Government
Why restoring US leadership at the multilaterals is an important step for addressing COVID-19
Why restoring US leadership at the multilaterals is an important step for addressing COVID-19
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By George Ingram
A range of recent articles and analyses have exposed the inadequacy of the U.S. international response to COVID-19 and made the case for a reassertion of U.S. global leadership. What has received insufficient attention is how with one stroke the U.S. can both promote our health security and assert our international leadership. That stroke is to make good on a decade of growing arrears—obligations that are past due—to the multilateral development banks (MDBs). This action would restore U.S. moral and financial leadership to organizations that are providing critical levels of funding and technical knowledge to help developing countries bolster their defenses against the pandemic.
Political context
On May 8, Senate Democrats introduced legislation that would authorize a holistic and extensive U.S. international response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Section 218 of the bill acknowledges the U.S. shortfall to the MDBs by directing the Secretary of the Treasury to clear arrears to the World Bank Group from fiscal years 2019 and 2020. But this is an authorization bill so it does not provide the required funding.
Separately, Republicans and Democrats are developing plans for a fifth CARES Act. But the focus appears to be almost solely on the domestic, not international side.
A group of 26 former members of congress yesterday sent to congressional leaders a letter urging them to “support robust resources for the International Affairs Budget dedicated to America’s leadership in battling this pandemic around the world—to keep us safe and to protect our economic recovery at home.”
A group of civil society organizations has also sought to correct the oversight by joining their technical and policy knowledge, and advocacy capabilities, to outline a constructive $12 billion international program for this expected legislation.
What needs to be brought into this mix of efforts is a fix to the damage being done both to U.S. leadership and the programmatic efforts of multilateral development banks.
Arrears
U.S. arrears to MDBs jeopardize both their effectiveness and our influence in their governance. The MDBs provide two types of finance—non-concessional (at market lending rates) and concessional (grant assistance). All of these arrears are in the concessional category. It is this grant assistance that poor countries—plagued by inadequate domestic resources and often high debt burden—find of greatest value as they often cannot qualify for market lending and definitely cannot afford it. Voting in the concessional windows of MDBs is keyed to contributions, so not only are we undercutting the ability of these institutions to assist the neediest countries, but we are also short-circuiting our own leadership. Beyond that, failure to honor our financial commitment undermines our moral suasion and voice.
In addition to these current funding arrears, the administration’s fiscal year 2021 budget request would add a further shortfall of $267.520 million for the International Development Association and $24.697 million for the African Development Fund, so the fiscal year 2021 appropriations bill should make that up.
MDB COVID-19 actions
These organizations are at the forefront of confronting the challenge of the pandemic. The World Bank Group has committed to over $160 billion of funding over the next 15 months to help countries respond to immediate health consequences of the pandemic and to bolster economic recovery, and it has already allocated $12 billion to 132 projects in 92 countries, mainly through its core institutions (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development or IBRD, and the International Development Association or IDA). It is establishing a new Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Multilateral Fund. Also within the World Bank Group, the International Finance Corporation (IFC)—the private sector window of the World Bank Group—has committed to fast tracking $8 billion to support its investor clients in sustaining employment, and the Multilateral Investment Guaranty Agency (MIGA) is fast tracking $6.5 billion for governments and investors to tackle COVID-19. Every dollar the U.S. has pledged in the most recent replenishment of IDA (IDA-19) garners $27.30 in new commitments for the world’s poorest countries. How otherwise would the U.S. garner such levels and leverage of funding to help the poorest developing countries attack their poverty and stem the pandemic?
Further, the Asian Development Bank has committed to $20 billion and a more flexible and streamlined process for a COVID-19 Response Package. The Inter-American Development Bank has authorized the reprogramming of existing resources to health emergencies and an additional $3.2 billion for 2020—for a total funding level for this year of $12 billion to respond to the health crisis and its consequences. Its private sector arm, IDB Invest, has committed $5 billion.
Why this matters
Why does the U.S. arrearage matter? Because the U.S. brings to the table expertise that is grounded in decades of knowledge and experience in development that can guide the policies and programs of these organizations, and the U.S. arrears deprive these organizations of resources they need to carry out their missions.
The less able these organizations are to carry out their functions, the less impactful their programs will be in stemming COVID-19 in developing countries, and the more likely it will end up back here. The U.S. will enjoy health security—besides our own domestic efforts—only when COVID-19 is stopped globally, and part of that solution is multilateral organizations operating at their full capacity and with U.S. leadership.
Government
Low Iron Levels In Blood Could Trigger Long COVID: Study
Low Iron Levels In Blood Could Trigger Long COVID: Study
Authored by Amie Dahnke via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),
People with inadequate…
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Authored by Amie Dahnke via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),
People with inadequate iron levels in their blood due to a COVID-19 infection could be at greater risk of long COVID.
A new study indicates that problems with iron levels in the bloodstream likely trigger chronic inflammation and other conditions associated with the post-COVID phenomenon. The findings, published on March 1 in Nature Immunology, could offer new ways to treat or prevent the condition.
