LyrArc Article Gist
Internet penetration in India is increasing rapidly. India had 71 million internet users in 2009 by one estimate. Current estimates are of 80-100 million internet users. India's internet penetration as percentage of population of 5% is low compared to China which is at 28.9%, Brazil at 39.2%, and Mexico at 28.3%, according to figures from the International Telecommunication Union. Analysts expect the launch of third generation broadband networks will help increase internet use in India. One study done by investment bank Caris & Co. shows internet use growing to 180-200 million users by 2015. Most of the major internet sites are in news, job-search or match-making. Internet retail is just beginning to grow with online purchases of $1.4 billion in 2010 going up to $5 billion in 2012.

LyrArc Article Gist
Sweden which appeared resilient in the early part of the eurozone financial crisis is seeing a sharp slowdown in exports. The government growth forecasts show a steep decline in growth to 1.1% in GDP and unemployment at 8.2% in 2013 as eurozone exports decline. GDP growth forecast for 2014 is at 3%. The decline is from the 3.7% growth in 2011. About a third of Swedish exports go to the eurozone countries. Sweden's steel company SSAB has put workers on a 4 day work week and a 20% wage reduction as demand declines. Finance minister Anders Borg says "Our assessment is that Sweden is facing a couple of lean years. It is becoming clearer that the crisis in Europe and developments in the U.S. are again costing jobs and weighing on growth in Sweden."

LyrArc Article Gist
Wagoner says GM can get 37mpg on average by 2012 for its cars in response to Congressional demand for higher fuel efficiency and energy conservation. Congress is looking for European mandated levels of 50mpg by 2015, which were initially opposed by European automakers also. It becomes the condition for loans. The awfully bad unemployment numbers for November of 533,000 layoffs led to some compromise from Speaker Pelosi, so that $15 billion could come as a bridge loan to the Detroit automakers from the $25 billion allocated for the specific purpose of fuel efficiency technologies. The only way this compromise could be reached is by a complete shift by the auto executives on the issue of fuel efficiency, which is a sore point with Congress especially the way automakers in Detroit have dragged their feet on this issue over 2 decades, contributing to the jump in oil prices in 2007 and early 2008.

LyrArc Article Gist
PC shipments in China of 18.5 million units in the second quarter of 2011 exceed U.S. shipments of 17.7 million, according to research firm IDC. IDC estimates China's PC shipments in 2012 at 85.1 million units, and U.S. PC shipments at 76.6 million. Lenovo has grown rapidly in China and now has 12.2% of the global PC market. Lenovo has a larger market share in China than H-P or Dell.

LyrArc Article Gist
This view from the Guardian by David Adler from July 8 2019, gives a third perspective on Greece as it goes into elections. It looks at the turbulent period of 2015-2019 when a new leader Alexis Tsipras promised to lead Greece out of the eurozone crisis by standing up to the ECB and Germany, instead of looking at Greece's own responsibility in letting debt buildup till it overwhelmed Greece. Adler says Syriza was too much on one end blaming Germany for strict conditions on a loan bailout, and after this did not work embracing the loan program in a complete reversal causing much anguish to his own support base when this led to callous implementation.  Mitsotakis is careful to say in his interview with Reuters that the vulnerable have to be protected while also committing to a path of economic growth for Greece. It says 50 billion euros was provided to help people with the cost of living crisis, pensions were increased, minimum wage increased by 20%. It also shows the need to judge by looking at the situation not by labels of centre left or center right, are people better off, will people be better off in the future, are all the bases education, healthcare, public services, infrastructure covered? Is the government honest with the people and doing everything it can after listening to the people? ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Henrique de Castro, chief operaing officer, leaves Yahoo after only one year on the job following poor performance in generating advertising revenue in 2013. He was hired from Google by CEO Marissa Mayer. Yahoo's share of display ad revenue in the U.S. declined in 2013 to 5.8% from 6.8% in 2012. Google's increased to 39% and Facebook's share increased to 7% in the U.S.

LyrArc Article Gist
Lack of any effort by Democrats and Republicans to come up with a negotiated agreement to end the $85 billion in sequester automatic spending cuts in the U.S. for 2013. For the Republicans the risk is that president Obama gains ground in preparation for the 2014 midterm elections. For president Obama the risk is that his will become a distraction for his second term legislative agenda including immigration reform, and other legislation.

