Charles Hugh Smith

Latest articles from Charles

• China’s Crude Oil Imports Expected To Hit A Record High In 2023

  Published 17 February 2023 | viewed 5,648 times

  The Chinese reopening and new refineries coming online are set to raise the crude oil imports in the world’s top importer to a record-high this…

• French Nuclear Giant Sues Government For $8 Billion

  Published 10 August 2022 | viewed 3,387 times

  French nuclear giant EDF, forced to sell power to competitors below market value, is now suing the French government for over $8 billion in compensation. …

• India Limits Fuel Exports

  Published 01 July 2022 | viewed 7,238 times

  India has stepped up efforts to ensure sufficient energy supplies for the domestic market by imposing limits on fuel exports by introducing export duties. This…

• European Auto Industry Decries EU Ban On Petrol Cars

  Published 09 June 2022 | viewed 10,997 times

  The German auto industry is protesting a decision by EU parliament to ban the sale of cars that run on petrol and diesel by 2035,…

• Japan To Step Up Investment In LNG

  Published 15 April 2022 | viewed 6,577 times

  Japan will increase investments in the production of liquefied natural gas abroad to secure supply, the country's industry minister said today. "Russia's invasion of Ukraine…

• Big Oil Beats NYC Appeal On Climate Change Lawsuit

  Published 01 April 2021 | viewed 4,886 times

  A federal appeals court on Thursday ruled in favor of five of the world’s biggest oil companies in an appeal over a climate lawsuit that…

• Mexico Energy Reform Sparks Wave Of Lawsuits

  Published 11 March 2021 | viewed 1,996 times

  The Mexico chapter of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) expects a wave of international arbitrations and lawsuits in the coming weeks after Mexico enacted…

• Expect Wide Swings in Oil Prices and Increasing Volatility

  Published 14 April 2011 | viewed 17,072 times

  The reasons for oil to keep rising are well known--perhaps too well known. Let's look at some charts to illustrate the swirling currents in the…

• America’s Role in the Global Oil Market

  Published 28 February 2011 | viewed 7,318 times

  It's pretty easy to sum up America's role in the global market for oil: We need it, they got it. Here are the numbers, via…

• Alternative Energy, Fossil Fuels and the Importance of Middle East Oil

  Published 02 February 2011 | viewed 13,864 times

  Below are a series of charts that take a look at the current situation of alternative energy, oil and other fossil fuels and the importance…

• Is it Possible for the US Dollar to Rise 50%

  Published 13 January 2011 | viewed 6,496 times

  Conventional wisdom is that the Fed wants the U.S. dollar lower, so it must drop. But the dollar seems to be lacking proper obedience to…

• Recession, Recovery and the Wealth Pyramid

  Published 23 November 2010 | viewed 10,369 times

  The top 20% are prospering and spending money; the bottom 80% are not, but thanks to vast wealth disparity, the top slice of households can…

• Oil and Empire: The Great Game of Geopolitics

  Published 22 October 2010 | viewed 12,823 times

  The Great Game is afoot and no matter how we may disapprove of the Global Empire, we would be wise not to discount the cards…

• China’s Unsustainable Real Estate Bubble

  Published 17 September 2010 | viewed 6,691 times

  The Mainstream Media in the U.S. has presented two basic approaches to understanding China's real estate bubble: 1. There is no bubble in Chinese real…

• The Perils of Prediction

  Published 07 September 2010 | viewed 4,193 times

  Nobody knows the future, so the best we can do is strive for an open mind and flexibility in our thinking and responses. In 1904,…

• American Investors Absorb $4 Trillion in Treasuries and Remove China’s Financial Leverage

  Published 03 September 2010 | viewed 4,233 times

  China's "nuclear option"--selling its vast stash of U.S. Treasuries to wreak havoc on the U.S. economy and interest rates--has been downgraded by the flood of…

• After Two Years of Financial Turmoil Nothing Has Changed

  Published 23 August 2010 | viewed 7,762 times

  Despite the legislative churn that produced thousands of pages of new laws and regulations and much self-congratulatory PR, nothing of any importance has changed. All…

• Why Alternative Energy Will Never "Pencil Out"

  Published 07 July 2010 | viewed 12,580 times

  Advocates of a smooth transition away from petroleum may be surprised by the consequences of huge swings in the cost of oil. I first proposed…

• China Faced with Structural and Demographic Headwinds that could Derail it’s Rise

  Published 05 July 2010 | viewed 7,053 times

  China's strengths get relentless coverage, its headwinds less so. We all know China's strengths: hard-working populace, high savings rate, a so-far wildly successful marriage of…

• The United States Weakest Link

  Published 12 June 2010 | viewed 23,794 times

  Any system, organization or device is only as strong as its weakest component. What are the weakest links in the U.S. culture and economy? The…