What I Am Reading

August 20 (Tuesday) Markets Stocks rebounding, but new highs may be elusive in trade war (C) Wall Street rallies on hopes of global economic stimulus (R) Investors Seek Havens as Growth Fears Persist (W) Yield-Curve Inversion May Be Good News for This Lagging Stock Sector (W) US The CEOs of nearly 200 companies just said shareholder value is no longer their main objective (C) Tilman Fertitta, owner of everything from restaurants to casinos, is turning ‘very conservative’ because of recession fears (C) White House reportedly looks at payroll tax cut as a way to stop an economic downturn (C) An Economic Warning Sign: RV Shipments Are Slipping (W) Central banks Trump Calls for a Big Fed Rate Cut, Again Criticizes Powell (W) Trump Urges Fed Cut of 100 Basis Points, Cites World Economy (B) Investors might be disappointed in Fed’s message from Jackson Hole (MW) Powell gets the chance this week to make up with markets after his ‘midcycle adjustment’ (C) Fed’s Rosengren Wants Evidence of Slowdown to Justify Rate Cut (B) Geopolitics & trade Trump ‘not ready’ for China trade deal, dismisses recession fears (R) Twitter, Facebook Say China Used Fake Accounts to Target Hong Kong Protests (B) Next Door to Hong Kong, Little Sympathy for the Protesters (W) More Russian Nuclear Monitoring Stations Went Silent Days After Blast, Official Says (W) Industries & companies FAANGs: Trump tweets without evidence that Google ‘manipulated’ votes in the 2016 election and ‘should be sued’ (C) Corporate finance Attorneys General to Move Forward With Antitrust Probe of Big Tech (W) Cybersecurity Alarm in Texas as 23 towns hit by ‘coordinated’ ransomware attack (C) Offbeat ‘We Can’t Waste a Drop.’ India Is Running Out of Water. (W) Here’s why my fellow millennials are seduced by socialism (P) More than 1,000 Google employees implore leaders to stop working with U.S. customs and immigration (C)

August 19 (Monday) Markets Markets are braced for a global downturn (E) These 10 ‘grey swan’ events could conspire to imperil global economy and markets (MW) What Comes Next in Hong Kong Could Be Scary for Investors (BR) Large Firms Trim Debt, Fueling Surge in Bonds at Center of Leverage Concerns (W) Dollar Towers Above Rivals, Posing Fresh Threats to Financial Markets (W) Europe Italy’s 5-Star says Salvini no longer a credible partner (R) US politics White House says no recession in sight, pushes China trade talks (R) Kudlow says he doesn’t see a recession on the horizon, defends Trump’s trade war (C) White House trade advisor Navarro: ‘Technically we did not have a yield curve inversion’ (C) Americans overwhelmingly support free trade as concern grows about Trump’s economy: NBC/WSJ poll (C) Geopolitics & trade Hong Kong Protesters Find New Momentum With Largest Rally in Weeks (W) Hong Kong protesters throng streets peacefully in pouring rain (R) Costly Tariff Spat Masks Deeper Trade Problems (W) Trump says he talked to Apple CEO Tim Cook about tariffs and Samsung (C) Exclusive: U.S. set to give Huawei another 90 days to buy from American suppliers – sources (R) Industries & companies Energy: Oil and Gas Stocks to Love (BR) FAANGs: Why Apple doesn’t want users to replace their own batteries (C) Media: Disney’s Latest Endeavor: Getting the Fox Studio on Track (W) Media: An Internet Incubator Goes Back to Its Roots (BR) Retail: Nordstrom Did So Much Right, but It’s Still in Trouble (W) Retail: American Eagle Stock Will Soar Despite the Trade War (BR) Offbeat Danish PM says idea of selling Greenland to U.S. is absurd (R)

