MEDIA OUTLETS CUT JOBS AS AD SALES FALL. As elections near in the U.S. and the COVID virus roams the world, more people are eager for news. But, as the cover of this Trends Journal articulates, most of what they consume is “junk news.” Even though ratings are going up, fewer advertisers can afford to...
Tag: aug 11 2020
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WAR ESCALATES FOR LIBYAN OIL
As we’ve been reporting for many months, the ongoing civil war in Libya is fueled by foreign powers seeking control of the country’s huge oil reserves. The drumbeat of war is getting louder around the vicinity of Sirte, considered a gateway to one of Libya’s main oil ports. The U.N.-sanctioned government in Tripoli has sent...
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GOING DOWN, GOING BUST, GOING OUT
GOING DOWN, GOING BUST, GOING OUT Each week, in this section, we provide a global overview from various sectors of the economy to illustrate the depth and implications of the COVID lockdowns. HSBC BANK’S PROFITS CRASH. Profits at the worldwide bank that focuses on Asia dove 96 percent in 2020’s second quarter to $192 million...
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COFFEE PRICES: A COLD BREW
The economic shutdown has cooled the price of coffee futures and split the market. Futures prices for arabica coffee beans, the upscale variety popular in restaurants and cafés, are down about 9 percent during the shutdown, which closed eateries around the world and clouded their outlook. The price for cheaper robustica coffee, mostly used in...
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AMERICANS DO NOT TRUST THEIR MEDIA
86 percent of Americans find a “great deal” or a “fair amount” of political bias in media political coverage. According to a recent report published on 4 August titled, “American Views 2020: Trust, Media and Democracy,” Americans are losing confidence that the news they are getting from media is objective and fact-driven. The report, conducted...
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NEW VIRUS SURGE COULD PUSH EMERGING ECONOMIES INTO DEBT CRISIS
For the many economies that depend on tourism, remittances from relatives abroad, and exporting raw materials, a new global wave of the COVID virus could leave them even less able to service their already burdensome foreign debt, the IMF has warned. These countries typically must import a range of necessities. The loss of income from...
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AMERICA: THE LAND OF MISERY
The gold medal for “reversal of fortune” goes to… The United States of America. The annual Bloomberg Index, published on 6 August, shows the U.S. dropping from #50 all the way down to #25 on the global misery list. This puts the U.S.A. behind both Russia and Mexico. Bloomberg arrived at the current scoring based...
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GLOBAL ECONOMIC TRENDS
GERMAN INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION BEGINS TO STIR. Several sectors of Germany’s industrial economy are beginning to boost production, according to a survey by the ifo Institute. The institute’s production indicator, based on the outlook of manufacturing executives, rose from a feeble collective 4.4 points in June to 14.7 in July. Among the most optimistic sectors: Germany’s...
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FOOD STAMPS FOR JUNK FOOD
In addition to schools encouraging children and teenagers to drink diabetes and obesity-causing sodas, our tax dollars every day encourage poor people to eat and drink their way to ill health… and death. Sodas and junk food are highly consumed items by over 40 million low-income Americans, with over $70 billion in benefits each year...
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DRINK LOTS OF SODA AND DIE
As the trends indisputably prove, obesity is weighing down the world, and its implications are deadly and costly. In the U.S., the Milken Institute’s 2018 study, “America’s Obesity Crisis: The Health and Economic Costs of Excess” found, “In 2016, chronic diseases driven by the risk factor of obesity and overweight accounted for $480.7 billion in...