In the span of two weeks, temperature records have been smashed, railroad tracks warped, energy grids pushed to the brink and massive swaths of land charred—all while the global death toll from unprecedented heat has climbed into the thousands. Waves of blistering temperatures, wildfires and severe drought are emerging as weather phenomena fueled by global warming, scientists agree. Rivers are too low and crops are wilting, adding to food insecurity exacerbated by Russia’s war on Ukraine. With the Kremlin’s invasion roiling energy markets, it all underscores the danger of delaying climate action and ongoing dependence on fossil fuels, Mark Buchanan writes in Bloomberg Opinion. “Global warming is no longer a problem of the future,” he said. “It’s here.” 

After a hiring frenzy, companies from Alphabet to Apple and Ford to Coinbase are rethinking staffing plans and even starting to fire people. While very bad news for those employees, it could be good news for consumers, with a tighter labor market meaning less wage pressure, assisting the Federal Reserve in its fight to lower inflation. Indeed, US jobless claims reached an 8-month high, suggesting some softening. But there’s another possible wrinkle in the outlook: a dollar doom loop.

Foreign ventures in China are declining, and investors cite one major reason: President Xi Jinping’s policies, from unpredictable regulations to his relationship with Russia. Xi’s strict Covid policies are helping push out thousands of wealthy Chinese. The middle-class is openly revolting, refusing to pay mortgages on apartments developers have failed to deliver. For America, “endless confrontations” with China aren’t wise, according to Henry Kissinger.

A neighborhood of Shanghai after a lockdown was lifted Source: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg

The bipartisan Jan. 6 Congressional committee has documented a vindictive and erratic Donald Trump who refused aides’ pleas over more than three hours to call off the mob attacking the US Capitol. “Trump was unmoved as he watched the violence” and must be prosecuted for an attempted coup, Timothy O’Brien writes in Bloomberg Opinion.

Red-hot housing prices, remote work, political rancor and a strong dollar have spurred a wave of Americans to move to Europe. Expats are buying up homes in smaller cities and towns, benefitting from new visa programs to attract investment. The outlook for home affordability in the US is poised to hit lows last seen before the financial crisis, S&P Global Ratings predicts. 

The drone revolution has been slow to materialize in part because of congestion: millions of drones competing in already crowded skies. NASA and the FAA have been collaborating since 2017 on new rules for US airspace. Done wrong, lives could be lost. Done right, the system could mark the biggest evolution in US transportation since the interstate highway system.

• A monster week for earnings, from Apple to Exxon to UBS.
• The Federal Reserve is likely to raise interest rates by another 0.75.
• GDP readings in the US, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the EU.
• UK debate with the final two Tory leadership candidates.
• Airbnb closes its China business.

Mining Sinkholes Swallow Up a Gold Town

Deep in the lush forests of southern Ecuador, in a cloud-covered village set along the western edge of the Andes Mountains, a hole opened in the Earth one night last year. Measuring some 150 feet across and 100 feet down, it consumed three homes and left scores more uninhabitable. Its cause? Gold mining. With the rising price for copper, cobalt, gold and silver—all to power electronic devices—illegal mining is now a global $448 billion business, with devastating impacts on communities and ecosystems.

A sinkhole in Zaruma, Ecuador, on April 26. Illegal mining has contaminated waterways as sinkholes swallow colonial houses in a town that aspires to be a UNESCO world heritage site. Photographer: Vicente Gaibor/Bloomberg

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