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☆ Russian rouble stable after Moscow ditches Black Sea grain deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Oct 31 (Reuters) - The Russian rouble pared early losses to gain ground on Monday in the first session since Moscow said it would suspend its role in the landmark Black Sea grain deal over the weekend. Global food prices climbed on Monday after Russia said it was suspending participation in the U.N.-brokered grain accord for an "indefinite term" after what it said was a major Ukrainian drone attack on its Black Sea fleet in Crimea. The July grain corridor deal, which helped to unlock Ukrainian exports from its southern Black Sea ports, was the most significant diplomatic breakthrough so far in the eight-month-old conflict in Ukraine. Monday represented the final day of a domestic month-end tax period, which usually provides some support to the rouble. For Russian equities guide seeFor Russian treasury bonds seeReporting by Jake Cordell Editing by David Goodman and Mark HeinrichOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Federal judge in Arizona rejects restraining order request, lets group monitor ballot drop boxes
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Some voters have complained alleging voter intimidation after people watching the boxes took photos and videos, and followed voters. The attorney for Clean Elections USA had argued that such a broad restraining order would be unconstitutional. A second lawsuit involving charges of voter intimidation at drop boxes in Arizona’s Yavapai County has since been merged with the first one. “We love our country very much.”Cilano said The Lions of Liberty is in no way associated with Clean Elections USA. He said his group is connected to the Yavapai County Preparedness Team, but the team was not involved in ballot box monitoring.

☆ Arizona agrees not to enforce near-total abortion ban until next year
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

PHOENIX — Arizona’s attorney general has agreed not to enforce a near total ban on abortions at least until next year, a move that Planned Parenthood Arizona credited Thursday with allowing the group to restart abortion care across the state. A lower court had allowed enforcement of that law on Sept. 23, halting all abortions statewide. On Thursday, Planned Parenthood said services would resume statewide, including at clinics in metro Phoenix and in Flagstaff. Brnovich sought to place that lawsuit on hold until the court of appeals rules on the Planned Parenthood case. Arizona women seeking abortions have been whipsawed by the state’s competing laws since the high court’s decision.

☆ 'We're going to hang you': DOJ cracks down on threats to election workers ahead of high-stakes midterms
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

That is just one example of the rising number of violent threats election workers in the days leading up to the Nov. 8 midterms. "These threats against election officials continue," Michael McDonald, a professor of political science at the University of Florida, told CNBC. Additional funding from the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan can also be used to protect election workers, Polite said. DOJ launched an election threats task force in July 2021 to ensure voters are safe at the polls and to look into the rise in threatening behavior against election workers like Moss. Jared Polis signed an act protecting election workers from threats, coercion or intimidation into law.

☆ Fintechs have been getting crushed this year, but the sector's biggest investors say payments are a key area to watch in 2023. Here's what they are most excited about.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Emilia David | Carter Johnson | Bianca Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Meanwhile, the number of "mega-deals" — or funding rounds of more than $100 million — dropped to its lowest level since 2018, CB Insights also reported. According to CB Insights, the volume of payments-related dealmaking reached nearly $4 billion, or slightly less than a third of all fintech funding. And while that's not a record-breaking amount, payments are accounting for a larger amount of the fintech funding pie. One year ago, when third-quarter fintech funding topped $36 billion in the midst of a bull market, payments accounted for roughly 20% of overall funding volume. But even amid a relative pullback in broader fintech funding, payments represent a safe, evergreen thesis because it is a largely complicated and analog space.

☆ Zimbabwe coach critical of decision to play on in Hobart
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Zimbabwe's players had complained about wet conditions in the outfield and fast bowler Richard Ngarava left the field injured after he slipped. "Obviously we're not too happy about the fact he's not in a great space for bowling at the moment. Conditions were difficult right from the start and only got worse, the former Zimbabwe captain said. "I understand the need to try and get these games on for the public and for TV," he said. "I understand the need to try and play in slightly inclement weather to try and get a result.

