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☆ U.S. and Japan agree to strengthen alliance, citing China and North Korea
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON — The United States and Japan unveiled plans Wednesday to strengthen their alliance to help counter threats from North Korea and China, which they called the greatest security challenge in the region. From left, Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada, Hayashi, Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in Washington on Wednesday. In addition, the U.S. space agency NASA plans to sign a cooperation deal with Japan on Friday, they said. Austin noted that Wednesday’s agreement affirms America’s “ironclad commitment to defend Japan with a full range of capabilities, including nuclear” and underscores that Article 5 of the mutual security treaty applies to the Senkaku Islands. That would make its defense budget the world’s third largest — a dramatic shift in Tokyo’s priorities that reflects growing concerns about North Korea and potential Chinese military action against Taiwan.

☆ Final call: Nominate a company for CNBC's 2023 Disruptor 50 list
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Cnbc.Com Staff | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

CNBC is now accepting nominations for the 2023 Disruptor 50 list — our annual look at the most innovative venture-backed companies using breakthrough technology to meet increasing economic and consumer challenges. The IPO market has collapsed in lockstep: only three Disruptor 50 companies went public in 2022, compared to a record-breaking 20 companies in the year prior. Last month, another Disruptor 50 fintech firm, Checkout.com, slashed its internal valuation to $11 billion, versus a previous investor valuation of $40 billion. Klarna raised financing at a $6.7 billion valuation last year, an 85% discount to its prior valuation of $46 billion. But it's workers who have been hit the hardest by these severe haircuts: at least one-third of companies on the 2022 Disruptor 50 list announced layoffs last year, signaling leaner times ahead.

☆ This dividend stock fund is beating the market. Here's its strategy and positions
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Michelle Fox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The firm's Integrity Dividend Harvest Fund ended 2022 down just 1.45%, while the broader market saw its worst year since 2008. So far in 2023, Integrity Dividend has gained more than 5%, while the S & P is up only a little more than 1%. IDHIX 1Y mountain Integrity Dividend Harvest I outperformed the S & P 500 in 2022. The stock, which gained more than 19% last year, has a 3.65% dividend yield. "They're pointing to 6% to 7% long-term annual earnings growth, along with dividends growing in lockstep to their earnings," Radke said.

The chaos unfolding in the new Republican-controlled House shows that analysis, if it was ever true, certainly doesn’t hold today. Since the new Congress began Tuesday, every time Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., has called a vote to be elected speaker, he has gotten no closer to the gavel. Though there is no shortage of backroom deal-making going on among House Republicans, either, the public nature of the leadership fight means many of the concessions McCarthy is offering have been announced by his opponents. Back in 1995, Newt Gingrich nudged aside longtime House Republican leader Bob Michel of Illinois to become the first Republican speaker of the House in 40 years after President George H.W. That helped oust House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, in 2015 and then his successor, Paul Ryan, R-Wis., once a conservative darling.

☆ Workers still quitting at high rates — and getting a big bump in pay
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Filadendron | E+ | Getty ImagesThe share of workers who quit their jobs jumped in November for the first time since last spring — and they're getting a big pay bump for moving, data shows. The labor market remains strong by historical standards, characterized by a high level of job openings and low layoffs. That translates to ample opportunity for workers, who generally get an increase in pay when they accept a new position. In other words, the average consumer lost buying power because rapidly rising prices for goods and services outstripped pay growth. Wage growth has moderated a bit from 2021, though remains strong relative to its pre-pandemic trend, Bunker said.

☆ Here's why egg prices surged in 2022. Those elevated costs could last into the first quarter of 2023, expert says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

D3sign | Moment | Getty ImagesThe surge in egg prices has stood out in a year when Americans saw their bills balloon across the grocery store. Bird flu is largely to blame for rising egg pricesAbout 40 million egg-laying hens — "layers," in industry shorthand — have died this year due to avian flu, Moscogiuri said. Egg prices jumped 2.3% just in the month of November, and by 10.1% in October, according to the CPI. watch nowElevated egg prices "could last into the first quarter of 2023," Lapp said. It's also due to record egg prices somewhat dampening demand, he said.

