| July 14, 2023 | "Irreverent, but never irrelevant" | | |  | John Lothian
Publisher
John Lothian News | |
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Hits & Takes
John Lothian & JLN Staff
I have a couple of corrections or clarifications. Yesterday I mentioned an interview I was doing with a Chicago Board of Trade trader and how his father had come to the exchange as a teenager. It was actually his grandfather who came to the exchange as a teenager and who became the first of the Pietrzak family to become members of the CBOT. I interviewed John Pietrzak yesterday in an Open Outcry Traders History Project podcast interview.
Interestingly, John and I have intertwined pasts involving the Cashman family and John J. Ruth. John Pietrzak's grandfather had sponsored Gene Cashman when he became a member, John said. Later, with the help of former Harris Bank banker John J. Ruth, John was able to get a loan from Continental Bank to buy a full CBOT membership in 1979, despite having a networth of $25,000, he said. Gene Cashman's nephew Thomas J. Cashman was my first industry employer and a lifelong mentor of mine and John J. Ruth was a former business partner of Tom's in the CBOT member firm Victor Grain. John Ruth has been a lifelong mentor of mine as well.
Also, Michael A. Weinberg shared with me that his late father Michael Weinberg, Jr.'s membership badge changed from MIKE to WEIN after he left the trading floor briefly in the 1960s.
We also had a typo in the video and story about Allen Greenberg of Matrix Executions. He is the COO, not the CEO. We apologize for all the errors.
When I was hired by Tom Cashman in the summer of 1978, which was 45 years ago (OMG!), he told me I needed to wear a collared shirt, no jeans and no shorts. Times change and so do opinions about what you can and can't wear to the office. The Wall Street Journal covers this subject with a story titled "Can Men Ever Wear Shorts to the Office? What About Baseball Caps? Our Poll Results May Surprise You." with the subheading "We surveyed more than 1,000 U.S. adults about what casual items guys can get away with wearing to work now. Often, generations were divided."
You have heard the saying, You can run, but you can't hide. Well, that is getting to be true in the world of climate risks, according to a VOX story with the headline, "There's no such thing as a disaster-resistant place anymore" and the subheading "Climate risks are becoming increasingly expensive. Not just locally, but globally."
Add the name of Alexander Mashinsky, founder and former CEO of the failed cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius Network, to the list of those crypto executives who have been arrested and charged with fraud. Mashinsky was charged with securities, commodities and wire fraud in an indictment unsealed in Manhattan federal court, the Associated Press reported.
Do you remember when diversity and inclusion programs at companies were something to be celebrated? You can forget about that if a group of Republican U.S. state attorney generals have their way. A group of 13 Republican U.S. state attorney generals said in court last month that any policy that treats people differently because of their race is illegal, even when adopted with good intentions, Reuters reported. This action comes "in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision effectively striking down affirmative action in higher education," Reuters said. Some high profile diversity officers have been leaving big companies, the Financial Times reports. Leaders at "Disney, Netflix, Warner Bros Discovery and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have resigned or been let go in recent weeks," the FT reported.
Bloomberg asks "How Much Income You Need to Crack America's Richest 1%." The answer, it seems, is that "It now takes more than $650,000 a year to be among the top 1% of wealthiest households in the US."
The president of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank, James Bullard, stepped down to become the dean of Purdue University's Mitchell E. Daniels Jr. School of Business, The Wall Street Journal reported. The Krannert School of Management, of which I am a graduate, has been morphed into a business school and renamed for the former Indiana Governor and Purdue President Mitch Daniels. The graduate school still has the Krannert name.
Have a great day and weekend and stay safe and treat people the same way you want to be treated: with respect, equality and justice.~JJL
*****
The Americas Trading Conference 2023, presented by FIX trading Communities, is Oct 18, 2023, all day, at etc.venues, 360 Madison Ave. in New York City. A series of panel sessions across a two-stream agenda will examine post trade developments, the futures market, digital assets, trading and automation, and Chat GPT. The full agenda will be announced shortly. Follow developments and register here. ~SAED
Our most read stories yesterday on JLN Options were:
- A 1,462% Bet on Tiny Health-Care Firm Shows Option Math Is Hard from Bloomberg
- Matrix Executions COO Allen Greenberg on Options Trends, 24-hour Trading, and How Tony Saliba Got the Band Back Together Again from John Lothian News
- Volatility Is an Asset Class. Here's How to Manage It Without Getting Burned, from Barron's ~JB
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Biden Says He's Serious About Pursuing Prisoner Exchange for WSJ Reporter Held in Russia
The Associated Press - Now This News
President Joe Biden on Thursday said he's serious about pursuing a prisoner exchange for a Wall Street Journal reporter who has been detained in Russia for more than 100 days. The Kremlin earlier this month suggested that it was open to a possible prisoner exchange that could involve Evan Gershkovich, but it underscored that such talks must be held out of the public eye.
/jlne.ws/3pKMdU1
***** I can think of a couple of non-prisoners we can throw in that Putin might like. How would Putin like Dennis Rodman? ~JJL
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Extreme Heat Rips Through Europe, Bringing Health Risks for Millions; Next blast of heat from Sahara looms as Cerberus wave fades; Nuclear power plants forced to curb output as rivers warm
Eamon Akil Farhat, and Ellie Harmsworth - Bloomberg
In Athens, the nighttime temperature won't drop below 25C (77F) for 15 days, while many of the city's inhabitants are seeking relief on nearby beaches from as early as 6 a.m. Between midday and 5 p.m., the Greek authorities have halted delivery services, while the famed Acropolis will be shut for that period. Some tourists visiting the ancient site have needed first aid.
/jlne.ws/3JZj3aG
****** See above, there is nowhere to hide.~JJL
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The UK Isn't Ready for the Heat That's Coming; We need to start adapting to the world that lies beyond 1.5C. That means putting sustainable cooling on the agenda.
Lara Williams - Bloomberg
The world is getting hot. Last month was the planet's hottest June on record, according to an analysis from the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service, with substantially higher-than-usual temperatures recorded on land and sea. The highest average daily global temperature was reached on Monday, July 3, smashing a record held since 2016. A new highest-ever was reached the next day, then broken yet again two days later.
/jlne.ws/3pHiTOi
***** Time to get my wee summer kilt out.~JJL
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Thursday's Top Three
Our top story Thursday was Tornadoes touch down near Chicago's O'Hare airport and outside city, from The Washington Post. (Many of us here in Chicago were rattled, either literally or figuratively.) Second was When Parents Want to Pass Down Furniture You Hate: An Awkward True Story, from The Wall Street Journal. Third was The 6 Ways to Grow a Company, from the Harvard Business Review.