☆ Corporate America is canceling Kanye West
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Ye, also known as Kanye West, has become a controversy magnet. Later, West threatened on Twitter to “Go death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE.”Since Ye’s antisemitic comments, businesses have come under pressure to take further action against him. You still might see Yeezy Gap merchandise on the Gap site, though. BalenciagaKanye’s antisemitic comments were also the final straw for luxury fashionhouse Balenciaga, which severed ties over the weekend. He had collaborated with Balenciaga for a wildly popular Yeezy Gap line earlier this year.

☆ Fact Check-Fabricated ‘Commitment to America’ graphic circulates inaccurate Republican agenda ahead of Midterms
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The graphic is fake, however and no such graphic can be viewed via U.S. House Republicans’ official website. No such graphic is viewable on the ‘Commitment to America’ official website (here) while recommendations under the plan can be viewed (here). An official one-page ‘Commitment to America’ graphic with main policy areas including the economy and migration can be viewed (ibb.co/hB2ZWSM). The image circulating online is a fabricated graphic and not viewable via the ‘Commitment to America’ official website. Spokespeople for Republican House Whip Scalise and Republican House Leader McCarthy also told Reuters no such graphic was released via the ‘Commitment to America’ channel.

☆ Bochum stun Bundesliga leaders Union Berlin 2-1
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BOCHUM, Germany Oct 23 (Reuters) - Relegation-threatened VfL Bochum scored once in either half to stun Union Berlin 2-1 on Sunday, leaving the Bundesliga leaders with only a slim gap at the top and bagging a second win of the season to move off the bottom of the table. Pantovic had another chance to put Union back in the game but the former Bochum player's 78th-minute penalty was parried by keeper Manuel Riemann. Bochum's second win of the season lifted them off last place and into 17th on seven points. Schalke 04, who sacked coach Frank Kramer on Wednesday, dropped to bottom place following their 2-1 defeat at Hertha Berlin courtesy of Wilfried Kanga's 88th-minute winner. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Karolos Grohmann; editing by Clare FallonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Education Secretary Miguel Cardona says the department is 'moving full speed ahead' to implement student debt relief despite an appeals court temporarily blocking the plan
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-23 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Miguel Cardona says student debt relief is "moving full speed" despite a temporary hold on the plan. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday issued an administrative stay for the relief plan. "Already, 22 million people have provided the department with the necessary information we need to review their eligibility for student debt relief." In framing the debt relief plan as one that would benefit working and middle-class families, Cardona criticized efforts by several Republican attorneys general to invalidate Biden's student-loan forgiveness plan. The Biden administration also faces legal challenges from Arizona GOP Attorney General Mark Brnovich, the Job Creators Network Foundation, and the Cato Institute over its debt relief plan.

☆ A financially independent real estate investor bought 6 of his 25 properties from a turnkey provider and cash flows $250 per month from each one. He explains what a turnkey property is and why he inve
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( Kathleen Elkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Turnkey properties are homes that are fully functioning and ready to rent out immediately. "A turnkey provider usually buys distressed houses that need work," explained Mark, who also owns real estate in Alabama and Virginia. They're called turnkey properties because, once you buy one, all you have to do is literally turn the key. Before selecting a turnkey operator to work with, talk to people who have actually bought properties from them before. Mark bought his first turnkey property in cash in a self-directed IRA in 2019.

☆ Under-pressure Juventus cruise to 4-0 win over Empoli
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TURIN, Italy, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Two goals by midfielder Adrien Rabiot helped Juventus crush Empoli 4-0 at the Allianz Stadium on Friday, as Massimiliano Allegri's team won two consecutive Serie A games for the first time this season. Empoli had a chance to draw the scores level through striker Mattia Destro but Juve goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny did well to block his effort. The Frenchman completed the rout in stoppage time to notch up his second brace this season for Juventus in all competitions. Juventus travel to Lecce in Serie A on Saturday after visiting Benfica in the Champions League on Tuesday. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Anita Kobylinska in Gdansk, editing by Ed OsmondOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ A real estate investor who is financially independent from his 25-unit portfolio that he built in 4 years shares his best advice to rookie investors and how to 'find good deals'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Kathleen Elkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Real estate investors agree that a key to succeeding is networking with the right people. Knowing very little about real estate investing at that point, Mark told her he'd think about it. He agreed, called up a real estate agent he knew in the area, and told her he wanted to invest in real estate. "The best way to network, no matter where you live, is to find a local real estate meet-up group." Anyone can use it to connect with real estate investors and find events to attend.

