#Worldwide #Information #Blogger #LucSchrijvers: Part2 #Update: #anarchist #information from all over the world - 27.04.2020

Today's Topics:

   
1.  Britain, AFED, organis emagazine: Mutual Aid vs Corvid-19 |
      Fundraiser (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
   
2.  France, Union Communiste Libertaire UCL - Economy Working
      Group, Unemployment explodes worldwide, and other 
      economic news
      (fr, it, pt)[machine translation] (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)


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Message: 1


As the global pandemic is upon us, a number of mutual aid groups have started forming across the country. These groups aim to provide
community support to those who are more at risk from the virus: be it help with running errands or cooking. This is a wonderful example of
Anarchistic mutual aid and solidarity! ---- To help raise funds to support this fantastic work, we are holding a design competition and will
subsequently be selling T-shirts on a none profit basis to raise funds and keep these organisations in food, fuel and supplies in general.
---- From the 20th of March till the 3rd of April we will be accepting design submissions which we will then put up for a public poll over
the following weekend. The favourites will be printed.

Entries must be in a single colour, as they will be screen printed.
Submissions should be sent as .pdf files to MUTUALAID@PUNX.UK

Those chosen designs will are be rewarded with a T-shirt and some assorted prizes tbd

T-shirts will be available in several sizes from the 10th of April at a cost of £15, with the option to make an additional donation.

Funds will be shared directly and regularly with groups to help them buy critical supplies and carry on their amazing efforts. This will be
done in co-ordination with those helping to organise the efforts on a national level and will happen immediately and without stymie.

You can find out more information about here.
www.freedomnews.org.uk/covid-19-uk-mutual-aid-groups-a-list

Find out how to set up a mutual aid group and access other resources here
www.covidmutualaid.org

Supporting Organisations

Punx UK
Sabcat
Anarchist Federation
Freedom
Seditionist
We shall overcome
Bookfair 2020
Autonomous Design Collective
Class War

Please contact us if you would like your organisation to be added to the list.

http://organisemagazine.org.uk/2020/03/20/mutual-aid-vs-corvid-19-fundraiser/
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Update: Mutual Aid vs Corvid-19 | Fundraiser

After one week of our T-shirt fundraiser we raised just over £250!

Our first pay outs were of £100 to South Norwood Community Kitchen and The 0161 Community.

Both of these groups have been going above and beyond during lock down to support key workers and their communities in general, helping
everyone get by in these difficult times with some beautiful mutual aid.

None of the organisers are involved with either project and they were selected after talking to national level organisers and comrades in
general.

They are both doing some fantastic work and I'm sure would appreciate your solidarity and donations:-

www.0161community.com/covid19-response
www.facebook.com/0161community

www.southnorwoodcommunitykitchen.co.uk
www.facebook.com/southnorwoodcommunitykitchen

This will be an ongoing fundraiser, so if you want some new threads and help support mutual aid projects head over to www.punx.uk and pick
yourself up one, £15 with all profit going towards mutual aid groups.

Lots of thanks to all those who have purchased T-shirts already, everyone involved in one of the 4000+ mutual aid networks and especially to
our key workers, NHS staffers, Delivery people, check out staff and they rest of you who are keeping the plates spinning during these
difficult times.

Thank you.

http://organisemagazine.org.uk/2020/04/16/update-mutual-aid-vs-corvid-19-fundraiser/

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Message: 2


This note was produced by the UCL Economics Working Group, aimed at synthesizing essential data on the economic situation we are going
through with the coronavirus crisis. It is as sourced and factual as possible, and aims to link the main data on the economic situation with
more general political and social analyzes. However, it was carried out by activists who are not economic professionals. do not hesitate to
report any errors to the working group. ---- State of production and employment ---- In its conjuncture note of April 9, INSEE confirms a
loss of activity in France of around a third of GDP (-36%). The market branches representing 78% of the GDP are the most impacted, with a
loss of 42% of their activities. Industrial activity fell by 44% and household consumption fell by more than a third. [1]
At the global level ; four out of five employees will have their workplace affected by a total or partial closure. In the USA, in three
weeks, more than 16 million workers have filled out an allowance request and, according to some analysts, it could represent only half of
the layoffs [2].

In Canada, it is 2.13 million registered in the last two weeks. In Britain, the number is almost 1 million. The consequences for workers in
France are partial unemployment: Saturday 11 April, 700,000 companies had asked for it, which has an impact on 8 million employees. The
areas concerned are mainly industry, construction and non-food trade.

