This Is Really Happening!                                                           08 December 2023

The real estate and properties transactions totalled US$ 1.32 billion during the week ending 08 December 2023. The sum of transactions was 357 plots, sold for US$ 594 million, and 2,113 apartments and villas, selling for US$ 1.32 billion. The top three transactions were all for plots of land, the first in Al Thanyah Fifth for US$ 73 million, the second in Saih Shuaib 2 for US$ 26 million and in Saih Shuaib 3 for US$ 23 million. Wadi Al Safa 2 recorded the most transactions, with two hundred and thirteen sales, worth US$ 52 million, followed by twenty-three sales, in Madinat Al Hind 4 for US$ 10 million, and twenty sales in Palm Jabal Ali, valued at US$ 185 million. The top three transfers for apartments and villas were all apartments two in Al Wasl both for US$ 37 million each, and one in Palm Jumeriah sold for US$ 24 million. The mortgaged properties for the week reached US$ 896 million, with the highest being for land in Palm Jumeirah for US$ 57 million; one hundred and sixty-two properties were granted between first-degree relatives, worth US$ 175 million.

Bugatti Residences by Binghatti is a new hyper tower under development by Binghatti Developers, located in Business Bay. The mansions and penthouses have unique lateral layouts, excellent ceiling heights and natural light with sweeping terraces. Bugatti Residences by Binghatti was designed with 182 bespoke units, each designed with a unique layout. The project features Sky Mansion penthouses with access to car lifts for residents to display their automobiles in their residences. The Bugatti branded development will also feature a communal ‘French Riviera’ inspired urban beach club, pools, a spa, gym, 24/7 security and a dedicated concierge team.

A collaboration between Franck Muller and London Gate will mark the Swiss luxury watchmaker first entrée into the world of branded residences. An announcement this week sees Dubai set not only to get its first residential clock tower but also the world’s tallest one, at 450 mt – it will also become the world’s tallest residential tower and branded residential tower. The tower is named Aeternitas after the horologist’s watch of the same name; this watch is the most complicated in the world, with thirty-six complications and 1.5k components. The luxury residential project will be officially unveiled next month, and residents can expect a 2026 handover. London Gate has also posted three recent sold-out projects – Maya V, Nadine I and II.

Earlier in the year, Select Group acquired the Pentominium Tower – located in Dubai Marina – in an auction, with the building set to become the world’s tallest residential skyscraper. Following financial problems, the building was acquired for US$ 100 million, following an auction through the Dubai Courts approved administration process via Emirates Auction; the real estate developer won the bidding process that comprised forty-six bids. Although no details were made available, it will be taller than the current global “leaders” – Central Park Tower, 111 West, Park Avenue 432 and Dubai’s Marina 101, (at 1.394k ft/425 mt high). Select Group has appointed engineering consultancy WSP, architectural firm Woods Bagot, and interior design firm Mitchell & Eades for the development of the tower.

In Q1, Aqua Properties expects to deliver more than five hundred residential and commercial units as well as launching two projects worth US$ 817 million that will include a fifty-storey-plus tower on SZR and another, encompassing 300 sq ft in Arjan. Currently, the Dubai-based company is overseeing three ongoing projects and notes that it is benefitting from Dubai’s distinctive market dynamics, influenced by cash transactions.

Although Q3 global super-prime residential sales actually dipped 2.4% on the year, the latest Knight Frank report notes that five of the twelve markets surveyed saw volumes rise; in the period, the number of units sold was nine lower at three hundred and sixty-two. The survey noted that, “strong sales volumes in 2021 were flattered to an extent by delayed completions in 2020. As we move into 2024, the tailwind from new build sales will weaken as the lower volume of new projects starts through the pandemic begins to be felt.” The volume of super-prime homes sold in Dubai, numbered two hundred and seventy-seven in the first nine months of the year. Homes priced at over US$ 10 million, totalled US$ 1.59 billion during Q3, with the emirate again leading the global survey, as it has since Q4 2022.

