Bloomberg Anchor of Horizons Middle East & Africa Joumanna Bercetche and Nancy Youssef, Staff Writer at The Atlantic, join David Gura and Christina Ruffini this morning on Bloomberg This Weekend for a wide-ranging conversation on the United States' military posture in the Middle East and the strategic implications and the risks of becoming bogged down in protracted military engagement. Watch the f...
Bloomberg Anchor of Horizons Middle East & Africa Joumanna Bercetche and Nancy Youssef, Staff Writer at The Atlantic, join David Gura and Christina Ruffini this morning on Bloomberg This Weekend for a wide-ranging conversation on the United States' military posture in the Middle East and the strategic implications and the risks of becoming bogged down in protracted military engagement. Watch the full interview on Bloomberg This Weekend and watch the show LIVE every Saturday and Sunday morning. (Source: Bloomberg)
Attendees at Conservative Political Action Conference express support and concerns amid rift over Trump’s action Wherever you go, there you are, the saying goes. It was a lesson Donald Trump’s Maga faithful may have been reminded of last week when they gathered in a convention center near Dallas for a revival of the president’s political movement, only to find that there was no escape from the pro...
Attendees at Conservative Political Action Conference express support and concerns amid rift over Trump’s action Wherever you go, there you are, the saying goes. It was a lesson Donald Trump’s Maga faithful may have been reminded of last week when they gathered in a convention center near Dallas for a revival of the president’s political movement, only to find that there was no escape from the problems it faces. The annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) is usually a place of optimism, if not, triumph. It was on its stage last year that Elon Musk pumped a chainsaw in the air amid his abortive foray into clear cutting government bureaucracy, and where JD Vance named undocumented immigration as the “ greatest threat ” facing the United States and Europe. Trump is a regular, regaling the audience with lengthy monologues about his accomplishments. Continue reading...
F1 finds itself in something of a tangled web as it tries to refine the new rules, improve safety and ensure the drivers are happy without compromising racing.
F1 finds itself in something of a tangled web as it tries to refine the new rules, improve safety and ensure the drivers are happy without compromising racing.
mbbirdy/E+ via Getty Images A surge in oil prices tied to conflict in the Middle East has triggered a sharp selloff in U.S. Treasurys, undermining one of investors’ traditional safe havens. Instead of cushioning market volatility, bonds have dropped alongside equities, amplifying stress across financial markets, The Wall Street Journal reported. The disruption to energy flows, particularly fears a...
mbbirdy/E+ via Getty Images A surge in oil prices tied to conflict in the Middle East has triggered a sharp selloff in U.S. Treasurys, undermining one of investors’ traditional safe havens. Instead of cushioning market volatility, bonds have dropped alongside equities, amplifying stress across financial markets, The Wall Street Journal reported. The disruption to energy flows, particularly fears around the Strait of Hormuz, has driven one of the largest oil spikes in recent memory. That has raised concerns about renewed inflation, pushing interest rates higher and weighing on both stocks and bonds. Major equity indexes have slid to multi-month lows, while Treasury prices have fallen, sending yields sharply upward. The classic balanced portfolio has taken a hit. The iShares Core 60/40 Balanced Allocation ETF ( AOR ), a widely followed 60/40 stock-bond exchange-traded fund, has declined more than 6% since the conflict escalated in late February, highlighting how few places investors have found to hide. Higher yields are also feeding into the broader economy. The 10-year Treasury yield ( US10Y ) has climbed roughly half a percentage point, lifting borrowing costs across the board. Mortgage rates have jumped back above 6.3%, threatening momentum in the housing market just as the spring buying season begins. Market dynamics appear to be reinforcing the selloff. Some leveraged investors have been forced to liquidate bond positions to meet margin calls, while others are reluctant to step in amid ongoing volatility. The result is a feedback loop that continues to pressure prices. The shift has caught many investors off guard. Prior to the conflict, expectations were building for lower rates, with markets pricing in multiple Federal Reserve cuts this year. Initially, bonds rallied when hostilities began, reflecting a typical flight to safety. That move quickly reversed as oil prices surged, reviving inflation fears. There is still debate about where yields ultimately head. A...
Pope Leo XIV rejected claims that God justifies war and prayed especially for Christians in the Middle East during a Palm Sunday Mass before tens of thousands of people in St. Peter's Square. (Image credit: Remo Casilli)
Pope Leo XIV rejected claims that God justifies war and prayed especially for Christians in the Middle East during a Palm Sunday Mass before tens of thousands of people in St. Peter's Square. (Image credit: Remo Casilli)
Key PointsAmazon is shifting from failed hardware attempts to a software-first, social robot platform (via Fauna) that could plug directly into Alexa and Prime.
