Today's Headlines

Around X:

• @Business

• Russian President Vladimir Putin landed in the Chinese port city of Tianjin for the two-day Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit on Sunday morning, a day after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 
• China’s home sales extended their slump in August even as prices declined and the country’s two biggest cities rolled out additional stimulus measures.
• China’s factory activity remained stuck in contraction in August, as a government crackdown on price wars holds back production. 
• The European Union’s new €150 billion ($175 billion) plan to accelerate investment in the bloc’s defense industry will benefit Poland most, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.
• Yemen’s Houthis say Israeli strikes killed its prime minister and several ministers this week.
• The legal fight over President Donald Trump’s global tariffs is deepening after a federal appeals court ruled the levies were issued illegally under an emergency law, extending the chaos in global trade.
• The next few weeks will give Wall Street a clear reading on whether this latest stock market rally will continue — or if it’s doomed to get derailed. 
• Look for US companies to increase their debt levels to help fund a $1 trillion wave of acquisitions, reversing years of scaled-back borrowing.
• Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson signed an executive order Saturday aimed at banning federal law-enforcement officers from wearing masks or disguises as he tries to head off a threat from President Donald Trump to expand his crime crackdown to the city. 
• What happened to the global economy this week — in charts.

• @Zerohedge 

• Replacement Of American Truckers With Unvetted, Unqualified Migrant Drivers Must Stop.
• How The US Will Force Yields Lower Across The Curve.
• BREAKING: A woman has been arrested for flying a British flag at Epping council building. Britain is a soviet state. (video)
• BREAKING NEWS. Mayor Rudy Giuliani was involved in a car accident yesterday in New Hampshire. Prior to the accident, Giuliani’s team says he was flagged down by a female victim of a domestic violence incident. Giuliani’s team tells me he’s expected to make a full recovery. He was transported to a trauma center and is recovering from a fractured thoracic vertebrae, multiple lacerations and contusions, and an injury to his left arm and lower leg. This is not believed to be a targeted attack. Pray for the Mayor!
• Meme Markets: Investing Vs Entertainment
  . 
• Chinese Fentanyl Financier Evades U.S. Extradition After Daring Mexico City Tunnel Escape
  . 
• Half Of American Schools Require 'Equitable' Grading And Most Teachers Are Opposed: Survey
  . 
• CNN now agrees about Lisa Cook!
   
  (video)
• Fentanyl Involved In 70% Of US Drug Overdose Deaths.
• China Accelerates Coal Plant Commissioning To 9-Year High.
• A Dark Theory: Russian Strategy In Ukraine.
• During the Covid years, it seemed as if the CDC was being run by sadistic Satantists. It turns out that the CDC was actually being run by sadistic Satanists
  . 
  (pic)
• Democrats Demand "Assault Weapons" Ban After Trans Mass Shooting In Minneapolis.
• America Has A "Transtifa" Problem.
• Judge Blocks Trump Admin's Expansion Of Fast-Track Deportations.
• Democrats "Are Society Destroyers".
• *CHICAGO MAYOR TO SIGN ORDER TO DEFY IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN: CNN.
• 'Long, With A Cheap Hedge' - Top Goldman Trader Sees Tactical Risk/Reward Getting A Lot Tricker From Here
  .
• Minneapolis Shooter's Mother Not Speaking To Police
  .
• From Blacklist To NIH Director: Jay Bhattacharya On Fauci, Bioweapons, And The Collapse Of Free Speech In Science.

• @MarioNawful

• WOKE ISN’T DEAD: HARVARD STUDY KILLED FOR BEING FACTUAL. A Harvard grad student did what nobody else had... ran the first data-driven study on the rise in gender dysphoria. The response? A top journal rejected it. Not for flawed methods or bad data, but for using the term "natal sex" instead of "sex assigned at birth." Apparently, the language police now outrank peer reviewers. This isn’t just political correctness. It’s science bowing to ideology instead of fixing its own broken culture. Woke isn't dead after all.