☆ Eyeliner Out of Stock? Blame TikTok
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Liz Young | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

Sonya Dube went to buy more of one of her favorite makeup products, a Charlotte Tilbury highlighter, this summer only to find it was out of stock—again. So, it was only natural that Ms. Dube turned to TikTok to document her exasperation at not being able to find another bottle. Viewers often can click a link to buy an item right away, making the shopping experience nearly seamless—if the product is in stock. Charlotte Tilbury has sought to adapt its supply chain to respond to customer demand as products go viral, a company spokesperson said. “We do our best to hold enough stock to get us through moments like these,” Ms. Schakler said.

☆ Missing jobs mystery puts Fed on back foot
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Ben Winck | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A study published by the Philadelphia Federal Reserve last week said 10,500 new jobs were added in the second quarter of 2022. Yet the national statistics bureau had previously reported a total over the same period of more than 1 million. Those seemingly missing jobs put the Federal Reserve, which uses the job market as a signal in its fight against inflation, on the back foot. The BLS jobs report includes job counts from both a household survey and a survey of businesses’ payrolls. The federal government releases monthly jobs data, but revises its numbers once a year as part of a process known as benchmarking, which factors in more comprehensive data only released quarterly.

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.

☆ Rising rates are weighing on the housing market - and macro headwinds could keep the sector depressed in 2023.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Don't shoot the messenger here, but today I'm breaking down the many troubles plaguing the housing market and homebuyers. The Fed's interest rate maneuvering and the housing market are connected, and mortgage rates often move in lockstep with the central bank's benchmark rate. Brian Jacobsen, a senior strategist for Allspring Global Investments, pointed to a triumvirate of headwinds weighing on the housing sector: labor shortages, rising costs, and soaring mortgages. That means more rate hikes are effectively guaranteed, which raises the odds of a recession and can further squash housing demand. What's your forecast for the housing market 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.

☆ Monetary policy in Southeast Asia is likely to remain 'fairly moderate,' Maybank says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | 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 EmailMonetary policy in Southeast Asia is likely to remain 'fairly moderate,' Maybank saysAnand Pathmakanthan of Maybank Investment Banking Group says countries like the Philippines and Singapore have to move in lockstep with the U.S. Federal Reserve, while Thailand and Malaysia have more leeway in tightening monetary policy.

But since mid-May, when rates futures markets began to bet outright that the Fed would cut rates in the second half of next year, markets have stabilized. Rates futures have raised the 2023 implied fed funds terminal rate by 400 bps to around 5% and the Fed has raised its 'dot plot' forecasts, in a broadly lockstep move. But since mid-May the implied 2023 terminal rate has been brought forward to the first half of the year, and rate cuts have been priced into the second half. Yet policymakers' 2023 economic growth forecast has slumped to 0.5% - it was 2.25% in March - and they now see unemployment topping 4.5%. Powell's comments are pushing Wall Street lower on Thursday, but interest rate markets largely have dismissed them and continue to price in more than 50 bps of rate cuts next year.

☆ Fed Rate Hikes Mean ‘Fantastic’ Savings Rates. Are You Still Earning Less than 1%?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

A series of rate hikes from the Federal Reserve—including a 0.5 percentage point increase on Wednesday—has left its benchmark federal-funds rate rate in a range of 4.25% to 4.5%, the highest level seen in 15 years. “Savings rates right now are fantastic,” says Joe Duran, co-head of Goldman Sachs Workplace and Personal Wealth. “Banks want to be competitive, so when Fed rate increases happen, they are usually quick to increase savings rates,” says Duran. Where Savings and CD Rates Are Headed NextWith interest rates steadily increasing, the key question for savers becomes: Should I lock in rates now, or wait for even better offers? In fact, the average savings rate nationally is only 0.24%, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp—quite paltry considering where the Fed rate is.

