Global Macro, Markets and Investing:
- The 2010s were a lost decade for climate. We can’t afford a repeat, scientists warn. – WaPo
- The eurozone’s tectonic plates are shifting. Debate on the future of monetary union has come out into the open — that is a game-changer – FT
- Without Evidence, Trump Accuses Iran of ‘Orchestrating an Attack’ on US Embassy in Iraq as Fears of War Grow – Commondreams
- Lessons From Japan’s ‘Lost Decades’ – WSJ
Americas:
- Canada back in world’s top 10 economies, with room to grow: report – CTV
- Plastic bags are now banned in Mexico City – Insider
- Trump Slurred His Way Through a Praise-Rant About Rush Limbaugh and a Diatribe About Windmills – Esquire
- Illinois becomes 11th state to legalize marijuana – The Hill
- Bloomberg Plays Clueless When Questioned About Central Park 5 – The Root
- From opioid deaths to student debt: A view of the 2010s US economy in charts – Reuters
- Exclusive: Drugmakers from Pfizer to GSK to hike U.S. prices on over 200 drugs – Reuters
- Trump attacked for spending ‘1 in every 5 days’ at a golf club in 2019. President famously told voters in 2016 he would be too busy ‘working for you’ to play. – Independent (spend more time I say!)
Europe/Middle East:
- Single-use plastic ban enters into effect in France: Plastic plates, cups, cutlery, drinking straws all fall under the ban, as do cotton buds used for cleaning and hygiene. – RFI
- Zero-carbon sources delivered 48.5% of Britain’s electricity in 2019, outstripping fossil fuels for the first time ever – The Guardian
- Merkel Vows Germany Will Do ‘Everything Humanly Possible’ To Fight Climate Change – The Hill (nah, go play some cricket…)
Asia:
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- More than 1 million in Hong Kong New Year’s Day march, organisers say as protest is cut short amid violence– SCMP
- Indonesia rejects China’s claims over South China Sea – Reuters
- Money pumped into China’s economy in attempt to fight slowdown. People’s Bank of China allows commercial banks to hold less capital in reserve. – Guardian
- Taiwan passes bill against China influence ahead of elections – HKFP
- Nearly 30 people struck by outbreak of mystery illness in Chinese city – Independent
Scorched Earth/Smokey Hobbitland:
- Australia fires create plume of smoke wider than Europe as humanitarian crisis looms. People queue for hours for food with temperatures forecast to rise to danger levels again, in scenes likened to a war zone. – Independent
- Queensland government was warned about risks of Chinese company’s water extraction. Exclusive: Concerns about groundwater security at Cherrabah overridden by Campbell Newman’s government – The Guardian
- ‘Starvation event’ shows [Australia] wildlife may need human help to survive – SMH
- ExxonMobil Wishes Australia a ‘Fun’ New Year as Country Burns in Climate Crisis – Gizmodo
- Military moves in to help mass-scale evacuation from Australian bushfires – Reuters
- Thousands of tourists have been given less than 48 hours to evacuate fire-ravaged coastal communities as Australia braces for a heatwave Saturday expected to fan deadly bushfires – France24
…and other stuff:
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- An artificial intelligence program has been developed that is better at spotting breast cancer in mammograms than expert radiologists. The AI outperformed the specialists by detecting cancers that the radiologists missed in the images, while ignoring features they falsely flagged – The Guardian
- Plane crash fatalities fell more than 50% in 2019 — The number of people killed in crashes of large commercial planes fell by more than 50% in 2019, according to an aviation industry study. – BBC