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Someone with a lot of money to spend has taken a bearish stance on Block SQ And retail traders should know We noticed this today when the big position showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at Benzinga Whether this is an institution or just a wealthy individual we don t know But when something this big happens with SQ it often means somebody knows something is about to happen So how do we know what this whale just did The overall sentiment of these big money traders is split between 41 bullish and 58 bearish Out of all of the special options we uncovered 5 are puts for a total amount of 314160 and 7 are calls for a total amount of 336996 Taking into account the Volume and Open Interest on these contracts it appears that whales have been targeting a price range from 300 to 2300 for Block over the last 3 months Looking at the volume and open interest is an insightful way to conduct due diligence on a stock This data can help you track the liquidity and interest for Block s options for a given strike price Below we can observe the evolution of the volume and open interest of calls and puts respectively for all of Block s whale activity within a strike price range from 300 to 2300 in the last 30 days Block Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days Where Is Block Standing Right Now With a volume of 8648870 the price of SQ is down 018 at 5582 RSI indicators hint that the underlying stock is currently neutral between overbought and oversold Next earnings are expected to be released in 16 days What The Experts Say On Block Mizuho downgraded its action to Neutral with a price target of 57 Deutsche Bank has decided to maintain their Buy rating on Block which currently sits at a price target of 95 Truist Securities has decided to maintain their Buy rating on Block which currently sits at a price target of 85 Atlantic Equities has decided to maintain their Overweight rating on Block which currently sits at a price target of 75 Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock but they have higher profit potential Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily scaling in and out of trades following more than one indicator and following the markets closely If you want to stay updated on the latest options trades for Block Benzinga Pro gives you real time options trades alerts

Clever Leaves Holdings Inc NASDAQCLVR NASDAQCLVRW has closed the sale of the assets including lab and processing equipment previously used in its EU GMP certified cannabis processing facility in Setúbal Portugal as controlled by its wholly owned subsidiary Clever Leaves Portugal Unipessoal Lda The assets were sold to Terra Verde Lda an affiliate of Curaleaf Holdings Inc CSECURA OTCQXCURLF for gross proceeds of approximately €25 million 27 million Proceeds from the sale are expected to improve Clever Leaves’ cash position Clever Leaves plans to use the proceeds for working capital and general corporate purposes The processing facility previously leased by the company which houses the lab and processing equipment includes 900 sq meters of EU GMP certified factory space and 750 sq meters of warehousing space Under the terms of the asset purchase agreement Terra Verde Lda has agreed to purchase the facility leasehold improvements all installed equipment needed for drying trimming curing and packaging and the facility’s current quality system procedures “Closing the sale of our Portuguese processing assets represents an important next step in the wind down of our Portuguese operations while consolidating our cultivation and manufacturing processes in our EU GMP certified facilities in Colombia” stated Andres Fajardo CEO of Clever Leaves “We are proud to have sold these assets to Curaleaf one of the most prominent global cannabis companies as it is a testament to the standards at which we operate and do business We would like to thank the Curaleaf team for their partnership in this sale process and we will work towards completing the sale of our remaining Portuguese agricultural asset which we expect to sell by the end of this calendar year Photo Benzinga edit with photos by jarmoluk and lindsayfox on Pixabay Related News Partnership Will Supply Medical Cannabis Extracts To Czech Republic Switzerland Clever Leaves Teams Up With SOMAÍ Pharma Completes First CBD Extract Shipments To Portugal

Tomorrow 25 or 50 which side are you on Thank you so much for having me Kathleen it s a pleasure to be here And tomorrow I am on 25 They are going to make it to any five basis point hike That s what I expect And that is also what is expected by many economists Given the data coming in the first month of 2023 I see no reason why they would do larger bigger hike and just surprise Marcus unexpectedly There is no reason to go to so gloomy A lot of focus on what Jay Powell the Fed chair says after that decision comes out the four or five paragraph policy statement And of course one of the big questions for him is going to be are you ready to pause On the other side of that will be is the job finished or not The job is definitely not finished and I expect they come forcefully on this message during the press conference In fact they really should address this disconnect between the financial markets and themselves head on at the press conference and reiterate that monetary policy is going to have a restrictive stance to all 2023 financial markets right now pricing in rate cuts because they expect their recession in the second half of 2023 And it s extremely important for Fed to push back on that narrative and reiterate their hawkish stance and the fact that they are going to stave it restrict the monetary policy all the way in 2023 until the job gets done And what will Powell stressed when he talks about inflation Is he going to talk about the fact that yes the consumer prices are the PCG flavors year over year have definitely started to come down Or is he going to stress that there are key metrics like core services P C E core service services less rent which have not come down much at all and seem pretty steady at high levels probably levels or at least twice as high as they were before the pandemic before this cycle for the Fed You are right on Kathleen Hays So as I have always been pointing out since the start of this episode during last three years you do need to have a sector a look sector approach to this demand supply imbalances Inflation is on right track It is coming down Headline inflation peak and coming down But that s mainly because inflation in the goods producing sector is coming down And that s because demand is now lower in that sector But services sector is a totally and other story there The tight labor market wage pressure still is the narrative of the day in the services sector and said is going to focus on that squarely So they said repeatedly they want to see labor market softening especially in the services sector ex shelter because that s what is going to bring the rage pressure wage growth down in that sector And that s what is going to bring the overall inflation core inflation down I mean imagine a scenario where services inflation proven to be stigma that is going to make life very difficult for Fed because that means they are going to do several more hikes And in that sense I expect another 25 basis points during the March meeting And then David Paul OK And this still leaves the room open for do another one in May But they are not reading the powers before they see a softening of the services sector Inflation and softening of the labour market is here to stay Yeah Sheboygan it s a poll here in Sydney You mentioned a moment ago that the market s anticipating a recession It s not hard to see why we re going to China here on the Bloomberg terminal That indicates a number of recession warning lights flashing including the yield curve remaining inverted So who s got this right Is there going to be a recession or will they be that soft landing if it s looking for Paul you re right There is a lot of uncertainty in reading this data because at the end of the day the data that will give you a soft landing and the data that will give you there is a recession down the road is pretty much similar at this point But my own view is that even there is a recession that is going to be mild We are going to living through an immaculate inflation and soft landing And that s again mostly because the inflation start easing through the supply chain issues easing and the demand at least in the goods producing sector easing And today s ECI suggests that now employment costs also in the services sector started easing All that is pointing to a mild recession immaculate inflation and soft landing Now this doesn t mean you know this can go into a reverse recession That is still a possibility But I see that risk lower So I think the Fed on this and I think market needs they just said what is the terminal rates we re going to be on for and after four and three quarters Where do we need to be at So if this labor market tightness stay and if the softening in the labor market in terms of services sector takes longer than expected that means we are looking at a terminal rate of five and even over five five point one to five And if they do another 25 basis point hike in the March meeting that is going to put Fed right around that vicinity which will still really leave the room for yet another hike or pausing in the May meeting But tight labor market means we have to be around five and over if it takes longer than expected to see a serious softening in the labor market and services sectors want to get in And one more question on China The China reopening so many were skeptical that beginning all they d push back People will start dying They turn the turn back the way they were Now they look so full speed ahead The Chinese government leading this all forward What does this mean for the US the Federal Reserve the global economy and inflation which the Fed is still fighting So China reopening overall is going to be a very good story in my opinion Yes it is going to work through several channels But the two key channel is going to work through is the boost to global demand and global growth And also finally full resolution of the entire supply chain issue because China is as a big role in the global supply chain and global production network And when they kept doing the lockdowns unfortunately that cake kept gumming up the global supply chains and global production network So finally we have a full resolution of that that is going to help to ease inflation Of course the pent up demand coming from Chinese consumers and the demand for Chinese producers for imports and the pressure on commodity prices is going to add positive on the inflation side But I think that is going to be muted because it is also a positive supply shock On the other inputs and production I expect the imports mainly working through global demand Global growth boosting gold And that s good news right Because that eliminates the stagflation scenario and gives more power to all central banks to keep staying hawkish

Nabis announced three new exclusive distribution partnerships with California born brands Papa’s Herb Humboldt Farms and Friendly Farms Legal state cannabis retailers will now have access to the Papa’s Herb nostalgic product line made “by the people for the people” in addition to Humboldt Farms’ sun grown flower and concentrates and Friendly Farms’ TruSpectrum extracts Using Nabis’ marketplace logistics technology and short term financing solutions these brands will be able to accelerate their growth across the state “We were looking for a new distribution platform that could not only help us scale but guide our sales activities in California’s complex market” stated Max Benitah COO of Papa’s Herb “As an operator that understands the ever changing nuances of the cannabis industry Nabis’ technology backed model was quickly identified as the best partner to support us in expanding our footprint” The Nabis portal offers all of its partners a comprehensive suite of supply chain management tools tech forward logistics to inform business strategy and access to Nabis Capital—a financial service integrated directly into the portal designed to support the volatile cash cycles often created by selling to retailers on net terms Additionally Nabis’ one stop shop marketplace platform enables streamlined communications and timely distribution deliveries between brands and retailers “Nabis’ unique platform offers brands and retailers the ability to buy sell and communicate with each other directly while also sharing the goal of stabilizing and growing the state’s industry and accessibility” stated Zach Rubin co founder of Humboldt Farms “We have a rich history in California having always maintained a strong focus on fostering our community and nurturing our close retailer relationships so this was important to us in choosing an exclusive partner” Photo Benzinga edit with photos by geralt and lindsayfox on Pixabay Related News California Cannabis Industry Alliance Backs Assemblymember Phil Ting s Credit Law Bill Wholesale Platform Nabis Opens The Single Largest Facility Dedicated For Cannabis Distribution

US unemployment insurance filings fell for a fourth straight week to the lowest levels since May Investors meanwhile focused on some notable insider trades When insiders sell shares it indicates their concern in the company’s prospects or that they view the stock as being overpriced Either way this signals an opportunity to go short on the stock Insider sales should not be taken as the only indicator for making an investment or trading decision At best it can lend conviction to a selling decision Below is a look at a few recent notable insider sales For more check out Benzinga s insider transactions platform Genpact The Trade Genpact Limited NYSEG Senior Vice President Balkrishan Kalra sold a total of 8730 shares at an average price of 4740 The insider received around 41377 thousand from selling those shares What’s Happening The company last month posted upbeat quarterly earnings What Genpact Does Genpact Ltd is a provider of business process management services Clients are industry verticals and operate in banking and financial services insurance capital markets consumer product goods life sciences infrastructure manufacturing and services healthcare and high tech Also check this These Analysts Slash Price Targets On NIO Plus Wells Fargo Predicts 120 For PayPal Intuit The Trade Intuit Inc NASDAQINTU EVP SBSEG Alexander James Chriss sold a total of 8702 shares at an average price of 42828 The insider received around 373 million as a result of the transaction What’s Happening Citigroup recently initiated coverage on Intuit with a Buy rating and announced a price target of 538 What Intuit Does Intuit is a provider of small business accounting software QuickBooks personal tax solutions TurboTax and professional tax offerings Lacerte Have a look at our premarket coverage here Palo Alto Networks The Trade Palo Alto Networks Inc NYSEPANW EVP Chief Product Officer Lee Klarich sold a total of 3866 shares at an average price of 53054 The insider received around 205 million from selling those shares What’s Happening Atlantic Equities recently initiated coverage on Palo Alto Networks with a Neutral rating and announced a price target of 495 What Palo Alto Networks Does Palo Alto Networks is a pure play cybersecurity vendor that sells security appliances subscriptions and support into enterprises government entities and service providers

Shares of Swedish music streaming platform Spotify Technology SPOTN down 168 at 15967 and on track for record one day pct loss with brisk trading volume after weaker than expected Q1 subscriber numbers read more SPOT shares have also been hit recently by a COVID 19 mininformation backlash related to its continued streaming of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast on its platform Neil Young removed his music from Spotify and artists including Joni Mitchell followed suit in protest of Rogan s COVID 19 views The stock had some brief support earlier in the week after prominent vaccine skeptic Rogan apologized and Spotify promised content advisory for episodes with COVID discussions About 270 scientists and medical professionals had written to urge Spotify to prevent Rogan spreading falsehoods read more At least 5 brokerages cut their PTs on stock after Wednesday s news read more SPOT shares have fallen 32 so far in 2022 after already tumbling 256 in 2021 Benchmark kept buy rating saying long term story intact but it cut price target to 260 from 300 Of 30 analysts covering SPOT 18 rate it buy or strong buy while 8 rate it hold and 4 rate it sell or strong sell their median PT is 255 down from 310 in early Jan according to Refinitiv Data Credit Suisse says it remains concerned regarding content costs as music labels will remain difficult partners and it expects leading podcast talent to be pricey when renewing exclusive contracts in coming years adding that competition might restrain pricing power and platform monetization Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru Sinéad Carew in New York

The most oversold stocks in the industrials sector presents an opportunity to buy into undervalued companies The RSI is a momentum indicator which compares a stock s strength on days when prices go up to its strength on days when prices go down When compared to a stock s price action it can give traders a better sense of how a stock may perform in the short term An asset is typically considered oversold when the RSI is below 30 Here’s the latest list of major oversold players in this sector having an RSI near or below 30 Interface Inc NASDAQTILE Truist Securities downgraded the stock from Buy to Hold and lowered its price target from 13 to 9 The company’s stock has a 52 week low of 843 RSI Value 2981 TILE Price Action Shares of Interface gained 13 to close at 891 on Monday Emerson Electric Co NYSEEMR Emerson Electric reported worse than expected Q1 adjusted EPS and sales results The company’s stock has a 52 week low of 7241 RSI Value 2997 EMR Price Action Shares of Emerson Electric fell 01 to close at 8210 on Monday The Shyft Group Inc NASDAQSHYF Shyft Group reported worse than expected Q4 sales and issued weak FY23 guidance The company’s stock has a 52 week low of 1766 RSI Value 2605 SHYF Price Action Shares of Shyft Group fell 01 to close at 2553 on Monday PACCAR Inc NASDAQPCAR PACCAR reported better than expected Q4 EPS and sales results The company’s 52 week low is 5133 RSI Value 2485 PCAR Price Action Shares of PACCAR fell 03 to close at 7211 on Monday Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings Inc NASDAQAAWW Atlas Air Worldwide posted weaker than expected quarterly earnings The company has a 52 week low of 5870 RSI Value 2649 AAWW Price Action Shares of Atlas Air Worldwide dropped 04 to close at 10136 on Monday Read More Investor Optimism Improves After US Stocks Close Higher

Powell suggested that more interest rate hikes may be coming even though the Fed may slow the pace of increases US stock indexes finished a volatile session with losses on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve announced the fourth straight jumbo increase in its benchmark interest rate and hinted at a potential slowdown in its effort to tighten monetary policy to bring down inflation However Powell said in his press conference that it is very premature to be thinking about pausing the rise in rates and the ultimate target for increases in its policy rate may be higher than previously expected On Tuesday the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 80 points or 024 to 32653 the SP 500 declined 16 points or 041 to 3856 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 97 points or 089 to 10891 The Nasdaq Composite is up 55 from its 2022 closing low but remains down 304 for the year to date The Federal Reserve on Wednesday approved the fourth straight jumbo increase in its benchmark interest rate extending a rapid pace of hikes that brings the rate to the highest level in 15 years By a unanimous vote the Fed hiked its rate by 075 percentage points to a range of 375 to 4 Also for the first time the central bank signaled it would watch closely whether this rapid pace might eventually damage the economy with a lag See Fed approves another jumbo interest rate hike adds dovish language on way forward Chairman Jerome Powell acknowledged in a press conference after the announcement that at some point it will be appropriate to slow the pace of increases but he also said it is very premature to talk about a pause in raising interest rates Powell emphasized that the FOMC has more work to do and he suggested that the ultimate level of the federal funds may be higher than the committee expected in September US stocks rallied after the central bank s announcement but a more hawkish than expected Powell who spoke only thirty minutes after the statement sent stocks sharply lower and Treasury yields and fed funds futures higher US benchmark bond yields turned higher with the yield on the policy sensitive 2 year Treasury rose 3 basis points to 4568 from 4538 on Tuesday Wednesday s level is the highest since Oct 20 based on 3 pm figures from Dow Jones Market Data The market is now pricing in a nearly 52 chance of just a half percentage point rate increase at the Fed s December 14 meeting according to the CME FedWatch Tool That would leave the Fed funds rate in a range of 425 to 45 With rates now well into restrictive territory the Fed can afford to slow the pace of rate hikes partly to assess what impact the near 400bp of cumulative tightening is having said Paul Ashworth chief North America economist at Capital Economics in a note sent to clients after the Fed s annoucement Barring another upside inflation surprise in the October and November CPI reports which we can t completely rule out it looks like the Fed is laying the groundwork to shift down to a 50bp hike in December and if we re right that core inflation will start to show signs of slowing soon a 25bp rate hike at the January meeting next year See Here s how Fed Day stock market performance stacks up under Jerome Powell In US economic data reported earlier Wednesday payroll services firm ADP said the private sector added 239000 jobs in October Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal earlier forecasted an increase of 195000 jobs I think the ADP data was a bit more robust than folks thought said Timothy Holland chief investment officer at Orion Advisor Solutions The market is really hoping that the Fed can credibly pivot to just a 50 basis point rate hike in December and then maybe even downshift from there in 2023 according to Holland You ve seen some softness in the economy but you re not really seeing it in the labor market necessarily And can the Fed credibly downshift if you re not getting softness on the jobs front And that s the big question Holland said Also helping support stocks was a well received earnings report from chipmaker AMD AMD delivered after Tuesday s closing bell Companies reporting on Wednesday include Paramount Global PARA Zillow Z and eBay EBAY Meanwhile in China investors continued to bet on rumors that Beijing was considering relaxing its COVID 19 lockdown policy The Hang Seng China Enterprises index which closed on Monday at a 17 year low having fallen about 40 so far in 2022 took its two day rebound to 82 Separately China has ordered a seven day lockdown of the area around Foxconn Technology Group s main plant in Zhengzhou which houses the world s largest iPhone factory