Key PointsAmazon is shifting from failed hardware attempts to a software-first, social robot platform (via Fauna) that could plug directly into Alexa and Prime.
spawns/iStock via Getty Images Wars rarely stay where they start. The Israeli and American military campaign against Iran - the most direct confrontation with Tehran in decades - has sent shockwaves well beyond the Middle East. The fog of war obscures the tactical picture almost daily, but the economic transmission mechanisms are clear enough, and investors who mistake this for a regional skirmish...
spawns/iStock via Getty Images Wars rarely stay where they start. The Israeli and American military campaign against Iran - the most direct confrontation with Tehran in decades - has sent shockwaves well beyond the Middle East. The fog of war obscures the tactical picture almost daily, but the economic transmission mechanisms are clear enough, and investors who mistake this for a regional skirmish over energy do so at their peril. One-Two Punch The first punch is inflationary. Iran is not a bit player in global commodity markets. It sits atop some of the world's most consequential supply chains - not just oil and gas, which command the headlines, but sulfur and urea, which quietly underpin the global food system. Sulfur is a critical feedstock for phosphate fertilizers. Disrupt that supply, and you are not merely raising the price of a barrel of crude; you are raising the price of wheat in Egypt, corn in Brazil, and bread in Lagos. Energy markets feel the shock first and most visibly, but the agricultural commodity complex is where the second-order damage accumulates, slowly and with devastating effect on the world's most food-insecure populations. Industrial commodities, like aluminum and helium (essential for semiconductor fabrication), have also been disrupted. The second punch destroys demand. That is the cruel arithmetic of commodity shocks. The same price surge that generates windfall revenues for producers squeezes household budgets everywhere else, sapping the consumer spending that drives global growth. It boosts input costs for many manufacturers, and corporate margins compress. Capital expenditure plans go on hold. The very inflation that appears to signal economic heat is, in this context, a leading indicator of demand destruction. Central banks find themselves in the most uncomfortable of positions: facing prices that argue for tightening while growth signals argue for caution. It is stagflation's calling card, and it arrived before most were ready to r...
'Incredibly Problematic' - Iran Destroys US AWACS Jet At Saudi Airbase In a major feat that comes weeks after the White House claimed that Iran's ballistic missile capability had been "functionally destroyed," Iran has laid waste to one of only 16 American E-3 Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft in the world , sending $500 million worth of technology up in smoke and crimpin...
'Incredibly Problematic' - Iran Destroys US AWACS Jet At Saudi Airbase In a major feat that comes weeks after the White House claimed that Iran's ballistic missile capability had been "functionally destroyed," Iran has laid waste to one of only 16 American E-3 Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft in the world , sending $500 million worth of technology up in smoke and crimping the US military's ability to maintain situational awareness. The same attack also "damaged" several aerial refueling tankers and added a dozen service members to the tally of more than 300 who've been wounded in the month-long US-Israeli war on Iran . Thirteen have been killed. In recent days, foreign satellite images showed what appeared to be major damage at Prince Sultan Air Base, a U.S. military base located in Al Kharj, Saudi Arabia. The images show damage on the base's main apron, which holds high-value aircraft. While high-resolution commercial satellite imagery of the region from U.S.-based geospatial companies will be delayed for days, if not weeks, new ground-level photos apparently show the aftermath of Iranian drone and missile strikes. Images have emerged revealing that the Wall Street Journal's initial report that the half-billion-dollar aircraft was merely "damaged" was an enormous understatement. Rather, a large portion of the fuselage has been obliterated, along with the distinctive 30-foot-diameter, 6-foot-thick rotating radar dome that's mounted atop AWACS aircraft. The images of the destroyed E-3 Sentry were first posted on the Air Force amn/nco/snco Facebook page: According to military aviation aficionados , the identifier "OK 81-0005" -- visible on the severed tail -- confirms this particular aircraft was an E-3G named "Captain Planet," which deployed to the Middle East theater from Oklahoma's Tinker Air Force Base. It's not clear if any of the recently-wounded service members were associated with the aircraft, which was destroyed in a missile-and-dr...
A small cargo of Saudi crude is heading to Pakistan after crossing the Strait of Hormuz along a route hugging the Iranian coastline. A total of seven vessels were visible leaving the Persian Gulf on Saturday. In addition to the oil tanker, two liquefied petroleum gas tankers and four bulk carriers headed out of the Gulf on Saturday, according to tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. All seven ships...