Economy note n ° 2 - UCL
PDF to download
This is a record figure since it represents 1 employee in the private sector out of 3 [3]. Around the world, 25 million people are at risk
of losing their jobs, which increases the number of jobseekers who already numbered 190 million people. For a 48-hour work week, 195 million
full-time equivalents could disappear according to the ILO, including 125 million in Asia, 24 in America and 20 in Europe. In Africa the
African Union announces 20 million jobs lost on the continent [4].

Faced with this, the response of the capitalists is to push for recovery to revive the economy or limit the damage. We can take the example
of the automobile: for the past week, many companies have been pushing for the resumption of production. Agreements signed by unions (CFDT,
CGE-CGC, CFTC, FO) validate the resumption of activity at PSA (64,000 employees in France). The Renault factories (48,000 employees in
France) will also resume production with agreements signed by the same unions. The entire automotive industry is following suit, such as the
Bosch factory and its 1,400 employees, or even Michelin, which also produce parts for the automobile. It's a whole non-essential sector
which is slowly getting back on the road in France but also abroad,[5][6][7]

The trend is general: in France, the Atlantic shipyards are also going towards a recovery. 2,700 employees are affected. In Belgium,
Fedustria, the federation of textile, wood and furniture companies is pressuring the government to reopen furniture, gardening, DIY and even
fashion stores ... [8][9]

In the food industry, little affected by the drop in activity, certain cards are redistributed. The food produced in France fills the
shelves "fruits and vegetables»And the sale of products from organic farming is increasing. Several explanations for this: firstly, there is
a need to reassure oneself by eating products perceived as healthier. And secondly, collective restaurants, which have invested little in
organic produce, are closed. People eating organic only at home now do so with each meal since they can no longer eat elsewhere. Second
consequence, limitation of travel requires, local shops are more and more frequented. Producers are adapting to the closing of markets, in
particular through the opening of farm outlets. Will the epidemic generate a general tendency to relocate our agricultural production ? It
is still too early to tell [10].

Situation of the financial sphere
The financial markets continue to recover. Some commentators even refer to a "quasi-euphoric" situation [11]on Wall Street after the
spectacular stimulus measures announced by the American Federal Bank (the US equivalent of the ECB). The Fed has indeed announced, Thursday,
April 9, no less than 2300 billion dollars (roughly the annual production of France ...) injected in support of the economy. [12]American
companies are therefore supposed to be protected against bankruptcy due to the health crisis. It didn't take much more for stock prices to
soar and catch up much of their fall in the past two months, with spectacular rebounds that sometimes break records.

The Paris Stock Exchange, CAC 40 at the head, is timidly picking up colors by regaining a few hundred capitalization points. [13]Given the
interconnection between the financial markets, this increase is probably due to the improvement in the situation on the American markets and
could be reinforced by the prospects for international agreements on the decline in oil production. However, successive postponements of the
date of release from confinement hinder recovery. [14]

However, it must be borne in mind that such a recovery is not abnormal during a crisis: major financial crises spread over long months, with
significant fluctuations. When you think you are at the bottom of the hole, a new floor is exploded, following a small ascent which does not
compensate for the previous fall. [15]This is how the 1929 crisis unfolded. In other words, financial crises do not consist of a price curve
that plunges inexorably until economic recovery. So do not resume "hope" at the slightest tremor in stock prices by seeing a possible exit
from the crisis.

The Volatility Index, or VIX, which measures the degree of erratism and "nervousness" of the financial markets [16], also remains at a high
level despite a gradual decrease in the last three weeks. [17]Given the situation, a growing number of specialists and players in the
financial markets are proposing an outright closure of the Stock Exchange for an indefinite period (from a few minutes to several weeks,
depending on the case), on a fairly rational basis. that the markets do not measure attractive values in times of extreme volatility.
[18]However, such measures hardly ever happen and require heavy international coordination. [19]Perhaps such measures will be considered if
a further fall in prices occurs, an event the probability of which is very high.

Basics of financial markets
Financial markets are divided into two distinct types of markets. The first market (the so-called "primary" market) is one where a company
can raise funds to finance new projects. This capital, owned by an indefinite number of shareholders, is supposed to bear fruit at the end
of the commodity cycle: production-marketing-sale. The dividend is then paid each year to shareholders who are paid according to the
profitability of the cycle of the goods produced / sold. From where the interest of the investors for the "new technologies" supposed to
produce a value superior to the "old technologies" exhausted by the competition between capitalists.

The second (so-called "secondary") market is one where the shareholders sell and buy shares and other financial products among themselves in
the hope of a speculative gain between the purchase and sale prices. These transactions do not finance new investments. This is why tax
gifts to big capital are very ineffective in stimulating the economy. When we talk about "the stock market" or "stock market prices", we are
only taking into account the exchanges that take place on secondary markets, and which represent the overwhelming majority of financial
transactions.

