Japan has started to fingerprint and photograph all foreigners when they arrive in the country, joining the United States in checking foreigners in this way. (Japan will require foreigners resident in Japan, as well as visitors, to be checked each time they enter.) This kind of checking is a sad comment on the way humanity …
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Category:9 Regions
Will Money Solve Africa’s Development Problems?
A Templeton conversation. The concensus seems to be No. Either was the participants are well informed and offer a broad insight to the challenges of Africa. Read it here. Will Money Solve Africa’s Development Problems?
Report on Iran’s nuclear programme is not the drama expected
The report by the IAEA on Iran’s nuclear programmes is not the dramatic revelation that some expected. In Iran’s favour, most of the data reveals authentic energy applications of nuclear material. On the other hand, questions remain about what current activities are. And those questions are being asked. The response by both Iran and the …
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Iraq war costing twice as much as we were told
The US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are costing nearly double the amount previously thought, according to a report, War At Any Price?, by the Joint Economic Committee of the US Congress. (Press release here – pdf) It says “hidden costs” have pushed the total to about $1.5 trillion – nearly twice the requested $804 …
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The real sub-prime losses – $ 150 – 450 billion. Now, can you say recession?
The real extent of the credit delusion in the US is now beginning to be recognised. The hidden losses among financial houses are being uncovered. While a few banks, like Goldman Sachs, might try to defer recognition of the losses till 2008 so that the news doesn’t hit their share price, analysts from Bernanke to …
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China seeking stakes in more global investment businesses
The FT reports that China’s $61.5 billion social security fund has held talks to acquire ownership stakes in Carlyle Group, KKR and TPG. It’s unclear how far along any of these discussions are, but China has already acquired positions in both The Blackstone Group and Bear Stearns. This further supports the view that China (and …
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US housing depression, wealth erosion and consumption recession
This linked economic review by Van Hoisington and Lacy Hunt (shared by John Mauldin) makes for another very sobering analysis of the outlook for the US economy. Some of the choice passages include: In the last twelve months, real U.S. imports of goods rose a minuscule 0.5 %, down from the 8.5% growth rate in …
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Money wins over humanity, by a wide margin
Humanity’s interest in raising the poor and destitute from the threshold of survival is insignificant. But our interest money, even the virtual money crated by trading opinions in the stockmarket, remains supreme. Whether Boston or Bombay, money, that metaphysical asset, seems to feed our souls. It took minutes for the top guns to swing into …
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China to invest in Africa’s biggest bank
China’s largest bank, the state-run Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, announced plans to acquire a 20% stake in Africa’s biggest bank, Standard Bank, for US$5.5 billion. If approved by South African regulators and ICBC shareholders, the deal would lead to the creation of a US$1 billion private equity fund that will be established by …
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Oil, Asia, Asset Managers
McKinsey released this useful research on the world of money, pertinent to investors, asset managers and strategic planners. The New Power Brokers: How Oil, Asia, Hedge Funds, and Private Equity Are Shaping Global Capital Markets McKinsey reviews petrodollar investors, Asian central banks, hedge funds, and private equity and their increasingly important role in world financial …
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