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Procter & Gamble, America's largest maker of soaps and detergent increased sales during 2020 by meeting demand for higher priced soap and electric tooth brush costing $300. P&G also makes diapers and Gillette razors. The company is making more high end products to boost sales. Consumers stuck in their homes are willing to spend more to keep themselves and their homes clean. This is also a requirement during the pandemic and considered a wise consumer spending item. P&G generated $3.9 billion in net income for 2020 fiscal 2nd quarter, with sales of about $20 billion.

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There is a surge in online classes and web based learning by 2017. About 36 million people in the U.S. who have some college but no degree benefit from these classes. The low overhead and value of these classes is making colleges move ahead with investment in this field. Arizona State, University of Massachusetts, are some of the universities pushing ahead. Purdue University as part of its "You Can, Go Back" initiative under president Mitch Daniels,is planning to acquire Kaplan University to supplement its efforts. 2U which runs online school programs has revenue growth of 30% a year. It runs marketing and the web platform, nuts and bolts, while schools provide faculty, in a unique collaborative effort. Colorado State University Global Campus went from 200 students to 18,000 half from Colorado, with only a $12 million loan from the University in 2007, which it paid back by 2012, showing the financial viability of these classes. 

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The European Union has deals for 300 million doses of vaccine from BioNTech and Pfizer to be delivered soon. Germany is setting up hundreds of vaccination centers for first 3 months of 2021. Transport logistics are a concern. The Pfizer vaccine has to be kept at minus 70 degrees Celsius or minus 94 degrees Fahrenheit. Paul Ehrlich Institute is responsible for release of vaccine batches in Germany for rollout.  Good planning is essential for the huge task ahead.

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Boris Johnson, chaired the meeting of G-7 leaders from US, Canada, Europe and Japan. He used the meeting to make a call for "levelling up" following the pandemic and avoiding the policies of the 2009 financial crisis and recession when little was done to help the people who faced hardships. Boris Johnson does not like the word "austerity" and he called for greater efforts to create opportunity, and to support women and girl's education in poor countries.

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About 30% of recent postings are for hybrid work at Boeing and it favors remote and hybrid work. It helps to reduce cost by trimming payrolls and cutting office space to return to cash flow and profitability. The leader of America's largest aerospace company Mr. Calhoun says headquarters is himself and CFO Mr. West. Calhoun is CEO of Boeing since 2020, and has run the company using remote work. He sees the company as distributed all over the US. Its headquarters shifted twice from Seattle to Chicago, and then to Virginia outside Washington D.C. He says about this that 70% of his day is virtual no matter where he is because he runs a large distributed company that Boeing is today. Many factories are in the Seattle area, suppliers in many locations. Calhoun has homes in the Hilton Head area, and near Lake Sunapee in New Hampshire. Boeing says it is a different approach to get employees to travel to many locations and engage people rather than be tied up at a corporate headquarters.  ...

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In his farewell address Mr. Trump stated there were no new wars during his presidency- "the first president in decades who started no new wars." He also stated that he stood up to China- "we rallied the nations of the world to stand up to China like never before."

About the controversies that dogged his administration he said - "I did not take the easiest course, by far it was actually the most difficult. I did not seek the path that would get the least criticism. I took on the tough battles, the hardest fights, the most difficult choices, that's what you elected me to do."

He urged prayers for the new administration.

About the movement he started to defend borders, bring back American factories, Mr. Trump said - "The movement we started is just beginning. There has never been anything like it."

