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☆ Here's what the Year of the Rabbit could symbolize
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Kimmy Yam | Kimmy Yam Is A Reporter For Nbc Asian America. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

It’s the Year of the Rabbit and we should all be focusing on rest, introspection and working smarter not harder. Though it was a weak swimmer, the rabbit used its brain, opting to cross the river portion of the course on a raft. … If you did just jump in because of FOMO, you’re going to have a whole slew of issues.”The rabbit in the Chinese zodiac also speaks to the power of empathy. What does my community need? How can I make myself of service to my community?” Lee said.

☆ 'M3GAN' is getting a sequel after smashing the box office
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Travis Clark | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

"M3GAN" is getting a sequel, set for release in 2025. It shows the power of a potential merger between its production companies, Blumhouse and Atomic Monster. Production studios Blumhouse and Atomic Monster announced on Wednesday that they've greenlit a sequel to their hit horror movie, about an AI-powered doll that torments any humans she thinks will harm her owner. The sequel, titled "M3GAN 2.0," is set for release on January 17, 2025. "M3GAN" has been a box-office smash since debuting on January 6, earning $95 million at the global box office so far, $60 million of which is from the US.

The jump was aided by Bridgewater China's raising of 2.7 billion yuan through a product launch in December, said the sources. Connecticut-based Bridgewater launched its first onshore China fund in 2018, and three years later its assets under management (AUM) in China exceeded 10 billion yuan, catapulting the firm past Winton and Man Group to become the biggest foreign hedge fund house in the country. By early November, Bridgewater's onshore China funds grew to roughly 19 billion yuan, Shanghai government data showed. The steady performance of Bridgewater's China funds - mainly targeting wealthy individuals - was highlighted in the hedge fund firm's sales pitch, which was seen by Reuters. Bridgewater's first China fund achieved an annualised return of 15.6% in the four years following its October 2018 launch.

☆ COVID wave past its peak in many parts of China - state media
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Bernard Orr | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

BEIJING, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Many parts of China are already past their peak of COVID-19 infections, state media reported on Tuesday, with officials further downplaying the severity of the outbreak despite international concerns about its scale and impact. One official was quoted as saying nearly 90 million people had already been infected in Henan province. On Tuesday, a Health Times compilation of reports from local government officials and health experts across the country, suggested the COVID wave may be past its peak in many regions. Yin Yong, acting mayor of Beijing, was cited as saying the capital was also past its peak. Separately in the state-run China Daily, a prominent health official said the percentage of severe cases remained unclear.

Experts say the elderly in rural areas may be particularly vulnerable because of their vaccine hesitancy and inadequate medical resources. Most patients have the same symptoms suggesting a COVID infection, and most are elderly, she said. "Many elderly people have underlying diseases such as chronic bronchitis and this virus can easily lead to a lung infection." Paxlovid, the Pfizer-made COVID medicine, is in particularly high demand, with many Chinese attempting to get the drug abroad and have it shipped to China. In Lezhi county, Liao, a farmer with two children whose husband is working in a faraway province, bought an oxygen concentrator online to help with her mother's breathing.

[1/5] People wait to purchase medicine at a pharmacy, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Beijing, China December 16, 2022. REUTERS/Xiaoyu YinBEIJING/SHANGHAI, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Funeral homes across China's COVID-hit capital Beijing, a city of 22 million, scrambled on Saturday to keep up with calls for funeral and cremation services as workers and drivers testing positive for the novel coronavirus called in sick. In Beijing, which has yet to report any COVID deaths since the policies changed on Dec. 7, sick workers have hit the staffing of services from restaurants and courier firms to its roughly one dozen funeral parlours. "We've fewer cars and workers now," a staffer at Miyun Funeral Home told Reuters, adding that there was a mounting backlog of demand for cremation services. China's health authority last reported COVID deaths on Dec. 3, in Shandong and Sichuan provinces.