• @BarronsOnline

• Had bullish commentary on (VRT) and (APTV).

• @CNBC

• Asia markets set to open mostly lower as investors assess U.S. court ruling on Trump tariffs.
• Trump trade adviser blasts tariff ruling, calling it 'weaponized partisan injustice'.
• Global week ahead: Welcome to September, Wall Street’s least-loved month.
• Walmart’s latest AI innovations represent a shift for big retail.

• @GatewayPundit 

• WATCH: CBS News Caught Deceptively Editing Kristi Noem’s Comments on MS-13 Gang Member Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
• The leader of the CDC who is being held up as the face of science: Covered up and falsified data on myocarditis risk. Encourages to this day COVID shots for every 6 month old. Encouraged orgies as a normal “Friday night” activity. Openly encourages bondage and devil worship. Implied it’s bigoted to use the word “mother” instead of “birthing person.” This man is the leader of the “experts” we are told to trust. Americans have a very clear choice: More of the status quo, or reform.
• Comer on Investigation into Biden’s Mental Fitness During Term in Office – “It’s Becoming Very Apparent That Joe Biden Really Wasn’t the One in Command at the End of His Presidency”. (VIDEO) 
• First Population-Wide Peer-Reviewed Study Finds COVID-19 “Vaccines” Increase Risk of Multiple Cancers — CONFIRMS Fears of “Turbo Cancer” Epidemic.
• Trump Blames Euro-Globalist Leaders for Sabotaging Peace Process Between Russia and Ukraine: REPORT.
• WH Senior MAHA Advisor Calley Means: “There is a Memo Going Around the CDC and Throughout HHS on How to Subvert President Trump and Director Kennedy (VIDEO).

• @WallStreetApes

• This is INSANE!! Bill Gates had secret people he used as plants hidden inside US government pushing his agendas. - Vaccine agenda - Manipulation of mosquitoes - Getting rid of meat so you'll eat his fake meat product - Mass vaccination programs on children - Bill Gates had connected operatives from key federal health agencies including the CDC, HHS and NIH. (video)

• @amuse

• FED: Did Fed Gov Lisa Cook lie to her lawyers or did they lie to Judge Jia Cobb? Cook's lawyers claim her fraud or clerical error doesn't matter because it occured before she joined the Fed. But moments after they made this argument to Judge Cobb Pulte released a third instance of mortgage fraud that occurred AFTER she joined the Fed - a clear pattern of mortgage fraud (or as Cook's lawyers might describe it, a pattern of clerical errors that saved her thousands of dollars). What are the odds Judge Cobb will grant her TRO anyway? 99.98888%?
• NO CONFLICT, NO INTEREST? Is it strange that neither Judge Cobb nor Fed Governor Cook mentioned they were sorority sisters? Cobb and Cook are members of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority...

• @newstart_2024

• This is BiII Gates' "mosquito factory" in Columbia. It's the largest in the world. 30 million genetically modified mosquitos are released every week into 11 countries!! Because BiII knows better than nature. What could possibly go wrong? Everything! And of course it's by design. (video)
• Bill Gates doesn't see a sick person to heal. He sees a system to update. His new vision: needle-free vaccine patches for every disease. A seamless, global deployment system. This isn't just philanthropy. It's the pursuit of ultimate biological governance. (video) 

• @C_3C_3

• Meet Demetre Daskalakis. He pushed vaccines and policy at the CDC. How is this even possible? (pics)

• @FirstSquawk

• FUJITSU AND NVIDIA DEVELOP AI HOSPITAL ADMISSION SYSTEM USING AVATAR TO INTERACT WITH PATIENTS AND HANDLE HEALTH QUESTIONNAIRES: NIKKEI

• @MJTruthUltra

• This is demonic… HOMESCHOOL! Governor JB Pritzker just signed a bill into law, making Illinois the first state to MANDATE universal mental health screenings for public school students in grades 3 through 12. The screenings aim to identify signs of anxiety, depression, or trauma… and they promote something called the BEACON portal, developed with the Google Public Sector to send families to behavioral health services. What will happen, they will scare the hell out of parents, where they will be told their children will commit suicide if they don’t get their anxiety or depression taken care of. It’s not about helping these children, it’s about creating lifelong customers at an early age.. (video)

OpenVAERS:  

• VAERS US COVID Vaccine Adverse Event Reports. 1,026,503 Reports(+728 from prior report) Through July 25th, 2025.