The UBS Billionaire Ambitions Report 2023 reported that five billionaires moved to the UAE in 2023, as two more joined the billionaire club as the wealth of the UHNWIs having grown immensely in the past couple of years, driven by marked expansion in the key strategic sectors such as real estate, travel and tourism, retail and overall economy as well. Their total wealth escalated 157% to US$ 99.4 billion, as the local economy grew strongly, with the 2022 GDP 7.6% higher on the year. The UAE, with seventeen, has the second number of billionaires behind Israel’s twenty-six in the MEA region, which is home to sixty-three billionaires, (nine higher on the year). It is ahead of countries such as Saudi Arabia (6), South Africa (5), Egypt (4) and Nigeria (3). On a global scale, the number of billionaires rose 7.0% over the twelve months to 06 April 2023, to 2,544, with total wealth up 9.0% to US$ 12 trillion, led by Europe’s billionaires for the first time in the history of the study. The billionaire community remains smaller than at its 2021 peak.

Meanwhile, New World Wealth has posted that 1.5k millionaires had relocated from the UK to Dubai in the past decade, with a further two hundred and fifty relocating this year. The Henley Private Wealth Migration Report 2023 expects 4.5k millionaires will relocate to the UAE this year, making the country with the second highest migration after Australia.

On Monday, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum opened the four-day 44th edition of Big 5 Global, the largest and most influential construction industry event across MEA and South Asia. The event had 2.2k exhibitors and attracted 68k visitors from one hundred and fifty countries. Big 5 Global spans the whole gamut of activities of the construction industry across dedicated sectors and eight specialised events, with many live demos, product launches and high-profile business opportunities. The Crown Prince noted that Dubai had emerged as a platform for sustainability and innovation, thanks to the array of events it hosts annually, and highlighted the importance of the exhibition at a time when the world is increasingly turning to advanced technologies for designing smart buildings.

A major announcement at Dubai’s COP28 was that fifty oil companies, (including Aramco, BP, Petrobras, Shell and TotalEnergies), representing almost 50% of global production, have pledged to reach near-zero methane emissions, and end routine flaring in their operations, by 2030; environmental groups are calling it a “smokescreen”. If this indeed were happen, it is estimated that future warming will be reduced by 0.1 degrees Celsius – equating to how much the planet would warm every five years. Sultan Al Jaber, COP28’s president, as well as head of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Co., has always insisted his background would allow him to bring oil companies to the negotiating table, stressing that having the industry’s buy-in is crucial to drastically slashing the world’s greenhouse emissions by nearly half in seven years to limit global warming to the 1.5 degrees Celsius target.

For months leading up to COP28, there was speculation of action on methane. Not only do methane leaks, along with flaring, which is burning of excess methane, and venting of the gas, all contribute to climate change, but these problems can largely be solved with current technologies and changes to operations. Indeed, oil and gas companies could have taken such measures years ago but largely have not, instead focusing more on expanding production than focusing on the by-product of it. Methane has caused about 50% of the world’s warming since pre-industrial times, with it escaping from oil and gas drilling, and is only about 23% of the world’s methane emissions, with agriculture and waste being bigger culprits. This announcement does not address the oil and natural gas being burned off by the end users, so-called Scope 3 emissions, (for example, motorists in their cars or power plants powering cities); the president did note that oil and gas companies needed to do more to research solutions to Scope 3 emissions.

As part of COP28, global leaders joined in committing to tripling global nuclear capacity by 2050, as part of the transition to net zero, endorsing the Declaration to Triple Nuclear Energy Capacity by 2050. Nine Heads of State attended the ceremony, with declaration endorsements from twenty-one countries including Canada, Czechia, Ghana, Finland, Hungary, Japan, Moldova, Mongolia, Morocco, Netherlands, Poland, Republic of Korea, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine, UAE, USA and the UK. The Declaration recognises the importance of nuclear energy in achieving global net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, with nuclear already the second-largest source of clean, dispatchable baseload power globally, and the largest source of clean electricity for OECD nations. Global energy systems account for almost 70% of total carbon emissions, with power production generating almost 30% of total emissions.

