Archive for April, 2023

• CWS Market Review – April 18, 2023
  Eddy Elfenbein, April 18th, 2023 at 4:22 pm

  (This is the free version of CWS Market Review. If you like what you see, then please sign up for the premium newsletter for $20 per month or $200 for the whole year. If you sign up today, you can see our two reports, “Your Handy Guide to Stock Orders” and “How Not to Get Screwed on Your Mortgage.”)

  More Evidence of a Coming Recession

  The case for a recession continues to get stronger. On Friday, we learned that consumer spending fell in March. This was the second month in a row that Americans cut back on their shopping.

  An economy can withstand a lot, but it’s particularly hard to grow when folks aren’t out there in the malls.

  For March, retail sales fell by 1%. That comes after a drop of 0.2% in February. It’s even worse than it sounds because these numbers aren’t adjusted for inflation.

  

  This comes on top of other troubling news. Job openings are down, unemployment claims are up and we’re looking at another weak quarter for corporate earnings.

  Still, I’d caution investors against getting too pessimistic. The odds are that we’re facing a brief and shallow recession. This slowdown was caused by the Fed, and the central bank can easily reverse course.

  The other factor to watch is the credit markets. The banking sector got a big scare in March, but we still don’t know how widespread the damage was. The fact is that many smaller banks have been losing customers to the big banks.

  Friday was the unofficial kickoff of Q1 earnings season as several of the big banks reported earnings. JPMorgan Chase (JPM) led the way with a big earnings beat. For Q1, JPM earned $4.32 per share compared with the Street’s forecast of $3.41.

  JPM said that net interest income will be about $81 billion for 2023. That’s an increase of about $7 billion from its previous forecast. But here’s the interesting part. That forecast is based on JPM paying less to depositors later in 2023. In other words, JPMorgan Chase thinks interest rates will go down later this year. I suspect they’re right.

  

  Wells Fargo (WFC) also did well last quarter. For Q1, the bank earned $1.23 per share which was 10 cents more than expectations. WFC’s net interest income increased by 45%. The CEO said, “the majority of our businesses remain strong.”

  Citigroup (C) earned $1.86 per share which was 19 cents ahead of expectations. The bank has been cutting back on its international operations. Many of the big banks are going for less than 10 times earnings.

  Shares of State Street (STT) got hit hard on Monday after the bank showed an outflow of deposits. Charles Schwab (SCHW) also fell hard after it said it lost $41 billion in deposits during Q1. This stock has been beaten up this year, but the company said that it can withstand customer outflows. On Monday, Schwab said its Q1 earnings rose to 93 cents per share, three cents more than Wall Street’s consensus.

  The downfall of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank probably happened too late during Q1 to have a noticeable impact on this round of earnings. The top-tier banks are doing well, but the concern is still among the regional banks. This could still get messy.

  On Thursday, one of my favorite regional banks, Hingham Institution for Savings (HIFS), reported disappointing results. For Q1, HIFS said it made $3.87 per share. That’s down from the $5.38 it made in last year’s Q1. The bank provides unlimited deposit insurance for all its depositors.

  Shares of HIFS got dinged for an 8% loss on Friday. It was down again on Monday, and it hit a fresh 52-week low. The stock is nearly back to where it was five years ago. Still, I can’t say I’m terribly worried about Hingham. The company has a great long-term track record and it’s still not followed by any analysts on Wall Street. I also like that Hingham often pays a special dividend near the end of the year.

  The Bank of Apple

  On Monday, Apple (AAPL) and Goldman Sachs (GS) announced a new partnership, the Apple Card savings account. This is a savings account that pays 4.15% per year. That’s far higher than most savings accounts.

  So what’s the catch?

  Nothing, really. The savings account is for users of Apple’s credit card (also a Goldman partnership). There are no fees. No minimum deposit. The account max is $250,000. It looks simple. You can set up an account from the Wallet app on your iPhone.

  Not only that, but Apple Card rewards program offers 3% on purchases. If you want, that money is deposited directly in your Apple savings account.

  This offering comes during a rough time for many banks. As rates go higher, there’s more pressure to entice savers with better rates. Over the last year, customers have pulled $800 billion from U.S. commercial banks.

