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How much can you save with EV's, a state by state comparison in the Washington Post. This varies by state depending on how much electricity prices have gone up. In Wisconsin electricity prices have. not gone up. Electricity prices were lowest in the Dakotas, Utah, Nebraska, and highest in New Jersey, Maryland, Washington DC, California, New York, Massachusetts, On average across the US gas prices were up 37% since February 2026 and electricity prices up 16%. In 2026 hybrids have surged, EV sales stalled. The current surge in oil prices provides new incentives for EV's that did not exist before. In addition there are more EV's choices at lower prices in 2026. On average EV owners are spending $106 a month and gas owners $149 a month for average miles Americans put in a month of 943 miles.

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For the first time the U.S. focuses on the huge trade deficit with China in a serious way. The trade negotiating team led by Robert Lighthizer has set forth its negotiating terms.  1. China must reduce its trade deficit with the U.S. by $100 billion in the first 12 months. In the next 12 months it must reduce its deficit by another $100 billion. In 2 years the trade deficit the U.S. has with China must come down by $200 billion. The issue is no longer just the tariffs on steel, it is about the core issue of balance in  trade. 2. The U.S. says subsidies to state industries in the "Made in China 2025" program must stop. Here the focus is on gaining an unfair technological advantage with a combination of U.S. technology imports and subsidies to state advanced manufacturing industries to erode over time the U.S. technological lead.  3.  China is expected to cut its tariffs by about two thirds on imported products so that the tariffs match that of the U.S. This is the first serious negotiation the U.S. has conducted with China on the core issue of the trade surplus which is growing with a stronger dollar not declining. The surplus approaches $1 billion each day for about $365 billion a year, unsustainable from any perspective. The vital issue of the erosion of the U.S. technological advantage under the Made in China 2025 has turned this issue into one in which the U.S. is unlikely to back down. Especially now that Mr. Lighthizer is leading the  negotiations and has the confidence of the president of the U.S. Lighthizer is a veteran of negotiations from an earlier period -under the Reagan administration in a similar situation with another national competitor- then it was the Japanese. A relentless negotiator as the U.S. seeks to reverse a trade imbalance of stupendous proportions neglected by previous administrations.           ...

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  US's womens socceer's Carli Lloyd, who led the US women's soccer team many times in her career, was honest and blunt on FOX television coverage of the 4-1 loss to Belgium in World Cup Soccer 2026. The host country failed to make it into the quarter finals after so much advertising on television, way too much not even good for the players. There is so much money on television ads and promotions that it must hurt the players and the game. Messi, Neymar, Vinicius Jr., Pulisic, and some Mexican players, were all put up as players who could do anything on television. In the end none of them did well, Messi almost in tears after Argentina was behind 2-0 for most of the 90 minutes against Egypt, only miraculously surviving. Brazil is out going down to Paraguay. Christiano Ronaldo, the first billionaire in soccer, was a little kid from a struggling family in Madeira, Portugal, and he too went out after failing to score on several passes, with Portugal's loss to Spain. All this may be a good thing and a learning lesson for the sport. For all those who love the sport and think things have gone overboard with television advertising,  with excessive brand sponsorship on television, making entertainment stars who knows to what purpose, but losing the best of the game of soccer in the process. And these are Carli Lloyd's comments (Carli who after 318 appearances and bringing so much joy to young girls for the sport worldwide has a net worth of $2 million compared to the now billionaires and others on the way to billions, or hundreds of millions, television stars of the sport who could not get their game right in World Cup Soccer 2026.) There are lessons for the sport which is the most popular sport not only in all the developed countries but also the poorest large countries on the planet like China, India, Brazil, Egypt. “I felt like they lost the game before they even stepped out on the pitch." “And I’m not sure why, and I don’t know the reasons. But just from the beginning: chasing. Tentative. Scared. Just not confident on the ball.”  "You wanted some of those big-time players to step up in big-time moments." “And I gotta be honest: I was a bit disappointed in Christian Pulisic. Whether he wants to be the star of this team or not, we didn’t see enough from him in this particular game — and, really, the whole World Cup. Little glimpses here and there.” ...

