While the levels of schadenfreude will be going through the roof given the unfolding farce in British politics, the resignation of Liz Truss as UK Prime Minister was troubling in one vital respect.  True, her juvenile salad understanding of economics, which involved spending billions on tax cuts and energy subsidies, was lamentable.  To cope with the beast of aggressive inflation,[Read More…]

The Japanese yen hit its weakest exchange rate against the U.S. dollar since 1990 on Thursday, dropping to 150 yen to the greenback. The Nikkei 225 stock index was also down, losing nearly 1% during morning trading to 27,006.96 points. The Topix index shed 0.51% to 1,895.41. A Yen previously slid in June, when it hit 132 against the dollar,[Read More…]

French workers took part in a nationwide strike Tuesday to demand higher wages to keep pace with the soaring cost of living. The strikes, principally in schools and transport, are an extension of the industrial action that has disrupted France’s major refineries, causing severe fuel shortages. Half Of All Trains Cancelled Transport Minister Clement Beaune said today there were severe[Read More…]

Massive protests marched through the streets of Paris on Sunday to voice discontent over the rising cost of living. It comes as France’s largest trade union continues a refinery strike that has closed gas stations across the country. Organizers of the march claim that 140,000 people joined the march, French broadcaster BFMTV reported. According to Paris police, only 30,000 attended[Read More…]

The U.S. consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.4% last month after gaining 0.1% in August, the U.S. Labor Department said in its report. In the 12 months through September, the CPI increased 8.2% after rising 8.3% in August. The White House noted that inflation over the last three months has averaged 2%, at an annualized rate. That is down from[Read More…]

The United Nations has added its voice to the growing list of international organisations, including the World Bank and the World Trade Organisation, warning that interest rate hikes imposed by the US Federal Reserve are creating the conditions for a financial crisis and global recession. In its annual report issued earlier this week, the United Nations Conference on Trade and[Read More…]

High inflation in Germany and Eurozone is making impact, with possibility of further impacting. Inflation in Germany saw year-on-year growth of 10.9% in September, up from 8.8% recorded in the previous month, official data released on Thursday by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) shows. The readings came in higher than the market expectation of 9.4%, and marked a record high[Read More…]

The world is sliding into a recession due to multiple overlapping crises, the head of the WTO said on Tuesday. Speaking at the opening of the WTO’s annual public forum in Geneva, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala noted that the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have both downgraded their global growth forecasts, and that trade indicators are “not looking too[Read More…]

Europe is facing lower-than-expected economic growth as inflation continues to climb, European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde revealed on Monday, explaining that the ECB had raised interest rates by 75 basis points in an attempt to control soaring prices. Speaking before the European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs on Monday, Lagarde admitted that “inflation remains far too high and[Read More…]

The UK pound plunged to its lowest level against the U.S. dollar since the British currency went decimal in 1971. In early Asia-Pacific trade on Monday, the sterling fell by more than 4% to $1.0327 before it regained some ground to about $1.05, extending Friday’s 3.61% drop. Media reports said: Chris Weston, head of research at the brokerage firm Pepperstone,[Read More…]