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☆ California authorities want to disbar John Eastman for trying to help Trump overturn the 2020 election results
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

California legal authorities want to disbar John Eastman for trying to keep Donald Trump in power. Following Trump's loss in the 2020 election, Eastman, a former professor at the Chapman University School of Law, drafted legal memos that purported to offer avenues to keep him in office. The former law professor is one of many lawyers allied with Trump who has faced professional consequences for pursuing false conspiracy theories about the 2020 election. Giuliani has also been sued by election technology companies he implicated in false conspiracy theories about the election results, and has lost his ability to practice law in New York. Jeffrey Clark, a former Trump Administration Justice Department official who tried to overturn the election results, is also facing charges from the DC bar.

☆ Analysis: Wall Street heavyweights warn against ‘Goldilocks’ hopes
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The odds are “too high on Goldilocks; there’s still no easy way out,” analysts at BoFA Global Research wrote on Tuesday. Stocks tend to perform poorly in economic downturns, with the S&P 500 falling an average of 29% during recessions since World War Two, according to Truist Advisory Services. Those rebounds inevitably crumbled, leaving the S&P 500 with a 19.4% annual loss, its worst since 2008. The most recent rally has lifted the S&P 500 more than 11% from its October lows. Strategists polled by Reuters at the end of 2021 saw the S&P 500 gaining a median of 7.5% last year.

☆ Live updates: Suspect in shooting at dance hall near Los Angeles is dead, sheriff says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Erick Mendoza | Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Mirna-Alsharif-Byline-Jm.Jpg | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +33 min

Share this -Link copiedAlhambra officials release statement on Monterey Park shooting Alhambra officials released a statement on the Monterey Park shooting early Sunday evening. Officials also acknowledged the shooting that occurred in the city after the Monterey Park shooting. Share this -Link copiedPolice release pictures to identify Monterey Park shooting suspect The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has released pictures seeking to identify the Monterey Park shooting suspect. Law enforcement has connected him to the Monterey Park shooting and a shooting minutes later in Alhambra. Patrons of the Alhambra dance hall wrestled a firearm away from a man about 20 minutes after the Monterey Park shooting.

☆ Live updates: Possible suspect in mass shooting at dance hall near Los Angeles is found dead, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Erick Mendoza | Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Mirna-Alsharif-Byline-Jm.Jpg | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +31 min

☆ This Black founder sold her company to P&G—why she says she’s ‘selling up,’ not selling out
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-21 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

On Jan. 11, Monique Rodriguez, founder and CEO of multi-million-dollar natural hair care brand Mielle Organics, announced she had sold her company to P&G Beauty, sending Black Twitter into a frenzy. "I don't wanna hear nothing about supporting Black businesses because the second Black companies get all the support they need from the Black dollar they hand everything over to the person with the biggest check," said one Twitter user. Some would consider selling your company — often for millions — to be a major accomplishment, but Black founders are continually scrutinized by their peers and customers for making this choice. However, when Dennis sold the brand to Unilever in for an estimated $1.6 billion, he was called a sellout. "If there were Black conglomerates, and Black, big, private equity firms and partnerships that allowed them to inject capital and allow us to grow, we would go to those Black companies," Rodriguez says.

☆ Ark's Wood remains bullish on Tesla, says oil stock rally 'defying logic'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW YORK, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Star stock picker Cathie Wood of Ark Invest suggested the rally in energy stocks will soon end and reiterated her bullish view on electric vehicle maker Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) in a webinar on Thursday. Yet the rally energy stocks over the last six months despite the roughly 30% decline in the price of oil suggests that the market is now over-valuing value stocks, she said. Tesla, meanwhile, will continue to take market share as global oil demand falls by 30% or more over the next five years, Wood estimated. Wood's ARK Innovation fund fell 3.2% on Thursday while the benchmark S&P 500 fell nearly 0.8%. The fund fell nearly 67% in 2022, leaving it among the worst performing U.S. equity funds tracked by Morningstar.

