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☆ William Shatner is mad he may have to pay to keep his blue Twitter checkmark. Elon Musk says too bad
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Jennifer Korn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —Elon Musk and William Shatner clashed on Twitter over the weekend after the Star Trek actor complained about being forced to pay to keep his blue checkmark on the platform. In a tweet on Saturday, Shatner expressed frustration with Twitter’s plan to remove blue checkmarks from the accounts of celebrities, journalists, government officials and other high-profile individuals who don’t pay $84 a year (or $8 a month) for its subscription service, Twitter Blue. “Hey @elonmusk what’s this about blue checks going away unless we pay Twitter?” he tweeted. In the process, Twitter risks alienating some of the VIP users who have long been a key draw for millions to use the platform. Twitter said it will “begin winding down” the “legacy” blue checks for users on April 1.

☆ Food prices push UK shop price inflation to new high: BRC
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Hannah McKayLONDON, March 28 (Reuters) - Soaring food prices pushed annual inflation in British shops to its highest in at least 18 years in March, industry data showed on Tuesday. The British Retail Consortium said overall shop price inflation rose to 8.9% from 8.4% in February, the largest increase since the British Retail Consortium's (BRC) records started in 2005. "Shop price inflation has yet to peak," said BRC Chief Executive Helen Dickinson, who cited the rising cost of sugar as a major driver of higher food prices in March. Sugar prices have been hit by falling production, rising energy prices and a pesticide ban in Britain to protect bees. The country's annual consumer price inflation - which includes services and other non-shop goods such as energy - rose unexpectedly to 10.4% in February.

☆ BoE's Bailey says rate-setters can put inflation before bank worries
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( William Schomberg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, March 27 (Reuters) - Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey signalled on Monday that interest rate-setters would focus on fighting inflation and would not be swayed unduly by worries about the health of the global banking system. Some investors have argued that central banks should take into account the banking turmoil when setting interest rates. "With the Financial Policy Committee on the case of securing financial stability, the Monetary Policy Committee can focus on its own important job of returning inflation to target," Bailey said. As well as the BoE, the European Central Bank, U.S. Federal Reserve and Swiss National Bank have all raised interest rates this month, despite the high-profile bank failures including Silicon Valley Bank and Credit Suisse. Bailey repeated the BoE's view that further monetary tightening would be required if signs of persistent inflationary pressure became evident.

☆ Elon Musk tells William Shatner that Twitter shouldn't have different standards for celebrities when it comes to $8 blue checkmarks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk told William Shatner there shouldn't be different standards for celebrities on Twitter. Twitter says the only way users can keep their blue ticks is by signing up to Twitter Blue, a monthly subscription which costs $8. Stephen King, Josh Gad, and Lynda Carter were among the celebrities to criticize Musk over charging Twitter users for a blue tick. Before Blue Origin sent Shatner into space on an 11-minute journey, Musk commented "Godspeed Captain" on NASA's Twitter post. Following the flight, the billionaire tweeted: "Congrats, was cool to send William Shatner to space."

☆ Let DeSantis Fight Trump Before Putin
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Holman W. Jenkins | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Holman W. Jenkins Jr. is a member of the editorial board of The Wall Street Journal. Mr. Jenkins joined the Journal in May 1992 as a writer for the editorial page in New York. In February 1994, he moved to Hong Kong as editor of The Asian Wall Street Journal's editorial page. Mr. Jenkins won a 1997 Gerald Loeb Award for distinguished business and financial coverage. Born in Philadelphia, Mr. Jenkins received a bachelor's degree from Hobart and William Smith Colleges and a master's degree in journalism from Northwestern University.

☆ Bank of England raises interest rates again, sees inflation falling
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Sounding more upbeat about the outlook for the country's slow pace of economic growth, the BoE's nine rate-setters voted 7-2 in favour of a 25 basis-point increase in Bank Rate to 4.25%. "The MPC will continue to monitor closely any effect on the credit conditions faced by households and businesses, and hence the impact on the macroeconomic and inflation outlook," it said. On Wednesday, the U.S. Federal Reserve raised its main interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point, and indicated it was on the verge of pausing further increases. However, it said it expected wages to rise slightly less than it had previously forecast, as inflation expectations fell. The BoE was the first major central bank to start raising rates in December 2021 and until this week had seemed likely to join the Bank of Canada which this month stopped raising borrowing costs.

☆ Inflation shock puts Bank of England on course to raise rates again
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( William Schomberg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] A general view of the Bank of England (BoE) building, the BoE confirmed to raise interest rates to 1.75%, in London, Britain, August 4, 2022. Most economists had believed inflation was on course to fall steadily, after hitting a 41-year high above 11% in October. But Wednesday's data - showing inflation rising to 10.4% in February rather continuing its descent - immediately turned Thursday's announcement into an almost one-way bet on a quarter percentage-point increase in Bank Rate. As recently as Tuesday, investors were split almost 50-50 on whether the BoE would leave Bank Rate unchanged for the first time since November 2021. The European Central Bank last week stuck to its plans and raised rates by 50 basis points despite the Credit Suisse turmoil.

