Financial Markets and Economy
High-Frequency Traders Fall on Hard Times (The Wall Street Journal)
The flash boys aren’t as flashy as they used to be.
Shares tumble on impatience over Trump policies; euro gains (Reuters)
U.S. and European shares tumbled on Tuesday on concerns that higher interest rates and pro-growth U.S. policies were on hold, boosting safe-haven Treasuries and gold prices, while the euro hit a more than six-week high against the dollar on soothed French election worries.
Think Global to Avoid Shrinking U.S. Stock Market (Bloomberg)
They say the winners get to write the history books. If we’re talking about the global stock market returns over the past 100-plus years then the U.S. gets exclusive rights to this story.
Rookie Currency Traders Are Causing Big Problems (Bloomberg)
It’s been something of a common lament among Wall Street veterans for a while now. And it goes, more or less, like this: All these darn twenty-something-year-olds around here have no idea what they’re doing.
U.K. Inflation Gains More Than Forecast, Breaching BOE Goal (Bloomberg)
U.K. inflation accelerated more than economists forecast in February, breaking through the Bank of England’s target for the first time in more than three years.
Two in Five Americans Say They’ll Need $1 Million to Retire (Bloomberg)
Setting a retirement savings goal can feel like a crap shoot. How can you calculate your expenses, especially for health care, five, 10, 50 years from now?
What the Biggest Banks Are Planning Once Brexit Starts (Bloomberg)
Big investment banks will begin the process of moving some London-based operations into new hubs inside the European Union within weeks after U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May set a date to trigger the formal mechanism for quitting the bloc.
Japanese Exports Jump Most in Two Years, Led by Sales to China (Bloomberg)
Japan’s exports rose the most in two years in February, after a lull in January that was due to the Lunar New Year celebrations in Asian trading partners.
U.S. Businesses See Signs of Protectionist Shift in Indonesia (Bloomberg)
U.S. businesses are sensing a shift toward more protectionist policies in Indonesia in recent months even as President Joko Widodo is seeking to lure foreign investment into Southeast Asia’s biggest economy.
Asia Stocks Follow U.S. Selloff While Bonds Gain: Markets Wrap (Bloomberg)
Equities tumbled across Asia after the S&P 500 Index fell the most since Donald Trump’s election, as reflation trades faltered amid uncertainty over prospects for the U.S. president’s policies.
Oil's Bad Timing Puts Pressure on Drillers as Banks Review Loans (Bloomberg)
The rally in global oil prices has stalled at the worst possible time for explorers, just as banks reassess credit lines crucial to their growth.
Fed's Mester Favors Starting to Shrink Balance Sheet This Year (Bloomberg)
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Loretta Mester called for the U.S. central bank to continue with gradual interest-rate increases and begin shrinking its $4.5 trillion balance sheet this year if the economy continues to improve.
California’s Wet Winter Points to Some Sorry-Looking Salads (The Wall Street Journal)
Two months of precipitation this winter have threatened almond, celery, strawberry and other crops in the Salinas Valley, the latest in a string of increasingly erratic weather events to hurt farmers.
Hedge Fund Titan’s Surefire Bet Turns Into a $4 Billion Loss (NY Times)
A little over two years ago, William A. Ackman, one of Wall Street’s brashest and most self-assured hedge fund managers, was on top of the world. A billionaire before he hit 50, he was generating double-digit gains for his investors and raking in hundreds of millions in fees for his firm and himself.
Don't Blame Your Social Media Feed for the Growing Political Divide (Bloomberg Benchmark)
U.S. politics is growing ever-more divided, but don't blame Twitter, Facebook and Google for the partisan chasm.
Older people are less likely to use social media, but they're posting major signs of increased polarization, based on new research.
Forget Double Dip Recession, Meet Double Dip Expansion (Value Walk)
Ever since the 2008-2009 financial crisis, every time the stock market has experienced a -5%, -10%, or -15% correction, industry pundits and media talking heads have repeatedly sounded the “Double Dip Recession” alarm bells.
Companies
Shell’s Titanic Bet: Can Deep-Water Drilling Be Done on the Cheap? (The Wall Street Journal)
Royal Dutch Shell PLC is trying to reinvent its business with a concept that sounds oxymoronic: budget deep-water drilling.
Porsche SE has no information about Piech's stake sale talks (Reuters)
Porsche SE (PSHG_p.DE), Volkswagen's majority shareholder, said it has no information about former VW chairman Ferdinand Piech's talks with the carmaker's controlling families about a possible sale of his stake.
Wall Street is loading up on bets against Snapchat (SNAP) (Business Insider)
Traders are loading up on short bets against Snapchat. Short interest in the stock has surged to more than 30 million shares, making up about 15.4% of the shares available for trading, according to Data provided by Wall Street analytics firm S3 Partners.
Uber president Jeff Jones is quitting, citing differences over ‘beliefs and approach to leadership’ (Recode)
Jeff Jones, the president of Uber, is quitting the car-hailing company after less than a year. The move by the No. 2 exec, said sources, is directly related to the multiple controversies there, including explosive charges of sexism and sexual harassment.
Payless Is Said to Be Filing for Bankruptcy as Soon as Next Week (Bloomberg)
Payless Inc., the struggling discount shoe chain, is preparing to file for bankruptcy as soon as next week, according to people familiar with the matter.
Sears says there's ‘substantial doubt’ it can stay in business (Business Insider)
Sears revealed "substantial doubt" about its ability to stay in business in an annual report filed late Tuesday.
"Our historical operating results indicate substantial doubt exists related to the company's ability to continue as a going concern," the company said in the report.
