and Save

Get six months of free digital access to The Idaho Statesman

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

#ReadLocal

Just as technological benefits Micron, technological investments will benefit the U.S.

Economists have long studied what leads to economic growth. Adam Smith’s famous book on economics is titled "An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations." Smith was asking what gives rise to a higher standard of living, or wealth.

What Smith learned, and later economists have since verified, is that new technologies are the source of wealth. For Smith, it was the division of labor duties that gave rise to more specialized workers with better skills — that is, greater labor productivity.

Today, productivity gains come from advances in technology, such as better communication systems and faster computing power. Higher productivity makes workers more efficient and helps companies recover from the devastating recession of 2008.

On March 4 the U.S. Labor Department revised upward its estimate of non-farm industry productivity gains from an annualized 6.2 percent gain to 6.9 percent for the fourth quarter of 2009. Over the last year, manufacturing productivity like that of Micron’s has increased 6.1 percent.

Higher worker productivity is good for all. Alexander Field summarizes what economists have learned in the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics. He writes, “The growth of productivity — output per unit of input — is the fundamental determinant of the growth of a country’s material standard of living The bottom line: If a country wants its standard of living to rise over the long run, its labor productivity has to go up. And for that to happen, it either has to save more or innovate.”

We must therefore applaud Micron’s achievements this past year and support its innovative moves. Policies that promote savings by households (think better after-tax interest rates) and innovation by businesses (think investment or research tax credits) will give us needed technological advances.

As the statesman Edmund Burke said, “America demands invention and innovation to succeed.”

Peter R. Crabb is a professor of finance and economics at Northwest Nazarene University in Nampa. He earned his doctorate in international and financial economics from the University of Oregon.

  Comments  

Videos

How IndieDwell turns used shipping containers into houses

Here’s what makes The Village at Meridian successful

View More Video

Trending Stories

4 Boise teens, including 3 refugees from Tanzania, arrested for suspected rape of 18-year-old

February 15, 2019 11:10 AM

Farmers market to leave heart of Downtown Boise. Here’s where it’s going, and why

February 15, 2019 04:13 PM

‘More modern. More fun. Super authentic.’ New Asian restaurant plans to open in Boise

February 14, 2019 12:28 PM

Judge sentences Valley woman who didn’t report husband’s sexual abuse of kids

February 14, 2019 12:26 PM

Idaho man wanted in ‘vicious assault on a sleeping victim’ arrested in Florida

February 14, 2019 06:44 PM

Read Next

Idaho Center, Nampa Civic Center get new leader. The latest changes in Valley business

Business

Idaho Center, Nampa Civic Center get new leader. The latest changes in Valley business

By David Staats

    ORDER REPRINT →

February 12, 2019 01:50 PM

Achievements by Treasure Valley, Idaho, people and companies. Latest new-business openings.

KEEP READING

Sign Up and Save

#ReadLocal

Get six months of free digital access to The Idaho Statesman

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

MORE BUSINESS INSIDER

Eagle houses, Caldwell RV park, Meridian preschool and more: See what’s coming near you

Business

Eagle houses, Caldwell RV park, Meridian preschool and more: See what’s coming near you

December 14, 2018 01:25 PM
This candy store has made Boise sweeter since 1947. Now the owner might sell it

Business Insider

This candy store has made Boise sweeter since 1947. Now the owner might sell it

December 10, 2018 01:26 PM
This Idaho distillery is the biggest in the West. We can thank a failed idea for that.

Business Insider

This Idaho distillery is the biggest in the West. We can thank a failed idea for that.

December 07, 2018 10:27 AM
Want a liquor license in Boise? Better stack your cash — or settle in for a long wait.

Business Insider

Want a liquor license in Boise? Better stack your cash — or settle in for a long wait.

November 23, 2018 12:05 PM
44° North Vodka just had to produce its potato vodka in Idaho. It’s the potato state, after all

Business Insider

44° North Vodka just had to produce its potato vodka in Idaho. It’s the potato state, after all

November 21, 2018 11:25 AM
Women Ignite brings women (and men) together for better work, better lives

Business Insider

Women Ignite brings women (and men) together for better work, better lives

October 22, 2018 03:52 PM
Take Us With You

Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand.

Icon for mobile apps

Idaho Statesman App

View Newsletters

Subscriptions
  • Start a Subscription
  • Customer Service
  • eEdition
  • Vacation Hold
  • Pay Your Bill
  • Rewards
Learn More
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletters
  • News in Education
  • Archives
Advertising
  • Information
  • Place a Classified
  • Local Deals
  • Place an Obituary
  • Today's Circulars
Copyright
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service


Back to Story