Congratulations, Turkey!
Slope of Hope Blog Posts
Slope initially began as a blog, so this is where most of the website’s content resides. Here we have tens of thousands of posts dating back over a decade. These are listed in reverse chronological order. Click on any category icon below to see posts tagged with that particular subject, or click on a word in the category cloud on the right side of the screen for more specific choices.
Moonstruck (4 of 9)
Preface to all nine parts: today is Eclipse Day, so I am giving myself an exceptionally rare day off. I have no idea if I'll see anything, because there's so much cloud cover. In spite of that, I had devoted the entire day to this quest, so I'm setting up some posts in advance so my dear readers do not get bored. Once this all blows over, I'll be sure to tell you about whatever adventures I had during my Texas journey.
Over just two days, I read the newly-published book We Have Been Harmonized cover to cover. For anyone interested in China, global economics, or high-tech surveillance, I heartily recommend it. The book is superbly written, well-researched, and comes from an author who is an expert in the field. In this post, I would like to explore some of the topics covered in the book.
(more…)Argentine Progress
I’d love to see President Milei succeed!
Move Over America
China’s Luxury Goods Market Is Making A Comeback
While nearly 78 percent of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, an increase of 6 percent between 2022 and 2023 according to a recent survey, Chinese consumers are showing up and dishing out luxury goods and services as the market is set for a strong recovery in the year ahead.
In the latest China Luxury Report by Bain & Company, analysts predict that China’s luxury goods market experienced a comfortable 12% year-on-year increase in 2023. The rebound has seen China’s domestic luxury goods market recover from previous declines during the pandemic years, however, is still slightly below the record level of 2021.
The same Bain & Company report estimates that by the end of the decade, Chinese consumers will represent between 35% and 40% of spenders in the luxury goods market.
(more…)Try, Try Again
Want to feel good about the staying power of the US Dollar? Look no farther than the Turkish Lira. Below is a chart of the Lira versus the Dollar over many decades, and I assume at this point I can buy a mansion in Istanbul with what’s in my wallet right now.
