Know someone who would like this newsletter? Forward it to them.
The World
Globalization isn’t over, it’s just outgrowing the World Economic Forum. Once upon a time globalization was mostly about economics: intensifying trade, falling tariffs, outsourcing and the rise of multinational brands. It was Western-led, financialized and championed by global institutions like the WTO — and assumed. In the glory days of the post-Cold War world, this was the good and natural order of things according to the CEOs and political leaders that mingle at the World Economic Forum. No longer. Today political risk is multiplying and power is decentralizing, changing globalization with it. These tensions were on full display in Davos this week. (Politico)
Saudi finance minister warns of growing global food crisis caused by Ukraine war. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatens a huge proportion of the wheat and grain that countries in the developing world rely on. “The MENA region is very, very, very vulnerable,” Saudi Arabia’s finance chief said. Saudi Arabia in late March pledged $15 billion in economic assistance for Egypt, the Middle East’s most populous country, as its economy was hit hard by record high grain prices as a result of the war. (CNBC)
Iran secured access to secret United Nations atomic agency reports almost two decades ago and circulated the documents among top officials who prepared cover stories and falsified a record to conceal suspected past work on nuclear weapons, according to Middle East intelligence officials and documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. The U.S. and the IAEA have said for years that Iran has failed to answer questions about its past nuclear work in a cat-and-mouse game that continues to this day and now complicates a revival of the nuclear deal, which lifted most international sanctions on Iran in exchange for limits on Iran’s nuclear activities. (Wall Street Journal)
The U.S. military and Japan's Self Defense Force said that eight of their fighter jets flew together over the Sea of Japan after North Korea earlier lobbed three missiles into the waters that separate Japan and the Korean peninsula. (Reuters)
U.S. births bumped up last year, but the number of babies born was still lower than before the coronavirus pandemic. The 1% increase was a bit of a rebound from 2020, the first year of the pandemic, which witnessed the largest one-year drop in the U.S. births in nearly 50 years. But there were still about 86,000 fewer births last year than in 2019. (Time)
Growing complacency about Covid-19 and politicization of the pandemic response will cost lives as the world is hit by new waves of the virus in the coming months, Pfizer’s chief executive warned. Albert Bourla said people were growing “tired” of the measures introduced to slow the spread of the virus, while “politicians want to claim victory”. Compliance with authorities’ requests for people to get booster shots would fall even among those who are already vaccinated, he predicted. (Financial Times)
Global warming made this year’s deadly and long-running heatwave in India and Pakistan 30 times more likely to happen. A rapid analysis by scientists at the World Weather Attribution (WWA) initiative looked at the average daily maximum temperatures across northwestern India and southeastern Pakistan between March and April. Researchers found that climate change increased the probability of similar temperatures occurring to once in every 100 years — the odds of such an event would have been once every 3,000 years in pre-industrial times — and that the event was around 1 ºC warmer than it would have been before industrialization. (Nature)
L.A. City Council approves twice-a-week outdoor watering limits in emergency drought plan. (Los Angeles Times)
Economy
Eurozone house prices are set for a correction as interest rates start to rise in response to higher inflation, posing greater risks for low-income households, the European Central Bank has warned. Predicting that asset prices could fall further if economic growth continues to weaken or inflation rises faster than expected, the ECB said a sharp increase in rates could cause a “reversal” in eurozone house prices, which it estimated were already about 15% overvalued, when weighed against overall economic output and rents. (Financial Times)
Andreessen Horowitz has launched a $4.5bn cryptocurrency fund, making its biggest bet yet on the future of blockchain technology despite the market crash. The Silicon Valley-based venture capital group on Wednesday said it would allocate about $1.5bn to seed investments while the remaining $3bn would be earmarked for venture investments — the largest crypto fund to date. (Financial Times)
Regulators proposed new disclosure and naming requirements for investment funds that tap into public angst regarding climate change or social justice, in an effort to address concerns about “greenwashing” by asset managers seeking higher fees. The SEC voted to issue two proposals that aim to give investors more information about mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and similar vehicles that take into account ESG—or environmental, social and corporate-governance—factors. One of the proposed rules, if adopted, would broaden the SEC’s rules governing fund names, while the other would increase disclosure requirements for funds with an ESG focus. (Wall Street Journal)
The Bank of Korea raised its key interest rate and forecast much faster inflation this year. The South Korean central bank increased its seven-day repurchase rate by a quarter percentage point to 1.75% for its fifth hike since last summer. (Bloomberg)
Compensation is becoming an even bigger headache in the remote-work era. Companies try to figure out fair pay amid an uptick in relocations and a tight labor market. (Bloomberg Businessweek)
Technology
Apple is boosting pay for workers amid rising inflation, a tight labor market and unionization pushes among hourly store employees. The iPhone maker on Wednesday told employees in an email that the company is increasing its overall compensation budget. Starting pay for hourly workers in the U.S. will rise to $22 an hour, or higher based upon the market, a 45% increase from 2018. Starting salaries in the U.S. are also expected to increase. (Wall Street Journal)
Remote learning apps shared children’s data at a ‘dizzying scale’: The educational tools used by students during the pandemic shared their information with advertisers and data brokers that could track them around the Web, an international investigation found. (Washington Post)
Amazon shareholders have rejected 15 resolutions brought forward by investors in a push to influence the company’s environmental impact and treatment of workers. Shareholders voted on Wednesday against all the resolutions, most of which focused on worker rights and other social issues. The resolutions included calls for the company to report on worker health and safety and the treatment of its warehouse workers, and a review of Amazon’s use of plastic and changes to the company’s process for board nominations. (The Guardian)
Electronics are set to get even more expensive as chip giants hike their prices. The world’s biggest foundries — including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Samsung and Intel — are considering further price hikes, analysts told CNBC. The foundries are increasing their prices because it’s becoming more expensive for them to fund their growing operations. (CNBC)
Nvidia will slow down its hiring pace and control expenses as the company deals with a challenging macroeconomic environment, its CFO Colette Kress said after the company reported fiscal first-quarter earnings on Wednesday. Nvidia beat analyst expectations for sales and earnings, but the stock dropped more than 10% in extended trading at one point after the chipmaker gave a light forecast for the current quarter. (CNBC)
The NFL plans to launch its own streaming service, NFL Plus, in July 2022; the centerpiece will be live games on phones and tablets for ~$5 per month. (Sports Business Journal)
Smart Links
MacKenzie Scott gives $122.6 million to Big Brothers Big Sisters. (Chronicle of Philanthropy)
Walmart, CVS to halt filling controlled-substance prescriptions for Cerebral, Done. (Reuters)
40% of parents have an adult child living with them. (CNBC)
Amazon opens first brick-and-mortar clothing store near LA. (Bloomberg)
Dick’s Sporting Goods cuts outlook for the year, joining broader retail trend. (CNBC)
Socks were the top clothing item Americans bought during the pandemic. (Quartz)
Elon Musk files plans for 24-hour Tesla restaurant in Hollywood. (Eater)