For Elon Musk, Two Cases About His Tweets, and Two Victories
Twice Elon Musk has faced a jury over remarks he has made on Twitter. And twice a jury has vindicated him.
The latest victory came Friday when a federal jury ruled in his favor in a securities-fraud lawsuit in which investors alleged they felt misled into losing money after his 2018 tweets claimed to have "funding secured" to take Tesla Inc. private. Shares rose on the news, then fell in the days after as it became clear he didn't have such a deal for the car maker finalized.
Southwest Airlines to Reduce Minimum Requirements for Aspiring Pilots
Southwest Airlines Co. is reducing the number of hours prospective pilots must have spent flying jets and other turbine-powered aircraft, as the carrier looks to increase hiring.
Southwest had required applicants to have spent at least 1,000 hours flying such aircraft. It will now consider pilots with less of that type of experience, and said it would list 500 hours of "turbine time" as a preferred qualification. The change is set to go into effect Feb. 7, according to a message the airline sent to pilots this week.
Upbeat Economic Data Keep Investors on Edge About Fed
The U.S. labor market remains incredibly strong. Investors can't decide if that is a good or bad thing.
At first glance, Friday's jobs report seemed to have very little for money managers to dislike. The U.S. economy added a whopping 517,000 jobs in January, while the unemployment rate fell to its lowest level since 1969, according to Labor Department data.
Banks Borrow Unsecured Cash at Record Clip While Deposits Flee
Banks were chasing away deposits during the depths of the pandemic. Now, some are paying higher rates to shore up cash.
Borrowing in the federal-funds market hit $120 billion on Jan. 27, the highest one-day total in Federal Reserve data going back to 2016. Activity in fed funds-used by banks and government-backed lenders to exchange cash reserves parked at the Fed-surged throughout the past year when the central bank raised interest rates at the fastest pace in decades.
U.S. Weighs Sanctions for Chinese Companies Over Iran Surveillance Buildup
The U.S. is considering new sanctions on Chinese surveillance companies over sales to Iran's security forces, officials familiar with the deliberations said, as Iranian authorities increasingly rely on the technology to crack down on protests.
U.S. authorities are in advanced discussions on the sanctions, according to the officials, and have zeroed in on Tiandy Technologies Co., a surveillance-equipment maker based in the eastern Chinese city of Tianjin whose products have been sold to units of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a hard-line paramilitary group.
Russia Sanctions Challenge Tight U.S. Diesel Market
U.S. fuel markets held steady in December after Western sanctions on Russian crude reshuffled global oil shipments. New restrictions that take effect Sunday could prove more complicated.
The measures, which target most of Russia's refined petroleum products, threaten to take supplies off the market as the country looks for new trading partners. Any confusion could buoy prices for diesel and other fuels that have remained stubbornly high since the Kremlin launched its invasion of Ukraine last year.
Stock Funds Rose 7.8% in January
That's more like it.
Stock funds posted a positive January as the market advanced, a respite for investors who endured a brutal, inflation-racked 2022 for both stocks and bonds. Though most people's 401(k) statements are still too ugly to read (at least as far as recent performance) it is a hopeful start to the new year.
States Are Flush With Cash, Which Could Soften a Possible Recession
State governments are entering 2023 with record-high reserves, which could help the overall economy weather a recession this year.
The rapid economic recovery from the pandemic combined with an influx of federal stimulus money has filled public coffers, allowing governments to squirrel funds away for emergencies.
The Retreat of the Amateur Investors
Amateur trader Omar Ghias says he amassed roughly $1.5 million as stocks surged during the early part of the pandemic, gripped by a speculative fervor that cascaded across all markets.
As his gains swelled, so did his spending on everything from sports betting and bars to luxury cars. He says he also borrowed heavily to amplify his positions.
What CEOs Are Saying: 2023 'Is the Year of Efficiency'
Here is what some of the world's corporate leaders said this week about business and consumer spending, the supply chain and other topics.
January's Hiring Boom Caught Economists by Surprise. Why Forecasts Often Miss the Mark.
January's surge in hiring caught economists off guard.
The Labor Department reported Friday that employers added 517,000 jobs to payrolls in January, after accounting for seasonal movement, driven by increases in most industries, including restaurants and healthcare.