During the COP28 UN climate summit, he UAE Banks Federation, which represents fifty-six lenders in the country, pledged US$ 272 billion, targeted at fulfilling the country’s ambitions of reaching its goal of net zero by 2050. UAE Central Bank Governor Khaled Balama commented that the move “underscores the significant efforts in the UAE and globally towards sustainable finance mobilisation”. Eleven UAE banks were highlighted during the announcement, including First Abu Dhabi Bank, Mashreq Bank, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Emirates NBD, Dubai Islamic Bank, RAK Bank, National Bank of Fujairah and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank. The IMF supremo, Kristalina Georgieva, spoke of the need for governments to remove fossil fuel subsidies, which reached US$ 7.1 trillion in 2022 but this can only be done “if we build social protection” for the most vulnerable people in societies. She also called for higher pricing on carbon, which would be “the biggest possible incentive for decarbonisation”. It was agreed that there was an urgent need to direct more financing towards emerging economies and developing countries.

In the first five days of COP28, the UAE launched ‘ALTÉRRA’, a climate investment fund with an incentive capital of US$ 30.0 billion, focussing on attracting and stimulating private financing, as well the allocation of US$ 200 million of special drawing rights to the Resilience and Sustainability Trust and US$ 150 million for water security. The World Bank added a further US$ 9.0 billion to finance climate-related projects with other multilateral development banks posting an additional US$ 22.6 billion increase in support for climate action. US$ 3.5 billion worth of international pledges were also announced to renew the resources of the Green Climate Fund, along with US$ 134 million, US$ 129 million and US$ 31 million for the Adaption Fund, Least Developed Countries Fund and Special Climate Change Fund.

On the perimeter of COP28, UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed and leaders of Brazil and Paraguay, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Santiago Peña, witnessed the signing of a joint declaration for cooperation on the Bi-Oceanic Corridor which aims to enhance regional integration and logistical efficiency between the UAE, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, and Chile. It also focuses on attracting investments and generating investment opportunities in Latin America through the corridor, thereby expanding regional trade; it also aims to increase the flow of agricultural products to Pacific Ocean ports and boost regional trade and tourism.

It is reported that a Ceps – comprehensive economic partnership agreement- will soon be signed between the UAE and Colombia, (the fourth largest economy in South America), which would be the first ever between a GCC state and a South American nation. A joint statement has been signed, confirming the conclusion of negotiations and that terms have been finalised to boost bilateral trade and investment flows. When finalised, the Cepa will remove or reduce tariffs on the majority of product lines, eliminate unnecessary barriers to trade, improve market access and deepen collaboration across energy, environment, digital trade, financial services, telecommunications, hospitality, tourism, infrastructure, agriculture and food production. Last year, non-oil trade with Colombia exceeded US$ 380 million which jumped 120% in H1 to hit US$ 389 million, accounting for 49% of Colombia’s trade with Gulf states. Having already signed six Cepas – with India, Israel, Turkey, Indonesia, Cambodia and Georgia – the UAE is working to sign a further twenty as it seeks to attract more investment and to diversify its economy.

Although 0.7 lower on the month, the country’s November S&P Global PMI came in at 57.0 – an indicator that UAE’s economy continues to strengthen, driven by a marked improvement in demand, as new orders/inventories rose sharply. It was noted that the growth momentum across the private sector non-oil economy drove “a marked increase in purchasing activity” last month amid healthy demand conditions. There was inevitable pressure on supply chains and material prices, as the economic upturn led to the biggest expansion in inventory levels for close to six years. S&P Global Market Intelligence noted that “the strong run of demand growth in the UAE non-oil economy sparked a rapid increase in input buying during November, as firms looked to ensure they were in a good position to take advantage of growth opportunities.” New orders continued to grow last month on increased demand, new clients, project inquiries and marketing efforts, whilst output levels also rose. The increase in purchase prices was the second quickest since in twelve months. It was noted that “the build-up of competition was likely a key factor behind stock-building efforts, with businesses wary of falling behind in a fast-growing economy.”

