QVMS - Why Global Growth Is Grinding To A Halt

• Due to the war in Ukraine and the resulting sanctions and embargoes - on top of the already interrupted supply chain, plus a new COVID outbreak in China - global trade is grinding down to a slow-motion “holding” action.
• As a result of these disruptions, PMIs all over the world are at an 18-month low, and Europe is in a recession. The U.S. has so far been able to avoid falling into a recession, but with the exception of Tesla, U.S. auto manufacturers posted first-quarter sales declines, due largely to semiconductor chip shortages and other supply chain glitches.
• EV sales remain strong on a percentage basis, but U.S. volume sales are anemic. The main reason for the tiny sales figures is an acute shortage of lithium-ion batteries, along with the soaring costs of nickel and cobalt.

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