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Oil prices expected to drop from $70 per barrel to $60 per barrel in July 2026 easing oil crisis in advanced and developing nations. A drawdown of inventories by 163 million barrels happened to OECD countries in the 4 months of the Hormuz crisis. Advanced European nations will replenish their inventories starting in the 4th quarter, the US next year in 2027, China with a billion barrels in inventory is not in a hurry to replenish at this time. Factors improving the situation are that the UAE has increased production and sends it though Fujairah that is separate from Hormuz after it left the OPEC oil organization (which sets production quotas for members to control prices). Kuwait is doing the same. Saudis have also increased production routing it away from Hormuz. The advanced countries have learned from the Hormuz crisis. China has changed its oil consumption policy to use it more efficiently one of the big changes from the Hormuz crisis. Instead of importing 10 million barrels a day oil China now imports 6 million barrels a day. China was always a prolific user of oil and as long as oil was plentiful China did not pay enough attention on how to use oil as efficiently as some European nations and Japan are doing. During the crisis the rest of the world including India had time to figure out ways of running their economies using less oil and will continue to do so knowing that Hormuz had allowed one country (Iran) to put the whole family of developing nations in Africa and Asia, Latin America at risk. Hormuz channel itself has opened and about 40-60 ships are making their way through each day. There are risks that Iran will try to close Hormuz again or that the war will restart and this means all nations advanced and developing nations are finding and securing alternative oil supplies. US is also increasing production through its oil base and oil base of its allies, and American plus European oil companies will act to increase supplies and new sources of oil to prevent the world being threatened again in the way it was at Hormuz in 2026. ...

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Omicron cases are up in an almost vertical line on a graph with cases doubling every 2-3 days in the UK, similar to the pattern in South Africa during the beginning of the spread in South Africa. Since then early data in South Africa show the trend in the province of Gauteng, center of the omicron outbreak in South Africa in the Johannesburg area, has reached its peak. On Dec. 16 it recorded 27% of national infections compared to 70% the week before. Head of the National Institute of Communicable Diseases in South Africa, Michael Groome, says "we had areally dramatic increase in Gauteng, which has now leveled off."  Hospital admissions in South Africa show a different pattern than earlier hospital admission rates in previous waves, with only 1.7% of cases being hospitalized in this Omicron wave compared to 19% for the Delta variant wave at a similar point in the wave, says Health Minister Joe Phaahla. In UK as of Dec. 14, this WSJ report cites health authorites saying 73% of cases in London are omicron variant, doubling every 1-2 days, with omicron making up 41% of all cases in England. In the US the Centers for Disease Control show Omicron variant making up 2.9% of all cases in US as of Dec. 11, with highest concentration in New York, New Jersey of 13.1%. Proportion of positive tests went up from 3.3% to 5% in New York City. A convention in New York City, Anime convention at Javits Center, November 23, 2021, shown in a recent NYT report, could potentially have acted as a super spreader event in New York according to NYT though not confirmed, similar to football stadiums events in Italy in March 2020. Dense atmosphere and large crowds increase the risk of a super spreader event happening, say experts. ...

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DJT defuses the situation after weeks of wrangling with Petro of Colombia. This follows US blockade of Venezuela and reaction in Brazil, colombia and Mexico. US president DJT talks to Gustavo Petro of Colombia, January 7 2026, and invites him to talks at the White House. Petro is nearing the end of his term and Marco Rubio says the US seeks good relations with Colombia.

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One example of how the appearance of divisiveness in the media may be misleading is how all sides are coming together on the toughest problems. On housing supply a genuine change has happened. The 21st Century Road to Housing Act biggest bipartisan legislation before the midterm elections is passed in Congress. The most comprehensive and consequential housing legislation in a century as the president DJT calls it, passes both Houses of US Congress by big majorities, in the House by 358 to 32 and in the Senate by 85 to 5. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Tim Scott from both parties worked together to get it done. It addresses both rural and urban needs for small towns and large cities, creates more funding, cuts approval time, and provides incentives for builders. It also limnits institutional investors in how much of housing they control as this worsened the supply of housing and housing prices in recent years. The extent of the housing supply crisis can be seen by the 54% climb in housing prices since 2020, costing 5 times the median income far above historical standards, according Harvard Center for Housing Studies. ...

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Swiss Bank UBS's $1 billion legal settlement with the Justice Department criminal division, U.S. CFTC, UK Financial Services Authority, and Swiss regulators over manipulation of the London interbank offered rate and the euro interbank offered rate is the largest settlement for LIBOR manipulation. This exceeds the $450 million legal settlement by Barclays bank for LIBOR manipulation.

