BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR ..
There are MANY sleazy (but legal) things that happen in our country... Especially in Politics ... One of them is when Republicans make donations to Democrats in the Primaries because they think they can beat THAT candidate in the general election.
Democrats did this in the Pennsylvania Governor Primary. They supported Doug Mastriano because he is a kooky "Ultra Maga, climate change, Voter Fraud" extremist. They figured he'd be easy to beat in the general election .. Well, He won....and....inflation and gas prices have people REALLY angry at Democrats and things are looking WAY better for Mastriano now then they did a few months ago.. and..
It was the Hottest day EVER in areas the UK with some areas hitting 105 degrees.. although they say 40.5 Celsius. Many homes, small businesses and even public buildings, including hospitals, in Britain don’t have air conditioning, a reflection of how unusual such heat is in the country better known for rain and mild temperatures. .. (Same Same in NJ .. and no sign of a rain storm...)
There was an explosion at the Hoover Dam yesterday that was caught on film by a tourist. The giant plumes of smoke were a little scary looking but it turned out to be a blown transformer. Firefighters had everything under control within an hour..
IN NY .. The D.A. has dropped charges against bodega owner Jose Alba in the death of a belligerent man that attacked him. Do NOT rejoice and say, "Good". This guy NEVER should have been arrested. The video CLEARY showed him being attacked and defending himself. The DA only reversed course after CRUSHING media pressure. THE DA is an activist and needs to go... and..
Auburn Washington is best known for the "Green River Killer" from 40 years ago .. It doesn't seem to be getting too much better.. Video from THERE shows a convenience store clerk passing out and falling to the ground. The customers in the store ROBBED HIM instead of helping him .. I mean.. Sure.. why not? Sad situation..
In Da Swamp:
President Biden signed some worthless document that will endeavor to punish countries that "Wrongfully detain" US Citizens. Umm.. Well.. Here is the problem with that.. The whole thing was brought about over Russia arresting basketball player Britney Griner for having pot vapes in her luggage. She says it was "medical" and she has a prescription. That might help you in Arizona .. but NOT Moscow.. It is a CRIME in Russia.. and A LOT of other places.
Wrongfully detained is when a Doctors without Borders worker gets arrested by a warlord .. or .. a couple on vacation in Thailand gets carjacked then arrested because they don't have money to pay for the rental car.. If you BREAK THE LAW that is "Properly Detained" .. and .. Griner and other athletes are CONSTANTLY warned about different rules in different countries. .. Look .. I think is STINKS that she is sitting in jail over a marijuana charge.. but.. Russia isn't to blame for this one..
China says that the USA should prepare for "Strong Measures" if Speaker Pelosi goes through with her planned trip to Taiwan. Hmmm... Do you think threats like that from China are as toothless as Biden's "Putin will pay a price" and his others? .. or does President Xi mean business...
Did Nikki Haley pseudo-announce a Presidential Run? ...At a speech on Zionists/Israel she said, “If this president signs any sort of [Iran nuclear] deal, I’ll make you a promise, The next President will shred it on her first day in office”..Hmmmm..
The Squad of Losers is facing ridicules ALL OVER the internet after Rep Omar and Rep Alex O'Cortez (and 12 others) were "arrested" at a "Roe v Wade" protest at the Supreme Court. They posted pictures and videos of themselves being "arrested". They walked with their hands behind their backs like they were cuffed as they were escorted by police out of the area ... but.. but.. BUT !!!
They were never handcuffed. They pretended.. just for the Photo-Op. The police slowly and politely just led them away from the traffic they were blocking... AHAHHAHA.. LOSERS!!!!
JULY 20 .. Today is "National Hot Dog Day" .. "International Cake Day" .. and "Fortune Cookie Day" .. So.. Pick your poison!!! .. Your fortune says, "Wear Shorts, its gonna be hot"
SPORTS: MLB: This is getting silly .. The American League wins for the NINTH YEAR IN A ROW!!! The NL had a 2 run lead early but Stanton and Buxton hit HRs in the 4th and the AL wins 3-2 ..
GOLF: The Twin Cities 3M Open starts tomorrow .. Tony Finau is your favorite .. I'd throw top 20 bets on Theegala and Gotterup .. also .. pulling for Andre Metzger because he is a 40 year old former pizza delivery guy that Monday qualified ... and..
I don't think Brooks Koepka is going to win a golf tournament for a while.. His new wife Jena Simms .. HERE .. Keeps posting pictures like this .. HERE.. which means Brooks AIN'T PRACTICING GOLF .. His .. uhh.. "Putter is playing a DIFFERENT course" ..
