Prepare for a multipolar currency world

Gillian Tett, Financial Times (London, UK), March 30, 2023 – ….Vladimir Putin pledged to adopt the renminbi for “payments between Russia and countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America”, in a bid to displace the dollar….The net result, the [Centre for Economic Policy Research] predicts, is that a “multipolar” currency world could emerge in the coming years, of the sort that Jim O’Neill [the former Goldman Sachs economist who launched the “Brics” tag] is now calling for. That would not be as dramatic a switch as Putin or Xi might like to see, or that Washington alarmists fear.But, to my mind, it seems a sensible medium-term bet….
Gillian Tett is chair of the editorial board and editor-at-large, US of the Financial Times.
RUSSIA TALKS UP PROSPECTS OF BRICS COUNTRIES DEVELOPING NEW CURRENCY
CHINA, BRAZIL REACH DEAL TO TRADE IN THEIR OWN CURRENCIES
Cointelegraph, March 31, 2023 – A top Russian official has reportedly claimed that the countries of the BRICS alliance — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — are working on creating their own currency….
In a related development this week, China and Brazil reached a deal to trade in their own currencies. The move will remove the U.S. dollar as the intermediary, further empowering both nations to distance themselves from the world’s reserve currency.

ASEAN Finance Ministers and Central Banks Consider Dropping US Dollar, Euro and Yen

ASEAN Briefing, March 29, 2023 – An official meeting of all ASEAN Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors kicked off on Tuesday (March 28) in Indonesia. Top of the agenda are discussions to reduce dependence on the US Dollar, Euro, Yen, and British Pound from financial transactions and move to settlements in local currencies.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo has urged regional administrations to start using credit cards issued by local banks and gradually stop using foreign payment systems….
Moving away from Western payment systems is necessary to protect transactions from “possible geopolitical repercussions,” Widodo said.
Of the ASEAN nations, just Singapore has enforced sanctions on Russia, while all other ASEAN nations continue to trade with the country.

‘MADE IN NORTH AMERICA’:

US-Canada Alliance Strives to Bolster Integrated Supply Chain Through Bilateral Infrastructure, Innovation Funding

U.S. FUNDING TO CANADIAN COMPANIES EXPLORING ‘CRITICAL MINERALS’ FOR EVs, BATTERIES
‘TO BOOST GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS OF NORTH AMERICA’
Executivegov.com, March 27, 2023 – This spring, the Biden administration intends to distribute $250 million in contracts under the Defense Production Act to U.S. and Canadian companies exploring critical minerals used in electric vehicles and energy storage batteries….
In an effort to strengthen the semiconductor industry, the U.S. will award $50 million in contracts to vendors from both companies, while Canada will obligate $250 million.
WHY CHINA’S MEXICO MOVES MATTER TO BRITISH COLUMBIA’S SUPPLY CHAIN BUSINESS
Diversion of U.S.-bound cargo away from congested West Coast, cheap labor, continental access via USMCA
Business in Vancouver, March 30, 2023 – Mexico has direct transportation connections to the United States, its labour costs are cheaper than Canada’s and it is part of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (USMCA) free trade agreement.
Chinese companies setting up manufacturing operations in Mexico can take advantage of all three factors and avoid volatile transpacific shipping rates. Chinese companies exporting to North America through Mexico can take advantage of factors one and two.

U.S., EU lawmakers feel cut out of Biden’s electric vehicle trade agenda

WOULD QUALIFY EUROPEAN AUTOMAKERS FOR U.S. TAXPAYER DOLLARS
Politico, March 31, 2023 – The potential deal between the Biden administration and the EU would qualify European automakers for some of the taxpayer subsidies embedded in the Inflation Reduction Act, the $369 billion climate and tax legislation that the U.S. Congress passed last year.
Those negotiations will set a precedent, the lawmakers worry, that could cut Congress and the EU’s member countries out of decisions that carry major political and economic consequences. In the U.S., lawmakers said this week they are weighing action to reclaim their authority.