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.

Weekly Scoreboard*

S&P 500 6,456.9 -.2%

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Weekly Market Wrap by Edward Jones.

Indices

• DJIA 45,528.7 -.2%

• NASDAQ 21,454.1 -.2%

• Russell 2000 2,361.1 unch.

• NYSE FANG+ 15,290.2 +.5%

• Goldman 50 Most Shorted 219.1 -.6%

• Wilshire 5000 63,981.0 -.1%

• Russell 1000 Growth 4,477.8 -.1%

• Russell 1000 Value 1,978.2 -.2%

• S&P 500 Consumer Staples 887.2 -1.7%

• Bloomberg Cyclicals/Defensives Index(Ex Telecom) 255.2 +1.2%
  

• NYSE Technology 6,361.9 -.3%

• Transports 15,853.7 -1.5%

• Utilities 1,090.7 -1.7%

• MSCI Europe Banks 95.8 -3.6%
  

• MSCI Emerging Markets 49.8 -1.5%

• Credit Suisse AllHedge Long/Short Equity Index 237.8 +.9%

• Credit Suisse AllHedge Equity Market Neutral Index 126.2 -.1%

Sentiment/Internals

• NYSE Cumulative A/D Line 574,137 +.8%
• Nasdaq/NYSE Volume Ratio 14.5 +86.7%

• Bloomberg New Highs-Lows Index 1,137 +1,021

• Crude Oil Commercial Bullish % Net Position -15.0 -2.5%

• CFTC Oil Net Speculative Position 120,209 +3.0%

• CFTC Oil Total Open Interest 1,922,821 -4.4%

• Total Put/Call .78 -10.8%

• OEX Put/Call 1.4 -2.7%

• ISE Sentiment 166.0 +31.0

• NYSE Arms .71 -44.6%
  
• Bloomberg Global Risk-On/Risk-Off Index 79.8 -2.9%
• Bloomberg US Financial Conditions Index .66 +10.0 basis points
• Bloomberg European Financial Conditions Index 1.53 +14.0 basis points 
  

• Volatility(VIX) 15.7 +9.7%
• S&P 500 Intraday % Swing .73 -50.34%

• CBOE S&P 500 3M Implied Correlation Index 15.6 +14.1%

• G7 Currency Volatility (VXY) 8.0 +2.3%
  

• Emerging Markets Currency Volatility (EM-VXY) 7.1 +.1%

• Smart Money Flow Index 23,054.5 +.9%
• NAAIM Exposure Index  92.9 +16.0

• ICI Money Mkt Mutual Fund Assets $7.207 Trillion +.2%

• ICI Domestic Equity Long-Term Mutual Fund/ETFs Weekly Flows -$4.447 Million

• AAII % Bulls 34.6 +12.3%

• AAII % Bears 39.4 -12.0%
• CNN Fear & Greed Index 64.0 (GREED) +3.0

Futures Spot Prices

• CRB Index 301.75 +1.1%

• Crude Oil 64.01/bbl. +.4%

• Reformulated Gasoline 218.8 -.2%

• Natural Gas 3.0 +11.3%
• Dutch TTF Nat Gas(European benchmark) 31.6 euros/megawatt-hour -5.5%
  

• Heating Oil 226.7 -1.8% 
• Newcastle Coal 109.6 (1,000/metric ton) unch.