  As odd as this may seem, Apple has already taken on some of the trappings of being a bank. Of course, Apple has Apple Pay and Apple Wallet. Apple also has a “buy now, pay later” service. The new savings account should really be seen as logical progression to those businesses.

  If you add up all the cash and marketable securities on Apple’s balance sheet, it comes to $169 billion. That’s far larger than all but a few banks.

  If you’re interested, here’s how you can set up an Apple savings account in your iPhone.

  Bottom-Fishing with Whirlpool

  I’ve been looking at shares of Whirlpool (WHR) recently. I wanted to highlight it for you this week because it’s an interesting example of bottom fishing, and why that’s a very hard thing to do.

  I’ll try to walk you through my reasoning. By most metrics, Whirlpool is an inexpensive stock. Just going by the dividend, WHR currently yields 5.2%. That’s certainly tempting.

  Also, the stock has not performed well. Two years ago, WHR was going for over $250 per share. Lately, it’s been around $135 per share, but a lower stock doesn’t mean it’s inexpensive. That only means that it’s cheaper than where it was before.

  Bottom-fishing for stocks is notoriously difficult. Oftentimes, stocks are down for very good reasons. Investors can be tempted by low valuations which prove to illusionary. But if your bottom-fishing works out, you can reel in big profits.

  Let’s start with some basics. Whirlpool is a major home appliance company. It was founded by Louis Upton in 1911. (Kate Upton is a descendent.) You’re very likely to find a Whirlpool product in just about every kitchen or laundry room across the U.S.

  

  Business has been rough lately and Whirlpool’s earnings have not done well. In 2021, the company made $26.59 per share. Last year, that fell to $19.64 per share. Wall Street expects it to earn $15.84 per share for this year, and $18.08 for 2024. If the latter figure is correct, that means that Whirlpool is going for about 7.5 times forward earnings. Clearly, traders are wary of WHR.

  In January, Whirlpool said it expects earnings to fall slightly this year due to supply-chain issues. WHR’s Q4 sales fell 15%. For the year, sales were down just over 10%.

  For this year, Whirlpool sees earnings ranging between $16 and $18 per share on revenues of $19.4 billion. Whirlpool has $1.4 billion in cash from operating activities and about $800 million in free cash flow.

  Whirlpool is also working to alter its business. The company has divested its businesses in Europe, Africa and the Middle East, but it’s not leaving Europe. Instead, Whirlpool plans to work with Arcelik, a Turkish company, to make a company that’s focused on the European market. Whirlpool will own 25% of the venture.

  The company recently closed on a $3 billion acquisition of Emerson Electric’s InSinkErator business.

  Whirlpool has also been cutting costs. The company expects to save between $800 million and $900 million this year. The company is sitting on $2 billion in cash.

  If Whirlpool can manage its transition well, then it’s probably a very cheap stock right now. Last week, Goldman Sachs upgraded the shares from neutral to buy. That was the first good news it’s had in some time. Goldman has a price target of $160 per share. (Personally, I think price targets are pointless.)

  We’ll soon learn more. Whirlpool will report its Q1 earnings on Monday, April 24. Wall Street expects earnings of $2.20 per share.

  For now, I would rate Whirlpool a risky buy. It’s not part of our Buy List but it’s one to keep an eye on.

  That’s all for now. I’ll have more for you in the next issue of CWS Market Review.

  – Eddy

  P.S. If you want more info on our ETF, you can check out the ETF’s website.