Technology
Meet the 13 Million Nerds That Apple's Counting On (Bloomberg)
If you own an iPhone, chances are you've used Apple's App Store to buy and download apps. For years, while iPhones were flying off the shelves, Apple had the power to dictate the rules of how software developers all over the world made those apps– and made money from them.
Meet The Man Whose Site Mark Zuckerberg Reads Every Day (BuzzFeed News)
Gabe Rivera was halfway through his lamb gyro when it became clear he’d been spotted. It was the middle of the lunch rush at a bustling upscale food court in downtown San Francisco and Rivera was looking to maintain a low profile.
Amazon Music's iOS app infiltrates CarPlay (Engadget)
Amazon Music subscribers who own a CarPlay-enabled dashboard unit are in luck. Amazon's streaming service is now available via the iOS Amazon Music app for Apple's in-car infotainment system.
Google launches the first developer preview of Android O (Tech Crunch)
It’s been just about a year since Google unexpectedly announced the first preview of Android Nougat. Today, the company is launching the first developer preview of the next version of its mobile operating system, currently code-named Android O (but we’re really hoping it’ll become Android Oreo once it’s released).
Twitter opens up Periscope broadcasts to take on Facebook Live (Engadget)
Twitter made it clear that Periscope was more than just a live selfie platform when it added support for professional cameras and GoPros last year. Now, the social network is ready to extend that same platform beyond its own native apps.
Politics
At Neil Gorsuch Hearing, Parties Strike Different Notes (The Wall Street Journal)
Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch, testifying as the Senate Judiciary Committee opened confirmation hearings Monday, portrayed himself as an apolitical jurist striving to get his cases right and a plain-spoken Westerner who embodies values of family, friendship and fairness.
U.S. reverses course and offers new dates for NATO talks (Reuters)
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson proposed new dates on Tuesday for a NATO meeting, the State Department said, after he initially decided to skip the talks and rebuffed the alliance's efforts to reschedule them.
U.S. to Force Fliers From 10 Mideast Airports to Store Devices (Bloomberg)
Travelers flying to the U.S. from 10 airports in the Middle East and North Africa will have to store most larger electronic devices in checked baggage under a new rule issued by the Trump administration.
FBI Probe Could Hurt Donald Trump’s Clout in Congress (The Wall Street Journal)
President Donald Trump’s credibility came under fire during a marathon hearing on Capitol Hill featuring FBI Director James Comey, which could threaten the president’s ability to deliver votes on two of his most important goals: passing a new health-care law and getting Judge Neil Gorsuch confirmed as a Supreme Court justice.
Exclusive: Trump administration weighing broad sanctions on North Korea – U.S. official (Reuters)
The Trump administration is considering sweeping sanctions aimed at cutting North Korea off from the global financial system as part of a broad review of measures to counter Pyongyang's nuclear and missile threat, a senior U.S. official said on Monday.
Senate GOP Holdouts Split Into Camps on Obamacare Overhaul (Bloomberg)
More than enough Senate Republicans oppose the House bill to kill it — with rival camps insisting on pulling the bill in opposite directions to meet their demands. With just a 52-48 majority, the bill would fail if three or more Republicans vote against it.
Macron on Top After First Presidential Debate of French Race (Bloomberg)
Emmanuel Macron, a 39-year-old running for office for the first time, parried attacks from both ends of the political spectrum as he navigated questions on the economy, terrorism and immigration.
No more Turkish rallies in Germany before referendum: organizers (Reuters)
Turkish leaders will hold no further campaign rallies in Germany before Turkey's April 16 referendum, organizers said on Tuesday, after an ally of German Chancellor Angela Merkel said they were not welcome.
So, What Is Trump Hiding? (NY Times)
In his short White House tenure, President Trump has already set a record for histrionic tantrums against the media — whether attacking CNN, The Washington Post, The New York Times or MSNBC for revealing his 2005 tax return, as he did last week.
The controversial New York 'giveaway' in the GOP healthcare bill would shaft some Republican parts of New York (Business Insider)
Don't call it a kickback. The provision slated to be added to the American Health Care Act at the behest of New York Republicans doesn't actually give anything to New York state.
Russia Inquiries Overlap in a Tangle of Secrets and Sniping (NY Times)
Russia’s campaign to disrupt last year’s presidential election has spawned a tangle of inquiries with competing agendas and timetables, and with little agreement on the most important things that should be investigated.
GOP senator asks Trump Supreme Court nominee famous Reddit question about horse-sized ducks and duck-sized horses (Business Insider)
Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch got an usual question during the second day of his confirmation hearing on Tuesday.
Health and Biotech
Scientists Want to Use Deadly Spider Venom to Prevent Brain Damage From Strokes (Science Alert)
The Australian funnel-web is one of the deadliest spiders in the world, but this poisonous predator may just hold the key to preventing brain damage caused by stroke.
Life on the Home Planet
Year on from bombings, Brussels remains on alert (Reuters)
A year after Islamic State suicide bombers killed 32 people in Brussels, Belgian authorities say much remains unclear about who ordered the attacks, even if those who staged them are either dead or in jail.
These are the worst freeway interchanges in Los Angeles (Business Insider)
Getting trapped on Los Angeles' majestic, but traffic-jammed freeways, is such a routine local experience that filmmakers turned it into a rousing musical number, "Another Day of Sun," for the Oscar-winning movie La La Land.
Forbes 2017 Billionaires List: Meet The Richest People On The Planet (Forbes)
It was a record year for the richest people on earth, as the number of billionaires jumped 13% to 2,043 from 1,810 last year, the first time ever that Forbes has pinned down more than 2,000 ten-figure-fortunes.