In a note to employees, CEO Satya Nadella attempted to address the divergent outlook for different parts of the business. Nadella said the layoffs, affecting less than 5% of Microsoft's workforce, would conclude by the end of March, with notifications beginning Wednesday. Along with Amazon, Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) announced cuts of 11,000 jobs, while cloud-based software company Salesforce Inc (CRM.N) said it would cut 10% of its 80,000-member workforce. Under U.S. law, most employers are required to report staff cuts affecting 50 or more workers at a single location. But growth dropped to 35% in the first fiscal quarter of 2023, and the company projects more declines to come.

☆ Trump to make first 2024 campaign appearance in South Carolina
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Former U.S. President Donald Trump gestures during a rally at Florence Regional Airport in Florence, South Carolina, U.S., March 12, 2022. Two well-known South Carolina Republicans - U.S. South Carolina holds outsize influence as one of the first states to hold presidential nominating contests during election years. The Republicans have chosen to maintain the traditional sequence for the first three states: Iowa, New Hampshire and then South Carolina. Two other South Carolina Republicans - former Governor Nikki Haley and U.S.

☆ Two researchers aim to better understand L.A.’s homelessness crisis with smartphone surveys
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Jake Traylor | Jake Traylor Is An Associate Producer For Msnbc. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Two California researchers aim to get a real-time understanding of homelessness using a perhaps unexpected resource found among unhoused people: smartphones. Larry Posey works in MacArthur Park to share information about the PATHS study. Amy Stein / USC/UCLAOnce a month, a growing number of PATHS participants in Los Angeles County are texted a link to a 15-minute survey. Recruiters for the PATHS study share information with participants via postcard and directly into a web-based interface. The PATHS study found that 90% of participants would be interested in some type of interim or permanent housing.

They projected their key policy rate would top out at between 5.00% and 5.25% this year, up from a current 4.25%-4.50% rate. Market pricing indicates investors remain wedded to a more dovish view, with the policy rate peaking below 5% around mid-June before falling in the second half of the year. Rieder believes policymakers will raise rates by 25 basis points at the next two meetings, with further 25 basis point increases possible, depending on data. Investors in short-term options had priced in a much sharper move of about 2% going into Thursday's CPI print, according to data from market maker Optiver. Tiffany Wilding, PIMCO's North American economist, believes the Fed is likely to raise rates just two more times this year before pausing.

Reuters GraphicsThe U.S. central bank is already adjusting to one unanticipated set of changes - an outbreak of inflation coupled with stalled growth in the U.S. labor force. "You have to identify the regime change ... Then you have to understand the transition dynamics ... and have a clear vision and insight into all of those ... "Markets calibrated to ... Chinese growth and low interest rates may prove fragile." Like recessions, which are typically identified only well after they have started, other economic turning points aren't always apparent in the moment. But as evidence of that accumulated following the 2007-2009 recession, it was only embodied into Fed policy in 2020 under a new approach that leaned against premature interest rate increases.

☆ Biden's mishandling of classified records isn't as legally perilous as Trump's, but may pose serious national security risks
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Sonam Sheth | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Trump's former White House lawyer told Insider that AG Garland should appoint a special counsel to investigate Biden. A source familiar with the matter told CNN that Lausch has finished the initial part of his investigation and presented his preliminary findings to Garland. Still, he criticized the White House for waiting more than two months to disclose the existence of the inquiry. "It appears that at least two of the aggravating factors, obstruction and willfulness, are present in the Trump case, but absent in the Biden case." Cobb, Trump's former White House counsel, went further, saying that drawing a distinction between the two cases is akin to "putting lipstick on a pig."

☆ Colorado Governor Halts Sending Migrants to New York City, Chicago
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Erin Mulvaney | Ginger Adams Otis | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

An emergency response dormitory for migrants on Randall’s Island in New York City in October. Mayor Eric Adams said shelters are at maximum capacity. Jared Polis said he would halt busing migrants from Denver to New York City and Chicago after the mayors of those cities argued that their shelters were already overrun. New York Mayor Eric Adams and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot in a letter on Saturday to Mr. Polis argued that “overburdening other cities” isn’t the solution to the burden of the wave of asylum seekers. Mr. Polis said in a statement Saturday that no more buses were scheduled to Chicago and a final charter to New York was slated to be completed Sunday.

