Author Archive

• Morning News: August 31, 2026
  Eddy Elfenbein, August 31st, 2026 at 7:09 am

  Global Oil Price Jumps After U.S. and Iran Trade Attacks

  LNG Exports Though Hormuz Remain Stalled Even as Oil Flows Rebound

  Trump’s Venezuela Oil Grab Reprises Industry’s Neocolonial Past

  How Long Will China’s Trump Dividend Last?

  Canadian Small Businesses to Bear Brunt of New U.S. Tariffs

  The Strongest El Niño in a Generation Is Wreaking Havoc on Global Economy

  G20 Finance Officials Gather in U.S. as Iran War Grips Global Economy

  Bessent Faces Credibility Test Selling ‘American Growth Agenda’ to G20

  The G-7 Is Down One Rather Obstreperous Member

  Trump Is Copying Putin’s Losing Playbook With Canada

  At Jackson Hole, Global Central Bankers Glimpse Dystopian AI Future

  Warsh Takes a Page From Aerospace Pioneers to Find the Right Stuff

  Bond Investors Wary After Warsh Speech Fuels Rate-Hike Bets

  The Pillars of the S&P 500 Are Perceptibly Shifting

  Free Markets and Free Speech Make Dollars and Sense

  Cash-Strapped Colleges Are Draining Their Endowments to Survive

  Bill Gates Has a Spotty Vision About the Future

  Corporate America’s Profits Are Booming—and Signal More Good Times Ahead

  Companies Are Paying for Price Cuts With Their Tariff Refunds

  Apple’s Ternus Takes the Reins as CEO, With AI as Job No. 1

  KKR Turns Private Jet ‘Gas Stations’ Into a $10 Billion Coveted Asset

  A 104-Year-Old Farmer’s $183,000 Tractor Sale Tests a US Farm Recovery

  AI-Driven Cyber Risk Is Top Concern for Global Financial Stability, Watchdog Says

  Pennsylvania’s A.I. Gold Rush Meets Second Thoughts

  AI Burnout Hits the People Charged With Defending Hospitals and Banks From Hackers

  Saudi AI Firm Humain, Applied Intuition Partner on Self-Driving Trucks

  Chinese Cars Could Be Huge in U.S., and That’s the Problem, Officials Say

  A Half-Price Luxury E.V. Comes With a Big Asterisk

  A $480,000-a-Year Pill Reflects a New Normal for Cancer Drugs

  Lilly to Buy Merida for $2.88 Billion for Autoimmune Work

  Forget GLP-1 Stocks, Baldness Drugs Are Wall Street’s Next Goldmine

  India’s Tourism Paradox

  Don’t Count Shein Out Just Yet

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• Morning News: August 28, 2026
  Eddy Elfenbein, August 28th, 2026 at 7:03 am

  How the War in Iran Is Redrawing the Global Energy Map

  Panama Canal Congestion Drives Gas Tankers to Unusual Routes

  Venezuela Weighs OPEC Exit as US Discusses Oil Stake

  Why These Giant Storage Tanks Increasingly Hold Very Little Oil

  Why the US Trade War With Canada Is a ‘Bar Fight’

  The View From Canadian Businesses—Empathy for Workers, No Panic

  JPMorgan and Apollo Urge Inflation Focus for Warsh’s Big Speech

  Warsh Owes Investors a Jackson Hole Reset

  Jackson Hole History Shows Fed Chief Rarely Shocks Stock Market

  Why Warsh’s Key Test at Jackson Hole May Be Offering ‘Backward’ Guidance

  What’s Going On at the Treasury?

  US Bank Regulators Finalize Rules Defining ‘Unsafe’ Bank Practices

  Carry Trades to Treasury Twists: A Guide to the Hot Debates on Wall Street

  Texas’ Y’all Street Won’t Mess With Wall Street

  The Texas Senate Race Is Becoming a Debt Debacle

  How the AI Investment Craze Is Keeping the Global Economy Afloat

  Investor Frenzy for AI Strips Safeguards From Convertible Bonds

  What Would Quantum Computing Mean for Markets?

