Treasurys, Jurgen Klopp, Naval Academy, Palantir, Jeff Bezos, Mo Salah, Reed Hastings

Marc Ross Daily.png

Treasurys, Jurgen Klopp, Naval Academy, Palantir, Jeff Bezos, Mo Salah, Reed Hastings

Marc Ross Daily
April 25, 2018
Curation and commentary from Marc A. Ross

Reporting from Alexandria, Virginia

Marc Ross Daily  = Global Business News at the Intersection of Politics + Policy + Profits

Subscribe here
https://goo.gl/bSQKwA

TOP FIVE

✔️ Global stocks extend slide after Treasurys hit 3%

✔️ Naval Academy sees big boost in cybersecurity majors

✔️ GOP retains House seat in Arizona

✔️ Andreessen Horowitz plans to create a cryptocurrency fund

✔️ Inside Jeff Bezos’s DC life

ROSS IN THE NEWS

Self-promo alert: Spoke with Rachelle Akuffo on CGTN-America's Global Business program regarding steps Beijing can take to improve intellectual property rights for companies selling good and services to Chinese consumers.

It's a big challenge for China, but an issue that the nation must address if it hopes to move up the economic development ladder and ensure consumer safety.

You can watch the segment here: http://bit.ly/2HvRyDr

GEOECONOMICS

Global stocks extend slide after Treasurys hit 3%: WSJ reports, global stocks fell, echoing a decline on Wall Street after the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield hit 3% and industrial giants struck a cautious note for the months ahead. 

This morning's European trading saw the Stoxx Europe 600 fall 0.8%, after slides of 1% and 0.3% in Hong Kong and Japan respectively.

Guardian: Finland to end basic income trial after two years

"Government rejects request for funds to expand scheme and plans stricter benefits rules"

Malta + Bitcoin: Two of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges plan to make the tiny European nation a central hub of their operations.

Icelandic fugitive in bitcoin heist arrested in Amsterdam: AP reports, Amsterdam police have arrested an Icelandic fugitive suspected of masterminding the theft of hundreds of computers used to mine bitcoin and other virtual currencies. Police spokesman Rob van der Veen confirmed Monday that Sindri Thor Stefansson was arrested Sunday night in downtown Amsterdam. He declined to give further details, saying that prosecutors will now work on Stefansson’s extradition.

Brexit: Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool manager, says Britain should have another referendum on the EU because Brexit "makes no sense at all."

FT: Macron makes long-term investment in Trump

Macron is on Capitol Hill today to address a joint session of Congress. 

North Korea’s nuclear test site has collapsed, scientists confirm: SCMP reports, North Korea’s mountain nuclear test site has collapsed, putting China and other nearby nations at unprecedented risk of radioactive exposure, two separate groups of Chinese scientists studying the issue have confirmed. 

Incoming US Pacific Command chief wants to increase presence near China: Defense News reports, the nominee to be the next chief of the U.S. forces in the Pacific has called for an increase in U.S. forces from all three services stationed in the vital region, adding that China is now effectively able to control the South China Sea and challenge the U.S. presence in the region. 

US Navy gearing up for boost in submarine production: AP reports, the U.S. Navy is working to build three attack submarines in some years as opposed to two, and wants to keep five of its attack submarines in service longer than expected to address a dip in the number of nuclear-powered attack submarines in coming years. 

Naval Academy sees big boost in cybersecurity majors: AP reports, the U.S. Naval Academy has seen a big increase in cyber operations majors, and a U.S. senator said Monday that midshipmen could be useful in working on cyber challenges before they graduate. 

The Shanghai Stock Exchange has signed an MoU with the UAE to open an international exchange alongside the Abu Dhabi Global Market.

Trump to send Mnuchin to China for trade talks next week: WSJ reports, “I think we’ve got a very good chance of making a deal,” said Mr. Trump, who called China’s leader Xi Jinping “a friend of mine,” but noted that there remained significant obstacles to a deal. “They trade with us,” the president said. “We can’t trade with them.” The members of the U.S. team will include Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, National Economic Council director Larry Kudlow and White House trade adviser Peter Navarro. Mr. Trump didn’t say specifically when next week the trip would occur, but a person familiar with the discussions said the team is likely to be in Beijing around May 3 and May 4.

