No refuge from global woes

The Group of Seven summit in the Bavarian Alps starting Sunday is the first time the leaders of some of the world’s biggest economies have s [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Follow Us [Get the newsletter]( The Group of Seven summit in the Bavarian Alps starting Sunday is the first time the leaders of some of the world’s biggest economies have sat down together in person in a while. A fair bit has happened to talk about — most notably Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the ensuing economic and humanitarian fallout. And yet each G-7 leader comes to the meeting shadowed by challenges at home that will filter into discussions about where next for Ukraine, what to do about the price of gasoline, how to wean themselves off Russian oil, a global food-security crisis. Oh, and are we really headed for a global recession? Here’s a quick rundown of what they face: US President Joe Biden Comes with: Arguably the trickiest timeline, with November’s midterm elections looming and the prospect the Democrats lose control of Congress. He is [battling]( high energy prices and difficult issues including abortion rights and gun control. Needs to: Maintain a unified front on [supporting]( Ukraine militarily to keep fighting. French President Emmanuel Macron Comes with: A chastening at home, his alliance having just lost its outright [majority]( in parliament. Needs to: Reassure others he’s on board on Ukraine after he floated the idea whether President Volodymyr Zelenskiy should now negotiate with Moscow. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz Comes with: Criticism he’s been wishy-washy in his support for Ukraine and too worried about the hit to his [economy]( to shift quickly from Russian gas. Needs to: As host, keep the summit on an even keel and show some tangibles, which won’t be easy. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Comes with: A relatively high level of popularity, though support has [slipped]( ahead of an upper house election. Needs to: Be attuned to the views of other leaders across Asia as he increasingly puts Japan in the cross-hairs of its bigger neighbor, China. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson Comes with: Political chaos at home, having just survived a no-confidence vote from his own lawmakers only to suffer two special election [losses]( yesterday. A summer of strikes is disrupting travel, while the economy and the pound are in free fall. Needs to: Avoid domestic travails dominating his time at the summit and a fresh spat with Macron over Brexit. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi Comes with: A close eye on coalition [troubles]( at home, which could make it harder for him to enact fiscal reforms. Needs to: Get traction on his big idea: a price cap on Russian oil. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Comes with: Like others, a pressing [inflation]( problem (the highest since 1983). Needs to: Put Canada more clearly into the conversation on the bigger global issues. And of course there are the big names not taking part: Russia, booted out in 2014 for the annexation of Crimea. Also missing is China, not a G-7 member and yet the world’s second-biggest economy. How much global business can really be done without it? — [Rosalind Mathieson]( Biden speaks about gas prices in Washington on June 22. Photographer: Drew Angerer/Getty Images Click [here]( for this week’s most compelling political images and share this newsletter with others. They can sign up [here](. Global Headlines Johnson’s worries | The chairman of Johnson’s ruling Conservatives [resigned]( after the party lost two parliamentary seats in one night, raising fresh concerns about the premier’s leadership and his faltering appeal to voters. The elections “are the latest in a run of very poor results for our party,” Oliver Dowden said in a letter to Johnson. Ukraine hardball | The European Union’s decision to make Ukraine an official candidate, alongside Moldova, hints at a more assertive bloc that’s embracing countries on its eastern flank regardless of the threat posed by President Vladimir Putin’s vision of the historic Russian empire. Read [Jorge Valero](’s behind-the-scenes [look]( into the risk-taking woman behind the historic step. - The US said it will provide another $450 million in advanced [weaponry]( and aid to Ukraine, the latest tranche in what has become a multibillion-dollar effort to help push back Russia’s invasion. The International Monetary Fund called on China to accelerate its coronavirus vaccination program, warning the sharply [slowing pace]( of new doses administered could undermine a recovery in consumer spending in the economy. About 375 million people over the age of 15 in China have yet to receive three doses of a vaccine. Desperate moves | Donald Trump spent the weeks before Jan. 6, 2021, flailing for ways to get the Justice Department to bolster false claims of election fraud, in what one witness described as “[pure insanity](,” according to evidence reviewed by the committee investigating the US Capitol insurrection. The then-president’s efforts included badgering his acting attorney general on a near-daily basis and attempting to replace him when he refused to comply. - The panel also heard video testimony that House GOP Representatives who were some of Trump’s most vocal supporters all contacted White House staffers seeking [pardons](. Best of Bloomberg Opinion - [Europe Must Declare a War Economy: Andreas Kluth]( - [Five Notes on the Republican Party’s Future: Jonathan Bernstein]( - [The World Must Defuse Yemen’s Ticking Oil Bomb: Bobby Ghosh]( Party pooper | President Xi Jinping hasn’t left mainland China since January 2020, and speculation was rife that he would travel to the swearing in ceremony for Hong Kong’s new government on July 1. China’s leaders traditionally attend handover celebrations in the city, but Xi’s trip, while never confirmed, is now in [doubt]( after top Hong Kong officials came down with Covid. - China took the unprecedented step of [asking]( foreign business chambers in Hong Kong how to revive the ailing financial hub’s economy, sources say. Explainers you can use - [How US States Differ on Carrying Guns in Public]( - [All About Recessions, Including Thoughts on Next One]( - [Dirtiest Oil and Gas Fields Are in Russia, Turkmenistan, Texas]( Vaccine inequity | Covid vaccines that were developed in [record]( time saved an estimated 20 million lives in the first year of the rollout, more than half in wealthier countries, according to the first study of its kind to quantify the impact. The data published in the Lancet Infectious Diseases journal also highlights the devastation caused by uneven access to the shots — about one in five lives lost in poorer countries could have been prevented if World Health Organization targets had been reached. People wait in observation after receiving a Covid-19 vaccine in Mexico City on Feb. 15. Photographer: Alejandro Cegarra/Bloomberg In our weekly global politics Twitter Space we discussed the coming slate of major summits including the Group of Seven meeting in Germany and NATO summit in Spain. You can listen to that conversation with four of our global political reporters via this [link](. News to Note - The US Senate voted 65-33 to approve bipartisan [gun-safety]( legislation that is hailed as the biggest breakthrough on the issue in three decades, while the Supreme Court [struck down]( a New York law that limited who could carry a handgun in public. - President Jair Bolsonaro is considering increasing monthly stipends paid to about 18 million poor Brazilian families as opinion polls show him [trailing]( front-runner Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva less than four months before elections. - Outgoing Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s decision to end talks with China on oil [exploration]( in the disputed South China Sea poses a challenge for incoming leader Ferdinand Marcos Jr. if he wishes to restart discussions. - The US is preparing to [escalate]( its complaints that Mexico’s state-favoring energy policies violate the nations’ free-trade agreement, sources say. - China’s chief envoy to Australia was [heckled]( by several protesters in Sydney today as he delivered a speech that attempted to go some way toward repairing relations between the trading partners. Pop quiz, readers (no cheating!). Which country’s cabinet approved constitutional reforms aimed at clipping the powers of the presidency amid months of protests? Send your answers to balancepower@bloomberg.net. And finally ... Guinea’s Simandou mountains hold the largest untapped iron-ore deposit on the planet. [Sheridan Prasso]( made a three-day, 500-mile journey traversing forests, mountain ridges and savannas to report on how a consortium of China-connected companies is moving ahead with a plan that [jeopardizes]( one of the most biologically rich ecosystems in Africa. Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Balance of Power newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Bloomberg.com]( | [Contact Us]( [Ads Powered By Liveintent]( | [Ad Choices]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022