BRICS is broken and should be scrapped

Opinion: Sharks in the UK, Indonesia's coal problem and more [Bloomberg]( This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a discerningly curated bric-a-brac of Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. [Sign up here](. Today’s Must-Reads - [Frenemies forever](? South Korea and Japan look to the future. - Indonesia has a [substance abuse](problem. It’s coal. - Europeans, get off your butts and [earn interest]( on your savings. - Life is a [beach]( again in the UK. The Summit of the Subpar Superpowers Certainly, artificiality has always hovered over the so-called BRICS summits that have taken place since 2009. The acronym — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — was a Goldman Sachs marketing ploy that, with investor enthusiasm, blossomed into a transcontinental collusion of emerging market economies in opposition to the West. But collusion is too strong a word for what’s turned out to be lots of photo-ops. And the summit this time around has almost all members hobbling toward the Aug. 22 meeting in Johannesburg. Not a good look. Indeed, Russian President Vladimir Putin will only be there via videoconference. He’s avoiding an international warrant for his arrest. Worse, his country may soon become a submerging market , if one is to judge from the ruble, which has lost half its value in a year’s time. As guest columnist Alexandra Prokopenko [writes](, the only reason the Russian economy is growing is because of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine — “military Keynesianism,” as she puts it, as the Kremlin pours more and more of its budget into arms production and related industries. “When the war ends,” she says, “the sudden switch in demand from the inflated defense sector back to the civilian sector will be a powerful shock that will be impossible to absorb painlessly. As we know from history, it also proved impossible for Russia’s predecessor, the Soviet Union.” China’s President Xi Jinping, unlike his Russian ally (or is it dependent?), will be in South Africa in person next week. But his presence is not going to camouflage the economic and financial headaches of the People’s Republic — analyzed with [pitiless precision]( by Shuli Ren. Host South Africa has lost its stature as its continent’s country with [economic and political mojo](. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has just beat back a [no confidence vote]( stemming from how his government has dealt with months of civil unrest in the northeast. Mihir Sharma [observes]( that a raft of new legislation will only promote the kind of ethnic chauvinism that exacerbated the violence there. Only Brazil is enjoying good economic news, despite its political transition from the rightwing populism of Jair Bolsonaro to the revived socialism of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The big trouble with the BRICS is that China (with its still enormous economic clout) dominates the group — and Beijing wants to turn it into another global forum to echo its denunciations of the US and EU. Hence, Beijing’s attempts to [expand the membership]( to bring in sympathetic nations (e.g. Saudi Arabia). Brazil and India have resisted, preserving their own influence in the association. But why preserve influence in a China-dominated vessel that’s sprouting so many leaks? If investors want EM excitement, maybe there’s another marketable acronym now that BRICS is past its sell-by date. Consider something called MITKIT, a regional Asian entity whose total weighting in the [MSCI Emerging Markets Index]( — 46% — would be larger than China’s 31.4%. Indeed, China would be a geopolitical reason for Malaysia, India, Thailand, Korea, Indonesia and Taiwan to band together. Oh wait ... Taiwan? Never mind. This Blessed Plot, This Realm, This Shark-Infested England? In his latest column, Adrian Wooldridge [rhapsodizes]( the golden age of domestic British tourism from 1880 to 1914. “By the Edwardian era, 55% of the population were making day trips to the seaside, and another 20% were taking holiday accommodation there,” he writes. However, holidays in Blackpool, Margate, Bournemouth and other resort towns on the British seaside began to decline in the 1960s with the advent of consumer plane travel and packaged tours abroad.  Climate change may be about to change that, however. “Familiar destinations in the Mediterranean and the US are becoming so hot that wildfires rage and sunbathers pass out,” Adrian writes. Furthermore, “A report commissioned by aviation industry groups estimates that the cost of reaching net-zero targets could reach €820 billion ($896.2 billion) by 2050. The age of cheap flying is coming to an end.”  