Economy

The BRICS nations are coming of age....The bloc of five emerging countries—Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa—  will welcome six new members: Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

A reasonable debate can be had regarding the extent to which the U.S. economy may slow in the near-term but Canada's sensitivity to interest rates suggests that a Canadian recession is a matter of when, not if.

It is one thing to complain that the economy is not growing, or, that economic activity is slowing; but the 4 charts below indicate something more serious. Economic activity is in decline and the decline might be accelerating.

Inequality is one of the most volatile aspects of contemporary society, and it is getting worse. As the gap between the haves and the have-nots widens, and the middle class shrinks, the chances of social upheaval increase.

The cryptocurrency realm, already characterized by its unpredictable nature, has once again been thrust into the spotlight as Bitcoin, the pioneering cryptocurrency, recently experienced a rapid price drop.

“De-dollarization” is being pursued by countries with agendas at odds with the US, including Russia, China, Saudi Arabia and Iran.

How much is the market really concerned about a slowing global economy? That question has in the past been posed to Dr. Copper, the red metal afforded the honorific for its supposed Ph.D. in predicting global economic health. However, the title now has been stripped, according to Bank of America’s commodity research team.

This graphic catalogs the rise of the U.S. dollar as the dominant international reserve currency, and the recent efforts by various nations to de-dollarize and reduce their dependence on the U.S. financial system.

27% of Bitcoin owners, and 21% of Ethereum owners, said they were planning on adding to their holdings in the next month amid fears of a full-blown banking crisis.

If we want to better understand the answer to the elusive question of "When will the fiat U.S. dollar collapse?", we have to watch the petrodollar system and the factors affecting it.