China’s $9 Trillion Debt Problem Is A Global One, Too

 

Article by William Pesek

 

Economists wondering where China’s economy is heading have a Lehman Brothers problem on their hands.

 

Too often, analyses on the more than $9 trillion of debt that state banks and other creditors are owed by China’s local government investment arms are framed around a 2008-like crisis. Blame it on breathless speculation about the “Lehman moment” many believe is sure to devastate Asia’s biggest economy.

 

The common thread is a realization that a Chinese model that worked so well for three decades is facing an existential crisis. Even if China doesn’t plunge into a crisis that shakes the globe, the rapid growth needed to surpass the U.S. economy by 2030 or 2040 seem over.

 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/williampesek/2023/09/15/chinas-9-trillion-debt-problem-is-a-global-one-too/?sh=4aded4ae19c7

MIT and Tec de Monterrey team up to boost innovation in Mexico

 

By REBECA RUIZ | MÉXICO CITY CAMPUS

 

In collaboration with Tec de Monterrey, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has presented the MIT REAP Focus Mexico initiative, an entrepreneurship acceleration program from MIT.

 

The aim of the initiative is to identify and propose projects and programs that foster social and economic development through science, technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

 

Five work teams have been assembled across Mexico in Chihuahua, Querétaro, Guadalajara, Guanajuato, and Mexico City. Participating in each group are universities, government, entrepreneurs, and companies that will promote initiatives to accelerate development.

 

MIT REAP Director Travis Hunter explained that the aim of this program is for enterprising communities from around the world to get involved with MIT to strengthen business ecosystems through innovation.

 

https://conecta.tec.mx/en/news/national/entrepreneurs/mit-and-tec-de-monterrey-team-boost-innovation-mexico

Mexico seeks to solidify rank as top U.S. trade partner, push further past China

Luis Torres - July 11, 2023

 
Mexico became the top U.S. trading partner at the beginning of 2023, with total bilateral trade between the two countries totaling $263 billion during the first four months of this year.
 
Mexico's emergence followed fractious U.S. relations with China, which had moved past Canada to claim the top trading spot in 2014. The dynamic changed in 2018 when the U.S. imposed tariffs on China’s goods and with subsequent pandemic-era supply-chain disruptions that altered international trade and investment flows worldwide.
 
Mexico’s gains mirror its rise in manufacturing, a key component of goods moving between it and the U.S. During the first four months of 2023, total trade of manufactured goods between Mexico and the U.S. reached $234.2 billion.
 
Mexico positioned as a manufacturing base
 
Mexico’s expanding manufacturing base has offered an alternative to producing in China. Sourcing or producing goods in a nearby country is sometimes referred to as “nearshoring.”
 
More activity in Mexico would support increased bilateral manufacturing with the U.S. It would also bolster Mexico’s standing as the U.S.’ leading manufacturing trading partner, a ranking it achieved in 2022.
 
Luis Torres is a senior business economist in the San Antonio Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
 
https://www.dallasfed.org/research/economics/2023/0711

TSMC triples Arizona chip plant investment, Biden hails project

 

By Steve Holland and Jane Lanhee Lee

PHOENIX, Ariz., Dec 6 (Reuters) - Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC (2330.TW) on Tuesday said it would more than triple its planned investment at its new Arizona plant to $40 billion, among the largest foreign investments in U.S. history, as President Joe Biden visited and hailed the project.

The expanded investment is a big win for Biden after supply chain issues disrupted the U.S. economy early in his presidency.

Biden's recent trip to Asia convinced him the United States is in a better position to lead the world economy in the years ahead "if we keep our focus," he said.

Mark Liu, chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd, known as TSMC, estimated annual revenue of $10 billion when the two planned chip fabrication plants open, adding that customers would have annual sales of $40 billion from products using chips made there.

https://www.reuters.com/technology/biden-visit-taiwans-tsmc-chip-plant-arizona-hail-supply-chain-fixes-2022-12-06/

Biden to visit Taiwanese chip manufacturer TSMC's Arizona plant on Dec 6

 

By David Shepardson

 

U.S. President Joe Biden plans to travel to Taiwanese chip manufacturer TSMC's Arizona facility on Dec. 6 to promote the administration's push to boost U.S. semiconductor manufacturing, the White House said.

 

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (2330.TW), , a major supplier to Apple Inc (AAPL.O) and the world's largest contract chipmaker, is constructing a $12 billion plant in Phoenix, Arizona, Reuters reported last week. The company is holding a "tool-in" ceremony in Arizona on Dec. 6.

 

Both the United States and Europe are putting up billions of dollars in incentives to get companies to make chips closer to home, courting Taiwanese firms in particular.

 

In August, Biden signed legislation funding $52.7 billion for semiconductor chips manufacturing and research. The "Chips and Science" law also includes an investment tax credit for chip plants estimated to be worth $24 billion.

 

By subsidizing U.S. chip manufacturing and expanding research funding, the law aims to alleviate a persistent shortage that has affected everything from cars and weapons to washing machines and video games.

 

https://www.reuters.com/technology/biden-visit-taiwanese-chip-manufacturer-tsmcs-arizona-plant-dec-6-white-house-2022-11-30/

The 10 Best AI Real Estate Solutions in 2021

 

Ongoing global pandemic restrictions have directly impacted traditional real estate processes—and, quite shockingly, for the better. 

Thousands of firms, realtors, appraisers, mortgage lenders, and others have had to navigate the crisis by integrating fast-evolving PropTech, and for a good reason. Sophisticated AI solutions for real estate can handle predefined data flows, learn user behavior, streamline and accelerate workflows, and enable more accurate appraisals and near-term market predictions.

Homeowners, potential renters, and buyers are embracing these real estate AI apps, and investors know and recognize that real estate is the worlds' largest asset class (as stated by Harvard Business School professor Arthur Segel). The value of housing in the U.S. is $16 trillion, and real estate is the highest wealth source for most families. 

These ten companies deploy AI in real estate in exciting and impactful ways to quickly engage with prospects, increase sales, manage tenants and properties, and more.

1. TRIRIGA 

2. Houzen

3. Hyro

4. Rex

5. Zillow

6. Compass

7. Redfin

8. HouseCanary

9. Trulia

10. Skyline AI

https://www.hyro.ai/post/ten-best-ai-real-estate-solutions-in-2021

AI in Restaurants? The Possibilities are Limitless

 
January 28, 2022 | Steve Roberts 

Fifty percent of U.S. restaurant operators are planning to implement some form of automation technology in the next two to three years, according to a recent report.

We learned in December that TikTok was teaming up with a ghost-kitchen company to open 300 virtual kitchens. This won’t necessarily push the technologies involved any further, but as far as marketing goes, it’s brilliant, and if it allows users to order meals directly from TikTok, it could be a game-changer, with other social-media platforms following suit. 

Where we’re likely to see the biggest strides in restaurant tech in the years to come, though, is in the development of new applications for artificial intelligence. The global AI market as a whole is expected to grow to a value of $190.61 billion by 2025.

https://www.qsrmagazine.com/outside-insights/ai-restaurants-possibilities-are-limitless