A small cargo of Saudi crude is heading to Pakistan after crossing the Strait of Hormuz along a route hugging the Iranian coastline. A total of seven vessels were visible leaving the Persian Gulf on Saturday. In addition to the oil tanker, two liquefied petroleum gas tankers and four bulk carriers headed out of the Gulf on Saturday, according to tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. All seven ships appear to have followed a northerly route that passes through a narrow gap between the two Iranian islands of Larak and Qeshm as Tehran tightens its grip on the waterway. Iran’s parliament is working on a draft bill that would impose a fee on vessels seeking safe passage. Shipping through Hormuz remains at a small fraction of prewar levels. Vessel-tracking is hampered by electronic interference of ships’ signals, and some disable their AIS transponders in high-risk waters, further reducing the timeliness and reliability of tracking data. Iran-linked crude tankers continue to cross Hormuz with their transponders turned off, with the flow averaging about 1.6 million barrels a day in the first 23 days of March, according to Tankertrackers.com . It was reported this weekend that Tehran has given approval for seven Malaysian tankers to leave the Persian Gulf. The stranded vessels will be able to sail soon, the Star said, citing Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan. Iran has also agreed to allow 20 more Pakistani-flagged ships to pass through Hormuz, according to Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar. Outbound Transits The most notable outbound transit on Saturday was the oil tanker P. Aliki, hauling about 650,000 barrels of Saudi crude to Pakistan, according to vessel-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. In addition, two LPG carriers that crossed the strait Saturday — initially reported in yesterday’s tracker — are heading for India. Four bulk carriers were seen making the outbound transit on Saturday, with two Iranian-flagged vessels adding to an initial two reported yesterd...
Prediction markets are pricing in a more deliberate path for SpaceX ( SPACE ) to go public. Last week, The Information reported that the company is looking to file its IPO prospectus as early as this week. Elon Musk's company could raise around $70B to $75B, with a value of up to $1.75T, according to reports. But on Kalshi, bettors price in only a 6% chance that SpaceX officially announces its IPO...
Prediction markets are pricing in a more deliberate path for SpaceX ( SPACE ) to go public. Last week, The Information reported that the company is looking to file its IPO prospectus as early as this week. Elon Musk's company could raise around $70B to $75B, with a value of up to $1.75T, according to reports. But on Kalshi, bettors price in only a 6% chance that SpaceX officially announces its IPO before May 1 (defined as the SEC declaring the company's Form S-1 effective, the IPO pricing, or a securities exchange assigning a ticker to it). There is a 23% chance of a filing before June 1 and a 60% chance of it before July 1. On Polymarket, there is a 59% chance that SpaceX completes the entire IPO process by June 30. Kalshi More on SpaceX SpaceX IPO: What I Learned From ULA's Heydays SpaceX-xAI Deal: Building America's New Icon SpaceX IPO's $700 Billion Valuation Increase Benchmarked By Rocket Lab SA Asks: What's the most attractive space stock right now? X moves 'TweetDeck' to its $40 monthly plan without a heads-up
Apple's most legendary computer has two legacies: there's the computer itself, and there's the commercial. That commercial. Only a couple of days before Steve Jobs debuted the computer that would both help cement his legacy and contribute to his unceremonious exile from Apple, the company dropped a Super Bowl ad that is still one of the most iconic commercials of all time. It raised both the hype ...
Apple's most legendary computer has two legacies: there's the computer itself, and there's the commercial. That commercial. Only a couple of days before Steve Jobs debuted the computer that would both help cement his legacy and contribute to his unceremonious exile from Apple, the company dropped a Super Bowl ad that is still one of the most iconic commercials of all time. It raised both the hype and the stakes for the Macintosh in a big way. The Macintosh wasn't a great computer, at least at first. It didn't have enough memory; there wasn't enough software that supported it; it wasn't customizable in the ways PC users needed at the time. I … Read the full story at The Verge.
The European Union (EU) is a bystander in the Iran war, but it might end up sustaining significant collateral damage. On one hand, public opinion across Europe is opposed to a conflict that circumvents the core principles of international law. On the other, the continent remains deeply reliant on the United States for its energy and security needs. A definitive anti-war stance risks alienating Pre...
The European Union (EU) is a bystander in the Iran war, but it might end up sustaining significant collateral damage. On one hand, public opinion across Europe is opposed to a conflict that circumvents the core principles of international law. On the other, the continent remains deeply reliant on the United States for its energy and security needs. A definitive anti-war stance risks alienating President Donald Trump, leaving Europe strategically exposed. Talk about being caught between a rock...
There are better ways to raise money than jeopardising a model that draws visitors to Britain and has huge benefits for the wider economy Twenty-five years ago, the UK made the bold and generous gesture of making its national museums free to all. Suddenly, anyone from anywhere in the world could gaze at iconic works of art by the greatest artists in history without having to pay a penny. Many incr...