Yesterday was the first day of trading on the DFM for Dubai Taxi Company, (DTC), whose share value started on US$ 0.504, (AED 1.85), and ended the day 19.5% higher on US$ 0.602, (AED 2.21).  At 10.00am, the company was valued at US$ 1.26 billion and seven hours later at over US$ 1.50 billion. The DFM applied no price limits on the shares during the first day of trading. By the end of the week, it had softened to US$ 0.590, (AED 2.15).

The DFM opened, a day later than normal because of the National Day holidays, on Tuesday, 05 December 2023, 7 points (0.1%) lower the previous fortnight, fell 34 points (0.9%) to close the trading week on 3,954, by Friday 08 December 2023. Emaar Properties, US$ 0.34 higher the previous five weeks, was down US$ 0.05, closing on US$ 2.01 by the end of the week. DEWA, Emirates NBD, DIB and DFM started the previous week on US$ 0.69, US$ 4.77, US$ 1.51, and US$ 0.40 and closed on US$ 0.68, US$ 4.74, US$ 1.53 and US$ 0.38. On 08 December, trading was at 103 million shares, with a value of US$ 65 million, compared to 75 million shares, with a value of US$ 57 million, on 01 December 2023.

By Friday, 08 December 2023, Brent, US$ 13.72 lower (14.8%) the previous six weeks, shed US$ 368 (4.7%) to close on US$ 75.42. Gold, US$ 135 (6.9%) higher the previous three weeks, lost US$ 79 (3.8%) to trade at US$ 2,013 by 08 December 2023.

Monday saw gold reach new highs driven by many factors including being seen as a “safe  haven” after the start of the Israel-Gaza war, and comments by the Federal Reserve’s Jerome Powell that its rate policy was now “well into restrictive territory” – which has been seen by many analysts that rates were now high enough to cool the economy and stabilise prices, reducing the chances of further hikes. The market is looking at possible rate cuts starting in March 2024, and if that were to happen, gold may fly 10% higher in a matter of weeks.

At the same time, Bitcoin has joined the celebrations, reaching its highest level earlier in the week to over US$ 42k – its highest level in nineteen months. If US regulators were to approve new kinds of trading products linked to Bitcoin, then this cryptocurrency can only go in one direction – and that is north.

OPEC, whose main objective is to regulate the supply of oil to the world market, accounts for almost 40% of global crude oil production share, as well as owning almost 80% of global crude oil reserves; it also accounts for 16% of the world’s natural gas production. There are fifteen member countries of Opec – Algeria, Angola, Congo, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, IR Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Venezuela.

In 2016, OPEC signed an agreement with ten other oil producers to create OPEC+; they were Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Brunei, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mexico, Oman, Russia, South Sudan and Sudan. Over the weekend, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, in Dubai for COP28, said Brazil will never join the OPEC+ group of oil-producing nations as a full member and instead will only seek to participate as an observer. However, its energy minister Alexandre Silveira told the Opec meeting that his country would join the charter from next year. That being the case, it would add a further 4.0 million bpd which would then take Opec’s market share to around 50% of total global production.

 

There are worrying concerns within the Opec cartel that it is losing its influence in the market. Despite the strong post-pandemic demand rebound, surprisingly  2023 production levels are expected to be lower than in 2014, the year when prices slumped, with its total output almost three million bpd less than it was nine years ago. A structural change may just turn the tables if Brazil, which would become the fourth largest Opec producer, enters the cartel and taking its share hovering around 50%. Petrobras’ chief executive, Jean Paul Prates, noted that Opec “is aware that Brazil can’t be subject to quotas as it has a publicly traded company”; the Brazilian energy giant has raised its five year spend by 31%, on the previous period, to US$ 102 billion. The political significance and symbolism are yet more important, as it would be the second of the original five Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), noting the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Iran were also invited in August, to join the bloc.

