Energy & Commodities
Giving up oil and other fossil fuels is “patently unrealistic”, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said in comments on the IPCC climate report released yesterday, which warned that humankind’s window for addressing climate change was closing fast.
The report attributed—with a high to an extremely high degree of likelihood—the accelerated and increasingly dramatic changes in the planet’s climate to our use of fossil fuels and the resultant emissions.
“The notion that we can shut off a major, industrialized economy with the flick of a switch is patently unrealistic,” Alberta’s Kenney said, as quoted by CBC News, adding that giving up fossil fuels for a country with the geographical location—and climate—of Canada would come at a cost that will be measured in human lives.
Kenney went on to note that most of the world was dependent on fossil fuels, and there was “no credible way” to eliminate this dependence in the observable future.
“It is a utopian notion that we can suddenly end the use of hydrocarbon based energy,” the Alberta Premier said. “The challenge is to shrink carbon and CO2 output, and Alberta is increasingly a world leader in that respect.”…read more.
China’s bubbling tech sector has been hit with a massive regulatory storm ever since Alibaba Group Holdings (NYSE:BABA) founder Jack Ma criticized his country’s government last year for what he called excessive regulations. Beijing hit back by cancelling the much-anticipated IPO of Ma’s Ant Group–the world’s largest fintech–before putting the company through a “rectification” process and announcing it would henceforth “prevent the disorderly expansion of capital.”
Well, it turns out that Beijing authorities were not bluffing, if ongoing developments are any indication.
Over the past few months, sweeping crackdowns across diverse sectors of the Chinese economy have been sending shockwaves across global financial markets, with American investors finding themselves in the firing line of some of the hottest sectors.
First off, Beijing cracked down on the crypto space, curbing bitcoin mining due to concerns of excess speculation and warning financial institutions against offering crypto services.
Regulators then turned their sights on Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Global Inc. (NYSE:DIDI) for alleged data security violations before China’s antitrust administrator ordered Tencent Music Entertainment (NYSE:TME)) to give its exclusive music licensing rights for online music.
And now Beijing has cracked the whip over China’s expansive online gaming sector.
On Tuesday, American depositary receipts of Tencent Holdings (OTCPK:TCEHY) and XD Inc.(OTCPK:XDNCF) fell 7.3% and 5.3%, respectively, while those by their U.S. videogame peers Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI), Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) and Take-Two Interactive Software (NASDAQ:TTWO) plunged 4.6%, 3.9% and 9.6%, respectively, after a publication controlled by the Chinese government described online games as “spiritual opium” and ‘‘electronic drugs’’according to multiple reports…read more.
Alex Heath of Ethos Gold Corp talks to Mike about what to look for if you’re looking to invest in the early stage of junior gold mining exploration.
Canadian real estate is perfectly efficient, and households never display signs of exuberance. That or it’s a ticking time bomb, waiting to go off. This year marks the 24th year of expanding home prices in Canada, and we’re two quarters into it. This isn’t just the longest expansion in Canadian history, it’s one of the longest in the world. The current expansion has lasted almost twice as long as the next G7 country. This one is going to take a little unpacking, so let’s get to it.
Duration Dependence
Duration dependence is a belief in economics that a trend is more likely to end the longer it persists. It’s common when discussing risk, especially around the business cycle. Longer periods of expansion are more likely to correct than brief ones. Similarly, longer periods of contractions are more likely to end and show growth.
Why? Human nature. The longer a trend occurs, the more likely it is to be overextended from a fundamental driver. Trends will often persist just because everyone thinks that’s what it does. Have you ever heard someone say, “real estate prices will rise,” without a reason other than “they always do”? That’s someone who now thinks growth will occur for the sake of growth. They believe the market is running solely on the same philosophy as cancer.
The further a trend extends from fundamentals, the higher the risk to shock. One wrong earnings report, too few sales, or everyone changing their mind can blow it up. Correcting inefficiencies can be delayed, but that only makes a market more inefficient. Inefficient markets result in toxic spillover. Ultimately, this creates a larger and more destructive market inefficiency…read more.
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