Joe Biden is gaslighting America on the economy. His administration is trying to oversell what has underperformed for several reasons: First, the economy is the one issue that affects most Americans most significantly. Second, Biden is doing worse on virtually every other issue. Finally, time is short: the economy is about to get worse, and the election is close. The administration’s strategy is to get Americans to believe what they hear and doubt what they see.
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Commentary: An Unexpected Climate Hero is Equity Markets
Joesph Stalin allegedly said that the “death of one person is a tragedy; the death of one million is a statistic.” Fitting neatly with his horrendous ideology, our brains are simply not equipped to understand suffering of astonishing proportions – for a single person suffering we feel empathy; with millions we blink cluelessly before looking away, dumbfounded.
Read the full storyCommentary: Did Anyone Notice That the 10-year, 2-year Treasuries Un-inverted, Forestalling Recession Fears
Don’t look now, but if you were planning on a severe recession and a spike in unemployment before the 2020 elections in the hopes it would help oust President Donald Trump, you might have to keep waiting.
Read the full storyCommentary: Labor Day? How About Capital Day!
Labor Day, according to the US Department of Labor is “dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers” and as a “national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.”
Read the full storyPresident Trump Set to Tighten Controls in Foreign Access to Tech Investment
Already threatened by escalating U.S. taxes on its goods, China is about to find it much harder to invest in U.S. companies or to buy American technology in such cutting-edge areas as robotics, artificial intelligence and virtual reality. President Donald Trump is expected as early as this week to sign legislation to tighten the U.S. government’s scrutiny of foreign investments and exports of sensitive technology. The law, which Congress passed in a rare show of unity among Republicans and Democrats, doesn’t single out China. But there’s no doubt the intended target is Beijing. The Trump administration has accused China of using predatory tactics to steal American technology. “As a policy signal, it speaks with a very loud voice,” said Harry Clark, head of the international trade practice at the law firm Orrick. “Leading decision makers and Congress are very concerned about technology transfer to China.” The Trump administration has already imposed tariffs on $34 billion in Chinese exports, is preparing taxes on a further $16 billion and has threatened to target an additional $200 billion of Beijing’s exports and maybe still more. As part of the same punitive campaign, Trump had initially ordered the Treasury Department to draft investment restrictions…
Read the full storyChina’s US Trade Surplus Hits Record in June
Reuters China’s trade surplus with the United States swelled to a record in June as its overall exports grew at a solid pace, a result that could further inflame a bitter trade dispute with Washington. But signs exporters were rushing shipments before tariffs went into effect in the first week of July suggest the spike in the surplus was a one-off, with analysts expecting a less favorable trade balance for China in coming months as duties on exports start to bite. The data came after the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump raised the stakes in its trade row with China on Tuesday, saying it would slap 10 percent tariffs on an extra $200 billion worth of Chinese imports, including numerous consumer items. US-China trade surplus China’s trade surplus with the United States, which is at the center of the tariff tussle, widened to a record monthly high of $28.97 billion, up from $24.58 billion in May, according to Reuters calculations based on official data going back to 2008. For January-June China’s trade surplus with the United States rose to $133.76 billion, compared with about $117.51 billion in the same period last year. China’s exports to the United States…
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