Whether the stock market goes up or down, those who sell or buy at the right time can save considerable extra profits on the backs of those
who make identical losses. Note in passing that multinationals and their executives have massively bought the shares of their own companies
when they were at their lowest level ...

Even if 50% of Americans own stocks, it is "institutional investors who rule the markets, namely: pension funds (which manage retirement /
health savings ...) and sovereign wealth funds (backed to a State), with private speculative funds alongside them. We are therefore far from
the myth of the individual"small carrier".

Economic policy measures
So far, a large part of the action of the central banks has consisted of issuing money to massively buy back stocks and bonds and thus
support their price.

For reasons of political display, the government calls companies "to reason": More and more companies are renouncing to pay a dividend or
decide to reduce it. Engie, Dassault Aviation, M6, Coface, have announced that they will not distribute any dividends. Amundi has announced
that it will propose an identical measure to its board of directors. Crédit Agricole has announced that it will do the same. Bouygues also,
while giving itself the latitude to "reassess the situation in August " Transdev, which had cut its dividend in half, will ultimately not
pay it. EDF and BNP Paribas have in turn announced that they will not offer the payment of a dividend for the 2019 financial year. These
names are added to an already long list, notably comprising Société Générale, Natixis, ADP , Nexans, Airbus, Safran, JCDecaux, Tarkett,
Autogrill, Auchan Holdings, Altice, CNP Assurances ...

Others said they would rather cut dividends without eliminating them entirely. Veolia will divide its own by two, Michelin will reduce it
from 3.85 euros to 2 euros. Before them, the equipment manufacturer Plastic Omnium had lowered its own by 34% and the giant of pens, razors
and lighters Bic had trimmed it by a third. It was largely under pressure from the public authorities that companies had to give up paying
their shareholders. Bercy has in fact conditioned the granting of loans guaranteed by the State and the possibility of deferring tax and
social charges to the non-payment of dividends. These constraints mainly target large groups, and Bercy will define criteria to exempt
assisted SMEs, which may have a vital need for dividends to keep their shareholders.

Conversely, some companies have indicated that they are giving up benefiting from government aid schemes, thereby freeing themselves from
the constraint posed by Bercy. This is the case for Hermès, Michelin, L'Oréal and Total. As for Publicis, the dividend paid this year will
even be up (+ 8.5%) over one year.

Our first note pointed out that the neo-liberal budgetary orthodoxy had very quickly been put aside and the Maastricht convergence criteria
with: put yourself in debt, god will recognize his ! The same orthodoxy guarantees the so-called "independence" of the central banks by the
prohibition for them to finance the States directly (and all that comes under public establishments, territorial collectivities ...). They
are therefore forced to borrow from private banks (which, in turn, are supported directly by central banks at each crack. If you see the
scam ...).

Thunderbolt in neoliberal ideology, the Bank of England announced that it would directly finance "on a temporary and short-term basis" the
additional spending of the British government linked to the consequences of the pandemic. From now on, all new Treasury issues will be
subscribed directly by the central bank. This allows the government to no longer go through the bond markets (the markets where the state
gets into debt with private actors) and to escape at least temporarily from the constraints and requirements of the financial markets.

Debt Europe remains halfway. The principle of "European" debt was once again rejected despite a compromise considered to be generous by the
"Northern" countries. To put it quickly, the "countries of the North" do not want to be in solidarity with the indebtedness of the
"countries of the South" of Europe. In addition to the solidity of real economies, it must be understood in the light of the "credibility /
interest rate" mechanism that Germany, for example, is only in debt at 55% of its GDP and that it can still long borrow cheap. At the same
time, Italian debt already represented 135% of its GDP before the crisis ... For the record, the European convergence criteria provided for
a maximum of 60% of the countries' GDP for public debt.

However, the maintenance of a politico-economic Europe requires that the divergence of economies does not widen excessively between
countries. So a support plan has just been decided which goes beyond anything that has ever been done in history. This aid plan is not
financed by the budget of the European Union. European states will provide guarantees of up to 25 billion euros to the European Investment
Bank, which will thus be able to lend 200 billion euros to companies. The same operation on the part of the Twenty-Seven will allow the
European Commission to raise 100 billion on the markets and then lend this money, on very attractive conditions, to the European countries
which need to be helped to finance the rise of the Partial unemployment.

Finally, the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), the third pillar of this aid plan, already has a strike force of 410 billion euros and
therefore does not need to be recapitalized to make available countries that would need 240 billion euros of credit line.

