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, has indeed peaked. Indeed, they “slowed to a trickle”... and here are the latest “trickles.”
Ocean shipping companies booked record profits in 2022. Now, with exports and imports slumping as U.S. and European shoppers turn to services, shippers are discounting their prices and contemplating the prospect of a price war to lure customers, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Bankruptcies and defaults rose sharply in all sectors of the Eurozone’s economy last year, statistics agency Eurostat reported, leaping up 26.8 percent in the final quarter compared to the previous three months.
Last month, inflation in Germany accelerated to an annual rate of 9.3 percent, up from 8.3 percent in January, the government’s statistics office reported.
In India, QR codes have become as common as curry. Street peddlers and performers display them just like barber shops and clothing stores do. Even beggars have their own QR codes if passers-by have no spare change.
China holds a “stunning lead in high-impact research” over the U.S. in 37 of 44 cutting-edge technologies, according to a new report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.
The mainstream media played the game that inflation eased in Europe, which is total bullshit. In February, inflation’s overall pace across Europe edged down to just 0.1 percent to 8.5 percent from 8.6 percent in January... with prices for services driven higher.
Some clients of several major international law firms are asking for discounts or payment plans as they struggle with rising costs and higher interest rates, the Financial Times reported.
Europe’s natural gas prices are on track to decline for a third consecutive month in March, the longest slide in the price since 2020, with futures contracts pricing about 35 percent lower now than at the beginning of the year, according to Bloomberg.
This is week 31 of our reporting the long trend-line of layoffs that signal a further economic downturn in a country near you. Rising inflation and rising interest rate hikes are causing companies in many sectors to lay off employees.