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☆ Opinion: Texas judge’s stunning ruling caps extraordinary week
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-09 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

We’re looking back at the strongest, smartest opinion takes of the week from CNN and other outlets. Tennessee legislators targeted three members of the state House for joining a gun control protest in the chamber, expelling two young Black men while failing to oust a 60-year-old White woman. (He gave the Biden administration a week to appeal the ruling before it goes into effect. Thus, the week that began with Trump facing a judge in Manhattan ended with a Trump-appointed judge overturning more than two decades of medical practice. “They go far too fast to be safe on the sidewalk” and aren’t right for bike lanes or roads either.

☆ Ryuichi Sakamoto, composer of 'The Last Emperor' film score, dies aged 71
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( Elaine Lies | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] Composer Ryuichi Sakamoto and member of the jury for the upcoming 68th Berlinale International Film Festival attends a news conference in Berlin, Germany, February 15, 2018. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch/File PhotoTOKYO, April 2 (Reuters) - Ryuichi Sakamoto, the Oscar-winning Japanese composer famed for his scores for "The Last Emperor", "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" and other films, has died aged 71, the Yomiuri Shimbun daily reported on Sunday. Sakamoto was also known for his work with the pioneering electronic music band Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO) which he co-founded. Embracing electronic music, he and fellow studio musicians Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi formed YMO in 1978. His most celebrated work was 1987's "The Last Emperor" - a film in which he also acted.

☆ China-driven growth seen helping emerging assets despite bank worries
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Duncan Miriri | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LONDON, March 30 (Reuters) - Stronger Chinese-led emerging markets growth will likely buffer the stocks, bonds and currencies of many developing nations as markets in the United States and Europe are whipped around by banking turmoil. "The growth premium in favour of emerging markets driven by China is clearly even more confirmed," Alessia Berardi, head of emerging markets (EM) research at Amundi, Europe's biggest asset manager, told Reuters. Analysts expect high interest rates, inflation and stress among some financial institutions to dampen growth in developed markets like the United States. "We prefer income in emerging markets debt with central banks closer to turning to cuts than developed markets, even with potential currency risks," it said in a research note. Local EM bonds have seen a return of 3.3% in the month-to-date (.JGEGDCM), compared to a 3.1% gain in U.S. 10-year Treasuries.

☆ Employers Need to Put the Squeeze on Woke Intolerance
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Gerard Baker | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Stanford Law School’s career services website boasts the kind of professional opportunities the school’s graduates can expect when they venture beyond the safe spaces of the palm-speckled campus. Ninety-seven of the nation’s top 100 law firms employ Stanford graduates as partners; 92 have Stanford alums as attorneys. For 48 consecutive years Stanford graduates have clerked on the Supreme Court. Microsoft , Google, Cisco and many other top firms have employed a graduate as general counsel.

“VCs think this is the new internet,” a generative AI founder in the United States told Reuters. While the closure of Silicon Valley Bank may hamper debt financing, venture capitalists said interest in funding AI startups remains high, especially for top early-stage founders. Investors sense opportunity, even for a sale if not an initial public offering; some are betting that AI startups might outpace bigger rivals, encumbered by their size. You.com, a search engine company founded in 2020 and backed by Salesforce’s CEO Marc Benioff, has found new life from incorporating generative AI technology. It has attracted more attention from users and investors, handling millions of searches per day, the company told Reuters.

☆ Mistakes by the US's top spies allowed China to turn a deadly mid-air collision into an intelligence coup
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( James Bamford | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +36 min

On April 1, 2001, a US EP-3 spy plane collided with a Chinese fighter jet over the South China Sea. One of eleven left in the fleet, the tired 1960s-era spy plane bristled with porcupine-like antennas. Within minutes, however, the fighters had reached the lumbering spy plane, and while Zhao Yu hung back about a half-mile, Wang Wei rapidly closed in. In severe trouble, he immediately radioed the base, telling them he was unable to maneuver and being sucked in by the spy plane. "You are not allowed aboard the aircraft," Osborn said.