  Advent and Stripe Abandon $50 Billion Pursuit of PayPal

  How a Gambling Addict Relapsed After He Discovered Kalshi

  Americans of All Incomes Head to Dollar Stores to Stay Frugal

  Where to Invest Now as Data Centers Turn Copper Into a Hot Commodity

  How Radiant World’s ‘Prince’ Has Banks Chasing Fake Invoices

  Peru Is Losing a Battle Against Illegal Gold Mining in Its Rainforests

  Timber Was Gold in the South—Until a Market Collapse Crushed the Forest Economy

  Lilly Diabetes Shot Mounjaro Wins US Approval for Heart Disease

  A $17.1 Billion Vote of Confidence That Jonathan Haidt Was Right

  How Meta’s $18 Billion Settlement Could Change Social Media

  Did Meta’s Big Settlement Actually Help It?

  Blue-Collar Jobs Are the New Flashpoint in Data-Center Fight

  Clashes Cloud Shawn Fain’s Re-Election Bid at U.A.W.

  BYD’s Overseas Push Drives Quarterly Profit Growth

  The Automotive Aftermarket As a Way of Gauging the Economy’s Health

  College Football Jersey Deals Reinforce Inequality

  European River Cruises Upended as Drought and Low Water Take a Toll

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• Morning News: August 27, 2026
  Eddy Elfenbein, August 27th, 2026 at 7:09 am

  Kuwait and Qatar Add to Growing Oil Flows Getting Through Hormuz

  Vietnam’s Factories Thrive Amid Trade Upheaval

  U.S. and Canada Are Bracing for Prolonged Trade Dispute

  Canada Removes US Seafood From Counter-Tariffs, Citing Feedback

  Greer Suggests US Needs to Consider Bans on Canadian Goods

  Think Treasurys Are Having a Rough Summer? It’s Even Uglier Abroad

  Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent Desperately Needs a Reset

  Why French Politics Is Rattling Bond Investors

  Wall Street Banks Turn on Each Other as Capital Fight Nears Endgame

  The Kansas City Fed President on the First Jackson Hole of the Warsh Era

  Fed’s Cook Denies Wrongdoing as Trump Renews Bid to Fire Her

  This Is How the A.I. Debt Binge Sinks the Economy

  Clash Between Prediction Markets and States Sets Off a Furious Political Battle

  People Without Kids Are Hacking the College Savings Account

  The ‘Fair Access’ Chip Amendment Is a Gift to Beijing

  The Real Artificial Intelligence Boom Hasn’t Yet Begun

  Nvidia’s $100 Billion Shows Why AI Is Still the Trade

  Would There Be an AI Revolution If There Were No Nvidia?

  Google Moves AI-Responsibility Team Out of DeepMind Lab in Latest Shake-Up

  Meta’s Teen Safeguards on Facebook, Instagram Apply Only to US

  Kids Will Be Kids, and That’s the Biggest Risk With Meta’s New Safeguards

  The World’s Mountains Are Ticking Time Bombs

  Pint-Size Cars, With Enviable Smiles Per Gallon

  A Breakthrough Pancreatic Cancer Drug Marks a New Era for Treatment

  The Race to Develop More Medicines Like the New Pancreatic Cancer Drug

  Critics of Elizabeth Holmes Can’t Have It Both Ways

  Screwworm Flies Steer Clear of Agriculture Dept. Traps

  The $2 Billion Brawl Over a Ruinous Wood-Pellet Trade

  Dollar General Lifts Outlook, Posts Higher Profit, Sales

  Dollar Tree Issues Underwhelming Outlook on Tariff Reinvestment Costs

  Burlington Stores Plans to Use Tariff Refunds to Lower Prices

  Shein Bets on Deals to Revive Its Fashion Success After $70 Billion Plunge

  Dolly Parton’s Other Legacy: A Fortune Given Away, Dollar by Dollar

  How America Got Hooked On Celsius

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• Morning News: August 26, 2026
  Eddy Elfenbein, August 26th, 2026 at 7:07 am