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MarketsWiki Stats
27,376 pages; 245,678 edits
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| Lead Stories | SEC dealt legal setback in effort to tame crypto market; In closely watched case against Ripple, judge says tokens sold on public exchanges were not securities
Scott Chipolina and Mark Vandevelde - Financial Times
US regulators were dealt a setback in their effort to restrict the sale of cryptocurrencies on Thursday when a judge found that Ripple Labs did not violate securities law by selling digital tokens to members of the public. The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil lawsuit against the cryptocurrency pioneer in December 2020, claiming that Ripple sold $1.38bn worth of its XRP token without filing the registrations required under securities laws.
/jlne.ws/3NPDhos
JPMorgan Notches Record Revenue on Rates, First Republic Deal; Net interest income rises to an all-time high of $21.8 billion; Dimon says the US economy 'continues to be resilient'
Hannah Levitt - Bloomberg
JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s revenue soared to a record in the second quarter, boosted by the Federal Reserve's interest-rate hikes and its acquisition of First Republic Bank. The firm's $41.3 billion in revenue beat analysts' expectations, fueled by $21.8 billion in net interest income as well as a $2.7 billion gain on its First Republic purchase, according to a statement Friday.
/jlne.ws/44GOAG8
ChatGPT maker investigated by US regulators over AI risks; Federal Trade Commission probes Microsoft-backed OpenAI over potential harm from chatbot's fabricating information
Stefania Palma Madhumita Murgia and Richard Waters - Financial Times
The risks posed by artificially intelligent chatbots are being officially investigated by US regulators for the first time after the Federal Trade Commission launched a wide-ranging probe into ChatGPT maker OpenAI. In a letter sent to the Microsoft-backed company, the FTC said it would look at whether people have been harmed by the AI chatbot's creation of false information about them, as well as whether OpenAI has engaged in "unfair or deceptive" privacy and data security practices.
/jlne.ws/3Dgvvit
More than 120 senior Credit Suisse investment bankers flee for rivals; Rate of flight has been higher than UBS expected after taking over ailing Swiss bank
Owen Walker - Financial Times
Rivals have poached at least 120 senior Credit Suisse investment bankers in recent months, reducing the need for big redundancy packages for UBS, which completed the takeover of its ailing Swiss neighbour in June. Deutsche Bank has hired about 40 former Credit Suisse bankers globally, while Jefferies has brought on at least 25 and Santander more than 20, according to several people familiar with the moves.
/jlne.ws/3XQPKwt
Exits of diversity executives shake faith in US companies' commitments; Hiring jumped after George Floyd's murder but is falling in the face of economic and political pressures
Taylor Nicole Rogers and Patrick Temple-West - Financial Times
The exits of several high-profile US diversity executives are fuelling concerns over corporate America's commitment to racial equity in the face of tougher economic and political conditions. Diversity and inclusion leaders at Disney, Netflix, Warner Bros Discovery and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have resigned or been let go in recent weeks. Beyond the entertainment industry, evidence is mounting that business is curtailing investment in inclusion initiatives three years after George Floyd's murder put pressure on companies to do more to address racial inequities.
/jlne.ws/3rsFuyy
Brokers sceptical of research renaissance after Mifid rollback; U-turn by UK and EU may not be enough to convince investors to increase research spending
Nikou Asgari and Jennifer Hughes - Financial Times
The UK and EU are rolling back one of their most high-profile pieces of financial regulation in an effort to revitalise the region's capital markets, but investors and brokers warn the move may come too late. EU officials have been seeking to reverse some elements of the bloc's Markets In Financial Instruments Directive, which was originally spearheaded by the UK before Brexit. But the UK beat them to the punch this week.
/jlne.ws/3NQwnPF
Robinhood's New Retirement Accounts Put a New Spin on 'You Only Live Once'; The online broker is getting into the retirement business-which calls for a very different kind of trading than its customers usually mean when they 'YOLO.'
Telis Demos - The Wall Street Journal
The phrase "you only live once" is usually taken to mean that life is short, so have fun and take big risks. But if you think about it, "YOLO" could easily mean the opposite: You only live once, so take precautions and don't screw it up.
/jlne.ws/3XPzYCe
Avoiding a commercial real estate crash requires some imagination; New York's stranded legacy office space could be converted into accommodation if harsh zoning rules can be waived
Gillian Tett - Financial Times
When the big American banks report earnings in the coming days - starting with JPMorgan and Citi today - investors will nervously scour them for signs of commercial real estate pain. After all, seemingly everybody from the Federal Reserve on down has warned of a CRE reckoning in recent months. That is partly because rates have jumped 500bp in the past 18 months, and some $270bn of US CRE loans come due this year, according to Trepp (or $1.5tn in the next three years, according to Morgan Stanley).
/jlne.ws/3rAbfpa
JPMorgan 2Q profits surge in show of strength for banking giant
David Hollerith - Yahoo Finance
Profits for JPMorgan Chase (JPM) surged in the second quarter, a show of strength that reinforces the divide between the industry's largest bank and its smaller rivals. The largest US bank reported earnings of $14.5 billion that were up 67% from the same period a year ago. Its revenue of $41 billion was up 34%.
/jlne.ws/46NcgdI
Wells Fargo Beats Expectations but Sets Aside Money for Loan Losses
Stacy Cowley - The New York Times
Higher interest rates and rising loan balances helped Wells Fargo top analysts' expectations for the second quarter, even as it socked away more money as a buffer against bad loans.
/jlne.ws/46Qibio
US Racks Up $652 Billion in Debt Costs as Rates Hit 11-Year High; Higher interest rates mean bigger debt servicing costs; US budget gap widens 170% in first nine months of year
Viktoria Dendrinou - Bloomberg
The cost of servicing US government debt jumped by 25% in the first nine months of the fiscal year, reaching $652 billion and contributing to a major widening in the budget deficit. For the nine months through June, the federal deficit hit $1.39 trillion, up some 170% from the same period the year before, according to Treasury Department data released on Thursday.