The Houston based natural gas pipeline company filed for bankruptcy voluntarily in the US Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington Del Ruby directly owned by Ruby Investment Company LLC listed assets and liabilities of as much as 1 billion each according to the court filing Amazon Union Tallies Near Finish With Close Votes in New York Alabama Unionization votes for Amazoncom Inc workers in two states drew nearer to conclusion Thursday with the tally at an Alabama warehouse close enough to require a hearing while labor organizers were narrowly leading the contest at another facility in New York Out of more than 2000 votes counted in Alabama including contested ballots about 43 voted against unionization with about 38 voting for a union The remaining ballots are contested and will be reviewed in a hearing according to the National Labor Relations Board GameStop Corp said it would request shareholder approval at its annual meeting for an increase in the number of shares of the videogame retailer to enable a stock split The company said the request would increase the number of authorized shares of common stock to 1 billion from 300 million It had 7634 million shares outstanding as of March 11 JCPenney s CEO Is Done Chasing New Customers We Are Loving Those Who Love Us JCPenney s new chief executive isn t trying to win new customers or court younger hipper buyers Instead Marc Rosen hopes to revive the 120 year old retailer by focusing on those who already shop there budget conscious American families That is a departure from predecessors who tried to woo millennials appliance buyers and even yoga enthusiasts to name a few Those strategies failed to keep the chain out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020 Its new owners installed Mr Rosen the great grandson of a department store owner last November He previously worked for Walmart Inc and Levi Strauss Co Judges in New York and Miami ruled that investor lawsuits could advance against Germany s Deutsche Bank AG for allegedly ignoring warnings that it was helping finance a real estate linked Ponzi scheme Cayman Islands liquidators won rulings Tuesday and Wednesday in separate lawsuits in Florida and New York alleging that Deutsche Bank helped facilitate a wide ranging fraud by Biscayne Capital International LLC an investment advisory firm US employment growth continued at a solid clip in March economists say amid an easing pandemic and signs that more Americans are returning to the labor force Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal estimate that employers added 490000 jobs in March That would mark 11 straight monthly gains above 400000 the longest such stretch of growth in records dating back to 1939 Auto makers are expected to report weak vehicle sales for the quarter as chip shortages and supply chain issues continue to limit vehicle production Sales of new vehicles are projected to fall 16 in the first quarter from the year ago period and represent the second worst quarterly total in a decade behind the pandemic affected second quarter of 2020 according to Cox Automotive The eurozone s annual rate of inflation rose further in March beating forecasts and marking the highest print in history Consumer prices rose 75 on year in March after climbing 59 in February according to a first estimate released Friday by Eurostat the European Union s statistics agency Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal forecast eurozone inflation at 69 in March China Caixin Manufacturing PMI Falls to Lowest Level in Over Two Years A private gauge measuring activity in China s manufacturing sector tumbled to its lowest level in more than two years in March reflecting the impact of strict government measures to stamp out the highly transmissible Covid 19 Omicron variant sweeping the country The Caixin China purchasing managers index slipped to 481 in March from February s 504 hitting its lowest level since February 2020 according to data released Friday by Caixin Media Co and Markit Japan Manufacturing Sentiment Worsens for First Time in Seven Quarters TOKYO Sentiment among Japan s large manufacturers deteriorated in the three months to March for the first time in nearly two years reflecting concerns over the war in Ukraine and higher energy and raw material prices The main index for large manufacturers sentiment was plus 14 compared with plus 17 in the previous survey in December according to the Bank of Japan s quarterly tankan corporate survey released Friday The reading marked the first worsening in seven quarters and was lower than a projection for plus 12 from a poll of economists by data provider Quick After key Federal Reserve officials opened the door to raising interest rates by more than the customary quarter percentage point several of Wall Street s biggest banks now believe the increases will come in jumbo increments Major banks in recent days have predicted some combination of half percentage point rate rises by the Fed throughout the year The Fed usually moves its federal funds rate target by quarter percentage point increments but faced with surging inflation bringing the worst price pressures in 40 years economists believe aggressive action by the central bank is now likely KYIV Ukraine Ukrainian attack helicopters executed a low flying predawn raid on Russian territory Friday a Russian official said eluding air defenses to strike an oil depot and signaling Kyiv s ability to broaden the field of the war Security camera footage released by Russian state owned media channel RIA Novosti appeared to show several missiles firing at the depot and igniting explosions Vyacheslav Gladkov the regional governor of Belgorod wrote on social media that two Ukrainian helicopters carried out the operation while flying at low altitude Behind the Front Lines Russia s Military Struggles to Supply Its Forces Russia s army has suffered serious losses as it has battled fierce Ukrainian resistance Behind the front lines a less visible failure in supplying and maintaining the troops in the field has critically hobbled Moscow s invasion plans according to Western intelligence assessments Russia s weaknesses in logistics the tail of support and services that enable combat forces to live move communicate and fight were evident just days after the invasion was launched on Feb 24 They have continued weeks into the campaign according to Western officials and private military analysts Shanghai s Other Half Enters Lockdown as Reported Covid Cases Edge Down A wider swath of Shanghai went into lockdown early Friday as the second phase of a surprisingly stringent campaign against a Covid 19 outbreak kicked in From 3 am Friday residents living to the west and north of the city s Huangpu River weren t allowed to leave their homes except to receive Covid tests Their neighbors on the other side of the river had already been under lockdown from 5 am Monday with authorities extending restrictions in many buildings and neighborhoods where positive cases were found Russia Hands Control of Chernobyl Back to Ukraine Officials Say Russian forces transferred control of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant back to Ukrainian authorities according to the International Atomic Energy Agency the Ukrainian state nuclear company Energoatom and plant workers who said the departing troops also had taken more than 100 Ukrainian national guardsmen away in trucks as prisoners of war The Russian troops began leaving in phases on Tuesday and the entire Russian deployment had left the area by late Thursday That concluded a five week occupation of the defunct plant that began on the first afternoon of the Feb 24 invasion of Ukraine when Russian troops arrived at the plant the site of the world s worst nuclear accident State Department Warns of Continued Erosion of Freedoms in Hong Kong HONG KONG Political freedoms and the rule of law have continued to deteriorate in Hong Kong over the past year threatening American interests and Hong Kong s autonomy a US State Department report on the city s status to Congress said Thursday The annual report on conditions in Hong Kong painted a worsening landscape for the city on a number of fronts pointing to a continued clampdown on opposition politicians the shutdown of newspapers and new restrictions on participation in elections For the third year in a row the report said that Hong Kong wasn t sufficiently autonomous from mainland China to warrant special treatment from the US in trade and other areas WASHINGTON The House passed legislation aimed at capping the out of pocket cost for purchasing insulin with Democrats breaking off a piece of their dormant healthcare education and climate agenda to try to move the popular provision through Congress Under the bill which passed 232 193 people covered by private health insurance or Medicare s prescription drug benefit program would pay no more than 35 a month on insulin beginning in 2023 Twelve House Republicans joined Democrats in support of the bill A federal judge struck down parts of a sweeping Florida elections law passed last year by the Republican led state legislature saying certain measures were unconstitutional and targeted Black voters

Interpublic Group of Companies Inc reported earnings growth above Wall Street analyst expectations and said revenue jumped with contributions from across its portfolio The advertising holding company which owns agency groups such as McCann FCB and Mediabrands posted a profit of 2518 million or 64 cents a share compared with a profit of 2399 million or 60 cents a share in the same period a year ago Stripping out one time items adjusted earnings were 63 cents a share Analysts surveyed by FactSet had been expecting 59 cents a share Revenue for the quarter was 264 billion up from 254 billion last year Analysts had been expecting 228 billion according to FactSet

The US economy slowed in June to a five month low as demand in both the manufacturing and services sector declined amid high inflation data from a purchasing managers survey showed Thursday The SP Global Flash Composite Output Index fell to 512 in June from 536 in May its lowest since January The indicator which gauges activity in both the manufacturing and services sectors suggests that activity continued to expand but just slightly as the reading is barely above the 500 no change threshold The survey showed that activity in both the factory and services sector weakened markedly with production among manufacturers declining for the first time since the onset of the Covid 19 pandemic The survey data are consistent with the economy expanding at an annualized rate of less than 1 in June with the goods producing sector already in decline and the vast service sector slowing sharply said Chris Williamson chief business economist at SP Global The survey s deteriorating forward looking indicators set the stage for an economic contraction in the third quarter he said Both manufacturers and services providers reported faltering demand due to the rising cost of living and falling confidence leading to the first contraction in new orders since July 2020 There has been a remarkable drop in demand for goods and services during June compared to prior months Mr Williamson said The survey showed that the services sector continued to grow over the month but firms noted that the postpandemic boom is fading The flash US services PMI fell to 516 in June from 534 in May a five month low and missing the 533 consensus forecast from economists polled by The Wall Street Journal Goods producers reported the weakest growth in almost two years as both production and new orders declined The flash US manufacturing PMI decreased to 524 in June from 570 in May below economists estimates of 560 The survey data also signaled that the prices continued to rise but at a slower pace compared with previous months A corollary of the drop in demand was less pressure on prices with the survey s inflation gauges for firms costs and their selling prices falling sharply in June to suggest that although still elevated price pressures have peaked Mr Williamson said

Gainers VivoPower International PLC NASDAQVVPR shares surged 883 to 08701 in pre market trading as the company reported a definitive distribution agreement to distribute EV fleet charging solutions Lion Group Holding Ltd NASDAQLGHL shares rose 694 to 02119 in pre market trading Lion Group recently said FY22 EPS results were lower year over year GD Culture Group Limited NASDAQGDC shares gained 477 to 641 in pre market trading after gaining over 8 on Monday GD Culture recently announced an 1155 million registered direct offering ASP Isotopes Inc NASDAQASPI shares gained 308 to 05734 in pre market trading after declining around 7 on Monday Troika Media Group Inc NASDAQTRKA shares rose 271 to 02514 in pre market trading after the company reported a rise in third quarter sales Nanobiotix SA NASDAQNBTX rose 209 to 567 in pre market trading Nanobiotix recently announced it is entering into final contract negotiations after agreement to a non binding term sheet for development and commercialization of NBTXR3 with a major global pharmaceutical company Jiuzi Holdings Inc NASDAQJZXN shares climbed 208 to 02279 in pre market trading Jiuzi Holdings recently entered into a subscription agreement with selected accredited investors VirTra Inc NASDAQVTSI gained 132 to 670 in pre market trading after reporting better than expected quarterly sales Wearable Devices Ltd NASDAQWLDS rose 123 to 05117 in pre market trading after dropping more than 10 on Monday Dunxin Financial Holdings Limited NYSEDXF gained 11 to 02130 in pre market trading after declining 3 on Monday Losers Eloxx Pharmaceuticals Inc NASDAQELOX fell 302 to 761 in pre market after the company posted a wider than expected first quarter loss Tivic Health Systems Inc NASDAQTIVC shares dropped 263 to 014 in pre market trading following weak first quarter sales results Modular Medical Inc NASDAQMODD fell 20 to 100 in pre market trading after dropping over 7 on Monday Crown ElectroKinetics Corp NASDAQCRKN shares fell 19 to 01750 in pre market trading after climbing over 11 on Monday LM Funding America Inc NASDAQLMFA fell 173 to 08592 in pre market trading LM Funding America shares jumped over 42 on Monday after the company reported better than expected Q1 financial results Horizon Therapeutics Public Limited Company NASDAQHZNP fell 165 to 9350 in pre market trading following reports that US Federal Trade Commission was looking to sue to block Amgen’s acquisition of the company Calliditas Therapeutics AB NASDAQCALT fell 153 to 2100 in pre market trading after posting downbeat quarterly sales Ducommun Incorporated NYSEDCO fell 153 to 4099 in pre market trading Ducommun reported pricing of 744 million public offering of 2 million shares of common stock at a price of 40 per share Getaround Inc NYSEGETR shares dropped 139 to 05852 in pre market trading after jumping around 42 on Monday HyreCar said it will sell substantially all of its assets to the world s first connected carsharing marketplace Getaround Ascent Solar Technologies Inc NASDAQASTI fell 131 to 01799 in pre market trading Ascent Solar Technologies posted a first quarter loss of 17 cents per share Now Read This Investor Sentiment Improves Ahead Of Debt Ceiling Talks

Dec 1 Reuters The Federal Reserve should slow the pace of its rate increases in order to assess the impact of its hiking cycle but inflation remains far too high and the central bank s policy will need to be sufficiently restrictive for some time to bring it down Fed Governor Michelle Bowman said on Thursday Moderating the pace and the level of rate increases will allow us to more fully assess the effects of ouractions and the effect they are having on economic activity Bowman said during a financial services event held in New York Bowman who has been a proponent of more swift action to curb inflation than some of her rate setting colleagues nevertheless said that inflation data over the last month while showing price pressures slowing slightly are still unacceptably high The personal consumption expenditures PCE price index an inflation gauge the central bank watches closely rose 03 in October after advancing by the same margin in September government data showed earlier on Thursday In the 12 months through October the PCE price index increased 60 after advancing 63 in September Other inflation measures have also shown signs of slowing The annual consumer price index increased less than 8 in October for the first time in eight months But Bowman said that until she sees the central bank s actions having a significant impact on price pressures she expects to raise her estimate of where interest rates need to reach to slightly higher than where she had anticipated at the September meeting when policymakers last submitted their projections for the path of rate hikes The median Fed policymaker estimate at that meeting was 46 Once at the appropriate level the Fed would be in no hurry to cut rates she indicated I expect that the federal funds rate will have to remain at a sufficiently restrictive level for some time in order to reduce or restore price stability which will in turn help to create conditions for sustainably strong labor markets Bowman said reiterating points made by Fed Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday Investors overwhelmingly anticipate the Fed to raise its policy rate by half a percentage point at its next policy meeting on Dec 13 14 a downshift after four straight 75 basis point increases The Fed has raised its policy rate by 375 basis points since March from near zero to a 375 400 range

SYDNEY Australian consumer prices rose at a much faster pace than expected in the third quarter prompting concerns that the Reserve Bank of Australia will need to raise interest rates more than previously expected Inflation rose 18 on quarter and 73 on year its fastest pace since 1990 the Australian Bureau of Statistics said Wednesday Economists had forecast inflation to touch 16 on quarter and 70 on year Trimmed mean inflation was also higher than expected at 18 for the quarter compared with an expected rise of 15 the ABS said Annual trimmed mean inflation was the highest since the series commenced in 2003 rising 61 up from 49 in the second quarter The data is expected to make the RBA uncomfortable after it chose to slow the rate at which it had been raising official interest rates this month telling markets the rapid hikes since May represented a significant tightening of policy The RBA had raised the rate by 25 basis points this month slowing from the 50 basis point increases that had marked prior months Attention would now be on the RBA s policy meeting next week for evidence of a shift in its guidance or a potential reacceleration in the pace of interest rate increases The RBA has joined other major central banks including the Reserve Bank of New Zealand who have had to absorb news of unexpectedly high inflation outcomes The most significant contributors to the rise in inflation in the quarter were the cost of new dwellings which rose 37 from the second quarter and gas prices which gained 109 over the same period Labor shortages in the house construction industry leading to higher labor costs contributed to the rise in new dwellings costs this quarter the ABS said Still the pace of price growth in new dwellings has eased relative to recent quarters reflecting a softening in new demand and some easing in supply constraints it said Annual gas price reviews across the states and territories saw higher wholesale gas prices passed on to consumers in the third quarter Electricity prices rose 32 from the second quarter with rises across the country offset by state government credits to consumers Excluding the effect of these state government schemes electricity prices would have risen 156 in the third quarter the ABS said Food prices rose 32 over the quarter while prices for fruit and vegetables were also up sharply reflecting higher input costs and weather damaged crops Gasoline prices fell 43 in the third quarter the ABS added

As concerns grow about the baby formula shortage a New Jersey based scholar has gone viral for offering some perspective on how families historically fed their babies beyond breastfeeding and the tragedies that sometimes resulted from relying on homemade alternatives Carla Cevasco an assistant professor in American studies at Rutgers University and an expert in subjects related to food and hunger posted a thread on Twitter that looked at the current shortage in context Her first point Even before the rise of commercial formula families often didn’t rely solely on breastfeeding “You may be hearing the argument that before the rise of modern commercial infant formula babies all ate breastmilk and everything was great” she wrote “As a historian of infant feeding let me tell you why that’s not true” Cevasco told MarketWatch that “there’s this inaccurate narrative that everyone breastfed and it was easy that this was a breastfeeding paradise” In fact Cevasco notes that women often didn’t breastfeed in the past for the same reasons they don’t today Those reasons could range from the mother having an insufficient supply of milk to the child having trouble latching on And that’s not factoring in the many women who died during childbirth in the past meaning that there was no choice for the family but to find an alternative food source Related Baby formula shortage persists but experts warn that you shouldn’t make your own or buy it online from overseas Here’s why There have been countless examples of such sources In her thread Cevasco points to one example a recipe of boiled walnuts cornmeal and water that the Wabanaki a Native American collective of tribes created for their young But that brings Cevasco to another one of her key points that reliance on such homemade alternatives carried consequences These pre commercial “formulas” could be tainted in various ways such as through simple spoilage with infant death being the dreaded result “There was no guarantee that the child was going to survive” Cevasco said Ultimately Cevasco said she’s hoping to shed light on the fact that our modern day commercial formulas which are often seen as a lesser solution to breastfeeding should be respected for what they offer Or as Cevasco told MarketWatch “Parents in the past would have been so grateful to know” that there was a healthy alternative to breast milk Supply chain setbacks and Abbott’s ABT voluntary recall of powdered formulas in February have set up a baby formula shortage around the US that has become serious enough for President Joe Biden to speak with retailers and infant formula manufacturers on Thursday to receive an update on efforts to make infant formula supply more available to American families Abbott said it can restart production of its baby formulas at a plant in Michigan within two weeks if US regulators allow it to do so Read more As a baby formula shortage worsens Abbott says it can get some product back on store shelves in July In the meantime some desperate parents have discussed making their own formula at home which pediatricians and professional trade groups including the American Academy of Pediatricians have strongly advised against “Although recipes for homemade formulas circulating on the internet may seem healthy or less expensive they are not safe and do not meet your baby’s nutritional needs” Steven Abrams a board certified pediatrician and a professor of pediatrics at the University of Texas at Austin wrote for a Healthy Children column

The Nasdaq closed lower on Friday but recorded gains last week Investors meanwhile focused on some notable insider trades When insiders sell shares it indicates their concern in the company’s prospects or that they view the stock as being overpriced Either way this signals an opportunity to go short on the stock Insider sales should not be taken as the only indicator for making an investment or trading decision At best it can lend conviction to a selling decision Below is a look at a few recent notable insider sales For more check out Benzinga s insider transactions platform Pinterest The Trade Pinterest Inc NYSEPINS SVP Products Naveen Gavini sold a total of 11185 shares at an average price of 2795 The insider received around 31258 thousand from selling those shares What’s Happening Raymond James recently initiated coverage on the stock with an Outperform rating and announced a price target of 33 What Pinterest Does Pinterest is an online product and idea discovery platform that helps users gather ideas on everything from recipes to cook to destinations to travel to Have a look at our premarket coverage here Verint Systems The Trade Verint Systems Inc NASDAQVRNT Chairman and CEO Dan Bodner sold a total of 6064 shares at an average price of 3854 The insider received around 23371 thousand from selling those shares The company’s CFO President Director and Chief Administrative Officer also sold the company’s shares What’s Happening Verint Systems posted upbeat quarterly results What Verint Systems Does Verint Systems Inc with its subsidiaries helps brands provide Boundless Customer Engagement The company s solutions help iconic brands close the gap created when it lacks the resources required to deliver experiences that fulfill customer expectations Check This Out Top 5 Industrials Stocks Which Could Blast Off In Q2 Advanced Micro Devices The Trade Advanced Micro Devices Inc NASDAQAMD EVP and CSO Paul Darren Grasby sold a total of 12500 shares at an average price of 9485 The insider received around 119 million from selling those shares What’s Happening Piper Sandler maintained an Overweight rating on the stock and raised its price target from 90 to 110 What AMD Does Advanced Micro Devices designs microprocessors for the computer and consumer electronics industries The majority of its sales are in the personal computer and data center markets via CPUs and GPUs Toll Brothers The Trade Toll Brothers Inc NYSETOL Director Paul Shapiro sold a total of 5000 shares at an average price of 5994 The insider received around 29968 thousand from selling those shares What’s Happening Toll Brothers posted better than expected Q1 results What Toll Brothers Does Toll Brothers is the leading luxury homebuilder in the United States with an average sale price well above public competitors