☆ Why former staffers for Alaska's long-serving GOP Rep. Don Young are backing Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola over Sarah Palin
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Some of Alaska Rep. Don Young's former staffers are backing Rep. Mary Peltola, a Democrat. They say she'll carry on the long-serving Republican's legacy better than Sarah Palin or Nick Begich. Sarah Palin in a special election for the state's sole House seat, Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola is about to face voters once more. Equally revealing is what some staffers, who generally identify as Republican or right-leaning independents, had to say about Palin and Nick Begich III, Peltola's conservative opponents. But Young staffers noted that the long-serving Republican often took positions that clashed with the priorities of party leadership, including his relatively high support among organized labor.

☆ Balenciaga cuts partnership with Kanye West
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

New York CNN Business —Fashion powerhouse Balenciaga has officially severed ties with Kanye West following a series of antisemitic posts and other controversial comments from the rapper, according to a report from Women’s Wear Daily citing a statement from Balenciaga’s parent company. “Balenciaga has no longer any relationship nor any plans for future projects related to this artist,” Kering, Balenciaga’s parent company, said in a statement to WWD. West, who legally changed his name to Ye, collaborated with Balenciaga for a wildly popular Yeezy Gap line earlier this year. In a now-deleted tweet, West said he was “going death con 3 [sic] On JEWISH PEOPLE,” according to Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine records pulled by CNN. Recently, Ye announced plans to acquire Parler, a far-right social platform, to prevent having “to fear being removed from social media again.”

☆ FEMSA's fintech arm eyes 10 million users in Mexico by 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Valentine Hilaire | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Daniel Becerril/MEXICO CITY, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Spin by Oxxo, the financial technology initiative launched by Mexican bottler and retailer Femsa, is set to reach 10 million users by 2023, up from four million currently, Spin's Director General Asensio Carrion told Reuters. Spin by Oxxo, which has been financed with internal funds, has quickly become a major player in Mexican fintech. For comparison, Latin America's largest fintech Nubank has about 2.1 million customers in the country, while local player Stori aims to hit the two million client mark by 2023. Mexico's Grupo Financiero Banorte, in its second-quarter results, said it had 6.7 million digital clients. The company has more than 20,600 Oxxo stores across Latin America, and has plans to increase the number by 50% over the next decade.

☆ Consultants peddling job advice have created a 'workplace industrial complex' that's making them rich — and your job more miserable
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Ed Zitron | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

It can be head-spinning to keep up with the sudden trends taking hold in the workplace: Workers are "quiet quitting." Old problems, new namesThe perfect example of the workplace-industrial complex in action is the recent freakout over "quiet quitting." And that's how companies end up hiring consultants who charge $10,000 to $15,000 a day to "help with quiet quitting." But in reality, the workplace-industrial complex exists as a self-propelling public-relations engine for the worst impulses of the management set. Simple answers, difficult solutionsWhat's both confusing and annoying about the state of the workplace-industrial complex is that it's helpful to no one.

☆ Arizona, Texas join multi-state probe into big banks over net-zero pledge
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A combination file photo shows Wells Fargo, Citigbank, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, JPMorgan, and Goldman Sachs from Reuters archive. The investigation is targeting JPMorgan Chase & Co , Goldman Sachs Group Inc , Bank of America Corp , Citigroup Inc , Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N) and Morgan Stanley (MS.N). "American banks should never put political agendas ahead of the secure retirement of their clients," Arizona AG Mark Brnovich said in a statement. "The last thing Americans need right now are corporate activists helping the left bankrupt our fossil fuel industry," Texas AG Ken Paxton said, adding that the banks practices potentially violate consumer protection laws. JPMorgan declined to comment, while the other five banks did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

In the next Congress, white men will also lead the House GOP campaign arm, the National Congressional Campaign Committee (NRCC), and occupy other lower-tier leadership spots. The highest leadership post that Republican women or minorities have reached is chair of the GOP Conference — the No. She's expected to remain the highest-ranking GOP woman in the whole of the next Congress as well, given that white men make up all but one member of the Senate GOP leadership team. Eighty GOP women are running for House seats in these midterms. For his part, Donalds, whom Trump once called a “rising star,” has not made diversity a central part of his campaign for conference chair.

