Financial Markets and Economy
Happy birthday, bull market! (Business Insider)
It's the bull market's 7th birthday!
National Debt Tops $19 Trillion – 106% Of GDP (Value Walk)
On Monday, February 1, the Treasury Department announced that America’s national debt had topped$19 trillion for the first time ever – and no one seemed to notice. That’s more than$58,000 for every person living in the US today, including children.
Oil Rises After Biggest Drop in Three Weeks on U.S. Supply (Bloomberg)
Oil rose after its biggest drop in more than three weeks on speculation that declining U.S. crude production will eventually shrink the nations inventories, which continue to grow.
Busting The Myth Of Market Timing (Forbes)
If you have cash, when should you invest it? Should you invest now or wait?
Futures are rebounding (Business Insider)
US futures are rebounding on Wednesday morning after a close lower in the prior session ended the best streak of gains in months.
Manipulation or Brilliant Trade? The Curious Case of Don Wilson (Bloomberg)
When Don Wilson spotted a chance in 2010 to take another bite at a trade that had mostly eluded him as a younger man, he never expected he’d be defending his actions six years later in a Manhattan federal courtroom.
Economic Confidence Index in U.S. Steady at -11 (Gallup)
Americans continued to have slightly more negative than positive views of the strength of the U.S. economy last week, resulting in a U.S. Economic Confidence Index score of -11. That is within two points of the weekly readings measured since mid-January, and in line with most averages since July.
Markets betting on near-zero interest rates for another decade (Business Insider)
World markets may have recovered their poise from a torrid start to the year, but their outlook for global growth and inflation is now so bleak they are betting on developed world interest rates remaining near zero for up to another decade.
RPT-Sabine Oil wins pipeline ruling in a blow to pipeline operators (Reuters)
Sabine Oil & Gas Corp won a key court ruling on Tuesday that will allow the bankrupt energy producer to shed certain pipeline contracts, potentially exposing companies that transport and process gas to the crisis in the energy industry.
Draghi Stimulus Fails in Stock Market as Swings Match 2008 (Bloomberg)
Mario Draghi is having no success convincing stock investors that the European Central Bank has the firepower to reignite growth.
Norway Wealth Fund Isn't Joining Global Stock Selloff, CEO Says (Bloomberg)
Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the world’s biggest, hasn’t been part of a global selloff in stocks this quarter, according to its chief executive officer, Yngve Slyngstad.
Is the perfect storm over for markets? (Market Watch)
Earlier this year, financial markets around the world were forced to navigate a perfect storm — a violent disruption fueled by an unusual amalgamation of smaller disturbances. Financial volatility rose, unsettling investors; stocks went on a rollercoaster ride, ending substantially lower; government bond yields plummeted, and lenders found themselves in the unusual position of having to pay for the privilege of holding an even bigger amount of government debt (almost one-third of the total).
Big Investors Aware of Cyber Threats but Often Unprepared: Survey (Think Advisor)
On Tuesday, Backstop Solutions Group, which provides cloud-based solutions for institutional investors, reported that 77% of respondents in a new survey considered cybersecurity as at least “an important” priority in their firms.
More than a third of respondents claimed cybersecurity was a top priority, while only 4% minimized its importance.
As China's Economy Slows, Ford Is Continuing to Find Growth (Fox Business)
Chinese car shoppers are hot for SUVs right now, and a three-row version of Ford's new Edge has been a big seller. Image source: Ford Motor Company.
New Gold Bull Market Now Official; Breaking Point In Paper Gold (Value Walk)
Gold officially entered a bull market in last week’s trading with prices gaining more than 20% from their December lows. The silver price also put on some very nice gains, but the price needs to reach about $16.40 before watchers can make the same claim.
UBS, Deutsche Bank Escaped Bonus Taxes Like Houdini, Judges Say (Bloomberg)
Deutsche Bank AG and UBS Group AG must pay taxes on two banker bonuses plans, the U.K. Supreme Court ruled, saying the firms exploited loopholes to avoid payments in a decision that will affect a number of similar arrangements.
