Court Eases Sentence For Afghan Who 'Showed Restraint' After 'Only' Stabbing Teacher Six Times

Via Remix News,

A 29-year-old Afghan migrant has been sentenced to six years in prison for stabbing a 27-year-old teacher at random on the street, in the middle of the day, in the German city of Kirchheim unter Teck.

However, despite stabbing his victim four times in the back and twice in the thigh, the fact that the Afghan stopped stabbing her once she screamed was enough to convince the court in Stuttgart to drop the attempted murder charge.

On March 14 of this year, the teacher was seriously injured while walking home from work. The 29-year-old, who did not know his victim, walked up to her from behind in a residential area and grabbed her neck. With his other hand, he began stabbing her in the back with a 9.5-centimeter knife four times. He then stabbed her twice in her thigh.

The woman began screaming, at which time, her attacker let her go and ran away.

Based on the fact that he stopped stabbing her and ran away, the court claimed this was a “withdrawal from attempted murder,” according to reporting from Yvonne Kussman for Aktuelle Informiert. Therefore, since the man could have kept stabbing her but stopped, he was only convicted of the lesser crime of previous bodily harm.

A similar legal ruling was recently applied to another controversial case in Germany involving SPD Mayor Iris Stalze, who was tortured and stabbed by her adopted daughter from Africa, to the point that she almost died. In that case as well, the ruling of a “withdrawal” was also issued, and no arrest was even made, with legal experts calling the ruling into question.

Regarding the details of this case involving the Afghan stabbing, it is worth noting that this “withdrawal” clause in the German legal system can only be invoked when there is a “genuine” withdrawal.

As Remix News cited: “If the perpetrator believes they have done everything necessary for the victim to die, they must then perform a voluntary and genuine counter-act that causes the prevention of the victim’s death.”

In other words, while the Afghan stopped, the question is what motivated his “withdrawal.” Did he truly not want to kill her? A “genuine” withdrawal, in German legal tradition, would have likely meant he stopped stabbing the woman and then began treating her wounds and called the police. Instead, he just stabbed her and ran away, raising questions about whether this should constitute a “genuine” withdrawal of attempted murder. Nevertheless, that is how the court ruled.

The 27-year-old teacher suffered serious injuries, but they were not life-threatening and she was able to leave the hospital after three days. She also did not suffer from any permanent damage.

However, she is reportedly left with serious psychological damage from the attack.

“I can no longer leave the house alone, I have no stamina, and my mobility is limited,” she said after the attack, adding, “My life has been turned upside down.”

The defendant denied that he stabbed the woman; however, DNA traces of his were found on the teacher’s clothing. He was also found with the knife used in the crime.

The Afghan man has no certificate proving he even graduated from high school nor vocational training. He left Afghanistan in 2018 and entered several European countries. He was in Germany briefly in 2023, left, and then came back again to apply for asylum.

Despite receiving social benefits, he broke into a bank branch in Kirchheim unter Teck after hours and stole a small amount of cash. While in custody, his DNA was linked to the stabbing of the teacher.

He has been sentenced to six years in prison for the stabbing attack and an additional year and a half in prison for the bank robberies.

Read more here...

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 09:25

5x Leverage Is Too Much Says The SEC

Wall Street’s financial engineers thought they had found yet another way to turn financial markets into casinos.

The gimmick this time is with 3x, 4x, and even 5x leveraged ETFs tied to individual stocks and cryptocurrencies.

But, as RealInvestmentAdvice.com reports, the SEC just ruled against these new proposals, apparently drawing the line at 2x leverage as the rules state.

“We write to express concern regarding the registration of ETFs that seek to provide more than 200% (2x) leveraged exposure to underlying indices or securities”

Nine issuers filed with the SEC for 3x, 4x, and 5x ETFs, betting that the new leadership at the SEC would be more open to speculation and be willing to ignore the significant risk entailed in these securities.

Their strategy hinged on gaming the SEC’s derivatives rule - Rule 18f-4 - by changing how “risk” is measured.

Under Rule 18f-4, a leveraged or inverse ETF must run a Value-at-Risk test using the actual asset it tracks as its benchmark.

For example, if your proposed 5x ETF is based on Apple’s stock price, the risk test is anchored to Apple’s stock price.

Once you apply an apples-to-apples, no pun intended, analysis, 5x and other ETFs levered more than 2x fail the SEC test.

The issuers tried to redefine the “designated reference portfolio” (benchmark) to an asset that is less risky than the actual underlying asset.

Doing so effectively lowers the apparent risk, thus, using their logic, allowing 3x, 4x, and even 5x leverage.

The SEC’s latest comment letter shut that door. They didn’t mince words in their ruling:

Did we just reach 'peak speculation'?

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 09:05

Border Encounters Drop To Record Low In November: CBP

Authored by Kimberley Hayek via The Epoch Times,

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported another drop in border encounters for November, extending a streak of dips under President Donald Trump’s administration, according to preliminary data released in a statement Thursday.

The agency recorded 30,367 total encounters nationwide last month, down from October’s 30,573. The two months combined mark the lowest opening to a fiscal year on record, with 60,940 encounters throughout October and November, the statement said.

CBP maintained its streak of zero releases of apprehended individuals into the United States for the seventh straight month, processing them all according to law.

“Once again, we have a record low number of encounters at the border and the seventh straight month of zero releases. Month after month, we are delivering results that were once thought impossible: the most secure border in history and unmatched enforcement successes,” Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said in the statement.

Noem added that U.S. borders are “safer than ever.”

CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott said the agency will not be slowing down.

“These numbers reflect the tireless efforts of our agents and officers who are delivering results that redefine border security,” he said.

Border Patrol apprehensions averaged under 10,000 monthly since Trump took office for his second term, the data show. Daily southwest border apprehensions averaged 245—less than 11 per hour—a 95 percent decrease from the prior administration’s 5,110 daily average from February 2021 to December 2024.

In December 2023, apprehensions reached 336 hourly, which today would represent more than a day’s total.

Drug interdictions increased in November, with 54,947 pounds seized nationwide—an increase of 33 percent from October. Fentanyl seizures reached 1,543 pounds, a 59 percent jump from October. Methamphetamine seizures totaled 21,935 pounds, an 118 percent increase. Cocaine confiscations hit 8,240 pounds, a 40 percent increase.

Earlier in the year, July saw 24,630 nationwide encounters, a 2.4 percent fall from June and almost 90 percent below the averages under the Biden administration. June’s figures came in at 25,243 nationwide and 6,070 at the southwest border. Both June and July entailed no releases.

Tom Homan, Trump’s border czar, highlighted in February that illegal crossings dropped 93 percent, higher than reductions seen during Trump’s first term.

“We’ve got the numbers this morning. The crossings on the border are down 93 percent,” Homan said. “That’s a bigger decrease than under the first Trump administration.”

In July, Noem said Trump had “obliterated” the border crisis. By September, the administration announced having located nearly 30,000 missing illegal immigrant children by November. ICE operations in November also arrested 1,505 alleged criminal aliens in Texas.

Drug interdictions from October 2024 to January 2025 totaled 66,500 pounds overall, lower than the previous year’s equivalent period but targeting high-threat substances. In November, a seizure of 20 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in frozen meat at an Arizona port made headlines.

Under President Joe Biden, December 2023 saw 302,000 encounters, which was a record high, while fiscal 2025 recorded the lowest number of apprehensions in more than half a century: 237,538.