SHANGHAI/HONG KONG, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Investors caught off-guard by China's dramatic COVID policy pivot are betting on both greed and fear as the economy starts to gradually reopen, snapping up shares in businesses from travel agencies and casinos to funeral companies. Providers of death care services, including Hong Kong-listed Fu Shou Yuan International Group (1448.HK), China's biggest cemetery operator and funeral service provider, have also drawn investors. The positioning for both the bright and dark side of China's COVID pivot reflects growing concerns from investors surprised by the rapid policy change, especially as COVID vaccination rates among the elderly remain relatively low. "But we still think that the way China can flatten the curve of new COVID cases without doubling down on tightening looks quite challenging." Morgan Stanley Chief China economist Robin Xing said China's economy may remain sluggish for another quarter or two, but growth will pick up after Spring.

Many investors say that stocks of drugmakers and medical equipment companies, however, will likely get a more lasting lift from China's bumpy journey towards an eventual economic opening. Investors have snapped up Chinese tourism (.CSI930633), leisure (.CSI930654), retailing (.CSI930674) and food and beverage stocks (.CSI930653) over the past week. "After curbs are relaxed, China could experience the impact from surging virus cases, along with rising deaths, potentially hitting the economy," the brokerage said. "I think it's reasonable to think that as infections rise, they're going to have shortages in some areas of workers," he said. Grow Investment Group chief economist Hong Hao, warning of confusion and chaotic expectations ahead, recommended internet platform companies and food delivery firms in the short term.

[1/5] Pandemic prevention workers in protective suits walk in a street as coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreaks continue in Beijing, December 4, 2022. Daily tallies of new COVID infections have also dropped in some regions as authorities row back on testing. CHANGING MESSAGEAlongside the easing of local curbs, Vice Premier Sun Chunlan, who oversees COVID efforts, said last week the ability of the virus to cause disease was weakening. That change in messaging aligns with the position adopted by many health authorities around the world for more than a year. The eastern province of Zhejiang said it planned to largely end mass testing, while the metropolis of Nanjing dropped COVID tests for use of public transport.

☆ Kimberly Guilfoyle said she loves doing the laundry and making Donald Trump Jr. his coffee in the morning
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Kimberly Guilfoyle said she is very "traditional" in her relationship with Donald Trump Jr. "I love taking care of Don, the way I saw my mother lovingly take care of my father," Guilfoyle told Metropolitan Palm Beach magazine. Guilfoyle told the magazine she said that they had known each other for years before they became a couple. Guilfoyle told the interviewee the couple had moved to Palm Beach to be closer to the Trump extended family. Guilfoyle was reportedly considered for the White House Press Secretary role in 2016 and later became an advisor to former President Donald Trump during his 2020 campaign.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried just explained what happened at FTX: Everything to know
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

While the world's most powerful finance official took the lunchtime billing, it was Sam Bankman-Fried who held the primetime slot. Sam Bankman-Fried, FTX CEO, at a digital assets hearing in 2021. Within minutes of starting, Sorkin asked Bankman-Fried directly if there was a commingling of funds between the two now-bankrupt companies he founded, FTX and Alameda Research. When Sorkin asked whether Bankman-Fried feels he has any criminal liability, Bankman-Fried said that's not what he's focused on right now. Earnings on deck: Toronto-Dominion Bank, Bank of Montreal, and Dollar General Corporation, all reporting.

☆ How do real estate investors 'do the numbers?' An investor with 9 properties shares the method — and spreadsheet — that helps him identify a good deal and avoid the bad ones.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Kathleen Elkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

It's also correlated with risk: Generally, a high cap rate points to a riskier investment, since a high cap rate means a lower property value. A "good cap rate" depends on your market and how much risk you're willing to tolerate. To calculate cap rate, you need to know your NOI, which is your estimated annual rent minus your annual operating expenses. To calculate NOI, you subtract annual operating expenses from annual rent, which is an assumption based on rent prices in the area. He's not the only investor who focuses on cash flow: Mike Zuber, who owns over 100 units in Fresno, California, says that cash flow should be a top priority when evaluating investment properties.