Long COVID Patients Have Low Iron Levels
Researchers at the University of Cambridge pinpointed low iron as a potential link to long-COVID symptoms thanks to a study they initiated shortly after the start of the pandemic. They recruited people who tested positive for the virus to provide blood samples for analysis over a year, which allowed the researchers to look for post-infection changes in the blood. The researchers looked at 214 samples and found that 45 percent of patients reported symptoms of long COVID that lasted between three and 10 months.
In analyzing the blood samples, the research team noticed that people experiencing long COVID had low iron levels, contributing to anemia and low red blood cell production, just two weeks after they were diagnosed with COVID-19. This was true for patients regardless of age, sex, or the initial severity of their infection.
According to one of the study co-authors, the removal of iron from the bloodstream is a natural process and defense mechanism of the body.
But it can jeopardize a person’s recovery.
“When the body has an infection, it responds by removing iron from the bloodstream. This protects us from potentially lethal bacteria that capture the iron in the bloodstream and grow rapidly. It’s an evolutionary response that redistributes iron in the body, and the blood plasma becomes an iron desert,” University of Oxford professor Hal Drakesmith said in a press release. “However, if this goes on for a long time, there is less iron for red blood cells, so oxygen is transported less efficiently affecting metabolism and energy production, and for white blood cells, which need iron to work properly. The protective mechanism ends up becoming a problem.”
The research team believes that consistently low iron levels could explain why individuals with long COVID continue to experience fatigue and difficulty exercising. As such, the researchers suggested iron supplementation to help regulate and prevent the often debilitating symptoms associated with long COVID.
“It isn’t necessarily the case that individuals don’t have enough iron in their body, it’s just that it’s trapped in the wrong place,” Aimee Hanson, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Cambridge who worked on the study, said in the press release. “What we need is a way to remobilize the iron and pull it back into the bloodstream, where it becomes more useful to the red blood cells.”
The research team pointed out that iron supplementation isn’t always straightforward. Achieving the right level of iron varies from person to person. Too much iron can cause stomach issues, ranging from constipation, nausea, and abdominal pain to gastritis and gastric lesions.
1 in 5 Still Affected by Long COVID
COVID-19 has affected nearly 40 percent of Americans, with one in five of those still suffering from symptoms of long COVID, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Long COVID is marked by health issues that continue at least four weeks after an individual was initially diagnosed with COVID-19. Symptoms can last for days, weeks, months, or years and may include fatigue, cough or chest pain, headache, brain fog, depression or anxiety, digestive issues, and joint or muscle pain.
Government
Walmart joins Costco in sharing key pricing news
The massive retailers have both shared information that some retailers keep very close to the vest.
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As we head toward a presidential election, the presumed candidates for both parties will look for issues that rally undecided voters.
The economy will be a key issue, with Democrats pointing to job creation and lowering prices while Republicans will cite the layoffs at Big Tech companies, high housing prices, and of course, sticky inflation.
The covid pandemic created a perfect storm for inflation and higher prices. It became harder to get many items because people getting sick slowed down, or even stopped, production at some factories.
Related: Popular mall retailer shuts down abruptly after bankruptcy filing
It was also a period where demand increased while shipping, trucking and delivery systems were all strained or thrown out of whack. The combination led to product shortages and higher prices.
You might have gone to the grocery store and not been able to buy your favorite paper towel brand or find toilet paper at all. That happened partly because of the supply chain and partly due to increased demand, but at the end of the day, it led to higher prices, which some consumers blamed on President Joe Biden's administration.
Biden, of course, was blamed for the price increases, but as inflation has dropped and grocery prices have fallen, few companies have been up front about it. That's probably not a political choice in most cases. Instead, some companies have chosen to lower prices more slowly than they raised them.
However, two major retailers, Walmart (WMT) and Costco, have been very honest about inflation. Walmart Chief Executive Doug McMillon's most recent comments validate what Biden's administration has been saying about the state of the economy. And they contrast with the economic picture being painted by Republicans who support their presumptive nominee, Donald Trump.
Image source: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Walmart sees lower prices
McMillon does not talk about lower prices to make a political statement. He's communicating with customers and potential customers through the analysts who cover the company's quarterly-earnings calls.
During Walmart's fiscal-fourth-quarter-earnings call, McMillon was clear that prices are going down.
"I'm excited about the omnichannel net promoter score trends the team is driving. Across countries, we continue to see a customer that's resilient but looking for value. As always, we're working hard to deliver that for them, including through our rollbacks on food pricing in Walmart U.S. Those were up significantly in Q4 versus last year, following a big increase in Q3," he said.
He was specific about where the chain has seen prices go down.
"Our general merchandise prices are lower than a year ago and even two years ago in some categories, which means our customers are finding value in areas like apparel and hard lines," he said. "In food, prices are lower than a year ago in places like eggs, apples, and deli snacks, but higher in other places like asparagus and blackberries."
