Tomasz Mickiewicz
@tomekmickiewicz.bsky.social
Professor of economics @ Aston University (Birmingham, UK), editor of Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, fellow of Regional Studies Association. Once a member of Movement for Defence of Human and Civil Rights, opposing Soviet regime in Poland.
Brazil’s Electoral Court has fined #Meta $1.3 million for failing to comply with judicial orders during the presidential election, amid allegations that its platforms favoured Flávio #Bolsonaro over #Lula. Democracy belongs to the sovereign people, not to tech billionaires.
Last of three tankers carrying Russian diesel to the U.S. turns back in the Atlantic before reaching New York The Agioi Fanendes turned around 740 km from New York with 300,000 barrels of fuel. None of the three tankers has reached the U.S.
Last of three tankers carrying Russian diesel to the U.S. turns back in the Atlantic before reaching New York
The last of three tankers that U.S. media reported were carrying Russian diesel fuel to the United States has changed course before reaching its destination.…
theins.press
We have a new blog at @brookings.edu that I'm doing with Kari Heerman on all things global macro. In this piece from yesterday, we look at the US' exorbitant privilege and the convenience yield on US Treasuries, which has been eroding for many years... www.brookings.edu/articles/is-...
Is the US exorbitant privilege eroding? | Brookings
The U.S. no longer borrows more cheaply than its G10 peers. Robin Brooks examines how the Treasury convenience yield has eroded.
brookings.edu
On a similar time scale to the midterms in 2022 (held on Nov 8 and marked with the orange rhomboid), gasoline is up 40% now from the start of the war with Iran vs 7% in 2022 from Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Diesel is up 70% now versus 40% back in 2022... robinjbrooks.substack.com/p/how-will-m...
Trump's tax policies, tariffs, and war in Iran are hitting working and middle class Americans the hardest.
Big oil's profits have tripled with the Iran War. The windfall thus far is nearly $100 billion.
I'd love to say markets are going to trade tomorrow's midterms, but they won't with the huge event risk hanging over everyone's heads from the possibility of an imminent restart of the war with Iran. Everything is a function of oil, including France... robinjbrooks.substack.com/p/markets-on...
Corruption at the White House: ‘If you give a bully your lunch money, they’re going to ask for more’ - giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... via @FT
Corruption crusader Donald Sherman: ‘If you give a bully your lunch money, they’re going to ask for more’
Lawyer helms one of the few bodies dedicated to exposing graft in the US government
giftarticle.ft.com
FEDWATCH: “.. The AI bubble has been deflating since June, but the unwind may not be over yet. Relative to the S&P Equal Weight ex-AI index, there is still room for further mean reversion.”
GDP growth bounced back to 3.4% last quarter. That pushes the average under Trump up to 2.3% — still a full point below the 3.3% average under Biden.
'We would not be surprised if the ships will ultimately head towards Brazil': New Jersey governor threatens to block delivery of Russian diesel cargoes - giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... via @FT
New Jersey governor threatens to block delivery of Russian diesel cargoes
Mikie Sherrill calls Trump’s deal with Putin ‘corrupt and illegal’ as she weighs moves to stop shipment to east coast port
giftarticle.ft.com
Elon Musk has plowed nearly half a billion dollars into elections in the 2026 cycle, a spending spree that makes him the single, largest disclosed donor in modern American politics and one of the Republican Party's largest-ever benefactors. https://cnn.it/3U1PH3K
Iran hits Hormuz tanker with limpet mines in apparent tactical shift ft.trib.al/O8ENNcj
Iran hits Hormuz tanker with limpet mines in apparent tactical shift
Ship damaged on Thursday by attackers in speedboat in first such incident since 2019
ft.trib.al
The Trump administration is pressuring Lithuania to reopen Klaipėda port for Belarusian potash exports despite EU sanctions, Politico reports. Washington wants to reduce US reliance on Canadian supplies. One Eastern European official said Lithuania’s answer is effectively: “No.” #Lithuania
How North Korea became a hacking superpower - giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... via @FT
How North Korea became a hacking superpower
Cash-strapped state, cut off by sanctions, has invested heavily in cyber warfare to help support itself
giftarticle.ft.com
Brent oil $117.55. $118.35 gets us to a new multiyear high, notes Schwab. ⛽️
Figure of the day from The Economist: '90%, the proportion of North Korea’s global trade that is with China.'
'$1,100 is how much researchers at Yale estimate Donald Trump’s tariffs will cost the average American household per year.' (The Economist, 27th Oct 2026)
❗️The US and Russia discussed the Polar Train LNG gas project in Alaska in exchange for easing sanctions on Arctic LNG-2, according to the FT. According to former CEO Joel Riddle, the Russian company Novatek funded the project and set its strategic direction even before receiving the necessary
What this shows is that kissing Trump’s ass always fails. He reacts only to pressure. In this case terrible US polling, screaming Republicans, and catastrophic damage being done to US defense companies.
The Kyiv Independent@kyivindependent.com · 3w ago⚡️Starshield operations restored to speeds of more than 400 km/h, Ukraine's Defense Ministry says. "We record a speed of more than 400 kilometers per hour, the connection is stable," the ministry said.
A wild story: the CEO of a US energy company whose plans were discussed during the Witkoff-Kushner-Putin negotiations resigns. Why? He learned that his company's main investor is a sanctioned Russian company, not the UAE www.nytimes.com/2026/10/23/u...
In U.S. Gas Talks With Kremlin, Hidden Financing for Alaska Project Emerges (Gift Article)
Interviews and documents show a Russian energy giant secretly funded a U.S. firm. The deal has been discussed in talks to end the war in Ukraine.
nytimes.com
❗️In the first eight months of 2026, Russian airports closed 4.5 times more often than the previous year, and airline losses for this year alone could exceed 200 billion rubles ($2.45 billion), — Forbes.
"France’s budget is under huge pressure from spending on pensioners, which both pushes up borrowing and crowds out other priorities. Pensions are the largest component of French public spending, which at 57% of GDP is the highest in the G7." (The Economist)
"An American food importer sued the Trump administration over its 50% tariffs on Canadian goods. The levies, which apply to about $20bn of Canada’s exports to America, took effect in August. Gellert Global Group said the tariffs are affecting its imports." (The Economist)
So, US daily consumption of diesel about 535,000 tonnes. That 300,000 slightly more than half a day’s consumption. If/when price doesn’t decrease, Ukraine is now the conveniet scapegoat? giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... Trump agrees deal with Putin for Russia to release diesel on to global market
Trump agrees deal with Putin for Russia to release diesel on to global market
Pact between Washington and Moscow comes just weeks before critical US midterm elections
giftarticle.ft.com
Oil tanker captains are being paid $100,000 a month to travel through the Strait of Hormuz, with an extra $50,000 in "danger money" for each trip, as shipowners try to keep crude flowing even as Iran steps up its assaults on vessels. Read today's FT exclusive on #FTEdit 👉 ft.trib.al/yLYIzU4
Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump's envoys who claim to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, while visiting Moscow regularly, are simultaneously discussing their own multibillion-dollar oil deal with Lukoil, a Russian company. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/03/u...
U.S.-Russia Talks on Ukraine Now Involve an Oil Deal Tied to Trump Allies
President Vladimir V. Putin brought up a sale of Russian energy assets with President Trump’s envoys, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, pushing a deal that raises new questions about conflicts of inter...
nytimes.com