  The Price of Diesel, the ‘Workhorse’ of Fuels, Nears a Record High

  Iran, Oman Agree to Share Strait of Hormuz Revenue, IRGC Says

  Under Threat, Saudi Arabia Reroutes Oil Exports Yet Again

  Container Ships Are Looking to Return to Red Sea

  Canada’s Carney to Address EU Allies Amid Pressure From Trump

  US Weighs More Trade Measures Against Canada After Retaliation

  Detroit Needs Canada More Than the Rest of the U.S. Does

  The Billionaires Behind India’s Finance Boom

  Bessent Bounce Starts to Emerge in Long Bond Market Metrics

  Bitcoin’s Bessent Bounce Doesn’t Tell the Full Story

  ‘Honeymoon’s Over’: Warsh Under Pressure as Fed Weighs Raising Rates

  Inflation Remains Elevated as Energy Costs Push on Prices

  Citadel Securities’ Flight Reverses Bearish Call on Long Bonds

  Michael Saylor Faces Fresh Funding Threat on MSCI-Exit Risk

  Why Trump Is Now Trying to Charge a $103,000 Fee for H-1B Visas

  Americans Say They Feel Guilty About Spending Money on Fun

  Forget Florida. Boomers Are Flooding Delaware Looking for Low Taxes and Sandy Beaches

  Extreme Heat Is Making It Harder for Kids to Learn

  More Parents Pay Full Cost of College to Give Their Kids a Financial Leg Up

  Is There a Taxation and Regulation Barrier to Start-Ups?

  Victory Capital Agrees to Buy First Eagle in $7 Billion Deal

  Vanguard Buys Wealth Management Platform Altruist in $4 Billion Deal

  The Dream of Quantum Computing Is Both Dead and Alive

  How AI Is Making Cyberattacks Harder to Stop

  Huawei AI Data Center Bid in Egypt Spurs US to Mull Counter

  Wall St. Scrutinizes Nvidia’s Deal Machine

  Nvidia Earnings Give Investors a Barometer for State of AI Trade

  Nvidia Is Jolting Silicon Valley to Think Like China

  Bill Gates Warns A.I. Is More Dangerous Than Big Tech Will Admit

  Startup Bets on Aluminum as Cleaner Fuel to Power Data Centers

  Unlikely Winners of the Data Center Boom: Sound Consultants

  Google’s Pixel 11 Pro Pales in Comparison to Top Chinese Phones

  The CEO Who Built a Company on a ‘Technical Impossibility’

  United Taps the Southwest Model for International Expansion

  How Residencies Took Over the Music Industry

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• CWS Market Review – August 25, 2026
  Eddy Elfenbein, August 25th, 2026 at 4:39 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.”)

  The Fed Meets in Jackson Hole

  This weekend, the Federal Reserve will host its annual shindig in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Historically, the Fed has used Jackson Hole to announce major policy changes. Kevin Warsh will be speaking to the conference on Friday.

  An important issue facing Warsh is how much information the Fed is providing. Warsh has tried to tamp down on the practice of investors betting on any change in the Fed’s behavior from clues buried in the Fed’s communications. (I remember when people looked at the size of Alan Greenspan’s briefcase for clues.)

  

  For example, Warsh has pared back the regular post-meeting policy statements. He’s also not a fan of the Summary of Economic Projections. I think Warsh is correct on this; however, it’s left critics to say there isn’t enough information coming from the Fed. It’s not that Warsh is trying to hide information. Instead, he wants to downplay the information that may not be so important, or worse, misleading.

  Warsh has a firm stance that inflation will get back to the Fed’s target of 2%. That hasn’t happened in more than five years. Personally, I’m not so worried about hitting an arbitrary target, as long as the Fed is broadly opposed to inflation.

  Warsh was criticized by some for a shaky post-meeting press conference. Oddly enough, that makes Warsh’s point that investors should not be investigating the press conference for supposedly hidden clues. After Warsh spoke, bond prices dropped.

  I will be curious to see if Warsh has anything to say about the Treasury’s plan to buy back long-dated Treasury bonds. What if the Fed raises short-term rates at the same time the Treasury issues larger sales of short-term Treasury bills? Traditionally, the yield curve has been the Fed’s territory.

  I also want to hear what Warsh has to say about a potentially slowing economy. Is this a bump in the road, or a larger problem? Overall, I support Warsh’s approach. Of course, he hasn’t faced a serious challenge. At least, not yet.

  Should We Walk Away From Our Debt?

  The U.S. federal debt recently hit $40 trillion. That’s more than $120,000 per person, including children.

  The total debt is a staggering figure, and it shows few signs of slowing down. The debt prompted an unusual essay in the New York Times. Paul Vigna, the author of the essay and a talented writer on all things financial, suggests an old solution. A very old solution.

