Vatican: Pope calls on young Italian economists to drop their dependance on fossil fuels

Pope Francis on Saturday called for the world to abandon fossil fuels while speaking in the town of Assisi in central Italy.

Read more at: https://m.dw.com/de/themen/s-9077

EU: Electric car sales accelerate as Europe turns away from diesel

Europeans bought as many hybrid cars as they did diesel in Europe in 2021 for the first time as the European Commission presses forward with its intention to ban the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles by 2035.

Sales of non-rechargeable hybrids - vehicles that run on fuel but also have an electric component that reduces consumption - were up 60% on the previous year and amounted to almost 20% of the total market share.

That is on a par with ordinary diesel vehicles, sales of which fell by 31% across the continent, according to the Association of European Manufacturers (ACEA).

Read more at: Electric car sales accelerate as Europe turns away from diesel | Euronews

Crypto Currency: EU agrees on landmark crypto regulation in wake of Terra meltdown and Bitcoin plunge

The European Union has agreed on landmark rules for regulating the cryptocurrency industry, whose meltdown has been wiping out fortunes and sparking calls for tighter scrutiny worldwide.

EU negotiators hammered out the final details for a provisional agreement late on Thursday on a sweeping package of crypto regulations for the bloc’s 27 nations, known as Markets in Crypto Assets, or MiCA.

"Today, we put order in the Wild West of crypto assets and set clear rules for a harmonised market,” said Stefan Berger, the lead lawmaker negotiating the rules.

Read more at: EU agrees on landmark crypto regulation in wake of Terra meltdown and Bitcoin plunge | Euronews

US Tourism: Is Gun Violence Behind Decline In International Tourism To The U.S.?

When international travel to the U.S. fell last year, many blamed the so-called “Trump Slump” — arguing that the President’s low approval ratings overseas are to blame for the drop in tourism. But as the country continues to face mass shootings, like the Florida school shooting last week, it seems gun violence might be playing a role. After the mass shooting that left 58 concert-goers dead in Las Vegas last October, Germany warned its people to avoid the city. And Australia tells its citizens, “the United States has more violent crime” than it does, and that “mass shootings can occur in public places.” Last year, tourism fell by 4% and the U.S. fell from the second-most visited country in the world, to the third.

Boston Globe Travel Columnist Christopher Muther joined Jim Braude to discuss whether a gun slump is the cause of the tourism decline, and other travel issues.

Read more at: Is Gun Violence Behind Decline In International Tourism To The U.S.?

COVID-19 pandemic causes devastating drop in global life expectancy, study finds - by Shelby Brown

The COVID-19 pandemic set off significant global mortality increases in 2020, according to a study published Sunday in the International Journal of Epidemiology. Females from 15 countries and males from 10 had a "lower life expectancy at birth in 2020 than in 2015," the researchers said.

Life expectancy, a metric used when looking at population health and longevity, refers to the average number of years a newborn could expect to live if they experienced the death rates observed at the time of their birth for their whole life.

Read more at: COVID-19 pandemic causes devastating drop in global life expectancy, study finds - CNET

'Brazil: Everybody has to buy a rifle, damn it!' Brazilian President Bolsonaro tells his supporters

Armed people will never be enslaved, Brazil’s president, Jair Bolsonaro, who is trailing in polls for the 2022 election, told a crowd of his supporters in the capital Brasilia, urging everyone to get a rifle as soon as possible.

Bolsonaro’s ratings have crumbled amid the Covid-19 pandemic, which has seen Brazil become one of the world’s worst-affected countries with almost 21 million infections and more than 578,000 deaths. A recent poll by XP/Ipespe revealed that only 24% of those surveyed plan to vote for the 66-year-old when he runs for reelection next year, while his leftist opponent, former president Luiz Inacio Lula. da Silva, received the support of some 40%.