AP: China says it welcomes visit by US officials amid trade spat

SCMP: Trump to send high-level US delegation to China for trade talks

Caixin: Trump sees 'good chance' of
trade agreement with China

AMERICAN POLITICS

GOP retains House seat in Arizona: WSJ reports, Republican Debbie Lesko won Tuesday’s special election for a House seat in Arizona, defeating Democrat Hiral Tipirneni in a heavily Republican district that the party spent more than $1 million to retain.

Republicans and Democrats should be worried about 2020: A new projection of the voting population shows demographic problems for Republicans and Electoral College problems for Democrats. https://53eig.ht/2vKkfuz

Trump's travel ban faces Supreme Court reckoning: Reuters reports, Trump's administration goes before the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to defend the legality of his travel ban targeting people from several Muslim-majority countries, one of the most contentious actions of his presidency.

Bloomberg: Engineers are leaving Trump's America for the Canadian dream

"The long wait for green cards was bad enough. Antagonism toward immigrants is pushing skilled foreigners across the border."

New Yorker: McMaster and commander http://bit.ly/2KahZQB

"Can a national-security adviser retain his integrity if the President has none?"

Pay me: Atlanta reportedly spent more than $2.6 million responding to a ransomware attack that destabilized municipal operations last month after attackers infected the city's systems with pernicious malware and asked for a ransom of roughly $50,000 worth of bitcoin. 

Inside Jeff Bezos’s DC life: The Amazon founder and Washington Post owner has quietly become a freewheeling DC socialite—and soon he'll be spending more time here, in the mammoth Kalorama home his family is renovating. What brought the tech giant to town in the first place? And what does he do, exactly, while he's around? The story of how the world's richest man is becoming a Washingtonian. http://bit.ly/2qVsezB

Apple CEO Tim Cook, FedEx’s Fred Smith, IBM’s Ginni Rometty and media mogul Rupert Murdoch were among the guests at the state dinner for French President Macron in Washington last night.

The reinvention of America: Americans don’t realize how fast the country is moving toward becoming a better version of itself.
Atlantic - James Fallows

“Organization don’t mean shit”: Inside the beginning of the end of the Clinton campaign: In an excerpt from her new book, Chasing Hillary, the author explains how a group of perspicacious—and pretty miserable—Clinton campaign reporters knew the candidate’s electoral hopes were imperiled all the way back in Iowa, in early 2016. http://bit.ly/2vHesGq

ENTERPRISE

Amazon is in talks to acquire TV shopping channel Evine Live.

Amazon is reportedly working on a domestic robot, code-named Vesta.

Amazon launches a ‘lite’ Android web browser app in India.

WSJ: The ‘Amazon Effect’ stings consumer-staples stocks

FT: Reed Hastings, the Netflix chief with a global vision


"His international outlook has disrupted the television industry and our viewing habits"

AFP: Global carmakers show off SUVs, electrics as China promises reforms

Ferrari
has been quietly working on a hybrid car. 

WSJ: Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi hits accelerator on talks for IPO

Google and Facebook likely to benefit from Europe’s privacy crackdown
: WSJ reports, big tech companies gain while smaller online ad firms are squeezed under the European Union’s GDPR, which takes effect in May.

Andreessen Horowitz plans to create a cryptocurrency fund. 

Bitcoin is the greatest scam in history: It’s a colossal pump-and-dump scheme, the likes of which the world has never seen. http://bit.ly/2Jqviey

A big bet bet on the future of gambling in the US: Canadian poker giant Stars Group Inc. purchased UK-based Sky Betting & Gambling -- the world’s largest publicly traded online gambling company -- for $4.7 billion.