☆ In a tech downturn, breakout stars of venture capital are going abroad to hunt for funding. Here's why.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

The flow of capital motivated more investors to split from established firms and raise their own funds, but it hasn't always been easy. For years they've gone abroad to raise capital from limited partners, mostly wealthy individuals and family offices. This isn't new territory for international investors. He continues to use his personal wealth to back startups and venture funds mostly stateside, including Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, and Brianne Kimmel's Worklife Ventures. Even those with ties to international investors may struggle to raise funds as fears of a global recession escalate.

Farmers in both are fighting a losing battle to save the soil that produces our food. By contrast, there's not enough water in the vast Yangtze basin, which produces a third of China's crops. Soil erosion could lead to a 10% loss in global crop production by 2050, according to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Similarly, other measures such as digging thousands of new wells and encouraging farmers to switch crops to boost yields have limited impact. Options include not tilling soil to reduce erosion, and planting off-season cover crops to prevent erosion and nutrient loss.

☆ Entrepreneur Caught in the Middle of U.S.-China Chip War
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Peter Landers | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Semiconductor whiz Gerald Yin left the U.S. and spent 18 years in China building what he said would be a worldwide powerhouse in chip-making equipment. Now the American citizen’s lifework has been thrown into uncertainty as U.S. restrictions undermine the global industry integration he celebrated. Mr. Yin’s company, Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment Inc., or AMEC, had been making big strides and was gunning for industry leaders based in the U.S. and Japan when Washington stepped in. Decades younger than its rivals, the Chinese maker of etching equipment and other tools for the semiconductor industry has said it picked up customers including Robert Bosch GmbH and U.S. chip maker GlobalFoundries Inc. Its equipment is used on dozens of production lines in Europe and Asia.

☆ Analysis: China's markets clutch at economy reopening straws
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Nearly three years after the coronavirus was first detected in central China, daily cases hit a six-month high on Friday. Even the unverified social media post on Tuesday that sparked the market's exuberance said a "Reopening Committee" would not aim at relaxing the curbs before March. China stocks market cap'THE TEST OF HISTORY'But cooler heads warn that China's trajectory of COVID rule relaxation will not resemble this week's stock charts. Reopening from COVID will likely take "a steady and gradual approach", similar to China's lengthy but successful economic liberalisation, said Zhang Kaihua, a Nanjing-based hedge fund manager. Yin Peixin, investment manager at Shanghai Jianlong Asset Management Co., said: "If our leadership doesn't stick with zero-COVID, China will be thrown into a hellish condition."

☆ A self-made millionaire who made his money investing in real estate isn't interested in taking out a mortgage right now: 'I'm not going pay more than 6% interest'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Kathleen Elkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Property investor Todd Baldwin isn't interested in getting a mortgage right now due to high rates. The millionaire is in the unique situation where he can pay in cash if the right deal comes around. "If the deal is over 6%, I'm going to pay cash and hopefully get a discount." With the interest rates where they are now, "I can still make money," he explained, "but my margin of error is a lot thinner. Baldwin understands that not everyone can simply pay cash if they want to invest right now.

☆ US curbs on China's microchip industry could throttle Xi Jinping's tech ambitions
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

One dramatic, and potentially disruptive aspect of the rules is the ban on American citizens and legal residents working with Chinese chip firms. The ban could lead to a mass resignation of top executives and core research staff working at Chinese chip firms, which will hit the industry hard, Dong from Georgetown University said. So far it’s not clear exactly how many American workers there are in China’s domestic chip industry. At Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment China (AMEC), one of the country’s largest semiconductor equipment manufacturers, at least seven executives, including founder and chairman Gerald Yin, hold US citizenship, the latest company documents show. But some Western suppliers have already started preparing to halt sales to China in response to the US export curbs.

