Financial Markets and Economy
Charting the Markets: China Respite (Bloomberg)
China watchers are taking a breather with the nation's markets closed to commemorate the end of World War II. Attention now turns to today's European Central Bank monetary policy meeting in Frankfurt and Friday's U.S. jobs report. Global stocks, as measured by the MSCI All-Country World Index, gained for a second session after after a two-day 3.3 percent drop.
Twitter shares are surging ahead of a board meeting to discuss its CEO situation (Business Insider)
Twitter shares are surging on Thursday ahead of a meeting of its board of directors to discuss the company's CEO search.
Yes, Women and Minorities Are Making Strides in the Labor Market, But … (The Atlantic)
Attempts to remedy America’s dauntingly long history of racial and gender inequity can, at times, feel slow and incremental. That’s why when it comes to narrowing the economic disparities between certain groups, it’s important to celebrate progress—more minorities graduating from college, more female executives, a shrinking gender-wage gap. Those are all certainly good things, but sometimes, dwelling on these achievements means missing the underlying failures that allow inequity and division to persist, and grow.
How to survive a market crash: the lessons from history (Market Watch)
Well, I was early, but I’ll bet I wasn’t wrong.
When I started buying global stocks last week I wasn’t trying to be clever, call the bottom of the market, or “catch a falling knife.”
Foreigners Flee Japan Stocks at Fastest Pace Since at Least 2004 (Bloomberg)
Global investors are pulling money out of Japan’s equity market at the fastest pace since at least 2004, according to Mizuho Securities Co.
There's been no correlation between China's economic growth and its stock market (Business Insider)
China's volatile stock market has been front and center over the last few weeks.
So, naturally, many analysts are now worried a hemorrhaging stock market means that China's economy is on the precipice of collapse.
However, the Middle Kingdom is not necessarily doomed.
China slowdown is already hurting Europe (CNN)
China's slowing economy has already put a dent in Europe's recovery and could force the region's central bank to pump even more money into the system.
The European Central Bank on Thursday cut its forecasts for eurozone GDP growth for this year and next, pointing the finger squarely at falling demand from China and other emerging economies.
The IPhone Company (Bloomberg)
For all the attention Apple has received this year for its new smartwatch and music service, or rumors about an updated TV device and building a car, the company is increasingly dependent on the iPhone.
How to make money in the coming economic ‘ice age’ (Market Watch)
Every day there are headlines about slowing economic growth in China, and the country’s currency devaluation last month was a catalyst for painful volatility and declines of stocks worldwide. But these events may point to a longer-term problem that U.S. investors have to consider.
Overall debt in the United States has continued to grow and is now at an all-time high, and debt has also shot up in Europe, Japan and now China. “Combined with adverse demographics, an excessive debt burden erodes disposable income of people who have to finance the debt,” according to Société Générale analyst Robbert van Batenburg.
This chart shows how much each state contributes to the US economy (Business Insider)
The US is the richest nation in the world, with an annual GDP of $17.3 trillion in 2014. However, some states are greater contributors to the economy than others. To illustrate differences among state economies, the folks at HowMuch.net created a chart that shows the relative economic value of each US state.
Gold retreats as focus turns to jobs report, U.S. economy (Market Watch)
Gold futures retreat, threatening to push the precious metal to its lowest level since late August as a return of calm in global markets, upbeat economic data out of the U.S. saps the precious metal of haven appeal on Thursday.
Gold futures for December delivery turned sharply lower, shedding $10.10, or nearly 1%, to trade $1,123.20 an ounce in early Thursday trade, putting prices in position to mark their seventh loss in nine trading sessions, and its lowest settlement in about week.
India Rate Cut Now a Question of When, Not If, For Rajan (Bloomberg)
Both economists and traders are now expecting another India rate cut this year: The debate is centering on whether it will come this month or in December.
Oil bulls are subject to a hard fact, which is that US shale is a stubborn bear (Quartz)
Oil prices continue to swing wildly, but they are subject to a hard fact—the incessant flow of US shale oil, which, according to a leading energy research firm, is likely to dip only slightly this year before rising again by next summer.
Oil crash cut my pay & killed over 86,000 jobs (CNN)
Jason Butt is worried he's going to be the next casualty of the oil crash.