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 08:45

S&P Futures Rise, On Pace For 9th Gain In 10 Days

Stock futures rise as investors look ahead to Friday’s release of the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, the core PCE, a reading that may help shape next week’s rate outlook as the BoJ charts its own divergent policy course. As of *;15am ET, S&P 500 futures were 0.2% higher and on pace for the 9th gain in 10 days; Nasdaq 100 futures are +0.3% as Mag 7 names are mostly higher premarket, led by META (+0.6%), AMZN (+0.5%) and NVDA (+0.5%). Tech sentiment got a boost after Nvidia partner Hon Hai Precision Industry reported strong sales. Moore Threads, a leading Chinese AI chipmaker, jumped 425% in its Shanghai trading debut. Netflix meanwhile, fell in the premarket after agreeing a tie-up with Warner Bros, acquiring HBO. Bond yields are modestly higher; the USD is flat. Commodities are mixed: oil and base metals are lower, while precious metals are higher. US economic calendar includes September personal income/spending and PCE inflation gauges and December preliminary University of Michigan sentiment (10am New York time) and October consumer credit (3pm

In premarket trading, Mag 7 stocks are mostly higher (Meta +0.5%, Nvidia +0.4%, Alphabet +0.4%, Microsoft +0.3%, Amazon +0.4%, Tesla unchanged, Apple unchanged).

• Cooper Cos (COO) rises 13% after the health-care company’s guidance for 2026 adjusted earnings per share topped the average analyst estimate. The company also launched a strategic review.
• Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. (HPE) drops 8% after the company gave an outlook for sales in the current quarter that fell short of high expectations for the AI server business.
• ITT Inc. (ITT) slips 2% after agreeing to acquire industrial equipment manufacturer SPX Flow Inc. from Lone Star Funds in a $4.775 billion cash and stock deal.
• Netflix (NFLX) slips 1.3% after agreeing to buy Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. in a historic combination, joining the world’s dominant paid streaming service with one of Hollywood’s oldest and most revered studios. Shares of Warner Bros. (WBD) are up 1.5%.
• Parsons (PSN) tumbles 15% after the US Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Transportation awarded the Brand New Air Traffic Control System contract to Peraton.
• Rubrik (RBRK) rallies 18% after the cybersecurity firm raised its revenue forecast for 2026 while narrowing its view for adjusted losses per share.
• SentinelOne (S) falls 8% after the software firm’s fourth-quarter outlook missed expectations. It also initiated a search for a new chief financial officer.
• SoFi Technologies (SOFI) is down 7% after the online lender’s offering of 54.5m shares.
• Ulta Beauty Inc. (ULTA) rises 6% after raising its full-year outlook and reporting better-than-expected results in the third quarter, a sign that consumers are overcoming any reluctance to spend and shelling out for cosmetics and hair supplies.
• Victoria’s Secret (VSCO) climbs 12% after the company reported better-than-expected sales and lifted its outlook for the year, a sign that its turnaround strategy is working.

In corporate news, Perplexity AI says billionaire Cristiano Ronaldo has become an investor. Cloudflare is investigating issues with dashboard and related APIs.

Futures on the US benchmark rose on Friday after the index closed within 0.5% of a fresh record. The gauge is set for its first back-to-back weekly gain since October, signaling that traders are shaking off recent jitters over valuations and the lack of visibility on the economy during the government shutdown. Yet in a notable change from recent trends, tech hasn’t led the recent rally, and with sector participation broadening, the market’s advance may continue - even as the economic data underpinning the move exhibits a “split screen,” with non-jobs data surprising to the upside.

With a rate cut next week largely priced in and bets pointing to further easing into 2026, investors are gearing up for a year-end rally in what is typically a supportive month for stocks. Growing confidence that the US economy remains resilient, despite softer employment, is also prompting rotations into stocks that tend to benefit from domestic strength.

"Santa will bring presents for everybody, toys for the kids and gains for investors,” said Stephan Kemper, chief investment strategist at BNP Paribas Wealth Management. “Apart from the regular seasonality there are plenty of other reasons supporting the market: rate cuts and ongoing M&A activity are some of them.”

Bloomberg Economics Chief Economist Tom Orlik expects a dovish Fed to cut rates another 100 basis points in 2026, adding support to the AI investment upswing. A bonfire of regulations will also stoke growth and together with gradual price pass-through from tariffs, these factors will keep inflation above target. Kevin Hassett said the Fed should cut rates next week and said he wanted to “get to a much lower rate” over the long run.

Later on Friday, markets will a get a dated reading on the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge. The figures will include the personal consumption expenditures price index and a core measure that excludes food and energy. Economist project a third-straight 0.2% increase in the core index for September. That would keep the year-over-year figure hovering a little below 3%, a sign that inflationary pressures are stable, yet sticky.

While the data is unlikely to derail a December rate cut, it “may change the tone from Chairman Powell,” said Wolf von Rotberg, equity strategist at Bank J Safra Sarasin. “If he emphasizes inflation risks in his press conference, markets may reprice the rate trajectory for 2026, thereby increasing the pressure on the long end of the curve and on equity market valuations.”

BofA strategist Michael Hartnett notes bond vigilantes have effectively become the new regulators of AI capex. 
Nvidia partner Hon Hai reported a 26% sales jump in November, suggesting robust demand for AI servers amid a broader development boom. Moore Threads Technology, a leading Chinese AI chipmaker, jumped 425% in its Shanghai trading debut after raising 8 billion yuan ($1.13 billion).

In Europe, the Stoxx 600 is up 0.3%, rising for a fourth day and hitting a three-week high in the process. Financial services, autos and construction are leading gains while energy is a drag after downgrades in the sector from JPMorgan.  Here are some of the biggest movers on Friday:

• UCB shares jump as much as 8.2% after the Belgian biopharma company lifted its guidance for the full year.
• Renk rises as much as 5.7% as Bank of America double upgrades the shares to buy, citing an attractive valuation.
• Ocado shares rise as much as 16% after the online grocer said it will receive a $350 million cash payment from Kroger to compensate for the US grocer’s decision to close three automated warehouses and to not go ahead with another.
• Trustpilot shares jump as much as 11% after Morgan Stanley raised the stock to overweight a day after the stock was targeted by short seller Grizzly Research, saying the company’s user reviews hold unique value against increasing content from generative AI.
• Swiss Re drops as much as 7.6% after announcing targets for 2026, with analysts seeing both the buyback and group net income guidance as “underwhelming.”
• Big Yellow Group shares drop as much as 6% after talks about a possible takeover offer from Blackstone collapsed.
• Baltic Classifieds shares drop as much as 5.1% after analysts cut their price target on the online platform.
• OVH Groupe shares drop as much as 15% after an investor offloaded shares in the IT services company at a discount to yesterday’s close.

Earlier in the session, Asian stocks reversed earlier losses as investors await key US economic data later Friday. Japan markets closed lower amid profit-taking following strong gains in the previous session. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose as much as 0.3%, boosted by TSMC, Samsung Electronics and SoftBank Group. The gauge is on track for a second straight week of gains. Shares advanced in India after the central bank cut interest rate and signaled an openness for further easing. Benchmarks in Japan fell more than 1%. Chinese chipmakers are coming into focus, with Moore Threads surging 425% in its Shanghai trading debut after raising 8 billion yuan ($1.13 billion), the second-largest onshore IPO of the year. Elsewhere in the region, Philippine inflation slowed in November, supporting another cut in benchmark interest rates as a graft scandal shattered consumer and investor confidence. Markets were closed in Thailand. 

In FX, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index falls 0.1%. The yen is lower, having erased an earlier gain of 0.5%, seen after Bloomberg reported reported Bank of Japan officials are ready to raise interest rates at a policy meeting later this month. The Aussie is leading gains against the greenback, up 0.4%.

