UK Prime Minister Liz Truss resigned last week, making her the UK’s shortest-serving PM at just 44 days in office. Truss’ term has been plagued by criticism for her mini budget program, which included the biggest tax cuts since 1972, but would be largely funded  by a massive expansion in borrowing. The markets are now betting on MP Rishi Sunak, who has a background in finance, to be the next PM of the UK. Previously ousted PM Boris Johnson was also in the running, but has since quit the race. 

Joe Biden Awards $2.8 billion for EV Battery Manufacturing

US President Joe Biden has announced that his administration will be awarding US$2.8 billion in grants for US manufacturing of electronic vehicle batteries, as well as the extraction and processing of mineral battery components like lithium, graphie, and nickel. These will be funded as part of the White House’s $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure. Ostensibly, the grant will turn demand away from fossil fuels, but more pointedly, decrease reliance on China for the minerals required for EV batteries.

Japan Reportedly Intervened in the Yen

As told to Reuters by sources close to the matter, Japan has intervened in the foreign exchange market for the second time in a month, buying yen to support the currency after it hit near a 32-year-low as the country continues with its ultra-easy monetary policy. The Bank of Japan has continued to keep interest rates low even as major governments around the rest of the world hike rates to combat rampaging worldwide inflation.