• Gold 3,444.6 +2.1%
• Silver 39.7 +2.1%
  

• S&P GSCI Industrial Metals Index 462.9 -.3%

• Copper 451.1 +1.0%

• US No. 1 Heavy Melt Scrap Steel 344.0 USD/Metric Tonne -.9%

• China Iron Ore Spot 102.5 USD/Metric Tonne -.7%
• China Battery Grade Lithium Carbonate 11,525.0 USD/metric tonne +17.6%

• CME Lumber  554.5 -8.2%

• UBS-Bloomberg Agriculture 1,404.8 +.09%
• US Gulf NOLA Potash Spot 335.0 USD/Short Ton -.7%

Economy

• Atlanta Fed GDPNow Q2 Forecast +3.5% 

• US Recession Within 6 Months Probability(3M/18M Forward Yld Curve Spread) 44.4 +1.0 percentage point

• NY Fed Real-Time Weekly Economic Index 2.6 +2.8%

• US Economic Policy Uncertainty Index 243.9 +7.0%
• Bloomberg Global Trade Policy Uncertainty Index 4.3 +2.2%
• DOGE Total Taxpayer Dollars Saved $205.0 Billion($1,273.29 Savings Per Taxpayer) unch.
• S&P 500 Current Quarter EPS Growth Rate YoY(489 of 500 reporting) +12.4% +n/a

• S&P 500 Blended Forward 12 Months Mean EPS Estimate 289.55 +n/a:  Growth Rate +10.6% +n/a percentage point, P/E 22.5 +n/a
• S&P 500 Current Year Estimated Profit Margin 13.52% +9.0 basis points
• NYSE FANG+ Current Quarter EPS Growth Rate YoY(9 of 10 reporting) +27.9% +n/a
• NYSE FANG+ Blended Forward 12 Months Mean EPS Estimate 475.35 +n/a: Growth Rate +16.3% +n/a percentage points, P/E 32.7 +n/a

• Citi US Economic Surprise Index 25.2 -7.8 points

• Citi Eurozone Economic Surprise Index 22.2 -6.5 points

• Citi Emerging Markets Economic Surprise Index 7.2 +9.3 points

• Fed Fund Futures imply 86.9%(+2.2 percentage points) chance of -25.0 basis point cut to 4.0-4.25%, 13.1%(-2.2 percentage points) chance of no change, 0.0%(unch.) chance of +25.0 basis point hike to 4.5-4.75% on 9/17

• US Dollar Index 97.81 +.05%

• MSCI Emerging Markets Currency Index 1,836.7 +.23%
  

• Bitcoin/USD 108,134.6 -3.9%

• Euro/Yen Carry Return Index 194.06 -.11%
• Swiss Franc/Offshore Chinese Renminbi Cross 8.90 +.5%

• Yield Curve(2s/10s) 60.25 +4.75 basis points
  

• 10-Year US Treasury Yield 4.22% -4.0 basis points

• Federal Reserve's Balance Sheet $6.556 Trillion -.23%
• Federal Reserve's Discount Window Usage $4.683 Billion +.9%

• U.S. Sovereign Debt Credit Default Swap 39.3 +3.7%
  

• Illinois Municipal Debt Credit Default Swap 199.69 -1.6%
  

• Italian/German 10Y Yld Spread 86.0 +5.0 basis points
• UK Sovereign Debt Credit Default Swap 18.28 +6.9%

• China Sovereign Debt Credit Default Swap 43.8 +2.9%
  

• Brazil Sovereign Debt Credit Default Swap 136.7 -2.4%
  

• Israel Sovereign Debt Credit Default Swap 74.7 +1.4%

• South Korea Sovereign Debt Credit Default Swap 19.94 +4.8%

• China Corp. High-Yield Bond USD ETF(KHYB) 24.29 -.5%
• China High-Yield Real Estate Total Return Index 124.4 +1.2%
  

• Atlanta Fed Low Skill Wage Growth Tracker YoY +3.8% unch.
• Zillow US All Homes Rent Index YoY +2.8% -10.0 basis points
• US Urban Consumers Food CPI YoY +2.9% unch.
• CPI Core Services Ex-Shelter YoY +3.6% unch.
• Cleveland Fed Inflation Nowcast Core PCE YoY +2.95% +6.0 basis points: CPI YoY +2.84% unch.
• 1-Year TIPS Spread 2.78 +4.0 basis points
• 10-Year TIPS Spread 2.42 unch.

