US Trade Deficit in 2020 Worst since 2008, Goods Deficit Worst Ever Despite First Ever Petroleum Surplus. Services Surplus Drops Again by Wolf Richter • Feb 8, 2021 • 174 Comments But the Trade Fiasco with China was the least terrible since 2013.
Biggest Office Glut since 2005 Hits Hong Kong Commercial Real Estate amid Worst Recession on Record by Nick Corbishley • Jan 28, 2021 • 33 Comments Several unique factors, topped off by the enduring trend to working from home and an exodus of companies.
US Dollar as “Global Reserve Currency” amid Fed’s QE and US Government Deficits: Dollar Hegemony in Decline by Wolf Richter • Dec 31, 2020 • 299 Comments Other options also shaky. Central banks leery of Chinese RMB, its share still irrelevant. Euro’s share is stuck. But the yen’s share has been rising.
For HSBC, Life Gets Very Complicated in Hong Kong & China, its Number One Market, as China Tightens the Screws by Nick Corbishley • Dec 11, 2020 • 41 Comments Amid concerns China’s authorities are using the account seizures to crack down on dissent.
Who Bought the Monstrous $4.2 Trillion Added to the Incredibly Spiking US National Debt in 12 Months? Everyone but China by Wolf Richter • Nov 19, 2020 • 184 Comments An increasingly important question, because someone always has to buy this debt – and it’s not just the Fed. But the share of foreign holders is waning.
All Container Heck Breaks Loose amid Flood of Orders from US Retailers to Supply Stimulus-Stuffed Consumers, Cancelled Sailings by Carriers, and Record Spiking Freight Rates by Wolf Richter • Nov 16, 2020 • 151 Comments While US Farmers Struggle to Find Empty Containers for Exports.
Hong Kong’s Overleveraged Commercial Real Estate Tycoons Unravel, Prices Plunge, Creditors Begin to Take Over by Nick Corbishley • Sep 30, 2020 • 31 Comments Another 34% markdown. The haste with which creditors want to execute the sale adds to the gloom.
Office Towers in Hong Kong Battered from All Directions: Big Haircuts for Investors amid Falling Rents and Rising Vacancies by Nick Corbishley • Aug 29, 2020 • 28 Comments As so often, this started well before Covid, but Covid is speeding up the process.
What’s in Beijing’s Mystery Security Law Will Be a Giant Tell about Hong Kong’s Future by Chris Oliver • Jun 28, 2020 • 45 Comments Sense of Foreboding in Hong Kong. Beijing’s black-box approach doesn’t bode well for local freedoms.
World Trade Plunges. Here’s Why it’s Even Worse in Reality: China’s Deep-Fake Data Comes to Light by Wolf Richter • Jun 27, 2020 • 225 Comments But the downturn in the goods-based sectors started in 2018. US exports are now down 37% from that peak, imports down 25%.