/jlne.ws/44pdSZw
An Arrest, a Ruling, a Rally: Crypto's Wild Day in the Courts; Celsius ex-CEO Mashinksy arrested, charged with fraud; XRP token, Coinbase soar after judge rules in Ripple case
Muyao Shen, Yueqi Yang, and Sidhartha Shukla - Bloomberg
It was a day that started with something of a bang: the charismatic Alex Mashinsky, former chief executive officer of bankrupt crypto lender Celsius Network under arrest and charged with fraud. In a flurry of enforcement activity, the US Department of Justice, Securities and Exchange Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and the Federal Trade Commission all filed lawsuits Thursday against both Mashinsky and Celsius itself.
/jlne.ws/46OiM3R
Americans Now Cutting Back on Food Purchases, Conagra CEO Says
Deena Shanker, and Leslie Patton - Bloomberg
The resilient American shopper is showing more signs of weakness. Over the past year, many US consumers responded to surging inflation by trading down to cheaper options. But now they're just going without, said Sean Connolly, chief executive officer of Conagra Brands Inc., during an earnings call. The behavioral shift began shortly after the Easter holiday in early April, he said.
/jlne.ws/3Del92E
What Lindsey Vonn's professional skiing career taught her about investing
Emma Hinchliffe - Fortune
Beyond the slopes. After retiring from competitive skiing in 2019, Olympian Lindsey Vonn has dipped her toes into the world of investing. The three-time Olympic medalist approached building a portfolio the same way she thought about her years of brand deals as an athlete: with a long-term mindset. For 20 years, she's represented Red Bull and Under Armour. For 15, she's been a spokesperson for Rolex. "I don't ever look at anything short-term," she says. "It served me well in my career. And now in this new investment world."
/jlne.ws/3rnfRyV
UAE Suspends Gold Refinery Over Owners' Alleged Laundering Links; Emirates Gold was removed from Good Delivery List of UAE; LBMA in London has also suspended affiliate membership
Eddie Spence - Bloomberg
The United Arab Emirates suspended the accreditation of one its biggest gold refineries over concerns that its owners had ties to alleged money launderers. Emirates Gold DMCC - which has operated in Dubai for more than 30 years - was last week suspended from the UAE's Good Delivery List, according to a government website. The bullion committee, which is chaired by the Economy Ministry, removed the refinery due to concerns its owners were connected to alleged money launderers, according to people familiar with the thinking behind the decision.
/jlne.ws/46LO5wl
Europe's Fresh COP28 Climate Pledge Opposed Over Emissions Cuts; Draft pledge includes higher 57% emissions cut by 2030; Six EU nations are concerned that figure is over ambitious
John Ainger - Bloomberg
Six European Union nations are resisting an updated climate pledge showing the bloc is on course to over-deliver on emissions cuts ahead of COP28, in the latest sign of concern over the pace of the green transition. The European Commission, the bloc's executive arm, is aiming to submit by September a revised pledge showing it's on course to slash carbon emissions by 57% by 2030, according to a draft document seen by Bloomberg.
/jlne.ws/43w3EoV
Meme Stock Mullen's Dilution Machine Is Running Out of Road; Retail investors have learned a harsh lesson in shareholder dilution.
Chris Bryant - Bloomberg
Electric-vehicle startups that don't have Saudi Arabia or Jeff Bezos bankrolling them are resorting to desperate tactics to keep the lights on. Retail investors chasing the next Tesla Inc. risk being taken for a very costly ride. Consider California-based Mullen Automotive Inc., which has yet to generate significant revenue and whose shares have lost 99% of their value since the start of 2022. Why? Look no further than its share count which has ballooned by almost 700 times during the same period, a near 70,000% increase.
/jlne.ws/3NRPVmH
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| Ukraine Invasion | | News about the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and its military, economic, political and humanitarian impact | Putin says a Nato with Ukraine creates new threats for Russia
Max Seddon - Financial Times
Vladimir Putin has said Ukraine's potential Nato membership will create new threats for Russia, but claimed Moscow was open to discussing alternative security arrangements with Kyiv on its own terms. The Russian president told state television on Thursday that Ukraine's drive to join the alliance was one of the reasons he ordered his full-scale invasion of the country last year, warning that any move to accept its membership carried further risks.
/jlne.ws/43uoGEu
Wheat, Corn Rise With Grain Deal Days Away From Expiry
Megan Durisin - Bloomberg
Wheat and corn futures rose for a second session as uncertainty looms over the Ukraine grain deal nearing expiry. The Black Sea Grain Initiative is up for renewal Monday. Russian President Vladimir Putin said the country is still deliberating over whether to extend the pact, arguing its interests have not been taken into account. The United Nations on Thursday had yet to receive a reply on a proposal sent to Russia to salvage the deal.
/jlne.ws/3NJGxRW
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| Exchanges, OTC & Clearing | | Top news from exchanges, clearing, settlement and trade execution facilities | ASX prepares to develop new high-level stakeholder advisory group following ASIC request
ASX
ASX acknowledges ASIC has today announced it will host an industry roundtable to discuss the proposed development of a new stakeholder advisory group designed to increase industry contribution to key strategic cash equity clearing and settlement issues. The new advisory group will focus initially on the CHESS replacement project.
/jlne.ws/351gPmZ
2022 Annual Markets Review In Central Counterparty Clearing July 2023
CCP12
The Global Association Of Central Counterparties. Message From The Chairman 2022 Marked Another Year Of Extraordinary Market Volatility. In Particular, The Historic And Tragic Russia-Ukraine War Dramatically Impacted Energy Prices, Especially In Europe, And Inflationary Pressures Drove Interest Rates Significantly Higher Around The Globe.
/jlne.ws/3NNZkfb
Euronext enlarges its SBT 1.5°C index offering to accelerate the transition to green finance
Euronext
Euronext launches two new SBT indices: Euronext Europe SBT 1.5° and Euronext Eurozone SBT 1.5°, continuing on from the previously launched CAC SBT 1.5° index; The index was launched with the support of CDP; These two indices are Euronext's 27th and 28th climate indices. Euronext today announced the launch of two new SBT indices: the Euronext Europe SBT 1.5° and the Euronext Eurozone SBT 1.5° (gross return Bloomberg codes: EZSBT15G and EUSBT15G). These two indices invest solely in companies within the Europe 500 index and within the Eurozone 300 index, respectively, that have emissions reduction targets approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) to be in line with the 1.5°C goal of the Paris Agreement.