• Treasury Repo 3M T-Bill Spread -18.5 basis points -2.0 basis points
• 2-Year SOFR Swap Spread -22.75 +2.25 basis points

• 3-Month EUR/USD Cross-Currency Basis Swap 1.5 -1.0 basis point

• N. America Investment Grade Credit Default Swap Index 50.8 +3.6%
  

• America Energy Sector High-Yield Credit Default Swap Index 203.0 -4.1% 
• Bloomberg TRACE # Distressed Bonds Traded 206.0 -13.0 
  

• European Financial Sector Credit Default Swap Index 59.3 +8.8%
• Deutsche Bank Subordinated 5Y Credit Default Swap 128.4 +8.0%

• Emerging Markets Credit Default Swap Index 144.06 +.03%
  

• MBS 5/10 Treasury Spread 136.0 -1.0 basis point
• Bloomberg CMBS Investment Grade Bbb Average OAS 581.0 +1.0 basis point
• Avg. Auto ABS OAS .50 -1.0 basis point

• M2 Money Supply YoY % Change +4.8% +30.0 basis points

• Commercial Paper Outstanding $1,404.9B unch.

• 4-Week Moving Average of Jobless Claims 228,500 +1.1%
  

• Continuing Claims Unemployment Rate 1.3% unch.
• Kastle Back-to-Work Barometer(entries in secured buildings) 52.3 -.2%
  

• Average 30-Year Fixed Home Mortgage Rate 6.63% -3.0 basis points

• Weekly Mortgage Applications 275,800 -.5%

• Weekly Retail Sales +6.0% +20.0 basis points
• OpenTable US Seated Diners % Change YoY +10.0% -2.0 percentage points
• Box Office Weekly Gross $197.5M +9.2%

• Nationwide Gas $3.20/gallon +.06/gallon

• Baltic Dry Index 2,017.0 +6.6%
• Drewry World Container Freight Index $2,119.2/40 ft Box -5.8%
  

• China (Export) Containerized Freight Index 1,156.3 -1.6%

• Oil Tanker Rate(Arabian Gulf to U.S. Gulf Coast) 35.0 unch.
• Truckstop.com Market Demand Index 60.3 -2.2%

• Rail Freight Carloads 282,550 -.5%
• TSA Total Traveler Throughput 2,833,372 +29.7% 
• Rasmussen Reports Daily Presidential Approval Tacking Poll 48.0% -1.0 percentage point

Best Performing Style

• Mid-Cap Growth +.7%

Worst Performing Style

• Mid-Cap Value -.5%

Leading Sectors

• Computer Hardware +3.9%

• Gold & Silver +3.8%
• Networking +3.1%

• Energy +3.0%
  

• Nuclear +2.9%
  

Lagging Sectors

• Shipping -1.7%

• Semis -1.7%
  

• Utilities -1.8%

• Road & Rail -3.7%
  

• Education -4.4%
  

Weekly High-Volume Stock Gainers (23)

• AMBA, IREN, BABA, ZEPP, DQ, AFRM, DOOO, ADSK, SKE, BIDU, OS, SA, JOYY, S, DIN, CNXC, GFI, SSRM, SBH, DRD, CELH and CDNA

Weekly High-Volume Stock Losers (16)

• SGHC, CYTK, NWG, CECO, BULL, ULTA, DUOL, DELL, DOMO, SPRY, TSSI, ARX, CHA, AEVA, MESO and MRVL

ETFs

• High-Volume Gainers

• High-Volume Losers

Stocks

• High-Volume Gainers

• High-Volume Losers

*5-Day Change

Stocks Lower into Afternoon on Higher Long-Term Rates, Earnings Outlook Jitters, Technical Selling, Tech/Alt Energy Sector Weakness