• Morning News: April 18, 2023
  Eddy Elfenbein, April 18th, 2023 at 6:03 am

  China’s Consumer-Driven Growth Gives Boost to Global Economy

  U.S., Allies Weigh How to Reduce Economic Ties With China

  Buy Now and Save! Price War Over Electric Cars Erupts in China

  Only 10 Electric Vehicles Qualify for Full $7,500 US Tax Credit

  U.S. Car Brands Will Benefit Most From Electric Car Tax Breaks

  America’s Most Prolific Logger Recasts Itself as Environmental Do-Gooder

  Plutocratic Power and Its Perils

  New York Finance Regulator to Bill Crypto Firms for Annual Supervision Fees

  Investors Most Underweight Stocks Versus Bonds Since 2009, BofA Says

  They Can’t Even: A Generation Avoids Facing Its Finances

  Cook Opens First India Apple Store to Accelerate Sales Push

  Worthless Degrees Are Creating an Unemployable Generation in India

  McKinsey, Bain Delay Some M.B.A. Start Dates to 2024

  How Mexico Became the Biggest User of the World’s Most Notorious Spy Tool

  CEO Sundar Pichai Uses Google’s PR Offensive to Highlight Bard’s Flaws

  Musk Wants to Build Own ChatGPT AI to Rival Microsoft and Google

  How Disney’s Feud with DeSantis Reignited Over a Last-Ditch Development Deal

  Smaller, Versatile Concert Halls Step Out of the Shadow of Stadiums

  Hollywood Writers Approve of Strike as Shutdown Looms

  David’s Bridal Files for Bankruptcy for the Second Time in 5 Years

  Be sure to follow me on Twitter.

• Morning News: April 17, 2023
  Eddy Elfenbein, April 17th, 2023 at 7:06 am

  Inflation Tests a Global Economy That Has Weathered Covid-19, Ukraine War

  Determined to Flee China, Thousands Take a Long, Dangerous Route to the Southern U.S. Border

  How Immigrants Are Saving the Economy

  ECB Told Not to Take Banks’ Word for it When Assessing Risk

  First Republic Worked Hard to Woo Rich Clients. It Was the Bank’s Undoing

  Morgan Stanley Strategist Sees US Stock Rally at Risk

  Drug and Game Makers Lead M&A’s Latest $20 Billion Bounce

  Tax Day Cash Will Indicate Just How Close the US Is to Default

  Let’s Be Clear About What ‘Budget Deficits’ Are: They’re an Effect of Excess Tax Revenue

  Long-Shot Candidate Emerges as One to Watch for Next Morgan Stanley CEO

  Wall Street Tells New High School Graduates to Pick Tech Career Over Finance

  How the US is Subsidizing High-Risk Homebuyers — at the Cost of Those with Good Credit

  Merck to Buy Prometheus Biosciences for About $11 Billion

  Google Devising Radical Search Changes to Beat Back A.I. Rivals

  How AI Is Building the Next Blockbuster Videogames

  ChatGPT and Advanced AI Face New Regulatory Push in Europe

  Who Owns a Song Created by A.I.?

  The End of Faking It in Silicon Valley

  GM Ditches Apple CarPlay on EVs as Fight for Your Car’s Screen Intensifies

  The Defamation Trial of the Century Is Delayed

  Are Crumbl Cookies the Best or the Worst? It Doesn’t Matter

  Be sure to follow me on Twitter.

• Morning News: April 14, 2023
  Eddy Elfenbein, April 14th, 2023 at 7:04 am

  Saudi-Led Oil Cuts Risk Fueling Inflation and Harming Global Economy, IEA Says

  Biden’s Plan to Phase Out Gas Cars Isn’t Crazy at All

  China’s Car Buyers Have Fallen Out of Love With Foreign Brands

  China Lays Out Three-Point Plan at Global Debt Relief Talks

  U.S. Buyback Tax Could Hit More Foreign Firms Than First Expected

  Unemployment Is Low. Inflation Is Falling. But What Comes Next?

  As Bond Market Turbulence Eases, Companies Borrow Again

  Earnings Season Arrives With Recession Fears Front and Center

  Investors Put $538 Billion Into Cash Funds Over Eight Weeks, Bank of America Says

  With the Odds on Their Side, They Still Couldn’t Beat the Market

  MUFG Clients Lost $700 Million in Credit Suisse AT1 Wipeout

  Insider Loans Surged Ahead of Turmoil at US Regional Banks

  JPMorgan Deposits Unexpectedly Rise as Firm Raises NII Outlook

  BlackRock Assets Exceed $9 Trillion in Wake of Bank Failures

  Wells Fargo Net Interest Income Beats Estimates on Fed Hikes

  How Severe Is the Housing Shortage? It Depends on How You Define ‘Shortage’

  Tech Bellwether Infosys Warns of Trouble in Key Finance Sectors

  Company Plans to Ditch Human Workers in Favor of ChatGPT-Style AI

  Yes, People Will Pay $27,500 for an Old ‘Rocky’ Tape. Here’s Why.

