Baltic
Dry Index. 1926 -47 Brent Crude 86539
Spot Gold 2317 US 2 Year Yield 4.65 -0.06
In
the run up to the UK General Election on July 4, the LIR will play its part.
Take care to get what you like or you will be forced to like what you get.
George Bernard Shaw. Socialist.
In
tech stocks, a rebound, a recovery, or a dead cat exit bounce? Over this summer
we will soon find out.
A lot
will depend on whether the US economy has/is entering the next recession.
In
Europe, the outcomes of the French and UK elections.
In
the USA, who wins and losses tomorrow night’s Biden v Trump brawl in Atlanta,
followed the next day by the Fed’s favourite inflation index, the PCE.
Navidia
anyone? Bitcoin? Fiat currencies, dollars, Pounds or euros?
Asia-Pacific
markets mixed as Australia’s inflation climbs; chip stocks track Nvidia rebound
Asia-Pacific markets were mixed Wednesday as
Australia’s inflation rate climbed for a third straight month, while
semiconductor and related stocks jumped after Nvidia rallied overnight.
Australia’s headline inflation rate for May
came in at 4%, compared with the 3.6% recorded in April. The core inflation
rate also came in at 4%, higher than the 3.8% expected by a Reuters poll of
economists.
A higher-than-expected inflation reading could
spur the RBA to raise interest rates. RBA Governor Michelle Bullock recently
revealed the central bank discussed hiking rates at
its last meeting.
Singapore’s May
factory output will also be released Wednesday, with a Reuters poll of
economists predicting a 2% year-on-year growth rate, as compared to a 1.6%
decline recorded in April.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost
1.03% Wednesday, dragged by non-energy minerals and retail trade stocks.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained
1.26% in morning trade, while the broad-based Topix was up 0.64%. South Korea’s Kospi gained
0.25%, while the small-cap Kosdaq traded close to the flatline.
Semiconductor and related stocks
such as Advantest jumped
more than 6%, while Taiwan
Semiconductor Manufacturing Company,
SK Hynix and MediaTek increased
1.38%, 4% and 3.25%, respectively. Samsung Electronics was down more than 0.2%.
This comes on the back of a rebound in Nvidia shares which closed 6.76%
higher on Tuesday.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index and
the mainland China’s CSI 300 were both down marginally.
Overnight in the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined, shedding 0.76% and closing at
39,112.16. Led by an Nvidia rebound, the broad market S&P
500 added 0.39% while the Nasdaq
Composite advanced 1.26%, with both indexes ending three-day
losing streaks.
Asia
markets: Australia inflation, semiconductor stocks jump (cnbc.com)
European markets
head for positive open as global chip stocks stabilize
LONDON — European stocks are expected to open
higher Wednesday, reversing negative sentiment seen in the previous trading
session.
The U.K.’s FTSE index
is seen opening 8 points higher at 8,256, Germany’s DAX up
70 points at 18,226, France’s CAC 40 up
40 points at 7,692 and Italy’s FTSE MIB 75
points higher at 33,980, according to data from IG.
The positive open anticipated for
European markets comes after rocky trade in the region, and elsewhere globally,
after a tech-driven selloff — although volatility in the sector appeared to
stabilize after chipmaking giant Nvidia rallied Tuesday.
U.S. stock futures hovered near the
flatline Tuesday evening after the S&P 500 rebounded from
the rough start to the week, while Asia-Pacific
markets were mixed overnight as Australia’s inflation rate
climbed for a third straight month, while semiconductor and related stocks
jumped.
Wall Street is likely to shift its
attention toward fresh U.S. inflation data on Friday with the release of May’s
personal consumption expenditures price index, the U.S. Federal Reserve’s
preferred inflation gauge.
Data releases in Europe on
Wednesday include Germany’s GFK consumer survey for July and European consumer
confidence data for June. Earnings are set to come from Mulberry.
European markets: stocks, news, data and earnings (cnbc.com)
In other news, going green comes with a cost.
And this is just the start, wait until everywhere has to vastly expand the electric
power grids.
German airline
Lufthansa hikes ticket prices by up to $77 due to environmental costs
German airline company Lufthansa Group said
Tuesday it would add an “environmental cost surcharge” to ticket prices as soon
as this week, which could be as high as 72 euros ($77) for some flights.
