“Shipping bottlenecks set to prolong supply chain turmoil… Tenfold jump in costs since start of pandemic squeezes importers and exporters…
“The closure of a terminal at the world’s third-busiest container port is only the latest sign that turmoil in ocean shipping could run into next year, posing a threat to global economic growth as chronic delays and soaring transport costs may leave demand unmet and push up consumer prices.”
https://www.ft.com/content/e1263950-1173-4832-a011-ada04df1e93c
“Pubs fear running dry due to ‘catastrophic’ shortages… Pubs across Scotland may run dry this week as delivery problems mean they cannot get fresh supplies of drinks, trade bodies have warned.
“A lack of warehouse staff and truck drivers is having an impact on replenishing items around the country.”
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/pubs-fear-running-dry-due-to-catastrophic-shortages-3t5zhgcfs
“Food shortages across shops in the Channel Islands.
“…how long is this expected to last? …””We are looking at a good twelve months – because some of these issues are from the Far East the time that’s going to take to unravel and come back into the UK and the Channel Islands will take that sort of time…””
https://www.itv.com/news/channel/2021-08-16/food-shortages-across-shops-in-the-channel-islands
“Euro zone bond yields edge down as global sentiment turns south.
“Borrowing costs in Germany, the euro zone’s benchmark bond issuer, dipped on Monday to their lowest level in over a week as latest data from the world’s biggest economies cast a shadow over the growth outlook.”
https://www.reuters.com/article/eurozone-bonds-idUSL8N2PN1AQ
“South African government extends deployment of soldiers following last month’s unrest…
“Ramaphosa… told the parliament that 10,000 …troops will continue to cooperate with the South African Police Service in the prevention and combating of crime and preservation of law and order within the country, at least until Sept. 13…”
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/africa/2021-08/18/c_1310133007.htm
“Cameroon: Thousands flee ethnic clashes to Chad…
“The fighting in Cameroon began when Muslims built dams to divert water to help them catch fish, in a location where ethnic Arab Choa herders also take their cattle for watering, according to regional governor Midjiyawa Bakari.”
https://www.africanews.com/2021/08/17/cameroon-thousands-flee-ethnic-clashes-to-chad/
“How water shortages are brewing wars.
“Unprecedented levels of dam building and water extraction by nations on great rivers are leaving countries further downstream increasingly thirsty, increasing the risk of conflicts.”
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210816-how-water-shortages-are-brewing-wars
“East Africa: Hunger Looms Amid New Locust Invasion, Covid, Drought and Floods.
“On Monday, a dark cloud of desert locusts recently floated over the city of Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland. For more than 40 minutes the moving swarm of locusts covered the city in the Galgodon valley. On Tuesday, remnants of the swarm still hovered over the city.”
https://allafrica.com/stories/202108170074.html
“Now in charge, Tunisian president faces looming fiscal crisis.
“Tunisia paid back more than $1 billion in debt this summer from foreign currency reserves, but must find about $5 billion more to finance its projected budget deficit and more loan repayments. The economy shrank 8.2% last year while a deficit of 11.5% drove public debt to 87% of gross domestic product according to the IMF.”
https://www.saltwire.com/halifax/news/now-in-charge-tunisian-president-faces-looming-fiscal-crisis-100624372/
“Lebanon helpline hit by crises as public mental health deteriorates.
“A critical mental health service for people affected by Lebanon’s compounding economic and political crisis is under threat of closure, potentially leaving some of the country’s most vulnerable people stranded without support.”
https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/2021/08/16/lebanon-helpline-hit-by-crises-as-public-mental-health-deteriorates/
“[Thailand faces] bigger crisis than 1997 as taxis give up and central bank urges up to 1 trillion Baht in additional debt…
“The Bank of Thailand has urged the government to borrow more and raise the country’s public debt ceiling as quickly as possible as …Thailand is facing another year of economic contraction or at the very least, stalled growth in what is a bigger crisis than 1997.”
https://www.thaiexaminer.com/thai-news-foreigners/2021/08/17/bigger-crisis-than-1997-as-taxis-give-up/
“Chinese state media sets sights on Taiwan as US’ Afghan retreat stokes nationalism.
“The chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan has presented Beijing with a propaganda boost, with Chinese state media capitalizing on the crisis to trumpet the supposed decline of America and taunt Taiwan with threats of invasion.”
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/08/18/china/china-afghanistan-taiwan-mic-intl-hnk/index.html
“Pakistan bonds hit as investors brace for Afghanistan fallout.
“Pakistan’s international bonds came under selling pressure on Monday, with debt issued by Uzbekistan also weakening, as emerging market investors braced themselves for the fallout from the crisis in Afghanistan.”
https://www.ft.com/content/1f8e5d82-152a-456e-b6c9-4e2fe8b74b68
“UN aid chief in Afghanistan warns of hunger caused by drought…
“Half of all Afghan children under the age of five already suffer from acute malnutrition, as the country reels from its second drought in four years, Alakbarov said.”
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/un-aid-chief-afghanistan-warns-hunger-caused-by-drought-2021-08-17/
“US freezes Afghan central bank’s assets of $9.5bn.
“The U.S. has frozen nearly $9.5 billion in assets belonging to the Afghan central bank and stopped shipments of cash to the nation as it tries to keep a Taliban-led government from accessing the money, an administration official confirmed Tuesday.”
https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2021/8/18/us-freezes-afghan-central-banks-assets-of-9-5bn
“A top Federal Reserve official has warned that the US central bank’s emergency bond-buying programme is ill-suited for an economy held back by supply constraints, urging instead a speedy end to the stimulus to avoid burdensome debts and inflationary pressures.”
[Good luck with a meaningful taper, Rosengren!]
https://www.ft.com/content/bafad111-01e5-4600-b34c-13028c3826ea
“Actually, it doesn’t matter who runs the Fed…
“…the tottering US debt structure is plain for all to see. Nobody imagines serious tapering, or significant hikes, even if the market has an occasionally freak out. It’s hard to escape the obvious conclusion. Whoever runs the Fed doesn’t matter. A dove, or a dovish dove. Take your pick. They must continue the dollar’s expansion or face ruin.”
https://www.ft.com/content/7ed490ed-2652-41f0-9aff-08aa0d3685a0
“S&P 500 doubles from its pandemic bottom, marking the fastest bull market rally since WWII…
“The broad equity benchmark has rallied 100% on a closing basis from its Covid trough of 2,237.40 on March 23, 2020. It took the market 354 trading days to get there, marking the fastest bull market doubling off a bottom since World War II.”
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/16/sp-500-doubles-from-its-pandemic-bottom-marking-the-fastest-bull-market-rally-since-wwii.html
“Will ‘fallen angels’ cause the next financial crisis?
“Investors are piling into risky corporate debt as they hunt for high yields in a world of super-low interest rates. However, regulators worldwide are sounding alarms…
The situation may have ominous aftereffects.
Financial institutions are being prompted to take on excessive risks because they are desperate for profitable investments. The arrangement leaves them extremely vulnerable…”
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/backstories/1728/
You can read the previous ‘Economic’ thread here. I’ll be back tomorrow with a ‘Climate’ thread.
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