Update on the WTF Collapse of Gasoline & Jet Fuel Consumption: The Holiday Period by Wolf Richter • Jan 8, 2021 • 120 Comments Long-term structural issues have long dogged these fuels. Then came the Pandemic.
The Amazon Empire Beefs Up its Logistics Juggernaut by Wolf Richter • Jan 5, 2021 • 101 Comments Wall Street loves conglomerates that are oligopolies or, better, monopolies — companies with a “wide and long-lasting moat,” as Buffett said.
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.
Flying During Christmas Travel Period? Still in Collapse Mode by Wolf Richter • Dec 28, 2020 • 147 Comments But don’t fear for airline shareholders & creditors; they get to benefit from another $15 billion via “Taxpayer Capitalism.”
Railroads Slashed Jobs Again in Nov, to Lowest in Many Decades, Traffic Down 17% since 2006, Stocks Soared to Record High by Wolf Richter • Dec 24, 2020 • 74 Comments Railroads responded to structural challenges by slashing jobs. Did nothing for volume but did everything for their stocks.
Holy-Cow Spikes in China-US Container Freight Rates & US Consumer Spending on Goods Trigger Mad, Possibly Illegal Scramble for Empties. US Farmers Twist in the Wind by Wolf Richter • Dec 20, 2020 • 135 Comments US Federal Maritime Commission investigates container carriers’ “abandonment” of American agricultural industry. Weirdest Economy Ever.
Congress to Pass $17 Billion Bailout of Airline Shareholders & Bondholders, to Top Off Prior Bailout. Industry Applauds, Airline Stocks Jump by Wolf Richter • Dec 15, 2020 • 161 Comments Top 4 airlines burned $45 billion on share buybacks since 2012. If airlines run out of money, Chapter 11 bankruptcy works. Airlines proved it.
Bracing for Impact: My View as British Expat Just Before Brexit by Nick Corbishley • Dec 14, 2020 • 104 Comments None of the gloomiest predictions of how a Hard Brexit could impact UK expats in the EU has come to pass. But there are complications.
US Air Passenger Traffic Skids Again, Delta & American Warn of Declining Bookings by Wolf Richter • Dec 6, 2020 • 138 Comments L-Shaped Recovery for Air Lines. Staking their future on a vaccine.
Here Comes the Trucking Boom in the Weirdest Economy Ever by Wolf Richter • Dec 2, 2020 • 84 Comments Never a dull moment in the land of consumer stimulus and heavy trucks.
