The Guardian (March 30)
“The fifth week of Donald Trump’s illegal war on Iran has confirmed the absence of any overarching strategy…. No amount of contradictory social media posts from Mr Trump can negate the shortages felt across the world, from Asian factories to European diesel markets. The pain is likely to get worse. There is no sign of imminent US victory or Iranian collapse.” In the absence of “diplomacy or restraint, the economic shock will deepen and US soldiers may become embroiled in a quagmire.”
Tags: Quagmire
Reuters (March 29)
An “enduring disconnect between geopolitical turmoil and buoyant corporate and financial activity” remains. Despite concern with “extreme uncertainty caused by fighting in the Middle East…. Dealmakers have a trillion reasons to feel optimistic. That’s the rough dollar value of mergers and acquisitions announced worldwide since the start of the year, a level only bettered during the post-pandemic boom of 2021.”
Tags: Boom, Buoyant, Corporate, Dealmakers, Disconnect, Extreme uncertainty, Fighting, Financial, Geopolitical turmoil, M&A, Middle East, Optimistic
Wall Street Journal (March 27)
“Businesses that steer clear of politics like to think they’re safe in Hong Kong, but think again, comrade. A new government edict lets police demand computer, phone and email passwords without a warrant.”
Tags: Businesses, Computer, Edict, Email, Government, Hong Kong, Passwords, Phone, Police, Politics, Safe, Warrant
New York Times (March 26)
“For years, technology giants successfully fought off efforts by regulators, lawmakers and others to put limits on their social media businesses, some of the most popular apps on the planet.” Their “winning streak ended this week, first with a loss for Meta in New Mexico and then with the landmark decision on Wednesday in Los Angeles that found that Meta and YouTube had harmed a young user’s mental health.” So far, investors have largely shrugged off the news, but “some legal experts wonder if Big Tech is staring at a Big Tobacco moment.”
Tags: Big Tobacco
Barron’s (March 26)
“The war in Iran and consequent blockage of the Strait of Hormuz offer a stark reminder of a different geopolitical risk, one lurking in tech-heavy global portfolios that are betting on artificial intelligence: Taiwan.” 75% of global foundry revenue originates in the island nation. “Investors often put Taiwan in the ‘too big to fail’ bucket, meaning China wouldn’t dare attack anytime soon because of the cascading ramifications…. But the far-reaching ripples from Iran’s attacks on the Strait of Hormuz, itself once thought to be in the unlikely bucket, is a reminder of the risks to global chokeholds and the potential spillover from geopolitical conflict.”
Tags: AI, Attack, Cascading, China, Foundry, Geopolitical risk, Global chokeholds, Hormuz, Investors, Iran, Ramifications, Revenue, Spillover, Taiwan, War
Euronews (March 25)
“Europe is being edged out of the global liquified natural gas (LNG) market as Asian buyers outbid for limited cargoes, with ship-tracking data showing several tankers changing course mid-voyage and close to a dozen Atlantic shipments being redirected.” This has especially left Italy, Poland and Belgium scrambling for alternative LNG supplies in what has become a “mega competitive market.”
Tags: Asia, Atlantic shipments, Belgium, Edged out, Europe, Italy, Limited cargoes, LNG, Mega competitive market, Mid-voyage, Outbid, Poland, Redirected, Scrambling, Ship-tracking data, Tankers
Fortune (March 23)
“The great toilet paper panic is back as Japan starts stockpiling. As the U.S.-Israeli-Iran conflict rattles oil markets, Japanese consumers are stockpiling toilet paper—a product with no connection to the disruptions whatsoever, but that has caused enough problems for the country that the Japanese government has urged citizens to stop buying ahead of time.”
Tags: Citizens, Conflict, Consumers, Disruptions, Government, Iran, Israeli, Japan, Oil markets, Panic, Problems, Rattles, Stockpiling, Toilet paper, U.S.
The Economist (March 22)
“Even the best-case scenario for energy markets is disastrous. Whatever happens, high prices will outlive the Iran war.”
Tags: Best case, Disastrous, Energy markets, High prices, Iran war, Outlive, Scenario
New York Times (March 21)
“From his first announcement of the attack on Iran on Feb. 28, President Trump has issued a stream of falsehoods about the war.” It’s well documented that “lying is standard behavior for Mr. Trump,” but “lying about war is uniquely corrosive. When a president signals that the truth does not matter in wartime, he …. makes it harder to win by hiding the realities of conflict and by making allies wary of joining the fight. Ultimately, he undermines American values and interests.”
Tags: Allies, Attack, Conflict, Corrosive, Documented, Falsehoods, Iran, Lying, Realities, Signals, Standard behavior, Trump, Truth, Undermines, Values, War, Wartime, Wary
The Guardian (March 19)
“The US president wanted an easy win, but the conflict is spiralling following Israel’s attack on a gas field and Iranian retaliation across the region.” It is self evident “that the president was not paying heed when people described the likely consequences.” As “Trump breaks things,” the unknown is “who will pick up the pieces?”
Tags: Attack, Breaks, Conflict, Consequences, Easy win, Gas field, Iran, Israel, Pieces, President, Region, Retaliation, Spiralling, U.S.