Last year’s figures, listed below, show the top ten global oil producers which account for 74% of daily production levels. Five of this group are members of Opec, with Russia being a member of Opec+.

	Country	Million bpd	Global Share
	United States	20.30	21%
	Saudi Arabia	12.44	13%
	Russia	10.13	10%
	Canada	5.83	6%
	Iraq	4.61	5%
	China	4.45	5%
	United Arab Emirates	4.23	4%
	Iran	3.67	4%
	Brazil	3.17	3%
	Kuwait	3.01	3%
	Total top 10	71.83	74%
	World total	97.70

Indicating that it would serve the interest of the global economy, Saudi Crown Prince and Russian President Vladimir Putin have urged all Opec+ nations to join the bloc’s agreement on output cuts. Thursday’s joint statement noted the two countries’ indicating that it was important to boost cooperation in oil and gas, including in equipment supplies. At the previous week’s Opec+ meeting, Saudi Arabia had agreed to extend voluntary oil output cuts of one million bpd into the first quarter, while Russia said it would continue to curb oil exports by 300k bpd, and additionally reduce its fuel exports by 200k bpd in Q1. Eight of the bloc’s members came in with total curbs of  2.2 million bpd. OPEC+’s output of some 43 million bpd already reflects cuts of about five million bpd aimed at supporting prices and stabilising the market.

According to IATA, next year, the global airline industry’s revenue is set to grow by 7.6% to US$ 964 billion, on the back of increasing demand, with net profit climbing over 10.0% to US$ 25.7 billion; expenses are expected to increase by 6.9% to US$ 914 billion. Operating profits are forecast to increase 21.1% to US$ 49.3 billion, with cargo volumes expected to increase by 5.1% to 61 million tonnes. Other figures show that 2024 will return better numbers than pre-pandemic  levels, including a 3.1% rise in flights to 40.1 million, the load factor nudging 0.6% higher to 82.6%, and passenger revenue at US$ 717 billion – up 12.0%. Airlines are expected to consume ninety-nine billion gallons of fuel in 2024 and produce a worrying nine hundred and thirty-nine tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions. IATA did conclude that industry profitability is fragile and could be impacted by external factors such as global economic developments, wars, supply-chain disruption and regulatory risks.

It has taken Tesla four years to deliver its first long-delayed Cybertruck since Elon Musk’s November 2019 announcement. The vehicle has a lower range, (547 km from 804 km), and higher prices, (50% higher) than initially formulated and promised by him. In 2019, he had said that the Cybertruck would retail at US$ 40k, with the new price of the three variants ranging from US$ 61k to US$ 100k. A promotional video shows the vehicle towing a Porsche 911 and beating another gasoline-powered 911 in a short race. Tesla needs a successful launch of the Cybertruck to boost its revenue stream, which has been impacted in an environment of softening EV demand and rising competition. It is two years behind the market and has a lot to do to catch up, with its competitors. Rivian Automotive’s R1T has a starting price of US$ 73k, whilst Ford’s F-150 Lightning starts at about US$ 50k and GM’s larger and more powerful Hummer EV costs more than US$ 96k. Another concern for Tesla is that it will take the EV maker at least eighteen months to ramp up production to make a marked cash flow contributor, by which time it could be making 250k trucks a year.