In rates, treasuries drop across the curve, following similar price action across European bonds in the wake of strong October German factory orders and French industrial production data. Treasury long-end yields are about 1.5bp higher on the day, steepening curve spreads by less than a basis point. US 10-year yield is near 4.11%, about 1bp cheaper on the day, broadly in line with bunds and gilts. Focal points of US session include PCE inflation gauge derived from September personal income and spending data, in release delayed by last month’s US government shutdown. IG dollar bond issuance slate is blank so far after just one offering was priced Thursday, however $26 billion was priced over the first three days of this week by 23 issuers — one of the strongest starts to a December. Treasury auctions resume Monday with $58 billion 3-year new issue, followed by $39 billion 10-year and $22 billion 30-year reopenings Tuesday and Thursday, skipping over Wednesday’s Fed policy announcement.

In commodities, oil prices are steady, with WTI crude futures near $59.50 a barrel. Spot gold rises $18. Bitcoin falls 0.8%. 

Looking to the day ahead now, US data releases include PCE inflation for September, and the University of Michigan’s preliminary consumer sentiment index for December, all at 10am ET. We also get German factory orders and French industrial production for October, and Canada’s employment report for November. Finally from central banks, we’ll hear from the ECB’s Villeroy and Lane.

Market Snapshot

• S&P 500 mini +0.2%
• Nasdaq 100 mini +0.4%
• Russell 2000 mini little changed
• Stoxx Europe 600 +0.3%
• DAX +0.5%
• CAC 40 +0.3%
• 10-year Treasury yield +1 basis point at 4.11%
• VIX little changed at 15.75
• Bloomberg Dollar Index little changed at 1213.14
• euro little changed at $1.1652
• WTI crude -0.2% at $59.53/barrel

Top Overnight News

• A divided Supreme Court cleared Texas to use its new Republican-drawn congressional map for the 2026 midterm election, overruling a lower court order and bolstering GOP hopes of picking up as many as five new House seats in the state. BBG
• The US is prioritizing a stable trade dynamic with China despite a push by some allies for coordinated action against Beijing, USTR Jamieson Greer said. BBG
• President Trump has issued a new national-security strategy that sharply criticizes the “unrealistic expectations” of European leaders for settling the war in Ukraine and calls for an end to NATO expansion. WSJ
• A bipartisan Senate bill seeks to block Nvidia from shipping advanced AI chips to China. The legislation proposes a 30-month halt on export licenses to US adversaries. BBG
• US Homeland Security Secretary Noem said the Trump administration is expanding the countries on the travel ban to over 30: Fox News.
• BOJ officials are ready to raise the policy rate at this month’s meeting — taking it to its highest level since 1995 — provided there’s no major shocks in the meantime, people familiar said. The yen strengthened. BBG
• China's exports likely returned to growth in November after an unexpected dip in October, as manufacturers rushed to move inventory to take advantage of a fresh tariff truce with the U.S. RTRS
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut its key repo rate by 25 basis points on Friday and left the door open for further easing as it took steps to boost banking-sector liquidity by up to $16 billion to support a "goldilocks" economy. RTRS
• The Dutch pensions overhaul looks set to push European nations to sell fewer long-dated bonds. Changes may be announced in coming weeks as governments unveil their 2026 issuance plans. BBG
• Netflix to Acquire Warner Bros. Following the Separation of Discovery Global for a Total Enterprise Value of $82.7 Billion (Equity Value of $72.0 Billion).
• Morgan Stanley forecasts a 25bps Fed cut in December (prev. forecast unchanged). Cuts in January and April 2026, a terminal of 3.00-3.25%.
• Federal Reserve Board announced a new pricing for payment services provided to banks and credit unions, effective 1st January 2026, while Fed's Bowman emphasised the importance of checks as a payment method and said the Fed cannot endorse the RFI regarding the future of check services.

Company News

• Dell (DELL) reportedly plans a price hike of 15-20% from mid-December and Lenovo (992 HK) from January 2026, according to TrendForce, citing sources.
• Cloudflare (NET) announced service issues have been resolved, according to the status page. Following issues that lasted for around 30 minutes.
• Baidu (9888 HK/ BIDU) reportedly weighs a Hong Kong IPO for its AI chip unit Kunlunxin, to rival NVIDIA (NVDA), according to Bloomberg, citing sources; unit could be valued in excess of USD 3bln
• Apple (AAPL), Google (GOOGL) and Samsung (005930 KS) have asked the Indian Government not to accept telecom proposal over privacy concerns and regulatory overreach, according to Reuters, citing sources.

Trade/Tariffs

• US Trade Representative Greer said trade with China needs to be balanced and probably needs to be smaller, while he added they want to have stability in the relationship with China, and that the US trade deficit in goods with China is down about 25%, which is the right direction.
• USTR Greer also noted there are problems with the US-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement and that they already have adjustments to some of these challenges, as well as stated that the US wants to make sure that Canada and Mexico aren't used as an export hub for China, Vietnam or Indonesia, among others.
• China's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson said that China has repeatedly stated its position on the issue of US chip exports to China, via Global Times.
• Chinese drone maker DJI urged the Trump administration to complete audits or extend the deadline for the security review, according to a letter to Congress.
• China and France issued a joint statement on agricultural cooperation and signed an MOU on registration of infant milk powder formulas, according to Xinhua.
• Japanese Trade Minister Akazawa said they are monitoring US tariff lawsuit developments and he confirmed that Japanese companies have filed lawsuits in the US seeking refunds of additional tariffs.
• Russian President Putin said Russia is ready to provide uninterrupted fuel supplies to India. Russia and India express interest in deepening cooperation in the exploration, processing and refining technologies for critical minerals and rare earths.

A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk

APAC stocks were mixed with the regional bourses mostly rangebound, amid light fresh catalysts ahead of US PCE data. ASX 200 edged higher but with gains capped as strength in the mining and materials sectors was partially offset by weakness in consumer discretionary, energy and telecoms, while price action was also contained by the absence of any pertinent data. Nikkei 225 underperformed amid the increased BoJ December rate hike bets and after dismal Household Spending data, which showed a surprise contraction. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp saw two-way price action with early headwinds following another consecutive liquidity drain by the PBoC and reports that US senators seek to block NVIDIA (NVDA) sales of advanced chips to China for 30 months, which would target NVIDIA's H200 and Blackwell chips.

Top Asian News

• BoJ is said to likely hike this month and leave the door open to more, while the central bank is to check the data and market moves up to the final decision, according to Bloomberg.
• Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara said they will take appropriate steps on excessive and disorderly moves in the FX market if necessary. Expects the BoJ to conduct monetary policy in an appropriate manner.
• Japan's Economy Minister Kiuchi said the inflationary impact of the stimulus package will likely be limited. The government will keep an eye on market moves with a high sense of urgency. Important for stocks, FX and bond markets to move in line with fundamentals. Specific monetary policy means is up to the BoJ, and the Government will not comment. Hopes the BoJ guides appropriate monetary policy to stably achieve the 2% inflation target.
• Hong Kong's Court endorsed a proposal allowing Country Garden Holdings (2007 HK) to extend repayment of USD 17.7bln in offshore debt.
• China's Commerce Minister said China will ramp up efforts to expand imports, via Xinhua. The Commerce Minister will also expand service consumption, increase implementation of inclusive policies that directly reach consumers, expand auto consumption and promote renewal consumption of home appliances and eliminate restrictive measures.
• RBI cut the Repurchase Rate by 25bps to 5.25%, as expected, with the decision unanimous and it maintained a neutral stance although MPC member Ram Singh wanted the stance to be changed to accommodative from neutral, while the Marginal Lending Facility Rate was lowered by 25bps to 5.50% and the Standing Deposit Facility Rate was reduced by 25bps to 5.00%.

European bourses trade modestly firmer, with little macro news to steer price action. Sentiment follows on from a mixed and quiet APAC session. European sectors mostly reside in the green, led by Financial Services, Basic Resources, Construction and Chemicals. Higher metal prices—particularly copper—help underpin sentiment in Basic Resources, while broader macro flow remains light.