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The U.S. tones down expectations of results in trade negotiations with China. President Trump says China may be thinking, "lets wait 13, 14, 15 months till the election." With the U.S. presidential election coming up China may be looking at the prospect of negotiating with someone from other parties.

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VW's sales in the U.S. doubled between 2009 and 2012, and VW set aggressive goals for the U.S. market to reach 800,000 by 2018. The goal was a stretch goal because this was double the level of 438,000 vehicles in 2012. This was part of its Mach 18 plan to pass GM and Toyota in global sales by 2018. Now this goal appears less achievable, because of new models from Honda and Ford which surpass VW's Jetta and Passat in technology, features and fuel efficiency. The U.S. market sales have increased by 9.6% in 2013, VW's sales declined by 1.3% so far through August in 2013, at 282, 913 vehicles. Ramping up production at the new Chattanooga plant will have to be put off and 500 contract workers have been given leave from the assembly line. By contrast Toyota sales for the 8 month period 2013 increased by 7% and 8.6%. In August Toyota's were up 23%, Honda's 27%, and VW down 1.6%. VW executives have said the company needs sales of 400,000 to make the U.S. manufacturing operations profitable. VW made a strategic decision to cut costs and bring the Passat price more in line with competition from similiar cars from Japanese carmakers. But this was done not relying solely on productivity and other improvements, but used cost cutting using cheaper materials. VW even went one step further by taking away the European suspension which delivered a more precise ride, and installed a lower cost suspension on the Jetta and Passat. Customers have noticed with some buying older models with the European suspension. Honda and Toyota moved in the other direction in the last 2 years coming out with more advanced features on the Accord and Camry. Ford did this with the Fusion. The new Accord has a backup camera, iPod connection, power seats and alloy wheels as standard. As a result Passat sales were up only 3% through Aug 2013, and Accord sales increased by 17%, Ford Fusion sales up 13%. VW's response is to ramp up discounts. It is also coming up with a new engine, Jetta compact with a sportier ride will be introduced, and a redesigned Golf hatchback for 2014. The slowdown in sales at VW shows how competitive the car market has become with Korean, German, Japanese and American carmakers quick to make inroads in turn with weak points of the competition. Strategic missteps can be costly for any manufacturer and the customer can never be taken for granted....

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US China agreement on TikTok sale to American ownership as required by Congress, Scott Bessent announces that an agreement has been reached with China in negotiations for the transfer of ownership. China is concentrating its energies in negotiating tariffs that were kept at 30% by the US and 10% by China which hurt Chinese industry in industries where it has overcapacity.

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The story of Al Thani Emir of Qatar and Qatar's impact on the Middle East using its LNG resources. He led the country from 1995 to 2013  when Qatar set up the state airline, a television network Al-Jazeera, and the US base Al-Udeid, gaining a presence in the Middle East through its LNG supplies.  North Dome is the huge gas field in Qatar. In contrast to Saudi policy and UAE policy Qatar supported the Muslim Brotherhood and the Arab Spring movements. When these movements lost momentum Qatar continued its own foreign policy in competition with the Saudis and UAE.  Native Arab Qataris are only 330,000 out of a population of 3.1 million in Qatar, the rest mostly South Asians. There are 25,000 Britishers in Qatar. The South Asians are underpaid workers from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka who built the soccer stadiums during the World Cup 2022. The discovery of oil and gas has changed the region and created a region with this kind of population mix with wide disparities in income and wealth. As late as 1998 the GDP was only $10 billion growing to $115 billion by 2008 and $208 billion in 2025. ...

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The US military is finally, after years of being left out and over 300,000 young Americans losing their lives from fentanyl drugs being brought into the US- after Coast Guard is overwhelmed by the scale of activity- is finally now being enlisted in the effort to save lives and restore the integrity of America's borders. The deaths in this war are more than 3 times that in the Vietnam War and Korean War combined which were about 100,000. Yet ineffective political leaders have not responded with American strength in the face of the magnitude of losses. And ignored or neglected the firm basis on which president Monroe proclaimed the Monroe Doctrine to keep colonial powers out of this hemisphere. The result is that America and the youngest of its people America's most precious resource, have paid the price. America can do a better job of protecting the interests of the people of this hemisphere because of its great traditions of good government over several centuries going back even to the British days- it is America's solemn duty and responsibility to do so to the people of this hemisphere. ...