  

  Vigna suggests an amargi. Nope, I’ve never heard of it either. According to Vigna, ancient societies had an amargi which was “a blanket declaration of public debt cancellation.”

  Hmmm. I have to admit that I’m not exactly keen on this idea. In general, I don’t think answers to modern finance can be found in the teachings of the ancient Sumerians (no offense to any Sumerian, ancient or not).

  Vigna writes:

  About 4,400 years ago, a Mesopotamian king named Enmetena issued an edict. Essentially all public debts, he declared, were canceled. (Amargi typically left debts between merchants in place.) People who had been sold into bondage were freed. Similar edicts gave back land to farmers who had lost it to creditors.

  One finance professor called it “Probably the worst op-ed I’ve ever read in the New York Times.” Indeed, debt can be a big problem for any country, and its compounding nature can be especially cruel. Vigna says, “amargi was a relief valve, a final rebalancing tool.”

  My concern is that in the modern age, no one can simply will debt away. Debt forgiveness is when both parties agree. If only one party agrees, then it’s called … well, theft. What happens when the U.S., or any country, tries to borrow again? If they try, any future creditor will demand a sizable risk premium which would make their debt problems even worse.

  There’s also the issue of credibility. Governments work for the people, not the other way around. If the government makes a promise, which borrowing money is, they should honor it. I realize it’s old fashioned, but to many of us, honor is important.

  Vigna writes:

  The reason the practice often worked in the first place was because the ancient world understood something about our monetary system we have mostly forgotten: Money is an invented social construct. It isn’t real, not in the way a tree or a stone is real. The system of money and credit is a thing humans made up. It’s a record-keeping device for distributing resources. And since money is a human creation, we can alter it when needed.

  It’s true that money isn’t real — it’s a shared fiction — but the actions underlying money are very real. Vigna seems to think we can do away with debt and not have to worry about the obvious ramifications.

  People are right to be concerned about the debt, but a better solution would be to manage our finances more responsibly and pay off our debt. We’ve done it before. From 1995 to 2001, the federal debt as a percentage of GDP fell from 65% to 44%, and we did it without the help of King Enmetena. We just have to learn how to say “no”.

  The Decline and Fall of Situational Awareness

  One of the worst curses that can afflicted a young money manager is to be right and early. That certainly was the case in 2022 when a 24-year-old named Leopold Aschenbrenner started a hedge fund called Situational Awareness. Aschenbrenner had an interesting backstory. He had been fired from OpenAI where he was accused of leaking company secrets.

  Situational Awareness was dedicated to AI investments, and the fund was a smash hit. Aschenbrenner raised tons of money and the returns were outstanding. In 2025, the fund made more than 200%.

  The fund borrowed heavily to make even larger bets. But when he came to New York, Aschenbrenner faced a cooler reception. He was grilled by seasoned investors and seemed to have little idea that his investments could all go wrong. I guess I’m lucky in that I lived through events that were once thought impossible right up until the moment they happened.

  Goldman Sachs told Aschenbrenner to pay back some of the fund’s debt. This was a problem. The only way they could do that was to sell some of their holdings. As a result, the fund had a fire sale of its assets. The mass selling quickly turned popular assets into high-risk dangerous stocks.

  For example, the fund shorted Adobe (ADBE), a stock I happen to like. The stock did indeed go down, but it hasn’t been driven out of business as many predicted. In fact, shares of Adobe have had a nice rebound.

  Aschenbrenner eventually reached a deal with Citadel, the hedge fund kingpin. Kenneth Griffin agreed to buy Aschenbrenner’s assets at a steep discount. According to a source in the New York Times, Situational Awareness dropped from $30 billion in assets to $8 billion. In my opinion, they got off light. It could have been much worse.

  This week, we learned that the SEC is investigating the mess Situational Awareness made. The SEC has sent subpoenas to the banks that the fund worked with. They told the banks to hold on to any information they have regarding Situational Awareness. To be clear, the fund hasn’t been accused of doing anything wrong.

  Situational Awareness was a major client of firms including Bank of America, Citi, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase. The fund still owns Anthropic which will be going public sometime soon.

  That’s all for now. Tomorrow, the government will update its report on GDP growth for the second quarter. The initial report pegged Q2 growth at 1.5%. That’s not so hot. I’ll have more for you in the next issue of CWS Market Review.

