Monday 30 May 2022

An Easy Week. Crude Oil Rallies.

 Baltic Dry Index. 2681 -252  Brent Crude 120.14

Spot Gold 1861

Coronavirus Cases 02/04/20 World 1,000,000

Deaths 53,100

Coronavirus Cases 30/05/22 World 531,678,528

Deaths 6,310,915

You have to choose (as a voter) between trusting to the natural stability of gold and the natural stability of the honesty and intelligence of the members of the Government. And, with due respect for these gentlemen, I advise you, as long as the Capitalist system lasts, to vote for gold.

George Bernard Shaw. Socialist.

We are almost at the month end. Time to dress up the stock casinos closing prices again for all those money manager and hedge fund bonuses. They wouldn’t do that would they?

In China slightly better news, both Shanghai and Beijing are reopening, sort of.

In the USA, the Memorial Day national holiday. The 31st should be boom time in the casinos.

In the UK, a national holiday from Thursday to Monday to celebrate the Her Majesty’s  Platinum Jubilee.

All in all, an easy week to dress up the stock casinos.

Look away from the rising crude oil price now. Brent started the year in the 70s. $140 next? So much for President Biden’s strategic release of oil reserves.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumps close to 2% as Asia stocks rise ahead of major economic data this week

SINGAPORE — Shares in Asia-Pacific rose in Monday morning trade as investors look ahead to major economic data releases later in the week.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 1.74% in morning trade as shares of robot maker Fanuc jumped more than 3%. The Topix index traded 1.47% higher.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index advanced 0.94%. Over in mainland China, the Shanghai Composite edged about 0.2% higher while the Shenzhen Component rose 0.355%.

The Kospi in South Korea also climbed 0.9%, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.9% higher.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan traded 0.8% higher.

Several major data releases are expected later in the week. China is set to announce its official manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index for May on Tuesday, with investors looking for clues on the economic impact of Covid-related lockdowns on the mainland.

“For the week ahead, watch for the PMIs especially from China which may show a modest rebound from April’s slump but stay in contraction territory,” analysts at OCBC Treasury Research wrote in a Monday note.

U.S. jobs data is expected Friday. Markets in the U.S. are closed on Monday for a holiday.

The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 101.637 following a recent drop from levels above 102.

The Japanese yen traded at 127.09 per dollar, stronger as compared with levels above 127.8 seen against the greenback last week. The Australian dollar was at $0.7165 after a climb last week from below $0.71.

Oil prices were higher in the morning of Asia trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures up 0.19% to $119.66 per barrel. U.S. crude futures gained 0.44% to $115.58 per barrel.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/05/30/asia-markets-china-economy-currencies-oil.html

Beijing, Shanghai start to reopen as Covid cases drop

BEIJING — Major Chinese cities Beijing and Shanghai began to relax Covid controls over the weekend as the local case count dropped.

Nationwide, the number of new cases with symptoms on the mainland fell to 20 on Sunday, down from 54 a day earlier. The capital city of Beijing reported eight new Covid cases for Sunday, while Shanghai recorded six.

The loosening of restrictions comes about two months after Shanghai, China’s largest city, ordered people to stay in their apartments for mass virus testing. Beijing city had begun tightening Covid controls about a month ago, but only locked down some neighborhoods.

On Sunday, Shanghai authorities said businesses could start to reopen without having to apply for approval starting Wednesday. A shopping area called Xintiandi — including a local Shake Shack — was among those set to resume some offline operations Wednesday, according to state media.

The city also announced a raft of measures to support businesses, especially those that had minimal layoffs. To stimulate consumption, the city said it would give 10,000 yuan ($1,493) to any individual switching to a battery-powered car this year.

As of Sunday, Shanghai claimed that only 220,000 people remained subject to the most restrictive stay-home orders, and that more than 22 million were allowed to venture out into the community.