No concern yet regarding financial institutions from market turmoil: Jack Lew (Business Insider)
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said financial market turmoil has yet to cause enough stress in financial institutions to warrant concern, CNBC reported on Thursday.
"We are keeping a careful eye on market volatility," Lew told CNBC in an interview on Wednesday that was aired on Thursday.
Early Uber investor and serial entrepreneur Jason Calacanis has sold his Los Angeles home for $2.9 million (Business Insider)
Serial entrepreneur Jason Calacanis — who founded Weblogs, Mahalo.com, and Inside.comin addition to investing in Uber and Tumblr — is officially leaving Los Angeles behind.
Calacanis has sold his four-bedroom home in Brentwood for $2.92 million. In August, he told Business Insider that he and his family have moved to San Francisco full-time.
Politics
Donald Trump has created about 34,000 jobs (CNN)
Donald Trump vows that if he's elected president, he would "be the greatest jobs president that God ever created."
One of the main reasons Trump cites is that he's a businessman. He has already created jobs, he argues, so he'll do it on an even bigger scale as president.
The flat tax and two other policies that separate Ben Carson and Donald Trump (Market Watch)
Both Ben Carson and Donald Trump say they want to make America great again. But the Republican presidential contenders don’t always agree on how they’d do that.
Carson, the mild-mannered ex-neurosurgeon, and Trump, the bombastic businessman, are arguably the Republican Party’s men of the moment. Trump retains his No. 1 standing in national polls, and Carson is in second place, according to the latest RealClearPolitics average. On Monday, a Monmouth University poll showed the two White House hopefuls tied in Iowa, the first state to hold presidential caucuses.
Technology
Ecocapsule Provides A Hub Away From Home (Popular Science)
The Ecocapsule can be shipped, airlifted, or trailer-towed into place.
An Airstream offers retro appeal, but it can’t compare to the sustainable, high-tech glamping you could do in an Ecocapsule. Developed by Slovakian firm Nice Architects, the portable living space runs on sun, wind, and rain alone. Throw in a cache of canned food, and you’ll be set to hunker down indefinitely. The 14.5-foot, 1.7-ton pod can serve as a research station, disaster-relief shelter, or remote Airbnb almost anywhere. The second-generation version—which is expected to debut this fall and go on sale in 2016 — includes sleeping quarters for two, a kitchenette, a shower, climate control, and even electrical outlets. Plus, it comes equipped with a custom-designed H20-free toilet that incinerates your waste out of existence.
Did Haier just reinvent the future of cooling? (Mashable)
I'll be honest, Haier's IFA 2015 press conference was pretty much a snoozefest, but nestled among the washing machines and safety watches that no human child would want was a remarkable bit of innovation: A compressor and motor-free Wine cooler.
I know, this sounds like it’s something just for those who love wine (which would be billions of you), but it could have far-reaching implications, even for the teetotalers out there
Health and Life Sciences
More ADHD cases being diagnosed at younger ages, report finds (CNN)
One-third of children in the United States have been found to be diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) before 6 years old, according to a new report.
Though the statistics may sound alarming, researchers involved with the report say the data shows promising trends on how children with the neurobehavioral disorder are being diagnosed.
Diabetes drug may help in leukaemia (BBC)
A drug used to treat diabetes could help in the fight against blood cancer, early research in the journal Nature suggests.
An international team of scientists gave the drug to patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia, alongside standard treatment.
Those who received the combination therapy were more likely to be free of the disease for longer.
Life on the Home Planet
Emissions 'far above' 2C target (BBC)
Global plans to curb carbon dioxide are well below what's needed to keep temperatures from rising more than 2 degrees, according to a new analysis.
It is the work of researchers from the Climate Action Tracker (CAT), a consortium of research institutions.
They examined the commitments already made by governments to limit warming.
Genetic diversity can flag species in trouble (Futurity)
A new method identifies vertebrate populations at risk of extinction by estimating the rate of genetic diversity loss. The measurement could help researchers and conservationists better identify and rank species that are threatened or endangered.
Populations with low genetic diversity may not be able to adapt to challenges such as changing environmental conditions, shrinking habitats, or new diseases, which could put them at risk of disappearing. But a study by genetic researchers shows that the criteria currently used to identify at-risk species are not correlated with genetic diversity, suggesting that many threatened species could be overlooked.