EURASIAN UNION:

Putin’s plan for a new Russian Empire includes both Ukraine and Belarus

WOULD CREATE ‘SOLID BASIS FOR THE EURASIAN ECONOMIC UNION’
Atlantic Council, March 29, 2923 – The idea of a union between Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine was not new and first gained prominence during the collapse of the USSR when promoted by Soviet dissident Alexander Solzhenitsyn.
East Slavic unity had both ideological and practical appeal for Putin. It would secure his place in Russian history while also creating a solid basis for the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), Putin’s alternative to the EU.
RUSSIA WILL NOT LEAVE WTO
‘WTO FORMED THE PREMISE’ FOR EURASIAN UNION
teleSur, March 27, 2023 – Russia will not leave the World Trade Organization (WTO), despite attempts by some countries to push Russia out of the organization, a Russian diplomat said in an interview with Sputnik this Monday….
[Dmitry Birichevsky, Director of the Department for Economic Cooperation of the Russian Foreign Ministry] also said that the rules of the WTO formed the premise for the functioning of the Eurasian Financial Union, and Russia, as a part of the organization, was obliged to comply with the WTO rules.
RUSSIA REMAKING EEU TRADE RELATIONS IN AN INCREASINGLY FRACTURED WORLD
BUILDING ‘NEW LOGISTICS CHAINS’
bne IntelliNews, March 28, 2023 – Expanding the geography of the EEU’s international links and contacts with countries in the Asia-Pacific Region, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America would help boost exports of the union’s products and build new logistics chains,” Putin stressed.
The Kremlin’s rhetoric has already highlighted the non-aligned multinational organisations such as Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, the Commonwealth of Independent States, ASEAN and the Latin America trade bloc MERCOSUR, while updating guidelines for the global and regional positioning of the EEU.

O’Neill Urges BRICS Bloc to Expand, Challenge Dollar’s Dominance

Yahoo! Finance | Bloomberg, March 28, 2023 – Jim O’Neill, the former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. chief economist who coined the acronym BRIC, said the bloc of nations that later adopted the name should expand and work to counter the dollar’s dominance.
He argues that the dollar’s dominance means the burden of dollar-denominated debt for other nations rises and falls with the exchange rate, destabilizing their own monetary policy, with the greenback’s movements ultimately playing a larger role than domestic decisions.

THE NEW MERCANTILISM –
‘REGIONAL PROTECTIONISM’:

Interview with Shannon O’Neil on the Globalization Myth

‘THIS IS NOT OPTIMAL, BUT GIVEN THE REALITIES…IS WHERE WE ARE’
The Wire, China, March 26, 2023
Q. Is there a danger with regionalization that protectionism grows, at least between the regions?
O’Neil: It is a danger, and it’s a reality….
One of the reasons we’ve seen the rise of regional free trade agreements, and regional bodies, is precisely because when it comes to these thornier issues, it’s easier for a smaller group of countries to agree on, diminish or even eliminate them. This is not optimal, but given the realities, the second best solution in terms of economic theory is where we are. You can work with a like-minded group of nations. Given the growing number of frictions in trade around the world, the forums where countries are able to take those on are going to be smaller groups, and often regional ones.
Shannon K. O’Neil is currently a vice president at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Biden bureaucrats may exacerbate supply chain woes

Would be only railroad to extend through all of North America

RAILROAD MERGER DETRIMENTAL TO U.S. ECONOMY, SUPPLY CHAIN, WORKERS AT AMERICAN RAILROADS AND PORTS

DataDrivenInvestor, March 10, 2023 – The monopolistic advantage of the newly named Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) Railway could employ to charge any price for vital supply chain routes or divert shipments altogether would be exacerbated by the fact that it would be the only railroad to extend through all of North America. With such a competitive advantage over their peers, the new CPKC railway would be provided with a level of control over key interchanges and routes that would give them the power to raise rates, create bottlenecks, and divert competitor freight.
Antitrust concerns have become so great that some shippers have even entered into litigation against several Class I railroads for alleged price fixing….
Such a merger could be detrimental not only to our economy and supply chain but also to workers at American railroads and ports. Keith Creel, the CEO of Canadian Pacific Railway has already discussed how the new railway could capitalize on the merger by diverting freight from U.S. ports to those in Mexico such as the Port of Lazaro Cardenas….As they complete their final review of this merger, commissioners at the Surface Transportation Board should take this all into account and act accordingly.

GLOBALISM’S ‘FRAGMENTATION’:

The great global crack-up

‘WORLD DIVIDED INTO ECONOMIC (AND GEOPOLITICAL) BLOCS
HOLDS SERIOUS RISKS’
Gulf Times (Qatar), March 11, 2023 – While some hope to balance rivalry with engagement – the European Union views China as “a partner for co-operation, an economic competitor, and a systemic rival” – the dynamics are obviously complex.
The Covid-19 crisis and Russia’s war against Ukraine have also contributed to fragmentation, as they have spurred countries to embrace “onshoring,” “near-shoring,” and “friend-shoring” with a growing sense of urgency. Yes, the pandemic showed that efficiency and cost-effectiveness do not necessarily square with economic security. But while adjustments are needed to strengthen supply chain resilience, returning to a world divided into economic (and geopolitical) blocs holds serious risks.

