JUST IN: On-chain data confirms this is the second-largest liquidation event in Bitcoin's entire history, right after the FTX collapse in November 2022.
This comes amidst news that Germany is selling $3.5B worth of seized $BTC, and Mt. Gox begins paying back $8.5B to creditors, with the majority expected to be sold. Source: WhaleWire on X
Britain wakes up to a new party in power after 14 years of Conservative rule.
Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour party is headed for a huge majority in the House of Commons after Rishi Sunak conceded defeat in the UK general election. With the final results still streaming in, a national exit poll suggests Starmer will become prime minister more than 400 of 650 Commons seats, with the Tories holding most likely around 110 seats, the party’s worst result in its 190-year history. Sunak, who won his seat of Richmond and Northallerton, said he took “responsibility for the loss”. A victorious Starmer had earlier declared: “The change begins right here. It’s now time for us to deliver.” Source: FT, Bloomberg
French stocks are more than 4% away from reclaiming the losses they have suffered since the election was called last month.
Meanwhile, French bonds already have been lifted by the political maneuvering that seeks to block Marine Le Pen’s National Rally from winning an absolute majority in the National Assembly. The Franco-German 10yr spread has came down by -5bps to 67bps and has been tightening for 5 .consecutive day. This takes the spread down its tightest level in three weeks. Emmanuel Macron’s centrist group and a left-wing alliance opposed to Le Pen strategically pulled 223 candidates out of constituencies in an effort to avoid splitting opposition to the far right and lessen its chances of winning enough seats to form a government. That means no party is likely to win the 289 seats needed for a majority, the Morgan Stanley team said. Source: David Simon Elkoubi, Morgan Stanley
High-end luxury sector in troubles as Dior reportedly paid contractor $57 to make handbag that sold for nearly $2,800 — investigators reveal...
According to a thorough investigation of subcontractors, two major Italian luxury companies are being called out for paying a minimal amount to produce high-end handbags that are sold for thousands of dollars. In recent months, Italian prosecutors in Milan looked into the use of third-party suppliers by the LVMH subsidiary Dior. The prosecutors found that these companies were exploiting workers to produce handbags at a significantly lower cost compared to their retail price. Based on documents obtained by authorities, Reuters recently reported that Dior paid a supplier $57 to manufacture handbags that were sold for approximately $2,780. This cost does not include expenses for materials like leather. According to a prosecution document cited by Reuters, the Dior department in question did not implement “appropriate measures to check the actual working conditions or the technical capabilities of the contracting companies.” During investigations conducted in March and April, evidence was discovered that workers were residing in the facility to enable continuous production of handbags, as reported by Reuters. Additionally, electricity consumption data indicated that work was being conducted during nights and holidays. The subcontracting firms involved were Chinese-owned, with prosecutors noting that the majority of the workers were from China, two of whom were living in the country unlawfully and seven were working without proper documentation. Source: Hollywood unlocked
The Economist in October 2020 (left) vs. today (right)
This week in The Economist: "Why Biden must withdraw - The president and his party portray themselves as the saviours of democracy. Their actions say otherwise"
Energy demand in China has increased rapidly over the last few decades due to rising incomes and industrialization.
The country now uses about the same amount of energy per person as the European Union. You can see this in this chart, with new data from the Energy Institute’s Statistical Review of World Energy. This measure of primary energy is based on the substitution method, which tries to account for the inefficiencies of fossil fuels compared to renewables. Source: Our world in data (This Data Insight was written by @_HannahRitchie and Pablo Rosado.)
Gary Vaynerchuk: "The root cause of burnout often lies in the lack of understanding WHY you're doing WHAT you're doing.
Are you doing it for affirmation, money, or fame?"
📢 China's public spending on scientific research is now above America's
• Chinese researchers focus mostly on applied fields, whereas US still leads on basic research • Beijing has precise priorities: AI, quantum, chips, neuroscience, genetics, biotech, deep space/oceans Source: Agathe Demarais, OECD