/jlne.ws/44uHHbh
Tokyo Stock Exchange REIT Sector Focus Index Series to be Launched
JPX
JPX Market Innovation & Research, Inc. ("JPXI") has been calculating and publishing the "Tokyo Stock Exchange REIT Logistics Focus Index, which focuses on REITs investing in logistics facilities among the constituents of the "Tokyo Stock Exchange REIT Index", since July 20, 2020. In consideration of the various needs relating to REITs, JPXI will start calculating and publishing the "Tokyo Stock Exchange REIT Office Focus Index," the "Tokyo Stock Exchange REIT Residential Focus Index" and the "Tokyo Stock Exchange REIT Hotel & Retail Focus Index" ("TSE REIT Sector Focus Index Series"), which consist of 15 constituents and focuses on REITs that invest in investment properties in specific sector.
/jlne.ws/3OdEiYN
Abaxx Provides Q2 2023 Corporate Update and Quarterly Development Activities
Abaxx
Abaxx Technologies Inc. (NEO:ABXX)(OTCQX:ABXXF) ("Abaxx" or the "Company"), a financial software and market infrastructure company, majority shareholder of the Abaxx Commodity Exchange and Clearinghouse ("Abaxx Singapore"), and producer of the SmarterMarkets Podcast, summarizes development activities over the past quarter and the general progress of the Company's business plans.
/jlne.ws/44N4LSv
The Taiwan Futures Exchange (TAIFEX) has announced the temporarily increased margin levels of DXF and DXO
TAIFEX
The Taiwan Futures Exchange (TAIFEX) has announced the temporarily increased margin levels of DXF and DXO due to its underlying being subject to disposition measures imposed by securities market. The margins will be effective after the close of the regular trading session on 2023/07/17 and will be restored to the current levels after the close of the regular trading session on 2023/07/27. (Margin levels will be increased from 2023/07/17 to 2023/07/27 and will be extended accordingly if the securities market is closed on any of the days.)
/jlne.ws/46LcjqD
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| Fintech | | A roundup of today's market tech news and a look at tomorrow's disruptors | Twitter owes ex-employees $500 million in severance, lawsuit claims
Daniel Wiessner - Reuters
Twitter Inc on Wednesday was hit with a lawsuit accusing it of refusing to pay at least $500 million in promised severance to thousands of employees who were laid off after Elon Musk acquired the company. Courtney McMillian, who oversaw Twitter's employee benefits programs as its "head of total rewards" before she was laid off in January, filed the proposed class action in San Francisco federal court.
/jlne.ws/3rub1Ah
Elon Wants to Master the Universe With xAI; Musk's new AI quest poses a threat to Google's DeepMind.
Parmy Olson - Bloomberg
Musk announced his new artificial intelligence company xAI on Wednesday, stating that its aim was to "understand the true nature of the universe." It's hard to pick apart the reasoning on that goal, which sounds like it came out of a magic mushroom journey. Why does Musk want to understand the universe? Then again, why did he buy Twitter? Why did he challenge Mark Zuckerberg to a cage match? It isn't easy to get inside the brain of Elon Musk.
/jlne.ws/43oG7qe
How Twitter Co-Founder Dorsey Created an Opening for Zuckerberg's Threads
Sarah Frier - Bloomberg
The most interesting rivalry in social media right now goes deeper than cage matches. It's that the very existence of Threads and its immediate success - 100 million users in four days - is thanks in no small part to Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, who set off a chain of events that led to the deterioration of his creation and a big opportunity for Mark Zuckerberg.
/jlne.ws/3XT05rP
Silicon Valley start-ups explore sales as funding runs dry; Wave of consolidation expected across tech as cash-strapped companies seek buyers or risk going out of business
George Hammond and Tabby Kinder - Financial Times
Cash-strapped tech start-ups are exploring sales to bigger companies in order to survive a funding crunch, as a series of takeovers of artificial intelligence companies lure buyers back to Silicon Valley. In recent weeks, software group Databricks acquired generative AI start-up MosaicML for $1.3bn, Thomson Reuters paid $650mn for legal services AI group Casetext, Robinhood bought credit card start-up X1 for $95mn, and finance automation company Ramp acquired Cohere.io, a start-up that built an AI-powered customer support tool.
/jlne.ws/3XV8k6H
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| Cybersecurity | | Top stories for cybersecurity | Implementation plan turns US National Cybersecurity Strategy into concrete objectives
Cynthia Brumfield - CSO Online
The White House released its implementation plan for President Biden's National Cybersecurity Strategy, broadly breaking down how it plans to accomplish more than 65 tasks involving 18 agencies outlined by the sweeping plan announced in March. The National Cybersecurity Strategy Implementation Plan (NCSIP) is a roadmap to realize the strategy's "bold affirmative mission" and ensures transparency and a continued path to coordination, the White House said.
/jlne.ws/3NVrKDM
White House Outlines Roadmap to Realize National Cybersecurity Vision
Naomi Cooper - GovConWire
The Biden administration has released its first iteration of a multi-year plan to implement the U.S. federal government's new national strategy to defend cyberspace.
The implementation plan outlines more than 65 high-impact initiatives assigned to specific federal agencies and aligned with the five pillars and 27 strategic objectives of the National Cybersecurity Strategy released in March, the White House said Thursday.
/jlne.ws/44AWlNU
Microsoft Email Hack Shows Greater Sophistication, Skill of China's Cyberspies; Hackers adapt to U.S.'s growing cyber defenses, learn to tread lightly and avoid detection
Dustin Volz, Robert McMillan, Josh Chin - The Wall Street Journal
The hack of email accounts of senior U.S. officials including the commerce secretary is the latest feat from a network of Chinese state-backed hackers whose leap in sophistication has alarmed U.S. cybersecurity officials.
/jlne.ws/44kmh0q
Stabilizing The Cybersecurity Landscape: The Rise Of vCISOs
Kelly Kercher - Forbes
In today's evolving digital landscape, the role of a chief information security officer (CISO) is critical. These professionals defend against the rising tide of daily cyberthreats. Yet we're seeing a trend: Many CISOs are leaving or considering leaving their jobs, a phenomenon coined the "Great CISO Resignation." This trend seems to reflect the intense pressure CISOs endure. They face a constant stream of complex cyberthreats, manage compliance issues and struggle with a talent deficit in cybersecurity. Paired with high expectations, many reconsider their roles, which can lead to a leadership gap.
/jlne.ws/3DfmnKO
Clear Street to acquire clearing platform provider React; Alongside the integration of React's clearing platform, the business' co-founders Pat Mayo and Dave Evans will be appointed managing directors.
Claudia Preece - The Trade
New York-based independent prime broker Clear Street is set to expand into the futures market - subject to regulatory approval - with the acquisition of software developer, React Consulting Services.
