What I Am Reading

May 03 (Wednesday) Markets Wall Street’s small-cap guru: Bull market for smaller stocks has years to run (C) Investors Pull Almost $7 Billion from Hedge Fund Giant in Four Months (W) John Paulson’s Fall From Hedge Fund Stardom (N) Oil Oil Heads for Lowest Level in More Than Month (B) Central banks Fed set to leave interest rates unchanged, may hint at June hike (R) US Slumping Car Sales Are Latest Data to Rattle Bets on Growth (W) Infosys plans to hire 10,000 U.S. workers after Trump targets outsourcing firms (R) Evidence Is Scant on Tax Cuts for Business Fueling Growth (W) IRAs Mostly Serve People Who Need Them the Least (W) Europe Pledging more austerity, Greece cuts deal with lenders (R) China China’s corruption clampdown risks paralysis (FT) We haven’t heard JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon go this dark on China in a long time (BI) US politics Republicans still short of votes in healthcare battle (R) GOP Losing Votes on Its Health Bill (W) U.S. government shutdown possible if Democrats don’t act better: Mulvaney (R) Clinton Blames FBI and Russia for 2016 Loss (B) Geopolitics Trump Follows Instincts, Not Establishment, With Overtures to Kim and Duterte (N) U.S., China talk firmer U.N. response to North Korea’s missiles: diplomats (R) Trump nominee for China ambassador promises firm line on Beijing (R) Putin, Trump agree to work together on Syria, set up meeting: Kremlin (R) Putin, Merkel struggle to move past differences in tense meeting (R) In Palestinian Power Struggle, Hamas Moderates Talk on Israel (N) Industries & companies Airlines: U.S. lawmakers eye airline legislation, citing ‘terrible’ experiences (R) Autos: Auto Sales Fall for Fourth Straight Month (B) Health care: Aetna to Pull Back Further From Health Exchanges (W) Media: Twitter Teams Up With Bloomberg (W) Tech: Apple Sells Fewer iPhones in Last Quarter, Shares Slide (B) Tech: Apple Can’t Ignore Microsoft’s Slick New Laptop (B) Tech: Samsung Gets Green Light to Test Self-Driving Cars (W) Corporate finance Global Deal Making Falls to Slowest Pace in 20 Years (W) Offbeat Dr. Doom: Trump is the biggest risk in the world (NN) New York Times columnist Bret Stephens responds to letter from climate scientists: ‘I find their reaction odd’ (BI) The big goal for Alexa is a nice, long chat, says Alexa’s chief scientist (C)

May 02 (Tuesday) Markets Forget sell in May, we’re still buying, investment experts say (C) Wall Street Fear Gauge VIX Sinks to Decade Low (W) Oil US shale oil cannot meet the world’s growing demand for crude, Chevron CEO warns (C) China China’s Credit Slowdown Poses a Threat to Global Growth (W) Is Chinese Growth Overstated? (FRB-NY) US politics I GOP Weighs Longer Term for Red Ink Tied to Tax Cuts (W) Treasury’s Mnuchin: Trump’s tax plan eliminates all but two loopholes (C) Trump Weighs Breaking Up Wall Street Banks, Raising U.S. Gas Tax (B) Dodd-Frank ‘out of control,’ Trump tells community bankers (MW) Trump says he is open to increasing US gasoline tax to pay for infrastructure: Report (C) Details on infrastructure plan to come ‘pretty soon,’ Transportation secretary says (C) US politics II Obamacare replacement bill still doesn’t have votes to pass House (C) Trump Wants Health-Care Bill to Protect Pre-Existing Conditions (B) Bipartisan Agreement Reached to Fund Government Through September (N) BlackRock CEO Fink suggests Trump’s personality could be an economic risk (MW) Geopolitics & terrorism Trump Says He’d Meet With Kim Jong Un Under Right Circumstances (B) Hamas softens stance on Israel, drops Muslim Brotherhood link (R) U.S. issues travel alert for Europe, citing threat of terrorist attacks (R) Industries & companies Financials: Goldman Sachs Embraces Banking’s Bland Side: Lending Money (W) Technology: Chipmaker AMD’s server business revenue misses, shares drop (R) Technology: Apple’s Stock Races Ahead as Investors Bet on New iPhones (N) Offbeat J.P. Morgan’s Dimon says biggest fear is bad public policy (R) ‘Alt-Left’ Strategist Bannon Isn’t Going Anywhere, Trump Says (B)

