Chinese COVID lunacy continues: https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3210759/china-wont-see-new-covid-wave-despite-arrival-highly-contagious-omicron-variant-medical-expert-says . On its face, this “expert” opinion makes no sense. If this were true, why do we still have COVID cases and deaths in the US? Why are these cases driven by new variants? How do the Chinese just ignore the realities of this disease? My expectation is that the truth will leak out over time, but probably on a province-by-province basis. It seems very few people in China have a national picture of the COVID pandemic. The best hope for a national picture is excess death analysis, depending on the reliability of any data that can be obtained.
Bird flu spreads to minks: https://apnews.com/article/disease-outbreaks-hong-kong-health-bird-flu-animals-75e5d058e0fda23b5359f66cafb74cdf . Vaccinating domestic animals, especially against viruses that can spread to humans, seems both economically advantageous and prudent.
WSJ: Workers’ pay globally has not kept up with inflation: https://www.wsj.com/articles/workers-pay-globally-hasnt-kept-up-with-inflation-e6df92d . To repeat, once started, inflation usually continues for some time (the average suggested by some studies is five years). The Fed will not be cutting rates in 2023.
Turkey-Syria earthquake: “Last video” of teen later rescued from the rubble: https://www.aol.com/news/turkish-teen-filmed-last-moments-164151043.html .
WSJ: US warns China over supplying “lethal aid” to Russia: https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-warns-china-could-arm-russia-as-ukraine-seeks-to-repel-advances-in-east-a5fd3e9e . The reorganization of the world into two axes continues unabated.
Twitter sued over unpaid bills: WSJ: https://www.wsj.com/articles/under-elon-musk-twitter-faces-suits-claiming-over-14-million-in-unpaid-bills-484d8bc4 . Does Musk just model all of his behavior on Orange Julius? Is that what’s wrong with him? (Yes, but that’s not all that’s wrong with him.)
WSJ: Recent IPO’s going private again: https://www.wsj.com/articles/going-private-again-is-all-the-rage-among-newly-public-companies-93fff45e . This is hardly an exhaustive list. For example, Convey Health Solutions (CNVY) went public in June 2021 at an average of $15 per share. It proceeded to trade as low as $3.75 before settling in around $7. The firm was then taken private in October 2022 at $10.50 a share.