AFRICAN UNION: CONTINENTAL HEALTHCARE?

Interconnected healthcare systems in Africa require political will from North African leaders: Amref official

Daily News Egypt, March 12, 2023 – Daily News Egypt spoke to George Kimathi director of the Institute of Capacity Development in Amref Health Africa about possible approaches for improving the resilience of healthcare systems throughout the continent:
“I can’t wait for the moment when all international health organisations are working with us as one continent….”But overall, I am optimistic because in terms of health, now we are all gathering under the umbrella of Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, in the economical side, we have the continental free trade area and politically we gather under the umbrella of the African Union. So, we have a well-established mechanism to bring African countries together.”
AFRICAN UNION IS MAKING ‘GOOD PROGRESS’ IN SETTING UP ITS MEDICINES AGENCY
Health Policy Watch, March 8, 2023 – The African Union (AU) is making good progress in operationalising the African Medicines Agency (AMA), having recently formed its Bureau and currently shaping its governing board…. AMA is being set up as a specialised health agency of the AU to ensure the regulatory harmonisation of medicines across Africa….
“As the African Union, from the very beginning our thoughts have been to move from the fragmented 55 member states’ regulatory authorities, where manufacturers have to submit their [product] dossiers to each regulator, to the five regional economic communities (RECs),” said Chamdimba.

NORTH AMERICA and the NEW MERCANTILISM’:

U.S., Mexico and Canada must embrace one another to compete with China, author says

CFR’S O’NEIL: ‘WE HAVE NOT REGIONALIZED ENOUGH’
Dallas Morning News, March 8, 2023 – Is globalization a myth? That’s the argument of Shannon K. O’Neil, vice president and senior fellow for Latin American studies at the Council on Foreign Relations….
As North America tries to lure manufacturing away from China, the U.S., Mexico and Canada need to embrace one another and capitalize on a once-in-a-generation “upheaval that could and should benefit North America, particularly the Texas-Mexico border,” said O’Neil….
“We tend to think globalization is robbing us of jobs. But what’s actually taking jobs away in many ways is that we have not regionalized enough, that we have not tied together in as many or as deep regional supply chains as we’ve seen in other places. We’re competing against Asia, not just China. We’re competing against Europe, not just Germany. And the U.S. is still trying to play this game by itself when the rest of the world is playing on a team.”
OPINION: IT’S NORTH AMERICA’S MOMENT IN WASHINGTON
Yahoo! Finance, March 9, 2023 – At their meeting in January, the three North American leaders said they intended “to forge stronger regional supply chains, as well as promote targeted investment” in strategic sectors like semiconductors and batteries. Seeing North America as a competitiveness zone — one that helps producers in all three nations meet or beat foreign competition — is why we did NAFTA in the first place. But it has taken a resurgence of great-power competition, this time with China, to make the United States fully appreciate the benefits of integration with its neighbours….
US DOLLAR GETS PUSHED IN GLOBAL TRADE
SANCTIONS AGAINST RUSSIA COUNTER-PRODUCTIVE
Gulf Today (UAE), March 8, 2023 – It looks like that the economic sanctions imposed by the G7 and other European Union (EU) countries against Russia in the wake of the war in Ukraine turns out to be counter-productive. This is to be seen in the oil exports of Russia and the payments being made in non-dollar denominations by countries like India and China.

ASEAN:

Southeast Asia the ‘new China’ for
supply chains: business group

SAYS REGION SHOULD BE ‘SUPPLY CHAIN OF THE WORLD’
Al Jazeera, March 9, 2023 – In an interview, Arsjad Rasjid, chairperson of the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC), said the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) should be the “supply chain of the world.”

Can Lula rally Mercosur?