☆ Ukrainians push for US to support
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Jennifer Hansler | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Ukrainian officials traveled to the United States last week to push for support for the creation of a special tribunal to prosecute top-level Russian officials for the crime of aggression. “We have a loophole, a gap in accountability, when we talk about accountability for the crime of aggression against Ukraine,” Korynevych told CNN in Washington, DC, last week. It has faced pushback from the International Criminal Court (ICC), which is carrying out its own investigation into reported war crimes and crimes against humanity carried out in Ukraine. “The crime of aggression is a leadership crime,” Korynevych said. “We are carefully reviewing proposals for a special tribunal dedicated to the crime of aggression against Ukraine,” a State Department spokesperson said.

☆ Morning Bid: Bonds lap up crude, costs and Canada
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The big consensus bet of 2023 is already in full swing - bonds are bid. With year-on-year oil price gains evaporating to zero, that is dragging inflation expectations down in lockstep. The exception was in Hong Kong, which the Hang Seng benchmark (.HSI) has now recouped all this year's underperformance versus world indices and the S&P500. The Hang Seng added another 3% on Thursday as the Hong Kong government loosened its COVID-19 curbs further. The isolation period for patients and contacts will be cut to five days from seven days and requirements for arrivals to Hong Kong to undergo daily tests will similarly be reduced to five days.

☆ Xi Jinping: Saudi's MBS rolls out the red carpet for China's president, in a not too subtle message to Biden
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Tamara Qiblawi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Saudi leaders will infuse the trip with a dose of spectacle. The Saudi king – or his powerful Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman – may bestow the Chinese leader with some honors and medals. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman fist bumps US President Joe Biden upon his arrival at Al Salman Palace, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on July 15. Today, the US consumes only a fraction of that Saudi oil, and China is Saudi Arabia’s biggest client and trading partner. Over the last year, Gulf Arab countries appear to have ramped up their independent-minded policy.

☆ Australia's Big Four banks pass c.bank rate hike to home loan customers
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 6 (Reuters) - All of Australia's "big four" banks said on Tuesday they will raise their home loan rates by a quarter-point, passing on the central bank's eighth rate hike in as many months to their customers in full. Earlier on Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of Australia lifted its cash rate by 25 basis points to a 10-year high of 3.1%, and reiterated that further policy tightening would be needed to contain inflation. The top four lenders, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA.AX), National Australia Bank (NAB.AX) and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group's (ANZ.AX) will hike their rates from the end of next week, while Westpac Banking Corp's (WBC.AX) hike will be effective December 20, the banks said in separate statements. However, heightened borrowing costs could impact credit demand, housing market, employment and economic growth, posing as challenges to the lenders. Reporting by Rishav Chatterjee and Echha Jain in Bengaluru Editing by Vinay Dwivedi and Nivedita BhattacharjeeOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Cyber scams target millions of online shoppers, but you can stay safe with the help of new technology
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Sponsor Post | Created Mastercard With Insider Studios | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

But at the same time, they need to continue to offer frictionless services. We're constantly advancing our behavioral technology solutions to assess data, such as how you hold your phone and how fast you type or swipe. Advancements in technology have the potential to change life as we know it, so we can tap into our ground-breaking technology solutions to seamlessly enable how we want to live, work, and play. Our new Enhanced Contactless (Ecos) technology, an industry first, has security that is 3 million times harder to break. Find out more about how Mastercard is keeping customers safe from fraudThis post was created by Mastercard with Insider Studios

☆ Wall Street's biggest landlords thought they had a great hedge against inflation. But now these giant homebuyers are getting slammed by rising costs — just like the rest of us.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Two Wall Street analysts are seeing warning signs for big landlords like Invitation Homes. Raymond James downgraded its rating of Invitation Homes for the first time ever. Single-family rental companies face new challengesHigh interest rates mean that it costs substantially more for single-family rental companies to buy up thousands of homes. In key markets like Texas, Florida, and Georgia, property taxes may increase by 20 to 30% year-over-year, according to Raymond James. According to Carl and Rosivach, Invitation Homes' rent collection rolls are 2% lower than they were pre-pandemic, while on-time payments are 5% lower than they were pre-pandemic.