August 17 (Saturday) Markets U.S. Stocks Bounce Back but Investors Remain on Edge (W) Opinion: Here’s why U.S. stocks could fall further (MW) Some Investors Are Betting the Flight to Bonds Is Overdone (W) The Danger of Plunging Interest Rates and Delayed Buying (B) Central banks Here’s what Powell could say at Jackson Hole to soothe the roller coaster markets (C) US Trump’s tax cut isn’t giving the US economy the boost it needs (C) Summer Youth Unemployment Rate Falls to Half-Century Low (W) U.S. Housing Starts Decreased 4.0% in July (W) US politics Trump says Apple is spending ‘vast sums of money in the U.S.’ and he’s having dinner with the CEO (C) Trump called the CEOs of the biggest US banks on Wednesday as the stock market plunged (C) Anthony Scaramucci talks to Bill Kristol about trying to force Trump off the GOP ticket in 2020 (C) Greenland Tells Trump: ‘We’re Open for Business, Not for Sale’ (W) Geopolitics & trade Despite Reprieve, New Tariffs Will Hit Wide Range of Consumer Goods (W) U.S. removes some Chinese furniture, modems from planned 10% tariffs (R) Inside the Hong Kong protesters’ anarchic campaign against China (R) Hong Kong Tycoon Warns Protesters and Beijing Against Violence (W) Chinese, Russian Warplanes Test U.S. Patience in Skies (W) Industries & companies FAANGs: Facebook Marketplace: The Wild West of E-Commerce (W) Cybersecurity & cryptocurrency Capital One Cyber Staff Raised Concerns Before Hack (W) Delta Sues Chatbot Provider Over 2017 Breach (W) IRS to Cryptocurrency Owners: Come Clean, or Else! (W)

August 16 (Friday) Markets U.S. Stocks Stabilize on Strong Retail-Sales Data (W) U.S. 30-year yields drop to fresh record low below 2% (R) 10-year Treasury yield falls to three-year low below 1.5%, 30-year rate declines to record low (C) What the Yield Curve Says About When the Next Recession Could Happen (B) Central banks Powell Expected to Seek Another Cut Despite Strong Spending (B) Fed’s Bullard Doesn’t See Need to Rush Into Emergency Rate Cut (B) As Recession Concerns Mount, Dozens of Central Banks Are Cutting Rates (N) ECB Primes Big Bazooka for September (W) US Earnings Outlook for S&P 500 Companies Looks Bleak (W) Growth forecasts are rising and economy looks nowhere near as bad as bond market predicts (C) U.S. Shoppers Splurge in Face of Global Headwinds (W) Japan Japan surpasses China as largest foreign holder of US Treasurys (C) Europe German banks are in a much worse position than the rest of Europe, Citi analyst says (C) US politics Navarro’s Tiff With the Wall Street Journal Boils Over (B) Trump, Navarro are the only officials in the White House blaming the Fed for volatility, sources say (C) Trump Eyes a New Real-Estate Purchase: Greenland (W) Geopolitics & trade China to counter latest U.S. tariffs as Trump vows deal on U.S. terms (R) China Preps Tariff Response as Trump Sees a Xi Call ‘Very Soon’ (B) China’s Paramilitary Police Flex Muscles Opposite Hong Kong (W) China warns it could quell Hong Kong protesters; Trump urges Xi to meet them (R) Trump Urges Xi to Meet With Hong Kong Protesters (W) U.S. Arranges Secret Talks Between Israel, U.A.E. Over Iran (W) Israel bars U.S. Democratic lawmakers Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib under pressure from Trump (R) Industries & companies Financials: Federal Prosecutors Accuse Capital One Hacker of Hitting Dozens More Targets (W) Industrials: GE Is New Target of Madoff Whistleblower (W) Industrials: GE falls the most in 11 years after Madoff whistleblower calls it a ‘bigger fraud than Enron’ (C) Industrials: GE CEO Larry Culp bought nearly $2 million worth of the company’s stock after fraud accusation (C) Retail: Walmart Continues Run of Sales Growth, Raises Forecasts (W) Retail: Walmart Set to Outpace Amazon for 2019 (W) Tech: Nvidia jumps on earnings beat (C) Cryptocurrencies Bitcoin slumps to two-week low on technical trading, market jitters (R) Offbeat Epstein Autopsy Deepens Mystery Over His Death, Post Reports (B)