May 01 (Monday) Markets Pros Are Near-Term Bulls But See Recession in ’18 (BR) All Those Bubble Sightings Turned Out to Be Mirages (B) Most VIX Analysis Is Outright Nonsense (BR) Some Cautionary Notes on Smart Beta (BR) Byron Wien: The Scary Signal of the Bond Market (BR) European markets Europe Investors Bid Adieu to Political Jitters, Begin Buying (W) European Stocks Rise as Fear of Frexit Falls (BR) Grudging Public Support for Euro Could Hold It Together (W) Central banks Fed Expected to Keep Rates Steady (W) US Homeownership Ready to Rise After Hitting an All-Time Low (B) The Rich Are Living Longer and Taking More From Taxpayers (B) Europe With the French Run-Off Looming, Macron Still Has a Lot to Learn (B) Facing election defeat, France’s Le Pen flip-flops on euro (R) EU calls May’s Brexit stance ‘completely unreal’ (FT) Germany’s Schaeuble says Greece has made good reforms progress (R) Emerging Iran’s leader dismisses Rouhani’s detente policy ahead of vote (R) US politics Trump celebrates first 100 days, blasts media (R) How Trump Has Reshaped the Presidency, and How It’s Changed Him, Too (N) The Trump Tax Plan: The Good, Bad, and Dumb (BR) Trump’s corner-store tax cut set to aid Wall St (FT) Banks, Restaurants, MLPs Could Win Under Tax Plan (BR) Trump could target ‘carried interest’ tax loophole: official (R) Trump splits from the GOP and says Trumpcare 2.0 will guarantee pre-existing protections nationwide (BI) Geopolitics & cybersecurity Trump hints that the US may be sabotaging North Korea’s nuclear program (BI) Trump Leaves Open Possibility of Military Action Against North Korea (W) Mexico calls on Trump to reuse TPP deals for Nafta (FT) Hackers Ran Through Holes in Swift’s Network (W) Trump just made his most appalling claim about China yet (BI) U.S.-backed militias claim big advance against IS in Syria’s Tabqa (R) Industries & companies Autos: Detroit Auto Makers Are Upbeat as Sales Volumes Stall (W) Financials: US credit card stocks sink to fresh lows (FT) Industrials: Caterpillar Stock Revs Up (BR) Technology: Apple’s Cash Hoard Set to Top $250 Billion (W) Technology Flying Taxis Will Be More Like Taking the Bus (B) Tesla just delayed the roll-out of its solar roof — here’s everything we know about the project so far (BI) Here’s a visualization of Elon Musk’s tunneling project that could change transportation forever (BI) Offbeat The 100 Days of 1933: Dangerous and Unwise (BR) The founder of LinkedIn says too many of us are using the site all wrong (BI) Stanford top in MBA ranking for jobs in finance (FT) Avocado Prices Are Skyrocketing (B)

April 29 (Saturday) Stocks U.S. Stocks End Month Higher, Buoyed by Earnings (W) Turning point as US earnings recession ends (FT) The long-term sting in passive investing’s great success (FT) This Chart Shows How Trump’s Stock Market Gains Compare to the Last 13 Presidents Bull herd nears Europe as US stocks break records (FT) Bonds Bond Vigilantes Lie In Wait for Trump’s Debt-Swelling Tax Plan (B) Bond Market Discounts Trump Tax Plan, Bigly (B) Central banks Euro Area’s Inflation Surge Won’t Help Draghi Hold the ECB Line (B) US GDP Growth Slowed as Spending by Consumers Lagged (W) Economic Growth, at 0.7%, Is Weakest in Three Years (W) Consumer Sentiment Remains High Despite GDP Report (W) Fatter Paychecks Set to Perk Up U.S. Growth (B) It’s a Good Time to Trade Your Student Debt for Home Debt (N) Europe The Calculated Rise of France’s Emmanuel Macron (W) US politics What Trump’s Done—or Undone—for Business in 100 Days (B) Trump has already signed 78 executive actions — here’s what each one does (BI) Trump Signs Executive Order Easing Offshore-Drilling Regulations (W) How Trump Wants to Change Your Tax Deductions (W) Tax Plan Could Turn ‘Everyone and Their Dog’ Into an LLC (B) GOP Health-Care Push Falls Short (W) New Plan, Same Hurdle in GOP’s Quest to Gut Obamacare (W) Congress Passes Stopgap Spending Bill to Avoid Government Shutdown (W) Larry Fink Says U.S. on Path to ‘Exploding’ Deficits (B) Greenspan Says Trump Has a Math Problem With His Budget (B) Geopolitics & trade U.S. Presses for Tougher Action on North Korea (W) Tillerson urges ‘painful’ sanctions on North Korea (B) North Korea Test-Fires a Ballistic Missile (B) Draft Nafta order puts US trade partners on notice (FT) US launches security probe into aluminium imports (FT) Industries & companies Airlines: Airlines Will Still Overbook, Even After United Incident (W) Airlines: United Blunder Prompts Airlines to Throw Cash at Their Problems (B) Autos: Truck, SUV Sales Power GM’s Profit (W) Energy: Exxon, Chevron Profit Up in Sign of Strengthening Oil Companies (W) Financials: Barclays Profit Tumbles on Africa Write-Down (W) Tech: Qualcomm Warns of Lower Profit as Apple Dispute Bites (W) Tech: Tech’s Titans Go From Big to Bigger (W) Offbeat Meet the People Who Train the Robots (to Do Their Own Jobs) (N)

April 28 (Friday) Markets Markets Think Trump Speaks Loudly But Carries No Stick (W) Stocks reined in by doubts over US tax reform (FT) Bankers Use Trump Rally to Cash Out (W) ETFs Are ‘Weapons of Mass Destruction,’ FPA Capital Managers Say (B) Credit Why Some Investors Are Betting the High Yield Party Is Over (B) Behind the 2017 Bond-Market Rally (W) Oil Saudi Aramco CEO Says Peak Oil Demand Is a Misleading Theory (B) Shale revolution casts shadow over longer-dated US oil futures (FT) Iraq to break with tradition in debut oil auction (FT) Central banks Draghi Sees Solid Recovery While Inflation Concern Remains (B) US U.S. Durable Orders Edged Up In March (W) Homeownership Ready to Rise After Hitting an All-Time Low (B) Fannie and Freddie, Back in the Black (B) Millennials Will Aspire to Elected Office, Not Startups (B) Europe Angry French voters muscle into the picture (FT) Macron offers patriotic antidote to nationalism (FT) Merkel warns Britain over Brexit ‘illusions’ (FT) China China’s short-term money market rate hits 2-year high (FT) [China] Venture-Capital Quandary: Too Much Money Chasing Too Few Ideas (W) US politics Trump’s ‘Massive’ Tax Plan: One Page, Many Unanswered Questions (B) CEOs Salivate Over Trump’s Tax-Cut Plans, Vague as They May Be (B) Here’s What Wall Street Is Saying About Trump’s Tax Plan (B) On Trump Tax Play, Watch What You Wish for, Drillers Warned (B) Next Tax Battle: Trump’s Bid to Ax a Favorite Blue State Deduction (W) Trump Tax Cuts Don’t Solve Tech’s Massive Overseas-Cash Problem (W) Trump Tax Cut: Pro-Business Or Pro-Scams? (W) House GOP ‘Struggling to Get to Yes’ on Revived Obamacare Repeal (B) Obamacare Customers Left Without Options as Insurers Bolt (B) Loyalists See Course Correction Amid Tumult (W) Geopolitics & trade Putin Warns North Korea Situation Has ‘Seriously Deteriorated’ (B) Trump Says Nafta Partners Persuaded Him to Stay in Trade Pact (W) Explosion Rocks Damascus Airport (W) Industries & companies Airlines: United Reaches Settlement With Passenger Dragged Off Flight (W) Airlines: Southwest To End Overbooking on Flights By June (W) Amazon: Amazon Posts Bigger-Than-Expected Increase in Profit (W) Amazon: Amazon is worth so much because AWS is tech’s true unicorn (MW) Autos: US car sales slow while Europe picks up (FT) Autos: Ford’s Profit Falls 35% (W) Financials: Deutsche Bank Woos Back Clients After Torrid Year (W) Restaurants: Starbucks slides after a key measure of sales misses expectations (BI) Tech: Microsoft’s quarterly profit rises 27.8 percent (R) Tech: Google parent Alphabet’s profit soars on strong ad sales (R) Tech: Samsung, Facing Calls for a Shake-Up, Offers ‘Plan B’ (W) Telecom: Verizon Invests in Self-Driving Car Startup Renovo (W) Technology We’re Getting Closer to Mass Production of Bones, Organs, and Implants (B) Offbeat Working From Home? Developers Seek to Help (W) Pentagon Opens Probe Into Flynn’s Foreign Payments (W)