The Times: Comcast makes firm £22bn offer for Sky

Reuters: Google overhauls Gmail to lure businesses away from Microsoft

Palantir knows everything about you: Peter Thiel’s data-mining company is using War on Terror tools to track American citizens. The scary thing? Palantir is desperate for new customers. https://bloom.bg/2I1B3QB

TRENDS

How streaming will continue to change everything in the music business: The next revolution in the music business will not be a new consumer-facing format or a visionary product. The next revolution is financial and multifaceted with wide implications, and it’s already started. http://bit.ly/2FcB7tH

What will cannabis legalization mean for music? As weed goes corporate, so might its relationship with musicians and artists. How Canadian pot regulations, marketing laws and criminalization of people of color will affect music and cannabis. http://bit.ly/2Hrp956

CULTURE

RIP: Bob Dorough, who set numbers and grammar to music in ‘Schoolhouse Rock!,’ dies at 94

What Manhattan's land is worth http://bit.ly/2KaHcdA

"The forthcoming paper in Regional Science and Urban Economics estimates that in 2014, the developable land in Manhattan—excluding parks, roads, and highways—was worth between $1.54 and $1.95 trillion, for an average of $1.74 trillion. That figure is significantly larger than the combined market capitalization of the world’s three largest corporations that year, and similar to the economic output of Canada, the world’s 10th-largest economy."

SOTD

Nothing But Thieves - Amsterdam http://bit.ly/2Hs4olS

SPORT

Champions League: Mo Salah leads Liverpool to 5-2 victory over Roma

NBA Playoffs: teams advancing:

New Orleans
Golden State
Philadelphia

China's IPR Challenge

Caracal Global founder Marc A. Ross poke with Rachelle Akuffo on CGTN-America's Global Business program regarding steps Beijing can take to improve intellectual property rights for companies selling good and services to Chinese consumers.

It's a big challenge for China, but an issue that the nation must address if it hopes to move up the economic development ladder and ensure consumer safety.

China 2025, Macron, Pompeo, Caterpillar, Wine, Avicii, Champions League

Marc Ross Daily.png

China 2025, Macron, Pompeo, Caterpillar, Wine, Avicii, Champions League

Marc Ross Daily
April 24, 2018
Curation and commentary from Marc A. Ross

Reporting from Alexandria, Virginia

Marc Ross Daily  = Global Business News at the Intersection of Politics + Policy + Profits

Subscribe here
https://goo.gl/bSQKwA

TOP FIVE

✔️ How ‘Made in China 2025’ became the real threat in a trade war

✔️ India and China jostle for influence in Iran and Central Asia

✔️ Macron visits Trump

✔️ Panel backs Pompeo for Secretary of State

✔️ Global wine output fell to its lowest level in 60 years

GEOECONOMICS

LAT: How ‘Made in China 2025’ became the real threat in a trade war: Made in China 2025 is at the core of a trade dispute with Washington that threatens to cripple the global economy. So what is it? https://lat.ms/2KbtQ0T

US brands suffer collateral damage in Chinese corporate war: AP reports, as the Trump administration pushes China to play by fair trade rules, companies are caught in a quieter but no less crucial struggle for fair access to a $610 billion online marketplace, an AP investigation has found. Executives from five major consumer brands told the AP that after they refused to enter exclusive partnerships with Alibaba, traffic to their Tmall storefronts fell, hurting sales.

In ZTE battle, U.S. suppliers are collateral damage: WSJ reports, American companies that supply chips, antennas and other gear to ZTE are bracing for a sizable revenue loss after the U.S. said they no longer would be able to sell components to the Chinese telecommunications giant.

China fails to get Indian support for Belt and Road ahead of summit: Reuters reports, China failed to get India's support for its ambitious Belt and Road infrastructure project at the end of a foreign ministers' meeting of a major security bloc on Tuesday, ahead of an ice-breaking trip to China this week by India's prime minister.

India and China jostle for influence in Iran and Central Asia: Nikkei reports, New Delhi's 7,000km transport corridor cuts across Beijing's Belt and Road.

Weak business morale from Germany, France, Italy points to slowdown: Reuters reports, business morale in Germany, France and Italy -- the euro zone's three biggest economies -- deteriorated in April as a stronger currency and capacity constraints limited output, signaling that growth in the currency bloc has reached its peak.

