Friday Watch

Evening Headlines

Bloomberg:        

• Kim Jong Un Tests Undersea Drone, Warns of ‘Radioactive Tsunami’.
• Profit Warnings Show Difficult Times Ahead for China Brokerages.
• UBS Sends Khan to Stem Credit Suisse’s Private Banker Exits.
• Japan Inflation Slows Sharply, Masking Underlying Price Strength.
• Unusual $828 Billion Loan Market Magnifies Housing Risk in Korea.
• Credit Suisse, UBS Among Banks in DOJ Russia-Sanctions Probe.
• Asian Equities Decline After US Banks Extend Drop: Markets Wrap.
• Oil Declines Amid Bank Concerns, US Caution on Stockpile Refill.
• Volcker Slayed Inflation. Bernanke Saved the Banks. Can Powell Do Both?
• Wall Street Expects the Fed to Cut Rates. That Isn’t a Good Sign.
• Goldman Sees Biden’s Clean-Energy Law Costing US $1.2 Trillion.
• New Fed Forecasts Suggest Central Bank Is Bracing for Recession.
• Cathie Wood Suffers Double Blow as Drama Hits Coinbase and Block.
• Banks Are Still Drawing on the Fed for $164 Billion of Emergency Cash.
• Do Kwon Is Arrested in Montenegro and Charged With Fraud in US.

Wall Street Journal: 

• U.S., Canada Reach Deal on Migrants.
• Dominion’s Weak Case Against Fox. Victory for the plaintiff would severely weaken the First Amendment protection all news media enjoy.
• Ford Projects $3 Billion Loss on EV Business for 2023.
• Home Renovations Were Always Tough, but Now Many Are Giving Up Midproject.

Fox News:

• Man accused of sexual assault, torture and 4 murders gets released from jail on bond.

CNBC.com:

• Block stock plunges 15% after short seller Hindenburg says Jack Dorsey’s company facilitates fraud.
• These tech giants are still making money, but layoffs are coming hard and fast.
• Banks ramp up use of new Fed facility created during crisis.
• Yellen says Treasury is ready to take ‘additional actions if warranted’ to stabilize banks.
• TikTok CEO got grilled by lawmakers from both parties over China ties.
• Biden’s approval slips to 38%, near the lowest of his presidency, new poll says.

MarketWatch:

• Which eye drops have been recalled in 2023? Here’s a running list.
• Regional banks get the attention, but worries are more widespread, says ex-FDIC chief Sheila Bair.
• Moody’s sees risk that U.S. banking ‘turmoil’ can’t be contained.
• Why TikTok’s security risks keep raising fears.

Zero Hedge:

• Bipartisan Senators Push To Ban China From Buying US Farmland.
• Markets To Yellen: 'F**k Off.'
• Victor Davis Hanson: Questions Without Answers About Ukraine.
• Squatters Increasingly Taking Over Homes Across US With No End In Sight, Experts Warn.
• DEA Warns 'Zombie Drug' Hitting US Streets, Set To Worsen Overdose Crisis.
• Fed Balance Sheet Surges By Another $100BN Amid Bank Runs As Foreign Repos Soar By Record And Cash Floods Into Reverse Repo, Money Markets.
• Biden's Collapsing Sgt. Schultz Defense: New Evidence Shows The President Played Direct Role In Addressing Hunter's Business Deals.
• US stocks mostly finished higher in choppy trade as markets digested recent central bank announcements and amid dovish market repricing of Fed rate expectations - Newsquawk Asia-Pac Market Open.
• Weaker "weaks".
• Largest Jobs Website Lays Off Thousands Of Employees.
• Markets chop as traders digest banking woes, Fed & Yellen - Newsquawk US Market Wrap.
• Why Can Only 6 Of Every 100 Chicago Black Students Do Math At Grade Level? Chicago Mayoral Candidate Johnson Offers Some Clues.
• Mexican President Says Trump Arrest Is About Keeping Him Off The Ballot.
• After Sparking Rout, Yellen Changes Key Part Of Prepared Testimony, Says "Prepared For Additional Deposit Action".

 Newsmax:     

• Rep. Greene: DA Bragg Weaponizing Government.
• Sen. Cruz: Newsmax's DirecTV Return a Big Free Speech Win.

TheGatewayPundit.com:

• University of Maryland Faces $10 Million Lawsuit After Shutting Down Anti-CCP Protests and Allowing CCP Drone to Harass Protesters.
• EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Mother of Peaceful J6 Prisoner “QAnon Shaman” Jake Chansley – Announces He Will Be Released From Prison “Really Soon!”
• MUST SEE: Arizona Kari Lake Ruling a MAJOR WIN! Will Expose Mail-In Ballot Signature Scam – DEMOCRATS FREAK! – War Room Video.
• EXCLUSIVE: ELECTION SYSTEM DISCOVERED – Used in MULTIPLE States – Internet Connected, Uncertified, and Accessible to Numerous Govt Agencies and Outside Entities.
• ‘Highly Talented, Supremely Fit’ 19-Year-Old Boxing Champion Dies Suddenly.
• World Athletics Bans Transgenders (Biological Males) From Competing Against Women at International Events.
• Fed-Surrection Update: Proud Boys Member Ken Lizardo Who Drove Founder Enrique Tarrio to Meeting with Oath Keepers Founder on Jan. 5th Was an FBI Operative.
• EXCLUSIVE: Australia Banks are Now “Debanking” Independent Journalists Exercising Their Free Speech Rights.
• DISGRACEFUL: Houston Suspect Accused of Paralyzing Helpless Texas Woman by Body-Slamming Her to the Ground Has $200,000 bond Cut in HALF.
• New Normal: Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania Work on Legislations to Have More Defibrillator Access in Schools.
• Walmart to Charge Customers 42 Cents Per Shopping Bag Starting March 28 to Tackle Climate Crisis.
• Teenage Boy Suffers Cardiac Arrest and Dies on American Airlines Flight Reportedly Because On-Board Defibrillator Wasn’t Charged.

The Epoch Times:

• TikTok CEO Refuses to Say Whether CCP Has Persecuted Uyghurs.
• TikTok CEO Testifies Company Still Storing Some US User Data Overseas, Raising Security Fears.

OpenVAERS:

• VAERS US COVID Vaccine Adverse Event Reports. 942,034 Reports(+3,859 from prior week) Through March 3rd, 2023.
  

SKirsch.com:

• Using the MGH numbers with our own VAERS queries, we have 247 cases per million doses from the MGH study divided by 5.97 cases per million doses from VAERS. 247/5.97 = 41. This suggests that the VAERS under-reporting factor (URF) is 41X.

Night Trading 

• Asian equity indices are -.75% to -.25% on average.

• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 143.5 +3.75 basis points. 

• China Sovereign CDS 83.75 +4.0 basis points. 
• China Iron Ore Spot 117.9 USD/Metric Tonne -.3%.

• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 47.67 -.05%.
• Bloomberg Global Risk-On/Risk Off Index  46.9 +.6%. 
• Bloomberg US Financial Conditions Index -.83 -12.0 basis points.
  
• Volatility Index(VIX) futures 24.0 -.7%.
• Euro Stoxx 50 futures -.70%.

• S&P 500 futures +.05%.

• NASDAQ 100 futures +.01%.  

Morning Preview Links

BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are modestly lower, weighed down by financial and commodity shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open mixed and to weaken into the afternoon, finishing modestly lower.  The Portfolio is 25% net long heading into the day.