[1/3] Visitors pass a logo of Teck Resources Ltd mining company during the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) annual convention in Toronto, Ontario, Canada March 4, 2019. REUTERS/Chris HelgrenTORONTO, March 21 (Reuters) - Investors have yet to embrace Canadian miner Teck Resources Ltd's (TECKb.TO) proposal to spin off its highly polluting coal business and focus on production of copper to help supply society's move toward electric vehicles. Last month, Teck announced a split into copper-focused Teck Metals and Elk Valley Resources (EVR), which will focus on high-margin coal for steel making. In 2021, South African miner Anglo American demerged and listed its thermal coal business. "The coal business is profitable for now, and using its proceeds to fund its copper business is a pragmatic way towards transition," said Dustyn Lanz, Senior Advisor ESG Global Advisors.

☆ Deel Speed: The inside story of a $12 billion HR startup's breakneck growth
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Rob Price | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +32 min

Insider spoke with more than 30 current or former Deel workers about the HR company's extraordinary rise, and the unconventional tactics that made it possible. "I think if you talk to anyone, they would say that Alex is the face but all decisions run through Phillipe," one former Deel worker told Insider. "They lose every employment and labor protection," Valerio De Stefano, a professor at Osgoode Hall Law School, said of independent contractors. Alex Bouaziz, Deel on Centre Stage during day two of Collision 2022 at Enercare Centre in Toronto, Canada. The company didn't have an internal human-resources team until sometime in 2021, by which point it had grown to hundreds of people.

☆ Trump shares video mocking DeSantis' flip-flop on how to say his name. The pronunciation question goes back a decade.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

For months, Trump has been attacking DeSantis with the expectation that he'll challenge him for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. In the latest dig issued Friday morning, Trump reshared a video of DeSantis on Truth Social. In the clips, DeSantis shifts the pronunciation of his last name from "Dee-Santis" to "Deh-Santis." The question of how to pronounce "DeSantis" made headlines in 2018 when Trump endorsed the then-US congressman for the GOP nomination for governor. In 2018, the Tampa Bay Times suggested that Casey DeSantis rebranded DeSantis' name, under a story headlined "Tomato, Tomahto; Dee-Santis, Deh-Santis."

☆ SVB's collapse completely screwed things up for companies with bad credit
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The SVB collapse is going to make it a lot more expensive for companies with bad credit to raise capital. But it's not just junk-rated companies that will face higher fund-raising costs. Credit spreads for investment grade companies have also risen in recent days as investors reprice risk across the spectrum of corporate credit quality. That's leading to more zombie companies, or companies that rely on low financing costs to fund their business, that could ultimately default. To blunt the rise in financing costs, companies need to take action, according Embarc Advisors' Jay Jung.

☆ 'Big Short' trader Danny Moses warns Silicon Valley Bank collapse will expose more trouble
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Stephanie Landsman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

"Big Short" investor Danny Moses said the Silicon Valley Bank collapse is exacerbating the economic slowdown despite the government's actions to mitigate the impact. "You can't assume that the regulators have any idea what they're actually dealing with now considering that they were completely caught off guard... by what just happened at Silicon Valley Bank," the Moses Ventures founder told CNBC's " Fast Money " on Tuesday. Moses, who is known for successfully betting against the housing market before its 2008 implosion, speculates failures are just starting. "We still have underestimated in this market in general what is happening when you raise rates," Moses said, referring to the central bank's move to hike interest rates by 450 basis points since March 2022. The Federal Open Market Committee holds its two-day policy meeting on interest rates next Tuesday and Wednesday.

☆ French Senate votes for Macron's pension plan, despite new protests
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-12 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS, FRANCE - JANUARY 19: People gather to demonstrate against pension reform in Paris, France on January 19, 2023. Workers, employees, and students hold a strike against French President's plan to raise the legal retirement age from 62 to 64. (Photo by Julien Mattia/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)The French Senate on Saturday night adopted President Emmanuel Macron's unpopular pension reform plan in the wake of a seventh day of demonstrations that were not as large as authorities had expected. The protests - and rolling strikes that have affected refineries, public transport and garbage collections - aimed to pressure the government to withdraw the pension plan, which it said is essential to ensure the pension system does not run out of money. "After hundreds of hours of discussions, the Senate adopted the pension reform plan.