LyrArc Article Gist
Soren Skou, the head of the container division of Demark shipping line A.P. Moller Maersk A/S, says the volumes worldwide are expected to increase by 4% in 2012 over the prior year, compared to the 7% increase in 2011. This reflects the deteriorating conditions especially in Europe for goods from China. China is also losing competitiveness in relation to countries like Vietnam and Bangladesh for shoes, toys and labor intensive goods. Tim Smith, Maersk's head for the North Asian region, says the container shipping industry will see annual growth slow from double digit increases to somewhere between 5 to 7%.

LyrArc Article Gist
A detailed story on Fethullah Gulen, once an ally of president Erdogan in his effort to reduce the influence of the nation's military but now seen by him as a rival. Gulen lives in Pennsylvania. The recent coup in Turkey, and the efforts by Erdogan to reduce the influence of Gulen supporters in Turkey, has increased tensions between Turkey and the U.S. This is happening just as Turkey's relations with Germany are worsening after the failed coup, the  Erdogan response, and what is seen as a drift to authoritarian rule. Earlier corruption inquiries in 2014 critical of the Erdogan government by judges in the Gulen faction of the AK Party led to the split between the two factions, followed by Erdogan controlling judicial appointments and controlling the media.

LyrArc Article Gist
This is an interview with Columbia University economic historian Adam Tooze about the international trade and economic issues brought about by globalization. The rapid emergence of China in manufacturing and overcapacity in steel has led to action on steel tariffs by president Trump. Tooze is typical of opinion that sees action by Trump not as limited action to level the playing field  as proposed by Trade Representative for the U.S., Robert Lighthizer, but as reckless move on trade.  Lyrarc.com shows articles from the WSJ and NYT showing how opinion got to this point in the U.S., on Robert Lighthizer's views that the U.S. was not facing a level playing field, and  on how trade has hurt communities across the U.S. a long distance away from Silicon Valley. President Trump's views reflect a different perspective that says the U.S. has to balance the favorable situation obtained by China and the European Union through moves of its own to protect U.S. interests. Political commentary that the U.S. was starting a trade war is not supported by the facts showing China's response as muted and a willingness by China to negotiate a balanced trading relationship as its trade surplus with the U.S. continues to grow. The trade surplus is so large that the Trump moves do not tell the real story. They are likely to be overshadowed by the increasing value of the U.S. dollar leading to a continued favorable situation for Chinese exports and a larger trade surplus in 2018, regardless of Mr. Trump's action.  Trump's moves are more significant in other areas- limiting China's access to advanced technologies, with the European Union also taking the same action. This is now the new field of competition for the major world economies. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Spain's Finance Minister Luis de Guindos talks with reporters House and Perez from the Journal in March 2012. He says the situation Spain faces is very serious and the risks of declining growth are high. He points out that either way Spain loses, if the spending cuts and higher taxes lead to further decline in growth, markets are likely to penalize Spain with higher interest rates on its debt; and if Spain is seen as not doing enough to reduce its deficit, markets will penalize Spain. The yield on Spain's 10 year bond increased to 5.3% on April 2, 2012. The 2012 budget presented by Luis de Guindos calls for 27 billion euros ($36 billion) in cuts to reduce the deficit to 5.3% from 8.5% in 2011. Spain's situation is precarious because the cuts come when unemployment is at 20%, and youth unemployment exceeds 50%. A general strike in March 2012 over labor reforms brought protests drawing over 800,000 people. The government's forecast is for the Spanish economy to contract 1.7% in 2012. Luis de Guindos says half of the 2012 budget provisions have been implemented, with 15 billion euros of cuts implemented in December 2011, and new taxes presented in the 2012 budget implemented immediately. To help local governments with poor finances and owing suppliers 30 billion euros, the Spanish government has set up credit lines as a stimulus move. The net impact of the budget actions, stimulus move, and declining economic growth will be to increase Spain's debt to GDP ratio from 68.5% in 2011 to 78.5% in 2012, according to Luis de Guindos. Spain's plan is for gross issuance of government bonds of $86 billion in 2012....