ENVISIONED SOUTH AMERICAN EQUIVALENT OF EUROPEAN UNION

LOFTY GOALS OF CUSTOMS UNION, UNHINDERED MOVEMENT OF PEOPLE-GOODS-CAPITAL, REGIONAL PARLIAMENT, REGIONAL CURRENCY
FDI Intelligence, March 9, 2023 – After years of irrelevance and stillness, the comeback of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Lula) to Brazil’s presidency is shaping up as the catalyst for the bloc to regroup and finally live up to initial expectations — from boosting regional trade to streamlining opportunities with major economic blocs the world over.
Encompassing 300 million people and the largest economic area in the Southern Hemisphere, Mercosur was created in 1991 as the North American Free Trade Agreement — now the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) — and the Maastricht Treaty (that formed the EU) were being negotiated.
Its founding members, Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, set themselves lofty goals of becoming a South American equivalent of the EU with a customs union, unhindered movement of people, goods and capital, and a regional parliament.

EURASIAN UNION and ‘CHINA-RUSSIA ALIGNMENT’:

America Misses the Power Objective

Real Clear Defense, March 4, 2023 – America’s antagonism toward both China and Russia “further contributes to the consolidation of China-Russia alignment” because “[c]onfrontation with both China and Russia results in a convergence of the two countries’ views of the U.S. as their greatest security threat.” Washington’s hostile approach to both Eurasian great powers is a strategic error….
America’s primary geopolitical interest should be to maintain the political pluralism of Eurasia, not foster a closer relationship between the two most powerful Eurasian countries.
RUSSIA IN REVIEW, FEB. 24-MARCH 3, 2023 – Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center, March 3, 2023 – China’s share in the total foreign trade volume of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) reached 23% in 2022, Eurasian Economic Commission spokesperson Iya Malkina told a briefing on March 1. (Interfax, 03.01.23)
WAR IN UKRAINE ‘STEMS FROM THE ORANGE REVOLUTION, A HUMILIATING ORDEAL FOR PUTIN’ – France24, Feb 26, 2023 – In 2013, an association proposed by the European Union to post-Soviet countries, namely Ukraine, set off the powder keg. The project clashed with Putin’s desire to integrate Ukraine into a customs union, the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), led by Russia.

EU and THE ‘NEW MERCANTILISM’:

Optimism for the European Union in the face of crises

Wilson Center, March 2, 2023 – Putin planned on a fractured EU and lack of transatlantic unity as part of his strategy to conquer Ukraine, only to instead face a more unified EU and transatlantic relationship….

‘MADE IN NORTH AMERICA’

Is Mexico set to overtake China as the world’s factory?

‘SERVING THE NORTH AMERICAN POPULATION’
Supply Management, March 3, 2023 – Faced with high costs and extreme lead times, the appeal of nearshoring supply chains to minimise logistical and geopolitical risk picked up steam – and there was Mexico, reachable by land transport offering delivery in mere days, not months.
“When we think about the logistical advantage, being so close to the US and Canada means any goods produced in Mexico can be put on a truck and delivered anywhere in the US within five days with predictability of cost and predictability of delivery, and that allows a simplification of the supply chain, reduction of working capital and predictability in terms of costs,” says Jeremy Bliss, head of subsidiary banking Latin America at HSBC Mexico….
Barreiros adds that the rise of Mexico also requires a shift in how companies view the entire region. “North America must be viewed as a wider, interdependent, manufacturing cluster of the US, Canada and Mexico – orchestrated with the broader intent of securing efficient supply chains serving the North American population.”
This is a classic bait and switch. The true logistical advantage for the United States would have been to keep manufacturing and supply chains within our nation.
BUILDING A NORTH AMERICAN ELECTRIC VEHICLE SUPPLY CHAIN
‘ENHANCE NORTH AMERICAN SECURITY’
Brookings, Feb 28, 2023 – Increasing and diversifying Canadian production of critical minerals will enhance North American security and increase trilateral trade. Building North American supply chains from mineral exploration to production for these elements presents an important opportunity for job creation and economic growth…. Here is how Canada should respond. Priority one is ensuring our regulations and trade rules with the U.S. continue to be aligned so we are full participants in the transition to EVs…. Canada needs to keep pace with the U.S. in the transition to electrification to build an integrated and resilient North American supply chain.
RAISING LABOR STANDARDS: A MEANS TOWARDS A MORE COMPETITIVE NORTH AMERICA – Brookings, Feb 28, 2023 – Under the [USMCA], companies that fail to respect the new Mexican labor law guaranteeing workers’ right to organize and bargain collectively risk paying higher tariff rates or even losing access to the U.S. market altogether….The USMCA also recognizes the importance of the North American automotive industry, which supports more than 7 million jobs across the region, by adopting strong rules of origin (ROO) to ensure the cars and trucks that qualify for duty-free treatment are largely made with content from North America…. In addition, it requires that nearly half of the vehicle be made by workers who make at least $16 per hour on average….These USMCA provisions make great strides in rolling back decades of anti-worker trade policies and incorporating strong, enforceable labor standards that must be included in future international trade and commercial agreements.
This is duplicitous globalism. When the national industry of the United States was first being dismantled, and jobs were being “off-shored” to China and third-world nations, globalists at Brookings were among the “free trade” chorus howling that labor measures like those above that favored US workers would be “protectionist.”
But now, under the banner of strengthening regional industry/infrastructure to make “a more competitive North America,” all of the sudden Mexico’s labor force needs to be protected by US taxpayers, using regional regulation that would usurp the sovereignty of nations.