Consumer champion Justin Gutmann estimates that 28.2 million UK mobile phone contracts could be affected from 2007, and has filed a legal claim, of up to US$ 3.8 billion for 4.8 million users, seeking damages against Vodafone, EE, Three and O2 for overcharging customers for phones beyond the end of their contract. The “Loyalty Penalty Claim” – which is being filed with the Competition Appeal Tribunal – is being brought on behalf of consumers who bought contracts made up of a mobile phone and services like data, call minutes, and texts. The plaintiff expects that if the claim is successful, someone who had contracts, with just one of the mobile operators, could get more than US$ 2.3k. It seems that the cost of repayment during the minimum term of the contract – which is typically 24 months – included both the cost of the mobile and the use of services, but that they continued to charge for the mobile even though it had been paid off. Furthermore, they were also charged more than a new customer on, for example, a Sim-only deal.

In a bid to slash costs and improve its bottom line, Swedish music-streaming giant Spotify is set to cut its payroll by 1.5k, (about 17% of its total staff). Chief executive, Daniel Eck, commented that “substantial action to right size our costs” was needed for the company to meet its objectives, and that “to be blunt, many smart, talented and hard-working people will be departing us.” This decision follows the company cutting staff earlier in the year and it announcing its first quarterly profit for more than a year – at US$ 70 million in Q3 – helped by price rises and higher subscriber numbers. Spotify has seen user numbers grow by 74.2%, to 601 million, over the past three years and is well on its 2030 target of one million.

McDonald’s will introduce CosMc’s, its new restaurant idea, which aims to take on Starbucks in its market segment. The pilot store will be in Chicago, opening this month, with a further ten opening in 2024; by the end of 2027, it is expected that 10K stored will be open, many of which will be in China. It will serve items such as Churro Frappe – churros are a kind of Spanish doughnut – and S’Mores Cold Brew – s’mores are biscuits, chocolate and marshmallows, along with a reduced McDonald’s menu including the likes of Egg McMuffins. It already has a coffee and snack chain called McCafe, and that only serves coffee and sweets. It also revealed plans to launch nine hundred restaurants in the US, 1.9k internationally, where it operates its own restaurants, and 7.0k in its international licensed markets – 50% of which will be in China. The company expects China, currently its second biggest market, to soon become its number one.

It can only be the US when the former head of Abercrombie & Fitch is suing the firm for refusing to cover his legal fees after he was accused of running a sex trafficking operation. Mike Jeffries has taken this action after a recent lawsuit alleged the US retailer had funded a “criminal enterprise”, run by Jeffries, with allegations that he had exploited young men for sex as CEO over two decades. The lawsuit claims that as CEO, A&F offered to indemnify him for any claims arising out of his position with the company, including any threatened, asserted, pending or completed claim “whether civil, criminal, administrative” or other. The company rejected his claim for legal fees. He had stepped down in 2014, with a US$ 25 million retirement package, (part of which has now been suspended), having transformed A&F from a failing heritage outfitter into a multi-billion-dollar teen retailer.

There are reports that Saudi Arabia is to offer tax incentives, including a thirty-year exemption for corporate income tax, for foreign companies that locate their regional headquarters in the kingdom. The zero per cent rate will apply for income tax of the regional entity and for the withholding tax on approved activities. Almost two years ago, it had announced plans to stop awarding government contracts to companies whose regional headquarters were not located in the kingdom by 01 January 2024. There is no doubt that these incentives will go a long way for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to wean the economy off oil, by creating new industries whilst generating jobs for Saudis.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has decided to pull Italy out of China’s flagship Belt and Road Initiative, with her administration notifying Beijing that it would cease participating in the BRI ahead of a 31 December deadline; it only signed up to the deal four years ago, amid much criticism from its allies, including the US.  Italy had been the only major western country to sign to the US$ 1 trillion trade and infrastructure project launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013. Only a fraction of the US$ 21.5 billion worth of investment in Italy, promised by Mr Xi in 2019, has materialised. Italian exports to China have risen 26.1% between 2019 and 2022 to US$ 21.5 billion, whilst imports are 81.4% higher at US$ 61.9 billion.

