- You aspire to great things? Begin with little ones.
- St. Augustine
We have quite a few gems to end the month. Like the saying above or the Chinese proverb, "The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step."
Shout Out...
to Brazil for showing that renewable energy can supply your electricity needs. The nation took to dam building in the 60s for hydroelectric power. However, the ability to continue this approach is ending. Time shows environmental problems as well as changes in water flow. The country turned to solar and wind. The rewards came in 2024. Brazil received 90% of its electric needs from renewables. Congrats!
Veir Inc.
The Massachusetts company has developed high intensity wire to solve the surges in electricity that use AI. Howver, their system uses a cooling nitrogen and that is expensive. Hope they solve it.
Thyssenkrupp AG...
a German steelmaker received $2 billion subsidy to help pay for a hydrogen furance. This is still in the planning stage, but the government has changed leadership. The election in February could decide what happens. We have one question, "Is the funding earning any interest?"
Singapore Shipping...
owners have reached a settlement for the destruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. Their insurance will cover $350 million. In a separate deal the owners of the corporations will pony up another $101 million for civil claims. The final cost for a new bridge could be $4 billion. This story is not over as the FBI and the state of Maryland are investigating with more claims coming.
Nor All Bad News...
in Singapore. The city/state gave approval for what could be the greatest project for sharing energy. The deal has an Australian firm building a pioneer underwater "submarine" cable to Singapore. We worry about the dangers to the ocean, but if it works, it will be a great step forward. It will provide jobs and the sharing of energy will be good for relations and the planet. All the Best!
Fabulous News
Apple will spend $500 billion (Is that a record for a corporation?) to build a new factory in the US. It will provide for 20,000 jobs. Yay!
Top Secret?
We say what secret? Its on the internet. The US military had developed a plane (X-37B) that can break the orbit to space. We see two results. The next war will include space. However, the timeline has been pushed back (Yay) because the US now had air superiority. This will keep the peace...for a while.
Meanwhile
The market is starting to worry. However, they are nervous about future problems from tariffs, Middle East cease fire, Ukraine resolution and inflation. We worry about people losing their jobs as we continue to read about layoffs. We remind you that the only thing growing in our retail sector is store closings. They are up 69% . They are not alone. Manufacturing has shed another 13,000 high paying jobs. The contagion is also in home building and now, the airlines. Here is the latest.
Chevron is cutting 15% to 20% of its global workforce. JP Morgan Chase is printing pink slips. We will soon know how many. JC Penny is adding more stores for closing. Joann (fabric & crafts) is closing 500 of its 800 locations. Jeff Bezos, yes the billionaire, is laying off people in his Blue Origin space program to safe on costs. SW Air is cutting 15% of its workforce. Advanced Auto Parts is closing 600 locations An unknown total for 7-Eleven, Denny's and Best Buy, to the amount of store closings. Looking ahead, the list to be announced from retail chains include: Macy's, CVS, Walgreens, Foot Locker, FamilyDollar, Rite Aid and Victoia Secret.
In a related aspect, Spirit Airlines has entered into bankruptcy and has refuse two offers to merge.
We end on some good news. It concerns the wildfres in California. There is an international exchange of fire fighters to help each other to stop these huge wildfires. Canada welcomed 9,000 foreign fire fighters and they sent 4,400 to help other nations, mainly the US and last year to LA. Peace.