China Rebukes U.S. for Taking Down Its Balloon
BEIJING-China's vice foreign minister lodged strong criticism of the U.S. decision to shoot down a suspected surveillance balloon over the weekend, calling it an indiscriminate use of force that would further damage U.S.-China relations.
Vice Foreign Minister Xie Feng delivered the rebuke to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing on Sunday, according to a statement published Monday by the Chinese Foreign Ministry. The statement reiterated China's position that the balloon was an unmanned civilian aircraft that had drifted off course.
Billionaire Charles Koch-Backed Group Will Push GOP to Move Past Donald Trump
WASHINGTON-A group funded by billionaire Charles Koch will work to support a Republican presidential nominee other than Donald Trump, concluding in a strategy memo that "we need to turn the page on the past."
The organization, Americans for Prosperity, has stayed out of the last two presidential cycles but has concluded it needs to engage now as Mr. Trump mounts his third consecutive White House run. The memo released Sunday doesn't mention the former president by name but is unambiguous in its purpose.
Classified-Documents Probe Highlights Biden Family's Deep Ties to Penn
The discovery of classified documents from Joe Biden's vice presidency at a foreign-relations think tank might have surprised many in the country. The fact that the think tank was run by the University of Pennsylvania and bore the president's name shouldn't have.
For decades, the Ivy League school and the Biden family, across generations, have fostered close relations to their mutual benefit. Those benefits extend beyond the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement, where the documents were discovered in November.
Biden Prepares for State of the Union Speech as China Tensions, Job Gains Take Center Stage
WASHINGTON-President Biden will give the State of the Union address before a newly divided Congress on Tuesday, hoping to build off positive economic signs but facing fresh tensions with China and the lingering war in Ukraine.
Following the speech, Mr. Biden will travel on Wednesday to Wisconsin, a 2024 presidential battleground, and tout union jobs during a visit to Madison. On Thursday he is scheduled to visit Florida-the home of two potential 2024 GOP rivals, former President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis-to highlight plans to strengthen Social Security and Medicare and reduce healthcare costs, the White House said. On Friday he will discuss his economic agenda with the nation's governors and meet with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Hong Kong Opposition in Court as Landmark National-Security Trial Opens
HONG KONG-Sixteen pro-democracy figures went on trial Monday in a landmark case in Hong Kong's crackdown on political dissent, drawing global scrutiny as the city's government launches a marketing blitz to restore the financial hub's allure to global business and tourists.
The arrests of the 16 in January 2021, part of a larger roundup that snared dozens of the city's most prominent politicians and activists and effectively snuffed out legislative opposition in the city, drew condemnation and sanctions from Washington and its allies. Most of the 47 people charged in the case have been held in prison for more than two years.
Moscow, Tehran Advance Plans for Iranian-Designed Drone Facility in Russia
Moscow and Tehran are moving ahead with plans to build a new factory in Russia that could make at least 6,000 Iranian-designed drones for the war in Ukraine, the latest sign of deepening cooperation between the two nations, said officials from a country aligned with the U.S.
As part of their emerging military alliance, the officials said, a high-level Iranian delegation flew to Russia in early January to visit the planned site for the factory and hammer out details to get the project up-and-running. The two countries are aiming to build a faster drone that could pose new challenges for Ukrainian air defenses, the officials said.
Ukraine Warns Russia Is Planning Major Offensive as Kyiv Shakes Up Military Leadership
DNIPRO, Ukraine-Ukraine warned that Russia was completing preparations for a major new offensive this month as Kyiv signaled a reshuffle in its military leadership amid a corruption scandal that has rocked the Defense Ministry.
Serhiy Haidai, the governor of the Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine, said Russia was continuing to bolster its offensive capacity and bring in troops to front line positions while decreasing its rate of fire in certain areas to save ammunition for the coming advance.
More Russian Migrants Enter U.S. as Exceptions for Asylum Seekers Expand
More Russian migrants are traveling through Mexico to seek asylum in the U.S., driven in part by an expanding U.S. government effort to allow more asylum seekers to cross the border legally.
(MORE TO FOLLOW) Dow Jones Newswires
02-06-23 0602ET