/jlne.ws/44qt8Fx
Shifting data ops with Symphony
Brad Levy - Thefr.com
/jlne.ws/43yjH60
Worth their weight in gold: Opportunity for asset managers via new technologies and strategies, finds new Acuiti network
Alex Pugh - Best Execution
/jlne.ws/43kTZ4I
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| Cryptocurrencies | | Top stories for cryptocurrencies | New Bitcoin ETFs Now? Amid the Crypto Crackdown? Big investment companies like BlackRock, Fidelity and Invesco are still trying to create an easy way to buy digital assets.
Allyson Versprille, and Silla Brush - Bloomberg
It's been a brutal stretch for crypto. Almost $2 trillion of market value in cryptocurrencies has been wiped away since the market peak in late 2021. Major digital asset companies have collapsed amid allegations of fraud and market manipulation. US regulators are cracking down on many of the businesses still standing. But one corner of the market is suddenly garnering enthusiasm: Bitcoin exchange-traded funds.
/jlne.ws/3pPaGYi
Ripple coin: sometimes a security, sometimes not; It all depends on who's buying XRP, apparently
Kadhim Shubber - Financial Times
Securities laws generally have this notion that people wearing their big boy underpants - sophisticated investors - are entitled to less protection from their bad decisions than retail investors. If you want to sell securities to the general public, the rules are typically more onerous than if you're selling securities to, say, a big private equity fund that markets itself as "venture capital".
/jlne.ws/3NJJguE
Follow the crypto: In its fight against fentanyl, DHS is tracing cryptocurrency used by Mexican drug cartels
Julia Ainsley and Didi Martinez - NBC News
The Department of Homeland Security has ramped up its effort to stop fentanyl and the chemicals used to make it from entering the U.S. by tracing cryptocurrency used by Mexican cartels, according to two U.S. officials involved in the strategy. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told NBC News in an interview at the International Mail Facility at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York on Thursday that DHS "is seeking to hold individuals accountable, seizing their property and also interdicting and interrupting their financial flow."
/jlne.ws/46QXzq4
Celsius Was Lying; Also shares of a Ferrari and back-tightness inside information.
Matt Levine - Bloomberg Opinion
A week ago, in an item about Celsius Network, I wrote that "everyone who has paid attention to crypto over the past few years has their own personal top-10 list of 'why aren't those people in jail?' projects." I guess I can cross a name off my list.
/jlne.ws/43qzTWw
Ripple Tokens Sold to Public Are Not Securities, Judge Says; Judge said XRP token is a security only in institutional sales; Closely-watched case could shape future of crypto regulation
Chris Dolmetsch, Yueqi Yang, and Austin Weinstein - Bloomberg
A federal judge ruled that the Ripple Labs Inc. token is a security when sold to institutional investors but not the general public, a long-awaited decision that was widely hailed as a victory for the crypto industry over the SEC. US District Judge Analisa Torres in New York on Thursday said that the crypto firm's sales of its XRP token to sophisticated investors met the test for an investment contract under federal securities law because those buyers "would have understood that Ripple was pitching a speculative value proposition for XRP with potential profits."
/jlne.ws/3DegE8c
Founder of failed crypto lending platform Celsius Network arrested on fraud charges
Larry Neumeister - Associated Press
/jlne.ws/3Q1GZ0Z
Bitcoin Rockets To Year-High After Ripple Labs Scores Win In SEC Case
Harrison Miller - Investor's Business Daily
/jlne.ws/3NUEOJX
Bank of America Is Using AI and Metaverse to Train New Hires; Company offers VR headsets to mirror real-world experience
Simulator shows bankers what to do and not to do with clients
Katherine Doherty - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/44LBqYo
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| Politics | | An overview of politics as it relates to the financial markets | Republican state officials threaten legal action over company diversity policies
Daniel Wiessner - Reuters
A group of Republican U.S. state attorney generals on Thursday warned the country's largest companies that certain workforce diversity policies could be illegal in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision effectively striking down affirmative action in higher education. The 13 officials in letters sent to the 100 largest U.S. companies said the court last month made clear that any policy that treats people differently because of their race is illegal, even when it is adopted with good intentions.
/jlne.ws/3PWq7Zf
GOP attorneys general tee off on large corporations over diversity policies; The warning is a response to the Supreme Court ruling that gutted affirmative action policies in college admissions.
Nick Niedzwiadek - Politico
More than a dozen Republican attorneys general sent a letter to major corporations Thursday warning them to refrain from using racial preferences in hiring and promotion decisions. Pointing to the Supreme Court's decision undercutting the use of affirmative action in college admissions, the group said that companies would expose themselves to "serious legal consequences" for discriminating against different groups "even for benign purposes."
/jlne.ws/3NSFwXX
House GOP moves to end Pentagon's abortion, diversity policies
Abigail Hauslohner, Paul Kane and Leigh Ann Caldwell - The Washington Post
Congress's decades-long streak of bipartisan support for its annual defense policy and spending plan appeared on the brink of collapse Thursday night as House Republicans moved to bar the Pentagon from reimbursing military personnel who travel out of state to obtain an abortion, a move Democrats have called a red line that would force them to vote against the $886 billion legislation.
/jlne.ws/3JYyWhl
Republicans Move to Gut Climate Funding Amid Heatwaves, Floods, and Smog Storms
Prem Thakker - The New Republic
Millions of Americans have been enveloped in throat-scratching smog, have lost their homes and livelihoods in catastrophic floods, and have been facing extreme heat bubbles that have left people collapsing and even dying. Meanwhile, Republicans are working even harder to defund efforts to stop climate change.
/jlne.ws/3Dep0g8
US Republicans oppose climate funding as millions suffer in extreme weather; Nearly 90 million Americans are facing heat alerts this week, yet GOP members are wrangling over spending to reduce emissions
Dharna Noor - The Guardian
Swaths of the US are baking under record-breaking heat, yet some lawmakers are still attempting to block any spending to fight the climate crisis, advocates say. Nearly 90 million Americans are facing heat alerts this week, including in Las Vegas, Nevada, which may break its all-time hottest temperature record; Phoenix, Arizona, which will probably break its streak of consecutive days of temperatures over 110F; and parts of Florida, where a marine heatwave has pushed up water temperatures off the coast to levels normally found in hot tubs.
/jlne.ws/44IEt3x
Immediate Help for Developing Countries Is Available; But the US Treasury Department is blocking it.