☆ Global stocks rally to near 4-week highs, oil rises on hopes of 'soft landing'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The gains were broad across equity markets, with Europe's STOXX 600 near a one-month high (.STOXX) and emerging market stocks (.MSCIEF) up 2.4% on the day. Asian stocks rose after China reopened its borders, bolstering the outlook for the global economy. The U.S. dollar index was down around 0.8%, near its lowest in seven months after it dropped 1.2% on Friday . In bond markets, European government bond yields rose, in a reversal after the previous weeks' sharp falls. Bond yields move in the opposite direction of prices.

☆ Packers QB Aaron Rodgers to weigh what's next
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

January 9 - What's next for Aaron Rodgers with the Packers missing the playoffs? Rodgers said Sunday night in the wake of a season-ending loss to the Detroit Lions that his future is up in the air. Rodgers offered no timeframe for making a decision on returning to Green Bay for the 2023 season. Six weeks passed between the Packers' final game and the declaration from Rodgers on March 8 that he was returning for the just-completed 2022 season. Packers head coach Matt LaFleur said Sunday night the team welcomes Rodgers back, but knows "ultimately, he will decide that."

☆ Wood's Ark Invest nearly liquidates Silvergate Capital position
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW YORK, Jan 6 (Reuters) - Star stock picker Cathie Wood's Ark Invest sold 403,990 shares of embattled crypto-focused bank Silvergate Capital Corp (SI.N) on Thursday as shares in the firm plunged more than 40%, according to disclosures by Ark Invest. The selling nearly liquidated the firm's share holdings and came from the $645 million ARK Fintech Innovation ETF (ARKF.P), and not the firm's flagship $5.9 billion ARK Innovation fund (ARKK.P), which does not have a position in the company. Total deposits from digital asset customers at Silvergate fell to $3.8 billion at the end of December, compared to $11.9 billion at the end of September. Ark Invest first bought shares in Silvergate in November, 2019, according to Morningstar data. Shares of Silvergate were down 9.2% in midday trading on Thursday, while shares of the ARK Fintech Innovation fund were up 0.8%.

☆ Facial recognition tool led to mistaken arrest, lawyer says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

His attorney, Tommy Calogero, said authorities erroneously linked Reid to purse thefts in Jefferson Parish and Baton Rouge. I said, ‘What is Jefferson Parish?’” Reid said. Reid’s case brings renewed attention to the use of facial recognition tools in Louisiana and elsewhere. Under the latest city rules, all possible matches must undergo a peer review by other facial recognition investigators. Legislation to restrict the use of facial recognition statewide died in a 2021 legislative session.

☆ With big bets on Musk, these funds may have a Tesla problem in '23
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Those funds dropped by an average of 42.1% last year, more than double the average 17% decline among U.S. stock funds, according to Morningstar. The $6 billion Baron Partners Retail fund, which leads all US mutual funds with about 52% of its assets in Tesla shares, fell nearly 43% last year, while the $54 million Zevenbergen Genea Institutional fund, which has 13% of its assets in Tesla, fell nearly 59%. Tesla fell about 65% last year, with declines accelerating after Musk decided to buy social media network Twitter, which some investors see as a distraction to the chief executive. His net worth has fallen by more than $100 billion, according to Forbes, bumping him from the position of world's richest person. The fund fell 67% last year, putting it near the bottom of all U.S. equity funds.

☆ Analysis: Wood’s ARK slammed by higher interest rates in 2022 along with other growth funds
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The ARK Innovation Fund has lost around 67% year to date, more than tripling the decline of the S&P 500 index (.SPX). With the S&P 500 on pace for its biggest annual decline since the Great Financial Crisis, few funds are likely to escape 2022 unscathed. Wood's fund ranked 3,544 among all 3552 actively-managed U.S. equity mutual funds tracked by Morningstar. The worst performing fund of the year, by comparison, was the Voya Russia fund, which is down 92% for the year to date. CRASH LANDINGOther funds that soared in recent years on the backs of large bets on technology stocks fell on hard times in 2022.