☆ Frontier countries to suffer most if Fed rate gets to 6% - analysts
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Rodrigo Campos | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"This mix is generally a net negative for emerging markets." A recent Barclays analysis showed a 50 basis point Fed rate hike would increase interest rate volatility, which "would be more destabilizing initially, as it typically comes with EM FX underperformance, which could trigger a further leg up in EM rates." Analysts at JPMorgan expect the dollar to weaken once the terminal rate stabilizes, but a 50-basis point Fed hike "would be a regime-shift in favor of outsized USD-strength." A 6% Fed rate environment alongside still-hot inflation does make short-term rates in Chile and India as well as Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary most vulnerable, UBS found. Chinese equities could provide a safe haven in a 6% fed funds rate scenario, UBS said.

Real estate crowdfundingReal estate crowdfunding is a strategy that allows enterprises to raise capital from large groups of individuals. Real estate investment trusts (REITs)If you want to wade into real estate, investing in a real estate investment trust (REIT) will provide exposure to the market without the time and cost commitment of buying your own property. Invest in your own homeFinally, if you want to invest in real estate, look closer to home — your own home. Strategies for successful real estate investingWhatever form your real estate investment takes, certain strategies will stand you in good stead. Pure investment plays — which don't involve hands-on management from you — include real estate crowdfunding, investing in real estate limited partnerships, and buying into real estate investment trusts.

☆ Look at companies benefiting from energy efficiency moves, sustainable equity advisor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | 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 EmailLook at companies benefiting from energy efficiency moves, sustainable equity advisor saysDeirdre Copper, head of sustainable equity at asset management firm Ninety One, discusses the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, why Europe is lagging on policy, and the need to grasp the detail in sustainable investing.

☆ ICC's top prosecutor in Ukraine to probe Russian attacks on power grid
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Mike Collett-White | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/3] Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and ICC Prosecutor Karim A. A. Khan QC meet, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 28, 2023. ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan said. Andriy Kostin, Ukraine's Prosecutor General who accompanied Khan to the bomb site, praised the cooperation between his offices and those of the ICC. Kostin's office said that tens of thousands of Russian attacks had been launched on infrastructure and civilians which had no military justification.

☆ Israeli troops kill 9 Palestinians in West Bank clash, medics say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Ali Sawafta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/6] Palestinians clash with Israeli forces during a raid in Nablus in the Israeli-occupied West bank, February 22, 2023. REUTERS/Raneen SawaftaNABLUS, West Bank, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Israeli troops killed nine Palestinians, including at least three gunmen and three civilians, and wounded over 90 others during a raid on a flashpoint city in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, witnesses and medical officials said. The Islamic Jihad militant faction said two of its Nablus commanders had been encircled in a house by Israeli troops, triggering a clash that drew in other gunmen. Hamas, another Palestinian militant group that sometimes fights alongside Islamic Jihad, hinted at possible reprisals from the Gaza Strip, a territory that it controls. Hamas and Islamic Jihad are sworn to Israel's destruction but have in the past observed Egyptian-mediated truces with it.

☆ Sell-off fizzles out ahead of Fed, ECB and BoE speeches
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Marc Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] The Federal Reserve building is seen in Washington, U.S., January 26, 2022. Then comes Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell at the Economic Club of Washington during U.S. trading plus U.S. President Joe Biden's State of the Union address. DEADLY QUAKEAmong the main commodities, oil jumped for a second straight session driven by optimism about recovering demand in China, and after Monday's devastating earthquake in Turkey had shut down one of the region's major oil export terminals. "Equities have had a strong run since the start of the year so seeing an air pocket emerge now is no major surprise." Additional reporting by Scoot Murdoch in Sydney; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Jacqueline WongOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Why fear itself is this fintech founder's greatest fear — and should be yours too
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

In 1933, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt said in his inaugural address that "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself." "I think the greatest lesson I've learned from my own humble life is the fear of the fear itself is probably one's greatest fear," the co-founder of the fintech startup told CNBC's Make It. Davies explains that the difficulty lies in what to do with that fear and balancing the need to step back and march forward. "But I'd also say that the greatest moment of fear is often the moment you need to have the courage to step forward and take that leap — that leap of faith," Davies added. "When standing on the edge of a cliff 500 feet above the ocean, with a sheer drop, it's right to be fearful.

