“On Monday it was Bolivia – angry people clashed with police after the political opposition said it had been cheated in an election won by incumbent President Evo Morales.
“Last week, the streets of the Chilean capital Santiago descended into chaos, as demonstrators enraged by a hike in public transport fares looted stores, set a bus alight and prompted the president to declare a state of emergency.
“Earlier this month, Ecuador’s leader did the same after violent unrest triggered by the decision to end fuel subsidies that had been in place for decades.
“And that was just South America.
“Hong Kong has been in turmoil for months, Lebanon’s capital Beirut was at a standstill, parts of Barcelona resembled a battlefield last week and tens of thousands of Britons marched through London at the weekend over Brexit…”
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-protests/season-of-discontent-protests-flare-around-the-world-idUSKBN1X127J
“Chile is in the midst of one of its worst crises since the end of Augusto Pinochet’s brutal military dictatorship in 1990.
“Days of violent unrest have left at least 15 people dead, buildings ablaze, and chaos in the streets as soldiers responded with tear gas and non-lethal rounds at rioters and protesters.”
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-10-23/chile-protests-transport-fares-explainer/11630278
“Bartering at the pump has taken off as hyperinflation makes Venezuela’s paper currency, the bolivar, hard to find and renders some denominations all but worthless, so that nobody will accept them.
“Without cash in their wallets, drivers often hand gas station attendants a bag of rice, cooking oil or whatever is within reach.”
“British manufacturers expect the most widespread drop-off in orders for a decade over the next three months due to the slowing global economy and Brexit uncertainty, a survey by the Confederation of British Industry showed on Tuesday.”
“Save The Children estimates the number of children in poverty in Italy has tripled over the last 10 years. According to the charity, more than 1.26 million are living in absolute poverty, due, in part, to Italy’s economic crisis…
“In 2008, 375,000 children were in a poor economic situation. Ten years later that figure has risen starkly from 3.7% to 12.5%…”
“A day after Hariri unveiled a set of measures aimed partly at addressing protester demands, people poured into the streets once again on Tuesday, sustaining the historic wave of dissent against politicians blamed for leading Lebanon into crisis…
“…banks will remain shut on Wednesday, “waiting for the general situation to stabilise in the country”, the Association of Banks in Lebanon (AbL) said in a statement on Tuesday.”
“Iraqi security forces killed 149 people and wounded over 3,000 in protests that began Oct. 1, a government-appointed inquiry announced Tuesday.
“The Iraqi military previously had admitted that its forces had used “excessive force” in attempting to quell protests against government corruption, high unemployment and the lack of basic services such as clean water and electricity.”
“A health check on India’s shadow banks shows the crisis in the industry is far from over. Indicators from liquidity to share performance show weakness, according to data compiled by Bloomberg as of Sept. 30.
“In recent weeks, another financier defaulted, it got harder for investors to cut losses in the sector’s debt and a mortgage lender altered financing plans due to waning appetite for shadow bank bonds.”
“Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan unveiled a range of relief measures worth about HK$2 billion ($255 million) targeting tourism and the transportation industry
“…in a renewed effort to help businesses grappling with the economic fallout of ongoing political turmoil.”
“China is using the World Trade Organization (WTO), an American-made institution, to get even with the US.
“Beijing is seeking $2.4 billion in retaliatory sanctions against Washington for non-compliance with a WTO ruling in a tariff dispute against the US tracing back in the Obama era.”
“On Oct. 11, the Fed announced that it would start buying $60 billion a month in short-term Treasury bills to increase liquidity in money markets. That… caused the yield curve to steepen…
“It is worth noting that the yield curve does not have to stay inverted to be a precursor to a recession, since yield curves can often steepen after signs of a downturn become clear and the Fed starts to cut interest rates.”
“A bellwether of the global industrial economy may be sending out distress signals.
“Caterpillar Inc. is heading for a “mild earnings recession,” according to Morgan Stanley, and analysts expect the heavy-equipment maker to post its first year-over-year decline in quarterly profit since 2016 when it reports results on Wednesday. Margins are shrinking as demand cools…”
“From Hong Kong to Chile and Lebanon, violent clashes between protesters and police have turned capital cities into danger zones, sparking growth fears and market slumps. Different countries have different challenges, but at the same time…
“As global growth slows, the problem of social instability could turn out to be rather widespread.”
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