QUICK !!! What do Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Joe Biden, and Raj Searing all have in common??? None of us will ever be President !!! HAHAHAHAH....
CoronaVirus Update: Man, this is getting ugly and the US Stock markets don't even seem to care. China is reporting that the death toll is now over 1,000 and total cases over 40,000. (Many experts think there are over 100,000 cases and China is down playing it... The quarantined Diamond Princess cruise ship is up to 136 caseswith people FREAKING OUT. An entire Apartment Complex in Hong Kong has been quarantined after the virus passed to resident "through their pipes" (I'd like a fact check on that one.. but.. The Quarantine is in place) .. ... So, does this start to "Peter out" ??? or is this headed into full on Pandemic?? The head of the WHO said earlier this morning that this is a "Grave Threat" to the world. Hmmm.. Awfully concerning.. except for Bill Burr. To him, this is better than his Cruise Ship idea... ..and ....
Because I am a jerk.. I'll give a shoutout to Russian Blogger Karomat from Russia. He put a hospital mask on and boarded a subway then pretended to collapse in pain ..and as people helped him he coughed and whispered, "CoronaVirus" and everyone ran from the subway screaming !!!! Karomat was arrested for it.. Im betting Putin is a fan of his.... (and I'm guessing that because Karomat is still alive !) ... and..
In OTHER Russia related news .. Imran Aliev, 44 was found dead in a Paris Hotel room this weekend. Imran was a reporter/blogger/Political critic of Vlad Putin and Chechnya. He was found with his throat slit and over 100 stab wounds. Hmmm.. Probably just a routine robbery, right?
In Da Swamp: The New Hampshire Primaries are underway with Bernie Sanders expected to win (He is the Senator from the adjoining state of Vermont) and Mayor Pete surging into second. (BTW, Thanks to the girl holding the sign at his rally. "Boot-Edge-Edge" . That's how you say his name). Biden is struggling to stay relevant and Elizabeth Warren needs a miracle. (I just LOVED that she finished 5th in Pocahontas County, Iowa!!! )
Does anyone else feel like we are living in that scene from The Godfather when Michael Corleone was at the Baptism and BAMM BAMM BAMMthe family, "Took Care of Business!!!" ??? .. While the "Boss" was up in New Hampshire trying to rain on the Democratic Primary Parade, The Justice Department fired shots!!! Four Chinese Military Personnel were charged in the hacking of Equifax that got data on more than 140 Million Americans .. Then, the Justice Department filed suit against, California... NJ.. and a County in Washington for their "Sanctuary City" policies (It's a Federal Crime to harbor criminals and the Supremacy Clause trumps your local statutes).. This after the the TSA removed NY from the TTS Program that expedites people through the Customs Process at airports. At the NSA, they removed 70 "Obama-era Holdovers" including that Vindamin guy that testified at the Impeachment hearings in his Military Dress Blues (Even though he hadn't worn them in years). Some say it's "wrong to criticize or penalize civil servants for doing their duty to help the Republic" .. others say he was "complicit in cover-ups and participated in a Coup de etat to remove a duly elected President." Either way, he was "escorted out of the White House" and reassigned.. To quote Bobcat Golthwait, " I think the fooling around is pretty much OVER!!!"
SPORTS: GOLF: Canadian Nick Taylor held off Phil Mickelson and Kevin Streelmanto win the Pebble Beach Invitational. Streelman and his amateur partner Larry Fitzgerald won the Pro-Am for the second time in three years... and..
NCAA: Is Duke back? Did they shake off those ugly early season losses"?? Looks that way .. After a controversial OT win over UNC this weekend they beat #8 Florida State last night. There are NO teams that are looking unbeatable out there ... and.
Get better PELE !!!! King PELE, the most famous soccer player of all time (and solid actor from the movie, "Victory") is not doing to well. He doesn't want to go outside and be seen so frail...