African Union: future role in BRICS+ and G20

AU JOINING EU AS G20 MEMBER ‘LIKELY TO MATERIALIZE’

COULD LEAD TO NETWORK OF ALL REGIONAL BLOCS LED BY BRICS NATIONS
Modern Diplomacy, Feb 23, 2023 – Calls for other regional blocks to join the EU as members of G20 have been voiced years ago…. It appears that the likelihood of full membership of the AU in the G20 is quite high and likely to materialize in the coming years….

The question with respect to the second scenario is: if the AU is part of the “inner circle” than why would other key regional groupings formed by BRICS countries not have the same capability? The latter issue is essentially resolved in the third scenario, whereby the AU could lead the formation of a platform for regional integration arrangements of the respective BRICS economies.
A possible format for such a common platform for the regional organizations of BRICS countries could be the BEAMS formation that brings together BIMSTEC (India), Eurasian Economic Union (Russia), African Union (South Africa), MERCOSUR (Brazil), SCO (China).

THE ‘NEW MERCANTILISM’ – REGIONALIZATION’S ‘GREEN TRADE WAR’

Canada must join other ‘friend-shoring’ countries to win the clean energy race

REGIONALIZION ‘IN LOCKSTEP WITH THE CLEAN ENERGY TRANSITION’

Canada’s National Observer, Ollie Sheldrick op-ed, Jan 26, 2023 – ….Flash forward to the 2023 World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, where countries raised concerns over a “green trade war” following a flurry of regionally restricted economic agreements and clean energy subsidies. So, what changed — and why? If there was a tipping point, it likely occurred last summer. In the wake of America’s Inflation Reduction Act, we’re witnessing the beginnings of a new era of regionalization — or as Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland called it, “friend-shoring” — happening in lockstep with the clean energy transition….. Thus, we see a shift toward regionalization, particularly between countries with similar climate ambitions, as they forge trade partnerships that will ensure the low-carbon products they’re prioritizing will also find a fair price on the global (or regional) market. An alignment of values, as it were.

Gardner’s decades-old strategy
Regionalization “happening in lockstep with the clean energy transition” is a globalist strategy that was laid out almost 50 years ago by globalist Richard N. Gardner, in his April, 1974 Foreign Affairs magazine (Council on Foreign Relations) essay, “The Hard Road to World Order.”
Gardner wrote that United Nations “central institutions” for a one-world government could not be empowered without first inventing “institutions of limited jurisdiction and selected membership” in an “end run around national sovereignty, eroding it piece by piece.”
Gardner’s “institutions of limited jurisdiction” included “regional agencies” that would require “continued strengthening” and would be “charged with protecting the world’s environment….” 

NORTH AMERICA’ S ‘REGIONAL SUPPLY CHAINS’

How a Texas border city is shaping the future of global trade

JOINT ‘BORDER SECURITY’?

‘CUSTOMS WOULD BE HANDLED JOINTLY BY AMERICAN AND MEXICAN AUTHORITIES, ENTAILING ONLY ONE INSPECTION’
Jordan News | New York Times, Jan 22, 2023 – The Southern California ports grew exponentially during an era of globalization centered on China. Laredo appears primed to assume a similar role in the anticipated next phase of globalization, one centered on regional supply chains, with American companies forging greater reliance on Mexico and Central America….

GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL and ISRAEL:

Regional monarchs nervously watching events in Israel-Palestine

For GCC’s two Abraham Accords members, such violence poses dilemmas
Responsible Statecraft, Feb 13, 2023 – Although the UAE and/or Bahrain are highly unlikely to abrogate their normalization deals with Israel, Abu Dhabi and Manama must strike a balance. On one hand, both Gulf states remain interested in all the benefits of the Abraham Accords, including trade, investment opportunities, technology transfers, defense coordination, and intelligence sharing with Israel, as well as political gains in Washington. On the other, however, Emirati and Bahraini leaders can’t ignore domestic and regional considerations.
As polls demonstrate, Emirati and Bahraini public opinion opposes normalization, as is the case across the Arab world.

AFRICAN UNION – REGIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE:

Dakar Financing Summit: $160 billion worth of infrastructure projects for Africa

African Development Bank Group, Feb 2, 2023 – The African Union Development Agency and the Government of Senegal are co-hosting the summit….
The 69 projects, which come from all five of Africa’s regions, are being implemented by regional bodies and unions, including ECOWAS, COMESA and SADC.

EUROPEAN UNION vs. NORTH AMERICA:

EU Could End Reliance On Chinese Battery Supply Chain By 2030 Says T&E

CleanTechnica, Jan 30, 2023 – In just a few months since the launch of the US IRA, investments into battery factories, new mines, and electric vehicles have mushroomed in North America.This is in response to the requirement that 40% of battery metals need to come from the US and half of all battery components made in North America from 2024 for the full EV tax credit to apply….
 “Today half of the lithium ion battery cells used in the EU are already made there. But the Inflation Reduction Act has changed the rules of the game, and Europe needs to put more money on the table or risk losing planned battery factories and jobs to America.”

Report: Socialist Argentina and Brazil Plan Joint South American Currency

Breitbart, Jan 23, 2023 – The leftist governments of Argentina and Brazil will soon begin proceedings for the creation of a new common currency, tentatively called “sur” (South), the Financial Times claimed in a report on Sunday.

EURASIAN UNION:

Putin: Russia will do ‘everything possible’ to deepen integration in Eurasian Economic Union: President

TO BECOME POWERFUL POLE OF ‘EMERGING MULTIPOLAR WORLD’
Anadolu Agency (Turkey), Jan 23, 2023 – “The (Eurasian Economic) Union has every opportunity to become one of the powerful, independent, self-sufficient poles of the emerging multipolar world, to be a center of attraction for all independent states that share our values and seek cooperation.”

How a Texas border city is shaping the future of global trade

LAREDO LAND PORT: JOINT ‘BORDER SECURITY’?

‘CUSTOMS WOULD BE HANDLED JOINTLY BY AMERICAN AND MEXICAN AUTHORITIES, ENTAILING ONLY ONE INSPECTION’
Jordan News | New York Times, Jan 22, 2023 – The Southern California ports grew exponentially during an era of globalization centered on China. Laredo appears primed to assume a similar role in the anticipated next phase of globalization, one centered on regional supply chains, with American companies forging greater reliance on Mexico and Central America….

THE ‘NEW MERCANTILISM’:
EU vs. NORTH AMERICA

At Davos, European Distress Over a ‘Made in [North*] America’ Law

STIRS TALK OF EU RESPONSE, TRADE WAR

New York Times, Jan 21, 2023 – The U.S. Inflation Reduction Act stirred talk of a trade war, but also proposals for a similar E.U. initiative to stimulate green investment…. The new law, for example, provides buyers of electric vehicles a federal tax credit of up $7,500 — but only if those vehicles are made in North America.
*The deception of the New York Times with their ‘Made in America’ headline is despicable. They buried the real truth in the article.

France to push for ‘Made in Europe’ strategy at Feb EU Summit

Reuters, Jan 16, 2023 – France wants the European Union to adopt a “Made in Europe” industrial strategy in response to the U.S. scheme of subsidies for green investment, to keep industrial firms from leaving Europe and reduce members’ dependence on outside suppliers.

AT ‘NORTH AMERICAN LEADERS SUMMIT’:

Biden Signs On to “Declaration of North America” (DNA) with Canada and Mexico – Is the Planned North America Union Making a Comeback?

by Leo Hohmann, Gateway Pundit, Jan 16, 2023

North American ‘climate mitigation,’ supply chains, infrastructure,
‘labor mobility,’ ‘trilateral health’ plan, ‘continental security’

Declaration of North America (DNA)

whitehouse.gov, Jan 10, 2023
● Climate Change and Environment
….We will continue to implement and build on commitments from the 2021 North American Leaders’ Summit on climate mitigation….
● Competitiveness
….To boost regional competitiveness, the three countries will seek to forge stronger regional supply chains, as well as promote targeted investment, in key industries of the future such as semiconductors and electric vehicle batteries, which will be critical to advance electric vehicle development and infrastructure….
● Migration and Development
….The three countries of North America each made ambitious commitments … to advance labor mobility in North America….
● Health
Trilateral health cooperation will focus on launching an updated North American Plan for Animal and Pandemic Influenza (NAPAPI) ….
● Regional Security
Mexico, the United States, and Canada will focus on strategies to bolster our shared continental security….