In Beijing, major shopping centers, including a luxury mall that temporarily closed a month ago due to Covid, announced they would reopen as of Sunday. Hotels in the rural outskirts of the capital city could also reopen. An amusement park called Happy Valley Beijing said it planned to reopen on Tuesday.

Ride-hailing and most public transport resumed in the main business area, while more people were allowed to return to work. Some libraries, museums and gyms could reopen at half their capacity, if no Covid cases were found in the past seven days at a community level.

However, restaurants in Beijing can still only operate on a takeout or delivery basis, with no customers dining inside. Middle and elementary schools remain closed.

After the latest Covid outbreak, both Shanghai and Beijing require a valid negative virus test in order to enter public areas. In Beijing, test results are only valid for 48 hours, while Shanghai said beginning Wednesday, test results will be valid for 72 hours.

It remains unclear how quickly most businesses will be able to resume normal production as implementation of Covid measures can vary at a neighborhood level. Any new confirmed Covid cases or contacts with one can result in renewed tightening.

More

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/05/30/beijing-shanghai-start-to-reopen-as-covid-cases-drop.html?recirc=taboolainternal

Finally, so you really, really, really want to invest in cryptocurrency.

They Lost Major Coin—and Now the Tax Bill Is Due

Sat, May 28, 2022, 3:45 AM

Riding high off a record year of growth, many cryptocurrency investors filed tax returns on mind-boggling gains this spring—some in the range of 20 to 30 times their original outlay. But now it’s time to settle up with the IRS, and there’s a problem: The money isn’t there anymore.

The crypto market endured its worst crash in years this month, wiping out more than $400 billion in value in a matter of weeks. Message boards were flooded with comments from people saying they’d lost their entire life savings, and others who worried they could lose their homes. Tax attorneys who specialize in crypto told The Daily Beast they, too, were inundated by calls, from people who had lost more than they owed in taxes.

“This is the biggest issue in crypto right now,” said Clinton Donnelly, the founder of CryptoTax Audit. “We have several clients who have just gotten wiped out, and they’re just terrified.”

Donnelly recalled one client who made $700,000 last year trading between cryptocurrencies, but didn’t think to convert any of that money to cash to save for tax season. When Donnelly’s company told him what he likely owed, he was horrified. Much of that $700,000 had evaporated in the crash. Clients like this, Donnelly said, “are in a panic. They don’t really know how to go forward on preparing the tax return. It’s a serious ethical quandary.”

More

https://news.yahoo.com/lost-major-coin-now-tax-024520554.html

 

Global Inflation/Stagflation Watch.

Given our Magic Money Tree central banksters and our spendthrift politicians,  inflation now needs an entire section of its own.

Japan Q2, full-year growth to be weaker than previously estimated

TOKYO, May 30 (Reuters) - Japan's economy will grow at a weaker rate than previously thought this quarter despite hopes for a strong rebound in consumption after showing resilience in the three months through March, a Reuters poll of economists showed.

The world's third-largest economy is at risk of being hobbled by slowing economic growth in China and a surge in global raw material prices - both issues that could hurt Japan's key manufacturing sector, the poll showed.

However, the slower expansion still indicates growth will be strong enough for the economy to recover to its pre-coronavirus pandemic levels of end-2019 this quarter, about 70% of poll respondents said.

The economy was projected to expand an annualised 4.5% this quarter, below April's estimate for 5.1% growth, according to the median forecast of 36 analysts in the May 18-27 poll.

"The speed at which the economy is recovering at home is slow," said Takumi Tsunoda, senior economist at Shinkin Central Bank Research Institute.

"Corporate profit could be severely squeezed if raw material prices continue to rise as there's limited pass-through of those costs into final prices."

A slowdown in Chinese economic growth was the most-frequently cited issue posing a risk to Japan's economy in the latter half of the year, the poll showed.

In recent weeks, China paralysed economic activity in major cities such as Shanghai with extreme COVID-19 lockdowns, disrupting supply chains and clouding the country's economic outlook.