  Bud Light Faces Boycott Calls, but Punishing Brands Is Harder Than It Looks

  Be sure to follow me on Twitter.

• Morning News: April 13, 2023
  Eddy Elfenbein, April 13th, 2023 at 7:03 am

  US-Saudi Oil Pact Breaking Down as Russia Grabs Upper Hand

  It Cost $22 Billion to Rescue Two Failed Banks. Now the Question Is Who Will Pay

  Shorter-Term Bonds Gain After Data Showing Cooler Inflation

  Credit Investors See Defaults Rising, 84% Chance of US Recession

  Fed Leans Toward Another Hike, Defying Staff’s Recession Outlook

  Crosscurrents Hide a Rapidly Cooling Labor Market

  Dour Earnings Loom Over Wall St. as a Slowing Economy Bites

  How Janelle Jones’s Story About Black Women and the Economy Caught On

  A Visa Backlog Abroad Is Taking a Toll Inside the U.S., Too

  When Your Boss Is an App

  In This Worker vs. Bot Battle, Humans Are Winning by a Mile

  Landmark Trial Against Fox News Could Affect the Future of Libel Law

  Amazon CEO Andy Jassy Says In Shareholder Letter He’s Confident He Can Get Costs Under Control

  Apple Triples India iPhone Output to $7 Billion in China Shift

  TikTok Parent ByteDance Battles Meta for Virtual-Reality App Developers

  Twitter Inc. Changes Its Name to X Corp. and Moves to Nevada

  EY Breakup Plan Doomed by Miscalculations and Powerful Opponents

  Manhattan Rents Reach Record High With Busy Season Yet to Come

  The Next EV Push Is an Overhaul of the Iconic American School Bus

  Cities Sue Hyundai, Kia After Wave of Car Thefts

  ‘Harry Potter’ to Become a TV Series on Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max

  Be sure to follow me on Twitter.

• Morning News: April 12, 2023
  Eddy Elfenbein, April 12th, 2023 at 7:04 am

  Germany’s Niche Companies Are a Model for Life After Globalization

  I.M.F. Lowers Growth Outlook Amid Financial System Tremors

  Yellen to Press for Additional Reforms at World Bank this Year

  Inflation Report to Show Whether Price Pressures Eased Again in March

  Fed Official: ‘We Need to Be Cautious’ on Raising Rates After Bank Failures

  The FDIC’s ‘Special’ Fee to Make Banks Pay for SVB Cleanup

  Top US Banks to Reveal Biggest Deposit Drop in a Decade

  Private Equity’s Latest Money-Making Trade: Buying Its Own Debt

  Big Banks That Shored Up First Republic Pushed to Boost Reserves

  Bitcoin Rally Continues, Gaining More Than 80% This Year

  Brookfield Infrastructure to Buy Triton in $4.7 Billion Deal

  IRS Vets Reveal What’s Broken at America’s Most Hated Agency

  An Online Meme Group Is at the Center of Uproar Over Leaked Military Secrets

  Why China Could Dominate the Next Big Advance in Batteries

  Biden’s EPA Wants Electric Vehicles to Make Up Two-Thirds of New Car Sales in U.S. by 2032

  California Economy Is on Edge After Tech Layoffs and Studio Cutbacks

  Homebuyer Mortgage Demand Jumps After Interest Rates Drop to Two-Month Low

  The Air Travel System May Be Flying Toward Disaster

  Ernst & Young Halts Breakup Plan After Revolt by U.S. Leaders

  Your Gen Z Co-Worker Is Hustling More Than You Think

  Be sure to follow me on Twitter.

• CWS Market Review – April 11, 2023
  Eddy Elfenbein, April 11th, 2023 at 6:31 pm

  (This is the free version of CWS Market Review. If you like what you see, then please sign up for the premium newsletter for $20 per month or $200 for the whole year. If you sign up today, you can see our two reports, “Your Handy Guide to Stock Orders” and “How Not to Get Screwed on Your Mortgage.”)

  What to Expect from Tomorrow’s CPI Report

  The stock market has been holding up pretty well over the past few days. Despite a small drop on Tuesday, the S&P 500 is still close to a two-month high. The longer-term rally that started six months ago appears to be intact. The stock market keeps making higher highs and higher lows. That’s good to see.

