Financial Markets and Economy
Oil and Trump: Russians full of optimism in Davos (Reuters)
Twelve months ago, the mood of the Russian delegation at the World Economic Forum in Davos was distinctly gloomy, with oil prices near 12-year lows below $30 per barrel and Western sanctions depressing their economy and financial markets.
The Mortgage Market’s $1 Trillion Pocket of Worry (The Wall Street Journal)
Bonds backed by certain risky single-family mortgages topped $1 trillion for the first time in November, crossing that threshold amid rising warnings for one corner of the housing market.
ECB Holds Rates Steady, Leaves Stimulus Program Unchanged (The Wall Street Journal)
The European Central Bank held rates and its bond-buying program steady at its Thursday meeting. The bank's President Mario Draghi said the governing body stood ready to intervene further if conditions worsened.
Dollar dips on Yellen comments as debate over Trump effect deepens (Reuters)
The dollar inched down on Friday before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, as further comments from Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen were perceived as less hawkish than what she said the previous day.
How Deutsche Bank Made a $462 Million Loss Disappear (Bloomberg)
On Dec. 1, 2008, most of the world’s banks were still panicking through the financial crisis. Lehman Brothers had collapsed. Merrill Lynch had been sold. Citigroup and others had required multibillion-dollar bailouts to survive. But not every institution appeared to be in free fall.
Everyone has got China's debt problem all wrong (Business Insider)
The consensus on Wall Street is that debt is the most pressing problem facing the Chinese economy. The long-term risks of piling on debt have also been well-documented before.
Bankers expect Britain to back Brexit transition calls (Reuters)
Top bankers are confident that British Prime Minister Theresa May's government will support a transition period of several years for the financial sector to cope with Britain's exit from the European Union.
Indian Stocks Decline Most in a Month as Bearish Bets Mount (Bloomberg)
Indian shares declined the most in almost a month, as metal makers, power companies and banks dropped, pushing the benchmark index toward its 200-day moving average.
Don’t Assume Canada Will Rally With U.S., Poloz Warns Investors (Bloomberg)
Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz has a message for those betting Canada’s economy will ride shotgun on the U.S. recovery: think again.
One of the Most Important Trump Trades Isn't Pausing At All (Bloomberg)
The yield curve is flattening. Year to date, the U.S. dollar index is in the red, and financial stocks are underperforming benchmark indexes.
Safran to Buy Zodiac for $10 Billion in All-French Aero Deal (Bloomberg)
Aircraft-engine maker Safran SA agreed to buy plane-seat supplier Zodiac Aerospace SA for almost 10 billion euros ($10.5 billion) in an all-French deal that will unite two of the country’s biggest aerospace groups.
Davos CEOs 'go local' on supply chain in Trump era (Reuters)
Business leaders in Davos, traditionally the high priests of globalization, are talking up the benefits of local production this week to shield themselves from criticism from incoming U.S. President Donald Trump.
Companies
George Soros, Mastercard to partner to aid migrants, refugees (Reuters)
Billionaire investor George Soros will partner with Mastercard Inc on a venture they said could help migrants, refugees and others struggling within their communities worldwide to improve their economic and social status.
Netflix’s Global Growth Fuels Surge in Subscribers (The Wall Street Journal)
Netflix Inc.’s subscriber additions surged in the fourth quarter, fueled by an aggressive international expansion, as the streaming giant continues to stock up on content it hopes will appeal across multiple countries.
P&G Profit Tops Estimates on Sales of New, Premium Products (Bloomberg)
Procter & Gamble Co., the world’s largest consumer-products maker, reported fiscal second-quarter earnings that topped analysts’ estimates as the company sold more new and premium products.
Technology
Ex-VW CEO Winterkorn Deflects Blame for Emissions Cheating (Bloomberg)
Martin Winterkorn, the former chief executive officer of Volkswagen AG, sought to deflect blame for the biggest scandal in the carmaker’s history, saying he would have put a stop to the emissions cheating if he’d known.
Samsung Said to Blame Note 7 Fiasco on Irregularly Sized Battery (Bloomberg)
Samsung Electronics Co. will reveal on Monday that irregularly sized batteries made by an affiliate caused the overheating and fires that eventually forced the cessation of its Note 7 smartphone line, a person familiar with the matter said.