The BoE is due to announce on Thursday whether it has raised interest rates for an 11th meeting in a row. The annual inflation rate in the services sector, which most policymakers consider is a good measure of underlying price pressures in the economy, rose to 6.6% after standing at 6.0% in January. Finance minister Jeremy Hunt said the data showed the expected decline in inflation could not be taken for granted. "Falling inflation isn't inevitable, so we need to stick to our plan to halve it this year," Hunt said in a statement. Reporting by David Milliken and William Schomberg, editing by William JamesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The Joe Biden Banking Crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Holman W. Jenkins | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Biotech company Illumina pushes back against Carl Icahn’s proxy fight over $7.1 billion Grail deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Annika Kim Constantino | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Biotech company Illumina pushed back Monday against Carl Icahn's proxy fight over the company's acquisition of cancer test developer Grail, saying the activist investor's board nominees "do not add value." "To paraphrase William Shakespeare's Hamlet, something is rotten in the state of Illumina," Icahn wrote. Illumina said winning a jurisdictional appeal would eliminate any potential fine and "gives the greatest optionality for Illumina to maximize value for shareholders." The company also claimed Icahn recognizes the value of Grail to shareholders, pointing to a CNBC interview last week where Icahn referred to Grail as Illumina's "best equipment." Illumina touted Grail in its release, saying it has "tremendous long-term value creation potential."

☆ Bank of England welcomes Credit Suisse deal, says UK banks are safe
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Logos of Swiss banks UBS and Credit Suisse are seen in Zurich, Switzerland March 19, 2023. REUTERS/Moritz HagerLONDON, March 19 (Reuters) - The Bank of England welcomed moves by the Swiss authorities to broker a take-over by UBS of Credit Suisse on Sunday, indicating it would support approval of the deal, and it said the British banking system was well funded. UBS (UBSG.S) agreed to buy rival Swiss bank Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) for 3 billion Swiss francs ($3.23 billion) in stock and assume up to 5 billion francs ($5.4 billion) in losses in a merger engineered by Swiss authorities. "The UK government welcomes the steps taken today by the Swiss authorities in relation to Credit Suisse to support financial stability, and will continue to engage with the FCA and the Bank of England as is usual," a finance ministry spokesperson said. ($1 = 0.9280 Swiss francs)Reporting by Alistair Smout and Huw Jones Editing by William SchombergOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Bank of England to start repo operations at 0815 GMT on Monday
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

LONDON, March 19 (Reuters) - The Bank of England said it would hold the first of its new, daily seven-day maturity repo operations - part of a global central bank response to the crisis at Credit Suisse - at 0815 GMT on Monday. The BoE along with the Bank of Canada, the Bank of Japan, the European Central Bank, the Federal Reserve and the Swiss National Bank said jointly on Sunday they would enhance liquidity provision via new standing U.S. dollar liquidity swap lines. Reporting by William SchombergOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

A 25 basis-point rise would take Bank Rate to 4.25%, where most economists said it would stay for at least a year. But investors have turned more doubtful about the BoE's appetite for more rate hikes in recent days amid mounting anxieties about the global banking sector. Interest rate futures on Friday showed traders were putting a roughly 50-50 chance on the BoE maintaining Bank Rate at 4% next week. Investors expect a 25 basis-point rate hike from the U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday, a day before the BoE's announcement. Forty-two of 47 economists polled by Reuters between March 13-16 expected the BoE to announce a 25 basis-point hike, hold Bank Rate at 4.25% for at least year and then lower it.

☆ JPMorgan and the Jeffrey Epstein Forever Wars
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Holman W. Jenkins | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ UK drops plan to tax sovereign wealth funds
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, March 17 (Reuters) - British finance minister Jeremy Hunt has dropped a plan to tax sovereign wealth funds investing in Britain, according to a government document. The report, detailing the measures in a budget plan announced by Hunt on Wednesday, said "the government has carefully considered" responses to its consultation on the immunity of sovereign funds from direct taxation. The FT said business and trade minister Kemi Badenoch had urged the Treasury to drop the proposals out of concern that sovereign funds might pull out of projects in Britain. Sovereign wealth funds from the Middle East and elsewhere have been big investors in some British infrastructure projects as well as in commercial property. Writing by William Schomberg; editing by William JamesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ UK's Labour attacks planned pension changes as giveaway to the rich
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Kate Holton | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, March 16 (Reuters) - Britain's opposition Labour Party vowed on Thursday to reverse the government's planned pension changes, saying they were a giveaway to the top 1% of pension savers at a time when many households are being hit by tax increases and high inflation. "The budget was a chance for the government to unlock Britain's promise and potential," Rachel Reeves, Labour's would-be finance minister said. Some long-serving senior doctors have cut back their hours or retired early as they near the lifetime pension limit, adding to strains in the National Health Service (NHS). The focus on tax support for the wealthiest had echoes of the criticism that met the "mini-budget" of former Prime Minister Liz Truss and her finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng in September. They were later forced to reverse their plan to scrap the top rate of income tax for Britain's highest earners.