Biden, Trudeau, and Mexican president sign declaration making North America more woke

LifeSite News, Jan 16, 2023

EURASIA:

Iran and Russia want to issue new stablecoin backed by gold

‘TOKEN OF THE PERSIAN GULF REGION’

Cointelegraph, Jan 16, 2023 – The potential stablecoin aims to enable cross-border transactions instead of fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar, the Russian ruble or the Iranian rial…. According to the Russian news agency Vedomosti, Iran is working with Russia to create a “token of the Persian Gulf region” that would serve as a payment method in foreign trade.

SOUTH AMERICA:

Lula and the Revival of UNASUR and CELAC

Global Americans, Jan 17, 2023 –  In his first speech, Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Viera announced that “Brazil is back” and that—among other things—the new government would seek to strengthen the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC).
MUJICA WANTS A COMMON NAME, FLAG, AND ANTHEM FOR THE REGION
Travel without a passport throughout Latin America
MercoPress, Jan 17, 2023 – Former Uruguayan President José “Pepe” Mujica has submitted a proposal to the governments of Argentina, Chile, and Brazil, whereby regional integration would include a common anthem, flag, and unified documents for regional travel. The initiative would also provide for some professionals to be allowed to practice in other countries without revalidating their university degrees.
BRAZIL SET TO BOOST REGIONAL INTEGRATION
Plans for single currency, energy infrastructure
BNamericas, Jan 19, 2023 – Officials recently mentioned a plan for a single currency used in certain trade operations among Mercosur members and considerations of Brazil financing a stretch of Argentina’s Nestor Kirchner pipeline to pump gas from Vaca Muerta to Brazil.
“Energy integration is an important part of Brazil’s efforts in the region….
BRAZIL REJOINS COMMUNITY OF LATIN AMERICAN AND CARIBBEAN STATES
‘Full and immediate’ reincorporation into regional bloc
Xinhua (China), Jan 6, 2023 – “The extra-regional partners with whom
CELAC maintains a regular dialogue, including the European Union, China, India, ASEAN and the African Union, were also informed about the country’s return to the regional consultation mechanism,” Brazil’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

SOUTH ASIA:

Moribund SAARC stares at another crisis

Annapurna Express (Nepal), Jan 20, 2023 – As though the India-Pakistan rivalry was not enough, Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 has further pushed SAARC’s future into uncertainty…. This is because it is now Afghanistan’s turn to send a new secretary general. Like the international community, the SAARC member nations have not recognized the Talibans as the legitimate government of Afghanistan.

ARAB GULF:

GCC is ‘probably the fastest-growing economic bloc in the world today’, says HSBC’s Vivek Ramachandran

Gulf News, Jan 19, 2023

REGIONALIZE SUPPLY CHAINS:
FROM COMPLEX SUPPLY CHAINS TO BOTTLENECKS TO INFLATION
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Jan 18, 2023
HOW CAN FIRMS CREATE MORE RESILIENT SUPPLY CHAINS?
[Ana Maria Santacreu, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis research officer] said that firms could:
● Diversify their suppliers so they are not reliant on an individual supplier.
● Create allies and regionalize their supply chains, so that they source their   inputs from just a few nearby countries.
● Increase inventories, so if another shock hit, they could use supplies on hand.

African Union calls on China to help it secure a permanent seat on the UN security council

Morning Star (UK), Jan 12, 2023 – The African Union has called on new Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang to support its push for a permanent seat on the United Nations security council…. In a statement released on Thursday, Mr Qin emphasised China’s partnership with Africa in security and economic development and said that Beijing supported the African Union’s “greater representation and voice at the UN security council and other international organisations.”

