My Posts (22-28 September, 2024)
How one responds to tragic events defines character. The father of a boy stabbed to death came out with a letter against hatred. I applaud his courage.
The African Development Bank celebrated their 60 year anniversary. They are financing projects in the continent and over the past eight years, the proportion of Africans with access to electricity has doubled to just over 50%.
Combining unagi (grilled eel) with sour pickled plums (umeboshi) is known to cause indigestion.Similarly, ETFs invested in illiquid assets can lead to problematic outcomes.
Have a wonderful week ahead.
Chart of the day: The weight of different breeds of chicken over their lifespan (Our World in Data via The Daily Shot): WOW
Investment Related
The Two Big Insurers Still Betting on Fossil Fuels (WSJ): This is an article about the free market. The free market thrives on transparency and informed consumer choice. The free market is a system where choices are abundant yet often difficult to distinguish. The Wall Street Journal’s analysis provides consumers with a new piece of information. The free market will sort out the winners from the losers, driving the entire system toward sustainability.
The barbell tolls for fixed income investing (FT): Mr Huw van Steenis saw this 20 years ago. He was a bit early, but I agree with his view that asset managers unable to demonstrate alpha will be shown the door.
Argentina Scrapped Its Rent Controls. Now the Market Is Thriving. (WSJ): Social science is difficult to have reliable experiments. This case is an exception.
The Art Market Is Tanking. Sotheby’s Has Even Bigger Problems. (WSJ): It might be a good time to invest in modern art… maybe through a fund?
State Street Global Advisors gears up for new ETF disruption (FT Free Article): Grilled eel (unagi) and umeboshi (sour pickled plums) are traditionally avoided as a combination in Japan due to concerns about indigestion. An ETF holding illiquid assets is a similarly problematic combination.
Recommended by LinkedIn
Forecasts of Inflation (The Federal Reserve Bank of New York): "Notes: These two panels depict core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) inflation. In the top panel, the black line indicates actual data and the red line shows the model forecasts. The shaded areas mark the uncertainty associated with our forecasts at 50, 60, 70, 80, and 90 percent probability intervals. In the bottom panel, the blue line shows the current forecast (quarter-to-quarter, annualized), and the gray line shows the June 2024 forecast."
A Home-Grown Alternative: The African Development Bank Comes of Age (Geopolitical Monitor): “The AfDB functions much like a private entity, drawing on funds from global capital markets, investment from non-regional members, and the African Development Fund (ADF). The ADF in turn gets most of its funding through grants from international donors,”
Sustainability Related
Seashells turn into suits and nail polish in Japan's green push (Nikkei Asia): The persistent belief that "Japan is a small country with limited natural resources" has its advantages. It motivates the Japanese to maximize what little they perceive they have. For example, seashells, which make up half the weight of scallops and 80% of oysters, are being repurposed in innovative ways.
Fukushima data centers aim to spark economic revival in disaster-hit region (Nikkei Asia): “ A series of data centers opening in Fukushima prefecture provides an opportunity to revitalize the disaster-struck region of northeastern Japan by attracting startups involved in artificial intelligence and other digital technology.”
Extinct Volcanoes Could Be Source of Key Metals Needed for Clean Tech (Yahoo!): Peanuts, jellyfish, and rare earths—each with a name that misleads. Peanuts aren't actually nuts, jellyfish are not fish, and "rare earths" are far from rare…
Colorful paints could slash heating and cooling energy use (Anthropocene): Stanford University found paint “in white, blue, red, yellow, green, orange, purple and dark gray. Each was 10 times better at reflecting infrared light than conventional paints of the same colors.”
Fraud, So Much Fraud (Science): "Charles Piller and the team here at Science dropped a big story (https://lnkd.in/geSMYUCd) yesterday morning, and if you haven't read it yet, you should. It's about Eliezer Masliah, who since 2016 has been the head of the Division of Neuroscience in the National Institute on Aging (NIA), and whose scientific publication record over at least the past 25 years shows multiple, widespread, blatant instances of fraud."
Special Mention
Letter purportedly from father of slain boy urges Japan-China 'bridge' (Nikkei Asia): "A letter apparently written by the Japanese father of a 10-year-old boy stabbed to death in Shenzhen has circulated, bearing a message against hatred. The letter, written in Chinese, began to go viral online on Friday.”