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US inflation drops below 5%, the lowest in 2 years. It was lower than February's 6% increase and the lowest since May 2021, the Labor Department reported.

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Manufacturing could be the bright spot for the U.S. in 2021 and the years ahead. The pandemic has hurt industrial production in the U.S. in 2020. This brings manufacturing in the U.S. to a new low. This report in the WSJ says there is hope today because negative trends are about to be reversed. During three decades since the eighties three trends hurt the U.S.- lack of sustained capital investment, noncompetitive labor costs, degrading infrastructure.  To make the reversal of these trends and raise American manufacturing to what it was after World War II attention is being paid to these negative trends. The response- a quick recovery from the recession,  localization of supply chains, technological advancements to close the gap with competitors. By market capitalization on S&P 500 the U.S. manufacturing industrial sector was 15% in 2000, in 2020 it is 9%. Hope today lies in the determination to reverse the trends in this sector and regain leadership. Even in the aerospace sector the determination and legacy of American manufacturing is strong. Recently the WSJ ran a story on how David Farr, the CEO of industrial company Emerson Electric, which makes automation equipment for factories and aerospace parts based in Ferguson, Missouri, managed his company through the pandemic so that it was posed to return quickly to full production. Against all the hurdles he would not give up and fought hard in each battle with suppliers, governments and the pandemic.This bodes well for American manufacturing coming back on quickly even in tough markets such as aerospace and automation. Other factors WSJ mentions are quick reversal in hit to earnings, robust demand. Consumables have sprung back up fastest, but automobiles are also holding up in demand. This leads us to the localization of supply chains. Companies realize the risks of tensions in the South China Sea and technology theft today in a way that they did not before and this is changing the mood resulting in plans to move production onshore. Warnings from the Trump administration played a role with new tariffs on Chinese imports. Shipping products halfway around the world no longer makes sense, especially in losing control of supplies. Emerson depended on production off shore in China and other countries and panic from the pandemic set in quickly that everything would come to a halt as supplies stopped coming and Emerson could do nothing. The economics WSJ points out are also different today with labor cost inflation in China and labor cost deflation in the U.S. which improves U.S. competitiveness. To make U.S. labor cost competitive with China says Scott Davis in WSJ, one has to make the same quantity of product with half the employees, and this is now possible with automation technologies in 2020. The result is that even at this low point in manufacturing one can see the future is bright for the USA as it moves rapidly to rebuild the strength in manufacturing it had for most of the twentieth century. ...

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In the meeting in the Oval Office Biden and Modi had this to say about India US relations. Modi called it a "transformative" decade. Mr. Biden called it a "new chapter" in ties, taking on tough challenges in coronavirus vaccines for the rest of Asia outside India and China, tackling climate change, and ensuring rule of law in the Indo-Pacific region.  Biden's view- "I think that the relationship between India and the US, two of the largest democracies in the world, is destined to be stronger, closer, tighter, and I think it can benefit the whole world." A look at the US under the Biden administration shows a US that is very different from that of the US in the period of presidents since Harry Truman when he met Jawaharlal Nehru at the White House in October 1949. Biden sees the US needing renewal of its infrastructure, reviving worker incomes and families, regaining its leadership of the free world, for its role and place in the world. Throughout the period 1949 to 2020 for 70 years India was never seen as a modernizing nation of 1.2 billion people. For most of this period it lacked the good governance and speedy implementation of modernization of economy that is essential for a truly good relationship. By releasing the potential of the younger generation in a country where people under 35 years form the major part of the population, with good governance and development agenda, the Indian prime minister has changed the entire dynamics of the India US relationship. This is happening in the way China had done in its relationship with the US after 2000 by modernizing the country. India is now the country with huge potential and the country the US sees as helping it build its own role and place in the world. The sheer size of India and its population with countries around it in the east such as Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam with shared values in south and southeast Asia bring together a population of close to 2 billion people much larger than China, to determine the direction of Asia.  This is the new chapter that president Biden has in mind, and it is also the "transformative decade" in the eyes of prime minister Modi as India finally puts behind it years of bad governance, and speeds up modernizing its economy.   ...