BEIJING China s exports rose 147 on year in March slowing from a pace of 163 in the January February period according to data released by the General Administration of Customs Wednesday The result largely matched the 14 forecast made by economists polled by The Wall Street Journal Imports unexpectedly fell 01 on year last month compared with a 155 increase in the January February period Surveyed economists anticipated China s imports to have grown 8 on year in March Trade surplus stood at 4738 billion in March higher than 25 billion anticipated by economists China reported a 116 billion trade surplus in the first two months of the year

Moneysupermarketcom Group PLC said Thursday that pretax profit and revenue rose ahead of its expectations in the first half of 2022 and that it anticipates full year adjusted Ebitda to be at the top end of market forecasts The price comparison website said pretax profit was 421 million pounds 504 million for the half year ended June 30 compared with GBP370 million a year earlier The company said its first half performance beat its expectations with a stronger than expected return to growth in travel insurance and travel divisions and exceptional second quarter business in its money segment Adjusted earnings before interest taxes depreciation and amortization the company s preferred metric which strips out exceptional and one off costs was GBP566 million up from GBP513 million a year earlier Revenue rose to GBP1932 million from GBP1623 million The board declared an interim dividend of 31 pence a share flat on last year The company said it expects an adjusted Ebitda at the top end of market expectations which it provided as a range of GBP1044 million to GBP1097 million We ve performed well with strong profit growth despite some mixed end markets Chief Executive Peter Duffy said At the same time we re making strategic progress towards becoming a flexible tech led savings platform he said

TOKYO Oct 4 Reuters Core consumer prices in Tokyo a leading indicator of nationwide inflation rose 28 in September from a year earlier marking the biggest gain since 2014 in a sign of broadening cost pressures The core consumer price index CPI for Japan s capital which includes oil products but excludes fresh food prices matched a median market forecast and followed a 26 gain in August It was the fourth straight month the index s rate of increase exceeded the Bank of Japan s 2 target and matched a 28 gain hit in June 2014 Prices rose for a wide range of goods and services including electricity bills chocolate sushi to hotel bills government data showed a sign more firms were passing on rising raw material costs to households The data is among key factors the BOJ will scrutinise in gauging whether recent cost push inflation could change into a sustained rise in prices driven by robust domestic demand The BOJ has pledged to keep monetary policy ultra loose despite recent rises in inflation which it sees as driven by temporary factors like higher fuel and raw material rather than strong consumption

This article was originally published on 2Fast4Buds and appears here with permission Don t waste your buds Improper storage can ruin a stash We cover the best ways to preserve your flowers flavor potency and aroma You ve put two months of effort into cultivating the perfect harvest You ve chopped your tree and the flowers are drying As you look over your haul two questions nag at the back of your mind”is there a way to store weed to keep it fresh as long as possible” and How am I going to smoke this all before it goes bad Sadly cannabis has a shelf life Leave it too long and it will become dry and hard to smoke lose potency or worst of all grow toxic mold We re here to run down the dos and don ts of high quality cannabis storage Contrary to what many beginner smokers believe hard work doesn’t end at harvest time You can’t just place your fresh flowers into a jar or bag and hope for the best In fact this would lead to a complete disaster and a waste of all of your hard effort You see fresh buds have a high moisture content which makes them the perfect place for mold to strike Before you do anything else including blazing them up you’ll need to dry them to the extent that their stems snap and don’t bend Next comes the curing process By placing them into jars for at least six weeks and burping them periodically you’ll help to degrade harsh chemicals such as chlorophyll and unleash their true flavors But what to do from hereIf you’ve grown a big haul it’ll likely take you weeks or even longer to put each bud to good use Leaving your buds in the open can also cause the valuable constituents such as cannabinoids and terpenes to degrade This reduces the quality of the entire flower including the flavour aroma and effects Luckily there are several easy ways to keep your weed flowers in tip top shape well into the future 1 DO S KEEP WEED DRY Mildewandmoldare your enemies in this fight Mold can start growing on marijuana cannabis before they ve even been harvested The sticky irregular surface of a nug is the perfect spot for spores to wait for the proper conditions before covering your weed in a gross net of moldy cobwebs Do not give them a chance and store weed properly preferably in glass jars as they’re a great way to store flowers Wherever you store your weedensure the humidity stays below 65 However dry air will make those stickytrichomesbrittle so ensure you mantain humidity above 59 for optimal storage KEEP WEED IN THE DARK Cannabinoidsdoes not like light and placing your flowers out in direct sunlight is an easy way to ensure your hard wonTHCcontent degrades into a couch locking sleepyCBN It s probably OK to leave your cannabis on a shady sheld but you must ensure it s never exposed to direct sunlight at any point in the day Sunlight contains ultra violet radiation the same kind that gives humans sunburns and skin cancer which destroys THC essential oils and more Anything that makes weed worth smoking is destroyed under the direct light of the sun so having a cool dark storage place is super important Trichomes will degrade so make sure to keep your flowers in the right conditions KEEP WEED COOL Fungi love humidity but they also love the heat A warm storage spot is the perfect breeding ground for toxic fungus you do NOT want to smoke Play it safe and mantain your flowers at atemperature below 77° Fahrenheit or 25° Celsius Any higher and you risk virulent mold eating your harvest This may be difficult during the summer if you live in a warm climate and do not have air conditioning but keeping your buds away from direct sunlight also helps mantain them cool KEEP WEED SEALED We need oxygen to live and because of that we forget one fundamental fact oxygen is a corrosive gas that eventually destroys all it touches and cannabinoids are no exception Keeping your flowers away from the air in correct storage is an essential part of preserving them but you do not want to remove all the air you need at least a little to mantain your humidity in check However if there s too much air you ll be giving mold and mildew fuel to power their growth Mason jars and other rigidairtight containers are perfect for storing flowers They ll have the right amount of air inside trichomes won t stick to the inside of the container and they re cheap 2 DON TS DON T PUT BUDS IN THE REFRIGERATOR OR FREEZER We know we said to mantain things cool but putting your weed in the fridge or freezer storage creates more problems than it solves Humidity in your fridge is going up and down continuously as you open and close the door put food in take it out or even when you re doing nothing at all These fluctuations are perfect for you guessed itmold Never store your buds in the freezer unless you re planning on making hash The fridge might be the absolute worst place you could ever store your stash The freezer introduces its own problems While it is dryer and more stable than the fridge the low temperatures will freeze the remaining water in your flowers and maketrichomeshard and brittle DON T STORE BUDS IN PLASTIC BAGS Generations have kept their ganja in plastic bags If it was good enough for your hippy grandparents it s good enough for you right Not quite plastic bags carry a slight electric charge You ve probably seen this yourself when a bag sticks to your hand That charge doesn t just attract bags to human hands it attracts trichomes to the bag Every moment in a bag is subjecting those precious balls to a slight pull It won t strip your bud bare but over time you ll find yourweed loses potencyand the inside of the bag grows sticky I nice mason jar or even a discreet and inconspicuous cookie jar are better options for correct storage 3 HOW TO STORE WEED LONG TERM Now if you’re storing weed for a couple ofmonths or longeror if you want to store it for as long as possible it’s essential you store weed in the proper conditions as your weed will degrade if you do not store it properly All of the things mentioned throughout the blog still apply but there are a couple of other things you should always remember ENSURE YOUR WEED IS CURED PROPERLY Long term cannabis storage starts with proper curing So ensure to trim the flowers and place the flowers inairtight mason jars in a cool dark place making sure the jars are only ¾ full After a couple of days or weeks of burping and curing your cannabis will be ready for consumption but you can check this by measuring the moisture in the jars you want the hygrometer to read anywherebetween 58 to 62 humidity USE AIR TIGHT GLASS CONTAINERS In order to store weed correctly you want to keep weed in glass containers as oxygen can degrade and damage thetrichomes If you cannot find a glass container you can use a ceramic container just stay away from plastic Always go for airtight glass jars as they will preserve your flowers better KEEP IT IN THE RIGHT CONDITIONS As mentioned you don’t only want to keep the cannabis in airtight glass jars but you also want to store the jars in the proper conditions so remember to place the jars in a dark place with the lights off and ensure the temperature are below 25 ºC to prevent mold ideally the temperature for cannabis storage should be around20 21 ºC USE CLEAN JARS And finally make sure the curing jar is clean Depending on where you got the jar from it could havedust dirt and evenmold sporeswhich can affect the quality of your harvest so make sure to clean the jars before storing your flowers 4 HOW LONG DOES WEED LAST In proper storage dried cannabis can last anywhere from 6 months to a year before it starts to lose its smell flavor and potency but this doesn’t mean cannabis only lasts 12 months According to research cannabis loses up to 20 THC after 1 year of storage Years of Storage Percentage Loss THC 1 16 2 26 3 34 4 41 Relationship loss of THC and years of storage As you can see in the table above cannabis will not expire per se but can get old and lose its Cannabinoids Terpenes and Flavonoids Now this doesn’t mean your weed will not be good for consumption but its quality will be affected even in the right storage as years go by HOW TO KNOW IF YOUR WEED IS OLD As mentioned above the quality of the weed is affected even in proper storage so the best way to know if the weed isn’t fresh is by its smellOld weedsmells different or does not smell at all sometimes may even smell harsh or taste harsh when stored for too long Apart from the smell and flavorthe appearance of the weedcan help you figure out if your flowers are old or not So if the weed is too dry and crumbly it’s definitely old weed Keep in mind that smoking old weed won’t harm you but won t taste as good or be as potent as fresh weed 5 DOES WEED GO BAD Now you know that weed can’t expire…but can it go bad Yes weed can go bad in two different ways On one handexposing your cannabis to too much lightor open air will dry it and turn it into dust which you can still smoke but won’t be as effective as weed stored correctly On the other hand exposing your weed to too much humidity causes the weed to get moldy and you do NOT want to inhale mold because it can make you sick so always try to store weed in the right conditions and preferablyconsume it in less than a year Remember if you want weed that gets you super high that smells and tastes good fresh weed is the way to go 6 CONCLUSION Of course all this advice is moot if you haven t adequately dried and cured your buds You can choose any way to store flowers and try to keep them fresh for as long as possible but unfortunately it doesn t matter if your storage spot is perfect poorly kept marijuana can grow mold and will get old eventually Nuestro contenido en español Cómo Conservar la Marihuana Blunt Qué Es y Cómo Armalo THC Una Guía Completa

The European Union’s competition watchdog said it would pursue an in depth investigation into Microsoft Corp MSFT ’s planned 75 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc ATVI adding to the global scrutiny of whether the deal could harm competition in the videogame industry The European Commission which opened its initial formal probe of the deal in late September said it is concerned that the deal may reduce competition in the markets for console and personal computer distribution videogames and PC operating systems It added that it is concerned that Microsoft may foreclose access to Activision Blizzard games to other game distributors especially the publisher’s most successful franchises such as Call of Duty “We must ensure that opportunities remain for future and existing distributors of PC and console videogames as well as for rival suppliers of PC operating systems” the Commission said “The point is to ensure that the gaming ecosystem remains vibrant to the benefit of users in a sector that is evolving at a fast pace” The shift to an in depth probe also known as a phase two investigation signals that the regulator is concerned the deal could restrict competition within the bloc Phase two reviews typically involve more extensive information gathering and detailed requests for information from competitors The Commission said it has 90 working days until March 23 to make a decision An expanded version of this story appears on WSJcom Tyson Foods CFO Arrested After Authorities Say He Fell Asleep in Wrong House Moving In Together Doesn’t Match the Financial Benefits of Marriage but Why

A whale with a lot of money to spend has taken a noticeably bearish stance on QualcommLooking at options history for Qualcomm NASDAQQCOM we detected 13 strange tradesIf we consider the specifics of each trade it is accurate to state that 38 of the investors opened trades with bullish expectations and 61 with bearishFrom the overall spotted trades 7 are puts for a total amount of 577916 and 6 calls for a total amount of 264250What s The Price TargetTaking into account the Volume and Open Interest on these contracts it appears that whales have been targeting a price range from 1050 to 1300 for Qualcomm over the last 3 months Volume Open Interest DevelopmentLooking at the volume and open interest is a powerful move while trading options This data can help you track the liquidity and interest for Qualcomm s options for a given strike price Below we can observe the evolution of the volume and open interest of calls and puts respectively for all of Qualcomm s whale trades within a strike price range from 1050 to 1300 in the last 30 days Qualcomm Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days Biggest Options Spotted SymbolPUTCALLTrade TypeSentimentExp DateStrike PriceTotal Trade PriceOpen InterestVolume QCOMPUTTRADEBEARISH120922130001294K21855 QCOMPUTTRADEBULLISH01202311000935K65K303 QCOMPUTTRADEBULLISH01202311000935K65K203 QCOMPUTTRADEBULLISH01202311000935K65K103 QCOMPUTSWEEPBULLISH01202310500708K52K125 Where Is Qualcomm Standing Right Now With a volume of 666667 the price of QCOM is up 04 at 10712 RSI indicators hint that the underlying stock is currently neutral between overbought and oversoldNext earnings are expected to be released in 86 days What The Experts Say On Qualcomm Morgan Stanley has decided to maintain their Overweight rating on Qualcomm which currently sits at a price target of 126 Keybanc has decided to maintain their Overweight rating on Qualcomm which currently sits at a price target of 170 Deutsche Bank has decided to maintain their Buy rating on Qualcomm which currently sits at a price target of 160 Raymond James has decided to maintain their Strong Buy rating on Qualcomm which currently sits at a price target of 150 Wells Fargo has decided to maintain their Equal Weight rating on Qualcomm which currently sits at a price target of 125 Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock but they have higher profit potential Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily scaling in and out of trades following more than one indicator and following the markets closelyIf you want to stay updated on the latest options trades for Qualcomm Benzinga Pro gives you real time options trades alerts

Stocks in Toronto started the week slightly lower Monday at midday At noon Canadian sectors were having a mixed performance Losses primarily in the energy and materials sectors offset gains in process industries and technology stocks In step with the day s declines shares in Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd fell after the mining company said Rio Tinto PLC s takeover offer isn t in its best interest Canada s SPTSX Composite Index was down 043 at 2009361 and the blue chip SPTSX 60 fell by 031 to 121420 Turquoise Hill s Toronto listed shares fell by 94 to C3040 after it said minority investor and partner Rio Tinto made an all cash offer to buy the shares it doesn t hold in Turquoise Hill at a 32 premium to the last closing price before the offer was announced Home Capital Group Inc shares were up 10 to C3132 after it received an unsolicited offer for the company The company said its board believes the proposal undervalues its intrinsic value and future growth potential VersaBank climbed 67 to C1014 on news that it received the green light from the Toronto Stock Exchange to buy back up to 954 of its public float

Teamsters Local 777 members at three Rise dispensaries a subsidiary of Green Thumb Industries Inc OTCQXGTBIF in Chicagoland walked off the job on April 19th at 420 pm CT to begin an open ended unfair labor practice strike The strike was precipitated by the company demanding that workers at the Niles location remove pro union buttons while they were on the job a violation of the National Labor Relations Act The company s demand that the workers remove their pins is part of a broader pattern of disrespect to their workforce stated Jim Glimco Local 777 president GTI is refusing to offer these men and women wages commensurate with the cost of living or retirement package that is acceptable for Teamsters It s far past time this company recognize the people responsible for all of the success it s had Julie Evans a patient care specialist at the Rise Rock Creek Boulevard dispensary in Joliet stated The forceful removal of these buttons shows us how GTI feels about our movement and how little they care about us as workers I feel that it is extremely unfair disrespectful and rude that Niles was forced to remove their insignias while other stores were not I stand with my fellow Teamsters in solidarity against this unfair labor practice According to Teamster’s Facebook page strike is still ongoing Recent Teamster Activity In The Cannabis Industry Teamsters unionized budtenders at Captain Jack s Dispensary in San Bernardino California in February Teamsters won an unfair labor practice complaint filed against SNDL Inc NASDAQSNDL Teamsters unionized nearly 400 cannabis workers since Jan 1st Sunnyside Dispensary in Buffalo Grove Ill and more than 300 drivers and warehouse workers at cannabis delivery service Grassdoor joined Teamsters in January Photo Benzinga edit with photos by Bits And Splits and Oleksandrum on Shutterstock