Economic Gauges:

• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 36.45 -.21%
• US 10-Year T-Note Yield 4.22% +1.0 basis point
• 3-Month T-Bill Yield 4.14% -3.0 basis points

• China Iron Ore Spot 102.5 USD/Metric Tonne -.9%
• Dutch TTF Nat Gas(European benchmark) 31.6 euros/megawatt-hour -.3%

• Citi US Economic Surprise Index 26.2 -.6 point

• Citi Eurozone Economic Surprise Index 25.2 -.4 point

• Citi Emerging Markets Economic Surprise Index 7.2 +5.9 points
• S&P 500 Current Quarter EPS Growth Rate YoY(489 of 500 reporting) +12.4% unch.
• S&P 500 Blended Forward 12 Months Mean EPS Estimate 289.55 +.33:  Growth Rate +10.6% +.2 percentage point, P/E 22.5 +.1
• S&P 500 Current Year Estimated Profit Margin 13.52% +9.0 basis points
• NYSE FANG+ Current Quarter EPS Growth Rate YoY(9 of 10 reporting) +27.9% unch.
• NYSE FANG+ Blended Forward 12 Months Mean EPS Estimate 475.35 +1.99: Growth Rate +16.3% +.5 percentage point, P/E 32.7 unch.
• Bloomberg US Financial Conditions Index .66 +1.0 basis point
• Bloomberg Euro-Zone Financial Conditions Index 1.53 +12.0 basis points
• Bloomberg Global Trade Policy Uncertainty Index 4.3 unch.
• US Yield Curve 59.75 basis points (2s/10s) +2.75 basis points
• US Atlanta Fed GDPNow Q2 Forecast +3.5% +130.0 basis points
• US Recession Within 6 Months Probability(3M/18M Forward Yld Curve Spread) 44.4% -1.0 percentage point

• Cleveland Fed Inflation Nowcast Core PCE YoY +2.95% +6.0 basis points: CPI YoY +2.84% unch.
• 1-Year TIPS Spread 2.77 -1.0 basis point
• 10-Year TIPS Spread 2.42 unch.
• Highest target rate probability for Oct. 29th FOMC meeting: 48.3% (+3.8 percentage points) chance of 3.75%-4.0%. Highest target rate probability for Dec. 10th meeting: 46.3%(-2.0 percentage points) chance of 3.75%-4.0%. (current target rate is 4.25-4.5%)
  

Overseas Futures:

• Nikkei 225 Futures: Indicating -563 open in Japan 
• China A50 Futures: Indicating +34 open in China

• DAX Futures: Indicating +90 open in Germany

Portfolio:

• Lower: On losses in my tech/industrial/consumer discretionary sector longs
• Disclosed Trades: Added to my (IWM)/(QQQ) hedges
• Market Exposure: Moved to 75% Net Long

Tuesday's Earnings/Economic Releases of Note; Market Movers

Earnings of Note 
Company/Estimate 

Before the Open:

• (ASO)/2.15
• (NIO)/-2.22
• (SIG)/1.24 

After the Close: 

• (ZS)/.80

Economic Releases 

10:00 am EST

• The ISM Manufacturing Index for Aug. is estimated to rise to 48.9 versus 48.0 in July.
• ISM Prices Paid for Aug. is estimated to rise to 65.0 versus 64.8 in July.
• Construction Spending MoM for July is estimated to fall -.2% versus a -.4% decline in June. 

Upcoming Splits

• None of note

Other Potential Market Movers

• The Atlanta Fed GDPNow Q3 update, Dallas Fed PCE for July, Jeffries Industrial Conference, Citi TMT Conference, Jefferies Fintech Conference, Cantor Healthcare Conference, Barclays Energy Power Conference, UBS Materials Conference, Wells Fargo Healthcare Conference, Goldman Retailing Conference and the IBD/TIPP Economic Optimism Index for Sept. could also impact global trading on Tuesday.

