News You Can Use From Phil’s Stock World

Financial Markets and Economy

There's a Huge Gap Between American Economic Hopes and Reality (Bloomberg)

Surveys of businesses and consumers have shown a surge in confidence since the Nov. 8 U.S. presidential election, as hopes for growth-lifting fiscal stimulus and deregulation have increased. But actual economic activity has yet to catch up.

Bank of Japan maintains inflation forecast (The Wall Street Journal)

The Bank of Japan stuck to its ultra-easy monetary policy Tuesday and held back from raising its inflation forecast for the coming year, underlining its nervousness about the uncertain path of President Donald Trump’s policy.

Goldman: Europe’s Stocks to Return Double U.S. Equities in 2017 (Bloomberg)

European equities will catch up to their U.S. peers once the uncertainty surrounding near-term elections is lifted, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Greek Markets Tumble as EU Holds Up Payment Amid IMF Doubts (Bloomberg)

Greek stocks and bonds fell on Monday after the government in Athens failed to bridge differences with European creditors over the conditions attached to the country’s latest bailout review and the International Monetary Fund warned that its debt is on an unsustainable path.

The makers of insulin are being accused of price-fixing in a class-action lawsuit (Business Insider)

A lawsuit filed Monday alleges that the three companies that make insulin have been part of an "organized scheme to drive up prices at the expense of patients who need insulin drugs to live."

Trump’s Trade War May Have Already Begun (NY Times)

America’s traditional allies are on the lookout for new friends.

They have heard the mantra “America First” from the new president, divining a Trump doctrine: global cooperation last.

Taxi Medallion Prices Are Plummeting, Endangering Loans (Bloomberg)

There's a good reason your cab driver is so cranky: His livelihood might be teetering on the edge of default. According to a recent presentation prepared for Capital One Financial Corp. investors, some 81 percent of its $690 million in loans for taxi medallions are at risk of default.

On Renewable Energy Technology, I'll Wager On Bill Gates Over Elon Musk (Forbes)

In 1999, attending a conference on renewable energy technology, I warned that for any given technologies or fuels to succeed in the long run, they needed to be roughly competitive — that is, consumers should want buy them in quantity based on cost and quality.

“Alternative Facts” and US Economic Policy (Project Syndicate)

US President Donald Trump has an obvious problem with data that he doesn’t like, as he showed on his first full day in office, by attacking the media for reporting accurately the size of the crowd that attended his inauguration. It should be no less obvious that this same reliance on “alternative facts” poses a severe threat in the realm of economic policymaking.

Nikkei hits 4-day low as Asian markets continue to drop (Market Watch)

The Asia-Pacific markets that were open for business during the Lunar New Year holiday extended their declines Tuesday, tracking moves overnight in the U.S., as investor risk aversion around President Donald Trump’s immigration policy kicked in.

Fox Business Clobbers CNBC on Historic Dow Day (The Wrap)

Fox Business is finally in a position to surpass CNBC as the go-to network for breaking business news.

The network soared above its arch rival in total viewers every hour of the day from 9 a.m. through 8 p.m. when the Dow Jones reached a record high of 20,000 points last Wednesday.

Dow Companies Report Worst Revenues since 2010, Dow Rises to 20,000 (LOL?) (Wolf Street)

The Dow-20,000 hats have come out of the drawer after an agonizingly long wait that had commenced in early December with the Dow Jones Industrial Average tantalizingly close to the sacred number before the selling started all over again.

Goldman Sachs: The Case For A Higher VIX (Zero Hedge)

While low VIX levels may not, at least historically, suggest an impending market decline; Goldman Sachs are sympathetic to the argument that the VIX seems low.

February’s FOMC Meeting: A Powder Keg In Search Of A Match (Zero Hedge)

On February 1st the Federal Reserve will conclude its scheduled two-day meeting. No one expects any change in policy to be announced, especially since the Fed has since hiked rates at the preceding meeting. And with there being no press conference scheduled, that’s been a pretty reliable indicator for all to assume it’s steady-as-she-goes.

ECB Assets Rise Above 36% Of Eurozone GDP; Draghi Now Owns 10.2% Of European Corporate Bonds (Zero Hedge)

The ECB's nationalization of the European corporate bond sector continues. In the ECB's latest update, the six central banks acting on behalf of the Euro system provided an update on the list of corporate bonds they bought. They bought into 810 issuances with a total of €573bn in amount outstanding.

RBC: "It Is Crazy What Is Going On 'Under The Hood' When On The Surface It’s So Optically Calm" (Zero Hedge)

Having cautioned that the economic macro surprise rally of the past three months has been mostly based on the back of "soft data" surprises, in other words, hope and moistly animal spirits, which "are driving the bulk of the US data surprises".

Companies

Short sellers giving up on Twitter trade (Reuters)

Short sellers have been closing their bets against Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) so far in 2017, possibly frustrated by a lack of volatility in the social network's stock price.

Amazon Enters Trillion Dollar Ocean Freight Business (Supply Chain 247)

Amazon has begun shipping products from Chinese merchant partners to its U.S. warehouses via ocean freighters, this is something it used to outsource exclusively, and another piece of the overall shipping and logistics picture that it’s now controlling directly, at least in part.

Technology

When Intelligent Machines Cause Accidents, Who Is Legally Responsible? (Singularity Hub)

The rise of artificially intelligent machines will come at a cost—but with the potential to disrupt and transform society on a scale not seen since the Industrial Revolution. Jobs will be lost, but new fields of innovation will open up.

Tufts professor invents a non-exploding battery that holds 2x as much power (Yahoo)

Batteries, as you may have figured out by now, have a problem. A few problems, actually.