  – Eddy

• Morning News: August 25, 2026
  Eddy Elfenbein, August 25th, 2026 at 7:04 am

  Trump Threatens 50% Tariff on Vehicles and Parts From Canada

  What’s Getting Hit With the New U.S.-Canada Tariffs

  Trump Laments Lack of US Aluminum Amid Trade Row With Canada

  U.S. Tariffs Could Price Canadian Firms Out of U.S. and Threaten Thousands of Jobs

  Lutnick’s Intervention in Canada Talks Draws Praise, Blame

  Bessent Launches ‘Operation Economic Outcast’ to Isolate and Squeeze Iran

  Bessent’s Iran Threat Hinges on US Willingness to Hit China

  Why China’s Ties With Iran Aren’t as Strong as They Seem

  The Heat on Bessent Grows

  Bessent’s Mentor Druckenmiller Calls Bond Buying a Mistake

  The Problem With Treasury Buybacks in the Name of ‘Liquidity’

  Coming US Fiscal Plan Will Confront a Spendthrift Congress

  Jackson Hole Offers Warsh High Profile Slot to Rebut His Critics

  Index Investors Have Seized the Steering Wheel

  Private Equity Finds New Way to Ride Out Cash Crunch

  Bitcoin Rises Above $80,000 as Soft Dollar, Debasement Fears Boost Momentum

  Oura and Dunkin’ Eye Offerings as Wall Street’s IPO Boom Builds

  Mexico Bonds Trade Like Junk After $130 Billion Bailout of Pemex

  How The AIDS Crisis Helped Create a Multibillion-Dollar Death-Speculation Market

  The Quantum Computer Revolution Is Tantalizingly Close

  Nvidia’s Dependence on Hyperscalers Faces Big Test in Earnings Report

  S.E.C. Investigating Near-Implosion of A.I. Hedge Fund

  This A.I. Start-Up Aims to Reverse the Backlash Against Data Centers

  Why Your Boss Wants to Make Sure AI Can Read Your Slack Messages

  Why CEOs Have a Problem With Workplace DMs

  There’s Only One Way to Make AI Safe For Kids

  Badly Behaved CEOs Hired as ‘Distressed Assets’ Are No Bargain

  Apple Gears Up to Launch Its First New Mac Mini in Two Years

  Buyers Circle Warner Assets With Paramount Legal Fight Extended

  The Real Reason Why Walmart Is Slashing Prices by $2.9 Billion

  Dick’s Plummets After Outlook Cut, Citing More Discounting

  Crocs Steps Out of the Discount Bin

  OnlyFans Paid $700 Million Dividend to Founder Year Before He Died

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• Morning News: August 24, 2026
  Eddy Elfenbein, August 24th, 2026 at 7:03 am

  The U.S. Start-Up Making Low-Cost Interceptors for the Iran War

  U.S. Says Oil Is Pouring Through Hormuz. Trackers Can’t Find It

  Oil Prices Fall Ahead of U.S. Vow to Intensify Economic War Against Iran

  Pete Hegseth Fails to Understand Bureaucracy

  ECB’s Cipollone Sees Stagflation Risk from Hormuz Crisis as Remote

  Warsh’s Old Forecasts Show How He Formed His Views on Inflation

  The Fed Must Be Held Tight To a Market-Price Stability Rule

  Bessent Has No Easy Fix for What’s Really Driving Yields Up

  The Perils of an Interventionist Treasury and a Passive Fed

  The Bond Market Is Returning to the Old Normal

  The $500 Billion Experiment to Build 24/7 Markets on Blockchain

  China’s $119 Billion Answer to Sagging Investment Is Coming Late

  US Set to Unveil Fresh Iran Sanctions as Rial Hits Record Low

  Trump’s Fight Against Canada, Iran and the Bond Vigilantes Meets a Common Response

