1 Brexit would be end of EU, says Soros (Phillip
Inman in The Guardian) Billionaire investor George Soros has warned that a
Brexit vote this month would make the breakup of the EU “almost certain”.
Soros – who shot to fame in 1992 as the man whose
$10bn (£6.9bn) bet against the pound broke the Bank of England – has switched
more of his fortune into gold as he anticipates possible shockwaves from a
leave vote in the EU referendum. “If Britain leaves, it could unleash a general
exodus, and the disintegration of the European Union will become practically
unavoidable,” he said.
Soros said an EU breakup was another threat to
global stability along with concerns over the Chinese economy and a Trump
presidency. In recent months the currency speculator has bet that a devaluation
of the Chinese currency, the yuan, was inevitable, earning himself a rebuke
from the Beijing authorities.
Gold, considered a safe haven by investors, has
risen 17% since January to $1,244 an ounce. Shares in gold miners have soared
this year with the Philadelphia Gold and Silver Index up 98% compared with a
3.5% increase in the New York S&P 500 Index.
2 Tourism, Leicester City and cheap oil propel
Thailand (Straits Times) When it comes to hefty trade surpluses, the likes of
China, Japan, Germany and South Korea make the list of usual suspects. But
without much fanfare, Thailand - best known for its beaches, food, military
coups and more recently, the football heroes Leicester City - has run up the
biggest current-account surplus among major emerging markets.
The current-account surplus in the first quarter
ballooned to an annualized 10.2 per cent of gross domestic product, an
improvement that Richard Iley, chief economist for Asia at BNP Paribas,
describes as "phenomenal."
Much of the buffer is down to a steep fall in oil
prices - Thailand relies on crude imports for more than 80 per cent of its
energy needs - and a surge in tourism fueled by Chinese shoppers. The nation
attracted 7.9 million visitors from China last year, a 70 per cent increase
from 2014.
Thailand has been using the windfall to replenish
its foreign-exchange reserves by about $20 billion this year, providing a key
bulwark if it faces a sudden surge in capital outflows or foreign-exchange
market volatility. The increase in reserves has been the fastest of any other
emerging market, according to BNP.
It's not all good news though. The current-account
data also reflects a reluctance by companies and households to spend the
dividend from cheaper energy, indicating a deeper malaise in the economy. Thailand remains under military rule two years
after a coup and political uncertainty has eroded confidence. Savings rates
soared to 33 per cent of GDP in the first quarter, while investment has slid.
3 Romance in virtual reality (San Francisco
Chronicle) Critically acclaimed Chinese director Jia Zhangke says he will make
a virtual reality film next year with a romantic story as he and viewers get
used to the new medium, and declared: "I think VR is going to be the next
big thing."
The director, better known for films that depict
China's social changes and acts of violence, said that the short film would be
a gentle romance as "it takes time for people to feel comfortable" in
virtual reality. "The speed and direction of movements may make people
feel physically uncomfortable, so we're starting with a romantic story,"
he said.
Virtual reality entertainment consists largely of
video games, but film festivals are starting to showcase VR films as directors
venture into the new medium. It offers a much more solitary experience compared
to watching a movie in a packed theater.
VR requires a headset that blocks out your
surroundings and lets you wander through a story in a different world — either
by moving a few steps in various directions or sitting on a swivel chair and
moving your body to look around a 360-degree scene. The fake environment is,
nonetheless, often realistic, but movie makers are still trying to work out how
to tell a story in VR.
It also gives the audience more power as they choose
what to watch. "In the past, the audience could only imagine the world
inside and outside the frame," he said. "VR liberates an audience and
allows people to independently choose what we want to be concerned with. Audiences
become more important."
No comments:
Post a Comment