“The surcharge is
intended to cover part of the steadily rising additional costs due to
regulatory environmental requirements,” Lufthansa said in a statement, pointing to regulations
from the European Union and International Civil Aviation Organization.
The additional cost will be applied to fights
departing from any of the 27 member countries of the European Union, as well as
the U.K., Norway and Switzerland, Lufthansa said. All flights sold or operated
by Lufthansa Group, which owns airlines including Lufthansa, Eurowings, Swiss
and Edelweiss Air, and Austrian Airlines, will be subject to the charge.
“The amount of the
surcharge varies depending on the flight route and fare and is between 1 euro
and 72 euros,” Lufthansa said, adding that the exact amount would be visible to
customers during the booking stage.
The fee will be
applied to all tickets issued from June 26 — Wednesday of this week — that are
for flights departing from Jan. 1, 2025, Lufthansa said.
Environmental regulations
Several regulations
from institutions including the EU would increase costs for airlines, Lufthansa
said.
This includes EU
quotas for how much sustainable aviation fuel is used. These are set to come
into effect in 2025 and increase over the years until 2050.
Sustainable aviation fuel is an alternative to
fossil fuels, and can be made of products such as waste oil and fats, nonfood
crops, and other waste materials. It can also be created in a process that
captures carbon from the air.
The International Air Transport Association says
sustainable aviation fuel could cover around 65% of the emissions reduction the
aviation industry needs to achieve to reach net zero by 2050.
Lufthansa said Tuesday that the
quotas would “lead to additional costs in the billions in the future.”
The company also pointed to the
emissions trading systems from the EU, Switzerland and U.K. as a factor in its
increasing environmental costs. These programs control and limit the amount of
permitted emissions, with the overall cap set to decrease over time with the
goal of emissions being lowered.
Finally, Lufthansa said the International
Civil Aviation Organization’s climate protection agreement, which
also sets out to control emissions, played a role.
Lufthansa said it was investing
heavily in technology to make aviation more sustainable and supporting climate
research.
“However, the airline group will
not be able to bear the successively increasing additional costs resulting from
regulatory requirements in the coming years on its own. Part of these expected
costs for the year 2025 are now to be covered by the new Environmental Cost
Surcharge,” the company said.
German airline Lufthansa hikes ticket fares due to environmental costs (cnbc.com)
Finally has the EV boom already turned into bust?
Why
electric car drivers are switching back to petrol
June 25, 2024
Owners of electric cars are
ditching battery power and returning to petrol as demand for greener vehicles drops across Britain.
Range anxiety, a lack of
public charging points and limited incentives are the key factors behind the
dwindling desire for electric motors.
Car dealership chain
Motorpoint Group said the majority of electric vehicle (EV) owners who sold
their car in the last year didn’t buy another one – opting instead for a
petrol, diesel or hybrid model.
The trend is continuing in
2024, with the latest registration figures from the Society of Motor
Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) showing a 2pc fall in EV uptake since last
May.
Uptake is
strong in the fleet market where volumes have risen 11pc in the last year, as
businesses continue to offer employee benefits such as salary sacrifice to take on an electric car.
But convincing the mass
market to make the switch to battery power is proving a hard task.
The difficulty comes as the
Government falls well short of its car charging infrastructure targets, while
increased tax charges are coming into force from next year, forcing EV drivers
to pay an extra £180 a year in vehicle excise duty.
Mark
Carpenter, chief executive at Motorpoint, said consumer confidence in EVs has
been “undoubtedly impacted” by a multitude of factors.
“It’s clear that some drivers
have found an electric vehicle isn’t right for them,” he said.
----Statistics
from Motorpoint show that only 30pc of EV owners part-exchanging their car in
the past year chose to buy another electric car, with 36pc opting for petrol,
11pc diesel and 23pc hybrid.
More
Why electric car drivers are switching back to petrol
(msn.com)
South Korea begins search for answers after battery
plant fire kills 22
June 25, 2025
HWASEONG, South Korea (Reuters) - The South Korean government ordered on Tuesday urgent safety inspections at high-risk industrial sites a day after a fire at a lithium battery factory that killed 22 workers with one person still missing.
Officials from agencies including the National Forensic Service, police and the fire department entered the factory as part of a joint investigation.