April 27 (Thursday) Markets Don’t Let ETF Mania Fool You, There Are Plenty of Bearish Bets in U.S. Stocks (B) In Dot-Com Bubble Time, It’s Still Only 1997 for U.S. Equities (B) Here Are the Markets Moving on Reports That Trump Will Drop Nafta (B) Oil Oil rises as US crude stocks retreat for third week (FT) Europe Le Pen ambushes Macron at factory gate (FT) Banks Get Serious About Moving Jobs to Frankfurt on Brexit (B) Deutsche Bank executive warns UK roles at Brexit risk (FT) US politics Trump Tax Plan Sets Deep Changes for Individuals, Firms (W) White House Unveils Trump’s Opening Tax-Cut Bid (B) Ryan Says Spending Bill Excludes Key Payments to Health Insurers (W) Freedom Caucus Endorses Revised GOP Health Bill (B) Mnuchin: Trump Has ‘No Intention’ of Releasing Tax Returns (B) Geopolitics & trade U.S. Tariffs Pose New Reckoning on Canadian Lumber (W) China Launches First Domestically Built Aircraft Carrier (W) Industries & companies Consumer: From Diapers to Soda, Big Brands Feel Pinch as Consumers Pull Back (W) Financials: Tax Cut Would Cost BofA, Citi Billions. Here’s Why They Still Win. (W) Health Care: Anthem Says ACA Payment Loss Could Cause 20% Premium Hike (W) Materials: U.S. Steel Posts Surprise Loss, Plans Mill Upgrades (W) Media: Disney’s ESPN Said to Cut 100 Jobs This Week Amid TV Woes (B) Retail: The Hedge Fund Manager Who’s Shorting America’s Malls (W) Tech: In the Chips: Tech’s Sleeping Giant Becomes a $352 Billion Cash Cow (W) Tech: Tencent Expands Its Cloud-Computing Services in U.S. (W) Tech: Twitter Surges After Better-Than-Expected Net User Adds (B) Tech: Gett Acquires Juno for $200 Million to Challenge Uber (B) Technology America’s Rich Get Richer and the Poor Get Replaced by Robots (B) Amazon adds eyes to AI ears with smart home camera (FT) Offbeat Wall Street’s New Problem: When Fund Titans Invest on the Side (W)

April 26 (Wednesday) Markets U.S. Stocks Rise, Driven by Earnings (W) The French Election Made Stocks Great Again (W) Nasdaq Composite Tops 6000 for First Time (W) Einhorn’s Greenlight Warns of Bubble With Tax Reform Prospects Fading (B) There’s a Huge Disagreement Between Bonds and Stocks (B) Hasenstab Says Treasuries Are Bubble Set to Burst as Yields Rise (B) Central banks Bank of Japan Sends Message: Don’t Expect Higher Rates (W) US U.S. New Home Sales Up 5.8% in March (W) Rising Home Prices Raise Concerns of Overheating (W) U.S. Consumer Confidence Falls — Conference Board (W) Where College Seniors Are Falling Short (W) The U.S. Makes It Easy for Parents to Get College Loans—Repaying Them Is Another Story (W) Europe French Election Will Signal Nation’s Commitment to Economic Overhauls (W) Marine Le Pen’s Bid to Lead France Hinges on Low Turnout (W) China China Markets Reel as $1.7 Trillion in Shadow Funds Unwinds (B) China Markets Stress Hits Bonds (W) US politics Trump to Seek 15% Tax Rate on Owner-Operated Firms (W) Trump Seems to Retreat on Shutdown, But Secret Spending Bill Still Looms (B) Americans’ Dissatisfaction With Paul Ryan, Congress Is Growing (W) Flynn’s Secret Foreign Ties May Have Broken Law, Chairman Says (B) Geopolitics Trudeau’s Reward for Courting Trump Is a Trade War on Lumber (B) Ross Says U.S. Would Welcome New Canadian Lumber Proposal (B) Russian hackers targeting Macron, say cyber experts (FT) North Korea Sanctions Unevenly Enforced, U.S. Says (W) Ivanka Trump Gets Cool Reception in Berlin (W) Industries & companies Consumer: Coke to Cut 20% of Corporate Staff as It Battles Soda Slump (W) Energy: The Electric-Car Boom Is So Real Even Oil Companies Say It’s Coming (B) Energy: Liquefied Natural Gas Is All the Rage in the Trump Administration (B) Industrials: Caterpillar Turns Corner, Boosts Outlook (W) Media: Netflix Secures Portal Into China via Baidu-Unit Deal (W) Pharma: Corporate Feud Exposes Big Profits on Drug Sales (W) Retail: Retailers’ Call Centers Bring Life to Dead Mall Space (W) Tech: Google Retools Search Engine to Demote Hoaxes, Fake News (W) Tech: Apple Car Races to Catch Up (W) Telecom: Verizon, AT&T in Billion-Dollar Bidding War for 5G Spectrum (W) Technology Uber Plans to Test Flying Cars Within Three Years (W)