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See pictures and video of the 150h anniversary celebrations in the US for the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration has the immortal words of Jefferson- "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,—That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security." Not just Washington DC and many places in the US, but also the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin and across Europe and Asia, Latin America the Declaration has created the Modern World and the Democracies that we know today. The list is long from Germany and Japan that adopted these ideas to India and many nations of Asia, many nations in Africa and Latin America, all inspired by Thomas Jefferson's words. As Jefferson himself borrowed from the European writers of the Enlightenment this means it is a European experiment also, and in Asia an Indian, Japanese experiment also- futuristic in every way, daring and bold, and with the People in mind all the way. Every generation bearing a special responsibility to its children the next generation so that these values can continue to serve as a blessing to mankind. People tend to criticize the founders for aspirational views yet it should be remembered that in all of Asia, billions of people saw a lot to learn and a lot to gain from these aspirational views as they built the Modern World in the 1950's across Asia on these principles and ideas. This is also true of Latin America and Africa. The men on Mount Rushmore were truly unique, Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt, and it is our task to continue the work they gave most of their life for. ...

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The Biden administration has announced a 100 day review of strategic vulnerabilities in America's supply chain. President Biden has said he supports funding of incentives for production in the US, to become independent of China and Taiwan. From 1990 onwards chip production in the US went from 37% to about 12% today. It will now go back up. Biden's National Security Adviser noted in an article in Foreign Policy that advancing industrial policy like Japan and France once considered out of tune is now essential, "something close to obvious."  At one point in the post war period America's most advanced jet engines were made in West Berlin, surrounded by the army of Russia and its ally the GDR. There is new realization that dependence on Taiwan which makes 22% of semiconductors worldwide and 50% of advanced designs cannot go on the way it is exposing a critical vulnerability for American industry. A 40% tax credit for the cost of new semiconductor fabrication plants and other incentives are now supported in the Biden administration. The whole idea is to turn this around quickly where US no longer depends on uncertain supplies from overseas. Four critical areas of strategic vulnerability will be reviewed- pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, batteries, and strategic materials. ...

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After 3 decades the US is finally offering the scale and scope of infrastructure investment overseas that is needed. President Biden says $200 billion will be invested in infrastructure overseas over 5 years at meetings of the G-7 in the Alps south of Munich in Germany. Along with its partners and with government and private investments the size of the investment will reach $600 billion over 5 years to 2027. This will include projects such as $2 billion for solar energy in Angola, and a $600 million submarine telecommunications cable connecting France to Singapore.

It is a combination of direct government aid and private investment. President Biden sees Build Back Better World as the overseas version of his Build Back Better America for workers and families in the US for which Congress has authorized $1 trillion in infrastructure and climate change initiatives in the US.

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Federal Judge voids $1.8 billion settlement of DJT with the IRS. US Districgt Court Judge Kathleen Williams said  the DJT $10 billion suit against the IRS was filed for an improper purpose and refereed the DJT lawyer to state authorites to see if ethics rules had been violated. Many Republicans opposed this kind of settlement in which the president DJT was doing the settlement by being on both sides as being highly unusual. Using the $1.8 billion for helping the protestors at the Capitol against the election in 2020 made this a partisan infighting affair, and even more controversial. In fact this was one of the most unusual parts of what has been a bitter battle between Democrats determined to oppose DJT in every way possible and DJT Republicans responding to these attacks since 2016. Ten years later fatigue is setting in in the Nation with this behaviour of Democrats and DJT Republicans alike. "The DJT lawsuit was never about a party seeking judicial resolution of a legal issue or a factual dispute." Judge Williams described the $1.8 billion settlement as a bid to "provide some legitimacy to an agreement to confer immunity to people and entities affiliated with the President and to earmark billions of dollars from American taxpayers to redress grievances not defined in the law." ...

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In and Interview with The Times of London Andy Burnham said yesterday: “You have to rethink how we run things to get a different approach to public spending and running the economy which is much more focused on early investment, early intervention, setting people up for success and much less paying for failure." “A concept I will talk about tomorrow is a 10-year plan for the country. I think that’s what it needs. I’m not saying that means I’m setting out to say I’m going to be here for 10 years, it’s more that we’re not in the right place structurally. “You go round large parts of Britain and they’re in decline still. The path we’ve got to lay is quite a long one. It can’t be done overnight. You’ve got to show people where we’re going and the steps towards it.” At Lyrarc.com we have called for a 10 year Plan for the US, this is a right step for Britain.   ...