The blaze which broke out inside a
warehouse with 35,000 lithium batteries produced toxic smoke, and the workers
likely lost consciousness and succumbed within seconds, fire officials have
said.
The fire was the latest industrial
accident in a country where dozens of manufacturing workers lose their lives on
the job each year despite repeated calls to improve workplace safety.
The fire was the latest industrial accident in a country where dozens of manufacturing workers lose their lives on the job each year despite repeated calls to improve workplace safety.
----Established
in 2020, South Korea-based Aricell makes lithium primary batteries for sensors
and radio communication devices. It has 48 employees, according to its latest
regulatory filing and its LinkedIn profile.
South Korea begins search for answers after battery plant fire kills 22 (msn.com)
Global Inflation/Stagflation/Recession
Watch.
Given
our Magic Money Tree central banksters and our spendthrift politicians,
inflation now needs an entire section of its own.
With
the US dollar now fully weaponised, more countries opt to join the BRICS. For
now, no big deal, but in 10 years time?
Joining BRICS right thing to do
for Malaysia
Monday,
24 Jun 2024
SEEKING a
formal membership to join BRICS, the largest and most influential geo-political
grouping, is certainly the right thing for Malaysia to do as the global
landscape changes.
The group was
founded by its core members of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa,
thus the acronym of BRICS, but its membership has expanded very fast as
countries search for multi-polar platforms.
A week ago,
Thailand submitted its formal request to join the grouping of emerging
economies.
It was
reported that Thailand hopes to become a member at BRICS next summit in Russia
in October, which will make the country the first Asean country to do so.
But Malaysia’s
entry into BRICS would even be more significant as it will hold the Asean
chairmanship next year.
Given Prime
Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s global stature and influence, it would
certainly be more significant.
The new
members of BRICS have included Saudi Arabia, Iran, Ethiopia, Egypt and the
United Arab Emirates with over 30 countries having expressed interest,
according to a Reuters report last week.
Meanwhile,
there are some commentators who have expressed concern at Malaysia’s decision
to join BRICS, a grouping they said is spearheaded by Russia and China.
They see these
two countries which have challenged the world order headed by the United States
and its Western allies.
While these
worries are understandable, they are not entirely accurate.
India, for
example, is regarded to be close to the West and has well-published differences
with China, but it also has a reputation for pursuing a fiercely independent
foreign policy.
Malaysia has
repeatedly said it would not take sides in the rivalry between the United
States and China and has been careful in its handling of the delicate
situation.
After all,
Malaysia has also gained much from the US-China chip war, for example, with
Penang being the largest benefactor.
The state
reportedly attracted RM60.1bil in foreign investment in 2023, then the total it
received from 2013 to 2020 combined.
Certainly,
Malaysia will continue to welcome US investments to Malaysia, and would not do
anything to harm that friendship.
The report
said that the broadening curbs on Chinese technology, especially for
chipmaking, are a key reason for neutral Malaysia’s appeal.
At the same
time, Malaysia is also mindful that China has been its largest trading partner
for the last 40 years.
Malaysia, like
other countries, cannot ignore the fact that China has the largest gross
domestic product (GDP) of the BRICS country. Combined, the BRICS bloc has a GDP
of slightly more than the United States.
According to
reports, BRICS now accounts for 37.3% of the world GDP, or more than half as
much as the European Union at 14.5%, but the growing frustrations of members
have been the dominance of the US dollar.
Joining BRICS
will surely broaden markets and possibly help to reduce overreliance on the US
dollar for trade settlements with local currencies being used instead of the
arrangements.
Joining BRICS
will surely broaden markets and possibly help to reduce overreliance on the US
dollar for trade settlements with local currencies being used instead of the
arrangements.
As Bank
Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid rightly
told Bernama, “It will effectively insulate the country and the region from the
changes in the US monetary policy and currency volatility, potentially
improving predictability in the currency market and lowering transaction cost
for exporters and importers.”
More
Joining BRICS right thing to do for Malaysia | The
Star
Covid-19 Corner
This section will continue until it becomes unneeded.
People
are reporting the same first symptom as a new Covid variant sends
hospitalisations soaring by 30%
June
24, 2024
Many people are reporting a nasty
fever as a new Covid variant rampages through the UK.