AFRICAN BLOCS DISCUSS CHALLENGES TO REALISING SINGLE CURRENCY
The East African, Jan 21,2023 – Gathering in Nairobi under the African Union, representatives from various member states of regional economic blocs (RECs) said exchange rates should be considered a barrier to trade and addressed with urgency. Some of the RECs such as the East African Community have identified a monetary union and a single currency as one way of boosting integration and eliminating the exchange shortfalls that routinely befall traders across the borders.
FREE MOVEMENT OF PEOPLE ACROSS AFRICA: REGIONS ARE SHOWING HOW IT CAN WORK
Five years since Free Movement of Persons protocol signed by African Union
The Conversation, Jan 19, 2023 – Some regional blocs have already advanced quite far in lifting restrictions in cross-border movements. The two most advanced regions are the East African Community (EAC) and the Economic Community of Western African States (ECOWAS). In some cases they allow passport-free cross-border travel within the region. They have even been moving towards adopting regional passports.
EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY TO DECIDE ON REGIONAL CENTRAL BANK LAUNCH IN 2023
Bitcoin.com, Jan 18, 2023 – The East African Community (EAC) will decide during the course of the year 2023 when and where it will locate the envisioned regional central bank, the regional intergovernmental organization’s Peter Mathuki has reportedly said. The setting up of the regional central bank is expected to help the EAC achieve its goal of attaining a single currency regime in three years.
NEXT UP FOR THE AFRICAN MEDICINES AGENCY: APPOINT A DIRECTOR GENERAL
Regulatory harmonization of medicines across the continent
Devex, Jan 16, 2023 – The African Medicines Agency, a specialized health agency of the African Union, enters into another year of setting up its structures. Key to this is the appointment of a director general, which some speculate could happen in the coming months. Once operationalized, the new agency will be tasked with improving regulatory harmonization of medicines across the continent.

Coalition endeavors to strengthen North American trade

MeatPoultry.com, Jan 17, 2023 – Seventeen agriculture groups have urged leaders from the United States, Mexico and Canada gathering last week in Mexico City to take advantage of an “extraordinary opportunity” to strengthen North American trade in agricultural products.

THE ‘NEW MERCANTILISM’:
EU AND ASEAN MUST STEP UP DIGITAL CONNECTIVITY TIES AMID RISING GOPOLITICAL TENSIONS
Stakeholders jostle to shape global, regional economic order
EU Observer, Jan 4, 2023 – Both EU and ASEAN face economic headwinds caused by the war in Ukraine, and geopolitical tensions arising from challenges to the current world order…. The EU needs to strengthen its autonomy and ASEAN needs to regain its centrality as different powers and stakeholders jostle to shape the global or regional economic order and influence the climate and digital agendas.

SOUTH AMERICA – UNASUR:

Lula reaffirms his commitment to Latin American integration

Swissinfo, Jan 1, 2023 – “We will resume integration based on Mercosur, with the revitalization of the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) and other sovereign bodies” that exist in Latin America, he declared before Parliament after being sworn in as the new president of Brazil.

Foreign Affairs writer Foroobar: Globalism not inevitable after all, so embrace the inevitable ‘coming era’ of regionalization

AFTER NEOLIBERALISM: ALL ECONOMICS IS LOCAL
by Rana Foroobar, Foreign Affairs, November-December 2022
(Foreign Affairs is published by the Council on Foreign Relations)
“Globalization will inevitably morph into regionalization and localization…. As global trade and supply chains regionalize and localize, global finance will do the same…. As U.S. policymakers and business leaders seek to address these challenges, they must push back against conventional economic thinking. Instead of assuming that deregulation, financialization and hyper-globalization are inevitable, they should embrace the coming era of regionalization and localizaton….”
Foroobar insults the intelligence of her Foreign Affairs readers, since FA – and all globalists – have for over a century (not just “40 years” as she maintains) preached the “inevitability” of global supply chains and open-border “free trade.”
Now that the reality of globalism’s failure has become painfully obvious, Foroobar attempts to walk back the globalist delusion by selling regionalization to her readers. Seven times in her article, Foroobar deceptively attempts a great bait and switch, by associating globalist “regionalization” with nationalist “localization.”
In doing so, Foroobar simply parrots fellow globalist FA witer Shannon K. O’Neil several issues prior, as well as globalist poobah Klaus Schwab, who, in his book COVID 19: The Great Reset, offered more EU-like regional blocs and regional supply chans as globalism’s post-COVID compromise with nationalism.
But enlightened nationalists don’t accept the “inevitability” of Foroobar’s open-border regionalization any more than the “utopian myth” of open-border globalization. Both are doomed to failure, but apparently not before the globalist delusion imposes more insufferable pain and misery upon the world’s populations.