Mark Wesibrot - The Nation
/jlne.ws/3NQRrpg
DeSantis Promised in 2018 That if Elected Governor, He Would Clean Up Florida's Toxic Algae. The Algae Are Still Blooming; With the state's waterways swollen and stressed since Hurricane Ian, widespread outbreaks are feared again this summer.
Amy Green - Inside Climate News
/jlne.ws/3Dk1qON
How to opt out of Hunt's risky plans for your pension; Your money will be in peril in UK private equity boost scheme
Moira O'Neill - Financial Times
/jlne.ws/3pSKXht
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| Regulation & Enforcement | | Stories about regulation and the law. | New SEC Money-Fund Rules Don't Fix Dash-for-Cash Risk, Bank of America Says; Rules discourage rapid outflows, prevent shareholder dilution; More effective to address liquidity in commercial paper market
Alex Harris - Bloomberg
The US Securities and Exchange Commission's biggest round of reforms in years for the $5.5 trillion money-fund industry fall short of fixing what ultimately caused markets to seize up in the pandemic turmoil, according to Bank of America Corp. Final rules passed on Wednesday increased minimum daily and weekly liquidity, removed the threshold that imposes costs on withdrawals and instituted a fee for large redemptions for primary funds that invest in commercial paper.
/jlne.ws/3JWXcjW
Ripple Labs notches landmark win in SEC case over XRP cryptocurrency
Jody Godoy - Reuters
Ripple Labs Inc did not violate federal securities law by selling its XRP token on public exchanges, a U.S. judge ruled on Thursday, a landmark legal victory for the cryptocurrency industry that sent the value of XRP soaring. XRP was up 75% by late afternoon on Thursday, according to Refinitiv Eikon data. The ruling by U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres was the first win for a cryptocurrency company in a case brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission -- though it did also give the SEC a partial victory.
/jlne.ws/3JZl46u
CFTC Charges Alexander Mashinsky and Celsius Network, LLC with Fraud and Material Misrepresentations in Massive Commodity Pool Scheme Involving Digital Asset Commodities
CFTC
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission today announced it filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Alexander Mashinsky and Celsius Network, LLC. The complaint charges the defendants with fraud and material misrepresentations in connection with the operation of its digital asset-based finance platform, which falsely touted high profits and security to induce customers to deposit their digital asset commodities on the platform.
/jlne.ws/3XPB2WK
The Global Markets Advisory Committee Announces Agenda for July 17 Meeting
CFTC
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission's Global Markets Advisory Committee (GMAC) today released the agenda for its meeting on July 17 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (EST) at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Commissioner Caroline D. Pham is the sponsor of the GMAC.
/jlne.ws/43wakmZ
SEC Charges Celsius Network Limited and Founder Alex Mashinsky with Fraud and Unregistered Offer and Sale of Securities
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged Celsius Network Limited (Celsius) and its founder and former CEO, Alex Mashinsky, for violating registration and anti-fraud provisions of the federal securities laws, including by failing to register the offers and sales of Celsius's crypto lending product, the Earn Interest Program; making false and misleading statements to investors of the Earn Interest Program and Celsius's own crypto asset security, CEL; and engaging in market manipulation as it relates to CEL.
/jlne.ws/3DbB9lI
SEC Charges Former Florida Brokerage Representative with Defrauding Senior and Disabled Customers
SEC
On July 12, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed partially settled charges against Joseph Michael "Mike" Todd, a resident of Panama City, Florida, and his entities Todd Financial Services, LLC ("TFS") and TFS Insurance Services LLC ("TFS Insurance"), for defrauding at least 20 brokerage customers of at least $3 million.
/jlne.ws/3OdSxww
ASIC to host industry roundtable in support of ASX's CHESS replacement project
ASIC
ASIC has requested that ASX establish a high-level industry advisory group to support ASX's CHESS replacement project. It is proposed that this group is independently chaired and will advise on significant strategic clearing and settlement issues relating to cash equities trading in Australian markets with a focus on CHESS replacement.
/jlne.ws/3NUQGeU
SFC and AFRC join forces to combat misconduct by listed issuers
Securities & Futures Commission of Hong Kong
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) and the Accounting and Financial Reporting Council (AFRC) today issued the first joint statement as part of their enhanced collaboration in the regulation of the securities and futures markets in Hong Kong. Today's joint statement addresses an observable increase in cases of listed issuers channelling a company's funds to third parties in dubious circumstances under the pretext of loans (Note 1). These loans were often approved or granted without sufficient commercial rationale and appropriate documentation, and in some cases without adequate risk assessments, due diligence or internal controls. Listed issuers suffered significant losses when loans were not repaid.
/jlne.ws/43jo3xH
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| Investing & Trading | | Today's top stories from equities, indices and FICC (fixed income, currencies and commodities) | Unlike the Hotel California, where you can check out but never leave, TRFs offer a fungible exit.
Chas Mancuso - LinkedIn
Ask any trader what the most important feature of a hedging tool and they will point to liquidity. This is especially true in times of increased volatility or in a crisis. In listed futures parlance this is reflected in OI, short for open interest. In fact, most new products often fail as they can't muster enough open interest for critical mass and therefore die as traders are reluctant to enter the Hotel California.
/jlne.ws/44p365K
BRF Said to Raise $1.1 Billion in Year's Biggest Brazil Offering; Transaction had drawn preliminary interest from Salic, Marfrig; BRF to use proceeds from transaction to reduce its debt pile
Vinicius Andrade - Bloomberg
BRF SA, Brazil's biggest poultry producer, has raised 5.4 billion reais ($1.1 billion) in a share offering that lured investors including Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Co. BRF sold 500 million new shares at 9 reais apiece, a 5.7% discount to Thursday's closing price, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named because the information isn't public yet. An additional allotment of 100 million new shares was also sold, the people said.
/jlne.ws/3roejEZ
New Bitcoin ETFs Now? Amid the Crypto Crackdown?; Big investment companies like BlackRock, Fidelity and Invesco are still trying to create an easy way to buy digital assets.
Allyson Versprille, and Silla Brush - Bloomberg
It's been a brutal stretch for crypto. Almost $2 trillion of market value in cryptocurrencies has been wiped away since the market peak in late 2021. Major digital asset companies have collapsed amid allegations of fraud and market manipulation. US regulators are cracking down on many of the businesses still standing. But one corner of the market is suddenly garnering enthusiasm: Bitcoin exchange-traded funds.
/jlne.ws/3DcRPJH
Global crises have exposed the vulnerabilities in our systems.
