America’s trade deficit of goods shot up to a whopping record $1.1 trillion in 2021 from $922 billion in 2020, leading to its largest ever deficit. Imports dwarfed exports, reaching new highs of $2.9 trillion in 2021, while U.S. exports to other countries added up to $1.8 trillion. Using the latest data on international trade from the U.S. Census Bureau, we’ve visualized the flow of America’s annual imports and exports for selected countries....

Wars have been fought over gold. Love has been expressed by it. Gold has changed the landscape of civilizations and the world. But what makes gold so great? This infographic examines the history of gold from ancient history to the gold rushes of the centuries ago. It looks at its properties and how it became not only a currency, but the gold standard. View Part 2: Supply and Mining on Did you know that nearly one-fifth of all the gold ever mined is held by central banks?...

In 2011, there were 1040.6 million troy oz of silver produced. Of this, 84% was used by industry and the remaining was used as an investment. Interestingly, traditional uses only account for about a third of silver fabrication. These include jewelry, coins, medals, and silverware. Most is actually consumed in over 10,000 modern industrial applications. The vast majority of silver supply comes from recycling, net government sales, and mine production....

Video: Equity Financing in the Mining Exploration Sector Mining exploration is a notoriously capital intensive sector. Because companies typically generate no or little revenue, they must go to the capital markets with the lure of creating the next big economic discovery. These dynamics create the risk and reward in the sector that make it unique, but they also create a barrier to entry for average person. Many regular investors that trade stocks and mutual funds do not know how private placements, warrants, or hold periods work....

Given the rising demand, what types of electric car models are available for U.S. consumers to choose from today? This graphic, using data from Car and Driver and EPA, highlights every single EV that’s available for sale across America, showing the wide range of manufacturers, vehicle types, and prices. What Electric Vehicles Are Available in America? As of February 2022, there are 28 different electric vehicles available in the U....

As the global travel and tourism industry stalls, the spillover effects to global employment are wide-reaching. A total of 330 million jobs are supported by this industry around the world, and it contributes 10%, or $8.9 trillion to global GDP each year. Today’s infographic uses data from the World Travel & Tourism Council, and it highlights the countries that depend the most on the travel and tourism industry according to employment—quantifying the scale that the industry contributes to the health of the global economy....

The obvious answer might be coffee beans, but when you start to account for additional costs, the scope of a massive $200+ billion coffee supply chain becomes clear. From the labor of growing, exporting, and roasting the coffee plants to the materials like packaging, cups, and even stir sticks, there are many underlying costs that factor into every cup of coffee consumed. The above graphic breaks down the costs incurred by retail coffee production for one pound of coffee, equivalent to about 15 cups of 16 ounce brewed coffee....

While a handful of countries are fortunate enough to have sufficient domestic production, many others must go to the $3 trillion global crude market for their energy needs. We previously showed how oil prices affect the currencies of net oil importers and exporters, but today’s map and corresponding data from BP looks more specifically at how oil changes hands on the global market. The Middle East was the biggest exporter of crude oil with 850....

It may be just enough of a carrot to dangle in front of the “Euroskeptics”, or Brits that are skeptical of the benefits that Britain receives from EU membership. However, the split between “stay” and “leave” is still very even according to polls: With polls close and the “Vote Leave” campaign now in full gear for the referendum on June 23, investors around the world are trying to figure out the potential economic and political impact of a British exit from the EU....

Millennials, for example, found the journey to adulthood riddled with obstacles such as stagnating wage growth and uncertain economic conditions. These challenges, combined with other generational circumstances, helped to shape the group’s spending habits and attitudes towards money and debt. Along this journey, Millennials ended up making their fair share of financial mistakes – but interestingly, evidence is now mounting that the next generational cohort (Gen Z) is already learning from their elders....

Most of them get deflected by our unconscious minds and hold little relevance or appeal to our daily lives. But at the same time, a select few of these messages get through to us, and we may even feel a sense of personal identity with them. Sure, these brands might sell products that we like – but it’s also the storytelling behind the brand’s messaging that can resonate with our individual lives....

This unique 3D map from HowMuch puts into perspective the city corridors which contribute the most to the American economy at large. Top 10 Metros by Economic Output The visualization pulls the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA, 2018), and ranks the top 10 metro area economies in the country. One thing is immediately clear—the New York metro area dwarfs all other metro area by a large margin....

How does this next generation of self-driving cars “see” the road? Today’s video from TED-Ed explains one of the mind-bending innovations making autonomous vehicles a reality. Eye of the Laser Safely getting a vehicle and its passengers from point A to B is no simple matter. First, weather and time of day can create a wide variety of challenging situations, affecting things like visibility, braking distances, or speed. Next, other vehicles, bikes, and pedestrians are constantly moving through the transportation network, sometimes in unpredictable ways....

The Best and Brightest CEOs in Mining Working in the mining industry is tough, and being at the top is even harder. CEOs in mining have their work cut out for them. Environmentalists lobbying against them, cyclical downturns, the extremely risky nature of the business, and more are all the thorns in the side of a typical mining CEO. It’s not all bad being at the top. As the infographic suggests, the CEOs are compensated handsomely, some even making eight digits....

Today’s charts come from a report by the independent think tank Pew Research on the partisan divide between the two major U.S. political parties, Democrats and Republicans. The data is based on surveys of over 5,000 adults to gauge public sentiment, tracking the dramatic shifts in political polarization in the U.S. from 1994 to 2017. The results are a fascinating deep dive into America’s shifting political sentiment. Over Two Decades of Differences The animation above demonstrates how the political divide by party has grown significantly and consistently over 23 years....

Company Snapshot: Newnote Financial (CSE: NEU) Newnote Financial Corp. is pioneering innovative crypto-currency related software products and services geared at the growing business segment of this bourgeoning market. Newnote has positioned itself to be a leading contender in delivering opportunities to startup businesses world-wide and continues to create new opportunities for our clients and our shareholders. on It takes an estimated 1,449 kilowatt hours (kWh) of energy to mine a single bitcoin....

Fortune 500 companies, on the other hand, have the resources and wherewithal to give themselves options that regular folks do not. With billions of revenues, it’s worth it for these companies to do whatever they can to avoid the IRS – and much of the time, that means stashing cash in offshore tax havens. Fortune 500 Firms with Cash in Offshore Tax Havens Today’s infographic is from HowMuch.net, a cost information site....

India: The Growing Ecommerce Giant India is one of the high growth developing countries set to make major gains in the near future. One of the booming sectors in India is ecommerce, set to hit $56 billion within ten years. However, India poses a unique challenge to businesses wishing to engage in online retail. Indian laws prohibit foreign controlled companies from selling products online, only domestically owned companies have that privilege....

In an ideal situation, governments are just borrowing this money to cover short-term budget deficits or to finance mission critical projects. However, around the globe, countries have taken to the idea of running constant deficits as the normal course of business, and too much accumulation of debt is not healthy for countries or the global economy as a whole. The U.S. is a prime example of “debt creep” – the country hasn’t posted an annual budget surplus since 2001, when the federal debt was only $6....

Every day, systematic errors in our thought process impact the way we live and work. But in a world where everything we do is changing rapidly—from the way we store information to the way we watch TV—what really classifies as rational thinking? It’s a question with no right or wrong answer, but to help us decide for ourselves, today’s infographic from TitleMax lists 50 cognitive biases that we may want to become privy to....