Read more at: 'Everybody has to buy a rifle, damn it!' Brazilian President Bolsonaro tells his supporters

Bitcoin skids to two-week low, but technical analyst says the slump is not a ‘decisive breakdown’ — she’s watching the next two closes

Bitcoin was under fresh selling pressure Tuesday, dragging the world’s No. 1 cryptocurrency to lows not seen since late May. At least one technical analyst, though, says the slump doesn’t represent a decisive breakdown of the bitcoin uptrend unless and until the asset registers weaker closes today and tomorrow.

Read more at: Bitcoin skids to two-week low, but technical analyst says the slump is not a ‘decisive breakdown’ — she’s watching the next two closes - MarketWatch

France-Tourism drop: Tourist slump sees Paris region lose €15.5 billion

Travel restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic have left Paris with only a fraction of its usual tourists. The slump has cost the French capital and its surrounding region over €15 billion in losses

Read more at: Tourist slump sees Paris region lose €15.5 billion - Business daily

UK exports to European Union drop 40% in January

UK goods exports to the European Union fell 40.7% in January, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), while imports tumbled 28.8%.
< br> The figures show the biggest drop since records began in 1997, and are the first since new trading rules between the UK and the EU came into force.

Read more at: UK exports to European Union drop 40% in January - BBC News

USA: Wall Street ends 1% lower after Trump calls off relief talks

US stocks ended down more than 1 percent on Tuesday after President Donald Trump said he was calling off negotiations with Democratic legislators on coronavirus relief legislation until after the November 3 election.

Stocks were higher before the remarks, but reversed course after Trump made the comments on Twitter.

Read more at: 
Wall Street ends 1% lower after Trump calls off relief talks | US & Canada News | Al Jazeera

Global GDP to fall by 4.4%, not 4.6%, in 2020

Global economic growth will fall by 4.4% in 2020, according to international ratings agency Fitch Ratings, a slight upward revision from the 4.6% decline it projected in a previous report in June.

A slight recovery was seen after the peak period of the pandemic in March and April “but we expect the pace of expansion to moderate soon,” the agency said in a statement late on Monday.

Brian Coulton, a chief economist at the agency, said China’s economy has regained its pre-pandemic level and some European countries have exceeded February levels, but there is still doubt over a V-shaped recovery.

“Unemployment shocks lie ahead in Europe, firms are cutting capital expenditures, and social distancing continues to directly constrain private-sector spending,” he said.

The agency revised its GDP expectation target for the US from -5.6% to -4.6% and from 1.2% to 2.7% for China.

Read more at: 
Global GDP to fall by 4.4%, not 4.6%, in 2020: Fitch

Italy's tourism industry braces for 'worst revenue slump in over 20 years'

The country, which welcomed over 60 million foreign tourists in 2018, according to the World Tourism Organization, is now expecting 56 million fewer overnight stays, according to a new survey from Florence's Centrefor Tourism Studies.

Read more at:
Italy's tourism industry braces for 'worst revenue slump in over 20 years' - The Local

EU - Spain sees sharp drop in daily Covid-19 death toll

Spain registered a sharp drop in its daily death toll from the new coronavirus on Sunday, with the number falling to 410 from 565.

Read more at:
https://www.france24.com/en/20200419-spain-sees-sharp-drop-in-daily-covid-19-death-toll

USA-Dow Jones:Stock futures fall 200 points as coronavirus spreads all over the world during the weekend - by Paul Davidson

Dow futures fell more than 200 points Sunday in a sign more turmoil on Wall Street is likely this week amid reports the coronavirus is spreading in the U.S. and globally.

The broader Standard & Poor's 500 stock index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq each fell about 1%.

“The concern is just as high as it was last week, so the big swings and volatility are likely here to stay in the near term ” said Ryan Detrick, senior market strategist at LPL Ffinancial.

Read more at: Dow Jones: Stock futures fall 200 points as coronavirus spreads

USA: Dow Jones Today: Stocks Drop On China Turmoil; Apple Algorithm Probed - by A.R. Elliot

Stocks came off their early lows in Monday's Veterans Day trading session, as political unrest in Hong Kong upended confidence across global markets. A slow start to a big earnings week left analyst actions and company news driving early trade. Cisco Systems (CSCO) and Home Depot (HD) lagged on the Dow Jones today, following downgrades. Apple (APPL) traded lower as New York regulators announced a company probe.

