Bloomberg - Evening Briefing - Three years of Covid

It’s been three years, but the coronavirus pandemic that’s claimed millions of lives all over the world is still very much with us. The virus is now rampaging across the country where it was first discovered, with tens of thousands being infected each day and potentially millions more lives at risk. Nations around the world this week said they are implementing measures to test or restrict travelers from China, where an unprecedented wave was unleashed this month when Xi Jinping abandoned his “Covid zero” policy in the face of widespread protests and spreading economic malaise. Xi contends his strategy is “optimized” to protect lives and minimize economic costs. But the country’s economy is showing more strain as the surge grows. China’s vaccination programs lagged other parts of the world as it pursued years of testing and lockdowns. Now health experts say they’re worried the virus’s unchecked spread in a nation of 1.4 billion could spawn new variants that will circumvent protections people elsewhere have gained through vaccination or previous infections. While no new variants have emerged from China so far, it’s still early days. 

While central banks around the world gain ground on inflation, industries from tech to retail and finance are nevertheless preparing for a potential economic slowdown, largely by firing thousands of people. Wall Street is already in retrenchment mode, and Goldman Sachs is working on a fresh round of terminations. The outlook for trade looks glum for the new year as conditions continue to deteriorate across the world’s factories and ports. But don’t expect the price of goods such as oil, copper and wheat to come down significantly any time soon, Javier Blas writes in Bloomberg Opinion. “The commodities boom is taking a pause, not ending,” he said.

Russia is ending the year with massive attacks on Ukrainian cities and infrastructure, sending a message that it won’t give up or negotiate an end to its invasion, in which Russian soldiers have killed tens of thousands and allegedly perpetrated scores of war crimes. Ukrainian officials have warned that Russia, having been pushed back in recent months, might be gearing up for a fresh offensive come spring. The US said it plans to send a Patriot missile system in a show of accelerated Western engagement, and could also equip Kyiv with Bradley Fighting Vehicles. Germany and Poland have pledged to stop buying Russian oil by the end of this year. Their plans are now taking shape.

People shelter in a Kyiv subway station during a Kremlin rocket attack on Dec. 29.  Photographer: Efrem Lukatsky/AP

It was a brutal year for global equities and bonds, with financial markets suffering their worst year in more than a decade. The hammering of equities took a bite out of everyone’s portfolio, and for billionaires like Elon Musk and FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried, the declines (helped in their cases by self-inflicted wounds) make the year one to forget. A staggering $1.4 trillion was wiped from the fortunes of the richest 500 alone in 2022, though for a few of the uber-wealthy, the year’s drama added to their bottom lines. 

A massive winter storm that walloped huge swaths of the US and Canada killed dozens of people, including at least 39 in Buffalo, and temporarily plunged millions into darkness.  Yet the US narrowly escaped an even worse calamity as natural gas and power supplies buckled across several states, laying bare just how vulnerable the electric grid has become. The storm also kicked off a cascade of disruptions that battered Southwest Airline’s operations, forcing the carrier to cancel thousands of flights and stranding holiday travelers. But Southwest’s massive failure in the days after Christmas was already waiting to happen.

Pele, one of the best soccer players the world has ever seen, died at the age of 82. The Brazilian legend helped his country win three World Cup championships and inspired generations to play the sport. He was the first global soccer superstar, at a time when the media and club team limelight that propelled Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi had yet to fully arrive.

Pele raises the Jues Rimet Trophy after beating Italy in the World Cup final in Mexico City in June 1970. Photographer: ullstein bild/ullstein bild/Getty Images

• Opening of the new US Congress as GOP navigates George Santos’ lies.
• Minutes released from the Federal Reserve’s last policy meeting.
• Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s inauguration as Brazil’s president.
• North Korea expected to make more nuclear threats.
• Pakistan’s December CPI as it negotiates with the IMF for a bailout loan.  

Plastic that enters the recycling system in North America isn’t supposed to end up in India, which has since 2019 banned almost all imports of plastic waste. But even as well-meaning consumers in the US and Canada recycle their trash, it turns out plastic rubbish, including lots of Amazon.com shipping envelopes, is ending up in illegal dumpsites north of New Delhi. There it’s burned for fuel, with the resulting toxic emissions inhaled by local residents. Bloomberg Green retraced the 7,000-mile trail of waste. 

Workers leave after a day’s work at a plastic scrap contractor’s yard in Muzaffarnagar District, Uttar Pradesh, India. Photographer: Prashanth Vishwanathan/Bloomberg

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