U.S exchanges rent helicopter, drape banner in pursuit of Snapchat IPO (Reuters)
This past November, Nasdaq Inc hired a helicopter to film Manhattan's skyline using Snapchat's new video-camera sunglasses and sent the aerial footage to its social media followers.
What Happens When Tech Takes Control of Evolution? (Singularity Hub)
Over the span of a few billion years, diversity of life has flourished on Earth through the process of natural selection. Then, not long ago (relatively), human intelligence evolved.
Get Ready to Love Math With This Sweet VR Calculator (Singularity Hub)
I knew virtual reality was going to make mathematical education more effective. I just didn’t realize it was going to be so beautiful.
Smart buildings predict when critical systems are about to fail (New Scientist)
Imagine a building that tells you – before it happens – that the heating is about to fail. Some companies are using machine learning to do just that. It’s called predictive maintenance.
Politics
Trump’s anti-immigration stance could result in a $60 billion food shortage (Business Insider)
Donald Trump has been very clear about his intentions to deport an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the US and build a wall along the southern border.
Biggest Opposition Party Ready to Topple Swedish Government (Bloomberg)
Sweden’s largest opposition party is prepared to topple the minority government of Prime Minister Stefan Lofven before next year’s election amid opposition to tax increases including a drive to raise levies on the nation’s banks.
Steven Mnuchin, Donald Trump’s Treasury Pick, to Address IndyMac Questions at Confirmation Hearing (The Wall Street Journal)
Investments tied to the foreclosure crisis are shaping up to figure prominently in the Senate confirmation hearing Thursday for Steven Mnuchin, Donald Trump’s intended nominee for Treasury secretary.
Republican Governors Warn Lawmakers About Repeal of Affordable Care Act (The Wall Street Journal)
As the U.S. Congress moves ahead with repealing the Affordable Care Act, some Republican governors are reaching out to lawmakers and urging caution.
Pentagon, Lockheed near deal on $9 billion F-35 contract – sources (Reuters)
The U.S. Department of Defense and Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) are close to deal for a contract worth almost $9 billion as negotiations are poised to bring the price per F-35 below $100 million for the first time, people familiar with the talks said Wednesday.
Syria's Assad hopes for 'reconciliation' deals from Astana talks (Reuters)
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said he believed peace talks in Kazakhstan would lead to local "reconciliation" deals with rebels, a sign of his confidence in a process launched by his Russian allies after the opposition's defeat in Aleppo.
The Real Story Of 2016 (FiveThirtyEight)
On Friday at noon, a Category 5 political cyclone that few journalists saw coming will deposit Donald Trump atop the Capitol Building, where he’ll be sworn in as the 45th president of the United States.
Health and Biotech
This malaria drug is having an amazing effect on brain cancer patients (Science Alert)
There's new hope for improved brain cancer treatments after scientists noticed unexpectedly positive effects coming from an unlikely source – a drug normally used to treat malaria.
Researchers have woven a ‘smart’ fabric that mimics one our bodies’ hardiest tissues (Science Alert)
For the first time, researchers have created a ‘smart’ fabric that mimics a type of special human tissue called the periosteum.
This drug company just got caught jacking up the price of a baby medicine by 85,000% (Science Alert)
This week, drug manufacturer Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals settled a lawsuit with the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for US$100 million, for engaging in illegal anti-competitive behaviour to ensure its continued monopoly over a life-saving medication for infants with epilepsy.
Life on the Home Planet
Earth Sets a Temperature Record for the Third Straight Year (NY Times)
Marking another milestone for a changing planet, scientists reported on Wednesday that the Earth reached its highest temperature on record in 2016, trouncing a record set only a year earlier, which beat one set in 2014. It is the first time in the modern era of global warming data that temperatures have blown past the previous record three years in a row.
Curiosity just found the first evidence of ancient mud cracks on Mars (Science Alert)
New images from NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars reveal what looks to be the first sign of mud cracks on the Martian surface, providing scientists with even more evidence that the red planet once hosted water – which potentially could have supported life.
Bill Gates warns that a new kind of terrorism could be coming, and the 'potential damage is very, very huge' (Business Insider)
Bill Gates warned at the World Economic Forum on Thursday that a new form of terrorism could be coming and that we are not prepared for it.
Eight survivors found after massive Italy avalanche (Reuters)
Eight people were found alive on Friday two days after being buried under a massive avalanche that hit a luxury mountain hotel in central Italy, a Civil Protection official said.