August 15 (Thursday) Markets Dow tanks 800 points in worst day of 2019 after bond market sends recession warning (C) Dow futures are stable in overnight trading after Wednesday’s big rout (C) The S&P 500 Tends to Rise After an Inverted Yield Curve (W) Credit Bond Rally Drives 30-Year Treasury Yield to Record Low (W) The inverted yield curve explained and what it means for your money (C) Repo Rates Fuel Concern Over Mounting U.S. Debt (W) ‘Negative’ Interest Rates Used to Be Unthinkable in the U.S.—Not Anymore (F) Global Warning Signs Point to a Global Slowdown (W) Central banks ‘CRAZY INVERTED YIELD CURVE!’ — Trump rips ‘clueless Jay Powell’ and the Fed as the market slides (C) Trump Says Fed Should Cut Rates as Growth Concerns Jar Markets (W) Is Trump right to blame the Fed for recession fears? (R) Geopolitics & trade Hong Kong Movement That Thrived Without Leaders Veers Out of Control (W) Trump suggests ‘personal meeting’ with China’s Xi over Hong Kong crisis (C) Trump Ties Trade Deal to China Action in Hong Kong (W) Trump officials see no Chinese concessions for tariff delays amid market rout (R) U.S. Retreat on New Tariffs Gives Beijing Breathing Room on Trade Talks (W) Huawei Technicians Helped African Governments Spy on Opponents (W) Industries & companies FAANGs: Amazon is launching a new program to donate unsold products, after reports that millions were being destroyed (C) Financials: Embattled Bank Stocks Lose Billions (W) Retail: Macy’s Turnaround Hits Harsh Retail Reality (W) Tech: Cisco drops on poor guidance, says China business dropped 25% (C) Tech: Samsung Tests How 5G Can Improve Chip-Making (W) Corporate finance Viacom-CBS Merger Could Boost Advertising Ambitions (W) WeWork IPO Filing Shows Revenue Growth, Wide Losses (W) Technology AI Startup Boom Raises Questions of Exaggerated Tech Savvy (W) Are You Ready for Facial Recognition at the Airport? (W)

August 14 (Wednesday) Markets Trump delays tariffs on Chinese cellphones, laptops, toys; markets jump (R) Bond Yields Make Stocks Hard to Ignore (W) Main yield curve nearly inverts as 10-year yield tops 2-year rate by just 2 basis points (C) Yield Curve Telegraphs Recession, but Its Wires Are Crossed (W) Oil soars near 5% as U.S. delays tariffs on some Chinese goods (R) Central banks A $1 trillion US budget deficit is one big reason the Fed may have to cut rates (C) US Predicting the next U.S. recession (R) Inflation Picked Up in July (W) Mortgage Debt Hits Record, Tops 2008 Peak (W) US politics As 2020 race heats up, growing worries Warren and Sanders will split leftist vote (R) Geopolitics & trade Trump Bows to Economic Concerns in Move to Delay China Tariffs (B) Trump just blinked, giving China a possible edge in trade war, some big Wall Street names say (C) Trump Says China Moving Troops to Its Border With Hong Kong (B) China denies Hong Kong port visit for U.S. Navy ships amid tensions (R) Police, protesters clash at Hong Kong airport after flights halted for second day (R) Putin’s Missile Is Far Better Than Trump’s Missile, Kremlin Says (B) Industries & companies Autos: GM, Volkswagen Say Goodbye to Hybrid Vehicles (W) Energy: Shareholders Have No Love for Shale Companies (W) FAANGs: EU Nears Decisions in Facebook Privacy Cases (W) Retail: Trump’s Christmas Miracle Is Cold Comfort for Retailers (B) Retail: Cashierless Stores Make Inroads in U.S. (W) Utilities: PG&E Makes Final Push to Stay in Charge of Chapter 11 (W) Corporate finance CBS, Viacom Strike Deal for Long-Thwarted Merger (W) FTC Chief Says Willing to Break Up Companies Amid Big Tech Probe (B) Technology What Your Voice Reveals About You (W) Offbeat Once Asking $1 Billion, L.A.’s Priciest Listing Is Scheduled to Sell at Auction (W)