April 25 (Tuesday) Markets Markets Surge After French Election Result (B) US bank stocks are soaring on French election relief (C) European Stocks Aren’t as Cheap as They Look (W) Oil Oil slips on OPEC cut extension doubts, Russia output worries (R) Oil Slides on Signs of Oversupply (W) US Homes are flying off fast this spring in the ‘strongest seller’s market ever’ (C) Europe German business morale near 6-year high, defies political uncertainty (R) French election looks like another setback for Europe’s left (C) EU Leader Sides With Macron in French Vote (W) Italian Politics Could Still Derail Markets (W) US politics Trump Orders Plan to Cut Corporate Tax Rate to 15% (W) Trump Advisers Set to Discuss Tax Plan With Top Republicans (B) Trump’s plan for the ‘biggest tax cut we’ve ever had’ is already looking like it could be messy (BI) Trump’s Plan Can Cut Taxes, But Only Temporarily (B) White House says vote on healthcare plan may not come for weeks (R) Trump’s Wall Demands May Decide Whether 100th Day Is a Shutdown (B) Geopolitics Entire Senate to attend North Korea briefing (R) China’s Xi Urges Trump to Be Cautious Over North Korea (W) Top U.S. general in Afghanistan sees Russia sending weapons to Taliban (R) Industries & companies Amazon: Amazon Crashes Digital Gate (B) Autos: The Electric Car Revolution Tesla Began Faces Its Biggest Test (B) Autos: Tesla’s big Model 3 bet rides on risky assembly line strategy (R) Autos: Tesla to Double Number of EV Chargers at Stations (W) Financials: Wall Street mystery solved: Why Goldman whiffed on earnings (C) Pharma: Bleak Outlook for Big Drug Makers (W) Technology The newest flying car is backed by Larry Page — and you can buy it by the end of the year (BI) Apple Hires Rocket Scientists as It Tries to Catch Up in Driverless Cars (W) Apple Signals Interest in Self-Driving Software (W) Amazon Forms Team to Harness Driverless Tech (W) Jack Ma Sees Decades of Pain as Internet Upends Old Economy (B) Offbeat What Earth would look like if the ice melted (BI)

April 24 (Monday) Markets Trump’s announcement on tax cuts may rekindle the stock-market rally (MW) Stocks Unlikely to Plunge if U.S. Government Shuts Down (BR) Another Year of Double-Digit Gains (BR) Paul Tudor Jones Says U.S. Stocks Should ‘Terrify’ Janet Yellen (B) Legendary investor Prechter awaits a ‘depression-type’ shock in the U.S. (MW) China’s Stock Markets Dive in Anti-Speculation Drive (W) Central banks Draghi Seen Choosing Faster QE Exit If French Hurdle Cleared (B) ECB Stands Ready to Support Banks If Needed After France Vote (B) IMF Geopolitical Concerns Dominate IMF, World Bank Talks (W) Mnuchin Urges IMF to Bolster Oversight of Currency, Trade Policies (W) US Ryan Tells Colleagues House Will Act in Time to Avoid Shutdown (B) White House Appears Ready to Go to the Mat for Its Border Wall (B) Tax Expenditures: The Hidden Side of Federal Spending (BR) Top Economist Finds Small U.S. Cities Thriving (BR) Northern New England’s Good Jobless Numbers? They’re Bad (W) Europe Europe’s populist wave stalls as Macron storms into French runoff (R) EU Takes Encouragement From Macron, Le Pen Election Outcome (W) May’s Conservatives on course for sweeping British election victory (R) I.M.F. Torn Over Whether to Bail Out Greece Once Again (N) Emerging Flood of Dollar Debt Could Come Back to Haunt Emerging Economies (W) German conservatives urge end to EU-Turkey talks after pro-Erdogan vote (R) Mexico’s unrelenting violence is climbing to new highs (BI) US politics