Weekend Links: 8-9 August 2020

Koki Bay, William Dobell, 1951, Art Gallery of NSW

Macro & Markets

• Dollar slump lifts U.S. bond returns for foreigners – Reuters
• Dollar most oversold in 40 years, says Morgan Stanley; exits short position – Reuters
• This ‘dire’ economic situation ‘deserves to be called a depression — a pandemic depression’ – MarketWatch
• US, China new Cold War long in the making – AsiaTimes
• Targeting WeChat, Trump Takes Aim at China’s Bridge to the World – NY Times
• Laid-off workers endure loss of $600 unemployment benefit – CBS News
• News Corp posts US$1.5bn loss driven by sharp declines in newspaper revenue – Guardian
• Economics Needs New Theories About Stimulus and Inflation – Bloomberg, Smith

Asia

• China’s exports show surprising surge in July, powered by demand for lockdown goods overseas – SCMP
• China goes to a familiar playbook to solve its economic woes – Ninefax
• China’s new Yantai deep water port receives first iron ore mega ship from Brazil’s Vale – SCMP
• China’s bank regulator moves to rein in small lenders as Beijing fears financial risks – SCMP
• China’s migrant workers facing end of an era as the world’s factory winds down amid coronavirus, US-China trade war – SCMP
• China Wants People’s Rice Bowls Filled With Locally Grown Grain – Bloomberg
• Going bankrupt in China – VoxEU
• Indonesia opens a floodgate of financial risk – AsiaTimes
• The man most likely to succeed Xi Jinping – AsiaTimes
• China’s July exports spike an unexpected 7.2% – DW
• Stuck-home South Koreans could prop up economy for third of the price – Japan Times

Americas

• The coronavirus is driving Americans into retirement – CBS News
• Fed’s Main Street pandemic support program off to slow start – APNews
• Economy tanking, Cuba launches some long-delayed reforms – APNews
• Argentina’s debt restructuring deal explained – DW
• “It’s like we’re flying blind”: The US has a Covid-19 data problem – Vox
• Trump’s latest plan to use the census for political gain, explained – Vox
• How inequality is changing the Republican Party — and breaking American politics – Vox
• Another 1.18m Americans file for unemployment as benefits expire – Guardian
• Trump slaps 10% tariff on Canadian raw aluminum, Freeland says Canada will retaliate – Financial Post
• Canada’s trade gap widens sharply as exports lag imports – Financial Post

Europe

• Bank of England says economic shock of Covid-19 less severe than expected – Guardian
• Negative UK interest rates were once unthinkable. But tough times lie ahead – Guardian
• Can households in the European Union make ends meet? – Bruegel
• The Bank of England Is Playing With Fire – Bloomberg
• Russia’s race for virus vaccine raises concerns in the West – APNews
• Surge in German factory orders bolsters hope for recovery – APNews
• Bank of England mulls cutting interest rates below zero – Irish Times

Terra Specufestor

• People on the dole don’t want a job? Don’t believe it – Ninefax, Gitto
• Glencore to suspend Hunter Valley coal mines as China restricts imports – Ninefax
• Superannuation early withdrawal won’t hurt retirement for most workers, argues Grattan – ABC
• Government will ease JobKeeper criteria, adding $15 billion to the coronavirus recovery scheme – ABC
• Coronavirus restrictions on food processing in Victoria won’t lead to shortages, says Premier Daniel Andrews – ABC
• Aged care homes: the weakest COVID-19 link – Pearls and Irritations, Eagar
• The RBA should stick to inflation targeting – Pearls and Irritations
• The courage deficit: Will Albanese die wondering? – Pearls and Irritations
• Australia new epicenter of pandemic panic – AsiaTimes
• No snapback: Reserve Bank no longer confident of quick bounce out of recession – The Conversation, Martin
• Extraordinary Is the New Vanilla for Australia’s Policy Makers – Bloomberg
• Economy to rely on households and government for years: RBA – Ninefax
• Government clarifies childcare advice as desperate parents scramble for answers – Ninefax

…and furthermore…

• The Reagan and Thatcher legacies: sorting truth from fantasy. – Pearls and Irritations, Michael Keating
• The cleansing effect of banking crises – VoxEU
• Global politics from the view of the political-economy trilemma – VoxEU
• Interest rates, market power, and financial stability – VoxEU
• The risks of high public debt despite a low interest rate environment – VoxEU
• Time inconsistency in recent monetary policy – VoxEU
• How households’ inflation expectations matter – VoxEU
• The impact of the crisis on smaller companies and new mechanisms for non-performing loans – Bruegel
• Gone for good? Evidence signals many jobs aren’t coming back – APNews
• This is what coronavirus will do to our offices and homes – BBC
• Trade war in strategic minerals – LeMonde
• Nitrogen, the miracle that destroys – LeMonde