Low annual percentage rates APRs for those with good or excellent credit Variety of term ranges for auto loans and lease agreements Offers a preapproval process before you go to the dealership Only available at Nissan dealerships Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp NMAC is the finance arm of the auto manufacturer It offers financing options for drivers who want to purchase or lease Nissan vehicles Borrowers with good or excellent credit tend to qualify for low APRs through Nissan finance We at the Home Media reviews team will explain Nissan financing options for new and leased vehicles We’ll also explore how financing works and what other car loan and lease options could be available to you including those with the best auto loan rates and best auto refinance rates for 2022 Nissan was founded in 1928 in Japan when Yoshisuke Aikawa became president of Nihon Sangyo The company officially made its debut on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 1933 with the ticker name Nissan The manufacturer expanded into the United States in 1958 as Datsun Nissan has a solid reputation within the car manufacturing and finance industry It holds an A rating from the BBB and is accredited by the organization NMAC provides financing for new used and certified pre owned Nissan vehicles sold at Nissan dealerships As with most manufacturers NMAC only offers auto loans at its own brand’s dealerships Our experts found that borrowers with excellent credit may qualify for low APRs generally less than 2 NMAC offers competitive interest rates and quick credit responses through its SignaturePURCHASE® program Term lengths for SignaturePURCHASE range from 12 to 72 months for new and pre owned Nissans less than six years old There are no application or prepayment penalty fees when you finance your new or used car purchase with Nissan You can make monthly payments for your new or pre owned Nissan online over the phone or by mail Leasing a Nissan may be ideal if you drive fewer than 15000 miles per year and want a new vehicle every two to four years Nissan’s SignatureLEASE provides lease terms ranging from 24 to 60 months with limits of 10000 12000 or 15000 miles per year To give you a better idea of how much car financing for a lease can cost we’ve included lease terms below for each type of Nissan sedan currently available on the market NMAC has a strong reputation among industry organizations The finance department isn’t accredited by the BBB but the company gives it an A rating More than 50 customers on the site give NMAC a 13 star average rating out of 50 In the JD Power 2021 US Consumer Financing Satisfaction Study℠ NMAC scored fifth place in the mass market category with 856 out of 1000 possible points which is above the segment average of 845 The only brands that scored higher were Ford Credit Capital One Auto Finance Honda Financial Services and Toyota Financial Services More than 100 reviewers on Trustpilot give Nissan a 17 star average rating out of 50 While these may seem like low ratings they represent a small percentage of the actual customers who purchase vehicles from Nissan Our team reached out to Nissan for a comment on its low BBB and Trustpilot scores but did not receive a response Positive Nissan reviews on the BBB and Trustpilot mention excellent customer service representatives at dealerships Other comments from customers praise Nissan’s roadside assistance program and reliable service On Trustpilot 78 of reviewers give Nissan a 10 star rating Frequent complaints on Trustpilot and the BBB center on issues with failed parts and Nissan’s warranties Before you settle on an auto loan from Nissan consider your local credit union or bank and other third party loan providers Shopping for auto loan rates lets you find the best option for your new or used vehicle We recommend reaching out to myAutoloan and LightStream for auto loan rates Drivers who are shopping around for auto loan rates should consider myAutoloan’s online marketplace The company allows you to comparison shop for new and used auto loan rates auto refinance rates and lease buyout loans For new car purchases myAutoloan’s rates start as low as 224 for borrowers with excellent credit Within the auto financing industry myAutoloan has a good reputation It holds an A rating from the BBB and is accredited by the organization Additionally customers rate myAutoloan an average of 43 stars on Trustpilot LightStream is the online consumer lending division of Truist Bank the seventh largest bank holding company in the United States Borrowers can get LightStream loans for various purposes including auto purchases Loan amounts range from 5000 to 100000 with funding available as soon as the same day conditions apply LightStream reviews from customers can only be found on the BBB page for its parent company Truist Bank Truist holds an A rating and accreditation from the organization Because consumers rely on us to provide objective and accurate information we created a comprehensive rating system to formulate our rankings of the best auto loan companies We collected data on dozens of loan providers to grade the companies on a wide range of ranking factors The end result was an overall rating for each provider with the companies that scored the most points topping the list Here are the factors our ratings take into account Reputation 25 of total score Our research team considered ratings from industry experts and each lender’s years in business when giving this score Rates 25 of total score Auto loan providers with low APRs and high loan amounts scored highest in this category Availability 25 of total score Companies that cover a variety of circumstances are more likely to meet consumer needs Customer Experience 25 of total score This score is based on customer satisfaction ratings and transparency We also considered the responsiveness and helpfulness of each lender’s customer service team

Someone with a lot of money to spend has taken a bullish stance on Ally Financial NYSEALLYAnd retail traders should knowWe noticed this today when the big position showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at BenzingaWhether this is an institution or just a wealthy individual we don t know But when something this big happens with ALLY it often means somebody knows something is about to happenSo how do we know what this whale just did Today Benzinga s options scanner spotted 10 uncommon options trades for Ally FinancialThis isn t normalThe overall sentiment of these big money traders is split between 80 bullish and 20 bearishOut of all of the special options we uncovered 6 are puts for a total amount of 328141 and 4 are calls for a total amount of 315179What s The Price TargetTaking into account the Volume and Open Interest on these contracts it appears that whales have been targeting a price range from 250 to 300 for Ally Financial over the last 3 months Volume Open Interest DevelopmentLooking at the volume and open interest is an insightful way to conduct due diligence on a stockThis data can help you track the liquidity and interest for Ally Financial s options for a given strike priceBelow we can observe the evolution of the volume and open interest of calls and puts respectively for all of Ally Financial s whale activity within a strike price range from 250 to 300 in the last 30 days Ally Financial Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days Biggest Options Spotted SymbolPUTCALLTrade TypeSentimentExp DateStrike PriceTotal Trade PriceOpen InterestVolume ALLYCALLSWEEPBULLISH01202325002046K271513 ALLYPUTSWEEPBULLISH1021222900795K35K11K ALLYPUTSWEEPBULLISH1021222800662K113K22K ALLYPUTTRADEBULLISH1118223000645K405152 ALLYPUTSWEEPBULLISH1118222600500K24K15K Where Is Ally Financial Standing Right Now With a volume of 10948896 the price of ALLY is down 643 at 2686 RSI indicators hint that the underlying stock may be approaching oversoldNext earnings are expected to be released in 0 days Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock but they have higher profit potential Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily scaling in and out of trades following more than one indicator and following the markets closelyIf you want to stay updated on the latest options trades for Ally Financial Benzinga Pro gives you real time options trades alerts

A digital wallet that had accumulated over 61000 Ether CRYPTO ETH during the initial coin offering ICO about eight years ago has now transferred the entire amount to another wallet The wallet in question is believed to be associated with the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken The value of these holdings is currently estimated to be over 116 million The Ether was initially bought at a mere 31 cents per token during the ICO Also ReadUS Congressman Ritchie Torres Challenges SEC s Crypto Onslaught The wallet known as 0x8b moved the tokens to a different wallet before transferring them to the wallet tagged to Kraken as per blockchain data gathered by Lookonchain The identity of the wallet s owner is unknown at this time The only other activity recorded from this wallet was when it received Ether from the Genesis contract post the launch of Ethereum Such large scale transfers from early participants are generally rare This particular transfer could indicate that the holder is planning to sell the tokens stake them on an exchange or diversify their holdings into other tokens Is It A Trend This transfer is the latest in a series of movements from old wallets transferring tokens like Bitcoin CRYPTO BTC or Ether to exchanges this year Back in April at least four wallets moved Bitcoin worth millions to exchanges or other wallets These investors are often referred to as whales in the crypto community due to the large quantities of tokens they hold in their digital wallets Their actions can significantly influence the price or sentiment around a token given the size of their holdings Read NextPolychain Capital Eyes 400M For Fourth Fund Secures Initial 200M Despite Crypto Winter Join Benzinga s Future of Crypto in NYC on Nov 14 2023 to stay updated on trends like AI regulations SEC actions institutional adoption in the crypto spaceSecure early bird discounted tickets now

US stock index futures slid on Monday with banks and travel stocks falling the most as the prospect of a ban on oil imports from Russia pushed Brent to over 130 a barrel and added to concerns over spiraling inflation and slowing economic growth At 631 ET Dow e minis were down 153 at 33069 SP 500 e minis were down 160 at 4258 while Nasdaq 100 e minis were down 175 at 13598 Bed Bath Beyond Inc BBBYO up 517 Oceanpal Inc Bed Bath Beyond Inc BBBYO up 517 premarket BUZZ Bed Bath Beyond jumps as billionaire Ryan Cohen takes 10 stake Coinbase Global Inc COINO down 31 premarket BUZZ Coinbase says users from sanctioned countries can no longer open accounts Goldman Sachs Group Inc GSN down 26 premarket BUZZ Banks stocks slide Citigroup tumbles on Jefferies downgrade

BANGKOK Jan 6 Reuters Investor confidence in Thai financial markets for the next three months has dropped to a five month low dented by concerns over the Omicron coronavirus variant a capital market group said on Thursday A survey in December by the Federation of Thai Capital Market OrganizationsFETCO showed its investor confidence index fell to 12953 from 13516 in the previous month but remains in the bullish zone Thailand s tourism reliant economy faces fresh risks from Omicron as the government on Thursday raised its COVID 19 alert level due to rising infections driven by the variant Local economic recovery and listed company s earnings growth are supportive factors for the Thai stock market this year while the spread of the Omicron variant clouds sentiment federation chairman Paiboon Nalinthrangkurn told a briefing Foreign fund inflows and more economic stimulus measures may help Thailand s stock index reach 1800 this year Paiboon said Thailand s main stock index SETI gained 144 last year but foreign investors sold a net 49 billion baht 146 billionof Thai shares over the period

Travis Perkins PLC said Tuesday that it swung to a pretax profit in 2021 as it recovered from the coronavirus pandemic reinstating dividends The UK building materials retailer said pretax profit for the year was 3056 million pounds 4100 million compared with a restated pretax loss of GBP203 million the year before Revenue rose 24 on year to GBP459 billion and was 11 ahead of 2019 reflecting a significantly improved customer proposition and a robust recovery in the company s markets Stripping out exceptional and other one off items the company made an adjusted pretax profit of GBP3099 million compared with an adjusted pretax profit of GBP810 million a year prior The group has built a strong platform for growth and given robust end market demand and a positive start to the new year we remain confident of making further progress in 2022 Chief Executive Nick Roberts said The board declared a final ordinary dividend of 260 pence a share bringing the total for the year up to 380 pence It didn t declare a dividend last year to conserve cash due to the coronavirus pandemic

LBC Studios Inc a company behind the cannabis video game Hempire has partnered with Bob Marley Family to bring to life a new mobile rhythm game dubbed Bob Marley World Tour reported High Times The all new free to play game – featuring original and remixes of Bob Marley s songs will be available for iOS and Android users in early November according to a press release Bob Marley is so much more than music and our Bob Marley World Tour game will celebrate his way of living life and uniting people LBC CEO Solon Bucholtz said We wanted to develop a game that reflects not only Bob Marley s music but his philosophies philanthropy and his ability to bring people together The Gameplay Bob Marley World Tour allows players to assume the role of a band manager whose band performs in cities worldwide The playerswill perform songs from the Bob Marley Family explore various music genres and select band members with unique abilities to achieve high scores through each in game performance It has always been our goal to provide fans with unique opportunities to enjoy the family s music and we are glad that this upcoming title will further that mission through an entirely new platform Ziggy Marley said LBC Studios Hempire LBC Studios was founded in 2017 by Bucholtz and Dennis Molloy the same year Hempire was released as a game half botanical half strategic simulation that supports the development of legal cannabis and the benefits it can have on the economy and social relationships We are grateful that both the gaming and cannabis communities have embraced and supported our vision for Hempire We ve had a really positive experience and it s always inspiring to hear little and big stories about how it s impacted people in a positive way Bucholtz told El Planteo in an exclusive interview Photo Courtesy of RODNAE Productions by Pexels and Wikimedia Commons

US stocks closed lower on Wednesday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average snapped a five day wining streak following the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve s July meeting The Dow DJIA finished off 17169 points or 05 to 3398032 The SP 500 SPX retreated 3116 points or 07 to 427404 The Nasdaq Composite COMP shed 16443 points or 13 to 1293812 The Fed minutes showed that senior Fed officials were worried that elevated inflation could become entrenched if the central bank was perceived as not doing enough On the other hand many expressed concerns that the Fed could tighten rates by a greater degree than would be necessary

A whale with a lot of money to spend has taken a noticeably bearish stance on Caterpillar Looking at options history for Caterpillar NYSECAT we detected 13 strange trades If we consider the specifics of each trade it is accurate to state that 7 of the investors opened trades with bullish expectations and 92 with bearish From the overall spotted trades 8 are puts for a total amount of 250429 and 5 calls for a total amount of 245568 What s The Price Target Taking into account the Volume and Open Interest on these contracts it appears that whales have been targeting a price range from 2200 to 2400 for Caterpillar over the last 3 months Volume Open Interest Development Looking at the volume and open interest is a powerful move while trading options This data can help you track the liquidity and interest for Caterpillar s options for a given strike price Below we can observe the evolution of the volume and open interest of calls and puts respectively for all of Caterpillar s whale trades within a strike price range from 2200 to 2400 in the last 30 days Caterpillar Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days Biggest Options Spotted Symbol PUTCALL Trade Type Sentiment Exp Date Strike Price Total Trade Price Open Interest Volume CAT CALL SWEEP NEUTRAL 041423 22000 741K 704 150 CAT CALL SWEEP BEARISH 042123 22000 520K 651 85 CAT CALL SWEEP BEARISH 061623 24000 500K 24K 78 CAT CALL SWEEP NEUTRAL 041423 22000 348K 704 48 CAT CALL SWEEP BEARISH 051923 22000 344K 26K 27 Where Is Caterpillar Standing Right Now With a volume of 585523 the price of CAT is down 338 at 22209 RSI indicators hint that the underlying stock may be approaching oversold Next earnings are expected to be released in 23 days What The Experts Say On Caterpillar Baird downgraded its action to Underperform with a price target of 185 UBS downgraded its action to Sell with a price target of 225 Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock but they have higher profit potential Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily scaling in and out of trades following more than one indicator and following the markets closely If you want to stay updated on the latest options trades for Caterpillar Benzinga Pro gives you real time options trades alerts

Online furniture retailer Wayfair Inc plans to lay off about 870 employees as it looks to cut back its expenses The planned job cuts represent roughly 5 of Wayfair’s W global workforce and about 10 of its corporate team the company said in a Friday morning filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission Wayfair also disclosed that it plans to make “substantial reductions in its third party labor costs” Executives anticipate that Wayfair will incur about 30 million to 40 million in costs around severance benefits and other areas related to the layoffs They expect to see “substantially all” of those expenses in the third quarter Shares of Wayfair are off more than 7 in Friday premarket trading Wayfair’s management team previously discussed plans to reduce expenses on the company’s second quarter earnings call earlier in August as Chief Executive Niraj Shah acknowledged it was “unmistakable that consumer behavior is being impacted by inflationary pressures as well as by economic and geopolitical concerns” He added that Wayfair’s “mass customers” were “being more deliberate about where their discretionary dollars are going” given rising gas and grocery costs Further with pandemic conditions easing some Wayfair customers have opted to shift more discretionary spending toward travel and away from “goods” The discussion jibed with commentary from Mastercard Inc MA Chief Executive Michael Miebach who mentioned on the payments giant’s earnings call in late July that he had broadly seen “some shift in spend towards gas and groceries from discretionary categories like home furnishings in the US” Wayfair’s Shah said on his company’s own earnings call that the retailer would be “increasing our cost efficiency focus across all facets” while “not trading off on important future growth drivers and enablers” Wayfair joins companies like Shopify Inc SHOP and Robinhood Markets Inc HOOD which also announced sharp job cuts recently

The US Virgin Islands sold its rum tax collections to bondholders for 955 million closing a securitization deal intended to refinance existing debt and replenish an ailing government pension fund The territory s debt sale was priced to yield 473 on a longest dated maturity of 2039 according to a person familiar with the matter Proceeds from the deal would refinance existing rum tax bonds freeing up short term savings by capitalizing interest payments through 2025 Those savings would be used to prop up the Government Employees Retirement System which faces insolvency as soon as 2024 without a cash infusion The securitization debt provides bondholders with stronger collateral rights over the rum taxes a key public asset of the Virgin Islands

If history is any guide there may be trouble ahead for shares of Marathon Petroleum NYSEMPC A so called death cross has formed on its chart and not surprisingly this could be bearish for the stock What To Know Many traders use moving average crossover systems to make their decisions When a shorter term average price crosses above a longer term average price it could mean the stock is trending higher If the short term average price crosses below the long term average price it means the trend is lower Why It s Important The 50 day and the 200 day simple moving averages are commonly used The death cross occurs when the 50 day moves below the 200 day This could mean the long term trend is changing That just happened with Marathon Petroleum which is trading around 11391 at publication time Remember Seasoned investors don t blindly trade Death Crosses Instead they use it as a signal to start looking for short positions based on other factors like price levels and company fundamentals events For seasoned investors this is just a sign that it might be time to start considering possible short positions With that in mind take a look at Marathon Petroleum s past and upcoming earnings expectations Quarter Q1 2023 Q4 2022 Q3 2022 Q2 2022 EPS Estimate 574 567 662 771 EPS Actual 609 665 781 1061 Revenue Estimate 3551B 3669B 4101B 4408B Revenue Actual 3508B 4009B 4724B 5424B Also consider this overview of Marathon Petroleum analyst ratings Do you use the Death Cross signal in your trading or investing Share this article with a friend if you found it helpful This article was generated by Benzinga s automated content engine and reviewed by an editor

US Treasury rates may have yet to peak after surging this year but higher yields have made bonds more attractive in tumultuous markets as investors face a likely recession next year according to Vanguard Group “It’s been tough being a fixed income investor for the last few years” with investors struggling a couple years ago to find yield as many parts of the bond market had negative rates said Jeff Johnson Vanguard’s head of fixed income product by phone “Today the good news is that yields are much more attractive but the process of getting there has been pretty painful and it’s involved a big decline in bond prices” Vanguard said in its active fixed income perspectives report for the fourth quarter that “the most prudent approach is to focus on a core allocation to higher quality securities that are less sensitive to a weakening global economy” Investors have been fretting over the Federal Reserve potentially triggering a recession by aggressively raising interest rates in its effort to tame high inflation “Most if not all credit markets are more attractive today than they were at the beginning of the year” from a valuation standpoint said Michael Chang Vanguard’s head of high yield credit by phone Fundamentally though investment grade corporate bonds would better withstand a recession than high yield or so called junk bonds he said adding that Vanguard also prefers moving up in quality within high yield debt The sector’s 95 yield and average dollar price of 85 indicate that it’s cheap relative to history Vanguard’s report shows but corporate borrowers of high yield bonds are considered risky as their heavier debt burdens make them more vulnerable to default during economic downturns Elevated market volatility has meant “more dispersion and better entry points in select lower quality bonds” providing a potential complement to a core allocation to higher quality securities according to the report While credit spreads over comparable Treasurys “have room to widen further” Vanguard said “the extra income can better absorb market turbulence” The actively managed Vanguard High Yield Corporate Fund Admiral Shares VWEAX has tumbled 122 this year through Oct 18 on a total return basis according to FactSet data That compares with a 157 loss for the Vanguard Core Bond Fund Admiral Shares VCOBX which actively invests mainly across the US investment grade market including Treasurys corporate bonds and mortgage backed securities FactSet data show Read Why Vanguard likes US high yield bonds in near term after recent big gains Volatile fixed income markets have prompted many investors to reposition some of their portfolios into “very conservative cash like vehicles” such as money market funds or “ultra short” duration bonds that have less price volatility said Johnson But that’s probably not where they’re going to remain invested for a long period as sitting in cash money markets and ultra short bonds is unlikely to meet return expectations required by many investors over the long term he said Broad diversified exposure to fixed income at a low cost is going to do “a better job of protecting your portfolio in keeping up with inflation over time than a short term cash like position” according to Johnson Treasury yields have surged this year as the Fed tightens its monetary policy The yield on the 10 year Treasury note TMUBMUSD10Y jumped 131 basis points Wednesday to 4127 its highest since July 23 2008 based on 3 pm Eastern time levels while 2 year Treasury yields TMUBMUSD02Y rose 115 basis points to 4550 for their highest level since Aug 8 2007 according to Dow Jones Market Data Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions The inversion between the 2 year and 10 year Treasury yields with the shorter term rate trading above the longer term one “has some investors spooked as many believe it’s an early sign of a recession” said Vanguard “Recent history however has shown that bond investors have done well in the two years after an inversion has occurred” the asset manager’s report shows Elsewhere in fixed income “a knock on effect of higher Treasury rates has been a dramatic increase in mortgage rates which recently hit 16 year highs of near 7” said Vanguard “As a result housing affordability has plummeted and a huge majority of mortgage borrowers can no longer benefit from refinancing their existing loan” Valuations of mortgage backed securities have become “more attractive but a drop off in investor demand warrants a selective approach” the firm said Meanwhile yields in the bond market have “blown past” the SP 500’s dividend yields providing an alternative to stocks a chart in Vanguard’s report shows Read Why stock market investors should wait for the 10 year Treasury to ‘blink’ “The risk reward profiles of various market sectors—including Treasurys corporates emerging markets and long term municipals—are more attractive than they were six months ago” said Vanguard But the Fed’s battle with high inflation isn’t over with investors expecting another large rate hike from the US central bank as it aims to bring the soaring cost of living under control “Policymakers have made it abundantly clear that little else matters until price stability is attained which means near term volatility is likely” Vanguard said “We are not confident that we have seen the peaks in US Treasury rates”