Trump Vows to Unveil Tax-Cut Plan Next Week, Surprising Staff (N) Mulvaney Says Trump Tax Plan Details Won’t Be Ready Until June (B) Timing of Tax Plan’s Release Is in Dispute (W) Trump Plan Said Unlikely to Back Ryan’s Border-Adjusted Tax (B) Trump Puts Two Dodd-Frank Powers on Hold in Symbolic Move (W) Mnuchin Sweetens America First as Chance for Better World Growth (B) At a ‘Unity’ Stop in Nebraska, Democrats Find Anything But (N) Geopolitics & trade Pence Says China Has Power to Calm Korean Peninsula (W) Japan: TPP Would Be Better Than U.S. Bilateral Trade Pact (W) US reopens door to reviving EU trade talks (FT) Smoot-Hawley Tariff: A Bad Law, Badly Timed (BR) Industries & companies Consumer: A Band-Aid for J&J (BR) Financials: Deutsche Bank Is First Bank Busted for Breaking Volcker Rule (B) Financials: It’s Time to Put Some Money Into Banks (BR) Industrials: Alcoa’s Split Is a Hit in the Market (BR) Retail: Stores are closing at an epic pace (NN) Retail: Brick-and-Mortar Stores Are Shuttering at a Record Pace (W) Retail: Three Hard Lessons the Internet Is Teaching Traditional Stores (W) Tech: Facebook’s Augmented Reality for Stock Prices (BR) Wireless: Spotlight on AT&T’s Media Strategy as Wireless Loses Luster (W) Offbeat Robert Taylor Nurtured Computer Visionaries (W) How a Melting Arctic Changes Everything (B) American Poets, Refusing to Go Gentle, Rage Against the Right (N)

April 22 (Saturday) Markets US equities the boldest contrarian trade right now (FT) Investors Unmoved by Auto Results (W) France’s Two-Round Vote Spells Period of Volatility for Markets (W) Oil Oil Falls Below $50 as Surging U.S. Output Undermines OPEC Cuts (B) Central banks Fed’s Fischer Says Two More 2017 Hikes Still Feels Right (B) Fed Intensifies Balance-Sheet Discussions With Market Players (B) The Fed must be clearer on its balance sheet plan (FT) Global Global economy: Spring breaks through a political storm (FT) US Sales of Existing U.S. Homes Rise to Fastest Pace in a Decade (B) Ritholtz: Be Smart When You Compare Reagan’s Economy to Obama’s (B) Europe EU watches French vote with bated breath (FT) French Presidential Candidates Take Positions on Attack (W) French electorate bewildered by campaign twists (FT) Why Le Pen is the choice of ‘unhappy France’ (FT) France Fires Up Eurozone Economy Ahead of Presidential Poll (W) China China Should Open Service Sector to Boost Trade Flows, IMF Says (B) US politics I Trump says he plans tax reform announcement on Wednesday (R) White House Banks On Sweeping Tax Plan (W) Need Revenue? Try Slashing the Capital Gains Tax Rate (W) Squabbles that sank health plan once could do it again (R) In ‘Buy American’ Push, Trump Is Starting in a Hole (W) Border Lawmakers Balk at Trump’s Wall Request (W) US politics II Trump To Put Two Dodd-Frank Powers on Hold in Symbolic Move (W) Banks and Borrowers Are Waiting on Washington (W) Too Many Questions on Too Big to Fail (W) Fannie-Freddie Overhaul Is ‘Very Important’ Goal, Mnuchin Says (B) Geopolitics & trade U.S. Denies Exxon Bid for Waiver on Russia Sanctions (W) In China, U.S. Steel Move Is Seen as Self-Destructive (W) China’s Secret Weapon in South Korea Missile Fight: Hackers (W) U.S. Defense Chief Mattis: ‘No Doubt’ Syrian Regime Has Chemical Weapons (W) Industries & companies Airlines: Airlines Bolster First Class, Skimp on Economy (W) Autos: Ford CEO reveals his company’s plan to get cars to hit 54 miles per gallon by 2025 (BI) Autos: In Japan, Technology Helps Seniors Hit the Brakes, Not the Gas (W) Retail: Bebe to Close All Stores (W) Retail: U.S. Retailers Face Growing Hostility From Suppliers (B) Retail: Desperate Malls Turn to Concerts and Food Trucks (B) Tech: Galaxy S8 Complaints Throw Shade on Samsung’s U.S. Launch (W) Offbeat ‘It is lonely at times’: The power of Princess Kate and the royal family’s vulnerability (WP) Musk Lays Out Plans to Meld Brains and Computers (W)