LyrArc Article Gist
As U.S. carmakers vehicle sales recover and the Japanese carmakers go through a slowdown as a result of disruptions from the earthquake, the U.S. and the Japanese carmakers find their situations reversed. Japanese carmakers are facing vehicle shortages in the U.S.. Detroit carmakers see the opportunity to make gains in market share during this period, till Toyota and Honda return to normal. Detroit carmakers have also been affected by the earthquake related supplier disruptions, but to a much smaller extent. Chrysler expects to produce 50,000 to 100,000 fewer vehicles as a result of disruptions, according to Marchionne. Chrysler, the weakest of the Detroit carmakers, has staged a recovery under Fiat's Marchionne. One hurdle was the high interest payments- $348 million in the first quarter of 2011- on the $7.5 billion borrowed from U.S. and Canadian governments. Chrysler increased revenue by 35% to $13.1 billion, with global sales of vehicles up 18% to 394,000, and profits of $116 million in the first quarter 2011. The market situation is still precarious for several reasons. Sales of pickup trucks and larger vehicles- which still constitute a major portion of vehicles sales of Detroit carmakers- are vulnerable to higher gas prices. The Japanese carmakers have large cash reserves for new investments, and will introduce new models as they recover from the earthquake. In the past Detroit carmakers used incentives to maintain sales, which diluted profits. Jeremy Anwyl, chief executive of Edmunds.com, says Detroit carmakers have an opportunity to get back to a situation where they can compete with foreign carmakers on a level playing field, with better market acceptance and higher prices. GM says it will increase prices by about $123 on average to cover higher materials costs. The risk will continue to be in the product mix of a higher proportion of pickup trucks and larger vehicles in a volatile oil price environment....

LyrArc Article Gist
Alexander Van Der Bellen, a pro Europe independent candidate supported by the Green Party wins Austria's presidential election with 53.3% of the vote. The anti immigrant Freedom Party candidate Norbert Hofer wins 46% of the vote. Van Der Bellen is for an open Europe and is pro Europe. The election is seen in Germany as "lifting a great burden off of our shoulders," in the words of Sigmar Gabriel. This is important for the future of Europe as France, Netherlands and Germany face major elections in 2017.

LyrArc Article Gist
The artificial nature of the target of debt to GDP of 120% for Greece in 2020. This is the target being followed in negotiations by the troika of the ECB, IMF and the EU. Experts say the sustainable level would be much lower for Greece -this would be much lower because of the aging population in Greece and lower level of workers to support retirees in future years, the inefficient tax collection system and poor prospects for changing it, the degree of control over monetary policy and the rate of change of debt. A recent study by the Bank for International Settlements shows debt sustainability at 85% after studying 18 countries from 1980 to 2010. No precise source has been found for the 120% target. An IMF Report in 2011 said the 120% was the "maximum level considered sustainable." Alan Auerbach at UC Berkeley and Michael Woodford at Columbia University, say the additional factors are relevant to Greece. The many unpredictables over the course of ten years is another serious difficulty.

LyrArc Article Gist
WSJ's John Lyons interviews Brazil's finance minister Guido Mantega in May 2012. Mantega says Brazil is following a"developmental economics" model for growth, which is more appropriate for Brazil. This includes credit expansion and loans to the auto industry by state owned bank Banco de Brasil in 2012, in an effort to revive growth. He sees the 20% decline in the value of the Brazilian currency, the real, helping increase exports.

LyrArc Article Gist
U.S. States faced a shortfall of $86 billion during the 2011 budget season, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. This was after a rise in tax collections during the last year from an improving economy, and about $30 billion of tax increases passed in 2009 and 2010. States faced the end of $66 billion in federal stimulus aid, and their share of Medicaid costs are expected to go up by $16 billion in this fiscal year, according to the National Association of State Budget Officers. The political mood has shifted with worries about the deficit and fears that tax increases could make the states less attractive for employers. As a result there is a focus on spending cuts with very few tax increases. Forty six states began a new fiscal year this week after legislatures focussed on spending cuts, mostly avoided tax increases, and some states placed restrictions on the pay and benefits of public employees.

