US Imports Now Arrive by Plane

The African Elephant Summit convened in Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park on Monday with several nations asking to sell their ivory stockpiles in a one-off sale to raise funds for wildlife conservation. Nations attending the summit included Angola, Botswana, Kenya, Namibia and others.

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, otherwise known as CITES, has banned the sale of ivory since 1989 to prevent poaching of elephants, the largest land mammal on earth and an endangered species. According to the World Wildlife Fund, there are about 475,000 elephants left worldwide, with the majority — an estimated 415,000 — residing in Africa. Yet in some countries, elephants are a growing source of human-animal conflict.

“We need assistance. These elephants are multiplying at a dangerous rate, growing at 5% per annum,” said Fulton Mangwanya, the director-general of Zimbabwe Parks & Wildlife Management Authority, during a press briefing. He said Zimbabwe is home to 100,000 elephants, a population that is relatively robust thanks to the poaching ban.

Western nations remain adamant against the sale of ivory.

“Conservation and prevention of illegal wildlife trade is an international issue because of the involvement of criminal syndicates,” said Niculin Jager, the Swiss ambassador to Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi.

Regional wildlife conservationists have voiced support for additional funding to manage human-elephant conflict, but do not support raising funds through the sale of ivory stockpiles, noting that any such sale could encourage renewed poaching.

African countries participating in the summit will have to decide whether to remain with CITES if the one-off sale of ivory is not permitted, Mangwanya said.

South Africa’s power utility, Eskom, is implementing rolling power cuts every day this week due to capacity shortages. Eskom appealed to consumers to reduce their power usage and switch off energy-intensive machines. In a briefing dated October 25, 2021, Eskom had noted it would need about 20% additional power for the current period. (Sources: Eskom, Bloomberg)

Global supply chain disruptions and congested seaports have led to a boom in freight-by-air. In fact, by value of goods moved, through March of this year, Chicago O’Hare International Airport was America’s top port. According to The Economist, Chicago is the port of entry for Apple products heading to the U.S. after assembly in China. (Source: The Economist)

A survey conducted this month by Vistage Worldwide Inc. for The Wall Street Journal found that 57% of small businesses expected the U.S. economy to continue performing badly into next year, up from 42% in April. Entrepreneurs who were surveyed cited supply chain issues, rising prices and labor shortages as the largest factors. Small businesses in manufacturing, consumer products and consumer services were seen as most affected. (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

The New York Times has found that payments to France have cost Haiti between $21 billion and $115 billion in lost economic growth since its independence in 1804. Twenty-one years after Haiti’s independence, King Charles X sent an emissary to Haiti demanding that France receive “reparations” of 150 million French francs over five years. Fearing military invasion and seeking international trade agreements, Haiti agreed to make these payments, despite lacking funds to do so. This resulted in borrowing that weighed down the Haitian economy and prevented development. (Source: The New York Times)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called on EU nations to support his country in establishing special corridors to resume grain exports. At the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, which began on Sunday, Zelenskyy accused Russia of blocking Ukraine’s seaports, stealing its grain and exporting it to other countries. “We need to agree on a corridor, and Russia will not be able to stand against the leading countries of the world.” (Source: World Economic Forum)

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Chinese companies listed in New York and Hong Kong markets have lost $2 trillion in value. Factors alarming foreign investors and causing widespread sale of Chinese assets include strict lockdown measures to combat COVID-19, a Chinese crackdown on tech groups and massive debts accrued by Chinese realty firms such as Evergrande. Referring to the prospect of investing in China, Neil Shearing of the research firm Capital Economics said, “Policy risk has increased markedly.” (Source: The Economist)

On Monday, U.S. President Joe Biden announced the establishment of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) with the intention of expanding his country’s economic influence in the region. Signed by Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, the agreement states that signatories will work together on issues including data flow and the digital economy, as well as corporate accountability and climate change. China has not received an invitation to join the IPEF. (Source: White House, Bloomberg)

Should the U.S. import by airplane? Should African nations be able to sell ivory stockpiles?

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