May, 2021

• 17 May

  Where is economic case for Scottish independence?

  

  Getting a touch ahead of events, the New York Times noted last week that the recent electoral victories of the Scottish National Party could lead to “the biggest blow to a British prime minister since Lord North lost the colonies in America.” The markets took a different view. In trading, after the election results were clear, sterling rose against the ...

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• 17 May

  How used clothes are worth billions

  

  Vinted, the Lithuanian app that lets users buy and sell pre-owned clothes and accessories, was valued this week at 3.5 billion euros ($4.2 billion), not far below more established European retailers such as Hugo Boss and Sports Direct owner Frasers Group. The Vinted fundraising underlines the current vogue for vintage and secondhand apparel — including anything from bootcut jeans to ...

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• 17 May

  HK old boys club living on ‘borrowed time’

  Hong Kong’s cozy all-male boards have been put on notice. Rules that could become effective within months will force them to appoint at least one woman director. It’s an overdue change that may go some way to bolstering the city’s dented status as an international financial centre. The territory is an embarrassing laggard in the worldwide trend toward greater gender ...

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• 17 May

  Can digital cash make inflation even worse?

  Inflation is coming. Or wait, it’s already here. Bond investors are looking at the 4.2% annual rate that US consumer prices jumped to in April and wondering if it’s all because of depressed levels from last year. Could it be that the Federal Reserve is wrong about higher prices being transitory? In that case, the Fed and other central banks ...

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• 17 May

  Ryanair posts record loss, but expects to break even

  

  Bloomberg Ryanair Holdings Plc posted a record annual loss, while saying it’s likely to break even this year as vaccination programs allow a gradual easing of coronavirus travel curbs. Bookings have increased significantly in recent weeks, pointing to a strong recovery in the second half, although forward visibility remains “close to zero,” the Irish company said in a statement on ...

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• 17 May

  HK, Singapore delay air travel bubble again

  

  Bloomberg An air travel bubble between Singapore and Hong Kong has been delayed as Singapore battles with a rising number of unlinked cases tied to the more aggressive and transmissible coronavirus strain known as B.1.617. A further announcement should be made on or before June 13, the Hong Kong government said in a statement on Monday. Singapore Minister for Transport ...

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• 17 May

  Chile government coalition withers in constitutional vote

  

  Bloomberg Chile’s right-wing government coalition likely secured fewer than a third of the seats on the Constitutional Assembly in this weekend’s historic elections, making it more difficult to block major changes and leaving independent and the opposition left-wing parties with more sway to rewrite the new charter. Contenders from the government coalition’s main list obtained 21% of votes with more ...

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• 17 May

  Trump to address state GOP group as part of his return to public

  

  Bloomberg Former President Donald Trump is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at the North Carolina Republican Party’s state convention next month, the party announced on Monday. The June 5 speech marks the latest step in Trump’s re-emergence into public life since leaving office on January 20. Trump, who turns 75 in June, also is expected to appear on May ...

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• 17 May

  EU, US reach truce on metal tariffs

  

  Bloomberg The European Union (EU) agreed to avoid escalating its dispute with the US over metal tariffs, sparing iconic products such as Harley Davidson motorbikes from a doubling of EU duties next month. At issue is a high-profile disagreement that started in 2018 when former US President Donald Trump imposed duties on steel and aluminum from Europe, Asia and elsewhere ...

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• 17 May

  Peru’s presidential candidates virtually tied in Ipsos mock vote

  

  Bloomberg Peru’s presidential candidates are virtually tied in a mock election carried out by pollster Ipsos. Pedro Castillo’s lead over Keiko Fujimori has dwindled to less than 2 percentage points and is within the margin of error ahead of the June 6 runoff, according to El Comercio newspaper. The results are the latest to show Castillo’s once double-digit lead greatly ...

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