  

  The next big test for the market will come tomorrow when the government releases the CPI report for March. The good news is that inflation has cooled off over the last several months. The bad news is that it still has a way to go to reach the Federal Reserve’s target of 2%.

  The Fed has declared total war against inflation, and it doesn’t care how much damage to the housing sector it needs to do to guarantee victory. So far, the results have been unimpressive.

  Last June, the 12-month inflation rate reached 9.1%. In February, the 12-month rate rate reached 6.0% That’s still too high. For March, the 12-month rate is expected to fall to 5.2%. I’m afraid that may be overly optimistic. Either way, I don’t see the Fed pulling back on its rate hikes just yet.

  Economists like to focus on the “core rate” of inflation because that strips out food and energy prices. The 12-month core rate is expected to be 5.6% which is an increase of 0.1% over the 12-month rate for February. The major change to inflation recently is that home prices have been falling, and that will probably be reflected in tomorrow’s report.

  The Fed’s gameplan for the economy is important for investors because Wall Street has been expecting the Fed to pause its rate hikes sometime soon. That belief has spurred a big rally in growth stocks since the start of this year.

  Since January 5, the S&P 500 Growth ETF (black line) is up 12.11% while the S&P 500 Value Index (blue line) is up only 4.48%. It’s as if Wall Street expects the Fed to bring back the furious low-quality rally that dominated Wall Street in 2020 and 2021. Speaking of which, bitcoin broke $30,000 today. The cryptocurrency is up more than 80% this year.

  

  There’s a growing gap between what the Fed is saying and what Wall Street expects. Fed officials are talking tough, but Wall Street only sees a worsening economy and trouble with the banks.

  The futures market now strongly favors another 0.25% rate hike at the next Fed meeting in three weeks. After that, the data starts to get a little noisy. Traders expect a 0.25% hike in May, and they then expect it to be taken away in July. Traders expect two more cuts later this year, in November and again in December. This reflects Wall Street’s fear that the economy is slowing down. For next year, traders see the Fed cutting rate by 125 basis points.

  On top of inflation, earnings season kicks off this week. On Friday, several major banks such as Wells Fargo, Citigroup and JPMorgan are due to report earnings. I’ll be curious to hear if the banks have been impacted by the recent mess in the banking sector. I suspect it happened too late in Q1 to have a major impact. In fact, the big banks probably benefitted from customers leaving.

  For the market as a whole, Q1 earnings are expected to be 6.8% lower than last year’s Q1. Abbott Labs will be our first Buy List stock to report earnings, one week from tomorrow.

  A Closer Look at Last Week’s Jobs Report

  Last Friday, the government reported that the U.S. economy created a net gain of 236,000 new jobs during March. This was unusual because it nearly matched Wall Street’s forecast for a gain of 238,000. The economy added 326,000 jobs during February.

  The unemployment rate ticked down 0.1% to 3.5% which is still near a multi-decade low. The unemployment rate for African Americans fell 0.7% to 5% which is the lowest since the government started tracking the data 61 years ago. The jobs-to-population ratio for African Americans last month was higher than it was for white Americans. I should note that that’s not a precise comparison since the white community tends to be older.

  The problem spot continues to be wages. Last month, average hourly earnings rose by 0.3%. Over the last year, earnings are up 4.2%. That’s the lowest 12-month growth rate in nearly two years.

  

  With previous economies, we’ve talked about jobless recoveries. This time, it seems like we have growthless hiring. That may be explained by the fact that earnings have trailed inflation.

  I’ll be honest – it was a pretty good report, but it doesn’t alter my view that the broader economy is slowing down. This was the lowest monthly gain for new jobs since December 2020. Since the stock market was closed for Good Friday, we couldn’t see the market’s reaction until Monday when the S&P 500 moved a bit higher.

  Here are some details from the report:

  Leisure and hospitality led sectors with growth of 72,000 jobs, below the 95,000 pace of the past six months. Government (47,000), professional and business services (39,000) and health care (34,000) also posted solid increases. Retail saw a loss of 15,000 positions.