Billionaire money manager Bill Ackman went public last week with his wager that the days of the Hong Kong dollar's 39-year-old peg to the U.S. dollar are numbered. "For me, the Hong Kong dollar peg is like a delayed, or lagging bet against China," said Diego Parrilla, who runs Quadriga Igneo, a $240 million fund designed to profit from market turmoil. The Hong Kong dollar has been pegged in a tight band between 7.75 and 7.85 per greenback for nearly four decades. In the short-term, the market is moving against this style of trade as local interest rates and the Hong Kong dollar go up. "The far forwards market still prices in higher U.S. rates than Hong Kong rates," said Mukesh Dave, founder and CIO at Aravali Asset Management in Singapore, which in theory ought to contain gains in the Hong Kong dollar.

☆ Crypto startup MoonPay hires Time president to lead its enterprise business
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Riley De León | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

In this article LTH Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTKeith Grossman, Time president TIMEPieces Artist Jeremy CowartTime president Keith Grossman is leaving the legacy publisher to take on a new role as the president of enterprise at crypto startup MoonPay, effective December 31. Before his three-plus years at Time, Grossman had held leadership posts at major publishers including Bloomberg and Condé Nast-owned Wired. "I think it's important to separate a bad actor from an industry," Grossman said of the FTX fallout. Crypto's confidence crisisIn the 12 months since bitcoin topped out at over $68,000, the crypto industry, once valued at roughly $3 trillion, has fallen to around $900 billion. Enterprise adoption has been fueling this belief, with companies including Nike , McDonald's , Adidas and Starbucks launching their own NFT collections.

It was in China's interest to make its "best efforts" to induce North Korea to denuclearise, he said. North Korea's tests overshadowed multiple gatherings this month of international leaders, including the Group of 20 conference in Bali, where Yoon pressed Chinese President Xi Jinping to do more to rein in North Korea's nuclear and missile provocations. China is South Korea's largest trading partner, as well as a close partner of North Korea. South Korea, Japan, and the United States have agreed to share real time information for tracking North Korean ballistic missile tests. Now Japan faced more and more threats from North Korea’s missile programme, including tests that overfly Japanese islands, Yoon said.

☆ Billionaire investor Ackman bets Hong Kong dollar peg can break
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Reuters Staff | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Billionaire investor Bill Ackman said he’s betting the Hong Kong dollar will fall and that its peg to the U.S. dollar can break, the latest big money manager to take a public short bet as U.S. rate hikes turn the blowtorch on Hong Kong’s currency system. FILE PHOTO: A Hong Kong dollar note is seen in this illustration photo May 31, 2017. REUTERS/Thomas White/Illustration“We have a large notional short position against the Hong Kong dollar through the ownership of put options,” he said on Twitter. U.S. fund manager Kyle Bass has long bet against the Hong Kong dollar and told Nikkei in July he expects the peg to break. GRAPHIC: Hong Kong rates, liquidity ()($1 = 7.8132 Hong Kong dollars)

☆ Billionaire investor Bill Ackman is shorting the Hong Kong dollar in a bet it'll lose its peg to the greenback
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Bill Ackman said on Wednesday that he's betting against the Hong Kong dollar. "The peg no longer makes sense for Hong Kong and it is only a matter of time before it breaks." "We have a large notional short position against the Hong Kong dollar through the ownership of put options," the billionaire investor tweeted on Wednesday. "The peg no longer makes sense for Hong Kong and it is only a matter of time before it breaks." "If you bet against the Hong Kong dollar, you are bound to lose," Paul Chan told an investment summit earlier this month.

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