Visitors in Margate. But wait... Photographer: Jason Alden/Bloomberg So it might be best to stay put and go back to the days of vacationing on the British seaside. Except, what about all those stories that great white sharks may soon make appearances off St. Ives in Cornwall and UK waters as the planet warms up? What are prospective British tourists to do if they’re afraid to go back into their native waters? So far, all the credible great white sightings are on the US side of the North Atlantic. “Never say never, but it’s a shame that whenever anybody does claim to see one, they don’t seem to have their phone on them,” Paul Cox, CEO of charity Shark Trust, told Lara Williams. In her [column](, Lara points out that the more than 40 documented species of shark in British waters aren’t maneaters. But half of them are under threat from humankind (see chart in next section). Says Lara: “Maybe great whites will eventually establish themselves off the coast of St. Ives. But spare a thought for the enigmatic species already here that we might soon lose.” Until then, she says, “the most dangerous thing you’re likely to encounter in British waters is raw sewage.” Telltale Charts “From flat-bodied angelsharks and porbeagles to spotty nursehounds and enormous basking sharks — gentle filter-feeders that would dwarf a great white — there’s incredible diversity. We’ve even got Greenland sharks, which have the longest known lifespan of any vertebrates. One [study carbon-dated the eyes of Greenland sharks](; the largest, a five-meter (16.4-feet) female, was between 272 and 512 years old. Unfortunately, more than 50% of the UK shark population is under threat.” — Lara Williams in “[Sharks Need to be Cherished More Than Feared](.” “Dollarization has happened elsewhere. Ecuador, Panama and El Salvador (the model Milei is most interested in emulating) use the greenback as their currency. So it’s not outlandish. But what’s fascinating about [Frontrunning presidential candidate Javier] Milei’s plan to adopt the dollar is that Argentina tried just such a policy in the past, and it ended catastrophically.” — John Authers in “[Don’t Deja Vu Me, Argentina. Markets Have No Tears.](” Further Reading Remember, cybersecurity is an [oxymoron](. — Martin Ivens Singapore wants to reinvent itself. [Why mess with success](? — Daniel Moss A troubled Chinese property developer gets help from a [Dubai SPAC](. — Shuli Ren The [monsters](are coming … from China. — Howard Chua-Eoan Alas, poor [Wilko](. I knew it like all those other dead UK stores. — Andrea Felsted Xi Jinping, AKA Ebeneezer [Scrooge](. — Minxin Pei Walk of the Town: The Hotel That Refused to Go Vegan Once upon a time, there was a restaurant called Davies and Brook on the corner of the London streets that bear those names. It served delightful fare like oysters, a delightful duck and sugar-sprinkled donuts filled with warm apples.   Then its chef Daniel Humm wanted it to go full vegan — just like his famous New York City restaurant Eleven Madison Park. But Davies and Brook was also within a famous hotel, in fact one of the most famous hotels in the world. And, in November 2021, Claridge’s announced that it had decided to [part ways]( with Humm. Art Deco renewal at Claridge’s Restaurant (formerly known as Davies and Brook) Photograph by Howard Chua-Eoan It’s been nearly two years, and the expansive dining room has been expensively renovated (along with the rest of the hotel). Now simply called Claridge’s Restaurant, it can still provide you with vegetarian and vegan selections. But you may also very comfortably remain a carnivore — an option that the hotel probably calculated its well-heeled clientele would overwhelmingly prefer. The previous look: Davies and Brook, in December 2019 Photograph by Howard Chua-Eoan The room itself is gorgeous: a revival of the hotel’s art deco roots. The duck wasn’t on the menu when I visited for lunch this week but the oysters were wonderful as were the Dorset snails and the beef tartare (served with bone marrow and toast). Claridge’s refused to bow to critics and move with the times. But I suspect the moneyed classes will continue to go with whatever Claridge’s puts on the table. Nothing is priced too low. Drawdown Thanks for hanging in there with me. Here’s a thought for mid-August if you’re feeling as dry as a desert. “Things could be worse. We could have been eaten by sharks” Illustration by Howard Chua-Eoan Notes: Please send just desserts and feedback to Howard Chua-Eoan at hchuaeoan@bloomberg.net. [Sign up here]( and follow us on [Instagram](, [TikTok](, [Twitter]( and [Facebook](. 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