The Huge Endeavor to Produce a Tiny Microchip

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Description: As the global chip shortage continues, we take an inside look at how semiconductors are fabricated. Source: NYTimes.com Date: Apr 08, 2022 Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/08/technology/intel-chip-shortage.html? Questions for discussion: What are the direct economic benefits due to investments in these plants? What are the factors of production needed in order to set up these plants? Given… Read more »

Why the tanking Japanese yen should concern investors: Morning Brief

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Description: The Bank of Japan (BOJ) was in a bind on Monday. Its currency, the yen, was crashing while yields on their government bonds were surging. The solution — four days of unbridled bond buying by the BOJ to stem the hemorrhaging and contain interest rates. While the gambit worked (for now), Wall Street is waking up… Read more »

Why the U.S. Government Should Regulate Cryptocurrency

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Description: The Biden administration’s executive order to develop a national policy on cryptocurrency and digital assets is an important first step in setting some guardrails around a global market now worth more than $3 trillion, said Wharton legal studies and business ethics professor Kevin Werbach. Source: knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu Date: Mar 28, 2022 Link: https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/why-the-u-s-government-should-regulate-cryptocurrency/ Questions for discussion: What are major… Read more »

Nord Stream 2 cost $11 billion to build. Now, the Russia-Europe gas pipeline is unused and abandoned

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Description: One of the early casualties of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — and its continuing geopolitical and economic fallout — has been the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, a massive energy project that took several years to build and cost $11 billion. Source: CNBC.com – video report Date: Mar 31, 2022 Link: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/03/31/the-nord-stream-2-pipeline-lies-abandoned-after-russia-invaded-ukraine.html Questions for… Read more »

Eric Nuttall: The world has plunged into a deep, enduring energy crisis that may threaten the economy for years to come

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Description: Long before Russian tanks rolled towards Ukraine, the oil and gas industry had culminated into an undersupplied market Source: FinancialPost.com Date: Mar 29, 2022 Link: https://financialpost.com/commodities/energy/oil-gas/eric-nuttall-the-world-has-plunged-into-a-deep-enduring-energy-crisis-that-may-threaten-the-economy-for-years-to-come Questions for discussion: What does Eric Nuttall say is the situation in the oil and gas industry and Canada’s position, specifically? How should investors respond to this analysis,… Read more »

BlackRock’s Larry Fink, who oversees $10 trillion, says Russia-Ukraine war is ending globalization

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Description: Larry Fink, the CEO and chairman of the world’s biggest asset manager BlackRock, said Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has upended the world order that had been in place since the end of the Cold War. Source: CNBC.com Date: Mar 24, 2022 Link: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/03/24/blackrocks-larry-fink-who-oversees-10-trillion-says-russia-ukraine-war-is-ending-globalization.html Questions for discussion: Do you agree with the Larry Fink’s assessment… Read more »

A Plastic Bag’s 2,000-Mile Journey Shows the Messy Truth About Recycling

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Description: When the British supermarket chain Tesco Plc first started ­collecting plastic bags and wrappers from customers to be recycled in March 2021, Caroline Ragueneau was thrilled. She was working as a retail assistant at a Tesco store in southwest England when the first white deposit boxes appeared, promising to turn what’s typically discarded back… Read more »