Key Takeaways Strongly recovering business in the US and Europe helped Tripcom return to the black with a 69 million yuan profit in the second quarter The company said outbound bookings from Hong Kong jumped nearly four times last week from the previous week as the city prepared to end its quarantine requirement By Ken Lo After two years in deep freeze travel in Asia is suddenly returning at its fastest pace since the start of the Covid 19 pandemic helped by the easing of border restrictions in popular tourist destinations like Japan South Korea Taiwan and Hong Kong The trend has delivered a shot in the arm to the stock ofTripcom Group LtdNASDAQTCOM which surged 88 last week after the company reported a return to profitability in its latest quarterly results Tripcom and its global peers are quickly emerging from a long winter feasting on pent up travel demand accumulated over more than two years when global travel ground to a virtual halt due to pandemic controls Now people are dying to get around as part of the classic post pandemic “revenge spending” which is expected to bring explosive growth to online travel platforms South Korea began to relax restrictions as early as late August and Japan announced on Monday that it would fully open to individual tourists starting on Oct 11 Hong Kong also lifted its quarantine requirements for visitors starting this week Tripcom said outbound bookings from Hong Kong on its platform rose nearly four fold last week compared with the previous one Among the top five overseas destinations for Hong Kong flights for the week the Japanese city Osaka ranked first with bookings up 73 times from a week earlier Separately South Korean flagship carrier Korean Air confirmed that its bookings to Japan for October tripled from the previous month Those figures all point to positive effects that regional re openings are having on the online tourism industry One notable exception to the trend is China whose borders remain nearly shut as it retains a “zero Covid” policy that has halted international tourism into the country and also prevented most Chinese – formerly one of the fastest growing global tourist groups – from traveling internationally That reality has kept Tripcom from recovering more strongly so far since China is the company’s largest and most important market Things were looking bleak globally as recently as the start of the year when the highly infectious Covid Omicron variant rapidly spread around the world But the US and Europe have moved to a strategy of “coexisting with the virus” in their attempts to bring the pandemic to an unofficial end That decision helped globally focused online travel agents like TripcomBooking HoldingsNASDAQBKNG andExpedia GroupNASDAQEXPE report strong business rebounds in the second quarter putting major first quarter losses squarely in their rear view mirrors International bookings doubled Tripcom’s operations consist of hotel reservations and transport ticketing which are its two largest revenue sources as well as packaged tours and corporate travel services According to itslatest financialsreleased last Thursday its revenue in the first half of the year declined by 187 to 813 billion yuan year on year due to the prolonged lockdowns in China which is still its largest market Its gross profit fell by 215 to 608 billion yuan and its net loss reached 920 million yuan But things improved notably in the second quarter from the first thanks to the strong recovery of its business in the US and Europe As things improved in those markets Tripcom’s hotel and airplane ticket bookings on its international platforms more than doubled in the second quarter That allowed the company to post a 69 million yuan profit for the quarter returning to the black after posting a 990 million yuan net loss in the first quarter Chairman James Liang said that following robust recoveries in the US and Europe tourism in Asia is also coming back with the removal of travel restrictions But the situation remains far more muted in China due to frequent lockdowns and other restrictions that have put a major damper on domestic travel in addition to halting nearly all international travel into and out of the country The company’s platforms now mainly consist of its domestically focused CTripcomand Qunarcom its Tripcom international platform and its hotel and airline booking price comparison website Skyscanner The financial report does not offer any geographical breakdown of revenue but the operating data for Skyscanner and Tripcom broadly reflect performance for its US and European operations Strong summer growth Tripcom CFO Cindy Wang said on the company’s earnings call that Skyscanner and Tripcom more than doubled their revenue year on year in the second quarter contributing 20 to 30 of the group’s total That suggests its international business brought in around 800 million yuan to 12 billion yuan of the total 402 billion yuan it generated during the quarter Initially focused on its home China market the company has expanded its business in the last five years using MA It has also long been the leader in China market with market research firm FastData reporting it had more than 70 million domestic monthly active users at the end of last year In addition to owning Qunar Tripcom is also a major stakeholder in China’s second largest online travel agentTongcheng0780HK giving it substantial control over its home market Tripcom managers recently said that hotel bookings in China in July grew by more than 20 from their level in 2019 and maintained positive growth in August on the same basis The company is convinced that with product innovation better services and a rebound in demand its business in the Asia Pacific region will continue to improve in the third quarter Despite its China exposure Tripcom still stacks up favorably compared to its global peers Booking Holdings and Expedia Group have current price to earnings PE ratios of 141 times and 105 times respectively both lower than Tripcom’s 245 times That may reflect investor expectation that countries in Asia will continue to reopen rapidly which could benefit Tripcom as one of the region’s largest players

International Business Machines CorpNYSEIBM disclosed its plans to open itsfirst quantum data center in Europe The data center will be based in Ehningen Germany serving IBM Quantum s European cloud region The center will aid clients in managing their European data regulation requirements including processing all job data within EU borders The facility will provide IBM access to advanced quantum computing for companies research institutions and government agencies The company expects the data center to be operational in 2024 with multiple IBM quantum computing systems each with utility scale quantum processors more than 100 qubits The planned quantum data center and associated cloud region will give European users a new option as they seek to tap the power of quantum computing in an effort to solve some of the world s most challenging problems said Jay Gambetta IBM Fellow and Vice President of IBM Quantum The new facility is IBM s second quantum data center and quantum cloud region following the data center in Poughkeepsie New York Also ReadRise Of The Machines IBM Eyes Replacing 7800 Non Customer Facing Jobs With AI Price Action IBM shares are trading higher by 005 at 13270 premarket on the last check Tuesday

UK house prices rose for the fifth consecutive month in June to a new high though there are further signs of the pace of growth slowing according to new data from property portal Rightmove PLC The average price of property coming to the market rose by 1113 pounds 1360 in May This is a modest increase of 03 the smallest rise since January but still hit a new record of GBP368614 The exceptional pace of the market is easing a little as demand gradually softens and price rises begin to slow which is very much to be expected given the many record breaking numbers over the past two years Tim Bannister property data director at Rightmove said First time buyer asking prices hit a record GBP224251 after climbing 05 over the month The portal measured 100024 prices across the UK over the period from May 15 to June 11 Despite five consecutive interest rate hikes and a cost of living crisis buyer demand for every available property remains strong at just over double the five year average in May before the coronavirus pandemic Affordability constraints coupled with increasing choice on the market for buyers with the number of properties on the market rising 7 on year are likely to lead to some month on month price falls in the second half of the year Entering the second half of the year we anticipate some further slowdown in the pace of price rises particularly given the worsening affordability challenges that people are facing We expect this to bring the annual rate of price growth down from the current 97 towards the 5 increase that Rightmove predicted at the beginning of the year Mr Bannister said

A few days ago hundreds of Dominicans stakeholders and members of New York’s cannabis community gathered in Manhattan for the first CannaReD CannaTalk hosted in New York City CannaReD is a non profit association founded in the Dominican Republic that hosts CannaTalks throughout the country and brought the series to New York to educate and inform the city’s Spanish speaking community about the status of cannabis legalization efforts in the Dominican Republic “The CannaReD team and I are inspired to be gathered in New York City which is home to the second largest Dominican population next to the Dominican Republic itself” said Diego Sagawe co founder and treasurer of CannaReD “The Dominican Republic has one of the most restrictive cannabis policies in the world where even medical cannabis is difficult to access for patients In our home country cannabis legalization has a long way to go and the market in New York is set to be progressive and inclusive which is why hosting events here is a great opportunity to gain support to influence cannabis reform” CannaReD’s mission is to educate develop and promote public policies for access to cannabis for medicinal use industrial use and scientific research in the Dominican Republic The team is a community of Dominicans who seek to influence the regulatory process of cannabis in the Dominican Republic for the development and strengthening of civil society Considering that many countries have already made the leap towards decriminalization and legalization of cannabis CannaReD works to influence Dominican Republic regulations to join the progressive movement The CannaTalk included prominent Dominican leaders and cannabis trailblazers including Vladimir Bautista co founder of Happy Munkey New York’s long time leading Latino owned cannabis lifestyle brand Vlad and his team have focused on bringing together communities from diverse backgrounds and shifting the paradigm of cannabis culture through unique and innovative experiential activations A mission that aligns heavily with CannaReD “I am beyond proud to combine forces with my fellow Dominican and industry peers at CannaReD to advocate for this important cause” said Vladimir Bautista “The appeal of organizing this Dominican state of the union of cannabis in New York City shows that our Empire State will be a global cannabis leader that possesses the manpower and determination to provide assistance and guidance for international markets” This CannaTalk is just one installment of CannaReD’s to network with other organizations and countries to build support for The Cannabis March in May 2023 in the Dominican Republic where the organization and the community can come together to lobby their nation for the cause of legalization and safe access to the plant More countries are changing legislation and beginning to expand their cannabis market from therapy to managing symptoms of many diseases favorable raw material with the preservation of the environment the generation of jobs and employment and contribution to the economy through tax collection Dominican Republic’s continued prohibition of the plant will only feed into all the negative aspects such as drug trafficking and informal production with risks of poor quality products that could be a public health danger

In July I wrote this column about a man who was working with a financial planner and withdrawing 4 from his investment accounts but it wasn’t enough and he was wondering whether he should find a new adviser One big issue the column brought up was this People frequently misunderstand the 4 rule for various reasons and if your financial adviser isn’t clearly explaining it to you or telling you alternatives to it it might be time to switch advisers Looking for a financial adviser You can use this tool to get matched with a financial adviser who might meet your needs here The 4 rule developed in 1994 by financial adviser William Bengen suggests that you start retirement withdrawals at 4 of your assets and annually increase the withdrawals according to what’s happening with inflation regardless of what’s happened in the stock and bond markets “The costs for the things we normally buy increase each year so it makes sense to have a withdrawal strategy that takes that into consideration” says certified financial planner Curtis Bailey of Quiet Wealth Management Simply put the 4 rule is considered a safe withdrawal rate says accredited asset management specialist and accredited investment fiduciary Ted Halpern of Halpern Financial “You can assume to safely over the long run withdraw 4 per year without running out of money There will be years where you go into your principal investment like this year likely but over the long run it’s a safe figure” says Halpern Here’s how the 4 rule might look in practice If the initial portfolio is 1000000 then the first year withdrawal would be 40000 Now let’s say inflation looked like this 1 2 and then 3 Based on the 1 inflation the next year’s withdrawal would then be 40400 that’s 40000 x 101 in the subsequent year with 2 inflation it would increase to 41208 Finally it would be 42444 based on the 3 rate What are the misconceptions about the 4 rule There are also two common misconceptions about the 4 rule pros say “The first is that the 4 is the total withdrawal—taxes and advisory fees need to be paid as part of the withdrawal” says Bailey But the reality is this as Charles Schwab clearly lays out “The rule guides how much to withdraw from your portfolio each year and assumes that taxes or fees if any are an expense that you pay out of the money withdrawn If you withdraw 40000 and have 5000 in taxes and fees at year end that’s paid from the 40000 withdrawn” But that means you’ll need to consider that you may end up with less than you’d thought “If you’re paying your adviser 1 this would only leave you 3 for spending and taxes” says Bailey The second big misconception is that 4 is only calculated once at the start of the first year and you start at the same amount each year regardless of portfolio value says Bailey “Let’s say a family has a total portfolio of 1 million dollars at retirement the first year’s withdrawal is 40000” says Bailey Assuming 2 inflation in the second year you would take out 40800 which is the original amount with 2 tacked on and in the third year you would take out 41616 which is 40800 with 2 tacked on And adds Bailey “This amount is calculated without taking into account your current portfolio value regardless of whether it’s up substantially or lower” says Bailey What are the main criticisms of the 4 rule The rule ignores the performance of an individual’s portfolio Indeed it assumes you up your spending every year by the rate of inflation rather than by how your portfolio performed which may cause issues for some investors “What happens when you need to replace your furnace or roof Or what if you want to take a big trip in the third year of retirement The rule doesn’t offer answers” says Bailey It also assumes a 30 year time horizon which depending on your health and other factors may not be relavant to you And it is based on calculations that use historical market returns which may not predict future ones anda sample portfolio of 50 stocks and 50 bonds What else should aspiring retirees consider An important takeaway from the 4 rule is that inflation is at the center of retirement “It makes sense not only to think about how inflation impacts spending but also how your portfolio is oriented to meet or surpass inflation Inflation doesn’t care what happened in the markets but your lifestyle does” says Bailey Another thing to consider is taxes “Taking withdrawals from brokerage accounts may result in smaller overall withdrawals than from a retirement account because you’ve had to pay taxes all along on the brokerage account An adviser can help you determine what the most advantageous mix of draws are from taxable and non taxable accounts” says says certified financial planner Anthony Ogorek of Ogorek Wealth Management

Doobie a cannabis delivery operator entered into a new strategic partnership with Cresco Labs OTCQXCRLBF a vertically integrated multistate cannabis operator Through Doobie s direct to consumer delivery solution Doobie Direct customers in Massachusetts can begin ordering their favorite Cresco Labs products and have them delivered to their door Customers will be able to purchase Mindy s Edibles Good News FloraCal Farms High Supply and Cresco by simply visiting the Shop pages on the brand websites to place their orders We are excited to partner with Cresco Labs and offer their customers the ease of delivery stated Joseph Rubin CEO of Doobie We believe that this partnership will help us to support our partners to retain more business and generate more sales while providing the best possible experience Collaborations like these help keep Doobie ahead in the evolving delivery market Dana Mason vice president of wholesale commercial marketing at Cresco Labs stated We are thrilled to partner with Doobie and offer delivery directly to our customers Doobie s platform is built for efficiency and customer service which aligns with our commitment to quality and innovation We look forward to a successful partnership with Doobie and serving our customers Doobie s partnership with Cresco Labs is the cannabis delivery partner s fifth direct to consumer partnership following launches with Cann Fernway Cantrip and TILT Holdings OTCQXTLLTF Photo Courtesy of Doobie Related News Doobie Teams Up With Cannabis Beverage Brand Cantrip Doobie Delivery Expands Direct To Consumer Cannabis Program With TILT s Commonwealth Alternative Care

Essentially the shock to the economy that is driving inflation has not been stronger than expected output or demand but rather a shortfall in the economy s supply side production which means the bar for excess demand to overheat the economy is much lower The big surprise over the last year is not that the economy has been stronger than expected because it hasn t been it s that the economy s supply side has been weaker than expected with the result that unemployment is lower than expected and domestic inflation pressure is stronger than expected even though GDP growth has not been stronger than expected Saunders explained He added that monetary policy therefore has to ensure that the economy doesn t grow any faster than its existing anemic rate as potential output growth is weak meaning the government has to resort to little or no public spending growth or a rising tax burden if it wants to return its fiscal position to a sustainable path If you think about this previous output path the MPC and the OBR think that potential output is lower than 2019 Q4 but … over three years at the pre pandemic pace you d expect potential output growth of probably 45 something like 15 per year so it s that shortfall relative to what in any case was a pretty miserable trend Saunders said We ve spent most of the last 10 years saying that potential output growth is weak because look how far we are below the pre GFC Global Financial Crisis trend and now we ve fallen below even the post GFC trend Hunt s fiscal plans include around £30 billion in public spending cuts the deepest of which were heavily backloaded beyond April 2025 which would be after the country s next general election I thought the Autumn Statement just had a massive big hole where a long term growth strategy should have been Saunders told CNBC via telephone Delaying the public spending squeeze isn t really about trying to improve the long term growth outlook it s just about trying to limit the pain of adjusting to a low potential growth outlook A spokesperson for the UK Treasury was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC He noted that cuts to public investment which constituted a substantial portion of the government s spending squeeze will probably make potential output growth worse and highlighted OECD studies that suggest a broad payoff from public investment for potential growth An OECD report in 2016 found that public investment has a positive effect on long term growth and on labour productivity and can also increase the speed of convergence of catching up countries If you want to do a fiscal consolidation doing it through cutting public investment is the least helpful thing to do in terms of trying to boost potential output Saunders added His comments were echoed on Sunday by Britain s largest business lobby group the Confederation of British Industry Director General Tony Danker told the BBC that Hunt had seemingly prioritized stability over growth but that without higher growth the country would not be able to afford its rising costs of health and social care Danker told the BBC that the Autumn Statement was all about fighting inflation and getting the government budget in some decent shape and that does need to be done but added that there was really nothing there that tells us the economy is going to avoid another decade of low productivity and low growth

Walt Disney Co DIS shares are trading lower by 211 to 9605 and off the session high of 9964 going into the close of Monday s trading session Disney shares are trading lower amid continued overall weakness amid concerns of further Fed rate hikes and a rise in the US dollar against other global currencies Shares of several companies in the broader communications media and entertainment industry are also trading lower in recent sessions amid raised fears of an economic slowdown as investors continue to assess Wednesday s Fed commentary and 75 bps rate hike An economic slowdown could negatively impact discretionary spending Disney shares are trading lower by 1056 to 9618 over the trailing five sessions The Federal Reserve raised its target fed funds rate by 075 last Wednesday to a new range of between 3 and 325 its third 075 rate hike in four months The Fed said it will continue with its previously announced plan to let Treasury securities and agency debt and agency mortgage backed securities roll off its balance sheet on a monthly basis “Inflation remains elevated reflecting supply and demand imbalances related to the pandemic higher food and energy prices and broader price pressures” the Fed said in a statementRead More See Also What In The World Is Going On With Ford Shares According to data from Benzinga Pro Disney has a 52 week high of 17963 and a 52 week low of 9023