LyrArc Article Gist
This exceptional account by WSJ's Shira Ovide on Microsoft Windows 10 looks at ways CEO Satya Nadella is changing Microsoft's culture and old way of doing business. Microsoft is changing its culture and strategy of charging for all its products. It will let businesses and individual buyers upgrade for free to the new Windows 10 product. This means $500 million less in sales revenues in 2015, but opens up new oppoortunities in sale of add-on apps and services on more devices, such as health sensors and smartphones. The failure to penetrate the smartphone business- with a meager 3% penetration for Windows in smartphones - is a problem facing Microsoft as it competes with Apple, Google and other companies. Terry Myerson describing the thinking behind this change at Microsoft puts it in a cultural perspective, saying that it should result in a more engaged user base. There is a sense that the space Microsoft is in stretches way beyond PC's to all the new computing devices now in place, including smartphones and other devices, with Windows taking up only 15% of these devices. Founder Bill Gates calls this "exciting" and is excited to see the reaction in the market....

LyrArc Article Gist
Prime minister Manmohan Singh moves forward with moves to open up the retail sector to foreign investment and other steps to attract foreign investors. In a televised address he appeals to Indians to support his government's efforts to reduce the deficit by increasing diesel prices, placing caps on cooking gas subsidies, and open up the retail sector to foreign investment. Singh's coalition will survive with a parliamentary majority after the withdrawal of a party based in W. Bengal state led by Mamta Banerjee, by getting the support of a party based in Uttar Pradesh state led by Mulayam Singh Yadav. Singh tells Indians: "we are at a point where we can reverse the slowdown in our growth. We need a revival in investor confidence domestically and globally.'' Earlier efforts to open up the retail sector to foreign investment failed because of Banerjee. Singh also warned Indians of the problems Europe is facing and the need for strong action to prevent a similar situation happening in India. India's political picture has changed since the days of Nehru and Indira Gandhi as no single party has support in all parts of the country, and federal governments in New Delhi are based on coalitions led by Congress party or the BJP party. Singh is known for his market opening moves as finance minister in a Congress led government in the early 1990's. Political strains and corruption scandals have weakened Singh's government in 2011-2012 leading to the lack of clear policies on the deficit and foreign investment, a situation Singh seeks to firmly correct. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Leaders of North Korea and South Korea, Kim Jong-Un and Moon Jae-in meet on April 27, 2018, at the military demarcation line between North and South Korea.  After handshakes and Mr. Moon stepping onto North Korean soil for a few minutes, Kim Jong-Un visits Seoul for peace talks.  This is a historic moment for the two countries as this is the first time since the Korean War (1950-53) that a North Korean leader has visited the South. No peace treaty was signed after the Korean War. During the period of six decades that followed the Korean War, particularly the period after 1980, the South Korean economy recovered from the war and expanded following the Japanese export model with large conglomerates such as Samsung. The North Korean economy has struggled in the period and North Korea is one of the poorest countries isolated for most of this period like Burma from the rest of the world. The development of nuclear weapons was pursued to prevent any external threats to the government, and decades of sanctions followed with aborted efforts to denuclearize the Korean peninsula. Recent ballistic nuclear tests and the installation of a new anti missile system in South Korea led to tighter sanctions with the cooperation of China. This heightened tensions, followed by the tighter sanctions. Kim Jong Un and the government are looking for ways to win approval in the international community, and find a way out of the tight sanctions. South Korea, Japan and the U.S. government are not sure whether this will lead to any results in denuclearization. The summit with Moon will be followed by a summit between president Trump and Kim Jong Un of North Korea. If a way can be found for the North Korean government and party leaders to transition to acceptance in the international community followed by integration of the North and South's economies over an extended period, there is a possibility that denuclearization could work, because it is to maintain the current government in North Korea that nuclear development was pursued in the North. Ideological conflict is now less of a factor in the conflict between North and South Korea as it was in the early days of the Korean War with the Cold War and Communism's advances in Eastern Europe and Asia the big issue at the time. Today China itself is more of a state run economy under the Communist Party following capitalism with Chinese characteristics than the old Communist model, and ideological conflict is not an issue between the U.S. and Communist run countries. This leaves open the possibility of a solution particularly as at some point just as in the case of Vietnam and the U.S., North Korea could see its future more allied with that of South Korea than with China. That leaves an opening for a timetable of transitional actions plus effective implementation stages, with incentives for the U.S. and Japan to negotiate a settlement. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Britain's David Cameron leads the successful effort to hold down spending in the European Union's next 7 year budget plan, supported by Germany and the Netherlands. The new 2014-2020 EU budget plan holds down government contributions to the budget to 959.99 billion euros. There is a 35 billion decrease from the last budget plan after adjusting for inflation, and less than the 1.03 trillion euros proposed by the European Commission, the EU's executive body. Actual spending is set at 908 billion euros compared to 943 billion euros for 2007-2013. Cuts were made in some areas- direct subsidies to farmers went down to 277 billion euros from 337 billion euros. EU funding to tackle high youth unemployment and build transnational infrastructure increased 37% to 126 billion euros. Funds allocated for investment projects in poorer regions slightly declined to 325 billion euros. Special rebates to the UK and the Netherlands remain- the Netherlands rebate is 1 billion euros. The mood of European leaders was summarized in the words of Britain's prime minister Cameron: "Frankly, the European Union should not be immune from the sorts of pressures that we have to reduce spending, find efficiencies and make sure that we spend money wisely that we are all having to do right across Europe."...

