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☆ Opinion | What a Party Switch in North Carolina Means for Democrats
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Tressie Mcmillan Cottom | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Her media tour on the subject is nonsensical and vague, though, by the most generous standards. She stutters about unspecified run-ins in public with mean constituents and unwelcoming Democrats, for instance. For a model on the choices before Cotham, one need look no further than conservative commentator Matt Walsh. Representative Graig Meyer of North Carolina had a more practical read of the changes in the state’s new balance of power. On Twitter, Meyer, a Democrat, laid out how much national abortion policy boxes in North Carolina Republicans.

☆ Inside Kendall Roy's $29 million NYC 'Succession' apartment: We went to 'great lengths to create something truly unique'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Celia Fernandez | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

One of the many, many highlights of tuning in to HBO's "Succession" every week is getting to see how the other half lives. Unlike Logan and Marcia Roy's home, also featured prominently in the episode, Kendall's stunning space is not a set. For one fan of the show, seeing this penthouse apartment featured in prime time was a gratifying experience. McMillan is the founder and CEO of DDG, the developer of 180 East 88th Street in New York City, where the luxury apartment is located. The five-bedroom, four-bathroom, 5,508 square-feet "triplex" apartment, which is in Manhattan's tallest tower north of 72nd Street, is listed for $29 million.

☆ The US dollar's outlook is complicated. Here's what to know about the currency's standing on the world stage.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The dollar's position as a top reserve currency, however, may be somewhat less certain. They pointed to Russia's invasion of Ukraine as a catalyst for the currency's drop-off as a reserve currency. "We believe the erosion of the dollar's reserve currency status has accelerated in recent years at an alarming pace," Eurizon said. Here's the takeaway forecasters seem to agree on: The dollar's losing some ground as a global reserve currency, but none at all as far as international trade. What's your outlook for the dollar's role on the world stage in 2023 and beyond?

J&J (JNJ.N) shares fell 2.8% after the healthcare conglomerate cautioned investors over the lingering impact of inflation-driven costs this year. Goldman (GS.N) shares dropped 1.7% after the Wall Street firm's profit fell 19% as dealmaking and bond trading slumped. The early quarterly results from S&P 500 companies come as investors have been bracing for a gloomy reporting season, fearing the economy may be on the cusp of a downturn. S&P 500 company earnings are expected to have declined 4.8% in the first quarter from a year earlier, according to Refinitiv IBES data as of Friday. The S&P 500 posted 28 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 66 new highs and 143 new lows.

☆ Fears that the US dollar will collapse are nonsense, and doomsayers are often hawking gold, investment chief says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( Filip De Mott | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Dollar collapse fears are bogus as the greenback can't be replaced anytime soon, Brad McMillan said. A lot of the talk is often from doomsayers trying to push gold, Commonwealth Financial's CIO said. The dollar "is not only the established choice and, in most cases, the smart choice, but it is the only choice." "Frankly, a lot of the talk is nonsense designed to panic you into buying something the doomsters are trying to sell, often gold," he wrote. "As far as the markets are concerned, the dollar is still where it has always been.

☆ New Spyware Firm Said to Have Helped Hack iPhones Around the Globe
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Dustin Volz | Robert Mcmillan | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

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One of the most significant leaks of highly classified U.S. documents in recent history began among a small group of posters on a messaging channel that trafficked in memes, jokes and racist talk. Sometime in January, seemingly unnoticed by the outside world, an anonymous member of a group numbering just over a dozen began to post files—many labeled as top secret—providing details about the war in Ukraine, intercepted communications about U.S. allies, such as Israel and South Korea, and details of American penetration of Russian military plans, among other topics.

☆ Microsoft Patched Bing Vulnerability That Allowed Snooping on Email and Other Data
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Robert Mcmillan | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Microsoft has been adding generative AI capabilities to much of its software and services. Microsoft Corp. patched a dangerous security issue in Bing last month just days before it launched a new artificial intelligence-powered version of the search engine. The problem was discovered by outside researchers at the security firm Wiz Inc. It was created by a mistake in the way that Microsoft configured applications on Azure, its cloud-computing platform, and could be used to gain access to emails and other documents of people who used Bing, the researchers said.

☆ Stock futures are up as Wall Street looks to build on winning week: Live updates
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Stock futures edged higher Sunday evening as Wall Street came off a winning week and investors continued to follow the troubling bank sector. The moves come after Wall Street capped off a winning week despite volatility related to the Federal Reserve's latest interest rate hike and the ongoing bank crisis. The news reignited concerns over the health of the European banking system that started with UBS ' acquisition of Credit Suisse earlier this month. "Although markets were okay with the Fed, it was the second thing — the ongoing turmoil in the banking system — that mattered even more." In the week ahead, investors will likely continue watching the banking sector for indicators of potential weakness.