  Canada Rejected US Tariff Deal. Now Comes the Economic Cost

  Canada Sees Long Trade War With US That May Last Beyond Midterms

  China Media Hails Canada’s ‘Chinese-Style’ Tariff Retaliation

  Trump’s Family Joins a Rush to Start New Banks

  A Speculation On Why Global Food Markets Are Rallying

  The Failure To Put American Canned Food First

  Los Angeles Dodgers Owner’s Troubles Roil Insurance World

  Life Policies Shouldn’t Be Funding the Boss’s Trophy Assets

  Elite Private Schools Offer Financial Aid to Families Making $500,000

  How Big Tech Captured American Schools

  Nvidia’s Earnings Will Test Wall Street’s Faith in the AI Boom

  UAW Workers Reject Deere’s Contract Extension Offer, Setting Up 2027 Battle

  Drones, Balloons and Sound Waves: New Ways to Fight the World’s Fires

  Shein Targets $27 Billion Valuation in Long-Awaited Hong Kong IPO

  Temu Owner’s Profit Falls but Beats Expectations

  Crocs’s Plan to Turn Short-Term Pain Into Long-Term Gain

  The Biggest Dogs in Streaming Want You to Use Only Their App

  The Trump Intervention That Got the DOJ Off Live Nation’s Back

  The Leadership Principles Behind a F1 Team Turnaround Plan

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• Morning News: August 21, 2026
  Eddy Elfenbein, August 21st, 2026 at 7:03 am

  Spike in ‘Dark’ Oil Tankers in Gulf Raises Risk of Catastrophic Spills

  Carney Bets Canada Can Live With Tariffs to Unlock Investment

  US Automakers Need More Than Peace With Canada

  U.S. to Boost Beef Imports to Address High Prices, Trump Says

  World’s Oldest Bank Is Having a Wild Year, Even by Its Standards

  It Didn’t Take Long for the White House to Undermine the Fed

  How the A.I. Borrowing Binge Helps Drive Up Government Bond Yields

  What the Bond Market Swings Mean for Your Money

  US Corporate AI Debt Surge Tests Investor Limits as Fatigue Emerges

  Investing in Bonds? Be Careful

  Can Bessent’s ‘Big Tool Kit’ Calm Bond Investors?

  Sell America? This Time, the Trader Hyperbole Risks Bearing Out

  US Stock Futures Gain as Nasdaq 100 Looks to Snap Five-Day Slump

  Several Big Brokerages Leave Customer Accounts Open to Theft, Senators Say

  What Back-to-School Says About the Economy

  America Is About to Get More Expensive

  Why ‘Democratic Socialism’ Will Never, Ever Cost $200 Trillion

  If Rising Rates Were Enough to End a Bull Market, We’d Have Entered a Bear Market Long Ago

  Why the Stock Market Has to Crash

  Non-Profits Want Your Trust. Now the IRS Wants Them to Earn It

  Tricolor Fallout Fuels Boom in Business for Collateral Checkers

  Anthropic Aims for SpaceX’s IPO Record

  Rogue AI Is a Scary But Fixable Problem

  Software Firms Deploy Bluster and Buybacks to Counter AI Fears

  Politicians Turn Against Data Centers as Anger Over AI Spreads

  DeepSeek Unveils Test Model to Rival Anthropic’s Opus 4.8

  Nvidia in Talks to Invest in Data-Center Power Developer Cloverleaf Infrastructure

  Gold, Gems and Rare Earths Fuel a Civil War of Epic Proportions

  Moderna and Merck’s Cancer Vaccine Is the Advance We’ve Been Waiting For

  Why Some of America’s Biggest Brands Are Losing Ground in China

  Group Chats Might Be Full of Affiliate Links Soon

  Ross Stores Boosts Outlook on Growing Demand for Off-Price Retail

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• Morning News: August 20, 2026
  Eddy Elfenbein, August 20th, 2026 at 7:04 am

  Trump Says US Is Waging Economic Warfare Against Iran

  China Says Trump’s Economic Warfare Won’t Solve Iran Crisis

  Why Your Next Long-Haul Layover May Be in Seoul, Not Dubai

  The Troubling Global Ramifications of the EU’s Digital Markets Act

  Inflation Is Not the Only Worry for Gilt Yields

  The U.S. National Debt Hit a Record High of $40 Trillion

  How the $32 Trillion Treasury Market Influences the Economy

  U.S. Debt Soars and Scott Bessent Steps in as America’s Bond Trader in Chief

  Did Bessent Put the Fed in a Bind?