CELEBRIDIOTS: The Oscar Totals are in !!! WORST EVER !!! Ratings were the lowest ever and the "critics" say the show was, "too boring, too white, and too predictable". I watched a few minutes and my reaction was, "I think America is DONE with dopes that think they are better than everyone giving awards to each other and expecting us all to watch and applaud" .. Brad Pitt got crushed on Social Media for getting all political.. and.. Chris Rock had the line of the night when he called out Jeff Bezos: "Man, He's so rich he got DIVORCED and is STILL the richest man in the world!!!" AHHAHAHAH.....
Former Actress, now struggling to stay in the spotlight, Bella Thorne, admitted she "colored her skin a little" to look "More Latin". Of course, the Radical Left freaks are upset at her for "Cultural Appropriation". HERE ..(Sorry Guys, her dad was Cuban. So, she's not really appropriating anything) Because all of you are educated Rant Readers, you know that the REAL reasonshe did this was she was looking to "WIN" the Oscars ...or ANY award from Raj. Nice Try Bella.. but NO!!!! ....
So, The Winners of the Oscars: Kristin Wiig wins, "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING??? " Award HERE... Jeez Kristin.. what were you going for here?? Strawberry dipped in Chocolate sauce...but I missed???" Because, you MISSED !!! Some are calling it "The Lasagna Dress" which is funny. Maybe she was trying to be the Corona Virus? .. .. and.. .
Kaitlyn Devers HERE .. Had a shot at winning until I read her "I wore sustainable clothing"crap. Really? Can we get the TRUTH??? "My dress is sustainable..and the material used in it.. and the rest of my outfit, was made by women in sweatshops in Asia for .19/hour.. But YEAH ME for being a woman that supports other actresses and a clean environment!!!".. So,
We'll give Penelope Cruz the WIN ..HERE she doesn't have too many chances left in her....and she follows the Raj Rules.. Keep it Classy and look Good not Weird.. There it its.. BAMM !!!! She wins the Oscars!!!! ...and..
In the vote from last week, (Sorry for the delay .. I had the Iowa Caucus Software Tallying the votes) .. Elisabetta Canaliswins in a runway.. I think you're right. I'd take her sailing HERE . .. or HERE .. .. Call me Elisabetta. I know you're 41 but if you show me a fake ID I'll pretend you're 40 ...
From SeekingAlpha.com
Sprint is up more than 60% in premarket trading on reports that its long-awaited merger with T-Mobile (NASDAQ:TMUS) will finally be approved by U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero. That would shut down a challenge by state attorneys general who allege Sprint's (NYSE:S) tie-up would lead to higher cellphone bills despite approval from federal antitrust and telecom officials. Merging the third and fourth top U.S. wireless carriers will result in a company with more than 90M customers that would aim to snatch even more subscribers from AT&T (NYSE:T) and Verizon (NYSE:VZ). TMUS +9% premarket.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell is likely to sound upbeat about the U.S. economic outlook today when he begins his semiannual testimony before Congress, even as he nods to the potential threat from the coronavirus in China. The central bank lowered interest rates three times in 2019, but earlier this month signaled a pause in easing unless there was a clear threat of inflation moving away from its 2% target. Fed Vice Chair Randal Quarles, Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari and St. Louis Fed President James Bullard are all set to comment at separate events later in the session.
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq scored fresh record highs yesterday as Chinese workers and factories gradually returned to business, while new coronavirus statistics showed signs that the disease was slowing. There were 2,478 new confirmed cases on the mainland as of Monday, down from 3,062 on the previous day, bringing the total to 42,638. Stocks in Shanghai climbed 0.4% on the news, while U.S. equity futures suggest a solid open on Wall Street, ahead of earnings from Under Armour (NYSE:UAA), Hasbro (NASDAQ:HAS), Hilton (NYSE:HLT) and Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT).
More than 300 Chinese companies are seeking bank loans totaling at least 57.4B yuan ($8.2B) to help to soften the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. "Banks will have the final say on lending decisions," sources told Reuters. "The interest rates are likely to be on par with those offered to banks' top clients." Among the prospective borrowers are Meituan Dianping (MEIT), Xiaomi (XI), Didi Chuxing (DIDI), Megvii Technology and Qihoo 360. Go deeper: Amazon is stockpiling China-made products - Business Insider.