LyrArc Article Gist
The trade figures for Dec. 2012 show the deteriorating picture for Japan's exporters. This supports the reasoning of the new LDP government of Shinzo Abe to keep the yen down to support exporters. Figures for the full year show Japan was able to maintain a current account surplus of 4.70 trillion yen only because of investment income from overseas. The merchandise trade deficit for 2012 was the highest since 1985.

LyrArc Article Gist
Spain's economy contracted 0.3% in the fourth quarter of 2012, according to the Spanish central bank. Unemployment reached 23% in January, 2012. For workers under 25 years age the unemployment rate is 48.6%. The new government of prime minister, Mariano Rajoy, plans to pass labor reform legislation to give companies flexibility to hire new workers, lower dismissal costs and make hiring easier. The economic crisis has a larger effect say experts, because of rigid labor laws. This make it easier to layoff workers than adopt alternatives of lower wages, and which make firms hesitant to rehire. One example is higher dismissal costs- the cost of unfair dismissal is 45 days of pay for each year worked, and 20 days for fair dismissal, which is hard to prove under Spanish laws.

LyrArc Article Gist
Homelessness has become a major problem in American cities. The situation has worsened during the pandemic. This mounting problem is a major issue in the mayoral election for Denver. WSJ shows pictures of the city's homeless areas. After 12 years Mayor Michael Hancock is termed out and there are 16 candidates vying to replace him. All are being pressed to find solutions to the problem. Rising housing costs and Denver's growth have increased homelessness. WSJ reports Denver's homeless population has grown 44% from 3376 in 2017 to 4794 in 2022.

In 2012 the city imposed a camping ban. Business owners say it has not been enforced. Homeless protection groups say sweeps have only moved the homeless elsewhere. The mayor's office says 15,000 people have found homes. With the pandemic there were health issues and economic issues that made it harder to tackle the problem.

LyrArc Article Gist
A sharp increase in the price of used cars of as much as 36% during the pandemic when supply chain problems made it difficult to find new cars, puts lower income buyers under greater financial stress. This meant buyers tended to have much older cars, from 2013 or 2014 that were over 10 years old with close to 100,000 miles. And more likely to breakdown costing a lot to repair. Combined with this need for major repairs the cost of repairs went up 13% in the last year, with a shortage of mechanics plus costlier parts. As a result some buyers of older used cars are unable to make their car payments and are falling behind. This WSJ report looks at the growing problem with some buyers simply stopping payments on loans taken out to buy used cars they could not repair because of the size of the bill.

LyrArc Article Gist
Berlin Brandenburg Airport or BER was supposed to open in 2011 or 2012,instead it will open in October 2020, nine years behind schedule, three times over budget. There were 2 parliamentary probes into what went wrong. The planning was faulty and plans were changed, blueprints were not finalized, resulting in a long sequence of problems with such basic items such as the fire safety system, and shoddy electrical wiring, faulty smoke extractions systems. A technical manager was jailed for three years for accepting a bribe from a contractor who then went bankrupt.  The airport CEO Mr. Daldrup says his job was to mop up problems like a "crime scene cleaner." It may be an example of how German values in hard work and good engineering declined as the country lost its focus in the period after reunification and the austerity years under chancellors Schroeder, Merkel, a period when new infrastructure and public services suffered neglect.