The KP.3 variant belongs to a new
group of COVID-19 variants known collectively as FLiRT. The unofficial moniker
was inspired by the names of the mutations in the genetic code of the variants.
They are a sublineage of JN.1
- a variant that emerged at the end of 2023 and accounted for around 60 percent
of cases in England earlier this year, UKHSA data shows.
There's
currently no indication that KP.3 is more severe than its predecessors, but its
rapid spread is giving rise to fears that some of the immunity conferred by
vaccination or past infection is waning. Hospital admissions are up 24 percent
in the week ending on Sunday, the latest data shows.
What are the symptoms?
According to CDC
Spokesperson, Rosa Norman, the symptoms associated with KP.3 are identical to
those from JN.1. They include fever or chills.
This is line with anecdotal
reports posted online.
"Fever was my first
notable symptom on June 1 this year," one user wrote on X, formerly known
as Twitter.
A second posted: "Had Covid last
week, and I had a fever for five days straight", while a third revealed it
was the first time they had experienced a fever from Covid.
Other possible symptoms include:
・Cough
・Sore throat
・Congestion or runny nose
・Headache
・Muscle aches
・Difficulty breathing
・Fatigue
・New loss of taste or smell
・"Brain fog" (feeling less wakeful and aware)
・Gastrointestinal symptoms (upset stomach, mild diarrhoea, vomiting)
More
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.
Tiny Graphene Membrane Holds Promise for Fighting
Climate Change
June 24, 2024
Researchers at École
Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) have
developed advanced atom-thin graphene membranes with pyridinic-nitrogen at pore
edges, showing unprecedented performance in CO2 capture. This
research represents a major step toward more efficient carbon capture
technologies. The study was published
in the journal Nature Energy.
The global fight against climate
change has made it more important than ever to develop effective and affordable
carbon capture technologies. As such, researchers are looking into various
novel approaches to significantly cut industrial carbon emissions.
Among these efforts, carbon
capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) has emerged as an essential
technology that lowers carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from
industrial sources that are difficult to mitigate, like waste incinerators,
power plants, cement factories, and steel mills. However, the energy-intensive
processes used in the current capture methods make them expensive and
unsustainable.
The current focus of research is to create
membranes that can efficiently and selectively capture CO2, which
will lower the energy and financial costs related to CCS. However, the
selectivity and CO2 permeance of even cutting-edge membranes,
like polymer thin films, are constrained, which reduces their scalability.
Therefore, the challenge is to
develop membranes that can provide high selectivity and CO2 permeance
at the same time, which is essential for efficient carbon capture.
Scientists at EPFL, under the
direction of Kumar Varoon Agrawal, have now achieved a significant advancement
in this field by creating membranes that exhibit remarkable CO2 capture
capabilities through the addition of pyridinic nitrogen to the graphene pores'
edges. The membranes exhibit great promise for a range of industrial
applications due to their exceptional balance of high CO2 permeance
and selectivity.
----Additionally, the scientists demonstrated the scalability
of the membrane preparation procedure by creating high-performing membranes at
the centimeter scale. This is essential for real-world uses, allowing the
membranes to be used in extensive industrial environments.
The high performance of graphene
membranes in capturing CO2, even from dilute gas streams, can
significantly lower the costs and energy requirements of carbon capture
processes. This breakthrough could lead to more affordable and environmentally
friendly CCUS solutions by creating new opportunities in the field of membrane
science.
The uniform and scalable chemistry
used in creating the membranes allows for imminent scale-up. The team is now
aiming to produce these membranes through a continuous roll-to-roll process.
The versatility and efficiency of these membranes have the potential to
revolutionize industrial emission management and significantly contribute to a
cleaner environment.
Züttel, A., et al.
(2024) Graphene membranes with pyridinic nitrogen at pore edges for
high-performance CO2 capture. Nature Energy. doi.org/10.1038/s41560-024-01556-0
Tiny Graphene Membrane Holds Promise for Fighting
Climate Change (msn.com)
Next, our
latest new section, the world global debt clock. Nations debts to GDP
compared.
World Debt
Clocks (usdebtclock.org)
No diet will remove all the fat from your body because the brain is entirely fat. Without a brain, you might look good, but all you could do is run for public office.
George Bernard Shaw. Socialist.
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