☆ Bond markets are pricing in an upcoming recession, says Commonwealth Financial Network's McMillan
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailBond markets are pricing in an upcoming recession, says Commonwealth Financial Network's McMillanBrian Levitt, Invesco global market strategist, and Brad McMillan, Commonwealth Financial Network CIO, joins 'Closing Bell: Overtime' to discuss the market's second straight positive week, McMillan's thoughts on bond markets and more.

Heading into a state election on Saturday, the conservative coalition has promised to rein in the powerful "pokies" industry in a jurisdiction with nearly one-tenth of the world's million machines, second only to Las Vegas. "This is the first time in our state's history ... that poker machine reform is actually an election issue," said Stu Cameron, CEO of Wesley Mission, a charity that supports the homeless, addicts and others. Reuters Graphics Reuters Graphics"We are the epicenter of pokie machine addiction not just in Australia but across the world. McMillan, the air conditioning repairman, said cashless machines alone could not stop problem gambling, but "I would promote any change that could help people". Since then, a quarter of its 400 groups have taken grants from slot machine interests, Reuters' analysis of publicly available documents showed, in a sign of the industry's grassroots hold.

China has routinely denied hacking into businesses or governments in other countries. State-sponsored hackers from China have developed techniques that evade common cybersecurity tools and enable them to burrow into government and business networks and spy on victims for years without detection, researchers with Alphabet Inc.’s Google found. Over the past year, analysts at Google’s Mandiant division have discovered hacks of systems that aren’t typically the targets of cyber espionage. Instead of infiltrating systems behind the corporate firewall, they are compromising devices on the edge of the network—sometimes firewalls themselves—and targeting software built by companies such as VMware Inc. or Citrix Systems Inc. These products run on computers that don’t typically include antivirus or endpoint detection software.

Signs of calm and stability in banking stocks, which have tanked in the past week following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), soon paved way for renewed selling as Credit Suisse shares fell to record lows. Reuters GraphicsThe STOXX 600 (.STOXX) index fell 1.67%, while Europe's broad FTSEurofirst 300 index (.FTEU3) fell 51.58 points, or 2.91%Investors rushed back into safe haven investments. "The Credit Suisse share price is falling and government bonds are rallying on the back of that. Markets are "spooked" by Credit Suisse headlines, said Richard McGuire, head of rates strategy at Rabobank in London. "For today Credit Suisse is the dish of the day but we don't think this will be a longer lasting trend," he said.

Russia has targeted organizations in at least 17 European nations this year, Microsoft says. Russian government hackers have increased their cyber-espionage attacks against Ukraine and its allies in recent months while deploying novel strains of malicious software, according to research from Microsoft Corp. and other security companies. The findings reflect a renewed commitment by Moscow to conduct cyberattacks and suggest it may be preparing to launch more aggressive and potentially destructive ones to coincide with Russia’s expected spring offensive in eastern Ukraine. The shift follows a relative lull in cyber activity after an initial onslaught when the war began, Western officials and experts said.

☆ Morgan Stanley is testing an OpenAI-powered chatbot for its 16,000 financial advisors
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Hugh Son | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

OpenAI logo seen on screen with ChatGPT website displayed on mobile seen in this illustration in Brussels, Belgium, on December 12, 2022. Morgan Stanley is rolling out an advanced chatbot powered by OpenAI's latest technology to help the bank's army of financial advisors, CNBC has learned. "This is like having our chief strategy officer sitting next to you when you're on the phone with a client." While generative AI has dazzled users and sparked a race among technology giants to develop products, it has also led some users down strange paths. Last month, Morgan Stanley analysts wrote that ChatGPT occasionally "hallucinates and can generate answers that are seemingly convincing, but are actually wrong."

☆ Premarket stocks: What comes next in the banking crisis? The early 1990s hold clues
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

This isn’t 2008: There are some key differences between today’s banking saga and what happened in 2008. This time around the US federal government stepped in early to guarantee all customer deposits and restore confidence in the US banking system. Here comes CPIFormer banking regulators, economists and Wall Street analysts are increasingly calling for the Federal Reserve to pause its inflation-fighting interest rate hikes because of the current banking sector chaos. Last Wednesday, investors were putting 70% odds of a half-point interest rate hike at the Federal Reserve policy meeting next week, according to the CME FedWatch tool. Analysts expect the inflation rate to come in at 6% year-over-year (down from 6.4% in January) and at 0.4% month-over-month (down from 0.5% in January).

☆ Silicon Valley Bank is the second-biggest bank crash in U.S. history—here's what it means for your money
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Ryan Ermey | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

A security guard at Silicon Valley Bank monitors a line of people outside the office on March 13, 2023 in Santa Clara, California. Late last week, Silicon Valley Bank disclosed signs of gross financial mismanagement, sparking panic among the bank's investors and customers. By Friday, the bank, which caters to numerous startups, had halted trading on its plummeting stock, prompting a race among depositors to withdraw their money. SVB and Signature Bank investors? Shares of First Republic Bank, which investors worry will suffer a similar fate, lost 52% on Monday after shedding 33% last week.