Top European News

• Regulators at the BoE announce plans to support the growth of the mutuals sector. Measures include: A PRA and FCA review of mutual credit union regulations, considering more risk-based requirements for larger, complex firms and proportionality for smaller credit unions.

FX

• DXY has unwound most of its earlier losses. Initially hit by a firmer JPY on the back of more hawkish BoJ sources, coupled with verbal intervention (see below for details). The JPY reaction took DXY down to a 98.805 intraday trough (vs 99.075 APAC high), although since newsflow quietened and despite a stable risk environment, the JPY waned and DXY now attempts to reclaim 99.00 to the upside at the time of writing. The index, however, remains within yesterday's 98.765-99.08 ahead of the September US PCE, which was delayed by the US government shutdown.
• JPY has surrendered most of its earlier gains after an initial surge triggered by Bloomberg sources suggesting the BoJ is likely to hike this month while keeping the door open to further tightening. The reports briefly pushed USD/JPY below 154.50. This was followed by verbal intervention from Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara, who reiterated that authorities would take appropriate steps against excessive or disorderly FX moves if needed. USD/JPY subsequently touched a 154.34 low before rebounding and stalling just shy of 155.00, despite limited follow-through newsflow and a stable risk backdrop.
• AUD is the top gainer, lifted by a surge in copper prices and earlier USD softness, though both AUD and copper later eased off highs as the dollar attempted a recovery. The AUD/NZD cross extended its rebound, pushing back above 1.1450 and trading toward the upper end of a 1.1461–1.1484 range.
• Other G10s vary and continue to take their cue from broader USD moves, though EUR saw a couple of brief upticks after slight upward revisions to Eurozone Q3 GDP and Employment. EUR/USD now trades mid-range within 1.1640–1.1672.

Fixed Income

• USTs remain flat in a thin 112-22+ to 112-27+ band. Traders look ahead to US PCE at 15:00 GMT / 10:00 ET, a release that will feed into the debate around a potential December Fed cut. Odds of such a move have climbed above 85% in recent sessions, up from the low-60% range a month ago, aided by comments from Fed’s Williams, who said policymakers have room for another adjustment in the “near term.”
• JGBs were hit overnight on further hawkish BoJ source reports, with market-implied odds of a December hike nearing 80%. The 10yr Japanese future fell over 20 ticks to a 133.91 trough before stabilising. Since then, bonds have held in tighter ranges as attention turns to US PCE.
• Bunds were marginally softer in a 128.29–128.52 range as markets awaited the 11:30 GMT Bundestag pension vote, which is now widely expected to pass after Die Linke signalled it will abstain—lowering the effective majority threshold and reducing the relevance of dissent within the CDU/CSU’s Young Group. The vote remains a key barometer of Chancellor Merz’s coalition stability.

Commodities

• WTI and Brent continue to trade in tight ranges with European trade underway, and following an overnight session devoid of crude-specific catalysts. Early-door comments from a Kremlin aide noted that Russia and the US are progressing in Ukraine-related talks and that Moscow is ready for further engagement, though this echoed recent rhetoric and left crude benchmarks largely unreactive pending fresh developments.
• Spot Gold found support near USD 4,200/oz in early APAC trade and steadily climbed to a USD 4,231/oz peak as Europe opened. The overnight bid was helped by weakness in the Dollar, with JPY strength driven by reports of a potential December BoJ rate hike. Since the European open, the Dollar has begun to recover, but XAU continues to hold near session highs.
• 3M LME Copper extended its rally to fresh record highs after Thursday’s consolidation in a tight USD ~180/t band. The contract opened just below USD 11.45k/t before buyers immediately stepped in, driving prices to a new all-time high at USD 11.7k/t as Europe opened.
• Discounts for Russian ESPO blend crude oil delivered to China have widened to USD 5-6/bbl vs ICE Brent due to falling demand, according to Reuters

Geopolitics: Middle East

• Hamas Leader to Al-Arabiya: "The Movement Does Not Want to Continue to Rule Gaza ... We Agreed to Form a Technocratic Committee to Govern Gaza".
• US President Trump plans to announce before Christmas the transition to phase 2 of the agreement to end the war in Gaza and the establishment of the new governing body that will manage the strip, according to Axios's Ravid.

Geopolitics: Ukraine

• Russia's Kremlin said Moscow is waiting for the US reaction after Putin-Witkoff meeting, while it added that there is no plan for a Putin-Trump call for now.
• Russian Kremlin aide said Russia and the US are moving forward in talks relating to Ukraine. Ready for further work with the current US negotiating team.
• The US has urged the EU to oppose the plan to use frozen Russian central bank assets to back a massive loan to Ukraine, via Bloomberg Sources.
• UK ministers are prepared to unlock GBP 8bln of frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine, according to The Times.

Geopolitics: Other

• US military said it conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel in international waters in the eastern Pacific on Thursday.

US Event Calendar

• 10:00 am: Sep Personal Income, est. 0.3%, prior 0.4%
• 10:00 am: Sep Personal Spending, est. 0.3%, prior 0.6%
• 10:00 am: Sep Real Personal Spending, est. 0.1%, prior 0.4%
• 10:00 am: Sep PCE Price Index MoM, est. 0.3%, prior 0.3%
• 10:00 am: Sep PCE Price Index YoY, est. 2.8%, prior 2.7%
• 10:00 am: Sep Core PCE Price Index MoM, est. 0.2%, prior 0.2%
• 10:00 am: Sep Core PCE Price Index YoY, est. 2.8%, prior 2.9%
• 10:00 am: Dec P U. of Mich. Sentiment, est. 52, prior 51
• 3:00 pm: Oct Consumer Credit, est. 10.48b, prior 13.09b

DB's Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap

Markets saw a modest risk-on move yesterday, as a decent batch of US data saw investors price in fewer rate cuts next year. That optimism meant the S&P 500 (+0.11%) advanced for a third consecutive session, closing less than half a percent beneath its record high, while the VIX index of volatility (-0.30pts) fell to a two-month low of 15.78. Moreover, futures are pointing to a further advance this morning, with those on the S&P 500 up another +0.20% overnight, which would take the index even closer to its October record.  However, more hawkish expectations meant bonds struggled, and the 10yr Treasury yield (+3.5bps) hit a two-week high of 4.10%. Meanwhile, those bond losses echoed around the world, not least after multiple reports suggested the Bank of Japan was on the verge of another rate hike in a couple of weeks’ time. So yesterday saw 10yr JGB yields close at a post-2007 high of 1.93%, and they’re up another +1.1bps this morning to 1.94%.

That US data helped to drive the hawkish repricing, because it suggested the labour market was in a more robust position than previously thought. For instance, the weekly initial jobless claims fell to just 191k in the week ending November 29 (vs. 220k expected). Clearly it’s worth noting that we often see distortions in these numbers around the Thanksgiving holiday, so we shouldn’t overegg the improvement, but it was still a promising sign. Indeed, the 4-week moving average fell to its lowest since January, at just 214.75k. And in other news, the report on announced layoffs from Challenger, Gray & Christmas found there were fewer layoffs than expected, with a rise of +23.5% year-on-year in November (vs. +48.0% expected). So collectively, those releases suggested the US labour market was in a slightly better position than previously thought, despite the broader signs of softening we’ve seen recently. In addition, those releases matter more than usual for the Fed next week, because the data backlog from the shutdown means we won’t get the November jobs report as originally scheduled today, and instead have to wait until December 16.