LyondellBasell Industries NVNYSELYBreported the Q2 FY23 revenues of 1031 billion down from 1484 billion a year ago which missed theconsensus of 1040 billion Adjusted EPS stood at 244 beatingthe consensus of 229 Adjusted EBITDA stood at 15 billion vs 245 a year ago Global olefins and polyolefins margins increased modestly during Q2 on lower feedstock costs in both the US and Europe The company returned 508 million to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases In May the company increased its quarterly dividend per shareby 5 to 125 In Q2 LyondellBasell generated an operating cash flow of 13 billion and ended the quarter with 66 billion in available liquidity As of June 30 2023 cash and liquid investments stood at 249 billion OutlookLYB says its Value Enhancement Program announced in March isprogressing ahead of schedule Consequently the company raised the near term target by around 30 and is now expected to deliver 150 million of net income and recurring annual EBITDA of200 million by year end 2023 In Q3 the company expects summer seasonality benefits to be more than offset by soft demand due to ongoing economic uncertainty It expects petrochemical margins to be impacted by stagnant demand volatile feedstock costs and new capacity in North America and China In Q3 LYB projects average operating rates of 85 for North American olefins and polyolefins OP assets and 75 for European OP and Intermediates Derivatives assets to be at par with the global market demand In May the company planned to delay the cessation of operations at Houston Refinery from the end of this year to no later thanthe end of the first quarter of 2025 Price Action LYB shares are trading lower by 366 at 9290 premarket on the last check Friday

Flags are seen outside the New York Stock Exchange NYSE in New York City in New York US February 24 2022 REUTERSCaitlin Ochs April 26 Reuters The tech heavy Nasdaq led Wall Street lower on Tuesday with a 3 slump and the SP 500 briefly fell 2 as nerves ahead of earnings from megacap growth and technology companies added to concerns over slowing global growth and a more aggressive Federal Reserve STOCKS Dow down 154 SP 500 down 180 Nasdaq down 289 BONDS The yield on benchmark 10 year notes fell to 27663 VIX The VIX VIX was up 138 at 3062 “We’re in a turbulent environment you see these mini crashes and you see mini rallies We seem to bounce up and down It’s earnings season obviously The earnings so far look good to me There have been some weaknesses especially in some revenues You look at JetBlue for instance So weak revenues relative to expectations The earnings themselves look good look at GE look at 3M Good earnings good revenues both above expectations But some investors may look at some of these earnings and think there may be some weaknesses “I haven’t heard anything else that is going on or I don’t see anything else So it’s one of those perplexing days when there isn’t a really good answer for what’s going on “The only other thing I see is that bond yields are down There is a little of an inversion now or more of an inversion from the two year out yields are down Anything that smells like inversion or looks like the start of an inversion has people worried about a recession” THOMAS HAYES CHAIRMAN GREAT HILL CAPITAL LLC NY “There s a lot of anxiety ahead of the earnings which are coming up Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday just because if they don t hold up then there s nothing left to hold up the market… people are just worried before results and they re trying to take some chips off the table because if they are bad earnings or bad guidance it could take the market lower This is going be a case of sell the rumor buy the news” “Of course people have priced in a lot of low expectations They re going into the print very very weak which means expectations are very low It may be a very small hurdle to overcome with inline or slightly better results enough to cause the next leg of the rally”

SÃO PAULO Brazil s unemployment rate declined for the sixth consecutive three month period amid strong new job creation in the services sector The jobless rate reached 89 in the three months through August from 91 in the three months through July and 131 in the year earlier period the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics or IBGE said Friday The number of people with jobs rose to 99 million in the three months through August from 987 million in the three months through July while the number of people seeking employment fell to 97 million from 99 million during the same period The strength of Brazil s economy and of new job creation in recent months has surprised economists who have been expecting a slowdown The median forecast for growth of gross domestic product this year in a weekly survey of economists by the central bank has risen for 13 straight months most recently to 267 while the forecast for GDP growth next year has remained at 05 for two weeks Services sector growth in particular has been strong boosted by an increase in aid payments by the government to poorer families by an increase of purchasing power as inflation slows and by employment growth This growth is mainly associated with the retraction of inflation said Adriana Beringuy the IBGE s coordinator for the employment report But the expansion of employment with a formal contract and of employers are also contributing factors The activities that created most new jobs in the period were trade and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles public administration defense social security education human health and social services and other services according to the IBGE

Thailand s economy grew in the first quarter of 2022 helped by an improvement in private consumption and exports Gross domestic product rose 22 from a year earlier compared with a 18 expansion in the final quarter of 2021 the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Council said Tuesday The reading was better than the median forecast of a 20 rise in a Wall Street Journal poll of seven economists First quarter GDP increased 11 from the previous quarter on a seasonally adjusted basis Stronger exports of goods and continued recovery in private consumption and tourism supported first quarter growth despite some restrictions related to the spread of the Omicron variant economists said The tourism sector is likely to recover further in the coming months thanks to the easing of border restrictions although Covid 19 outbreaks in China could mean a slower return of travelers from that country economists said Meanwhile elevated inflation could hurt private consumption and exports might be pressured by slower global growth they said The government agency said it expects the economy to expand 25 to 35 this year down from its previous view of 35 45 growth after a 15 expansion last year Private consumption which makes up about half of the Thai economy rose 39 in the first quarter from a year earlier Exports of goods increased 10 exports of services rose 31 and imports of goods and services gained 67 the data showed

You’ve seen the prognosticators of doom and gloom US Inflation is at an all time high which should strengthen Bitcoin as a hedge against inflation but it hasn’t International conflict should bolster the premier cryptocurrency that isn’t constrained by international borders It hasn’t As of this writing Bitcoin is worth approximately half of what it was six months ago and remains incredibly volatile Predictably those who didn’t believe in cryptocurrency are coming close to outright gloating Bitcoin BTCUSD has been compared to a Ponzi scheme denounced repeatedly by Warren Buffett predicted to go to zero and dismissed as a “fraud” by JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon So why would someone think in the middle of all of this that Bitcoin is getting stronger What could possibly embolden someone enough to think that Warren Buffett Jamie Dimon and financial analysts are missing something It’s because over the past months progress has continued in one specific area that if it continues is highly likely to cause a re evaluation of those opinions Bitcoin is slowly becoming more and more transactional The longer Bitcoin exists and the more it’s viewed as an acceptable currency for goods the more stable it will become The latest corporation to join a litany of “those who accept Bitcoin as payment” is Gucci the fashion giant announced last week that it will accept Bitcoin as payment While this by itself isn’t a major development it simply adds to a list of companies that will accept Bitcoin either directly or through a third party platform for goods and services And that list means something “This might sound cliché but Bitcoin is becoming too big to fail” says MacguyverTech CEO Steve Mac McKeon “You have companies organizations and even countries accepting Bitcoin as an acceptable form of payment now The easier it becomes to use the more people are going to value it And the more people value it the more it makes sense to own it as a commodity” Indeed the main reason Warren Buffett denounced Bitcoin is as he stated “I’d have to sell it back to you one way or another It isn’t going to do anything” One of the biggest drawbacks early on was that it was difficult to move Bitcoin to a form of currency that was widely accepted like the US Dollar Even today the process of moving digital currency from one form to another can be an arduous and highly confusing task When this author first tried to exchange Ethereum for another cryptocurrency he had to use multiple digital wallets consult with a currency exchange platform pay gas fees sacrifice a live chicken and perform a Celtic dance under a full moon before he accomplished the feat Okay I’m making those last two parts up but the point is that dealing with cryptocurrency can be quite confusing and difficult The ability to use Bitcoin with a business directly or through a third party platform greatly enhances its utility Today one can buy a BMW to drive around and shop at Starbucks Home Depot Gucci and Whole Foods buy a home or rent an apartment through numerous real estate companies plan and pay for a vacation through Expedia or just stay at home and shop on Amazon Overstock or Etsy In a very short period we’ve gone from Bitcoin having very little practical utility as a currency to being able to acquire food clothing and shelter with it at the click of a button Don’t think that even the biggest skeptics are unaware of this transition For example the aforementioned Jamie Dimon authorized Bitcoin to be used in client investments last year and has softened his cryptocurrency stance considerably And while not saying anything positive Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway invested one billion dollars in the Brazilian neobank Nubank earlier this year Nubank just happens to be the largest cryptocurrency bank in Latin America While the immediate outlook for Bitcoin is still murky the adaptation by retailers investors and financial institutions is a sign that people might say they don’t believe in Bitcoin but their actions…well as they say actions speak louder than words The actions of plenty of financially sound organizations are positively screaming as they prepare for the future of finance

EVI Industries IncNYSEEVI said it had executed a definitive agreement to acquire New Castle Pennsylvania basedALVF Inc dba ALCO Washer Center a distributor of commercial laundry productsfor an undisclosed sum Through ALCO EVI looks to increase its customer base and expand its distribution and service footprint in the northeast region of the US Upon closing ALCO will join EVI s Northeast Group and continue operating under its current name and location The deal represents EVI s twenty fifth acquisition of a successful family owned commercial laundry business EVIheld 402 million in cash and equivalentsas of March 31 2023 Price Action EVI shares are trading higher by 347 at 2536 on the last check Monday

An operator moves aluminium side panels at the factory of Spanish train manufacturer Talgo in Rivabellosa Spain October 11 2018 REUTERSVincent West MADRID Aug 1 Reuters Factory activity in Spain contracted in July for the first time in a year and a half as inflationary pressures and macroeconomic uncertainty weighed on demand a survey showed on Monday SP Global s Purchasing Managers Index PMI for manufacturing fell to 487 in July down from 526 in June according to the survey The indicator in June was below the 500 level that marks an activity contraction for the first time since Jan 2021 and the lowest since May 2020 when the country was in a strict lockdown Sales plummeted as a result of the uncertainty businesspeople polled by SP Global said some of them predicting a recession in the second half of the year Demand experienced a noticeable retrenchment – both across domestic and international markets – which led to a drop in output SP Global s economist Paul Smith said This is also reflected in firms expectations which slumped noticeably he said Concerned about the economic downturn in the coming months companies are taking increasingly defensive positions as highlighted by cuts in employment inventories and purchasing The PMI survey doesn t bode well for the manufacturing sector in the third quarter after it expanded a scant 01 in the April to June period according to data released by the official statistics agency INE on Friday Despite the headwinds the Spanish government earlier this week maintained its GDP growth forecast for the full year at 43 though lowered it to 27 for 2023 The second quarter quarterly growth was unexpectedly high at 11 Spanish 12 month inflation to July rose to 108 its fastest pace since 1984 INE said on Friday

The Reserve Bank of India the Indian central bank hiked the repo rate by 50 basis points to 54 as the Monetary Policy Committee agreed on the withdrawal of accommodation so that inflation remains within the target going forward while supporting growth RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das stated that external debt to GDP fell from 212 in March 2021 to 1995 in March 2022 Das said that GDP growth for the year has been retained at 72 with Q1 growth at 162 Q2 at 62 Q3 at 41 and Q4 at 4 with risks broadly balanced Also ReadAlibaba Slips 1 Nio XPeng Rise Over 3 Hang Seng Opens Firmer After Mixed Wall Street Session At the same time inflation is projected at 67 in 2022 23 he said Currency Movement The rupee gained against the dollar on Friday after the central bank’s rate hike decision The currency was trading at 7905 as against the previous session’s close of 7940 Stock Movement Benchmark indices traded in the green with both the Nifty 50 and the Sensex trending 02 higher Benzinga s Take The 50 bps hike was on the upper end of the expected range and this has helped the Indian currency pare some of the losses itmade during previous sessions dragged by a widening trade deficit The RBI s move is in line with global rate hike decisions and as far as the inflation remains above the targeted range the rate hike cycle may be expected to continue

A whale with a lot of money to spend has taken a noticeably bearish stance on Airbnb Looking at options history for Airbnb ABNB we detected 89 strange trades If we consider the specifics of each trade it is accurate to state that 43 of the investors opened trades with bullish expectations and 56 with bearish From the overall spotted trades 55 are puts for a total amount of 3642783 and 34 calls for a total amount of 1839755 Taking into account the Volume and Open Interest on these contracts it appears that whales have been targeting a price range from 750 to 2200 for Airbnb over the last 3 months Looking at the volume and open interest is an insightful way to conduct due diligence on a stock This data can help you track the liquidity and interest for Airbnb s options for a given strike price Below we can observe the evolution of the volume and open interest of calls and puts respectively for all of Airbnb s whale activity within a strike price range from 750 to 2200 in the last 30 days Airbnb Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days Where Is Airbnb Standing Right Now With a volume of 9659729 the price of ABNB is down 535 at 1446 RSI indicators hint that the underlying stock may be approaching oversold Next earnings are expected to be released in 0 days What The Experts Say On Airbnb Citigroup upgraded its action to Buy with a price target of 200 Keybanc has decided to maintain their Overweight rating on Airbnb which currently sits at a price target of 195 Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock but they have higher profit potential Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily scaling in and out of trades following more than one indicator and following the markets closely If you want to stay updated on the latest options trades for d companyname Benzinga Progives you real time options trades alerts

Transat AT Inc and Porter Aviation Holdings Inc began a codeshare agreement on Tuesday The agreement covers domestic flights between Halifax Nova Scotia and Toronto City airport on Porter Airlines and on select Air Transat flights out of Montreal Connecting passengers in the Toronto and Halifax markets have immediate access to Air Transat s European and North American network while additional connections to and from the US are expected to be launched later this year the airlines said

What happened On Thursday a total of 413598 Ether CRYPTO ETH worth 7005075 based on the current value of Ethereum at time of publication 169369 was burned from Ethereum transactions Burning is when a coin or token is sent to an unusable wallet to remove it from circulation Why it matters On August 5th 2021 the Ethereum blockchain implemented an important upgrade known as EIP 1159 This Ethereum improvement proposal changed the fee model drastically Now each transaction includes a variable base fee that adjusts according to the current demand for block space This base fee is burned or permanently removed from circulation lowering the supply of Ether forever See Also How to Buy Ethereum When Will Ethereum 20 Launch Ethereum is currently issuing new Ether at a rate of 4 per year although this is expected to decrease to around 05 1 as a part of the Ethereum 20 upgrade Once this occurs many speculate that the burn rate of Ether will be greater than the token s issuance causing ETH to become a deflationary currency The net annualized issuance rate for Ether yesterday was 420 Data provided by Glassnode

Joe Biden may favor easing tariffs on some consumer goods from China but a key ally of the president’s says the timing would be off and asserts that doing so wouldn’t much help tackle inflation In an interview on CNN Wednesday AFL CIO President Liz Shuler said “We think it’s the wrong time to relax tariffs on China” What’s more added the labor federation chief “we think it would have a marginal impact at best on inflation”

Pelorus Equity Group a company that provides real estate loans for cannabis businesses has provided 11M of non dilutive real estate debt financing at an interest rate of 105 to Inkster Pine Park to fund working capital and support future growth Inkster was previously the recipient of a 93M construction loan at an interest rate of 1575 used to fund the build out of its new state of the art 72000 square foot cultivation and processing facility Upon completion of construction Inkster successfully completed the underwriting process to enter the stabilized lending program which provides lower cost of capital It has been both exciting and rewarding to work with the Inkster team as they’ve grown to become the largest Black owned cannabis cultivator and processor in Michigan” Dan Leimel CEO of Pelorus Equity Group and manager of the Pelorus Fund told Benzinga “Our stabilized lending program is highly selective and Inkster is our third portfolio company to qualify and complete the process Additionally we see how funding shapes the cannabis industry and we are grateful for this opportunity to work alongside the team at Inkster while maintaining the momentum that the industry has seen in moving towards a more equitable future“ Michael Carr managing member of Inkster Pine Park commented “Working with the team at Pelorus has been instrumental in the development of our state of the art facility Dan and his entire team are outstanding and their structured approach to lending solutions makes working with them incredibly advantageous to those looking to compete in the industry We are thrilled to continue our partnership with them in the stabilized lending program for our next phase of growth This new funding will allow us to accelerate our investments in equipment to increase our throughput and enter our next stage of growth with our retail development program” About Inkster Pine Park Inkster Pine Park specializes in organically growing and processing exceptional cannabis flower and edibles for Michigan s medical and recreational markets Its 72000 square foot facility has 52000 square feet of hybrid greenhouse space and 20000 square feet of indoor cultivation and processing space Operating under the brand s Canna Pure and Everpure the company s goal is to exceed consumer expectations on the relief and experience cannabis can provide

Purchases of new single family houses in the US decreased in February for the second consecutive month Here are the main takeaways from the Commerce Department s report published Wednesday New home sales decreased 2 in February on month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 772000 Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal expected home sales to rise 05 to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 805000 New home sales in January were downwardly revised to 788000 from an earlier estimate of 801000 Sales were 62 below the same month a year earlier when they stood at an adjusted annual rate of 823000 Monthly new residential sales data is volatile and often revised February s data came with a margin of error of 119 percentage points The median price of a new home was 400600 down from 427400 the previous month The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of February was 407000 This represents a supply of 63 months at the current sales rate

US Virgin Islands Send Recreational Cannabis Legalization Bill To Governor Lawmakers in the US Virgin Islands USVI have approved a bill to legalize adult use cannabis sending it to Governor Albert Bryan DEleven senators voted in favor of the veto proof measurewith one vote against itand three absentwritesSt Kitts and Nevis Observer Governor Bryan is expected to sign the measure into law as he has alreadyexpressed his supportfor recreational marijuana laws At the same time regulators passed a bill to automatically expunge the records of individuals convicted of simple cannabis possession offenses “It became contentious we almost went to war over cannabis” said senatorJanelle Sarauwthe sponsor of the bill commented who addedthat “every single amendment every single suggestion that members made is included in the amendment in the nature of a substitute” “Although there have been many politically driven false narratives about this cannabis legislation I am proud of the work done by the Senators of the 34th Legislature community stakeholders and advocates all of who contributed to the structuring of the final bill voted upon in today’s Session” Sarauw said in apress release “The body did its due diligence in protecting the masses and the best interest of our residents by ensuring that locals and minorities are not locked out of industry and have any opportunity to participate in its economic potential” Sarauw also highlighted that for the bill to progress a plethora of regulations and procedures need to be formed and established With Gov Brayan’s signature residents and visitors of the US Virgin Islands will be allowed to legally buy medical and recreational marijuana from licensed operatorsonce they open USVI alreadydecriminalized possession of under one ounce 28 grams of marijuana Kentuckians Legally Allowed To Own Medical Marijuana From Another State Advocates Want More Kentuckians are officially allowed to legally possess up to eight ounces of medical marijuana if it’s purchased in another state thanks toGovernor Andy Beshear’sexecutive orderfrom about two months ago What This Means “That is having under eight ounces that’s having proof that it’s been purchased legally in a state where it’s legal” Gov Beshear said in an interview Wednesday at the State CapitolreportedWkyt The governor has in the past toutedthe potential benefits of medical cannabis“It can be a veteran suffering from PTSD” he said “It can be a family member suffering from epilepsy These aren’t stories they are realities” On the other hand cannabis advocates are pushing for even more progress hoping that 2023 will be the year the medical marijuana bill passes through both chambers Robert Matheny the owner of KY CBD Farmacy although thankful for the executive order pointed out some difficulties around it One of them is that physicians don’t know enough about medical marijuana but are now allowed to recommend its use He said the order also left many things unspecified like what form of cannabis can be possessed and how the law should be applied moving forward Matheny cautionedthat the order could face legal challenges from Attorney GeneralDaniel Cameron Maryland Residents Caught With 25 Ounces Of Weed No Longer Subject To Criminal Penalties Maryland residents caught in possession of25 ounces of marijuana willno longer be subject to criminal penalties thanks to house bill 837 that took effect on Jan 1writesNORML Under the law possession of up to 15 ounces for adults will be treated as a civil violation with a maximum fine in the amount of 100 Possession of between 15 ounces and 25 ounces of cannabis flower is punishable by a fine of up to 250 Marylandvoted to legalize adult use cannabisby a nearly 30 margin inNovember’s midterm electionsBeginning in July 2023 adults 21 and over will be allowed to possess up to 15 oz of cannabis and 10 grams of cannabis concentrateQuestion 4 theMarijuana Legalization Amendment was on the ballot as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment By passing Question 4 voters also prompted the enactment of another complementary bill to lower cannabis possession limits and to facilitate the automatic review and expungement of low level marijuana convictions Iowa’s Medical Marijuana Program Booming The Majority Of Patients Suffers From Chronic Pain Iowa’s medical marijuana sales hit 102 million in aggregate across five dispensaries in 2022 representing a huge increase from 2021 Iowa Cannabidiol Board released a report on the state s medical cannabis program at the end of December In it the agency offeredseveral recommendations to state regulators for proposed changesreportedDes Moines Register Throughout 2022 the number of active medical marijuana MMJ cardholders grew to nearly 15000 by November compared to around 7800 patients in December 2021 Among those 15000 patients enrolled in the MMJprogram the vast majority around 10000 were issued cards to treatchronic painfollowed by more than 2800 post traumatic stress disorder PTSDcardholders Photo Benzinga edit with photos by Ramdlon ganjaspliffstoreuk on Pixabay

