Financial Markets and Economy
Global stocks nurse nine-month highs before ECB meeting (Reuters)
World stocks faded after hitting nine-month highs on Thursday as signals from Japan that its next shot of stimulus won't include hand-out 'helicopter money' cooled the mood.
Another First for S&P 500 as Record Comes With Yuan in Reverse (Bloomberg)
An ability to whistle past trouble has marked the progress of U.S. stocks for seven years. But getting to records while staring at a threat that had investors whimpering just four months ago is new.
There's a group of investors waiting in the shadows with $200 billion to spend (Business Insider)
Money managers are saving up and eager to be the lenders of first resort.
How to Reboot Britain's Economy After Brexit (Bloomberg View)
The U.K. decision to quit the European Union appears to be slowing the global recovery. But the government's policy response put the domestic economy on a stronger footing than before, limiting Brexit's negative impact on the rest of the world. Britain, previously Europe's poster child for austerity, has an opportunity to augment the Bank of England's monetary-policy efforts with some much needed fiscal firepower.
U.S. Index Futures Little Changed; Qualcomm Jumps on Earnings (Bloomberg)
U.S. index futures were little changed as investors assessed the rally that pushed the S&P 500 Index to a fresh record, with the earnings season in full swing.
Investors are kissing gold goodbye — for now (Business Insider)
Gold prices hit a 3-week low as investors decided to plough into riskier asset classes — like stocks.
Chinese Private Equity Funds Are Taking on the World's Giants (Bloomberg)
Giuseppe Bellandi never imagined that his company, a 30-year-old maker of industrial automation components in the foothills of the Italian Alps, would end up in the hands of a private-equity fund from China.
All three major mobile wallets have expanded their offerings (Business Insider)
All three major phone-based mobile wallets announced expansions to their services this week. These upgrades all increase the wallets' available audiences and make usage more convenient, which could help push up adoption.
The pound is slipping (Busineses Insider)
The British pound is slipping on Thursday after the latest figures from the UK's retail sector showed sales slowing in June in the run-up to immediate aftermath of the EU referendum.
Oil producers are trying to protect themselves from another crash (Business Insider)
In June 2015, oil prices surged to $60 per barrel, raising hopes that the oil price downturn would have been brief and the recovery swift. But by July, oil prices were heading back down, the beginning of a deeper slump that would continue for months.
A year later, a similar pattern could be playing out, or at least, that is what oil producers are fearing. After hitting a low point in February of this year, oil prices began a four-month rally, rising from $26 to $51 per barrel by June, the third year in a row in which the month of June saw a relative peak for oil prices. Now, July could once again mark a renewed nose-dive.
Here's why the yen could actually go to zero (Business Insider)
Shinzo Abe just scored a decisive victory in the upper house elections. Let me explain why that is not boring.
Komatsu to buy U.S. mining equipment rival Joy Global in $3.7 billion deal (Reuters)
Japanese mining equipment maker Komatsu Ltd has agreed to buy its smaller U.S. rival Joy Global Inc for about $3.7 billion including debt, its biggest-ever acquisition, to boost its clout in the mining industry.
Politics
Trump Chooses War With Cruz at Convention Aimed at Unification (Bloomberg Politics)
Donald Trump said he chose his running mate to inspire party unity. The goal of his presidential convention was party unity. But the Republican presidential nominee isn't any closer to uniting the party because of the man who got the second most votes in the primary: Ted Cruz.
Despite Boos, Ted Cruz Won’t Endorse Donald Trump (Wall Street Journal)
Sen. Ted Cruz refused to endorse Donald Trump on Wednesday night, leaving delegates at the Republican National Convention shouting angrily, and laying bare the rift between traditional conservatives and the populist candidate.
The Republican Circus, on Stage and Off (Bloomberg View)
The spotlight on the third night of the Republican convention was supposed to be on the vice-presidential nominee. And, as expected, Mike Pence showed himself to be a perfectly solid running mate for any Republican Party that wanted a solid movement conservative on the ticket.
Technology
Corning says its Gorilla Glass 5 will protect phones from selfie junkies’ butterfingers (The Next Web)
For years, Corning’s toughened glass has graced the screens of more than 4.5 billion devices around the world to protect them from drops and untoward encounters with keys and coins in pockets.
Can Artificial Intelligence Help The Mentally Ill? (Fast Company)
Researchers are testing mobile apps that analyze patients' activity to measure mental health.
An emotional crisis doesn't surface only in a therapy appointment. For those suffering depression, PTSD, or other mental health challenges, a breakdown can be a slow burn, developing over days or weeks in between doctor visits. Delay in treatment can have lasting consequences.
Health and Life Sciences
Which Diabetes Drug Is Best? (Market Watch)
No single drug to treat type 2 diabetes stands out from the pack when it comes to reducing the risks of heart disease, stroke or premature death, a new research review finds.
Life on the Home Planet
Grow Fresh Mushrooms With Your Used Coffee Grounds (PSFK)
Americans consume close to 587 million cups of coffee a day, and world coffee consumption in a year can total around 150.2 million bags. Just 0.2% of the bean is consumed in a cup of coffee, so what happens with what’s left? An innovative coffee machine concept called Hifa gives coffee grounds a second life as mushroom fertilizer.