US Equity Market Hours

• 9:30 am - 4:00 pm EST

Friday Watch

Around X:

• @Business

• Inflation in Tokyo sharply eased led by government utility subsidies, while still staying well above the Bank of Japan’s target, keeping it on a path toward further interest rate hikes. 
• Caterpillar is warning investors that it’s now expecting tariffs to have an impact of as much as $1.8 billion on the company this year, higher than its guidance in early August.
• Get up to speed on what's moving global markets.
• Here's what you need to know to start your day.  

• @ZeroHedge 

• The judge assigned on the Lisa Cook case is Jia Cobb: she was appointed by Biden in 2021, and has repeatedly ruled against Trump.
• Oklahoma Introduces Certification Test To Weed Out Far-Left Teachers.
• AI Is Being Weaponized For Cybercrime In 'Unprecedented' Ways, Researchers Warn.
• Cracker Barrel's 93-year-old founder has some strong words for the CEO trying to rebrand and modernize… (video)
• *WALLER: US DEBT IS ON UNSUSTAINABLE PATH BUT NOT PROBLEM TODAY.
• Lisa Cook hearing at 10am ET on Friday is open to the public The hearing can be accessed by dialing the Toll-Free Number: 833-990-9400 (Meeting ID: 251046985).
• *CAMECO SAYS DELAYS AT MINE TO AFFECT 2025 PRODUCTION FORECAST.
• Sen. Mike Lee: Racist & Anti-American Messages At Smithsonian "Indefensible".
• *WHITE HOUSE TAPS JIM O'NEILL AS ACTING CDC DIRECTOR: WAPO.
• Another Narrative Busted: Bolton Investigation Began Under Biden.
• *NVIDIA SAYS STARTED TO DISCUSS BLACKWELL CHINA EXPORT APPROVAL. 
• 'Fear Or No Fear': VIX Tumbles To 2025 Lows As Gold Nears Record Highs.

• @CNBC

• Asia-Pacific markets set to climb, tracking Wall Street gains.
• Friday's big stock stories: What’s likely to move the market in the next trading session.
• Stocks making the biggest moves after hours: Ulta Beauty, Dell Technologies, Gap, Autodesk and more.  
• Affirm's stock soars 15% on earnings, revenue beat.
• Ulta Beauty raises full-year forecast after reporting growth in all major categories. 
• Dell beats on profit and revenue as company says AI server sales will double this year.

• @TheTranscript 

• $BIDU Baidu CEO: "In July, AI contributed to generating over 45% of our new code with our developers providing oversight and approval. This has significantly boosted our engineering productivity and meaningfully enhanced our internal R&D efficiency."

• @MarioNawful

• LEAKED EMAIL: FDA LINKED PUBERTY BLOCKERS TO DEPRESSION AND SUICIDE. Internal FDA correspondence reportedly shows officials knew puberty blockers carried “increased risk of depression and suicidality, as well as increased seizure risk” in pediatric patients. The 2022 email from a senior clinical team leader also confirmed that some transgender children were using the drugs off-label despite these risks. Yet the same FDA review acknowledged “definitely a need for these drugs to be approved for gender transition,” highlighting a push for broader approval even as safety warnings circulated internally. (pic)
• BREAKING: CHINESE HACKERS BREACH 200 U.S. COMPANIES. The FBI says Salt Typhoon, a China-backed hacking crew, broke into 200 U.S. companies across 80 countries - including telecom giants like AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile. They slipped in through old router flaws, set up shop inside critical systems, and walked away with call records, wiretap info, and government data. Three Chinese firms reportedly helped pull it off, proving that corporate “partners” can also double as cyber spies. Officials are begging companies to patch their tech, but let’s be real - if routers are this wide open, Salt Typhoon probably isn’t done yet. 