McMillon said that in other areas prices were still up but have been falling.
"Dry grocery and consumables categories like paper goods and cleaning supplies are up mid-single digits versus last year and high teens versus two years ago. Private-brand penetration is up in many of the countries where we operate, including the United States," he said.
Costco sees almost no inflation impact
McMillon avoided the word inflation in his comments. Costco (COST) Chief Financial Officer Richard Galanti, who steps down on March 15, has been very transparent on the topic.
The CFO commented on inflation during his company's fiscal-first-quarter-earnings call.
"Most recently, in the last fourth-quarter discussion, we had estimated that year-over-year inflation was in the 1% to 2% range. Our estimate for the quarter just ended, that inflation was in the 0% to 1% range," he said.
Galanti made clear that inflation (and even deflation) varied by category.
"A bigger deflation in some big and bulky items like furniture sets due to lower freight costs year over year, as well as on things like domestics, bulky lower-priced items, again, where the freight cost is significant. Some deflationary items were as much as 20% to 30% and, again, mostly freight-related," he added.
bankruptcy pandemic trumpGovernment
Walmart has really good news for shoppers (and Joe Biden)
The giant retailer joins Costco in making a statement that has political overtones, even if that’s not the intent.
Share this:
As we head toward a presidential election, the presumed candidates for both parties will look for issues that rally undecided voters.
The economy will be a key issue, with Democrats pointing to job creation and lowering prices while Republicans will cite the layoffs at Big Tech companies, high housing prices, and of course, sticky inflation.
The covid pandemic created a perfect storm for inflation and higher prices. It became harder to get many items because people getting sick slowed down, or even stopped, production at some factories.
Related: Popular mall retailer shuts down abruptly after bankruptcy filing
It was also a period where demand increased while shipping, trucking and delivery systems were all strained or thrown out of whack. The combination led to product shortages and higher prices.
You might have gone to the grocery store and not been able to buy your favorite paper towel brand or find toilet paper at all. That happened partly because of the supply chain and partly due to increased demand, but at the end of the day, it led to higher prices, which some consumers blamed on President Joe Biden's administration.
Biden, of course, was blamed for the price increases, but as inflation has dropped and grocery prices have fallen, few companies have been up front about it. That's probably not a political choice in most cases. Instead, some companies have chosen to lower prices more slowly than they raised them.
However, two major retailers, Walmart (WMT) and Costco, have been very honest about inflation. Walmart Chief Executive Doug McMillon's most recent comments validate what Biden's administration has been saying about the state of the economy. And they contrast with the economic picture being painted by Republicans who support their presumptive nominee, Donald Trump.
Image source: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Walmart sees lower prices
McMillon does not talk about lower prices to make a political statement. He's communicating with customers and potential customers through the analysts who cover the company's quarterly-earnings calls.
During Walmart's fiscal-fourth-quarter-earnings call, McMillon was clear that prices are going down.
"I'm excited about the omnichannel net promoter score trends the team is driving. Across countries, we continue to see a customer that's resilient but looking for value. As always, we're working hard to deliver that for them, including through our rollbacks on food pricing in Walmart U.S. Those were up significantly in Q4 versus last year, following a big increase in Q3," he said.
He was specific about where the chain has seen prices go down.
"Our general merchandise prices are lower than a year ago and even two years ago in some categories, which means our customers are finding value in areas like apparel and hard lines," he said. "In food, prices are lower than a year ago in places like eggs, apples, and deli snacks, but higher in other places like asparagus and blackberries."
McMillon said that in other areas prices were still up but have been falling.
"Dry grocery and consumables categories like paper goods and cleaning supplies are up mid-single digits versus last year and high teens versus two years ago. Private-brand penetration is up in many of the countries where we operate, including the United States," he said.
Costco sees almost no inflation impact
McMillon avoided the word inflation in his comments. Costco (COST) Chief Financial Officer Richard Galanti, who steps down on March 15, has been very transparent on the topic.
The CFO commented on inflation during his company's fiscal-first-quarter-earnings call.
"Most recently, in the last fourth-quarter discussion, we had estimated that year-over-year inflation was in the 1% to 2% range. Our estimate for the quarter just ended, that inflation was in the 0% to 1% range," he said.
Galanti made clear that inflation (and even deflation) varied by category.
"A bigger deflation in some big and bulky items like furniture sets due to lower freight costs year over year, as well as on things like domestics, bulky lower-priced items, again, where the freight cost is significant. Some deflationary items were as much as 20% to 30% and, again, mostly freight-related," he added.
bankruptcy pandemic trump
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Students lose out as cities and states give billions in property tax breaks to businesses − draining school budgets and especially hurting the poorest students
Is the United States overestimating China’s power?
Low Iron Levels In Blood Could Trigger Long COVID: Study
Biden to call for first-time homebuyer tax credit, construction of 2 million homes
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