The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut its benchmark money rate for the second straight meeting. Reducing its repo rate by 25 bps, down to 6%, the central bank once gripped by political turmoil has certainly shifted gears. Former Governor Urjit Patel was essentially removed (he resigned) in December after feuding with the federal government over his perceived hawkish stance. Shaktikanta Das, a career bureaucrat with...
Read More »JAN SKOYLES on Our Obsession With Being ‘Busy’
In this extract from the 'Time VS Money: The Golden Question’ episode of Renegade Inc, Jan Skoyles discusses the idea of 'Time Is Money' and the fetishisation of being busy. Watch Renegade Inc. here: https://www.rt.com/shows/renegade-inc/ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Renegade Inc. provides its members with the content and connections that help navigate the ‘new normal’. Finding the people who are thinking differently about the world means we offer an alternative...
Read More »JAN SKOYLES on Our Obsession With Being ‘Busy’
In this extract from the 'Time VS Money: The Golden Question’ episode of Renegade Inc, Jan Skoyles discusses the idea of 'Time Is Money' and the fetishisation of being busy. Watch Renegade Inc. here: https://www.rt.com/shows/renegade-inc/ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Renegade Inc. provides its members with the content and connections that help navigate the ‘new normal’. Finding the people who are thinking differently about the world means we offer an alternative perspective on...
Read More »Raiffeisen Switzerland bank to cut 200 jobs
The Raiffeisen bank branch in Ernen, canton Valais, Switzerland in 2018 Switzerland’s third-largest bank says it will cut up to 200 jobs to save CHF100 million ($100 million) this year. Raiffeisen is reorganising and undertaking a cost-cutting programme. This follows a recent fraud allegation scandal involving its former chief executive. The co-operative bank said in a statement on Thursdayexternal link: “In addition to...
Read More »Steep drop in thefts in Switzerland
© Sabine Katzenberger | Dreamstime.com Comparing 2018 to 2012, thefts in Switzerland fell by nearly half, according to the Federal Statistical Office. In 2012, there were a record 219,000 thefts recorded in Switzerland. By 2018, the figure had fallen to 112,000, a drop of 49%. Over the same period, all categories of theft with the exception of fraud were down. Car theft (-13%), bike theft (-20%), break-ins (-51%) and...
Read More »The Japanification of the World
Zombification / Japanification is not success; it is only the last desperate defense of a failing, brittle status quo by doing more of what’s failed. A recent theme in the financial media is the Japanification of Europe.Japanification refers to a set of economic and financial conditions that have come to characterize Japan’s economy over the past 28 years: persistent stagnation and deflation, a low-growth and...
Read More »FX Daily, April 05: Trade Talk and German Industrial Output Lifts Sentiment
Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.03% at 1.1219 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, April 05(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: Comments by Chinese President Xi, recognizing substantial progress in trade, helped boost sentiment after the US-China negotiators failed to set a date for the meeting between the two presidents. Although we have argued that the German...
Read More »Swiss likely to vote on capital tax reform plan
The campaigners say 99% of tax payers shoulder the burden of the wealthiest citizens in Switzerland. (© Keystone/Peter Klaunzer) The leftwing Young Socialist group has handed in the necessary signatures to force a nationwide vote on its proposal to increase tax on capital revenue in Switzerland. The initiative intends to tax dividends and interest on wealth by a factor of 1.5 compared with regular income tax. The...
Read More »Are the Rise of Social Media and the Decline of Social Mobility Related?
Social media offers hope of achieving higher online social status without having to succeed financially in a winner-take-most economy. I’ve often addressed the decline of social mobility and the addictive nature of social media, and recently I’ve entertained the crazy notion that the two dynamics are related. Why Is Social Media So Toxic? I have long held that the decline of social mobility–broad-based opportunities to...
Read More »Oil prices supported by OPEC+ cuts…before market risks being flooded again
Increased US export capacity would probably force OPEC+ to change its current tactics. After last year’s collapse, oil prices have found support since the beginning of this year for several reasons. At this stage, the main question is whether the recent surge in prices is sustainable or whether we will see renewed oil price volatility, with the possibility of a repeat of 2018. The recent release of the International...
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