Could Trump use forgotten Chinese debt to salvage the global economy?
As the United States confronts an impending government shutdown amid an unwelcome outbreak of bond vigilantism, an unexpected remedy to global financial implosion might just lie in a murky corner of long forgotten financial history. Dormant for decades, the Blind Spot understands the overlooked issue of defaulted Chinese imperial debt is quietly turning heads on […]
The problem with Ozempic, a personal story
If you’ve not heard of it, semaglutide (also known as Ozempic, Wegovy) is the wonder weight loss drug that is currently storming the world, and even Boris Johnson seems to think it has revolutionised the treatment of obesity, meaning the problem could be nipped in the bud very soon. As someone who struggles with weight […]
In the Blind Spot (When governments manipulate markets)
Salve Romani, How often do you think about the Roman Empire? Because the answer for me and my fellow anacyclosis-minded buddy Tim Ferguson is, obviously, hourly. To honour the fact that everyone else is thinking about the Roman Empire at least a few times a week, too, I’ve added an SPQR channel to the Blind […]
Poland’s PiS under fire for massaging inflation data (POLITICO)
By Ben Munster, Izabella Kaminska · Sep 28, 2023, A high-stakes electoral gamble over inflation by Poland’s central bank may be about to pay off, with preliminary September figures on Friday expected to show a large slowdown in consumer price rises, supporting the central bank’s contentious decision to aggressively cut rates earlier this month. But […]
In the Blind Spot (How Brussels missed its opportunity to dominate finance)
Dear Subscribers, I want to start this weekend’s newsletter with a historic tale of sour financial grapes that has had a huge bearing on how the City is regulated and how it will continue to be regulated in the near future. It starts like this. Earlier this year I sat down with the inimitable Andrew […]
In the Blind Spot (What do psychedelics have to do with power politics?)
Greetings and salutations. Turn on. Tune in. And drop out. A phrase first spoken by counterculture radical Timothy Leary in 1966. But, as Leary also noted, “In the United States in the next five, 10, 15 years, you’re going to see more and more people taking LSD and making it a part of their lives. […]
Solar sector calls for €100M EU bailout as Chinese competition pushes it to the brink (POLITICO)
By Victor Jack · Sep 11, 2023 BRUSSELS — The EU should step in and spend €100 million on solar panels made by European companies faced with an imminent wave of bankruptcies thanks to intensifying Chinese competition and slowing demand in Europe. The industry’s main lobby in Brussels, SolarPower Europe, on Monday sent a letter […]
In the Blind Spot (Russell Napier on the inevitable financial repression to come)
Plus, why the Wegovy boom is a false dawn for obesity, the alleged media conspiracy impacting the Polish central bank and former central bankers trash talking those who replaced them.
Fake Ozempic and Wegovy surge in Europe — but regulators have limited powers to act (POLITICO)
By Ashleigh Furlong, Helen Collis · Sep 8, 2023 It was only a matter of time. Soaring demand for a drug touted by online influencers to help lose weight, but whose supplies in Europe are restricted, has caused a surge in fake and potentially dangerous concoctions of the injection, putting lives at risk. In the […]
In the Blind Spot (The whole economy is Fyre Festival)
Dear subscribers, September is upon us. For a lot of people that means “back to school” season. And I, for one, am delighted by the prospect since it means some stability with childcare and the return of a predictable routine. Non-parents should also be pleased since it means their colleagues who are parents might finally […]