At the same time the European Central Bank goes much further. We went from 750 billion in mid-March to 4,000 billion committed: 3,000
billion loaned (offered !) To private banks at negative rates and 1,000 billion released to buy back public and private debts.

In this deluge of billions, we must also look at the little gifts between friends that are prepared when the regions announce, like
Normandy, an envelope of 70 million in aid to artisans, traders and other independents ... C repayment of these debts which will be at the
center of the class struggle: inflation, taxes, pressure on work, outright cancellation ? This question will be crucial for the post-crisis
period.

Private debt and public debt, a distorted debate

It is imperative to emphasize that the private debt (that of companies and households) is much higher than the public debt and that it is
this private debt that can trigger gigantic financial crises at any time, as in 2008. Then, it is necessary recall a simple mechanism:
public debt only becomes a problem when the holders of the debt, losing confidence in the repayment of their stake, demand high interest rates.

To date, despite a debt of around 100% of GDP, the French State can still borrow at rates close to 0% interest, and even at negative rates.
You may think that lending at negative rates is not very rational, but such practices make sense when one speculates in the short term on
government bonds to achieve multiple small gains via subtle changes in economic conditions. The inflated funds of money poured out during
the 2008 financial crisis have huge masses of cash that they don't know what to do to shelter. The debt of a State is a debt deemed solid as
long as its capacity to repay is not in doubt.

Validate

[1] https://www.lefigaro.fr/conjoncture/l-insee-confirme-ses-previsions-particulierement-sombres-pour-l-economie-francaise-20200409

[2] https://www.rtl.be/info/magazine/science-nature/usa-5-millions-de-nouveaux-chomeurs-attendus-en-une-semaine-1210709.aspx

[3] https://lexpansion.lexpress.fr/actualite-economique/coronavirus-huit-millions-de-salaries-sont-au-chomage-partiel_2123543.html

[4]
https://www.lefigaro.fr/social/coronavirus-1-25-milliard-de-travailleurs-courent-un-risque-de-licenciement-ou-de-reduction-de-salaire-selon-l
-or-20200407

[5] https://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-eco/bosch-a-rodez-reprise-progressive-de-la-production-malgre-l-opposition-syndicale-20200408

[6] https://www.caradisiac.com/psa-un-accord-avec-les-salaries-pour-la-reprise-de-la-production-182478.htm

[7] https://www.auto-infos.fr/Il-etait-une-fois-l-heure-de-la,13797

[8] https://actu.fr/pays-de-la-loire/saint-nazaire_44184/coronavirus-accord-sur-lactivite-partielle-chantiers-latlantique-

[9] https://www.lesoir.be/293758/article/2020-04-10/des-entreprises-mettre-la-pression-au-gouvernement-pour-une-reprise-de

[10]https: //
lEntreprise.lexpress.fr/actualites/1/actualites/pourquoi-le-coronavirus-ne-nuit-pas-aux-produits-bio-bien-au-contraire_2123420.html

[11] http://bourse.latribune.fr/webfg/articles/marches/wallstreet-la-fed-abolit-le-risque-les-indices-us-exultent--7424082.html

[12] https://www.ouest-france.fr/monde/etats-unis/coronavirus-la-fed-annonce-2-300-milliards-de-dollars-de-nouveaux-prets-pour-l-economie
-american-6804272

[13] https://www.tradingsat.com/cac-40-FR0003500008/actualites/cac-40-la-bourse-de-paris-repasse-la-barre-des-4500-points-avant-un-week
weekend-day-908973.html

[14]
https://www.lesechos.fr/finance-marches/marches-financiers/petrole-russie-et-arabie-sarabe-sur-la-voie-dun-accord-pour-reduire-leur-production-1193827

[15] https://www.tradingsat.com/actualites/marches/le-brusque-rebond-des-marches-ne-doit-pas-faire-croire-qu-une-rechute-n-est-plus-d
-actualite-909003.html

[16] https://www.lci.fr/high-tech/bourse-cac-40-qu-est-ce-que-le-vix-cet-indice-de-la-peur-qui-ne-connait -not-the-crisis-2147922.html

[17] https://www.abcbourse.com/cotation/VIXu

[18] https://www.lejdd.fr/Economie/coronavirus-faut-il-fermer-les-bourses-3955737

[19] https://www.latribune.fr/opinions/tribunes/faut-il-fermer-les-bourses-843188.html

https://www.unioncommunistelibertaire.org/?Le-chomage-explose-dans-le-monde-et-autres-nouvelles-economiques

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