Sunday, June 8, 2008

Stuff From The Financial Times

Sorry for the break in postings. Trying to get a book written.
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The Financial Times got my attention with a promotional letter with the following information:

PetroChina pushes past Exxon Mobil to become the world's largest listed energy company.

General Motors now sells 59 percent of its vehicles overseas.

China and India account for 45 percent of global coal use.

Royal Dutch Shell announces plans to produce biodiesel from algae in two years

The United States is borrowing at the rate of $800 billion a year.

The Taj Mahal and other Indian heritage sites now reuire tourists to pay in rupees, rather than in dollars.

An article by Meghnad Desai in the 6 June issue of the paper itself had more interesting stuff. Desai says the bubble in oil prices has nothing to do with increased demand from India and China. It is caused entirely by hedge funds pouring speculative money into the New York Mercantile Exchange, which was originally created so that people who actually bought and sold oil could insulate themselves against volatility in prices. The market is thus doing exactly the opposite of what it was meant to do.
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