With that in mind, investors adjusted their expectations in a hawkish direction for the coming months. For instance, even though a December cut is priced above 90%, there was growing scepticism that would be followed up by another, with the total amount of cuts priced by March 2026 down -1.8bps on the day to 39bps. And looking further out, the amount of rate cuts priced by the December 2026 meeting came down -5.2bps on the day to 86bps. So that shift in expectations meant Treasuries lost ground across the curve, with the 2yr yield (+3.8bps) up to 3.52%, whilst the 10yr yield (+3.5bps) rose to 4.10%.

In the meantime, the newsflow out of Japan also goes some way to explaining the latest bond selloff, as markets have become increasingly confident the BoJ will hike again this month. First, there was a Reuters report shortly before we went to press yesterday, which said the BoJ would likely hike rates this month, and the government would tolerate the move. Then a few hours later, Bloomberg similarly reported that key members of the government wouldn’t try to stop the BoJ from hiking in December. So that meant the Japanese yen strengthened against other major currencies yesterday, and this morning it’s strengthened back above 155 per dollar to 154.89.

That newsflow has continued overnight, with Bloomberg reporting this morning that BoJ officials are ready to hike rates at the next meeting, “provided there’s no major shock to the economy or financial markets in the meantime”. Moreover, the article said that the BoJ would indicate that further rate hikes would follow if its outlook for the economy were realised. So if they do proceed, that would take the policy rate up to 0.75%, the highest since 1995. That’s led to a hawkish reaction among Japanese assets, with the yen strengthening +0.18% this morning against the US Dollar, whilst the Nikkei is down -1.29%. And the yield curve has steepened as well, with the 5yr yield (+2.2bps) up to a post-2008 high of 1.42% this morning.

Elsewhere in Asia, we’ve seen a more mixed performance this morning. So the KOSPI (+1.23%) has posted a strong advance, but the CSI 300 (+0.11%) and the Shanghai Comp (+0.05%) have only posted a modest gain, whilst the Hang Seng (-0.06%) is slightly lower. Meanwhile in India, the central bank cut rates by 25bps in line with expectations, taking the repurchase rate down to 5.25%.

All that follows on from a pretty subdued session for US equities yesterday, with the S&P 500 (+0.11%) posting a third consecutive advance. That left the index just -0.49% beneath its record closing high from late-October, whilst other indices like the NASDAQ (+0.22%) and the Magnificent 7 (+0.53%) also moved higher. In terms of specifics, Meta (+3.43%) rose after a Bloomberg report said that executives were considering budget cuts up to as much as 30% for the metaverse group. Meanwhile, Dollar General (+14.01%) was the top performer in the S&P after raising their full-year outlook. However, some of the more defensive sectors in the S&P 500 struggled, with consumer staples (-0.73%) and healthcare (-0.73%) both losing ground. Futures on the S&P 500 are pointing to further gains this morning, with a +0.20% advance.

Earlier in Europe, equities had put in an even stronger performance, with the STOXX 600 (+0.45%) closing less than 1% beneath its own record high. That was echoed across the continent, where the DAX (+0.79%) and the CAC 40 (+0.43%) also rose, whilst Spain’s IBEX 35 (+0.97%) hit an all-time high. As in the US however, sovereign bonds struggled, with yields on 10yr bunds (+2.4bps), OATs (+3.2bps) and BTPs (+2.2bps) all moving higher. Finally in the commodity space, Brent crude rose +1.02% to $63.31/bbl as investors weighed ongoing risks to Russian oil supply. 

To the day ahead now, and US data releases include PCE inflation for September, and the University of Michigan’s preliminary consumer sentiment index for December. Otherwise, we’ll get German factory orders and French industrial production for October, and Canada’s employment report for November. Finally from central banks, we’ll hear from the ECB’s Villeroy and Lane.

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 08:38

Majority-owned U.S. affiliates of foreign multinational enterprises employed 8.66 million workers in the United States in 2023, a 1.9 percent increase from 8.5 million workers in 2022, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. These affiliates accounted for 6.2 percent of total private-industry employment in the United States in 2023. Full Text

Economic Confidence Slips To 17-Month Low, Holiday Spending Plans Weaken

Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times,

A new Gallup poll shows that U.S. consumer confidence deteriorated sharply in November, falling to its weakest level in 17 months as households contended with a protracted federal government shutdown, volatile financial markets, cooling job prospects, and renewed inflation anxiety.

The gloomier mood—reflected in Gallup’s Dec. 4 poll and aligning with several other major sentiment surveys—coincided with a pullback in Americans’ holiday spending plans, raising concerns about softer momentum heading into the final weeks of 2025.

Gallup’s economic confidence index fell seven points to –30 in November, its weakest reading since July 2024. The drop reflected dimmer views of both current conditions and the outlook: 21 percent of Americans called the economy “excellent” or “good,” while 40 percent said it is “poor.”

Expectations slipped further, with just 27 percent saying the economy is improving—down from 31 percent in October—and 68 percent saying it is getting worse.

The downturn marks a notable reversal from the relative stability seen for much of the year.

After improving through late 2024 on post-election optimism, the index had hovered between –14 and –22 for most of 2025 before slipping in October and then tumbling last month. At -30, November’s sentiment reading is well above the recent low of -58 notched in June 2022, when inflation soared to a recent peak of 9 percent and sent confidence plummeting. The lowest the gauge has ever hit is -72, in October 2008, during the financial crisis.

Historic Pullback in Holiday Spending Plans

Consumers’ heightened economic anxiety in November translated into a far smaller appetite for holiday gift spending than earlier in the season. Gallup found that Americans have cut their expected holiday budgets by $229 since October - the largest midseason drop the organization has ever recorded, surpassing even the $185 decline during the 2008 financial crisis.

Despite the sharp contraction in projected spending, only 29 percent of Americans say they plan to spend less than last year, up from 23 percent in October but still far below the 46 percent who reported plans to cut back in November 2008.

Labor market sentiment also softened meaningfully. Just a third of Americans (33 percent) said it is a good time to find a quality job, the weakest reading since January 2021, when COVID-19 lockdowns were pressuring labor markets. Views on job availability have worsened steadily through the fall, mirroring private-sector payroll data showing a broad pullback in hiring.

ADP Research reported this week that the private sector shed 32,000 jobs in November—the weakest showing since early 2023—driven largely by steep losses at small firms. Wage gains continued to cool, with year-over-year pay growth easing to 4.4 percent in November from the prior month’s 4.5 percent pace of growth.

Other gauges of economic activity suggest a mixed backdrop. The Conference Board’s consumer confidence gauge slid to 88.7, its lowest since April, and expectations remained mired below the recession-warning threshold for a tenth consecutive month.

Michigan’s sentiment survey showed a double-digit plunge in current conditions and weaker buying plans for big-ticket goods. JPMorganChase Institute data showed real household income growth slowed to 1.6 percent in October, leaving consumers heading into the holidays with flat bank balances and limited purchasing-power gains.

These readings reflect sentiment shaped by the 43-day federal government shutdown, which delayed pay for federal workers, disrupted flights, and halted key benefit programs, adding strain to household finances. Michigan’s consumer sentiment index fell to 50.3 in November, its lowest since June 2022, as respondents reported worsening personal finances and growing anxiety about the shutdown’s broader economic fallout.

Retail Spending Cools but Continues to Grow

Retail activity has cooled, though it has continued to expand. The latest government data—interrupted by the shutdown—indicate slower sales in September, and while private-sector card spending figures from the Bank of America Institute show relatively solid year-over-year gains in October, some of that strength was buoyed by higher prices rather than higher volumes.

Despite the sour near-term mood, forecasters remain cautiously optimistic about next year. A recent National Association for Business Economics outlook sees 2026 growth improving to 2 percent, supported by resilient consumer spending and firmer business investment.