Last month, a budget crisis exploded when Germany’s constitutional court declared the government’s budget illegal for breaking German laws against taking on new debt, resulting in the urgent need for a revised – and legal – 2024 national budget. To meet the 01 January deadline, parliament will have to approve a package that will balance the budget known as the schwarze Null, or black zero; this ensures that that any budget deficit cannot be higher than 0.35% of the country’s economic output. The government had planned to use emergency debt left over from the pandemic, to spend on Germany’s shift to green energy instead, but this has been declared illegal by the country’s constitutional court. There is an estimated shortfall of US$ 65 billion for 2023, and over US$ 18 billion for next year. A ruse that could be used to get the budget passed is to declare 2023 an emergency year because of the energy crisis, brought on by the Russians invading the Ukraine; this will be challenged again in court and there is every chance the conservatives would win again. To the casual observer, there can only be three solutions to the problem, and they would be tax rises, spending cuts or more debt. But the conundrum is that there are three minority parties – the centre-left SPD, the Greens and small-state liberal FDP – with different agenda, all haggling at a common solution.

Moody’s has cut its outlook on the Chinese and has posted that it would lower the government’s debt to negative, from stable, raising increased concerns about the problems facing the country, mainly its mounting debt pile. The government has refuted this claim, and has plans to ramp up stimulus spending, in the face of soaring youth unemployment, weaker global demand hitting its manufacturing industry and the property sector sinking even further; several of the larger construction companies are facing insolvency and have stopped building, leaving customers stranded. On top of that, local governments are facing the ramifications of borrowing billions to build infrastructure and relying on land sales to bring in revenue, are also under strain. China’s finance ministry said the country’s long-term prospects had not changed and it expected to be able to manage the impact of the property sector slowdown. The latest economic data points to a country that is used to annual growth levels of 8%+, now facing growth slowing to 5.4% this year; the IMF has forecast that China’s economic growth could be in the region of 3.5% by 2028. If that were to happen, the global economy will be impacted more so in regions such as sub-Saharan Africa which had seen an influx of Chinese investment.

The British Retail Consortium has indicated that, in 2022, 19% of purchases were made with notes and coins, as cash use grew for the first time in a decade. The figures come as the financial regulator is set to consult on a plan to help people access cash, and that banks could be fined if money cannot be withdrawn or deposited, and that free withdrawals and deposits will need to be available within one mile for people living in urban areas. Until 2015, notes and coins were used in more than 50% of transactions and, while card use now dominates, cash still had its benefits. UK Finance said nearly twenty-two million people only used cash once a month or not at all last year. However, about five million people still rely on cash and there has been pressure to ensure access is still available as bank branches and ATMs shut. The latest development has been ‘blamed’ on the cost-of-living pressures.

There was some surprise to see that TIME’s Person of the Year for 2023 is Taylor Swift, further cementing her status as a pop culture juggernaut. (This is the same magazine that in the past has given the likes of Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin the same accolade). In 2017, she appeared on the POTY cover as part of The Silence Breakers that included Ashley Judd, Susan Fowler, Adama Iwu and Isabel Pascual. This year, she made history with a record-breaking global tour and became the first female artist to have twelve chart-topping albums. Her “Anti-Hero” singer’s sell-out live tour has been so popular that it is estimated its impact on economic growth is considerable bearing in mind that it grossed US$ 2.2 billion and generated US$ 4.6 billion worth of consumer spending. The Wall Street Journal has reported that the entire US leg of her Eras stadium tour could have a US$ 5.7 billion boost on the nation’s economy. It appears that hotel prices triple, with 100% occupancy levels, in every city she appears. It is reported that over twenty-two million fans virtually queued for the Singapore tickets, with Forbes estimating that for each stop on this tour, she personally earns up to US$ 13 million, and that her net wealth stands at US$ 1.1 billion. There are university courses – Swiftonomics – which study the economic impact of her work and charitable donations. No doubt that she wakes up most days pinching herself wondering if This Is Really Happening!