☆ Silicon Valley Bank catered to Napa Valley wineries and could finance 'French oak barrels' if needed. The bank's demise 'surprised everyone,' a vineyard owner says.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-12 | by ( Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Silicon Valley Bank lent over $4 billion to wineries in the past 30 years, according to its website. Gavin Newsom as one of its investors, founder John Conover told Insider. A large portion of SVB's clientele came from the startup ecosystem, but it also established a good footing with the west coast's wine industry. Since the division's founding nearly three decades ago, SVB has loaned more than $4 billion to its wine-centric clients, according to the bank's website. On Wednesday, SVB Financial Group announced it was in a cash crunch that caused panic among customers and a massive $42 billion bank run.

☆ Takeaways from the February jobs report
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Alicia Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Minneapolis CNN —February’s jobs report had a little something for everyone. In February, the construction industry added 24,000 jobs, marking 12 consecutive months of employment growth. Friday’s report showed that “a modicum of slack crept back into the jobs market,” wrote Wells Fargo economists Sarah House and Michael Pugliese. However, Friday’s jobs report likely won’t spur a more dovish turn from the Fed, said Sean Snaith, an economist and director of the University of Central Florida’s Institute for Economic Forecasting. “We didn’t go from a four-alarm fire to a five-alarm fire with this data report, but the inflation flames aren’t out either,” he wrote in a note Friday.

☆ Stock futures are down slightly following Thursday’s market sell-off fueled by banks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 52 points, or 0.2%. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures each shed 0.2%. The Nasdaq Composite recorded a 2.05% slide, while the S&P 500 posted a 1.85% dip. Financials was the worst performing sector within the S&P 500 at a 4.1% drop — its worst daily performance since 2020. Economists polled by Dow Jones expect nonfarm payrolls to rise 225,000 in the month, which would mark a slowdown in growth from January's unexpectedly large gain of 517,000.

☆ Ben McMillan of IDX Digital Assets discusses his market outlook amid the crypto crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Talia Kaplan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailBen McMillan of IDX Digital Assets discusses his market outlook amid the crypto crackdownCNBC Crypto World features the latest news and daily trading updates from the digital currency markets and provides viewers with a look at what's ahead with high-profile interviews, explainers, and unique stories from the ever-changing crypto industry. Today, Ben McMillan, founding partner and CIO of IDX Digital Assets, discusses his market outlook amid the backdrop of a crypto crackdown.

☆ Silvergate discloses uncertain future, and senators dub Binance 'hotbed' for crime: CNBC Crypto World
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Jordan Smith | Talia Kaplan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailSilvergate discloses uncertain future, and senators dub Binance 'hotbed' for crime: CNBC Crypto WorldCNBC Crypto World features the latest news and daily trading updates from the digital currency markets and provides viewers with a look at what's ahead with high-profile interviews, explainers, and unique stories from the ever-changing crypto industry. On today's show, Ben McMillan, founding partner and CIO of IDX Digital Assets, discusses his market outlook amid the backdrop of a crypto crackdown.

☆ Minnesota’s Blizzard Surfers
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Robert Mcmillan | Photographs Tim Gruber For The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A growing tribe of thrill seekers scan the local weather and wax up their boards when they hear that most enticing of forecasts: a big arctic storm blowing down from Canada. A portrait of Cole Barree after surfing in Lake Superior in Duluth, Minn., on Feb. 24.

☆ Surf’s Up…in Duluth…in February—‘It’s Liquid Ice, Dude’
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Robert Mcmillan | Photographs Tim Gruber For The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

DULUTH, Minn.—With local residents stocking up on emergency supplies and the National Weather Service warning of blizzardy gale-force winds last Thursday, Randy Carlson found himself looking for the perfect wave. Duluth is perhaps the most unexpected big-wave surf spot in the U.S.—especially during Minnesota’s punishing winters. Mr. Carlson is a member of a growing tribe of thrill-seekers who scan the local weather and wax up their boards when they hear that most enticing of forecasts: a big arctic storm blowing down from Canada.

☆ NBA roundup: Kings edge Clippers 176-175 in 2OT
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Kawhi Leonard scored 44 points and Paul George added 34 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers. Russell Westbrook scored 17 points and dished out 14 assists in his debut with the team. Brunson was held to 13 points and shot 6-of-20 after averaging 32.5 points in his final eight games before the All-Star break. Andre Drummond (13 points, 10 rebounds) and Nikola Vucevic (13 points, 10 rebounds) both notched double-doubles for Chicago. Chris Paul scored 16 points and Josh Okogie added 15 as Phoenix won for the 12th time in 16 games.

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