Similarly, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has raised its U.S. growth forecast, with the 38-country group saying the upgrade reflects exceptional rates of investment in information processing equipment, software, and data center construction, helping offset cooling job growth and other headwinds.

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 08:25

Netflix To Buy Warner Bros In $72 Billion Deal; Hollywood Goes Into Panic Mode

Netflix will acquire Warner Bros., including its film and TV studios, HBO, and HBO Max, in a cash-and-stock transaction valuing WBD at an enterprise value of $82.7 billion (equity value $72 billion), or $27.75 per share. The deal is expected to close in 3Q26, following WBD's planned spinoff of its Global Networks division into a separate public company ("Discovery Global"). The move comes just months after Paramount-Skydance made its own bid for WBD.

The Netflix-WBD deal unites the streaming platform with a century-deep library and franchises such as DC, Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, The Sopranos, and The Big Bang Theory.

Netflix wrote in a statement that the deal will boost its content offering, expand production capacity, and improve long-term growth:

By offering members a wider selection of quality series and films, Netflix expects to attract and retain more members, drive more engagement, and generate incremental revenue and operating income. The company also expects to realize at least $2–3 billion of cost savings per year by the third year and expects the transaction to be accretive to GAAP earnings per share by year two.

Here's a snapshot of the deal terms:

• Each WBD share converts into $23.25 in cash plus $4.50 in Netflix stock

• Boards of both companies unanimously approved the transaction

• Closing in 12–18 months, pending regulatory review and WBD shareholder approval

• Bankers for NFLX: Moelis, Skadden; additional financing by Wells Fargo, BNP, HSBC

• Bankers for WBD: Allen & Co., J.P. Morgan, Evercore; legal counsel Wachtell and Debevoise

Netflix outbid other offers, including those from Paramount-Skydance and Comcast, earlier this year.

Bloomberg noted that Hollywood is far from thrilled about this new Netflix–WBD marriage:

And the winner is… Netflix.

Warner Bros. Discovery began exclusive negotiations to sell its film and TV studios and HBO Max to Netflix, people familiar said — a sign that the streaming giant pulled ahead of Paramount-Skydance and Comcast. A deal would reshape the entertainment landscape and mark a major strategic shift for Netflix, already Hollywood's most valuable company. Paramount called the sale process "tainted," while two-time Oscar-winner Jane Fonda used a stronger word for its likely impact on the industry: "catastrophic."

Former WBD CEO...

If I was tasked with doing so, I could not think of a more effective way to reduce competition in Hollywood than selling WBD to Netflix

— Jason Kilar (@jasonkilar) December 4, 2025

Netflix shares moved lower in the early cash session, down around 2%.

Founded as a DVD-by-mail service, Netflix first crushed video chain Blockbuster - and is now doing the same to Hollywood by largely refusing to release films in theaters. The deal would position Netflix as a true studio heavyweight. Of course, all of this still hinges on regulatory approval, with California Republican Darrell Issa already objecting to any potential Netflix takeover of Warner Bros.

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 08:00

As AI Booms, US Ignores One Threat That Could Turn Off Everything

Authored by Richard Porter via RealClearPolitics.com,

We are now well past dawn in the age of artificial intelligence: According to a recent survey by Pew Research Center 62% of respondents say they interact with AI a least several times a week. Nearly every company in the U.S. is now urgently evaluating the ways in which AI can be deployed to lower costs, improve products and services, and ultimately to increase profits. Some, such as Elon Musk, are predicting AI and robots will generate such abundance that in 10 to 20 years, work will become optional and money irrelevant.

Hundreds of billions of dollars are being poured into building new data centers to house the computers to meet expected demand as AI becomes ubiquitous, not just in the U.S., but around the world. Some see a 25% growth in U.S. electricity demand over the next five years as these data centers come online, and predict consumer electricity prices will go at least 40% higher, too.

Our economy, our money, our livelihoods, our lives are increasingly virtual and online; our dependence on electricity and access to data processing cannot be overstated. Just over 140 years since the commercialization of electricity, just 75 years after the first commercial computer was introduced, and just over 30 years since the Internet was opened to the public, human civilization in the U.S. and much of the world depends on the continuous flow of electrons through circuits.

While there’s been much handwringing over the risk that AI will take over the world, as in “The Terminator” series of movies (Google’s AI estimates there have been hundreds of thousands or more articles on this topic), perhaps we should focus more attention on the opposite risk.

What if AI, the computers, indeed all electricity and electric circuits are suddenly turned off? What happens if the continuous flow of electrons through circuits upon which our civilization increasingly depends just – ends?

How could this happen? Wires and circuits are designed to carry a certain voltage and amperage: Volts measure pressure on electrons and amps measure the volume or flow of electrons. When volts or amps are too high for the wire or circuit, it overheats, melts, or catches fire. So, for example, when lightning strikes an electronic device, the wires in the device act as antennae and pick up the electric charge from the lightning, which causes the voltage on the wire to surge millions of times higher than typical voltage. 

Lightning rods, invented by Ben Franklin in 1753, and Faraday cages, invented by Michael Faraday in 1836, have long been used to protect structures and electronic devices from the regularly and naturally occurring risk of lightning and ambient electromagnetic waves from the sun or other sources, by redirecting the electricity caused by these phenomenon.

So, how might the entire flow of electricity upon which our civilization depends ever just be turned off?  There are two types of relatively low-probability events that could cause a massive electromagnetic pulse directing millions of volts onto wires, thereby destroying unprotected electronic devices in the U.S.

• The first is a massive solar storm called a “Carrington event” after the astronomer who observed the largest geomagnetic storm ever recorded in 1859 – a storm hundreds of times larger than “typical” solar storms – that destroyed telegraph systems in Britain and the U.S.

• The second is the creation of electromagnetic pulses by detonating a nuclear device high in the atmosphere above the U.S., called a HEMP, or high-altitude electromagnetic pulse.

While no one knows for sure the odds of either event occurring in the next 10 years, some have put the odds for each at 10-12%. In any event, the risk is non-trivial and the consequences to life in the United States of either event continue to grow every day as our reliance on AI, computers, robots, and the electricity that makes it all possible, grows. 

Our government formed a commission to assess this risk in 2001, which reported in 2008 that 90% of Americans would likely be dead 6 months after a HEMP attack on the U.S. – because our modern civilization operates as a system of systems, but all of the systems require electricity and electric components to function.

Americans are even more dependent on electricity today than we were 17 years ago, and our dependence on electricity will grow even deeper as we integrate AI into our lives.

So, as we depend more on electricity and AI, the policy question is: Are we actually implementing strategies for mitigating EMP risk, as the expected cost of this known risk is massive and continues to grow?

Note in this regard that triggering a HEMP is actually the easiest type of nuclear attack a rogue state or actor could launch against us – because a missile only has to go up and explode over the U.S. and does not have to be targeted back to a particular location on earth. It’s also relatively “clean” in that radiation fallout to the ground is lower the higher the bomb is detonated. Some scholars believe that HEMP weapons are central to China’s nuclear and cyber strategy against the U.S.

It’s uncomfortable to consider this risk, and it’s human nature to sometimes ignore small risks with major consequences, but a rational policymaker should increase investments to mitigate this risk as the expected cost of the risk increases.

Are we doing this? How many of the new, massive data centers are incorporating protections against EMP in their design and construction? As utilities build new power plants and upgrade the aging, unprotected grid, are they planning and designing to mitigate EMP risk? And what of our transportation equipment and infrastructure?

Ubiquitous, reliable, low-cost electric energy has been our greatest strength, but it’s also become our Achilles heel in the nuclear age. We know this to be true.

Last March, President Trump ordered the creation of a National Resilience Strategy by July and a National Critical Infrastructure Policy by October to address risks such as these, but neither the follow-up strategy nor the policy contemplated by the order appears to have been published. While empowering states and localities to deal with these risks may be efficient, it’s unclear whether states are seriously taking on this task either.   