China's hard-handed measures against the pandemic have already led to a fall in Japan's shipments to and from Asia's top economy in April, Japanese trade data showed earlier this month. read more

Asked when Japan's economy would recover to pre-coronavirus levels of end-2019, 20 of 28 economists said it would happen this quarter, after shrinking less than expected in January-March. read more

Five chose next quarter, while two opted for October-December and one picked April-June next year.

But analysts also said that even if the economy were quick to recover to end-2019 levels, it was likely to still fall short of higher levels seen earlier that year, before taking a hit from a sales tax hike in October 2019.

"The economy will likely exceed its pre-sales tax hike level in July-September next year," said Tsunoda.

Looking ahead, economists' second-most frequently cited risk for the second half of 2022 was "soaring raw material costs", followed by "faster than expected U.S. monetary policy tightening".

More

https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/japan-q2-full-year-growth-be-weaker-than-previously-estimated-2022-05-30/

Toyota misses April global production target due to COVID, parts shortage

TOKYO, May 30 (Reuters) - Japan's Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) on Monday said it missed its global production target for April as COVID-19 outbreaks and a parts shortage slowed its post-pandemic recovery.

The world's largest automaker by sales produced 692,259 vehicles last month, a 9.1% drop from the same month last year, and falling short of an earlier plan of making about 750,000 vehicles worldwide.

The numbers raise questions over the severity of the pandemic-hit supply chains and how the disruption will affect production in the coming months.

Toyota last week downgraded its global production plan for June to around 800,000 vehicles due to the impact of COVID-19 containment measures in China and signalled the possibility of lowering its full-year output plan of 9.7 million vehicles. read more

The automaker on Monday also said global sales dropped 11.1% in April versus the same month a year earlier to 763,708 vehicles. Domestic sales, excluding sales of units Daihatsu and Hino Motors Ltd (7205.T), tumbled almost 17% to 103,143 vehicles.

https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/toyota-misses-april-global-production-target-due-covid-parts-shortage-2022-05-30/

Below, why a “green energy” economy may not be possible, and if it is, it won’t be quick and it will be very inflationary, setting off a new long-term commodity Supercycle. Probably the largest seen so far.

The “New Energy Economy”: An Exercise in Magical Thinking

https://media4.manhattan-institute.org/sites/default/files/R-0319-MM.pdf

Mines, Minerals, and "Green" Energy: A Reality Check

https://www.manhattan-institute.org/mines-minerals-and-green-energy-reality-check

"An Environmental Disaster": An EV Battery Metals Crunch Is On The Horizon As The Industry Races To Recycle

by Tyler Durden Monday, Aug 02, 2021 - 08:40 PM

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/environmental-disaster-ev-battery-metals-crunch-horizon-industry-races-recycle

Covid-19 Corner

This section will continue until it becomes unneeded.

U.S. doctors reconsider Pfizer's Paxlovid for lower-risk COVID patients

May 28 (Reuters) - Use of Pfizer Inc's (PFE.N) COVID-19 antiviral Paxlovid spiked this week, but some doctors are reconsidering the pills for lower-risk patients after a U.S. public health agency warned that symptoms can recur after people complete a course of the drug, and that they should then isolate a second time.

More quarantine time "is not a crowd-pleaser," Dr. Sandra Kemmerly, an infectious disease specialist at Ochsner Health in New Orleans, told Reuters. "For those people who really aren't at risk ... I would recommend that they not take it."

Use of Pfizer's Paxlovid, authorized to treat newly infected, at-risk people in order to prevent severe illness, has soared as infections have risen. More than 162,000 courses were dispensed last week - compared with an average of 33,000 a week since the drug was launched late last year, according to government data. Biden administration officials have pushed for wide use of Paxlovid, which the government purchased and provides free.

But higher use has also come with more reports from people who say their symptoms eased with Paxlovid only to return a few days after finishing a five-day regimen of the pills.