August 13 (Tuesday) Markets Stocks and Bonds Are Talking Past Each Other (W) Dow drops 390 points and slips back below 26,000 as bond yields decline (C) U.S. Long-Bond Yield Nears All-Time Low as Global Anxiety Grows (B) Bond market close to sending biggest recession signal yet (C) A trading issue impacted US stock quotes late in the day as Dow flatlined into the close (C) Central banks Wall Street sees even more Fed rate cuts ahead with Morgan Stanley predicting a return to zero (C) Fed Considers New Tool for a Downturn (W) China’s central bank says it’s close to releasing its own digital currency (C) US U.S. budget deficit widens; spending up on health, military (R) Europe Trump adviser Bolton: U.S. would enthusiastically support a UK choice for no-deal Brexit (R) Emerging Chinese Financial Institutions’ Lending Dives (W) India Never Sold Foreign Debt. Its First Attempt is Failing (B) Macri vows to win second term after Argentine peso crashes on primary results (R) US politics Trump’s Primary Advantage: No Real Competition (W) U.S. to Deny Green Cards to Legal Immigrants Who Use Public Aid (W) Geopolitics & trade 10% Tariffs Were Manageable. At 25%, Businesses Are Squirming. (W) When Trump Tweets, the Editor of ‘China’s Fox News’ Hits Back (N) Cramer: Hong Kong protests ‘more serious’ than US-China trade war for global markets (C) Hong Kong’s airport says it will implement flight rescheduling on Tuesday (C) South Korea Retaliates Against Japan in Trade and Diplomatic Rift (N) Trump Confirms Missile Exploded During Testing in Russia (W) We’re here to deter Iran, not go to war: US military commanders in the Gulf (C) Industries & companies Autos: GM, Volkswagen Say Goodbye to Hybrid Vehicles (W) FAANGs: Reliance-Microsoft cloud tie-up poses threat to Amazon, Google in India (R) Financials: Bank Stocks Are Having a Rough August (W) Health Care: DNA Data Shared in Ways Patients May Find Surprising (W) Logistics: UPS Bets on Amazon, Despite Risk (W) Pharma: Two Experimental Ebola Drugs Reduce Mortality Rate, According to Preliminary Data (W) Restaurants: Yum Taps Company Veteran as Next CEO (W) Restaurants: Yum’s Incoming CEO Eyes Acquisitions, Strategic Investments (B) Offbeat U.S. attorney general cites ‘irregularities’ at jail where Epstein died (R)

August 12 (Monday) Markets Predicting what happens next in stocks will get trickier this fall when markets navigate a roller coaster of big events (MW) Wall Street analysts worry these stocks are caught in the deepening US-China trade war (C) Investors Ponder Negative Bond Yields (W) The Bond Market Smells Big Trouble. Where to Hide. (BR) Fall in Copper Prices Threatens to Drive Metal Shortages (W) Central banks Volatility in China’s yuan due to escalating U.S. trade friction: PBOC official (R) China Is Saving Stimulus for Trade War Winter as Yuan Weakens (B) China Ex-Central Bankers Warn of Long Currency War With U.S. (B) Next Recession All On Fed, Not China Trade War (F) Fed remains a target as economy falls short of Trump’s ambitious goals (R) Watching, waiting, worrying: Fed and Wall Street sweat out next Trump move on China (MW) US Inflation Stings Prices at Walmart, and Something’s Gotta Give (B) American companies are no cash-hoarders (E) The Federal Minimum Wage Doesn’t Really Matter Anymore (W) Europe Italian Banks, Long a Drag on Europe, Are Making Good on Bad Loans (W) Japan Can Shinzo Abe change Japan’s basic law? (E) Geopolitics & trade Trump Is Making Xi’s Superpower 2050 Plan Tougher by the Day (B) How to Play the Trade War’s Scary Next Phase (BR) US-China Trade: Dangerous miscalculations (E) ‘Trump is ruining our markets’: Struggling farmers are losing a huge customer to the trade war — China (C) Chinese troops must stay off the streets of Hong Kong (E) Hong Kong’s Protesters Test Riot Police With Cat-and-Mouse Tactics (W) North Korea says no talks with South due to drills, Kim oversaw test of ‘new weapon’: KCNA (R) Industries & companies Autos: Chinese Auto Makers Go Global as Sales Slow at Home (W) FAANGs: Apple Card Review: The Card of the Future Is No Card At All (W) FAANGs: Amazon’s quest for constant growth is not leaving it with many friends — except for Wall Street (C) Logistics: UPS Bets on Amazon, Despite Risk (W) Tech: Why Yelp is betting on brands like McDonald’s and Starbucks to help save its ads business (C) Tech: These health-tech veterans want to avert the next Theranos disaster with ‘medical diligence’ (C) Corporate finance Saudi Plans for Biggest-Ever IPO Are Back On (W) Broadcom Makes $10.7 Billion Deal to Buy Symantec’s Corporate-Focused Security Business (W)