In Aesop’s fable of the wild boar and the fox, the fox questions why the boar sharpens its tusks, and the boar replies it would be foolish not to get ready when you can for what comes. I fear we are not giving this well-known, truly-existential, but oft-ignored risk the attention, planning, oversight, and investment it deserves as electric infrastructure spending soars in pursuit of AI.

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ZeroHedge.

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 07:20

Suspected Pirates Swarm Bulk Carrier In Critical Red Sea Maritime Chokepoint

This week's maritime focus, mostly centered on Ukraine's drone strikes against Russia's shadow-fleet tankers, has shifted to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the critical chokepoint linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, where reports now indicate a bulk carrier has come under attack.

UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said it received a report that a bulk carrier transiting the Bab el-Mandeb Strait was attacked by a swarm of 15 small craft.

"A vessel reports sighting approximately 15 small craft; some of the small craft closed to within a range of 1–2 cables, and there was an exchange of fire," UKMTO wrote in a warning notice.

Maritime analytics provider MarineTraffic posted an update on X stating that the bulk carrier was approximately 14 nautical miles west of Yemen when the captain issued the first distress call.

MarineTraffic provided further details about the attack:

A bulk carrier transiting the Bab el-Mandeb Strait came under attack early Friday, according to incident reports shared by UKMTO. #MarineTraffic data shows the vessel Bobic maintaining speed while altering course at 03:32 UTC, approximately 14 nautical miles west of Yemen, when the first distress call was issued. The ship reported being approached by up to 15 small craft, prompting its onboard security team to return fire. A second attack followed shortly afterward, involving two skiffs and a suspected mothership several miles away.

Another vessel, the Globe Aliki, was also transiting the area at the time and crossed paths with the Bobic at 03:35 UTC. According to reports, the Globe Aliki observed the small boats from roughly 1 nautical mile away, describing them as fishing-type craft. The vessel itself was not targeted.

Prior to the incident, AIS data shows that on 3 December at 17:55 UTC, the Bobic's AIS destination was changed to "Armed Guard Onboard." On 5 December at 05:47 UTC, the AIS destination changed again to "Chinese Crew." The Bobic is now continuing toward its next port of call, with all crew reported safe and the security team having successfully repelled both attacks.

Bulk carrier attacked by suspected pirates in Bab el-Mandeb Strait

A bulk carrier transiting the Bab el-Mandeb Strait came under attack early Friday, according to incident reports shared by UKMTO. #MarineTraffic data shows the vessel Bobic maintaining speed while altering course… pic.twitter.com/Y8hhisPGKX

— MarineTraffic (@MarineTraffic) December 5, 2025

Shipping journal Lloyd's List posted exclusive footage showing security personnel on the ship firing long rifles at the small boats.

Lloyd's List noted: "The lack of serious intent from the attackers, as well as the location of the incident, suggest the perpetrators are as likely to be local fishermen protecting their nets and lines as they are to be Somali pirates or Houthi militants."

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 06:55

My end-of-week morning Miami/Art Basel reads:

• How Much Will the Stock Market Fall in 2026? What will the worst drawdown look like? Going back to 1928, the average peak-to-trough drawdown in a given calendar year is -16%. Drawdowns were worse than average in 2025 (-18.9%), 2022 (-25.4%) and 2020 (-33.9%). Peak-to-trough drawdowns were better than average in 2024 (-8.5%), 2023 (-10.3%) and 2021 (-5.2%). (A Wealth of Common Sense)

• The End of the Lunch Bowl Era: Diners have bowl fatigue, with some deriding them as ‘slop.’ Even Chipotle’s founder has moved on by starting a sandwich chain. (Bloomberg free)

• Basic statistical flaws of bitcoin’s four-year price ‘cycle’ The idea that BTC follows a four-year cycle at all originates from the cadence of its coinbase reward halving every four years. Because the supply of BTC issuance programmatically decreases every four years, it is easy to invent a statistical model about that halving’s supposed effect on price. However, this ignores the reality of financial markets where millions of investors discount future prices based on all presently known information. (Protos)

• Game Theory Explains How Algorithms Can Drive Up Prices: Recent findings reveal that even simple pricing algorithms can make things more expensive. (Wired)

• Everything Is Not Fine in the Art World: Auction headlines offer a picture of health that hides a body in crisis. (Hyperallergic)

• The Price of Remission: When I was diagnosed with cancer, I set out to understand why a single pill of Revlimid cost the same as a new iPhone. I’ve covered high drug prices as a reporter for years. What I discovered shocked even me. (ProPublica)

• It’s their job to keep AI from destroying everything. Spoiler: the nine-person team works for Anthropic. What happens when just a handful of employees at one of the world’s leading AI companies — one that nearly tripled its valuation to $183 billion in less than a year, and is now valued in the range of $350 billion — are given the blanket task of figuring out how the ultra-disruptive technology is going to impact society? (The Verge)

• Would You Track Your Stools Like You Track Your Steps? Equipped with sensors and AI, smart toilets promise to monitor hydration, gut health and even cancer risk — if users can get past the ick factor. (Bloomberg free)

• Will new physics affect our Universe’s far future? We have a picture of how and when it will all come to an end. These three big ideas could still profoundly change how our cosmos evolves. (Big Think)

• The NBA Superstar Who’s Kobe, Steph, Wilt and Jordan—All Rolled Into One: Nikola Jokic, the three-time NBA MVP, is having the best season of his entire career. He’s also surpassing some of the best players of all time in several statistical categories. (Wall Street Journal)

Be sure to check out our Masters in Business interview this weekend with Paul Zummo, Chief Investment Officer and Co-founder of JPMorgan Alternative Asset Management. The JPM group manages $35 billion in external hedge fund solutions for institutional and high-net worth investors. He also heads the Portfolio Management Group, and is a member of the JPMAAM Investment Committee.

Will Netflix be the winner of the Warner Bros. Discovery contest?

Source: Sherwood

 

Sign up for our reads-only mailing list here.

 

The post 10 Friday AM Reads appeared first on The Big Picture.

6 Reasons Jack Dorsey Is Definitely Satoshi... And 5 Reasons He's Not

Authored by Felix Ng via CoinTelegraph.com,

Over the years, we’ve explored some intriguing theories about who (or what) created Bitcoin, ranging from the top government spy agency in America to a time-traveling AI and even the lizard people. 

(StarPlatinum)

However, some are adamant that the creator of Bitcoin is much more human and has been under our noses this whole time, sporting a guru beard, sandals, and wearing a T-shirt with Satoshi written on it in large letters: the billionaire Twitter and Block founder Jack Dorsey. 

“I believe that Jack has been outwardly signaling that he’s Satoshi for more than a decade,” deBanked chief editor Sean Murray tells Magazine. 

“I don’t think his actions over the past decade are of someone saying ‘don’t find me’ but rather someone building on to the lore of how it’s him, why it’s him, that each blatant but indirect admission is part of the art, the brand of poetic terrorism that he subscribes to.”

So what makes some intelligent and respected people — including VanEck’s head of digital assets research Matthew Sigel — so confident that Dorsey is the creator of Bitcoin? 

1. Jack Dorsey was one of the original cypherpunks in the 1990s and wanted to end dependence on the dollar

Like any good murder mystery, a killer requires a motive. Dorsey has this in spades. 

Dorsey was one of the original 1,300 members of the famed Cypherpunk mailing list — a foundational online community founded in 1992 that prized privacy and digital freedom and laid the groundwork for Bitcoin as money outside the control of the state. He joined the list in 1996 while a student at the University of Missouri–Rolla at around 20 years of age. 

