Wall Street Journal (May 21)
There’s a reason “why so many countries are open to U.S.-led trade pacts, like TPP and its European counterpart, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. History shows the U.S. trade agenda, while far from perfect, has nevertheless provided sizable benefits to its partners.”
Washington Post (May 21)
The world’s newest nation is descending into “war, chaos and human suffering.” The United States helped birth the nation four years ago and “now must exercise more leverage and commitment to save South Sudan.”
Tags: Chaos, Human suffering, Nation, New, South Sudan, U.S., War
New York Times (May 19)
“With North Korea in possession of nuclear weapons and a well-oiled machinery of oppression, a regime collapse may not happen soon. But the Kims will surely fall at some point, quickly and brutally, and when they do South Korea and its allies must stand ready to rescue a nation that has suffered horribly. In the meantime, the United States and America’s allies must remain vigilant and continue to search for ways to deter Mr. Kim.”
Tags: Allies, Collapse, Kim, North Korea, Nuclear weapons, Oppression, Regime, South Korea, U.S., Vigilant
Financial Times (May 19)
“More than $100bn of spending on new projects by the world’s energy companies has been slowed, postponed or axed following the oil price plunge, evidence of the drastic industry action that will curb output in coming years.” The revisions affect 26 major projects worldwide and, taken as a whole, will “delay future production” by up to 1.5 million barrels a day, the equivalent of nearly 2% of global oil production in 2013.
Tags: Delay, Drastic, Energy, New projects, Oil, Output, Postponed, Production, Spending
Bloomberg (May 17)
China’s “influence over global bond markets is beginning to eclipse that of the Federal Reserve. While traders still keep a close watch on decisions made by Fed Chair Janet Yellen in Washington, economic shifts in China are starting to matter even more for the global economy.”
Tags: Bond markets, China, China Economy, Fed, Influence, Traders, U.S., Yellen
The Economist (May 16)
The referendum to stay in the EU is “winnable. Over the next year or so Mr Cameron and his chancellor, George Osborne, can probably extract enough from their partners to persuade Britons to vote to stay in. Yet that victory must be just a first step. The real agenda—the one that matters to Britain’s prosperity and to the EU as a whole—will take longer to bear fruit.”
Tags: Cameron, EU, Osborne, Prosperity, Referendum, Victory
Wall Street Journal (May 14)
“Even a regime as murderous as North Korea’s can’t execute every discontented officer and minister. Applying maximum international pressure could exploit the fissures and possibly turn the discontent into regime change.”
Tags: Change, Discontent, Execution, International pressure, Murder, North Korea, Regime
Washington Post (May 13)
“Amtrak long ago should have installed automatic safeguards against reckless driving on a route like the Northeast Corridor, which is heavily trafficked and passes through dense urban centers.” The fatal Amtrak derailment provides “lessons about the United States’ negligent stewardship of its roads, rails, bridges and tunnels.”
Tags: Amtrak, Derailment, Infrastructure, Negligent, Reckless, Safeguards, Stewardship, U.S., Urban
New York Times (May 12)
Fast-track approval and the Trans-Pacific Partnership are “pitting President Obama against many members of his own party and some Republicans. Though the two sides have major differences, a compromise is still possible and would be good for the American economy.”
Tags: Approval, Compromise, Economy, Fast-track, Obama, Republicans, TPP, U.S.
Institutional Investor (May Issue)
“The secret weapon of Abenomics” is the rebalancing of Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF). “The GPIF is diversifying at a pace that’s astonishing for a fund of its size…. In the last six months of 2014, while slashing its JGB holdings, the fund increased its exposure to Japanese stocks by ¥5 trillion, to foreign equities by ¥7 trillion and to foreign bonds by ¥4 trillion.”
Tags: Abenomics, Bonds, Diversifying, Equities, GPIF, Japan, JGBs, Rebalancing, Stocks