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China's export dependent economy with 4% decline in fixed investment Jan-May 2026 and 27% jump in exports.1 million car exports per month in June. Exports make up 20% of China's GDP. China is challenging German companies in their home markets in Europe. Domestic sales of cars are down 16% in June. What this means is that China's growth now depends on exports alone, with construction slowdown, and weak consumer spending. How does this tie into China's posture in trade with the US? It negotiated from a position of strength on rare earths not to give in to DJT tariffs yet knows the importance of trade for the Chinese economic model, importance of US and EU markets, markets worldwide. China's strategy is to shift some of the lost US sales due to tariffs to other countries in Latin America and Asia. A top priority is to keep trade with the US and European Union on a good footing, so that its exports can be absorbed. How does it affect Hormuz? For China Hormuz as an oil source is much lower in importance and China can do without Iran, it absolutely cannot do without the US and European Union to take a big part of its exports. It also does not openly say this but it also shares concerns similar to the US, on nuclear weapons in Iran. India, Japan and the EU have similar concerns. As shown in the articles on this page China has large unused oil in reserves and coal supplies, has lower oil demand at 4% growth, and is accelerating renewable energy, so that it is now importing 8.5 million barrels a day down from 12.5 million barrels a day. By doing this China puts this oil back into the world supply leading to lower oil prices. This means the world can do without the supplies from Hormuz, keep lower oil prices, and go on as before if Hormuz remains closed. The US can focus on domestic issues and its involvement in the Middle East can be limited to naval blockade which the US Navy is capable of doing. This is good for China, good for the US, and good for the World. Local governments in China, provincial authorites, pushed growth in building road, bridges, factories during the 30 year growth phase 1990-2020. In 2026 local governments with debt loads and lack of good projects for investment are a bottleneck to growth. This is the first time fixed investment is in decline, except for the years in 1961 and in 1967. The year 1961 is a result of many mistakes made by chairman of CCP, Mao, by shifting 2 million in farm labour to work in iron foundries, and the shift from private farm plots to soviet style commune farms, coupled with floods leading to 43-46 million famine deaths (1994, Chen Yizi, top advisor to CCP General Secretary Zhao Zhiyang). 1967 is the chaotic situation of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution launched by Mao. What it shows is that the China Miracle like the Japan Miracle and the German Miracle of recovery after World War II, is based on certain conditions and will enter a phase of lower growth closer to 3% like other industrialized nations over time. India and Indonesia are larger than China and will be the next growth story, which is also shown on these pages this week, with the address to the Indonesian parliament by Modi, and Indonesian president Prabovo's saying that he has studied Modi's economic changes and is copying them as there is no copyright. ...

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As moratoriums on foreclosures that were put in place earlier expire at Chase, Wells Fargo, Fannie and Freddie, and other mortgage companies, foreclosure activity has increased. Foreclosure related filings increased by nearly 6%in February from month earlier, and were up nearly 30% from February 2008, according to RealtyTrac. In California notices of trustee sales, which are a precursor to foreclosure sales, climbed more than 80% to 33,178 in March from February, according to ForeclosureRada.com and the Field Check Group. The increase reflects both the expiration of foreclosure moratoriums and a California law made late last year that temporarily delayed default and foreclosure notices. As aresult Ronald Temple, co-director of research at Lazard Asset Management, expects that home prices will decline by 22% to 27% from their January levels. Over 2.1 million homes will be lost in 2009 in foreclosure according to Moody's Economy.com, up from 1.7 million in 2008.

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Postponing hearing loss tests can lead to cognitive decline and reduce the enjoyment of activities essential for good health, say experts. About 14.1 million or one in 6 people will have some degree of hearing loss in the UK by 2030. Hearing tests is an habit one needs to take up especially after reaching 50 years of age.

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Banks in the US are moving away from cryptocurrency and shunning connections with the cryptocurrency business after a regulatory crackdown by the SEC and public warnings about its future. Banks are reevaluating exposure to the crypto sector no matter how small, says this WSJ report. In early 2020 the regulatory agencies were not vigilant enough about this sector which is now seen as highly risky and not for the private sector- digital currencies being the province of central banks just like the US dollar which is issued with the backing of the US government. The Federal Reserve website says about CBDC, Central Bank Digital Currency in highlighted language.- "Like existing forms of money the CBDC would enable the general public to make digital payments. As a liability of the Federal Reserve, a CBDC would be the safest digital asset available to the general public, with no associated credit or liquidity risk." It is because the US Congress failed to act and a prevailing culture of laissez faire, failure of regulatory agencies to act quickly that allows this to happen, that the private sector was allowed to dabble in what is clearly the province of central banks. Laissez faire is originally a French word meaning "allow to do" which has been taken to extremes such as letting private sector issue digital currencies in the prevailing culture. The Fed's Lael Brainard, Jay Powell, Treasury's Janet Yellen did not come out saying what the Fed's website now says and highlights that the only safe digital asset is the central bank's digital currency. Compare this with the caution taken from the beginning about crypto sector by India's finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and the head of the central bank of India the RBI Mr. Shantikanta Das. ...

