Types of News: Bit Archives

Pre-War, Hegseth Tried to Invest in Military Industrial ETF

31Mar

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Arms Sales, Military Industry, Corruption, Bribes, Illicit Finance & Money Laundering, Domestic Politics: United States, Types of News: Bit

Pre-War, Hegseth Tried to Invest in Military Industrial ETF

March 31, 2026—Among the news reports about war profits by those in Washington with insider information comes a report about War Secretary Pete Hegseth. The Financial Times confirmed in its reporting today that Hegseth may have tried to invest millions of dollars in a fund specializing in the military industrial complex. Hegseth’s broker at Morgan Stanly reportedly contacted BlackRock, which flagged the request for the “high profile potential client.” The fund, iShare Defense Industrials Act (IDEF), has decreased in value by 9.7 percent over the past month but is up by 4 percent so far this year. Its largest holdings include: RTX, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman. The FT reported that the investment was not completed because the fund “was not yet available for Morgan Stanley...

Energy Shock to Slow Growth and Raise Inflation, OECD Says

27Mar

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Energy Policy, Oil & Gas, Global Trade, Middle East, Types of News: Bit, Types of News: Brief

Energy Shock to Slow Growth and Raise Inflation, OECD Says

G20 Inflation to Climb to 4.0 Percent in 2026 March 27, 2026—The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development warned that rising energy prices and supply shocks due to war in the Middle East could increase global volatility and inflation. In a March report, Testing Resilience, the OECD said: “The evolving conflict in the Middle East has human and economic costs for the countries directly involved, and will test the resilience of the global economy. A halt in shipments through the Strait of Hormuz and the closure or damage of energy infrastructure has generated a surge in energy prices and disrupted the global supply of energy and other important commodities, such as fertilisers.” Projections for growth vary widely by country. For example, the OECD predicts growth in th...

Trump Lifts Certain Russia-Related Oil Sanctions

13Mar

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Energy Policy, Oil & Gas, Types of News: Bit, Types of News: Brief

Trump Lifts Certain Russia-Related Oil Sanctions

The License Allows Sales of Russian Oil Without Penalty Through Mid-April March 13, 2026—With oil supplies rocked by the U.S.-Israel war with Iran, the Trump administration lifted sanctions this week, allowing Russia to sell oil and petroleum products through April 11, 2026. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the license issued would apply to “oil already in transit” and is intended to lower oil prices. “The temporary increase in oil prices is a short-term and temporary disruption that will result in a massive benefit to our nation and economy in the long-term,” he wrote on X. The General License 134 is available here: https://ofac.treasury.gov/media/935191/download?inline The U.S. government had already given India a 30-day waiver to buy Russian oil. That waiver came a...

Judge Blocks Case Against Fed Chair, Citing Political Motives by Trump

13Mar

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Currency, Debt, National Budgets & Interest Rates, Domestic Politics: United States, Types of News: Bit

Judge Blocks Case Against Fed Chair, Citing Political Motives by Trump

March 13, 2026—A U.S. District Court ruled that a criminal investigation of the Federal Reserve by the D.C. Attorney is politically motivated rather than for a “proper purpose.” In January, the U.S. Justice Department issued grand jury subpoenas to the central bank relating to a $2.5 billion renovation at the Fed headquarters. The ruling asserts that President Trump “has long coveted control over interest rates and yearned to lower them to his advantage.” A decision by District Court Judge James Boasberg effectively stops that investigation. He writes in Case 1:26-mc-00012-JEB: “There is abundant evidence that the subpoenas’ dominant (if not sole) purpose is to harass and pressure Powell either to yield to the President or to resign and make way for a Fed Chair who will. On the othe...

