Financial News Digest

2022-09-01 23:59:01 Today, President Biden will warn of the threat to democracy from “MAGA Republicans” and election deniers in a prime-time address outside Philadelphia’s Independence Hall. Biden’s speech will frame the debate for the midterm elections as Democrats fight to hold on to their majorities in Congress.

8 p.m. Eastern. Biden delivers a prime-time speech. Watch live here. Open / Comment

2022-09-01 22:36:01 As the U.S. Dollar surges, American buyers splurge on European homes.

Taking advantage of the most favorable exchange rates in a generation, and reeling from exploding prices at home, buyers are disregarding other sources of instability—including the threat of coronavirus flare-ups, rising interest rates, travel disruptions, and the war in Ukraine—to sink their dollars into European residential real estate, with savings on luxury properties, compared with last year, reaching into seven figures.

With the exception of Lisbon—where prices rose 11.5% between the first quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2022—price gains in local currencies are modest to nonexistent in these markets. According to the most recent Knight Frank Global Residential Index, prices in greater London and Paris rose less than 5% between the first quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2022, while prices in Florence, Tuscany’s capital, dropped 1.6% during the same period. By comparison, America dominates the Knight Frank study, with nine of the top 20 spots held by U.S. cities. The top three, Phoenix, Miami and San Diego, have seen prices rise 29% or more.

#US #DXY #EU #society Open / Comment

2022-09-01 22:22:43 the 173-meter cargo ship LADY ZEHMA heading from Ukraine to Istanbul ran aground in the Bosphorus Strait, the strait is closed to traffic, the Turkish Directorate General of Coastal Safety said in a statement.

#EU #transport #alarm Open / Comment

2022-09-01 22:16:01 Uranium futures rose above $53 per pound in September, the highest since mid-May as the uncertainty regarding energy supplies across the world drove governments to double down in alternative energy sources.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ordered the development of new nuclear reactors to strengthen the country’s energy security and lower carbon emissions.

On top of that, the Japanese Nuclear Regulation Authority has approved 17 existing reactors to be reactivated, while six reactors have already restarted operations. The move signals a historical pivot as the country regains confidence in nuclear energy following the 2010 Fukushima power plant meltdown.

Further, California Governor Newsom proposed extending a $1.4 billion loan to extend the life of the Diablo Canyon power plant until 2025, while Swiss politicians launched a petition to revise country’s nuclear energy policy and avoid power plant shutdowns.

#nuclear #US #commodity #uranium Open / Comment

2022-09-01 21:47:01 U.S. ENVOY TO U.N. SAYS HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL MUST DISCUSS XINJIANG REPORT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, PERPETRATORS OF ATROCITIES MUST BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE,

#US #UN #news_in_one_line #China Open / Comment

2022-09-01 21:34:01 Kosovo will begin on Thursday a two-month implementation period for a controversial move to oblige Serbs, mainly those living in the northern part of the Balkan nation, bordering Serbia, to start using license plates issued by the government in Pristina.

Ethnic tensions over the decision erupted last month when ethnic Serbs in northern Kosovo, who are backed by Serbia and do not recognise Pristina's authority, set up roadblocks to protest the new rule. Open / Comment

2022-09-01 21:28:59 #news_in_one_line #right_now #US #market Open / Comment

2022-09-01 21:16:01 A group of employees at Google #GOOGL is calling on the company to end its artificial intelligence contract with the Israeli government.

Koren, who is Jewish, called on Google in May 2021 to pledge its support for Palestinians in light of the Israeli attack on Gaza, the Los Angeles Times reports. In October, Koren publicly criticized Project Nimbus, calling on Google to break its contract because she was concerned that Israel could use the technology to surveil and harm Palestinians.

Ariel Koren resigned this week after she said Google tried to retaliate against her for opposing Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion artificial intelligence and computing services agreement between Google, Amazon Web Services #AMZN , and the Israeli government and military, the New York Times reports.

At an Alphabet Workers Union-led press conference outside Google's San Francisco headquarters, a small group of workers and Palestinian rights activists demanded Google suspend the contract.

#US #Israel Open / Comment

2022-09-01 21:05:04 Poland’s ruling Law and Justice party wants Berlin to pay €1.3 trillion in wartime reparations.

“This is our goal,” Jarosław Kaczyński, the head of Poland’s ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party, said on the 83rd anniversary of Nazi Germany’s invasion of Poland.

“The position of the Federal Government is unchanged, the reparations issue is closed,” said Germany’s foreign ministry. “Poland renounced further reparations a long time ago, in 1953, and has confirmed this renunciation several times. This is an essential basis for today’s European order. Germany stands politically and morally by its responsibility for the Second World War.”

#EU #Poland #Germany #history Open / Comment

2022-09-01 20:42:01 Micron Technology Inc #MU will invest about $15 billion over the next 10 years in a new memory-chip manufacturing facility in Boise, Idaho, where it is based, the company said on Thursday.

The investment takes into account anticipated federal grants and credits under the CHIPS and Science Act and will create 17,000 jobs by the end of the decade.#US #market Open / Comment