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A new review of defense policy undertaken by the British government is outlined in paper, "Global Britain in a Competitive Age." The 100 page report points out that Britain faces a different world situation today and redefines the situation in which nuclear weapons would be used to include biological or chemical weapons attack. It sees the need for Britain to be able to respond to threats of chemical and biological weapons attacks coupled with cyber attacks from countries without nuclear weapons. The report also says other countries "are increasing and diversifying their nuclear arsenals." It identifies a "developing range of technological and doctrinal threats." In response Britain will increase its Trident nuclear warheads to 260 from 180. The report says China presents the "biggest state based threat" to Britain's economic security, and a "systematic challenge" to its prosperity and values. It says China's military modernization and increasing assertiveness in the Pacific region poses "an increasing risk to UK interests." Britain will make more secure its critical infrastructure, including hospitals, power plants and water systems, so that it can confidently trade with China. ...

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Cheap abundant coal supplies support the Australian lifestyle and standard of living. Australia is a big exporter of coal. Here prime minister Morrison is shown with coal in his hand in parliament lauding its benefits to the Australian economy as a source of its wealth. Only now with floods, drought and fires is the real cost of coal becoming apparent to Australians. In elections in 2021 Mr. Albanese of Labour party replaced Mr. Morrison and promised changes. Mining interests and jobs influence key swing constituencies in elections leading to the impasse on climate change action. As one of the windiest and sunniest places in the planet Australia says the OECD is in a position to play a large role in renewable energy. This suggests that policy so far has been shortsighted. Worse it may have fueled the rise of temperature on the planet by providing cheap coal for China to grow at rates close to 12% for decades.

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This signals corporate optimism, says the WSJ, and is seen as reassuring for investors.

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How to manage relationships as you get older. What makes for energizing connectedness feeling in relationships and when do relationships wither. Different aspects of managing this social connectedness that we all need for good mental health are discussed by Francine Russo in WSJ.

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President Trump on a three day visit to the UK promised a free trade deal with Britain if it made a decisive break with the European Union. Such a free trade deal could take years, offer small benefits compared to the loss of the much larger trading relationship with the European Union. It would face hurdles in passage through Congress because Democrats controlling the House of Representatives see a decisive break with the European Union including the customs union arrangement as affecting the open border in Ireland risking the hard won peace in Northern Ireland.  Prime Minister Theresa May proposed a withdrawal arrangement that would keep the customs union arrangement but has failed to secure the support of a faction within her Conservative party that favors a decisive break from the EU. Such a break that Mr. Trump and Boris Johnson the leader of this faction -and a favored candidate to succeed prime minister May after her resignation- would reduce Britain's GDP over the next 15 years at the higher end of the range of 0.1% to 9% a year. A decisive break called a no deal Brexit with no arrangements or agreement for withdrawal with the EU, would lead to a loss closer to the 9% estimate. British experts to the EU are about $275 billion or 44% of its total exports compared to about $44 billion to the U.S., according to HMS Customs source, showing how important it is for Britain to maintain a close trading relationship with the European Union. British farmers would also face competition through agricultural imports from the U.S. in a free trade deal. During his visit Mr. Trump also stated the National Health Service, everything would be on the table in a free trade deal with the U.S.  Theresa May responded by saying that the NHS would not be open for negotiation to American corporate involvement. Public sensitivity is high on any change to the National Health Service. The trip of president Trump to London in which he supported Boris Johnson as candidate to succeed Theresa May, with discussions between Trump and Johnson for 20 minutes, and a visit by Nigel Farage to the U.S. embassy, and no meeting with Labour party leader Corbyn, only shows the widening of differences on the issue of British withdrawal from the EU making any deal for withdrawal even less likely. Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn now favors a second referendum on whether Britain should leave the EU.  ...