Gafni, a leader of the religious parties, protests in the Knesset that the current coalition is not fulfilling its promises. Christians use to add to their promises a "With God's Help", the Muslims say "Inshallah" which is the same, and we Jews write on every letter דסיעתא דשמיתא Desiata Deshamayta which in Aramaic means "With the Help of Heaven". The Chinese may say that Heaven retired the Emperor's legitimacy. Gafni's discontent refers to the coalition's difficulties in keeping its promise of passing a law that the so-called ultrareligious should not be drafted into the army. Gafni and his followers are totally insensitive and blind to the horrible war Israel is waging on two fronts (and three counting Iran). Currently, the religious are granted a self-renewing deferment.
ICL, the Israeli potash company, has also lost a lot lately. I do know the reason, although world fertilizer prices have been falling. Prices of phosphate and potash have retreated since the back half of 2022 from their peak levels attained in the first half riding on the impacts of the Russia-Ukraine war and disruptions due to the sanctions in Belarus. Lower prices are expected to weigh on the company’s sales and profitability in the near term. The problem with the Houties who have closed the port of Eilat may be affecting ICL.
In general, TASE bourse is maintaining its level and not sinking. Israel's economy has not collapsed because of civil disturbances and the war in Gaza, but it is growing. Paradoxically, in 2024 total economic activity (GNP) is rising. Many working men are in the Army, Palestinian workers are not allowed in Israel, and foreign workers have left because of the war, so it is not clear what is happening.
With limited land and water, China will have to sharply increase farming productivity through technology, including genetically modified crops, and expand the area under cultivation to meet Beijing's 10-year projections.
The government envisions 92% self-sufficiency in staple grains and beans by 2033, up from 84% during 2021-23, according to a document released in late April, on a path toward Chinese President Xi Jinping's goal to become an "agriculture power" by the middle of the century.
From: Japan Times.
So China has not been able to solve how to feed its people. When I first visited China, the issue on the table was famine, the population was growing, and agricultural yields were low. I thought that by now they were past this issue.
To come up with their assessments, the Barclays team counted all the US mutual funds that have the terms “systematic,” “quant” or “algorithm” along with “corporate,” “credit,” “bond” or “fixed income,” and found that their assets under management had doubled to $3.7 billion over the past year. They also spoke with Barclays’ algorithmic trading desk to find that one in six electronic requests for quotes come from systematic accounts. From Bloomberg.
Investors are playing against robots. A new game.
Everything we can do, robots can do better.
They also outlined risks associated with increased systematic trading, especially the potential for trend-followers creating “herding behavior” around certain names and amplifying volatility. Similarly, factor models that try to build on momentum, search for underpriced bonds or take advantage of bid-ask spreads can cause sharp movements in prices, as can tactical strategies that trade individual bonds.