There are better ways to raise money than jeopardising a model that draws visitors to Britain and has huge benefits for the wider economy Twenty-five years ago, the UK made the bold and generous gesture of making its national museums free to all. Suddenly, anyone from anywhere in the world could gaze at iconic works of art by the greatest artists in history without having to pay a penny. Many incredible artworks were suddenly accessible to everyone: Hepworth, Turner and Hockney at Tate Britain , and Bonnard, Picasso and Bourgeois at Tate Modern (which had both always been free) were now joined by Raphael at the V&A and Kapoor at the Walker Art Gallery, dramatic seascapes at the National Maritime Museum and bustling cityscapes at the Museum of London. And maybe afterwards they would reward the gallery by buying a slice of cake in the cafe or a print of their favourite work in the gift shop. In the years that followed, this policy proved to be a huge success. It led to a dramatic and sustained increase in audiences. Within the first decade, visits to museums which used to charge rose by 151% – the uplift was 180% at the Natural History Museum and V&A, and 269% at National Museums Liverpool. Is now really the moment to reverse direction by charging international tourists to access our museums and galleries, as ministers are proposing? Karin Hindsbo is interim director of Tate, and former director of Tate Modern, London and the National Museum, Oslo Continue reading...
Sundry Photography/iStock Editorial via Getty Images I last covered Unity Software (NYSE: U ) in October, moving from a prior "strong buy" back to a "buy" rating. At the time, I wrote that : "I'm still bullish on Unity, but the higher valuation and underwhelming Q2 results reduce my enthusiasm a bit." With the benefit of hindsight, I should have sold my position entirely at that point. Because, in...
Sundry Photography/iStock Editorial via Getty Images I last covered Unity Software (NYSE: U ) in October, moving from a prior "strong buy" back to a "buy" rating. At the time, I wrote that : "I'm still bullish on Unity, but the higher valuation and underwhelming Q2 results reduce my enthusiasm a bit." With the benefit of hindsight, I should have sold my position entirely at that point. Because, in this market, any software companies that deliver less than exemplary results have been decimated. While Unity has continued to show operational improvement, it hasn't been enough to offset the terrible sentiment that has afflicted the overall software industry. As a result, Unity has given back its gains from the past year and finds itself once again near its multi-year lows. This improved a bit with Friday's 13% rally, but shares are still at the lower end of the trading range: Data by YCharts The stock appeared to be breaking out to new highs as recently as December. After getting cut in half year-to-date, where does that leave the investment case for Unity Software going forward? An Excellent Earnings Pre-Announcement Unity Software appeared to be on course toward another dour week, with shares down about 10% heading into Friday's session. Understandable, given the difficult backdrop the market has been facing with the Iran War concerns along with the sell-off we've been seeing in many leading software and technology companies. However, Unity was able to snap its losing streak on Friday after pre-announcing its Q1 results : Data by YCharts The following table with Unity's preliminary Q1 numbers should give a sense of why sentiment turned on Friday: Unity Preliminary Q1 Results (Corporate Press Release) As this shows, Unity now anticipates announcing roughly $506 million of revenues, which is substantially above its prior $485 million mid-point guide. This preliminary figure would represent 17% year-over-year growth. It gets better when you dig into the details. Look at ...
With emerging markets on the brink of their worst month since 2022, TT International and AllianceBernstein are making a bold wager that this is a good time to buy. They’re betting on beaten-down securities, like emerging-market bonds, on the view on that central banks, rather than raise interest rates, will instead have to cut them to stave off a growth shock. It’s a contrarian view that was pushe...
With emerging markets on the brink of their worst month since 2022, TT International and AllianceBernstein are making a bold wager that this is a good time to buy. They’re betting on beaten-down securities, like emerging-market bonds, on the view on that central banks, rather than raise interest rates, will instead have to cut them to stave off a growth shock. It’s a contrarian view that was pushed into the spotlight this week after Pacific Investment Management Co. touted “opportunities to invest against the prevailing narrative.” “The market has priced the wrong risk,” said Jean-Charles Sambor , head of emerging-market debt at TT International Asset Management. “We’ve started to buy emerging-market credit and local bonds.” He said he recently added Polish and Czech local-currency bonds, as well as dollar-denominated Venezuelan and Lebanese securities. Dip-buying investors are in the minority after a bruising selloff across emerging markets. Emerging stocks have fallen about 10% this month, while average yields on local-currency bonds have risen to the highest in almost two years. Energy importing nations have seen even bigger selloffs, with bond yields jumping by 50-100 basis points in Poland, South Africa and Thailand. Some currencies have slid more than 5%. Other investors have made similar calls, and money markets that had almost fully priced a Federal Reserve rate increase earlier in the week, have since trimmed those wagers. By Friday, they saw a less than 50% chance that a hike will materialize this year. The Fed “is biased towards offsetting recession risk and would likely tilt dovish if the oil price shock intensified,” JPMorgan Chase & Co. strategists said in a March 20 report. Christian DiClementi , director of emerging debt at AllianceBernstein LP, said he sees buying opportunities in markets with the steepest declines. He declined to disclose specific trades. “Initially the shock is inflationary, but the longer it drags on, the higher the probability t...