CELEBRIDIOTS:
Former Baywatch actress Donna D'errico had to deal with haters on social media for posting some pictures of herself in an American Flag bikini ..HERE.. At first, I thought the issue was the Flag .. and sitting on the ground .. but. .. they were busting her because she is "53 and shouldn't be wearing a bikini" .. HERE .. HAHHAHAH.. Jealous much? .. Donna told the haters she can wear whatever she wants and they can F-Off .. I AGREE Donna !! .. (and yes, readers.. I KNOW its airbrushed and photoshopped) ..
SI had their "Swim suit Runway Show" and "MIAMI SWIM" was NOT gonna be outdone.. Miami had what was more of a "SI from 20 years ago" event .. meaning.. The models weren't fat and old.. Probably the "Raciest" designer was the "Tape Guy" .. Yup ..
The models wore bikinis made of TAPE.. HERE.. Now .. there's a joke in there somewhere about "strip" and "Tape" but.. do ANY of you find that "sexy or hot" ?? It's weird and the models look angry that they have to wear it ..
From SeekingAlpha.com
There was a lot of positive momentum going into yesterday's quarterly report from Netflix (NFLX), as stocks soared in a broad-based rally with earnings season not as worrisome as initially feared. Netflix benefited from the sentiment by climbing 5.6% during the session, and tacked on another 7% AH to firmly trade above the $200 level. There had also been some alarm about a saturated streaming market and price hikes during a period of inflation, but Netflix was able to assuage those concerns with an upbeat outlook of an imminent comeback. By the numbers: The streaming pioneer saw a net drop in 970K subscribers in the second quarter after warning shareholders of an enormous 2M figure plunge. It's also forecasting a return to growth in Q3, with guidance of 1M net additions. Netflix further beat profit expectations, reporting EPS of $3.20 per share vs. expectations for $2.95 per share, on revenues that largely came in line with expectations at just under $8B. While forex effects were worse than expected (Netflix makes about 60% of its money outside the U.S.), revenue growth was 9% but would have been 13% on a constant currency basis. "Losing a million [subscribers] and calling it success is tough, but really, we're set up very well for the next year," co-CEO Reed Hastings said on a conference call. "If there was a single thing [that boosted performance], we might say Stranger Things. We're executing really well on the content side. We're [also] in a position of strength given our $30B-plus in revenue, $6B in operating profit last year, growing free cash flow and a strong balance sheet." Outlook: Looking to reclaim subscriber growth, Netflix is targeting early 2023 for a cheaper ad-supported version of its service. It's a big U-turn for a company that has spent years shunning advertisers in favor of a pure subscription model, and even recently inked a partnership with Microsoft (MSFT) to support the placement of such advertisements. The company also plans to earn more by limiting password-sharing, and disclosed some options for Latin America where it will offer new payment plans for users who split an account. On the earnings front today, electric vehicle maker Tesla (TSLA) will be the one to make headlines after the closing bell. (75 comments)
Semiconductor stocks were electrified on Tuesday ahead of 64-34 vote in the Senate over subsidizing domestic chip production. The bill would provide around $52B to encourage manufacturers to build foundries, and broadly invest in the sector, in the U.S., which both parties agree is a national security necessity. While the measure has cleared its first procedural hurdle, other details of the legislation are still being worked out. What's at stake? The Chips for America Act is a slimmed-down version of a larger competitiveness package called the United States Innovation and Competition Act (USICA). It specifically authorizes grants and loans for chip-making, as well as 25% investment tax credits for semiconductor manufacturing. While lawmakers agree that the U.S. needs more domestic capacity - to counter supply chain issues in the aftermath of the pandemic - there is still disagreement on adding other provisions to the bill like scientific funding. Some controversy has also been seen in the industry itself, with chip designers like Nvidia (NVDA), Qualcomm (QCOM) and AMD (AMD) saying it disproportionately benefits manufacturers like Intel (NASDAQ:INTC), Micron (MU) and Texas Instruments (TXN). Actual funding could subsequently slip to $38B (from $52B) when factoring in federal research programs and administrative overhead expenses, but investors are still welcoming any reshoring of the critical U.S. sector. According to Capital Alpha analyst Robert Kaminski, final passage of the Chips Act could come as early as next week. Handouts or a necessity? There's an interesting discussion taking place as national security bumps heads with economic philosophy. While most Congressional lawmakers are calling it a defense imperative, some critics are classifying the bill as corporate welfare, citing billions of dollars in subsidies being granted to profitable domestic corporations. Market competition is also of concern if the bill only benefits a few companies or gives targeted funds to direct competitors. (14 comments)
Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is reincarnating its failed Glass project into another augmented reality product, which looks more like a pair of spectacles than something out of a sci-fi movie. Its last initiative died in 2015 (though it did attempt some resurrections since then) as many users considered the device ugly, overly expensive and lacking functionality. Glass also faced a host of privacy concerns due to its ability to record users' surroundings, and in some ways was ahead of its time on the AR/VR front (and years before Facebook (META) jumped into the metaverse). This time around: Google is marketing its new prototype by "helping us quickly and easily access the information we need." One of its new features puts translation and transcription directly in users' line of sight, meaning they can see conversation subtitles on the lens of their glasses in real-time. Besides breaking down language barriers, the product hopes to further develop experiences like AR navigation, like showing users map directions inside of their lenses, especially in environments like busy intersections or inclement weather. Similar to the rollout of Google Glass, the company is beginning with small-scale testing in the real world. The AR prototype will first be worn by a few dozen Googlers and select trusted testers, but it could be quite a while until it's available to the public. The revived project comes as Google attempts to stay ahead of the Big Tech competition, with Apple (AAPL) projected to unveil its mixed reality headset next year and Microsoft's (MSFT) Hololens currently the most advanced AR hardware on the market. Fixing past mistakes: "These prototypes will include in-lens displays, microphones and cameras - but they'll have strict limitations on what they can do," Google wrote in a blog post. "For example, our AR prototypes don’t support photography and videography, though image data will be used to enable experiences like translating the menu in front of you or showing you directions to a nearby coffee shop." (3 comments)
The main artery for Russian gas to European Union, otherwise known as Nord Stream 1, has been offline for most of the past two weeks due to pre-scheduled annual maintenance. However, many Western nations are growing concerned that Moscow could permanently turn off the flows, which are used in everything from heating and cooking to electricity and power generation. Russia supplies the the bloc with 40% of its natural gas imports, and in nations like Germany, that figure is as high as 60%. The conditions: In comments following his visit to Iran, Vladimir Putin said that Gazprom (OTCPK:OGZPY) - the pipeline operator's majority shareholder - has "always fulfilled its obligations," but warned that sanctions could impact future transfers. He specifically referenced a turbine that was undergoing repairs in Canada (which has leveled penalties on Moscow) and another turbine that will go for maintenance on July 26. Flows could fall to some 20% of capacity if the turbine isn't returned soon, but European officials have dismissed the explanation as a pretext to wreak economic havoc on the continent. "It's absolutely clear that Moscow is cutting supplies for geopolitical reasons," declared Tim Ash, senior strategist at Bluebay Asset Management. "It wants to create a European gas crisis this winter to bring Europe to its knees to the point where it cuts support to Ukraine." Go deeper: Gas shortages have already undermined the euro, which is now at parity with the dollar, and added to the risks of a looming European recession. At the same time, the European Commission published plans today to press governments on stepping up their energy conservation campaigns. Countries would be expected to reduce consumption by at least 15% over the next eight months, while switching from natural gas to other energy sources like nuclear and coal. (2 comments)
Today's Markets
In Asia, Japan +2.7%. Hong Kong +1.1%. China +0.8%. India +1.2%. In Europe, at midday, London -0.2%. Paris -0.3%. Frankfurt -0.3%. Futures at 6:20, Dow +0.2%. S&P +0.2%. Nasdaq +0.3%. Crude -1.6% to $99.09. Gold flat at $1710.60. Bitcoin +8.1% to $23,628. Ten-year Treasury Yield -4 bps to 2.98%
Today's Economic Calendar
7:00 MBA Mortgage Applications 10:00 Existing Home Sales 10:30 EIA Petroleum Inventories 1:00 PM Results of $14B, 20-Year Bond Auction Companies reporting earnings today »
What else is happening...
Judge orders Twitter (TWTR) trial for October in setback to Musk. Boeing (BA) leads Dow after inking deals at Farnborough Airshow. Lockheed Martin (LMT) rises despite Q2 miss, guidance cut. Apple (AAPL) finally settles MacBook 'butterfly' keyboard lawsuit. Strong dollar dings Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), MedTech underperforms. Cost of living crisis? U.K. inflation jumps 9.4% to fresh four-decade high. Novavax (NVAX) rebounds as CDC endorses COVID-19 vaccine. Transaction difficulties: Coinbase (COIN) pauses Bitcoin SV withdrawals. Chevron (CVX) invests in nuclear fusion startup that's raised $1.2B. Hasbro (HAS) teams are 'executing well to meet demand and drive profit.'
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