With US futures trading higher this morning on Thursday some of the stocks that may grab investor focus today are as follows Wall Street expects Accenture plc NYSEACN to post quarterly earnings at 249 per share on revenue of 1560 billion before the opening bell Accenture shares rose 13 to 25660 in after hours trading Chewy Inc NYSECHWY reported better than expected earnings and sales results for its fourth quarter However the company s active customers came in at 204 million down 12 from a year ago Chewy shares dropped 25 to 3680 in the after hours trading session Analysts are expecting General Mills Inc NYSEGIS to have earned 091 per share on revenue of 494 billion for the latest quarter The company will release earnings before the markets open General Mills shares rose 13 to 8087 in after hours trading Check out our premarket coverage here Steelcase Inc NYSESCS posted better than expected results for its fourth quarter and issued strong forecast for the first quarter Steelcase shares gained 59 to 760 in the after hours trading session Analysts expect Darden Restaurants Inc NYSEDRI to post quarterly earnings at 221 per share on revenue of 272 billion before the opening bell Darden Restaurants shares rose 01 to 15106 in after hours trading Read This Next Top 5 Health Care Stocks That May Crash In March

Someone with a lot of money to spend has taken a bearish stance on Starbucks NASDAQSBUXAnd retail traders should knowWe noticed this today when the big position showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at BenzingaWhether this is an institution or just a wealthy individual we don t know But when something this big happens with SBUX it often means somebody knows something is about to happenSo how do we know what this whale just did Today Benzinga s options scanner spotted 11 uncommon options trades for StarbucksThis isn t normalThe overall sentiment of these big money traders is split between 27 bullish and 72 bearishOut of all of the special options we uncovered 7 are puts for a total amount of 751703 and 4 are calls for a total amount of 131997What s The Price TargetTaking into account the Volume and Open Interest on these contracts it appears that whales have been targeting a price range from 650 to 920 for Starbucks over the last 3 months Volume Open Interest DevelopmentIn terms of liquidity and interest the mean open interest for Starbucks options trades today is 353312 with a total volume of 320300In the following chart we are able to follow the development of volume and open interest of call and put options for Starbucks s big money trades within a strike price range of 650 to 920 over the last 30 daysStarbucks Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days Biggest Options Spotted SymbolPUTCALLTrade TypeSentimentExp DateStrike PriceTotal Trade PriceOpen InterestVolume SBUXPUTSWEEPBULLISH11182285004217K86K693 SBUXPUTSWEEPBEARISH11182287501100K30K299 SBUXPUTSWEEPBULLISH0120239000777K57K226 SBUXPUTSWEEPBEARISH0120236500470K49K502 SBUXCALLTRADENEUTRAL0119249000398K10K8 Where Is Starbucks Standing Right Now With a volume of 1845507 the price of SBUX is down 234 at 8728 RSI indicators hint that the underlying stock is currently neutral between overbought and oversoldNext earnings are expected to be released in 13 days What The Experts Say On Starbucks Piper Sandler has decided to maintain their Neutral rating on Starbucks which currently sits at a price target of 92 Deutsche Bank has decided to maintain their Buy rating on Starbucks which currently sits at a price target of 101 Stephens Co downgraded its action to Equal Weight with a price target of 91Morgan Stanley has decided to maintain their Equal Weight rating on Starbucks which currently sits at a price target of 96 Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock but they have higher profit potential Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily scaling in and out of trades following more than one indicator and following the markets closelyIf you want to stay updated on the latest options trades for Starbucks Benzinga Pro gives you real time options trades alerts

Goldman Sachs Group Inc which has been among the most bullish banks on oil price outlook has reportedly lowered its price forecasts once again in the wake of increasing global supplies and reducing demand The bank has now lowered its Brent oil price forecast for December to 86 a barrel compared to its previous estimate of 95 a barrel according to a Bloomberg report This is Goldman s third downward price revision in six months Also Read Best Oil ETFs Oil prices declined on Monday as investors and traders remained cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve s policy decision this week Brent futures maturing in August were trading 108 lower at 7398 per barrel during Monday morning Asian trading session Supply increases from countries facing sanctions Russia Iran and Venezuela are an important driver in the lower price outlook according to Goldman Russia’s supply production in particular has nearly fully recovered despite sanctions from the West the report said We have never been this wrong for this long without seeing evidence to change our views Jeff Currie Goldman s head of commodities research told Bloomberg TV last week Fed Policy Recession fears are also having an impact on oil prices with higher interest rates likely to be a persistent headwind to higher prices wrote Goldman analysts including Callum Bruce and Currie in the note Market participants will be keenly watching out for any hints regarding the Fed s future policy path as further hikes will hurt an already weak US economy leading to demand concerns from the world s largest oil consumer The United States Brent Oil Fund NYSEBNO closed 098 lower on Friday while the Vanguard Energy Index Fund ETF NYSEVDE lost 063 Read Next Alex Soros Steps Up Inherits George Soros’ Philanthropic And Political Legacy

Chesapeake EnergyNASDAQCHK hasagreed to divesta portion of its remaining Eagle Ford assets in South Texas to Ineos Energy for 14 billion The deal covers 172000 net acres and approximately 2300 wells in the black oil portion of the gas producer s Eagle Ford assets primarily in Dimmit LaSalle and McMullen counties The sale also includes related property plants and equipment The properties covered under the sale reported average net daily production rates of approximately 36000 barrels of oil equivalent boe 81 liquid at the end of 2022 As of 2022 the properties had net proven reserves of approximately 144 million barrels of oil equivalent The acquisition will mark Ineos Energy s foray into the US onshore oil and gas market Ineos will make a 1175 billion payment to Chesapeake upon the transaction s closing An additional 225 million will be paid in installments Chesapeake plans to use the proceeds from the transaction to reduce its debt and share buybacks Chesapeake s net production in the fourth quarter was approximately405 bcfe daily Minor production curtailments negatively impacted fourth quarter sales in November and weather conditions in late December For FY23 the company expects capital expenditures of 1765 – 1835 billion Price ActionCHK shares are up 126 at 7967 on the last check Wednesday

Kohl’s Corp once again responded to activist investors Macellum Advisors GP LLC on Monday in a letter to shareholders laying out the skills and expertise of the company’s board which Macellum seeks to replace The letter is the latest in the ongoing battle between the department store retailer and Macellum which owns about 5 of shares outstanding The back and forth between the two groups has gone on for months with Macellum accusing the company of “mismanaging” the business and Kohl’s KSS rebuking the criticism by pointing to steps it has taken to evolve including a partnership with beauty retailer Sephora and an ongoing relationship with Amazoncom Inc AMZN Kohl’s has also rejected takeover offers which Macellum has called out There are reports of a new 9 billion offer from Franchise Group Inc FRG parent company to The Vitamin Shoppe and other businesses See Shoppers spent 28 billion more for the same amount of online goods in March versus February due to inflation says Adobe Kohl’s is just one of a number of companies across the consumer space that has gotten the attention of activist investors lately Certainly activist investor activity in the consumer space isn’t new But right now there are companies coming out of the pandemic in a strengthened position while others float somewhere in the middle of thriving and declining like department stores which were on a downward path prior to COVID but have seen some improvement more recently Macy’s Inc M recently completed a strategic review after Jana Partners called for the department store to separate its brick and mortar business from its e commerce business Macy’s determined that continuing on as a multichannel operation was the better option Macy’s shares have rallied nearly 50 over the last year Bed Bath Beyond Inc BBBY settled with Ryan Cohen and RC Ventures last month after the activists criticized the company for its “scattershot strategy” The Wall Street Journal reported in February that Alta Fox Capital Management LLC has pushed for changes at toymaker Hasbro Inc HAS including the possible spinoff of the Wizards of the Coast and Digital Gaming unit which houses Dungeons Dragons It was announced in January that Hasbro had lost the license to sell the Disney Princess dolls to rival Mattel Inc MAT Cowen analysts wrote in a March report that there are some trends like the growth of online grocery and e commerce premium pet food and a focus on health and fitness that will stick around once the pandemic comes to an end This bodes well for companies like Target Corp TGT Walmart Inc WMT Nike Inc NKE and Freshpet Inc FRPT analysts say At the same time these changing consumer behaviors are a “historical bankruptcy driver” to Fitch analysts Fitch published a report on retail bankruptcy last week finding that there was a decline in filings in 2021 But changing societal trends and strong competition are among the factors that have in the past been to the detriment of struggling brands While angry exchanges between a business and activist investors may seem like an unwelcome development for companies all of this activist investor activity signals to Natalie Kotlyar retail and consumer products industry leader at professional services firm BDO that there is optimism for certain companies “The group in the middle that has potential for success or a turnaround gets the activist attention” she told MarketWatch Companies are currently faced with hurdles that are out of their control like sky high inflation supply chain disruption and geopolitical upheaval putting the response from business leaders in sharp focus Read US inflation rate leaps to 85 CPI shows as higher gas prices slam consumers “In activist investors’ minds I would imagine they’re there to help and assist management to rebound from the issues they’re having” Kotlyar said “It might not be the same strategy as management but there’s still a vision for a turnaround” The solutions being offered aren’t all getting rave reviews “Companies have spent a ton of time and effort to get e commerce operations in alignment with bricks and mortar stores when it comes to marketing and customer experience because they know it is the best way to build customer loyalty and increase share of wallet” said Berna Barshay retail expert with Empire Financial Research “Why un do all this work work that was grounded in good corporate strategy… whether we are talking about Kohl’s Macy’s or any other company” Also popular are leasebacks and other real estate strategies In the short term these sorts of moves could spark a jump in the stock but might not be beneficial in the long term Barshay said There are many reasons why activists target a company In the case of Guess Inc GES Legion Partners aims to remove co founders and directors Paul and Maurice Marciano after multiple media reports of sexual misconduct and assault and according to Legion a failure to adequately address them On Monday Legion Partners issued another letter pushing back against materials released by the company and arguing that the brothers threaten the Guess brand its reputation and its valuation Guess responded on Tuesday calling the letter “misleading” and saying that Legion has created a “massive distraction” for the management team The apparel and accessories company is hosting its annual shareholders meeting on April 22 “There’s a lot of dispersion between the strategies of US activist investors Some are looking for opportunities overseas others are continuing to focus on their home market Some are leaning into ESG activism more are starting to revisit pushing companies to sell themselves” said Josh Black head of activist insights at Insightia which provides activist investor and governance data “Overall we think the uptick in board seats campaigns show that activists are starting to be more bullish after being fairly selective about their campaigns and demands during the pandemic” And Levi Strauss shoppers are in a ‘very good place’ despite inflation company says Black says that activist investors are trying to take advantage of the changes to the consumer landscape during the COVID 19 pandemic “Activists understand the businesses there is constant disruption and there are often non core assets that can be spun out or cash that can be redeployed” he said “I think that has only increased in the last 18 months or so thanks initially to the upswing in consumer spending during the pandemic thanks to stimulus payments and excess savings and increasingly because of the impact on stock prices of supply chain challenges and fears that the opportunity to maximize gains is going to be fleeting” BDO’s Kotlyar forecasts that investor activism will calm once inflation and the other larger challenges facing consumer companies start to recede “Once the survivors become successful or survivors disappear there will be no one to go after” she said

If history is any guide there may be trouble ahead for shares of WEC Energy Gr NYSEWEC A so called death cross has formed on its chart and not surprisingly this could be bearish for the stockWhat To Know Many traders use moving average crossover systems to make their decisionsWhen a shorter term average price crosses above a longer term average price it could mean the stock is trending higher If the short term average price crosses below the long term average price it means the trend is lowerWhy It s Important The 50 day and the 200 day simple moving averages are commonly used The death cross occurs when the 50 day moves below the 200 day This could mean the long term trend is changingThat just happened with WEC Energy Gr which is trading around 8624 at publication time Remember Seasoned investors don t blindly trade Death CrossesInstead they use it as a signal to start looking for short positions based on other factors like price levels and company fundamentals eventsFor seasoned investors this is just a sign that it might be time to start considering possible short positionsWith that in mind take a look at WEC Energy Gr s past and upcoming earnings expectations QuarterQ2 2022Q1 2022Q4 2021Q3 2021 EPS Estimate085166068079 EPS Actual091179071092 Revenue Estimate178B273B172B168B Revenue Actual213B291B220B175B Also consider this overview of WEC Energy Gr analyst ratings Do you use the Death Cross signal in your trading or investing Share this article with a friend if you found it helpfulThis article was generated by Benzinga s automated content engine and reviewed by an editor

Volution Group PLC on Thursday reported a significant rise in pretax profit for the first half of fiscal 2022 due to an adjusted operating profit expansion and lower acquisition linked costs and said it is well positioned for the full year The UK listed ventilation equipment maker posted a pretax profit of 214 million pounds 282 million compared with GBP142 million a year earlier Revenue increased to GBP1496 million from GBP1317 million it said The board has declared an interim dividend of 230 pence a share up from 190 pence a year earlier We continue to focus on customer service underpinned by good availability in our inventory of key assembly components and coupled with some slowing of input cost inflation we are well positioned for the rest of this financial year the company said Shares at 0826 GMT were up 1350 pence or 29 at 47700 pence

Avalanche s CRYPTO AVAX price has increased 332 over the past 24 hours to 1759 Over the past week AVAX has experienced an uptick of over 150 moving from 1511 to its current price As it stands right now the coin s all time high is 14496 The chart below compares the price movement and volatility for Avalanche over the past 24 hours left to its price movement over the past week right The gray bands are Bollinger Bands measuring the volatility for both the daily and weekly price movements The wider the bands are or the larger the gray area is at any given moment the larger the volatility Avalanche s trading volume has climbed 320 over the past week moving in tandem directionally with the overall circulating supply of the coin which has increased 092 This brings the circulating supply to 29823 million which makes up an estimated 4142 of its max supply of 72000 million According to our data the current market cap ranking for AVAX is 17 at 526 billion Powered by CoinGecko API This article was generated by Benzinga s automated content engine and reviewed by an editor

IGC Pharma IncAMEXIGC bagged a strategic investmentworth 3 millionfrom four investment funds managed by Bradbury Asset Management Hong Kong Limited Under the private placement IGC will issue ten million shares of unregistered common stock for 030 a piece These shares are not immediately tradable The funds will boost the advancement of the company s Phase 2 clinical trial of IGC AD1 an investigational drug candidate designed to address agitation in dementia caused by Alzheimer s disease Also ReadIGC Expanding Clinical Trials Of THC Based Drug Following Approval From Health Canada The completion of the private placement is subject to customary closing conditions including approval by the NYSE Price ActionIGC shares are trading flat at 034 on the last check Thursday

LSL Property Services PLC said on Friday it expects profit for 2022 to be slightly behind the record levels of 2021 citing residential pipeline conversion rates and a limited impact from inflation The London listed company said revenue for the first four months of 2022 was 1045 million pounds 1317 million in line with the same period of 2021 LSL Property said its surveying division had a robust performance with revenue up 11 on year The company said the completion of acquisitions by Pivotal Growth were slower than expected meaning the joint venture has remained in an investment phase for longer than previously anticipated It said geopolitical uncertainties and inflationary pressures are expected to have a limited impact on profit

A logo of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Central Bank of the Philippines is seen at their headquarters in Manila Philippines April 28 2016 REUTERSRomeo Ranoco MANILA July 15 Reuters The Philippine central bank may or may not raise interest rates at its policy meeting in August its governor said on Friday a day after it delivered an off schedule 75 basis point rate hike to combat inflation The central bank will be data dependent Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Felipe Medalla said in a phone message

Natalie Le DeMola is accused of stealing identities of inmates and others to make fraudulent unemployment claims Read More ‘There cannot be one tax system for the wealthy and one for everyone else’ IRS audit rates keep dropping especially for the rich Overall audit rates have fallen to 025 from 09 from tax year 2010 to 2019 according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office Read More FTC warns baby formula scammers are ‘exploiting’ family fears over shortage says they have ‘sunk to new lows’ The federal agency cautioned parents desperate for formula to think twice before buying from unfamiliar sources Read More Taylor Swift’s career advice for the NYU Class of 2022 Shake it off but show your boss enthusiasm The singer noted she hires those who ‘want it the most’ during her address but suggested that grads let go of the mistakes holding them back Read More Desperate for baby formula low income families struggle with government’s nutritional aid program ‘You call the doctor’s office for your son and they can’t help you’ Doctors and institutions are pointing to WIC as a way to help parents to secure baby formula but some parents report that it didn’t help Read More Is it better to finance a car or lease it How to decide How do you know which situation is better for your long term financial goals To help you answer that question here are five things to consider Read More Seven financial influencers on saving inflation and starting your own business In honor of Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage month 7 financial influencers share tips for dealing with inflation rising gas prices and entrepreneurship Read More ‘I partially support my partner of 12 years as his business is sadly failing’ I’m 33 and have 300000 in company stock Should I sell those shares to pay off my debt of 56000 ‘I realize I will have to pay some fairly large taxes due to the gains on the stock so I need to factor that into the sale as well’ Read More ‘All kinds of stories and explanations are popping up’ My brother moved in with our mother after our father died in 2015 and transferred family property into his name ‘They no longer live in it and the property has gone into disrepair at this point’ Read More ‘Summer travel isn’t just heating up it will be on fire’ More travelers are hitting the road this Memorial Day Weekend but will pay more for airfares and gas prices Gas prices reached a new record the same day AAA announced its projections Read More