Read more at: Dow Jones Today: Stocks Drop On China Turmoil; Apple Algorithm Probed | Investor's Business Daily

Germany expects drop in asylum applications for 2019

The number of people applying for asylum in Germany has slowed down, with figures from this year expected to be lower than in 2018, according to a report. The vast majority of applications, however, are rejected.

Read more at :
https://www.dw.com/en/germany-expects-drop-in-asylum-applications-for-2019/a-51095409

Global economy: Major European Bank expects stocks to drop through the end of the year

This big bank expects stocks to drop through the end of the year—here’s why -

Read complete report at:
https://on.mktw.net/2HLQ1uM

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Eurozone retail sales drop

According to estimates from Eurostat, in July compared with June, the seasonally adjusted volume of retail trade decreased by 0.6% in the euro area (EA19) and by 0.5% in the EU28.

In June, the retail trade volume increased by 1.2% in the euro area and by 1.3% in the EU28.

In July compared with July last year, the calendar adjusted retail sales index increased by 2.2% in the euro area and by 2.6% in the EU28.

Read more: Eurozone retail sales drop | New Europe

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USA: Tourists Beware - US Still Cowboy Country: Mass shootings past 24 hrs kill 30 people in Texas and Ohio

Tourism USA - Still No Gun Control ?

This year alone, there have been at least 32 fatal shootings in America,

Mass shootings in El Paso Texas, and Dayton Ohio. If I was a tourist deciding if I would go on vacation to America, and heard that 29 people were killed within 24 hrs today, in addition to the non-stop gun violence all around the country, and knowing the US has no real gun control laws which work, I would certainly think twice, before I would go to the US on vacation.

Statistics are also showing that the U.S. tourismvhas suffered heavily since 2016. Now it looks like the evidence is finally here.

The bigger picture shows the U.S.is specially  losing ground on the global stage. Arrivals to Europe and Asia-Pacific both increased by 6 percent, while the Middle East saw a 10 percent uptick in 2018. It seems that global travelers are looking elsewhere for their vacations.

“International travel markets posted disparate performance in 2018 including several notable surprises on the downside,” states the report from Tourism Economics.

“After registering average annual growth of 23 percent over the previous decade, Chinese travel to the US stopped in its tracks last year—perhaps in connection to trade tensions. Similarly, South Korea fell 3 percent after averaging 11 percent growth over the prior ten years. Japan also contracted; this continues the narrative of an ever important but languishing market. And Germany surprised with a steep decline in 2018, perhaps evidence of a reaction to unpopular U.S. diplomacy and policies.”

Among some of the major reasons foreign tourists are giving for not choosing the US as their tourist destination  are: inadequate Public Transportation Systens, personal safety, as a result of gun violence and poor infrastructure.

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EUROZONE: MCKINSEY report notes that unemployment in Eurozone drops to a ten year low

Notable in this month’s release of McKinsey’s Global Economics Intelligence (GEI) report is the unemployment rate in the euro area of 7.9 percent for November 2018, the lowest level since 2008. The seasonally adjusted index, maintained by Eurostat, held steady in December.¹ Joblessness has fallen by more than one-third sincSeptember 2013, when the index was at 12 percent. The improvement has been slow but steady since that time—a point regarded as the nadir of Europe’s recession within a recession in the early 2010s. And in the wider European Union (EU-28), which includes high-employment countries such as Hungary, Poland, and the United Kingdom, the unemployment rate is even lower, at 6.6 percent, the lowest EU reading since recording began in January 2000.

For more information also click on this link:

https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/eurozone-unemployment-falls-to-a-ten-year-low?cid=other-eml-alt-mip-mck&hlkid=88d2bdc59fab4d3196dff96fbd458742&hctky=2296045&hdpid=b9db7933-4a41-4f38-aaaa-d6e90afd5cf5