☆ JetBlue pilots approve contract extension that comes with over 21% in raises
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Leslie Josephs | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

JetBlue Airways pilots have approved a contract extension that comes with 21.5% raises over the next 18 months as the industry reverses slow progress in labor deals during a pilot shortage. That airline's pilots approved a new two-year contract that their union estimated to be worth around $463 million. If the merger isn't approved by regulators, the union will go back into contract negotiations with the airline. A shortage of aviators and high demand from airlines large and small have also limited airlines' ability to grow. United Airlines , American Airlines and Southwest Airlines are still in talks with their pilots' labor unions.

☆ They’re Cover Girls. They’re in Their 70s.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Rory Satran | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Ninety-year-old Frances Dunscombe only began modeling at age 82 after the death of her husband. Now, several years into her modeling career, she’s done lingerie pictures, worn Prada in Hunger magazine and been on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar UK. Ms. Dunscombe, who lives in Surrey, United Kingdom, sees her mission as inspiring and advocating for older women. “I get extremely irritated when fashion editors promote the most frumpy of clothes for the older age groups,” she said. “Aren’t they aware of what is going on at the moment?

☆ Rikers expert says Allen Weisselberg will get better treatment as a prominent Trump supporter
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Trump's ex-CFO, Allen Weisselberg, was sentenced Tuesday to five months in NYC's Rikers jail. Rikers guards love Trump and will give better treatment to Weisselberg, 75, one expert predicts. Being 75 years old and in the news will also help Weisselberg, predicted the expert, Five Mualimmak-Ak, a jail-reform activist and former detainee who visits Rikers frequently. "Ninety-percent of the guards are Trump supporters, even though most of them are Black and Latino women," said Mualimmak-Ak, program director for LIFE Camp, a city-based nonprofit. "So he'll get preferential treatment from the guards because he is a Trump supporter.

☆ Russia fired more than 120 missiles across Ukraine in the biggest wave of attacks in months, official says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Ukraine says Russia fired more than 120 missiles across the country on Thursday morning. Cities that were targeted include Kyiv, Odesa, Lviv, and Zhytomyr, the BBC reported. The Ukrainian Air Force said Russia was attacking multiple cities from "various directions with air and sea-based cruise missiles," the BBC reported. Alongside Kyiv, explosions were also reported in the cities of Kharkiv, Odesa, Lviv, and Zhytomyr, the BBC said. Most of the western city of Lviv is also without power, and citizens were warned of water disruptions, Mayor Andrii Sadovyi said.

☆ A man was given the death penalty after footage of him being roasted in jail by Comedy Central's Jeff Ross was used in his sentencing
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A Comedy Central roast is at the heart of a death row appeal heading to the US Supreme Court. 2015 footage of Jeff Ross roasting Texas jail inmates was used at a murder convict's sentencing. The inmate's lawyers say the footage shouldn't have been used and impacted the sentence. Comedian Jeff Ross talks to Conan O'Brien in 2015 about his Comedy Central roast of jail inmates. But Hall's lawyers say this still contravened his "no contact" order and was done without prior legal advice, ultimately arguing it violates Hall's Sixth Amendment rights.

☆ I got into Y Combinator as a solo founder and left with a $4.5 million investment. Here's how I got in on my second try and what it was like.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Claire Turrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Kathryn Cross is the founder of Anja Health, a cord blood bank that freezes stem cells for future disease treatment purposes. I first heard about the startup accelerator Y Combinator when I was studying at Wellesley College and taking entrepreneurship classes at MIT. Many of the founders living in the house were in Y Combinator, and they told me how beneficial it was. I left my job with Publicis Sapient in June 2021 to begin working full-time for Anja Health. Did you go through Y Combinator and have a story to tell?

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