The volume of assets in offshore accounts for 10% of world GDP, according to researchers from the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). This indicator varies considerably. For the Scandinavian countries, it’s just several percent of gross national product. On the other hand, citizens of countries of Persian Gulf and Latin America hide 60% of gross national product. The offshore assets...

One more step towards the end of dollar hegemony: Venezuela is refusing dollar payments for oil and oil products. The Wall Street Journal reports that in an attempt to circumvent US sanctions, the State Oil Company of Venezuela, PDVSA, informed its partners of its intention to open accounts in the euro and other currencies. Although there was no official announcement about the new payment policy,...

Harvey and Irma hurricanes caused damage of about $ 300 billion to the US. To compensate for the costs of restoring the affected states, Congress had to agree with the White House's demand to cancel the ceiling of the national debt. In less than a week, it has grown by several hundred billion dollars and exceeded the $ 20 trillion mark. This figure could increase by another half a trillion until...

Although a full-scale oil embargo against North Korea is unlikely to be introcuced, North Korea can survive such a measure relatively easily. Recently, the US proposed an oil embargo against North Korea, which was opposed by China and Russia. The DPRK's northern neighbors are championing the UN sanctions against Pyongyang, while firmly opposing the unilateral US sanctions against North Korea....

The Chinese authorities are considering a possible ban on cars with internal combustion engines in the country. This summer, United Kingdom and France decided to ban gasoline and diesel engines up to 2040; other countries do not rule out this possibility, too. China, following many other countries, wants to ban cars with internal combustion engines. As Deputy Minister of Industry and Information...

Saudi Arabia is changing the reform plan a little more than a year after its promulgation. This may mean that Riyadh recognized some of the goals of the "National Transformation Program" (NTP) of Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman as too ambitious. With the help of the program, the prince wants to reduce the dependence of the country's economy on oil. The initial plan envisaged privatization of...

Hurricanes and storms are among the most destructive and costliest natural disasters in the United States. In recent years, the total amount of damage from hurricanes exceeded $ 350 billion. All this amount does not yet include damage from Hurricane Harvey, which, according to preliminary estimates, can cost America $ 180 billion, or Hurricane Irma of the fifth category 5, the damage from which...

Real estate has long been a real and valuable asset all over the world. According to a study by Savills, the total cost of all commercial and residential real estate in the world amounts to $ 200 trillion. At the same time, all residential buildings on the planet cost $ 168.5 trillion, or 84% of the total cost. More than 70% of this amount fall on these 10 countries: China China occupies the...

European Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager said that the European Union (EU) is preparing a legislative project that will protect European technology companies from hostile takeovers by foreign companies or states. Thus, the EU reacted to earlier calls from Germany, Italy and France. The leading countries are concerned about the growing interest of Chinese state companies. At...