US Economy Weaker Than Previously Reported in 2025

13Mar

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Global Economics, Types of News: Bit

US Economy Weaker Than Previously Reported in 2025

March 13, 2026—The U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 0.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025, according to a revised estimate released today by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The bureau had previously estimated the quarterly growth at 1.4 percent, double the actual amount of economic activity. Economic activity slowed due to a government shutdown and reductions in U.S. service exports, consumer spending, and manufacturing business investment. Over all quarters, the U.S. economy grew by 2.1 percent in 2025. Source: https://www.bea.gov/news/2026/gdp-second-estimate-4th-quarter-and-year-2025

UN Security Council Condemns Iran’s Strikes on Gulf States

11Mar

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Diplomacy, Middle East, Organizations, IMF, WTO, G7, UN Security Council, Types of News: Bit

UN Security Council Condemns Iran’s Strikes on Gulf States

UNSC Rejected Russia's Draft Resolution Calling on 'All Parties' to Stop Military Activities March 11, 2026—The UN Security Council passed a resolution on March 11 condemning retaliatory attacks by Iran against the Gulf region, specifically Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan. Bahrain offered the resolution on behalf of the Gulf Cooperation Council. The council approved it on a 13-0-2 vote, with China and Russia obstaining. The resolution, S. Res. 2817, affirmed the right of “individual or collective self-defense” and deplored “the deliberate targeting of civilians and civilian objects by the Islamic Republic of Iran, including airports, energy installations, objects necessary for food production and distribution, and critical civilian i...

U.S. Budget Deficit FY2026 on Track to Top $2 Trillion

10Feb

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Currency, Debt, National Budgets & Interest Rates, Domestic Politics: United States, Types of News: Bit

U.S. Budget Deficit FY2026 on Track to Top $2 Trillion

February 10, 2026—The U.S. budget deficit is on track to top $2 trillion this year. In the first four months of fiscal year 2026, which started on October 1, 2025, the federal government ran a deficit of $696 billion. Revenues increased by 12 percent with higher receipts coming into the government from individual taxes and tariffs. The customs duties saw an increase of $90 billion, four times the amount the government received in 2025. Individual income taxes are projected to reach $925 billion in FY2026. Government spending held steady in the first four months at $2.4 trillion. The largest expenditures in the first four months were: Social Security ($538 billion), Medicare ($402 billion), net interest on the debt ($351 billion), and defense ($324 billion). The data comes from the...

EU Drafts Report on Transnational Repression

8Feb

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Corruption, Bribes, Illicit Finance & Money Laundering, Types of News: Bit

EU Drafts Report on Transnational Repression

February 8, 2026—The European Parliament recently published a paper on transnational repression—a method of authoritarianism that takes place when a government reaches beyond its national borders to intimidate, harass, or silence people living in another country. The topic relates to foreign interference, disinformation, and migration. It is a topic discussed by Human Rights Watch in its annual report. The European Union report examines instances where Russia, Chechnya, Iran, and China have targeted prominent financiers, oligarchs, or activists. The authors suggest that countries whose official status is limited by sanctions or visa restrictions might be more likely to persuade or coerce diaspora members perceived as loyal. “For example, members of the Uyghur community abroad have...

The Rise of Central Bank Digital Currencies

29Jan

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Currency, Debt, National Budgets & Interest Rates, Types of News: Bit

The Rise of Central Bank Digital Currencies

January 29, 2026—A majority of countries are now developing some form of digital currency. In fact, over 90 percent of central banks surveyed are actively exploring central bank digital currencies, according to reporting by the UK-based SQ Magazine covering the digital economy. They are in various stages of development, with more than 70 countries rolling out pilot programs. These include Japan’s digital yen, China’s mBridge platform and e-CNY, the European Central Bank’s digital euro, the UAE’s digital dirham, and Australia’s Project Acacia. In 2022, India launched the digital e-rupee, which now serves 7 million users but its use represents just a fraction of its circulation. Analysts say the benefits are cost efficiencies, while the drawbacks are a lack of privacy and compliance co...

United States: Democratic Dysfunction Creates Costs, Uncertainty for Defense, GAO Says

23Jan

By Patti MohrNo Comments

Domestic Politics: United States, Types of News: Bit

United States: Democratic Dysfunction Creates Costs, Uncertainty for Defense, GAO Says

January 23, 2026—In the United States, Congress has the authority and responsibility to manage the nation’s finances. It is tasked with passing 12 annual appropriations bills into law. More often than not, Congress fails to do its job. It routinely relies on continuing resolutions (CRs), which package several funding bills into a single bill to extend federal funding to agencies. In a recently released report, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) looked at the impact of Congress’s use of CRs on defense planning. In all but four years of the last 49 years, funds for the Defense Department (A.K.A. War Department) were wrapped into CRs, creating uncertainty in planning. The GAO said the result is “delays, increased costs, operational challenges, spending challenges, and administrativ...