Blogotariat

Robert Farley has replied to my recent post on the obsolescence of naval power. Unlike our previous exchange, a pile-on where I was (as he points out) in a minority of one, Robert’s tone is mostly civil this time, and I intend to reciprocate. Our disagreements have narrowed a fair way. On many points, it’s a matter of whether the glass is half-full or half-empty.

The latest data on the Chinese property market remains terrible. Via Goldman: Developers are still frozen out of funding markets and focused on completions, not starts. Excavator hours suggest only more downsides for new project starts: Steel demand is down big as well. Steel output is awful:   Energy consumption via coal is going nowhere.

The post Iron ore rises into thin air appeared first on MacroBusiness.

Two articles discussing how state terrorism is applied against environmental activists. The first article from Reporterre tells how state terrorism is used against environmentalists, as in any self-respecting dictatorship, sequestration and torture (beating). The second article is Contre Attaque analyzes the situation and its purpose: to terrorize.

In the basement of anti-terrorism, the hell of environmental activists

In the latest Reuters/Ipsos Core Political poll, Americans continue to report political extremism or threats to democracy as their top issue facing the country, followed by the economy and immigration.

I don’t want to appall the diplomats present by using a vulgarism, but Pillar two [of AUKUS] is fragrant methane-wrapped bullshit. Australia and New Zealand are beautifully placed to nurture and defend a different model of relationships between the prevailing power [the US] and the rising power [China]: A different approach from the one that says war is inevitable, says former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr.

Australian households have already been hit harder than almost anywhere else by rising mortgage rates: This surge in debt servicing costs has helped drive a record decline in Australian household disposable income: Analysis by Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) economist Benjamin Ung notes that the proportion of home loans with fixed interest rates peaked at

The post Aussie mortgage rates will continue rising appeared first on MacroBusiness.

In 2013, I wrote a piece titled, “Climate Change: A layperson’s Dilemma” in which I pointed out the debunked theories of people like Andrew Bolt, Prof Ian Plimer, Tony Abbott, Alan Jones, Barnaby Joyce, Pauline Hanson, Malcolm Roberts, and others who insisted that climate change did not exist.  Science won the day, proving beyond doubt…

The post Nuclear Energy: A Layperson’s Dilemma appeared first on The AIM Network.

How do you power a solar farm construction site? Usually with diesel generators. A Victorian project has opted for battery storage and left over PV panels.

One of the world's biggest coal ports says it has what it takes to become a hub for floating offshore wind, given the right investment – and assuming the technology makes it in Australia.

The skin toasted Australian Minister of Defence, Richard Marles, who resembles, with each day, the product of an overly worked solarium, was adamant. Not only will Australians be paying a bill up to and above A$368 billion for nuclear powered submarines it does not need; it will also be throwing A$100 billion into the coffers…

The post The Australian Defence Formula: Spend! Spend! Spend! appeared first on The AIM Network.

Pressure grows on federal Labor as Queensland passes ambitious 2035 emissions reduction target with bipartisan support. But LNP refuses to agree to renewables target.

Albo is a liar. Not a conniving liar like ScoMo. A dumb liar like a political bovver boy: Professor Holden said Mr Banks had “raised a number of totally legitimate concerns that I and plenty of others have raised”. Professor Holden said there was a difference between safeguarding the sovereign manufacturing of essential products like

The post Albo’s is a manufacturing catastrophe appeared first on MacroBusiness.

All fog of war stuff, but retaliation of some sort is underway in Iran: Three large explosions heard in Isfahan south of Tehran, US officials confirm. The Natanz nuclear facility is located in Isfahan. Unconfirmed simultaneous explosions have also been reported in Syria and Iraq (Baghdad and Babil/Babylon province). Iran has established a no-fly-zone over

The post Markets freak as Israel bombs Iran appeared first on MacroBusiness.