  While the February report was revised up from its initially reported 311,000, January’s number moved lower to 472,000, a reduction of 32,000 from the last estimate.

  An alternative measure of unemployment that includes discouraged workers and those holding part-time jobs for economic reasons edged lower to 6.7%. The household survey, which is used to calculate the unemployment rate, was much stronger than the establishment survey, showing growth of 577,000 jobs.

  Also last week, the Labor Department said that job openings fell to 9.9 million. That was the lowest number in nearly two years. There used to be 1.9 jobs for every unemployed person. That has fallen to 1.7 jobs.

  Are Stocks Really Too Expensive?

  The Wall Street Journal recently ran a story titled, “Stocks Haven’t Looked This Unattractive Since 2007.” These stories always get my attention. The financial media’s track record isn’t merely bad – it can often be a perfectly negative indicator.

  This isn’t new. The New York Times famously said that stocks looked good just before the Panic of 1893. Both political parties get into the act. Right at the 2009 low, the WSJ told us, “Obama’s Radicalism Is Killing the Dow.” Paul Krugman said much the same after President Trump was elected.

  But I wanted to look at the WSJ’s case this time. The argument is that the stock market’s equity risk premium is at 1.59% which is very low.

  The equity risk premium is the yield difference between the 10-year Treasury and the stock market’s earnings yield (that’s the inverse of the P/E Ratio). The argument is that stock investors are not being paid very much to shoulder the risk of owning stocks. Typically, stocks carry earnings yields are that 3% to 4% more than the 10-year Treasury.

  But this analysis misses a key point. This only looks at the relative value of stocks versus bonds, not the value of stocks in general. In fact, it could mean that bonds are underpriced. The equity risk premium could return to normal if bonds rallied. The Fed hiking rates over the last year has had a big impact on Treasury yields.

  With the Fed moving against inflation as it has, that’s distorted the overall market. Bond yields and mortgage rates would never be this high without the Fed’s intervention. Stocks aren’t expensive right now. Instead, the yield curve has been squeezed to the brink and it will redound on the economy.

  Stock Focus: Stryker

  This week, I’ve chosen one of our Buy List stocks to focus on which is Stryker (SYK). This is one of my favorite stocks and it’s been a member of the Buy List for a long time. Stryker is one of the world’s leading orthopedic companies.

  We first added Stryker to our Buy List on December 31, 2007. This is its 16th year on our Buy List.

  As it turns out, we added Stryker at a terrible time. The stock rallied well during 2007. Our initial price was $74.72 per share which I thought was a good price. It wasn’t. By March of 2009, SYK was going for $30 per share. Ugh!

  

  But we held on. We didn’t make a profit on Stryker until the middle of 2013. We continued to hold on. From the beginning of 2013 until August of 2019, Stryker gained 340% for us while the S&P 500 gained 133%.

  The stock hit another rough patch for us last year. With its Q1 earnings report last April, Stryker said it expected full-year earnings to come in at the low end of its range which was $9.60 to $10 per share. In July, Stryker lowered its range to $9.30 to $9.50 per share. In October, it was lowered again to $9.15 to $9.25 per share. In two months, shares of SYK lost 30%.

  But we held on. As it turned out, Stryker made $9.34 per share last year. The company said it expects earnings this year between $9.85 and $10.15 per share. Not only has Stryker made back everything it lost, but the stock hit a new all-time high today of $292.20 per share.

  We’re still holding on.

  That’s all for now. I’ll have more for you in the next issue of CWS Market Review.

  – Eddy

  P.S. If you want more info on our ETF, you can check out the ETF’s website.

• Morning News: April 11, 2023
  Eddy Elfenbein, April 11th, 2023 at 7:01 am

  New Bank of Japan Chief Says He Will Maintain Easy Money

  Buffett Ramps Up Japan Stock Bets, Weighs Buying Even More

  Government Posing Greater Risk to Corporate Profits, Chamber Study Finds

  Tumbling Money Supply Alarms Economists Who Foresaw Inflation

  What Next for Banks?