Seeking to revive sales after ceding its smartphone crown to Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last quarter, Samsung (OTC:SSNLF) is expected to launch three variants of Galaxy S today - the regular, the Plus and the Ultra - at its Unpacked 2020 event in San Francisco. The S20 phones won't be Samsung's first 5G phones, but they're going to be the first 5G phones that matter, with all four major U.S. carriers now offering at least some form of next-generation networking. The S20 trio will be unveiled alongside the Galaxy Z Flip, a square-shaped foldable phone rumored to be cheaper than the bulky Galaxy Fold.
Google's (GOOG, GOOGL) head of human resources, Eileen Naughton, will step down later this year amid rising tensions between the company's top executives and rank and file employees. She's been in the role since 2016, and led the company though a period of growth that saw its global workforce expand by more than 65% to 119,000. Among the tensions: Employee anger at the handling of sexual harassment claims, the firing of workers who organized protests against the company and the elimination of weekly all-hands meetings, as well as staff complaints about secret projects and the lack of diversity. Go deeper: Larry Page and Sergey Brin resigned from their roles in December, while legal chief David Drummond retired in January.
U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee has rejected a request by Uber (NYSE:UBER) and Postmates (POSTM) to block California's gig worker law, which will make it harder to classify workers as independent contractors. While the companies had proven they could suffer a "degree of irreparable harm" as a result of the legislation, the potential risks to them were "less important" than the public interest in setting a living wage and regulating employment. Investors have been watching the California dispute closely as the rule would require higher pay and other benefits like medical insurance.
The United States has charged four Chinese military officers with the hacking of major credit reporting agency Equifax (NYSE:EFX) in 2017 and making off with sensitive personal data on about 145M Americans. "The U.S. government doesn't normally bring criminal charges against members of another country's military or intelligence services outside of the U.S.," according to U.S. Attorney General William P. Barr. But there are exceptions in cases of "indiscriminate theft of vast amounts of sensitive personal data of civilians."
It will take "several quarters" to return Boeing's (NYSE:BA) worldwide 737 MAX fleet to the skies following a grounding that has left about 700 planes on the tarmac. "We are not going to over-stress the system," Randy Tinseth, Boeing's vice president for marketing, said at the Singapore Airshow. The company announced last week it had discovered another software problem on the plane, but still aims to get the jet flying again by mid-2020, a deadline it previously said includes room for additional flaws.
What else is happening...
Daimler (OTCPK:DDAIF) slashes dividend following third profit warning.
Coronavirus sees more withdrawals from Mobile World Congress.
Forever 21 prepares for sale to mall owners.
Monday's Key Earnings
Allergan (NYSE:AGN) +1.3% with Vraylar sales up 88%. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners (NYSE:BIP) +1.3% topping expectations. Restaurant Brands (NYSE:QSR) +2.7% amid a big boost from Popeyes.
Today's Markets
In Asia, Japan closed. Hong Kong +1.3%. China +0.4%. India +0.6%. In Europe, at midday, London +0.8%. Paris +0.5%. Frankfurt +0.8%. Futures at 6:20, Dow +0.3%. S&P +0.3%. Nasdaq +0.4%. Crude +1.4% to $50.26. Gold -0.5% to $1571. Ten-year Treasury Yield +5 bps to 1.59%
Today's Economic Calendar
6:00 NFIB Small Business Optimism Index 6:00 Fed's Daly Speech 8:55 Redbook Chain Store Sales 10:00 Powell to testify before the house financial services committee 10:00 Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey 12:15 PM Fed’s Quarles: “Bank Supervision” 1:00 PM Results of $38B, 3-Year Note Auction 1:30 PM Fed's Bullard: U.S. Monetary and Economic Policy 2:15 PM Fed's Kashkari Speech
Regards,
Roger “Raj” Searing rajsearing@gmail.com "Raj Searing”, "Read this First", and “TheRantroom.com” are Trademarks of RRRAJ, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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