As forecast, the Merger and Acquisition trend which we have been long reporting would peak when the Federal Reserve would aggressively raise interest rates and cut off the cheap money supply.
Category: 31 January 2023
SPAIN’S ECONOMY MANAGES TO GROW IN FOURTH QUARTER
Spain’s economy eked out a 0.2-percent expansion in last year’s final quarter, the same as in the quarter before but twice the growth that economists had forecast in a Reuters poll.
22 PERCENT OF CANADIANS ARE FLAT BROKE, SURVEY FINDS
Thanks to the combination of inflation and sharply higher interest rates, 22 percent of Canadians—and 28 percent of women—are “completely out of money,” an Ipsos poll commissioned by Canada’s Global News has found.
BANK OF CANADA ANNOUNCES PAUSE IN RATE HIKES
On 25 January, the Bank of Canada (BoC) added a quarter-point to its key interest rate, lifting it to 4.50 percent, its highest in more than 15 years.
TOP TREND 2022, SELF-SUFFICIENT ECONOMIES: NORWAY FINDS MINERAL TROVE IN TERRITORIAL SEABED
After Sweden announced this month that it had found Europe’s largest deposit of rare earth minerals in Lapland (see “Europe’s Largest Rare Earths Deposit Discovered,” 24 Jan 2023) Norway said it has discovered a “substantial” lode of rare earths and metals on the seabed within its territorial waters, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) said in a statement.
EU READY TO CUT OFF IMPORTS OF RUSSIAN REFINED FUEL
In tandem with Western allies’ 5 February price cap on Russia’s exports of refined fuel, the European Union (EU) is about to end all imports of diesel from Russia, which has been the region’s largest supplier.
GERMANY’S ECONOMY CONTRACTS IN FOURTH QUARTER
Germany’s economic output shrank 0.2 percent in 2022’s final quarter, year over year, the national statistics office announced.
CHINA RANKS WORLD’S #2 AUTOMAKER
China’s vehicle exports have tripled to more than 2.5 million in 2022, the China Passenger Car Association has reported.
WHEN THE ECONOMY FALLS JOBS GO WITH IT
This is our 26th week reporting the long trend-line of layoffs that signal a further economic downturn in a country near you. Inflation and interest rate hikes are causing companies in many sectors to lay off employees.
SPOTLIGHT: U.S. HOUSING MARKET TRENDS
In December, pending home sales increased 2.9 percent from November, the first month-over-month gain since October 2021, according to online brokerage Redfin.