  Bessent Plan May Be Short-Lived Remedy for Bond Slump

  It Won’t Take Much to Burst the Stock Market Bubble

  One Big Thing Is Dragging Down Americans’ Vibes About the Economy

  More Than 150 Polymarket Wallets May Have Traded on Military Secrets, Research Finds

  Prediction Markets Are Turning Fake Election Polls Into a Real Threat

  The US Has Entered Its Aging, Endangered Hegemon Era

  ‘These Kids Today’ Will Be the Richest Grownups Ever

  A Landmark Supreme Court Ruling Is Upending How America Moves Its Goods

  A Modest Proposal: Net Zero Alarmists Must Live Their Alarm

  Rising Temperatures Are Threatening Some of America’s Best Fishing Destinations

  Warning Signs Are Flashing at America’s Overheating Landfills

  Hyperscalers’ Off-Grid Power Push Comes With Risks

  Data Centers Going Off-Grid Doesn’t Make Them Good Neighbors

  KKR Data Center Chief Vaults to Prominence With Nvidia Pact

  US Lead in the AI Race With China Is Rapidly Narrowing

  Meta Has Quietly Become One of Microsoft’s Largest AI Customers

  Whistleblower Arturo Béjar Leads Testimony in Landmark Child-Safety Trial Against Meta

  Alibaba Posts Weaker Earnings Amid Heavy AI Investments

  Walmart Posts Weakest Sales Growth in Over Six Years

  US Alcoholic Beverage Consumption Stabilizes at a Historic Low

  From Covid to Cancer: How Moderna’s Stock Jumped 177% in a Day

  Labubu Maker Could Miss Revenue Goal as Sales Momentum Fades

  China Sentences Evergrande’s Hui to Life for ‘Heinous’ Crime

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• Morning News: August 19, 2026
  Eddy Elfenbein, August 19th, 2026 at 7:07 am

  UAE Cuts Economic Ties With Iran After Missiles Target Territory

  Europe Girds for Another Hike in Energy Bills This Winter

  How the Iran War Made Africa’s Richest Man Even Richer

  Trump Delays Canada Tariffs at 11th Hour, Saying Deal Close

  Why Canada’s Booze Ban Is Such a Sore Point in Trade Talks

  Trump’s Broken Promises, in 11 Charts

  JD Vance’s Policies Run Counter to His Middle Class Embrace

  Investors Set Sights on Swiss Franc for Popular Carry Trades After Yen Intervention

  Anti-Tax Sentiment Is Trending, Even In the Bluest States

  The Ultrawealthy Tax Maneuver That’s Spooking Schwab and Fidelity

  How to Protect Your Portfolio From Inflation

  The Rising Stakes of the Global Bond Rout

  Why Wall Street Thinks the Brutal Bond Rout Is Just Getting Started

  Bond Traders Are Hedging the Risk Fed Pivots to Cuts in 2027

  SK Hynix Moves to Calm Market With $29 Billion Share Buyback

  US Pending Home Sales Slide to Weakest Since Start of Year

  US Housing Is a Buyer’s Market. Trouble Is, There Aren’t Many Buyers

  Lowe’s Cuts Outlook as Soft Housing Market Curbs Demand

  The Seniors Against Senior Housing

  Dear American Realtors, American Travel Agents Are Thriving

  How Wall St. Profits When Personal Injury Lawsuits Pay Out

  They Were Paying Their Student Loans. Then the Rules Changed

  Can Building a Better Mosquito Finally Beat Malaria?

  New Kindergarten Vaccine Data Has RFK Jr.’s Stamp All Over It

  Moderna, Merck Shares Surge After Melanoma Vaccine Success

  Europe Pushes for Moonshot Breakthroughs to Compete With China and U.S.

  Unitree Robotics Surges 460% After $904 Million Shanghai IPO

  AI Pioneer Fei-Fei Li Warns of Risks From Growing Tech Backlash

  Tech Deploys Charm Offensive to Combat AI Data Center Backlash

  Apple Must Heed the Lessons of Meta’s ‘Pervert’ Glasses

  How a Network of Crime-Fighting Cameras Sparked a Privacy Backlash

  Target Boosts Sales Outlook as Recovery Efforts Gain Ground

  TJ Maxx Owner’s Plan to Open More Stores Hits Shares After Beat

  Big Food’s Biggest Challenge: People Who Don’t Want to Eat Anymore

  The ‘Betting Coup’ Shaking Up Horse Racing

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