International Fund for Agricultural Development
They have revealed how inadequate our resources are to prevent future emergencies. The world now stands at a crossroads: do we respond to crisis after crisis, or do we invest in structural change for a stronger, more sustainable future? With 4 in 5 of the world's poorest people living in rural areas, the road to a resilient future runs through rural communities. That's why IFAD invests in rural people.
/jlne.ws/3PSlOON
Here's how much Americans in their 40s have in their 401(k)s
Cheyenne DeVon - CNBC
People in their 40s may not be saving enough for retirement. Ideally, you should aim to have around three times your pre-tax salary saved for retirement by the time you enter your 40s in order to maintain your current lifestyle in retirement, according to Fidelity Investments. This means if you're in your 40s and earn $60,000 annually, you should aim to have around $180,000 already saved for retirement, for example.
/jlne.ws/44NQuoB
Carry Traders Fret That Good Times May Be Closer to an End; Possible unwind triggers can be revaluing of yen to volatility; Mexican peso could withstand a carry trade unwind well: Amundi
Malavika Kaur Makol, and Nurin Sofia - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/3Dk2XV3
Underdogs of Currency World Stage Comeback; Krone, krona, rand and yen lead gain versus dollar on US CPI; Alice Atkins - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/3JSEvy4
Home ownership in Britain has become a hereditary privilege; Without realising it, we have chosen to tackle unaffordable housing by widening wealth inequality
John Burn-Murdoch - Financial Times
/jlne.ws/43uFnQa
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| Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance | | Stories about environmental, social and governance investing | Paying passive managers can improve ESG performance, study finds; GPIF, the world's largest pension fund, paid Japan's AM One separately for engagement
Alf Wilkinson - Financial Times
Paying passive asset managers specifically for engagement can improve the environmental, social and governance performance of companies, according to a new academic study.
/jlne.ws/3pKF3iD
International negotiators just missed a deadline to regulate deep-sea mining. Now what?
Maddie Stone - Grist
This month, a small group of diplomats is meeting to hash out a plan that could affect the future of nearly half of Earth's surface - including regions containing metals that are vital for the energy transition, like nickel, copper, cobalt, and manganese. That group is the International Seabed Authority, or ISA, an autonomous international organization tasked with regulating mining on the ocean floor, in waters outside any nation's jurisdiction. On July 9, the regulatory body missed an important legal deadline to finalize those rules.
/jlne.ws/3PZzSG7
The Real Problem With Deep-Sea Mining Is It Won't Make Money; Fears of ecosystem damage are tendentious. The issue is volatile commodity prices that will make it hard to finance projects.
David Fickling - Bloomberg (opinion)
As if the world wasn't in enough trouble from the warmest week ever measured and record-low sea ice around Antarctica, big business is already gearing up to ransack yet another unspoiled corner of the globe: the deep ocean. The International Seabed Authority, or ISA, the United Nations body that regulates exploitation of the deep sea floor, will decide in the next few weeks on an application by the Pacific island state of Nauru to open up mining 5 kilometers (3 miles) below the Pacific.
/jlne.ws/3rxa5uE
'Greenhushing': Why some companies quietly hide their climate pledges
Maxine Joselow - The Washington Post
Last spring, visitors to BlackRock's webpage on sustainable investing saw a striking image of a building covered in bright green moss. Beneath it, the world's largest asset manager boasted: "We are committed to supporting the goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 or sooner." Not anymore. Today, the webpage has been scrubbed of several references to the firm's climate commitments. It's an apparent example of what some are calling "greenhushing," in which companies keep quiet about their environmental goals, sometimes for fear of public backlash.
/jlne.ws/44NO5KB
COP28: Admit your failures, climate summit host Al Jaber tells nations
Georgina Rannard - BBC
Governments must face up to their failures to tackle climate change at the next UN climate summit, the president of COP28 has told governments. The meeting in November should agree to triple renewable energy by 2030, Sultan al-Jaber told leaders in Brussels. Green groups welcomed the speech as a "kick up the backside" to governments.
/jlne.ws/44ncKWv
*****More coverage of planning for the COP 28 UN Climate Summit from Financial Times, Bloomberg, and The Guardian
Deep sea mining plans could interfere with fish populations forced to move due to climate change
Bob Yirka - Phys.org
/jlne.ws/44HyVqe
Deep sea mining a "serious threat" for unknown and fragile marine life
Matangi Tonga
/jlne.ws/3NQm5z1
OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush planned to use his Titan submersible to cash in on deep-sea mining - the 'biggest gold rush in history' that could cause environmental destruction
Kelsey Vlamis - Insider
'https://jlne.ws/3XR7Rm4
Europe's Fresh COP28 Climate Pledge Opposed Over Emissions Cuts; Draft pledge includes higher 57% emissions cut by 2030; Six EU nations are concerned that figure is over ambitious
John Ainger - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/3Db8ttc
Exxon boosts low-carbon efforts with $4.9bn deal for Denbury Resources; All-stock deal gives oil supermajor access to largest CO₂ pipeline network in the US
Myles McCormick - Financial Times
/jlne.ws/3NSVGR7
Cerberus heatwave threatens new record temperatures for Europe
Renee Maltezou and Angelo Amante - Reuters
/jlne.ws/3XOLxcQ
Industry Wants New Pipeline on Navajo Land Scarred by Decades of Fossil Fuel Extraction; Developers tout hydrogen as a clean energy source; Navajo opponents say it is another way outsiders will profit by harming their environment and health.
Jerry Redfern - Inside Climate News
/jlne.ws/44IHReP
South Richmond Residents Oppose Fire Training Facility; The proposed facility is set for construction despite its environmental impact on vulnerable residents and a wildlife sanctuary just 100 meters away.
Ananya Chetia - Inside Climate News
/jlne.ws/3PSDN7J
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| Banks, Brokers & Managed Funds | | The latest from banks, brokers, hedge funds and managed futures | Fed's Bullard, Influential Voice on Rates, to Leave for Academia; Recent Fed hawk to take over as Purdue business school dean; St. Louis Fed to conduct 'transparent' search for new chief
Steve Matthews - Bloomberg
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard, an influential voice who called for aggressive interest-rate hikes to fight the recent inflation surge, resigned after 15 years in the position to become dean of a university business school. Bullard, 62, stepped down from his post as head of the bank effective Thursday. He will fully depart Aug. 14 to become the inaugural dean of the Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business at Purdue University, the St. Louis Fed said in a statement Thursday.