August 10 (Saturday) Markets Hedge Funds Go All In on Gold as ‘Currency Wars’ Lift Haven Buys (B) Explainer: How does China manage the yuan, and what is its real value? (R) Investors are buying up these ‘tariff-proof’ tech stocks to keep exposure to the sector (C) US Trump says U.S. economy ‘handcuffed’ by Fed, wants further rate cut (R) Lower Mortgage Rates Aren’t Likely to Reverse Sagging Home Sales (W) Millennials drive mortgage refinance boom, and lenders are scrambling (C) Europe British Economy Shrinks, a Sign of Economic Uncertainty (N) China China’s Factory-Gate Prices Slip Into Deflation (W) ‘One Child Nation’ Review: Controlling Minds and Bodies (N) US politics Unintended Consequences Start to Haunt Trump (B) Andrew McCabe, Former F.B.I. Deputy Director, Sues Over His Dismissal (N) Trump Swoops In for Hamptons Fundraisers as Donors Face Blowback (B) Trump Voices Hopes That GOP and NRA Will Back Gun Reforms (W) Biden in Iowa Says ‘Poor Kids’ Are Just as Smart as ‘White Kids’ (B) How an assault weapons ban and impeachment are confounding House Democrats (C) White House summons tech, social media firms after shootings (R) Geopolitics & trade I Trump says U.S., China still talking on trade but not ready for a deal (R) Trump says US government won’t do business with Huawei, not ready to make a trade deal with China (C) White House’s Navarro says still expecting next round of China trade talks (R) Peter Navarro says US will take strong action against China if it devalues yuan to ‘neutralize tariffs’ (C) Huawei unveils Harmony operating system, won’t ditch Android for smartphones (R) What the 1980s Teach Trump and China About Trade (W) Geopolitics & trade II China Claims U.S. ‘Black Hand’ Is Behind Hong Kong Protests (W) Hong Kong Protesters Descend on Airport (N) Trump Gets Another Letter From Kim Jong Un (W) Industries & companies Tech: Why Aren’t We Talking About LinkedIn? (N) Offbeat Russia’s Burning! Climate Change Is to Blame (B) Can You Make a Page-Turning Thriller Out of the Ebola Crisis? (N)

August 09 (Friday) Markets U.S. Stocks Jump as China Signals a More Stable Yuan (W) China’s Official Yuan Rate Crosses 7-Per-Dollar Milestone (W) The yield curve everyone’s worried about is inches away from flashing a recession signal (C) Emerging-Market Stocks Correct Sharply as Trade Battle Flares (W) Opinion: Insiders were buying — not selling — as stock market sank (MW) Central banks Opinion: Trump’s new trade strategy targets the Fed (MW) US 20 companies, including Amazon and Chipotle, that are getting more profitable as sales improve (MW) More people are job-hopping, tempted by better salaries and the highest number of openings since 2000 (MW) Homeowners Rush to Refinance, Thanks to Falling Bond Yields (W) Europe Italian Populist Moves to Bring Down Government (W) Japan Japan Posts Solid Growth in the Second Quarter (W) Geopolitics & trade China Exports Stage Surprising Turnaround (W) Economists Upgrade U.S.-China Trade Conflict to ‘War’ (W) Hong Kong Police Draw Protester Rage, but Beijing Doesn’t Think They’re Tough Enough (W) U.S. Holds Off on Huawei Licenses as China Halts Crop-Buying (B) Industries & companies Autos: Tesla’s chaotic year after Musk’s ‘funding secured’ tweet (C) Consumer: Kraft Heinz’s latest tumble begs question what is value of its brands (C) FAANGs: FBI and Facebook Potentially at Odds Over Monitoring (W) FAANGs: Facebook Makes Offer to News Outlets to License Content (W) Tech: Uber’s Q2 losses were bigger than total 2018 losses for all but three S&P 500 companies (C) Corporate finance Broadcom acquires Symantec’s enterprise business for $10.7 billion (C) Viacom Improves Performance as CBS Merger Talks Continue (W)