☆ A 27-year-old real estate investor who owns 9 rental properties shares what it's like to be a landlord, including the biggest challenges and hacks that save him time
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( Kathleen Elkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Real estate investor Stephen Yin spoke to Insider about the realities of being a landlord. Yin is based in Los Angeles for his day job but buys real estate in Birmingham, Alabama, where he grew up. But when I'm not actively buying, I don't spend much time on real estate." Especially if you're investing out-of-state, having a good property manager on your team is completely worth the cost, he said. But, ultimately, "the stress is totally worth it," said Yin, who hopes to build generational wealth through real estate investing.

☆ China's Yin Yong named acting Beijing mayor - state media
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BEIJING, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Beijing's Communist Party deputy chief, Yin Yong, has been named both deputy mayor and acting mayor of the Chinese capital, state media reported on Friday. Reporting by Ryan Woo; editing by John StonestreetOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Wall Street is fed up with Meta - but Zuck’s full steam ahead with his massive metaverse bet.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Since Meta reported earnings on Wednesday, its stock has shed more than 23%. Everyone on Wall Street is mad that Meta keeps spending so much. Investors and analysts took the day yesterday to digest the tech giant's latest earnings, and it's clear patience is wearing thin. Mega-cap tech stocks like Zucks' behemoth are facing a possible crisis, with other giants like Google parent Alphabet reporting slowdowns in digital advertising growth. Wall Street is grappling with the "revenge of the old economy" as tech and growth stocks crash.

☆ A real estate investor who bought his first property at age 24 and now owns 11 rental units shares his top advice for new investors, including how to negotiate and where to buy: 'Look at the Sun Belt'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Kathleen Elkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

"Some of the greatest investors have focused on real estate, such as Sam Zell," he added, referring to the billionaire who has been called the "forefather of modern real estate investment trusts." It was a single-family home in Birmingham, Alabama that he purchased with a friend for $40,000. Focus on the Sun BeltChances are, you've heard the saying "location, location, location" from a real estate agent or investor. Interview multiple lendersUnless you're buying real estate with cash, you'll need to work with a mortgage lender. He took them to lunch and asked questions about how comfortable they are doing residential real estate and what markets they do most of their deals in.

☆ A 27-year-old real estate investor who owns 11 rental units isn't buying property right now: 'The rates are way too high. I can't make money in the way I want to make money.'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Kathleen Elkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Interest rates are too high for his liking. Mortgage rates are more than double what they were a year ago. Yin is very price conscious and does a detailed analysis whenever he's evaluating a rental property. With the interest rates where they are now, "I can still make money," he explained, "but my margin of error is a lot thinner. The rates on the properties Yin has financed currently range between 3.6% and 4.1%, according to documents viewed by Insider.

☆ A 27-year-old real estate investor who owns 9 properties in Alabama says you shouldn't sleep on the Birmingham market. He shares his top reasons why it's a great investment opportunity.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Kathleen Elkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Real estate investor Stephen Yin says that Birmingham is an overlooked market. He admits to "kind of falling into real estate by accident," he told Insider. One of his friends from home reached out and asked if he'd ever considered investing in real estate. After doing some research, "I realized that Birmingham has one of the best real estate markets in the nation, from a returns perspective as well as from a barrier-to-entry perspective," he said. "I could still make money, but I can't make money in the way I want to make money."

☆ Starbucks is opening an upmarket 3-floor store in the Empire State Building selling cocktails and offering coffee-making workshops
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Starbucks Reserve store will sell hot drinks, cocktails, and food — some of which will be exclusive to the store. The store, set to open on November 16, will be in the Starbucks Reserve format. A Starbucks Reserve store in Shenzhen, China. A barista makes coffee at a Starbucks Reserve coffee store in Shanghai, China. The nearby New York Reserve Roastery, just a five-minute walk away, has a similar menu but at higher prices.

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