/jlne.ws/3XUS5GL
Dimensional files for Vanguard-style ETF share classes; The application is the first by a major asset manager since Vanguard's patent expired
Emma Boyde - Financial Times
Dimensional Fund Advisors has filed an application to offer Vanguard-style exchange traded fund share classes on its US mutual funds in a move that, if approved, could mark the start of a revolution in the US funds industry.
/jlne.ws/3XNxUux
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| Work & Management | | Stories impacting work and more about management ideas, practices and trends. | Associated Press, OpenAI partner to explore generative AI use in news
Reuters
The Associated Press is licensing a part its archive of news stories to OpenAI under a deal that will explore generative AI's use in news, the companies said on Thursday, a move that could set the precedent for similar partnerships between the industries. The news publisher will gain access to OpenAI's technology and product expertise as part of the deal, whose financial details were not disclosed.
/jlne.ws/3pLOY7p
New York Needs Workers. They're Waiting On the Sidelines.; Danny Meyer's Maialino can't reopen for lunch until he has workers, but immigration laws prevent asylum seekers from filling New York's labor shortage.
Daniela Sirtori-Cortina, and Augusta Saraiva - Bloomberg
On a recent morning on a sleepy street in Jackson Heights, Queens, more than 20 men and women swarmed a dark blue van in hopes of getting some work for the day. Four managed to get in. The would-be workers, most of whom were men in their 20s and 30s, are part of a growing pool of migrants that's flooding New York City, where thousands of asylum seekers arrive each week.
/jlne.ws/3NVaf6G
Child Labor in America Is Back-and It's As Chilling as Ever
Steve Fraser - The Nation
An aged Native American chieftain was visiting New York City for the first time in 1906. He was curious about the city and the city was curious about him. A magazine reporter asked the chief what most surprised him in his travels around town. "Little children working," the visitor replied. Child labor might have shocked that outsider, but it was all too commonplace then across urban, industrial America (and on farms where it had been customary for centuries).
/jlne.ws/3rxyrEx
We are facing a child labor crisis
Ruth Silver Taube - Spotlight
Child labor violations have been on the rise in recent years. The U.S. Department of Labor has seen a 69% increase in child labor since 2018, with more than 3,800 children impacted in the 2022 fiscal year. A report from the New York Times revealed numerous instances of child labor law violations, with children-particularly migrant children-working in cereal factories and processing meat for grocery stores.
/jlne.ws/44sez4C
Florida seeing spike in child labour as Republican states across the country push to remove barriers
Abe Asher - Independent
A number of Republican-led states spent their most recent legislative sessions relaxing child labour laws - while one state is already experiencing a rise in child labour cases. A report from WFTV in Orlando published Wednesday suggests that central Florida is already seeing a spike in child labour cases that dates back to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
/jlne.ws/44seNsu
Companies To Navigate Complex And Changing Requirements Focused On Combatting Forced Labor In Supply Chains
Gregory J. Barden, Sarah Batley, Bethany Biesenthal, Elizabeth L. Dicus, Benedicte Graulle, Lindsey Nelson and Nicole Perry - Jones Day
/jlne.ws/44JnNZL
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| Wellness Exchange | | An Exchange of Health and Wellness Information | London at Risk of Measles Outbreak due to Low Vaccination Rates
Helen Chandler-Wilde - Bloomberg
London is at risk of a measles outbreak leading to as many as 160,000 cases unless vaccination rates improve, a public health authority has warned. Cases of measles are already rising in England, with 128 in the first half of the year compared with 54 in the whole of 2022, according to data published Friday by the UK Health Security Agency. Two thirds of cases were found in London, due to lower vaccination rates in the capital.
/jlne.ws/3rkcuZC
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| Regions | | Stories of local interest from the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific regions | Chinese Oil Demand Doesn't Make Sense; Global crude demand and prices could soon take a hit
Nathaniel Taplin - The Wall Street Journal
China's economy is having a rough summer, but the country is still churning out record amounts of diesel and importing vast amounts of crude oil. That imbalance is unlikely to persist forever. Either China's economy will accelerate rapidly in the second half-a prospect that currently looks unlikely-or oil demand will revert to more regular patterns, dragging global consumption and, potentially, prices down with it.
/jlne.ws/3PWslrN
Nigeria Declares a State of Emergency as Food Prices Surge; Government plans to boost food supply to reduce inflation; Gasoline subsidy cuts fueling a sharp rise in food costs
Anthony Osae-Brown, and Ruth Olurounbi - Bloomberg
Nigeria declared a state of emergency that would allow the government to take exceptional steps to improve food security and supply, as surging prices cause widespread hardship. The move will trigger a range of measures, including clearing forests for farmland to increase agricultural output to ease food inflation, Dele Alake, a spokesman for President Bola Tinubu, said at a media briefing in the capital, Abuja, late Thursday. It follows the president's removal of fuel subsidies and sweeping exchange-rate reform since he took office in May.
/jlne.ws/44IWizD
Amazon deforestation rates fall 34% in 2023 under President Lula
The Optimist Daily
Preliminary government data indicates a significant milestone in Brazil's campaign against deforestation, with deforestation rates dropping by 34 percent in the first half of 2023. Tougher environmental regulations have been adopted under President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's leadership, resulting in the lowest levels of deforestation in the Amazon rainforest since 2019. This optimistic development is a significant step forward for the region's future sustainability.
/jlne.ws/3XTEVKo
An Arizona Farmer on How to Grow Alfalfa in the Middle of the Desert; And why we're growing so much there in the first place.
Tracy Alloway, and Joe Weisenthal - Bloomberg
Due to a combination of drought, climate change and booming growth, Arizona is facing looming water scarcity. But for all the sprawl and population increase, the overwhelming amount of water used in the state is not consumed by residences, but rather farmers. So naturally, many argue that we should be doing less agriculture in the desert and move the production of cotton, alfalfa and various vegetables towards places with more rain.
/jlne.ws/3OnTGSB
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| Miscellaneous | | Stories that don't quite fit under the other sections | The 2023 WGA Strike for Dummies
Jason P. Frank - Vulture
Have you heard about streaming? Well, if not, know that it's the invasive species of the scripting world - throttling the competition and harmful to the ecosystem if unregulated. And now, because of changes to the entertainment environment due to streaming, writers are on strike. The WGA asked its writers to vote on authorizing a strike on April 3, and online voting ran from April 11-17. On the 17th, it was officially announced that members had voted to authorize with an overwhelming 97.85 percent "yes" vote.
/jlne.ws/3OeH3co
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