We talked to several workplace experts to gain their insight on phrases you shouldn't say to your boss, even if you're close. 'I can't'A can-do attitude is always a valued trait, and just because you're friends, it doesn't mean you'll get called on the next time an important project comes up. It's fine if you have to leave early, but don't say it's because "things are slow" or you have "nothing to do." 'I'm going to be out these days,' or 'I'm leaving early tomorrow'Just because you're friends, it doesn't mean you should tell your boss you're going on vacation or leaving the office early. "Your boss hopes you're honest 100% of the time, and what you're about to say is not an aberration," said Taylor.

☆ Wall St Week Ahead Investors look for 'Santa Rally' after grim year in U.S. stocks
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

NEW YORK, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Bruised investors are hoping a so-called Santa Claus rally can soften the pain of a tough year in U.S. stocks and potentially brighten the outlook for 2023. Friday is this year's start date for this rally named after Santa Claus - if it happens. The phenomenon has lifted the S&P 500 an average of 1.3% since 1969, according to the Stock Trader's Almanac. A December without a Santa rally has been followed by a weaker-than-average year, data from LPL Financial going back to 1950 showed. "The lack of a 'Santa Claus rally' this month, with a 'lump of coal selloff' in its place, is a troubling sign about 2023 US equity returns," strategists at DataTrek wrote.

That works out to a 31.2% return on total average short interest of $973.6 billion throughout the year, according to S3 Partners. Stanphyl Capital portfolio manager Mark Spiegel, who has been short Tesla "constantly, in varying size" since 2014, said a bet against Tesla was his fund's most profitable individual short position this year. While higher interest rates have punished growth stocks, some investors believe Tesla CEO Elon Musk's purchase of Twitter is diverting his time running the electric car company. Long-short hedge funds, which bet on stock prices rising or falling, posted a 9.7% loss through November, according to data provider HFR. Charles Lemonides, portfolio manager at $226 billion hedge fund ValueWorks LLC, believes tight monetary policy will weigh on risk appetite next year.

☆ Analysis: Investors count on bonds to rescue battered 60/40 portfolio in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

A 60/40 portfolio, which typically allocates 60% of assets into stocks and 40% into bonds, counts on moves in the two asset classes to offset one another, with stocks strengthening amid economic optimism and bonds rising during uncertain times. So-called 60/40 portfolios, which mix stocks and bonds, are on place for their first down year since 2018. Though market participants tend to avoid bonds during inflationary times, they are a popular destination for haven-seeking investors when the economy wobbles. Consecutive annual declines in the 60/40 portfolio have been rare. Higher-than-expected borrowing costs or rebounding inflation could deal another blow to investors in both stocks and bonds.

☆ UK names ex-Fed official Kroszner to BoE's Financial Policy Committee
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( David Milliken | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Former U.S. Federal Reserve official Randall Kroszner will join the Bank of England's Financial Policy Committee (FPC) as a part-time external member for three years starting in February 2023, Britain's finance ministry said on Wednesday. "His leading academic voice in macroprudential policy ... and his experience at the Federal Reserve during the global financial crisis will be of real value to the committee," finance minister Jeremy Hunt said. The 13-member FPC monitors risks to Britain's financial system and sets capital buffers for British banks and maximum loan-to-income ratios for mortgage lending, as well as giving more general supervisory guidance. Bailey welcomed Kroszner's "significant international policy experience and extensive research on the financial sector". The committee has four scheduled meetings a year, but convenes more often at times of financial market stress.

The fed funds rate currently stands in the 4.25%-4.50% range. Plenty of investors believe the Fed will stick to its guns, even if the economy wobbles. The Fed's economic projections showed rates dropping to 4.1% in 2024, higher than estimated three months ago. She is expecting the gyrations that rocked bonds this year to continue, driven in part by investors second-guessing the Fed's commitment to keeping monetary policy tight. "We have a generation of traders that has never seen the Fed not bail it out when push comes to shove."

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