☆ Biden's student-loan forgiveness could be delayed as lawsuits mount. Here's where 6 major cases stand.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Biden's student-loan forgiveness is facing at least six lawsuits from conservative groups. The administration faces at least six major lawsuits seeking to halt Biden's debt relief plan. For now, borrowers can still continue applying for debt relief on the studentaid.gov website that will close in December 2023. On September 27, the Pacific Legal Foundation — a conservative nonprofit legal organization — helmed the first major lawsuit against Biden's debt relief. On October 19, WILL asked the Supreme Court to halt Biden's debt relief will waiting for a decision on its appeal.

☆ U.S. senator to hold EV battery hearing if GOP takes control
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SPARTANBURG, South Carolina Oct 19 (Reuters) - U.S. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham on Wednesday said he will hold a hearing on electric vehicle batteries and sourcing issues if his party takes control after the November midterm elections. Graham, who would be Budget Committee chair under GOP control, said the hearing would look at the impact of the shift to EVs on automakers and the oil industry. Graham asked at an event to mark BMW's $1.7 billion EV investment in South Carolina. The new law includes raising the percentage of battery components that must originate from North America based on value. Graham wants to know if there are other alternatives to EVs.

☆ Gulfstream Aerospace weighs G550 replacement for special missions
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ORLANDO, Fla., Oct 17 (Reuters) - General Dynamics Corp's (GD.N) Gulfstream Aerospace is weighing one of its business jets to replace its popular G550 aircraft which is now out of production for special mission purposes, President Mark Burns said on Monday. Governments are eying "special mission" business jets capable of looking or listening at potentially lower running costs than converted passenger or military planes. The rising demand for small jets with systems once reserved for bigger planes has energised a market led by Gulfstream, which faces challenges from rivals Bombardier (BBDb.TO) and France's Dassault Aviation SA (AM.PA). In September, Canada's Bombardier Inc (BBDb.TO) said the company's defense business involving special mission private jets could grow to a possible $1 billion in annual revenues from a 'fraction' of it right now. read moreRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Allison Lampert in Orlando, Fla.

"Dancing with the Stars" season 31 is now streaming on Disney Plus. How to watch 'Dancing with the Stars'You can watch "Dancing with the Stars' season 31 exclusively on Disney Plus. Disney Plus is available to stream on mobile devices, media players, and smart TVs from most major brands. "Dancing with the Stars" received a two-season pickup when it was announced for Disney Plus, so the show will return for at least one more season after season 31 concludes. The following celebrities and dancers are all vying for the Mirrorball trophy in season 31 of "Dancing with the Stars.

☆ A blue-collar worker who never made more than a $52,000 salary, but built a 25-unit real estate portfolio, shares the 4 strategies he used to come up with cash to buy investment properties
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( Kathleen Elkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

One real estate investor used various strategies to get upfront cash to build his portfolio. Buying real estate requires upfront cash: In most cases, you need money for a down payment and closing costs. Still, he managed to build a 25-unit real estate portfolio in about four years, which Insider verified. Plus, he was generating positive cash flow and starting to see how real estate investing could help him build long-term wealth. He was watching a lot of real estate content on YouTube at the time and learned through one video that you can buy real estate with an IRA.

☆ How Equifax used employment records it collects from 2.5 million companies to fire dozens of its own employees for working second jobs
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( Kate Taylor | Jack Newsham | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

The crackdown was the result of an investigation that unfolded in recent months conducted by Equifax employees, including HR and cybersecurity, according to a document seen by Insider. The product has employment records, including weekly pay, of 105 million US workers, according to the company's last annual report. At one point, 25 employees were interviewed on the investigation's findings, and 24 were terminated, resulting in savings of $3.2 million, according to a document. In one author's case, this included all salaried positions since graduating college in 2013, as well as a job working in the college library as a student. "With predictions of more than 36 million employees working remotely by the year 2025, the need to monitor an employee's employment status will continue to grow," the company says in marketing material.

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