"Since mid-October, 10-year gilt rates have fallen, debt servicing costs are down, mortgage rates are lower and inflation has peaked. The International Monetary Fund says our approach means the UK economy is on the right track." [1/6] Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt holds the budget box on Downing Street in London, Britain March 15, 2023. The OBR forecast economic output would grow by 1.8% in 2024 and by 2.5% in 2025, Hunt said, compared with its previous forecasts for growth of 1.3% and 2.6% respectively. Many economists have said Hunt probably wants to hold back some fiscal firepower for closer to the next national election.

[1/6] Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt holds the budget box on Downing Street in London, Britain March 15, 2023. The International Monetary Fund says our approach means the UK economy is on the right track." After the shocks of Brexit, a heavy COVID-19 hit and double-digit inflation, Britain's economy is the only one among Group of Seven nations yet to recover its pre-pandemic size, having already suffered a decade of near-stagnant income growth. "Despite continuing global instability, the OBR report today that inflation in the UK will fall from 10.7% in the final quarter of last year to 2.9% by the end of 2023," Hunt said. Many economists have said Hunt probably wants to hold back some fiscal firepower for closer to the next national election.

The immediate outlook is less sombre: The economy is due to shrink by 0.2% in 2023, not 1.4% as previously thought. It also said Hunt's three-year business investment incentives would bring investment forward at a cost to later years. "We're on track to meet the - relatively loose, poorly designed - fiscal rule on paper only," he said. "It's even more important that the government builds on the measures presented today and produces a more comprehensive plan for boosting growth." ($1 = 0.8282 pounds)($1 = 0.8283 pounds)Writing by William Schomberg, Editing by Angus MacSwanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ We moved to North Carolina but are about to leave because the salaries aren't high enough and the diversity we value ended at the city limits
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Jordan Pandy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

They opted to rent in Charlotte, North Carolina, because of the affordability and diversity. North Carolina isn't as affordable as it seemsCielo: We bought our house in California in 2018 for $432,000. We decided to rent in North Carolina because when we were looking into housing, it was getting expensive. Everyone we spoke to says that that's an issue with the entire south, not just North Carolina. Did you move to North Carolina recently?

☆ Silicon Valley Bank and Joe Biden’s $19 Trillion Monday
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Holman W. Jenkins | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Hunt, hemmed in by debt, set to focus on growth in UK budget
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( William Schomberg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Instead, hemmed in by his promise to lower the burden of Britain's 2.5 trillion pounds ($3.0 trillion) of debt, Hunt will seek to tackle some of the causes of Britain's long-term economic funk. "In the autumn we took difficult decisions to deliver stability and sound money," Hunt is due to say, according to excerpts of his budget speech. "Today, we deliver the next part of our plan: a budget for growth," he adds. Labour's would-be finance minister, Rachel Reeves, sought to keep the heat on Hunt by calling for urgent action now. In an attempt to soften that tax hit, Hunt has hinted at new incentives for business investment.

☆ UK employers feel the strain of missing skilled workers
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( William Schomberg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

But past attempts to train up more workers have seen the problem get worse by some measures, and any big improvement to the post-16 skills system is likely to take years. TRAINING REVAMPWithout a rapid overhaul of the training system, Britain's pool of highly skilled adults is likely to shrink further relative to other countries, the OECD has warned. Employers groups are calling on Hunt to tackle a key part of how training is funded in his budget speech. Corporate leaders acknowledge employers also need to do more themselves, and prioritize training even in lean times. "You're slowing down really quite a lot to go at the pace of the education system," he said of his company, which began as a print management firm in 1996.

☆ This Isn't What Millennial Middle Age Was Supposed to Look Like - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Jessica Grose | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +25 min

Things have been difficult for her family, she says, but one thing she isn’t worried about: a midlife crisis, looming just over the horizon. One of our questions was about whether they had experienced a midlife crisis and how they would define the term. Many people said they felt they couldn’t be having a midlife crisis, because there was no bourgeois numbness to rebel against. “Who has midlife crisis money?”The traditional midlife crisis, as presented in popular culture, at least, unfolds amid suburban ennui. We just increase our Lexapro.”Was the midlife crisis ever even real?

☆ UK pay growth slows as Bank of England mulls rates pause
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Pay excluding bonuses rose by 6.5% compared with 6.7% in the three months to December. Total pay grew by an annual 5.7% in the November-to-January period, slowing from 6.0% in the previous figures, the Office for National Statistics said. Despite the still strong pace of pay growth, earnings were further diminished by an inflation rate that stood above 10% in January. Total pay fell by 4.4% in real terms, the biggest drop since early 2009. "The jobs market remains strong, but inflation remains too high," finance minister Jeremy Hunt said after the data was published, a day ahead of his budget speech.

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