Aurora Cannabis Inc NASDAQACB reported its financial and operational results for the fiscal second quarter that ended December 31 last week revealing that it has achieved positive adjusted EBITDA of CA14 million 104 million in line with prior guidance The Canadian cannabis giant expects to remain EBITDA positive going forward while working on reaching positive operating cash flow Cantor Fitzgerald sPablo Zuanic took a closer look at the company s earnings report and quarterly performance highlighting that cash burn remains a concern while lower interest costs debt paydown and better working capital management will likely help OCF trends going forward The Analyst Zuanic retained an Overweight rating on the company s stock while lowering his 12 month price target of 235 from 3 due to sectoral derating The Thesis The analyst pointed out that Aurora was among the first to resize its recreational cannabis business in Canada resulting in building a stronger position within the global cannabis market The resizing combined with cost reduction efforts and asset optimization has helped the company build a more sustainable moat in its domestic and international medical business he said Moreover the company is preparing for a recreational sales launch in Germany which is anticipated by spring 2025 and is seeing the possibility of a pilot program in the early stages Zuanic said The German Health Minister s final draft is expected to be publicly known in months to come withfinal approvals of the cannabis program and structurein late 2024 Because ACB is one of only three domestic licensed producers the company expects to play an active role in the German rec market once sales begin Zuanic continued In addition to expanding internationally the company is seeking to position itself in an adjacent business line given its recent acquisition of a controlling interest in Bevo a supplier of propagated vegetables and ornamental plants in North America ACB Price Action Aurora s shares traded 209 lower at 09545 per share at the time of writing on Thursday mid morning Related News Aurora Cannabis Health Plans Hemp Pesticides In MA Digital MJ Cards In NM Virginia Delta 8 Oregon Pardons Aurora Cannabis Repurchases 761M Principal Amount Of Convertible Notes Aurora Cannabis What Makes Upside Potential For This Pot Stock Analyst Has An Idea Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference The most successful cannabis business event in the world the Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conferencereturns to Miami for its 16th editionThis is the place where DEALS GET DONE where money is raised MA starts and companies meet investors and key partners Join us at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach Hotel in Florida on April 11 12 Don’t miss outSecure your tickets now Prices will go upsoon Photo Courtesy of Yiorgos Ntrahas on Unsplash

Although US stocks closed lower on Thursday there were a few notable insider trades When insiders purchase shares it indicates their confidence in the company s prospects or that they view the stock as a bargain Either way this signals an opportunity to go long on the stock Insider purchases should not be taken as the only indicator for making an investment or trading decision At best it can lend conviction to a buying decision Below is a look at a few recent notable insider purchases For more check out Benzinga s insider transactions platform CNA Financial The Trade CNA Financial Corporation NYSECNA 10 owner Loews Corp acquired a total of 152367 shares an average price of 3881 To acquire these shares it cost around 591 million What’s Happening CNA Financial last month reported worse than expected Q2 EPS results What CNA Financial Does CNA Financial Corporation CNAF is an insurance holding company that provides commercial property and casualty insurance Coinbase Global The Trade Coinbase Global Inc NASDAQCOIN Director Tobias Lutke acquired a total of 4482 shares at an average price of 7539 To acquire these shares it cost around 3379 thousand What’s Happening Coinbase Global is rating political candidates on their outlook towards cryptocurrencies in a new feature on its mobile app What Coinbase Global Does Founded in 2012 Coinbase is the leading cryptocurrency exchange platform in the United States Don’t forget to check out our premarket coverage here Also check this These Analysts Slash PT On Adobe Following Q3 Earnings Figma Acquisition Sarepta Therapeutics The Trade Sarepta Therapeutics Inc NASDAQSRPT Director Michael Andrew Chambers bought a total of 57100 shares at an average price of 10443 To acquire these shares it cost around 596 million What’s Happening Sarepta Therapeutics recently priced its 10 billion of convertible senior notes due 2027 What Sarepta Therapeutics Does Sarepta Therapeutics is a biotechnology company focused on treating rare infectious and other diseases It targets a broad range of diseases while focusing on the rapid development of its drug candidates

Tuesday Market Open For the second time in less than a week investors saw evidence that Corporate America’s long inflation nightmare may be easing October producer prices rose just 02 according to Tuesday’s Producer Price Index PPI report That was below Wall Street’s 04 average estimate Core PPI which strips out food and energy was flat last month Analysts had expected an increase of 05 One or even two better inflation numbers isn’t a trend so the Federal Reserve isn’t likely to pivot based on one month’s data And inflation can always rear its ugly head So consider putting today’s reading into context However both today’s PPI and last week’s Consumer Price Index CPI data indicate we’re going in the right direction and the PPI reinforced what we saw in CPI The Cboe Volatility Index® VIX remained below 24 early Tuesday down slightly from yesterday’s levels Other market metrics also fell this morning including the benchmark 10 year Treasury yield TNX and the US Dollar Index DXY If you’re looking for direction in the stock market it’s never a bad idea to check bonds and the greenback Their weakness this morning cleared the path for the early rally Walmart WMT Delivers The retailer’s earnings impressed investors this morning who sent shares up 6 in premarket trading The stats looked solid all around with 87 revenue growth 82 same store US sales growth and a higher full year outlook to reflect Q3 performance Grocery sales helped drive quarterly strength the company said in its press release Earnings per share and revenue both beat Wall Street’s average estimates On the inventory front an area many retailers including WMT have struggled with there’s progress Walmart’s inventory levels grew 13 in Q3 down from 25 growth in Q2 Even 13 is misleading since those values are also driven mainly by inflation On a unit basis it’s much less Slowing inventory growth is healthy for WMT but industrywide overstocked inventories have led to markdowns that have possibly eased price inflation around the country If inventories are becoming less of a problem maybe companies won’t have to discount as much leaving them in healthier shape On a sour note WMT expects holiday quarter same store sales excluding fuel to rise just 3 That’s below Wall Street’s estimates and reflects WMT possibly being conservative about the consumer One thing that’s reassuring from the consumer perspective however is that WMT had a good quarter even though some had worried inflation would hurt WMT’s main customer base which tends to be more vulnerable to rising prices WMT’s earnings are a good sign that lower income customers may be escaping the worst impacts of inflation WMT’s stock gains early Tuesday might be helping shares of competitors like Target TGT and Macy’s M as well Like a lot of companies this quarter WMT announced a new share buyback plan Buybacks are gaining popularity as many firms try to get ahead of a new law raising taxes on buybacks in 2023 Home Depot HD Earnings Impress Shares Don’t Everything appeared to go right for HD in its earnings released this morning Revenue and earnings beat Wall Street’s projections Same store sales rose 43 above the 31 Wall Street estimate and HD reaffirmed 2022 guidance Nothing wrong there Why are shares falling this morning Perhaps some see the guidance as a bit conservative but that stands to reason HD benefited in a massive way from the recent housing surge so it’s not surprising they’d see slowing growth There’s nothing shocking there and the stock is only down about 1 Of the two big box retailers reporting this morning WMT was the outlier but in a good way A Glance Overseas Soft data from Europe and Asia overnight might have weighed on Treasury yields China’s October retail sales fell year over year and Gross Domestic Product GDP lost ground in Japan Sentiment data in Europe remained weak though somewhat improved from the recent past With these lower than expected PPI numbers it will be worth watching how sectors react Companies feeling less pain from rising wholesale prices will be less likely to pass along costs to their customers or eat costs that could hurt their margins Lower wholesale price indicators will likely be a boon to industrial firms that have to pay up front for raw materials on the wholesale market Think automakers for instance Before the PPI results there was unpleasant inflation news Monday from the New York Federal Reserve Consumer expectations of inflation aren’t falling despite the Fed’s rate hike and hawkish words Instead they’re rising Consumers now see 59 inflation over the next year and 31 over the next three years They previously had expected 54 and 29 respectively That’s the opposite direction the Fed wants to see especially considering Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s concerns about inflation expectations becoming “entrenched” and potentially driving future price gains This could be additional proof that it will take far more than a single bullish CPI report to reset consumer thinking Especially if high profile prices for things like food gas and rent continue rising After all it doesn’t help most people if used car or appliance prices fall unless they have to buy one right away For most of us it’s the day to day costs like food and fuel that shape our expectations of the price environment and those keep rising Lowe’s and Target Up Next Some thoughts ahead of LOW and TGT earnings tomorrow Lowe’s LOW The last time Lowe’s reported it was a mixed bag Do it yourself DIY sales suffered but sales to professionals and contractors looked solid thanks to company loyalty programs However the DIY cohort is more important for LOW than for Home Depot HD because HD is more of a contractor destination The company guided toward the low end of its expected range and said the DIY side should improve in Q3 Target TGT The main outstanding question is how has TGT performed on inventory over the last three months Is the huge buildup seen earlier this year a bit more manageable now And is the company still expecting operating margin improvement One potentially helpful thing for TGT over WMT is its slightly more affluent customer base which may be more able to handle this year’s stubborn inflation gains Some analysts think consumers haunted by inflation will be out looking for discounts this holiday season potentially putting more pressure on TGT to cut prices But doing that would potentially hurt margins and earnings The retail earnings season getting underway today hit another snag yesterday when the media including trade outlet FreightWaves reported that FedEx FDX is scaling back the number of flights it operates and putting aircraft in temporary storage to offset falling revenue from sinking e commerce demand following a pandemic boom Not the kind of news you’d expect to hear ahead of a healthy holiday shopping scenario Amazon AMZN announcing job cuts also clipped the retail sector yesterday see more below Stocks pulled back Monday after last week’s frenzied buying It looked like the normal kind of consolidation usually seen the day after such rallies according to Briefingcom as many market participants looked back shook their heads and decided things had risen too much too fast Rising Treasury yields and a climbing dollar on the back of hawkish weekend Fed comments didn’t help · The Dow Jones Industrial Average® DJI slid 211 points or 063 to 3353670 · The SPX decreased 3568 points or 089 to 395725 Getting technical Monday marked the second straight session in which the SPX managed to claw above 4000 briefly intraday but wasn’t able to hold on to that level That’s not a constructive sign for trading today though it doesn’t cancel chances of a rally On a more positive note the SPX did finish above its 100 day moving average MA now just above 3900 The 3900 level also marked the upper boundary of a 3700 3900 recent range for the SPX so keep an eye on whether it can continue holding the 100 day MA Take a Breadth Back in summer 2018 an almost unstoppable rally in the SPX drew most of its muscle from heavyweight mega cap tech stocks that formed more than 25 of the SPX’s total value Most of the other 490 stocks in the SPX barely gained as mega caps partied When mega caps hit a wall that October suddenly that emperor of a rally had no clothes and the SPX slid nearly 20 by December 2018 Fast forward to today there are signs that recent market strength is much broader than it was four years ago That could provide a firmer foundation for stocks to build on For the week that ended November 11 all styles sizes and sectors in the SP 1500® Composite rose in price research firm CFRA noted Monday And in a further sign of the rally’s breadth CFRA said 91 of the subindustries in the SP 1500 finished higher last week adding that “93 of the subindustries are now trading above their 10 week moving average” CFRA then added that improving breadth provides “potential for future price consideration” However looking backward there’s still a bit of a catch CFRA said only 54 of subindustries are trading above their 200 day MA and the SPX is already up 114 since September 30 implying “a breather might be in order” But even if that’s the case it looks like the market has a bit more muscle than it did in previous rallies On the other side of the disagreement are analysts who argue that last week’s rally was dominated by “lower quality” stocks especially in the tech sector that don’t have clear paths to profit Crypto Correlation The debate continues whether last week’s crypto sell off will have any “contagion” into the stock market Initial thoughts were that it won’t simply because crypto is a small part of the market isn’t likely to have major impacts beyond the currencies themselves and crypto related stocks The other point of view is that all the money lost in crypto will have to be made up elsewhere by investors meaning they may have to sell stocks to cover bitcoin losses It’s difficult to track this unless you poll individual investors about why they’re selling so we may never have a full answer But stocks aren’t falling out of bed these last few days by any means Recently the SPX had been showing a slight positive correlation with bitcoin meaning they tended to move in the same direction more than in opposite directions However it wasn’t anywhere close to a perfect correlation So the failure of stocks to sell off with crypto after that one day of alarm last week makes sense in this context too Core Thinking The US Bureau of Labor Statistics divides its monthly CPI report into two categories “all” prices and “core” prices which does not include food and energy October’s headline CPI rose 04 and core CPI climbed 03 But what if the government’s core CPI data—now up 63 over the last year—is out of sync with real world developments in one of its “core” components Paul Krugman wrote in Sunday’s New York Times that current core inflation growth largely reflects a rapid rise in the official estimate of “shelter” prices mostly resulting from high rents on apartments But most renters have long term leases so the average rents lag far behind the rents of new tenants which reflect the current market There’s a lot of evidence that new tenant rents are now growing much more slowly after surging post COVID 19 “Since shelter is about 40 of core inflation it’s therefore not hard to make the case that ‘true’ core inflation is now well below 4” Krugman wrote If he’s right we could be closer to the Fed’s 2 inflation goal than many might realize Nov 16 October Retail Sales and Industrial Production and expected earnings from Lowe’s LOW and Target TGT Nov 17 October Housing Starts and Building Permits November Philadelphia Fed Index and expected earnings from Alibaba Group BABA Kohl’s KSS and Macy’s M Nov 18 October Existing Home Sales and expected earnings from Foot Locker FL and JDcom JD Nov 22 Expected earnings from Best Buy BBY Autodesk ADSK Dick’s Sporting Goods DKS Dollar Tree DLTR Medtronic MDT and Baidu BIDU Nov 23 November Final University of Michigan Sentiment October Durable Orders October New Home Sales and expected earnings from Deere DE This post contains sponsored advertising content This content is for informational purposes only and not intended to be investing advice

US stock futures declined reversing course from a rally that came after the Federal Reserve announced the largest jump in interest rates in decades Futures on the SP 500 slipped 14 and futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 1 Changes in futures don’t necessarily predict moves after the markets open In Europe the Stoxx Europe 600 was down 1 in morning trade Consumer staples and consumer discretionary sectors posted the main losses while utilities sector rose The UK’s FTSE 100 shed 1 Other stock indexes in Europe also mostly slipped as France’s CAC 40 was lower 12 the UK’s FTSE 250 lost 11 and Germany’s DAX fell 12 The Swiss franc the euro and the British pound dropped 04 06 and 09 respectively against the US dollar In commodities international benchmark Brent crude rose 07 to 11938 a barrel Gold was also up 06 to 183010 a troy ounce The yield on German 10 year bunds strengthened to 1663 and the 10 year gilts yield declined to 2426 10 year US Treasury yields were up to 3356 from 3389 Yields move inversely to prices Stocks in Asia were mixed as Japan’s Nikkei 225 index climbed 04 whereas Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was down 15 after gaining 1 during the session and China’s benchmark Shanghai Composite fell 06 Stocks on Wall Street advanced on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision —An artificial intelligence tool was used in creating this article We want to hear from you What s your investing strategy for 2022 Has the recent market turmoil changed your approach Tell us about your experience here By submitting your response to this questionnaire you consent to Dow Jones processing your special categories of personal information and are indicating that your answers may be investigated and published by The Wall Street Journal and you are willing to be contacted by a Journal reporter to discuss your answers further In an article on this subject the Journal will not attribute your answers to you by name unless a reporter contacts you and you provide that consent

Pennsylvania Senator Dan Laughlin R called on state law enforcement to take action to protect the gun rights of marijuana users particularly MMJ patients Laughlin noted “that the commonwealth currently prohibits people from obtaining a license to carry firearms if they acknowledge being “an unlawful user of marijuana” on a state form that they must fill out”reportedMarijuana Moment “I believe Pennsylvania can take a measured approach to lift the prohibition on otherwise qualified medical cannabis users from obtaining their license to carry” tweeted Laughlin The GOP Senator based on a recent ruling by Oklahoma federal judge Patrick Wyrick that determined a federal law banning cannabis consumers from owning firearms is unconstitutional wrote a letter to Pennsylvania State Policeacting commissioner Major Paris Laughlin strongly encourages a review of the decision and says the recent federal court case warrants reconsideration of the question on these forms “I strongly encourage you to review the decision” reads the letter Cannabis Use Guns Recent Developments On Jan 13 the first cannabis focused bill filed in the new Congress concerns the controversial issue of MMJ patients and their gun rights or medical cannabis and second amendment conflicts Bill HR 363 introduced by Rep Alex Mooney R WV seeks “to amend title 18 United States Code with respect to the sale purchase shipment receipt or possession of a firearm or ammunition by a user of medical marijuana and for other purposes” Benzinga s Cannabis Capital Conference Is Back The most successful cannabis business event in the world theBenzinga Cannabis Capital Conference returns to Miami for its 16th edition This is the place where DEALS GET DONE where money is raised MA starts and companies meet investors and key partners Join us at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach Hotel in Florida on April 11 12 Don’t miss outSecure your tickets now Prices will go upsoon Image Credits mwewering and PeterPike by Pixabay Edited By Benzinga

SeaWorld Entertainment Inc s offer to acquire Cedar Fair LP has been rejected stymieing plans to combine entertainment businesses that have been hit hard by the pandemic Unfortunately we do not see a path to a transaction SeaWorld said in a statement late Tuesday without elaborating further Earlier this month Cedar Fair had said its board would carefully review and consider the proposal to determine the course of action it believes is in the best interest of the company and its unit holders Cedar Fair whose parks include Cedar Point in Ohio Knott s Berry Farm in California and Schlitterbahn in Texas operates 13 properties across the US and Canada while SeaWorld has 12 theme and water parks ranging from the eponymous brand to its Busch Gardens parks Amusement parks operations have been severely hurt by the pandemic due to various business restrictions and a fall in tourist arrivals SeaWorld furloughed about 95 of its employees in 2020 Last year conditions improved and by end of the second quarter all of SeaWorld s 12 parks were open and operating without capacity limitations In May 2021 Cedar Fair opened all of its US properties for the operating season on a staggered basis with capacity restrictions guest reservations and other operating protocols in place Cedar Fair is due to announce its fourth quarter results Wednesday SeaWorld is due to announce its results Feb 24

JD Wetherspoon PLC said Wednesday that it has experienced slower sales in the five weeks ended Nov 6 than for the first nine weeks of the fiscal year but remains cautiously optimistic about future prospects The British pub chain said that like for like sales for the five weeks rose 89 compared with the same period a year earlier and were up 101 in the first nine weeks This takes like for like sales for the 14 weeks as a whole to 96 Wetherspoon said that costs especially in respect of labour food and repairs were substantially higher for the period The company said that it has terminated most of its interest rate swaps receiving 1694 million pounds 1956 million after costs which has been used to reduce its debt Net debt at Nov 6 was GBP745 million compared with GBP892 million at July 31 Sales have improved since the ending of restrictions in the early part of this calendar year and are considerably above the same period in the last financial year Chairman Tim Martin said The company reported a return to positive cash flow in FY22 and anticipates a positive cash flow in the current year