  Short Sellers Play Heroes and Villains in the U.S. Bank Crisis

  Why U.S. Mortgage Lenders Lost Money on Home Loans for the First Time on Record

  Bitcoin Breaks Above $30,000 as Investors Eye End of Rate Rises

  Wall Street Is Turning Water into Wealth, Leaving Californians Out to Dry

  Automakers Face Test in Reaching U.S. Target for Electric Vehicles

  Exxon Deal Hunt Signals Possible Shale M&A Wave

  Next Wave of Remote Work Is About Outsourcing Jobs Overseas

  In China, Young People Ditch Prestige Jobs for Manual Labor

  What Went Wrong at the Confederation of British Industry?

  Tupperware Stock Plunges After Warning It Could Go Out of Business

  China’s Rich Gorge on Singapore’s Luxuries. But Few Will Invest

  Followers Describe Allure of Chinese Businessman Charged With $1 Billion Fraud

  A Judge Rules that Elizabeth Holmes Cannot Remain Free During Appeal

  The Superyachts of Billionaires Are Starting to Look a Lot Like Theft

  Mickey Bars, Turkey Legs and the Obsession With Disney Food

  Be sure to follow me on Twitter.

• Morning News: April 10, 2023
  Eddy Elfenbein, April 10th, 2023 at 7:04 am

  Food Prices Are New Inflation Threat for Governments and Central Banks

  Climate Change and Poverty Pose Challenge to World Bank

  What Commercial Real Estate Stress Means for Banks and Bond Funds

  Bond Market Is Overplaying the Risk of a Deep Recession

  The Credit Crunch the Fed Fears May Already Be Taking Shape

  There’s No Such Thing As An ‘Interest Rate’

  U.S. Stocks Poised to Rise

  Investors View Corporate Earnings Season as Next Test for Stocks

  Warren, Ocasio-Cortez Write Letters to Major SVB Depositors

  FTX Failure Rooted in ‘Hubris,’ ‘Greed,’ Debtors Report Says

  The Real-World Costs of the Digital Race for Bitcoin

  A.I. Is Coming for Lawyers, Again

  Apple’s 40% Plunge in PC Shipments Is Steepest Among Major Computer Makers

  Musk Takes Another China Gamble With Grid Batteries

  America Is Back in the Factory Business

  Construction Industry Has Work, Needs More Workers

  $388 in Sushi. Just a $20 Tip: The Brutal Math of Uber Eats and DoorDash

  As Tech Jobs Disappear, Silicon Valley Veterans Reset Their Careers

  Abortion Ruling Could Undermine the F.D.A.’s Drug-Approval Authority

  The $76 Billion Diet Industry Asks: What to Do About Ozempic?

  Be sure to follow me on Twitter.

• Morning News: April 7, 2023
  Eddy Elfenbein, April 7th, 2023 at 7:03 am

  I.R.S. Unveils $80 Billion Plan to Overhaul Tax Collection

  The Problem With the IRS Vow to Avoid Stepping Up Audits of Earners Under $400,000

  Latest Fed Increase Came Down to the Wire. ‘That Was a Rough Weekend.’

  U.S. Economy May Be Heading to a Place That Must Not Be Named

  Wages May Not Be Inflation’s Cause, but They’re the Focus of the Cure

  Jamie Dimon Says Banking Crisis Has Increased the Odds of a Recession

  Declines in Loan Values Are Widespread Among Banks

  Schwab Reveals $53 Billion in New Client Assets in March, Seeking to Calm Investors

  Cambridge, England Tries to Compete With Cambridge, Massachusetts

  Samsung Forecasts Worst Profit in Over a Decade as Tech Slump Hits Memory Chips

  Concerns Grow as Tighter Lending Threatens Commercial Real Estate

  Buying or Selling a Home? Welcome to the Year of Disappointment

  Hoping to Draw Moviegoers and Filmmakers, Amazon Heads to Theaters

  How Elon Musk Is Changing the Twitter Experience

  Tesla Cuts Prices of All Models for the Second Time This Year

  Toyota to Launch 10 New Battery EV Models by 2026

  What Happened When Uber’s CEO Started Driving for Uber

  These Tech Workers Say They Were Hired to Do Nothing

  Microsoft to Pay $3 Million Over Russia Sanctions, Export Controls Violations

  If It’s Advertised to You Online, You Probably Shouldn’t Buy It. Here’s Why

  Be sure to follow me on Twitter.