• @DC_Draino

• President Trump is officially going after George Soros and his equally radical son for funding violent riots in the US. RICO charges incoming?

• @MrAndyNgo 

• Trans leftist accounts all over social media are celebrating the shooting and killing of children at the Minneapolis church by a trans gunman. They believe it is revenge against Christianity and the Trump administration for not allowing transitioning children, and defining sex as biological. (pic)

• @disclosetv

• NEW - The Vatican will host an LGBTQ+ event next week, welcoming LGBTQ+ "Catholics" to a prayer vigil at Rome’s Gesù Church, themed “Church – a home for all. Starting from the borders,” featuring an LGBTQ+ rainbow crucifix.

• @C_3C_3

• Meet Doctor Demetre Daskalakis. He just resigned from the CDC and trashed RFK Jr on the way out. You know the CDC that did so well with Covid?! (pic)

• @NicHulscher

• BREAKING: THREE Peer-Reviewed Studies Provide IRREFUTABLE Grounds for Immediate Market Withdrawal of COVID-19 mRNA Injections. Two MAJOR papers were just published in the past 48 hours, building directly on our recent landmark study. Together, the international evidence has converged: mRNA injections are unsafe, ineffective, contaminated, and in violation of international law.

• @greg_price11

• Minnesota Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan: "When our children tell us who they are, it is our job as grown-ups to listen and to believe them." While wearing a shirt with a knife on it that says"protect trans kids." (video)

• @LeadingReport

• BREAKING: Cracker Barrel will end funding for ‘Pride’ events and remove “woke propaganda” from its site after massive boycotting.

• @newstart_2024

• Reminder - Klaus Schwab says the world will no longer be run by superpowers like America.. it will be run by the World Economic Forum stakeholders, such as BlackRock and Bill Gates. (video)
• Jimmy Dore: The largest private equity firms on earth are executing a hostile takeover of America’s public utilities. BlackRock and Blackstone are moving to acquire essential power infrastructure in Minnesota, Texas, and New Mexico. Their playbook? A scorched-earth campaign of political corruption, revolving-door regulators, and astroturfed support from supposed “clean energy” and “labor” groups. Here’s what’s happening: 

• @RodDMartin

• NEW STUDY: Cannabis isn’t harmless. People who start smoking weed to “self-medicate” face higher risks of depression, paranoia, and psychosis. The data is damning — and it’s especially bad for teens. THREAD.

• @ElectrionWiz

• BREAKING: White House says President Trump will NOT allow 600,000 more Chinese students. It’s a continuation of current policy, no increase in visas from China.

• @iamyesyouareno

• Sexual offences in London by nationality. British people are in 39th place. (graph)

• @bennyjohnson

• VERY IMPORTANT: Everybody stop what you’re doing and watch this. Jesse Watters just delivered his most important and powerful monologue ever. He blew the lid off the trans violence epidemic, the media’s cover-up, and how Democratic leaders created it: (video)

• @JohnLeFevre 

• The percentage of US adults identifying as trans. There is nothing natural about this. (graph)

Night Trading 

• Asian equity indices are -.25% to +.5% on average. 
• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 66.0 -.5 basis point.
• China Sovereign CDS 43.5 -.5 basis point.
• China Iron Ore Spot 103.6 USD/Metric Tonne -.6%. 
• Swiss Franc/Offshore Chinese Renminbi Cross 8.87 -.17%.
• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 36.47 -.15%.
• Bloomberg Global Risk-On/Risk Off Index 81.9 +.2%.
• US 10-Year Yield 4.21% +1.0 basis point.
• Volatility Index(VIX) futures 16.7 +.4%.
• Euro Stoxx 50 futures -.19%. 
• S&P 500 futures -.08%. 
• NASDAQ 100 futures -.14%.

Morning Preview Links

BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are mostly higher, boosted by industrial and technology shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open mixed and to rally into the afternoon, finishing modestly higher.  The Portfolio is 100% net long heading into the day.