Bloomberg - Evening Briefing - Trump takes the Fifth

First the US recession that some said was imminent suddenly stopped looming thanks to robust hiring. Now inflation is falling more than expected. Price rises decelerated in July, reflecting dropping gas prices, which have dipped below $4 a gallon in some places. Wall Street was pretty pleased, with markets bending skyward. The new numbers may take pressure off of the Federal Reserve in its campaign to slow inflation. Still, it’s good not to forget that the consumer price index nevertheless increased by a disquieting 8.5% from a year earlier (though it was 9.1% in June). And as far as politics is concerned, President Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats aren’t out of the woods: Even with a series of blockbuster legislative victories, including a huge economic package, the cost of living remains high, forcing many Americans to pile up credit card balances and drain savings. Here’s your markets wrap. —David E. Rovella

Bloomberg is tracking the coronavirus pandemic and the progress of global vaccination efforts.

Donald Trump famously said “the Mob takes the Fifth.” On Wednesday, he joined the club when he repeatedly invoked his right against self-incrimination in a New York state probe of his company. Trump, the subject of a half dozen investigations, is increasingly leaning on the same small pool of right wing defense lawyers used by his former aides and associates. Though facing a criminal probe by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office as well as another in Georgia, Trump has been more occupied of late with Justice Department inquiries into his alleged role in the Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol, and whether he illegally withheld official documents that the government wants back. 

The Rhine—a pillar of the German, Dutch and Swiss economies for centuries—is set to become virtually impassable at a key waypoint later this week, stymieing vast flows of diesel and coal. The Danube, which snakes its way 1,800 miles through central Europe to the Black Sea, is gummed up too, hampering grain and other trade. The climate crisis is taking more. victims as every day passes, and soon another may be a huge chunk of European trade.

Cargo ships pass a sandbank near Bendorf, Germany, on the Rhine. In the continuing drought of high summer, the water level of the Middle Rhine continues to fall, forcing some barges to sail only partially full. Photographer: picture alliance

Despite Wednesday’s news on consumer prices, two Federal Reserve officials responded to softening inflation data by saying it doesn’t change the central bank’s path toward even higher interest rates this year and next.

Two founders of a little-known Hong Kong investment bank suddenly became billionaires following a baffling stock surge. As it turns out, they weren’t alone.

Ukraine won approval for a debt-payment freeze from the holders of its international bonds, gaining relief for a budget wrecked by Russia’s invasion. Investors representing around 75% of $19.6 billion worth of Ukraine’s foreign bonds agreed to defer coupon and principal payments until 2024, the Finance Ministry in Kyiv said on Wednesday. 

Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams tested positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday after she delivered a campaign speech on economic policy the previous evening. Drugmakers meanwhile are on the hunt for one vaccine to target all coronavirus variants.

Former US National Security Advisor John Bolton was the target of an Iranian murder-for-hire plot, according to charges filed by the US against a member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. 

John Bolton Photographer: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP

• China says its military drills around Taiwan are over, but that’s not all.
• JPMorgan gold traders are found guilty in Chicago spoofing trial.
• ESG is here to stay, whether you like the letters or not.
• Facebook claims it bans hate speech. But there’s more to the story.
• Investors cheer the CEO who has been accused of scamming them.
• Dozens in China infected with new “Langya” virus carried by shrews.
• The work-from-home revolution is also a trap for women.

Pandemic layoffs. Revenge travel. Poor airline planning. A fist-tight labor market. All these things have come together to make the summer of 2022 hell on (and above) Earth for travelers. And the US is no exception: cancellations are ruining many a desperate vacation plan by bleary-eyed, work-from-home veterans choosing to disregard Covid-19 risk and head for the skies. Dropped flights are legion, with these 10 US airports being the worst when it comes to that dreaded word suddenly appearing on the departures board.

Two of the 10 worst US airports for cancellations are in the same city.  Photographer: Angus Mordant/Bloomberg

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