They don’t hold nearly enough power. That’s a real problem for phones, smartwatches, and electric cars.

Politics

Trump's Corrosive Incompetence on Migrants (Bloomberg)

Maybe President Donald Trump needs to be taken literally after all. He promised a dumb, needlessly cruel and counterproductive policy on immigrants and refugees, and within days of taking office, that's exactly what he delivered.

Trump Vows to Dismantle Dodd-Frank ‘Disaster’ (NY Times)

President Trump on Monday reiterated his intention to roll back Dodd-Frank financial regulations enacted to prevent another financial crisis, telling reporters that he soon planned to do “a big number” on the 2010 law.

Kellyanne Conway wonders why media members who “talked smack all day long about Donald Trump” haven’t been fired (Salon)

When White House senior adviser Kellyanne Conway went onto “Fox News Sunday” with host Chris Wallace yesterday, she probably did not anticipate so much pushback from the conservative network.

The Trump camp is using the attack on a Quebec mosque to prop up its Muslim ban (Think Progress)

Trump press secretary Sean Spicer opened his press conference on Monday by noting that the president had called to offer his condolences to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau following an attack on a Quebec mosque.

How Trump's Travel Ban Worsens Doctor Shortage (Forbes)

Healthcare providers said the executive order lacked clarity and they struggled to understand what was to come after Trump’s call Sunday on Twitter for “extreme vetting.”

Welcome To Presidenr Trump's Reality (The Daily Show)

In President Trump's first interview since taking office, he praises Fox News's coverage of his CIA speech and defends a ban on immigrants from Muslim-majority countries.

Native American tribe vows to stop Donald Trump building Mexican border wall on their Arizona reservation (Independent)

The Tohono O’odham Nation, a federally recognised tribe with a reservation that spans 75 miles along the US-Mexico border, said on Thursday that it does not support the proposed wall and will attempt to block construction if it goes ahead.

The bogus anti-refugee talking points that refuse to die (Columbia Journalism Review)

Answering questions at a Republican presidential candidates’ forum in Iowa on Saturday, Sen. Ted Cruz had some strong words about President Obama’s response to the Syrian refugee crisis.

Garrison Keillor: Trump is what he is, and God help us now (Tulsa World)

What we know so far is that the man is who he is. There is no larger, finer man inside him trying to get out. Everyone who is paying attention knows this.

Trump Will 'Definitely' Pull Out Of Paris Climate Deal, Ex-Aide Says (InfoWars)

President Trump will “definitely” pull the United States out of the Paris climate agreement, with some action possible within days, according to a former top aide.

‘Fake Tears’: Trump Mocks Chuck Schumer's Crying (InfoWars)

Senator Chuck Schumer cried crocodile tears when he publicly criticized the Trump administration’s travel ban, President Donald Trump alleged Monday.

Obama Makes First Statement Since Leaving White House, Supports Protests Against Trump Policy (Zero Hedge)

It took Obama ten days since he departed the White House one final time to break his promise that he would "stay on the sidelines" regarding Trump's policies.

The Snake (Vox)

There is a story Donald Trump liked to tell on the campaign trail. The story of the snake.

The fable goes like this. A “tender-hearted” woman finds a wounded snake on the road. She takes it in and nurses it back to health. The snake, revived, bites her. The woman, dying, asks why.

UK Parliament To "Immediately" Debate Trump Ban After Millions Sign Petition (Zero Hedge)

A petition to ban President Donald Trump from visiting The UK has now received over one million signatures and the UK parliament has just agreed to immediately hold a three-hour debate on the decision.

Priebus suggests immigration ban should be expanded to more countries (Think Progress)

Despite facing public backlash and legal challenges, the Trump administration appears to be doubling down on its recent immigration ban. The president’s top advisors are now floating the idea that it doesn’t go far enough and and say the administration is considering expanding the ban to include more countries.

Health and Biotech

New Research on Treating Depression (The Wall Street Journal)

New research on treatments for depression presents an intriguing finding: a healthy diet may help depressed patients.

Life on the Home Planet

An Enormous Crack Just Opened Up In The Middle Of The Arizona Desert (Forbes)

The Arizona Geological Survey is monitoring a 2-mile long crack that has opened up in the Arizona desert. Recent drone flights over the crack reveal that it has continued to grow both in length and width in Pinal County, to the southeast of Phoenix.

Saudi Arabian site used to monitor ceasefire violations in Yemen struck by rockets (Reuters)

A building in southern Saudi Arabia used by United Nations staff to monitor ceasefire violations in Yemen was damaged by rocket fire on Monday.

Suspect in Quebec Mosque Attack Quickly Depicted as a Moroccan Muslim. He’s a White Nationalist. (The Intercept)

A mass shooting at a Quebec City mosque last night left six people dead and eight wounded. The targeted mosque, the Cultural Islamic Center of Quebec, was the same one at which a severed pig’s head was left during Ramadan last June.

Construction of most nuclear-power reactors is behind schedule (The Economist)

The boom in nuclear energy began in the 1950s, when America, Russia, Britain and France rushed to develop reactor technologies for electricity generation. By the late 1970s around 230 reactors were under construction.

St. Louis Cardinals lose their top 2 draft picks and must pay Houston Astros $2 million in hacking case (Associated Press)

Major League Baseball has ordered the St. Louis Cardinals to forfeit their top two picks in this year's amateur draft and pay Houston $2 million as compensation for hacking the Astros email system and scouting database.

Supervolcano 'Worse Than Versuvius' That Could Kill Millions Across Europe 'Ready To Blow' (InfoWars)