On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, citing case reports and concerns that relapsed patients could spread the virus, issued its advisory that Paxlovid users should isolate for a second five days if symptoms rebound. read more

More

https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/us-doctors-reconsider-pfizers-paxlovid-lower-risk-covid-patients-2022-05-28/

Next, some vaccine links kindly sent along from a LIR reader in Canada.

NY Times Coronavirus Vaccine Trackerhttps://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/science/coronavirus-vaccine-tracker.html

Regulatory Focus COVID-19 vaccine trackerhttps://www.raps.org/news-and-articles/news-articles/2020/3/covid-19-vaccine-tracker

Some other useful Covid links.

Johns Hopkins Coronavirus resource centre

https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html

Centers for Disease Control Coronavirus

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

The Spectator Covid-19 data tracker (UK)

https://data.spectator.co.uk/city/national

 

Technology Update.

With events happening fast in the development of solar power and graphene, among other things, I’ve added this section. Updates as they get reported.

Flash Joule heating process recycles plastic from end-of-life F-150 trucks into high-value graphene for new vehicles

Date:  May 26, 2022

Source:  Rice University

Summary:  Chemists have processed waste plastic from end-of-life trucks into graphene for composite materials in new vehicles.

The part of an old car that gets turned into graphene could come back as a better part for a new car.

Rice University chemists working with researchers at the Ford Motor Company are turning plastic parts from "end-of-life" vehicles into graphene via the university's flash Joule heating process.

The average SUV contains up to 350 kilograms (771 pounds) of plastic that could sit in a landfill for centuries but for the recycling process reported in the debut issue of a new Nature journal, Communications Engineering.

The goal of the project led by Rice chemist James Tour and graduate student and lead author Kevin Wyss was to reuse that graphene to make enhanced polyurethane foam for new vehicles. Tests showed the graphene-infused foam had a 34% increase in tensile strength and a 25% increase in low-frequency noise absorption. That's with only 0.1% by weight or less of graphene.

And when that new car is old, the foam can be flashed into graphene again.

"Ford sent us 10 pounds of mixed plastic waste from a vehicle shredding facility," Tour said. "It was muddy and wet. We flashed it, we sent the graphene back to Ford, they put it into new foam composites and it did everything it was supposed to do.

"Then they sent us the new composites and we flashed those and turned them back into graphene," he said. "It's a great example of circular recycling."

The researchers cited a study that estimates the amount of plastic used in vehicles has increased by 75% in just the past six years as a means to reduce weight and increase fuel economy.

Segregating mixed end-of-life plastic by type for recycling has been a long-term problem for the auto industry, Tour said, and it's becoming more critical because of potential environmental regulations around end-of-life vehicles. "In Europe, cars come back to the manufacturer, which is allowed to landfill only 5% of a vehicle," he said. "That means they must recycle 95%, and it's just overwhelming to them."

Much of the mixed plastic ends up being incinerated, according to co-author Deborah Mielewski, technical fellow for sustainability at Ford, who noted the U.S. shreds 10 to 15 million vehicles each year, with more than 27 million shredded globally.

"We have hundreds of different combinations of plastic resin, filler and reinforcements on vehicles that make the materials impossible to separate," she said. "Every application has a specific loading/mixture that most economically meets the requirements."

"These aren't recyclables like plastic bottles, so they can't melt and reshape them," Tour said. "So, when Ford researchers spotted our paper on flash Joule heating plastic into graphene, they reached out."

More

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/05/220526112802.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email

Whenever destroyers appear among men, they start by destroying money, for money is men’s protection and the base of a moral existence. Destroyers seize gold and leave to its owners a counterfeit pile of paper. This kills all objective standards and delivers men into the arbitrary power of an arbitrary setter of values. Gold was an objective value, an equivalent of wealth produced. Paper is a mortgage on wealth that does not exist, backed by a gun aimed at those who are expected to produce it. Paper is a check drawn by legal looters upon an account which is not theirs: upon the virtue of the victims. Watch for the day when it bounces, marked: "Account Overdrawn."

Ayn Rand.

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