Politics
Hillary’s predicament and the history of capitalism: Former Monty Python member explains it all (Salon)
Here’s the only problem with “Boom Bust Boom,” a whimsical edutainment documentary from former Monty Python member Terry Jones that seeks to upend the conventional wisdom about capitalism and mainstream economics: It couldn’t see the future. Jones and his co-writer, Dutch economist and entrepreneur Theo Kocken, obviously conceived this project some years ago, because movies take time. They couldn’t possibly have seen the improbable rise of Bernie Sanders coming, let alone the transatlantic shock delivered by Britain’s Bernie cognate, Jeremy Corbyn, the left-wing insurgent who went from total obscurity to leader of the Labour Party within five months.
Trump Beats Back Attacks, Tightening Hold on Republican Race (Bloomberg)
Donald Trump beat back a barrage of attacks led by the last Republican presidential nominee and scored major victories in two primaries on Tuesday, strengthening his bid to win the party’s nomination and throwing Marco Rubio’s political future into doubt.
Bernie Sanders Upends Clinton, and Expectations, in Michigan (The Atlantic)
From Saginaw to Sault Ste. Marie, Bernie Sanders shocked the nation, pollsters, and Hillary Clinton in Michigan’s Democratic primary Tuesday, narrowly winning a race where surveys showed him 20 points behind as late as this week. On the Republican side, Donald Trump had a strong day. The politics team covered the race in Michigan as well as Mississippi, Idaho, and Hawaii all day.
Technology
Computer learns to identify leaves faster than a botanist (Futurity)
Identifying an isolated leaf, especially if preserved as a fossil, can be a painstaking process for botanists. A new computer program that learns to categorize leaves into large evolutionary categories could help.
Ford Reckons Your Self-Driving Car Needs a Movie Projector (Wired)
A common argument against autonomous vehicles is that the technology will ruin the romance of the driving. No more long, pensive drives down the coast. No more cross-country road trips. No more drive-in movie theaters. Well that one’s almost dead already, but Ford could bring it back, with a twist.
The Detroit automaker received a patent this month for an “autonomous vehicle entertainment system.” We call it the “drivin’ theater.”
Health and Life Sciences
Japan just eats better than us: What America can learn from its diet’s evolution (Salon)
An article in the most recent issue of Scientific American Mind explores the emerging field of nutritional psychology and finds there is increased recognition of the relationship between diet and brain health. Although no singular food may improve mood or sharpen the mind, research suggests that diets from the Mediterranean, Scandinavia, and Japan may play a role in preserving psychological and cognitive well-being. Experiencing the benefits of such diets may require a change in eating habits–something the Japanese themselves know from their own experience.
For Serious Training, Hold the Carbs at Dinnertime (NY Times)
Strategically skipping bread, pasta and other carbohydrates at dinner might improve subsequent athletic performance, provided those low-carb meals are combined with the right types of workouts, according to a new sports nutrition study. Its findings undercut some entrenched ideas about how athletes should eat in preparation for spring marathons and other endurance races.
Life on the Home Planet
U.S. Attacks ISIS Chemical Weapons (The Daily Beast)
The Iraqi man currently being held and interrogated by U.S. officials is a suspected mid-level Islamic State operative whose knowledge of the group’s chemical weapons program allowed coalition strikes to destroy at least two related facilities, two defense officials said.
The man has been detained for roughly a month, according to the officials. And in that time, they said, he has given the U.S. the most in-depth understanding of ISIS’s chemical attack capabilities and aspirations.
Vietnamese twins have different fathers (BBC)
The twins had their DNA tested after their family noticed they looked different, said local reports.
The occurrence, known as heteropaternal superfecundation, is rare with few publicly known about.
It happens when a woman's eggs are fertilised by two men within a short period of time.
