Cost now, compared to a year ago:
Airline fares: +26%
Gas: +25%
Energy: +15%
Fruits/vegetables: +5%
Food at home: +3%
Dining out: +4%
Clothing: +4%
Car insurance: -5%
Used cars: -2%
#inflation
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics
The July CPI continued to build the case for disinflation. Core CPI rose 0.2% in July (or annualized 2.6%), firmer than flat prices in June, but still helping to move the trend down. Even so, two months is not enough, and the PPI will also shape whether it's a good PCE print.
The disconnect is staggering.
Tech is spending hundreds of billions on resource-intensive data centers, while the companies that have to supply those resources are barely increasing capex.
Commodities and energy remain the picks-and-shovels play on AI.
Damietta strike: will Egypt be dragged into the Iran war?
♦️On 29 July, a drone struck a floating American storage and regasification unit at Damietta Port on #Egypt’s Mediterranean coast, setting it ablaze. The fire spread to a Greek-owned LNG tanker anchored nearby.
♦️A raft of theories has circulated in the past two days about how the attack was carried out, but questions over the apparent failure of Egypt’s air defence network have largely been neglected.
♦️During Israel's war against #Gaza in 2024-25, the Yemen-based Houthi militia attacked commercial shipping in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, costing Egypt billions of dollars in lost Suez Canal transit fees, yet still Egypt did not attack the Houthis and is unlikely to do so now, as the militia once again threatens navigation through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
♦️Among other aspects, Egyptian intelligence analysts will be looking at the motivations of various regional actors.
♦️The drone struck a Mediterranean port at the centre of the gas industry in a country positioning itself as an energy hub, so the choice of target feels considered and strategic.
♦️Regardless of who was behind the Damietta attack, Egypt will almost certainly now adjust its tactics.
Discover more in Amr Emam's article in #AlMajalla 👇
https://t.co/aVNJglN6UU