In the first month after Brexit, Great Britain posted heavy foreign trade losses, collapsing by 41% in exports to the EU in January, coupled by a loss of 29% in imports. According to the British Statistical Authority, the foreign trade numbers are dramatically bad as the transition is problematic for many companies trading with the … Read more
SAO PAOLO – Despite a weak increase in sales of 1.2%, retail trade in Latin America’s largest economy suffered its biggest pullback since 2016 — when the country was in the midst of the worst recession in memory — according to data from the National Confederation of Trade in Goods, Services and Tourism of Brazil. … Read more
The government gave the diplomat, Isabel Brilhante Pedrosa, 72 hours to leave the country after supporters of the president were accused of “violating human rights or acts against democracy and the rule of law” and sanctioned by the EU. By Milan Sime Martinic Read more
Fueled by low mortgage rates, pent-up demand, and Americans working from home seeking larger quarters, new home sales shattered predictions and drove up the median sales price 5.3% to $346k from a year earlier, marking the highest for any January on record. Government data showed a 4.3% increase in new home purchases in January to … Read more
SAO PAULO, Brazil – After replacing the state-controlled oil company’s CEO with a retired general, the Brazilian president blasted its pricing policies and said they should be changed to lower gas and diesel prices, causing a 21% drop Monday in the company’s shares on the São Paulo Stock Exchange. By Milan Sime Martinić Read more
In the 3-way see-saw to be at the top African economy, Egypt beat out South Africa again taking its place as the continent’s second-biggest economy, leaving Nigeria at the top, a position it has held since 2020 when it overtook South Africa. The International Monetary Fund records show that for years the three counties have … Read more
Millions of American workers believe they are bound by contracts they are not actually bound by, according to University of Maryland Smith Business School’s Evan Starr, and this means less earnings for workers. Starr spoke at length on the subject at the recent Aspen Institute summit and to us on Twitter. While non-competes are required … Read more
The drop started last Friday, and continued over the weekend and on Monday. The big tech stocks, like Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple, and Microsoft, which have been on a long upward trend, have dropped significantly. The drop is considered possibly overdue given the high out-performance and positioning of the stocks. Read more
17% revenue growth is expected between now and 2022, according to a recent report by Research and Markets. Currently, revenues for these 20 countries is $3.5b. The 2022 number will be $4.1, and of the 20 countries, 5 countries will make up 75% of that revenue. The 17% gain in revenue will be from 5m … Read more
Who is Tencent? It’s the largely unknown (maybe because it’s pretty media shy) parent company of China’s ubiquitous WeChat social media app. Their market cap is $330b, more than JPMorgan Chase. 500m people in China (of 650m total) use WeChat for communicating, finding goods and services, getting directions, and paying for things. Who else is … Read more
According to Alexei Kutrin, speaking at the SPIEF economic forum this week, “The oil sector should be fully privatized in the next 7-8 years. No state companies are required there now as the statehood brings more harm than benefit to those companies.” He added that oil companies are able to deal with business issues without … Read more
The popularity and value of dealing in cryptocurrency has been established over the past couple of years, with Bitcoin the most prominent of many new digital moneys. The Russian Central Bank’s Deputy Chairman Olga Skorobogatova spoke at SPIEF 2017 spoke about Russia’s interest in developing their own. “Regulators of all countries agree that it’s time … Read more