WSJ: Macron visits Trump, hoping to bridge policy gaps

NYT: Macron hopes
bond with Trump will help save Iran deal

Trump participates in a joint press availability with the President of France @ 11:45 am ET

'No jeans' rule causes boules blues in France: AFP reports, must one be nattily dressed to play boules? Rules outlawing the wearing of jeans during the national championship in France have provoked an outcry from fans of the famed Gallic game. Often played in parks, traditionally with a glass of wine or aniseed liquor in hand, boules or "petanque" is usually an informal affair in France that unites young and old from all social backgrounds.

AMERICAN POLITICS

After vote switch, panel backs Pompeo for Secretary of State: NYT reports, minutes before a Senate committee vote, Senator Rand Paul, Republican of Kentucky, bowed to pressure and backed the confirmation of Mike Pompeo to be secretary of state, avoiding a major rebuke of Trump.

Reuters: Senate committee paves way for Pompeo to become top U.S. diplomat

WP: Senate to delay confirmation hearing for Jackson to head Veterans Affairs

Trump's next $100 billion tariff dilemma: hit Wal-Mart or Apple Store?
Reuters reports, U.S. consumers may be about to directly feel the effects of the trade fight started by U.S. President Trump with China and other countries this year when a new list of Chinese imports to be taxed is announced in coming days.

Trump is pushing hard to reach NAFTA agreement, both with trading partners and with Congress: LAT reports, the administration is trying to beat political deadlines and wrap up talks on NAFTA.

ENTERPRISE

Caterpillar raised its earnings forecast in a sign that industries from mining to energy are shrugging off trade tensions and gaining momentum. Shares surged.

Great sign for the global economy - expansion continues

Reuters: Softbank, Google join $1.9 billion investment in China truck-hailing firm

FT: NYSE challenges NASDAQ’s reign as king of the tech IPO


Bloomberg: The Chinese car invasion is coming to America

Starbucks
 is embracing the drive-thru lane - 80% of all its new U.S. cafes will have them. 

Amazon can now deliver packages to your car: WSJ reports, the e-commerce company said it has teamed with General Motors and Volvo Cars to start offering in-car deliveries, giving its couriers access to potentially millions of vehicles in 37 U.S. markets.

Reuters: To beat porch thieves, Amazon slips packages in car trunks

WeWork aims to tap debt markets in expansion drive: FT reports, shared office space provider valued at $20bn by last year’s SoftBank investment.    

Ford changed leaders, looking for a lift. It’s still looking. NYT reports, after 11 months as chief, Jim Hackett has yet to satisfy those looking for a clear articulation of a strategy. But big moves could be in the offing.

FT: Puma prepares to shift production from China over tariff fears

Volkswagen to invest $18bn in China by 2022
: Nikkei reports, new chief Diess says to builds six EV plants in world's largest auto market.

Reuters: Arrested Chevron workers could face treason charge in Venezuela - sources

Wine: Global wine output fell to its lowest level in 60 years in 2017 due to poor weather conditions in the European Union that slashed production in the bloc.

TRENDS

Reuters: Music streaming overtakes physical sales for the first time: industry body

"Online streaming services such Spotify and Apple Music have become the music industry’s single biggest revenue source"

CULTURE

RIP Avicii: Hard-living Swedish ‘superstar DJ’ who made dance music anthems for millennials, but struggled with fame and anxiety.

Australia boy, 12, runs away to Bali usingfamily credit card: AFP reports, Australian police were Tuesday investigating how a 12-year-old boy managed to fly alone to the Indonesian island of Bali and spend four days at a resort using his parents' credit card. The boy ran away from his Sydney home after a row with his mother, flying first to the Western Australian city of Perth on budget airline Jetstar and then on to Bali, according to commercial broadcaster Channel Nine.

SOTD

Avicii - Wake Me Up http://bit.ly/2vEQv2v

SPORT

Carlo Ancelotti is set to be given the job of reviving the fortunes of Italy's national team, according to reports on Tuesday.

Champions League - Semi-Finals:

Tuesday = Liverpool v Roma @ 2:45pm ET
Wednesday = Bayern v Real Madrid @ 2:45pm ET

May 1 = Real Madrid v Bayern @ 2:45 pm ET
May 2 = Roma v Liverpool @ 2:45 pm ET