CBS Eye on the World with John Batchelor: #UK #France The rousing Truss/Kwarteng energy scramble, supply side tumult.

 By SIMON CONSTABLE 

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Liz Truss, British Prime Minister

Simon Dawson / No10 Downing Street, OGL 3, 

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Forbes: What’s The Problem? UK Economic Policy Mirrors Successful 1980s U.S. Effort

By SIMON CONSTABLE

The snarks keep on coming for Britain’s new Prime Minister and finance chief.  

Just a few days into their new jobs, Liz Russ (PM) and Kwasi Kwarteng have received a barrage of criticism for introducing some new economic policies, including tax cuts. 

But the critics seem to have gotten the wrong end of the stick. Read more here.

Kwasi Kwarteng

UK Government, OGL 3, via Wikimedia Commons

Forbes: Scottish Equality Goals Undermined As Top Colleges Favor The Well-Heeled

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Scotland’s stance on higher education should be a poster-child for public policy gone awry. In short, the outcome is the opposite of what the ruling Scottish National Party (SNP) says it desires. Read more here.

University of St. Andrews

Holger Uwe Schmitt, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Forbes: British Currency Mess Set To Upend U.K.’s Housing Market

By SIMON CONSTABLE

The United Kingdom’s housing market is likely to screech to a halt.

For that, you can blame Britain’s banks. 

Or the government...

Or investors.

Yep, it’s a complicated matter. But some people will find it tricky to buy or sell houses for the immediate future. Read more here.

Derek Harper / Christmas for sale sign, Torquay

Forbes: China’s Economy ‘Dismal,’ Will See No Growth, New Report

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Communist China under premier Xi Jinping is wilting fast.

The economy, already under pressure so far this year, looks to get even worse, according to a recent report from London-based consulting firm Capital Economics.

Capital kicks off with the following blistering assessment of the situation:

• “The financial world’s focus on a generational surge in inflation in advanced economies is stealing attention from a generational slowdown in China that is arguably of much greater importance for the long-term global outlook.” 

In other words, ignore China’s worsening economic quagmire at your peril. Read more here.

图片来源: 美国之音, Public domain, 

via Wikimedia Commons

Forbes: U.K. ‘Mini Budget’ Likely Just Dealt Scotland A Fiscal Time Bomb

By SIMON CONSTABLE

The United Kingdom’s finance chief just dealt an economic blow to Scotland.

It’ll likely be a slow-burn problem for the Scottish National Party, but it could end up being devastating. Read more here.

Kwasi Kwarteng

Office of U.S. Ambassador to U.K., 

Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Time Magazine: The U.K. Economy Is in Turmoil, But There Are Signs of Hope

By SIMON CONSTABLE

The death of Queen Elizabeth II and the period of national mourning that followed have been the latest blow to Britain’s already struggling economy, but economists and analysts say that there are glimmers of hope.

Britain is at a watershed moment. The country has just completed a 10-day period of mourning, concluding with country-wide shutdowns during a public holiday to mark the late monarch’s funeral. Her death came just two days after a new prime minister, Liz Truss, took office, after the last one was ousted by his own party for unbecoming behavior, while the U.K. faces a cost-of-living crisis unlike anything the nation has seen in decades. Inflation has soared to the highest levels since the 1980s, at around 10%, and the nation faces an energy crisis due to dwindling Russian energy exports to Europe. The British pound has been languishing around a nearly 37-year low against the dollar. And economic growth—the U.K. has now fallen behind India, a former British colony, becoming the world’s sixth largest economy and its central bank, the Bank of England, has warned that it risks falling into a recession that could last well into 2024. Read more here.

User:Hogweard, Public domain, 

via Wikimedia Commons

CBS Eye on the World with John Batchelor: #France: King Charles first to visit President Macron & What is to be done?

 By SIMON CONSTABLE

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King Charles III, visiting New Zealand as Prince of Wales

New Zealand Defence Force from Wellington, New Zealand, 

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CBS Eye on the World: #France The rich, agricultural Aquitaine and the price of electricity

 By SIMON CONSTABLE

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Photo by Sam Bark on Unsplash

WSJ: Cheesecake Factory IPOs Ushers In Booming 1990s

 By SIMON CONSTABLE

Only in the Print Edition of The Wall Street Journal

Barron's: Tobacco Is a Trusty Inflation Hedge. Here’s a U.K. Name to Play.

By SMON CONSTABLE

Stockholders have had a rough time this year, with surging inflation and fears of a recession. But there is a way to mitigate it: tobacco stock Imperial Brands

The company (ticker: IMB.UK) offers potential total returns above 22% over the next 12 months, some analysts say. It markets cigarette brands including Winston, JPS, L&B, and Gauloises, and rolling paper Rizla. It is also developing next-generation products, or NGPs, which include vaping materials and oral nicotine. Read more here.

Photo by Aman Upadhyay on Unsplash