Jack Dorsey wearing an RSA shirt designed by Dr Adam Back in protest of the US government’s ban on the export of RSA encryption. (Sean Murray)

Dorsey even created a website that promoted the cyberpunks’ mission using his university domain. It’s safe to say he was a massive fan of the movement and familiar with Adam Back and Hal Finney and DigiCash long before they became well known.

Fun fact: In 2003, Dorsey reportedly blogged, “I also wish to end my dependence on the American Dollar ($) and in that vein am setting up a bartering network.”

2. Dorsey’s ventures are about Bitcoin and decentralization

Dorsey’s alignment with the cypherpunk movement persists to today. In 2009, he founded the now crypto-forward payments company, Square (now known as Block), which has just rolled out Bitcoin payments to over 4 million merchants. 

In 2019, after his second return as CEO of Twitter, he created Bluesky, a decentralized Twitter alternative that embodies some of Bitcoin’s decentralized ideals. It didn’t live up to his ideals of decentralization so he focused his efforts on supporting Nostr instead.  

Then, earlier this year, Dorsey launched Bitchat. This decentralized communications platform enables people to contact each other without the need for the internet, which has proven particularly valuable amid government protests and natural disasters, much like Bitcoin has in the past. 

Screenshot of Jack Dorsey’s early cypherpunk website. Credit to Sean Murray

His charity, Start Small, donated a whopping $21 million to OpenSats, a nonprofit that supports the developers of Bitcoin Core and other projects related to Bitcoin. 

No matter which way you slice it, Dorsey is a cypherpunk OG who has the motivation, and as we will see, the know-how to create and support the growth of Bitcoin.

3. See? Plus, plus: Jack Dorsey had the know-how to code Bitcoin

So, if Dorsey wanted to create Bitcoin, did he have the skills to code it?

The answer to this is also a resounding probably. Dorsey was obsessed with computers since his father brought home an IBM PC Junior, when he was around 8 years old. They later got a Macintosh, and by the age of 11, he had taught himself to code. 

What an IBM PCjr looked like (Wikimedia Commons)

“I was enthralled by both of them, mainly the ability to just change what they do. So I learned how to program in BASIC, and I played with HyperCard, and little by little I got better and better at newer programming languages like C,” said Dorsey in a Harvard Business School podcast in 2014. 

By around the age of 15, Dorsey was already writing dispatch software for taxi cabs, couriers and emergency services that would later be used for decades. 

When deBanked’s Murray Dorsey uncovered Dorsey’s early cypherpunk website from the late 90s, it showed Dorsey already knew coding languages including C, Python, Java, Perl, PHP, OCaml, JoCaml, Lisp, ObjC and more. And yes, it did show he knew how to code in C++, the language the original Bitcoin client was written in.

So, it’s not a giant leap to think that Dorsey would have had an even firmer grasp of programming by the time he was 32, which was how old he was when the Bitcoin white paper was released. 

4. Dorsey was focused on other things outside his day job in the lead up to the BTC white paper

The theory becomes even more intriguing once you realize that Dorsey, who founded and ran Twitter from 2006 to 2008, happened to have some downtime just weeks before the Bitcoin white paper was released — downtime potentially related to spending too much time away from his day job. 

Writing Bitcoin would not have been an easy task. Nakamoto once told early Bitcoin user and developer Mike Hearn in 2010 that it took him two years of development before releasing the Bitcoin paper and code, “and I could only spend so much time on each of the many issues.” 

This would have been precisely the time frame that Dorsey was working as the CEO of Twitter before he was fired in October 2008. 

Why did he get fired? Many reports pin it to Dorsey’s failure to address the platform’s frequent service disruptions and perceived leadership issues. 

However, some suggest that part of the reason is that he would leave the office early to “de-stress and attend night courses in fashion and drawing.” 

Satoshi Nakamoto would go on to share the Bitcoin white paper for the first time on Oct. 31, 2008, with the message: 

I’ve been working on a new electronic cash system that’s fully peer-to-peer, with no trusted third party.” 

Bitcoin officially launched a few months later on Jan. 3, 2009. 

5. The coincidences

Then, there are the many “coincidences” aligning specific dates in Bitcoin with aspects of Dorsey’s personal life. Believers are convinced these Easter eggs were made to subtly point toward Dorsey. 

Here are some key ones, with credit to Murray and Sigel; however, there are countless more that we didn’t cover, which can be found here. 

(Matthew Sigel)

Oct. 31, 2008: Bitcoin white paper comes out / Oct. 31, 2008: Neal Stephenson, author of “Snow Crash,” birthday. Dorsey is a fan of the book.

Jan. 9, 2009: Dorsey attends an award show in San Francisco / Jan. 10, 2009: Nakamoto accidentally logged into IRC from an IP address in California

Jan. 11, 2009: Nakamoto’s first recorded transaction / Jan. 11, 2009: Dorsey’s mother’s birthday

Nov. 19, 2009: Nakamoto registers for the Bitcoin forum as “satoshi” / Nov. 19, 2009: Dorsey’s birthday / Nov. 19, 2015: Square (now Block)’s IPO / Block Investors Day, Nov.19 2025.

May 3, 2010: Nakamoto’s last mined Bitcoin / May 3, 2010: Dorsey’s father’s birthday.

Then there’s the coincidence that his good friend Alyssa Milano wrote a graphic novel called Hacktivist about a billionaire character based on Dorsey who runs a social media company but is a secret hacker who develops a decentralized encrypted peer to peer network. Hmmm.

6. Jack Dorsey bankrolled the case against Faketoshi

Another circumstantial piece of evidence is what Jack Dorsey did when he saw a man parading around the world claiming to be Satoshi Nakamoto. 

For years, Australian computer scientist Dr. Craig Wright claimed to be the inventor of Bitcoin. He ultimately lost the battle last year and was forced to admit he was not.

But before that, his lawyer, Anthony Grabiner, had argued that it was “striking” that no one else had publicly claimed to be the creator of Bitcoin. 

“If Dr Wright were not Satoshi, the real Satoshi would have been expected to come forward to counter the claim,” said Grabiner. 

Jack Dorsey answered the call.

In May 2020, 145 ancient Bitcoin addresses signed a message stating that Craig Wright was not Satoshi and a liar and a fraud. The oldest Bitcoin address that signed the message started with 1jak — Jack’s old pseudonym.

Through Block, Dorsey co-founded and bankrolled the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA), which sued Wright in 2021 to legally declare he is not the creator of Bitcoin.

Dorsey began wearing the Satoshi T-shirt in February 2022, in the midst of the saga.

The case concluded with a High Court ruling in March 2024 in their favor. Dorsey simply and humbly labeled it a “W” after the verdict was announced. 

5 good reasons why Jack Dorsey isn’t Satoshi Nakamoto

While none of the evidence above could be considered bulletproof, supporters of the theory say there’s more than enough circumstantial evidence to seriously point toward Dorsey. Not everyone agrees, though. 

Knowing how to code and being a member of the Cypherpunk mailing list is probably just the bare minimum to be a Nakamoto candidate. Julian Assange was also on the list, along with Adam Back and Wei Dai, for example.

Critics of the theory argue that there’s no single piece of evidence that concretely links Dorsey to Nakamoto.

Jameson Lopp, the co-founder of crypto security company Casa, is one of these people, calling the theory a “half baked narrative.”

“It’s true that Jack was a cypherpunk and a programmer, but that’s the strongest ‘evidence’ available to support this theory. Everything else is circumstantial if not outright mental gymnastics via numerology,” says Lopp. 

1. Dorsey would have had to juggle Bitcoin, Square and Twitter

“I think Jack is by far one of the least plausible theories because there’s so much evidence that he was too busy doing other things (traveling, building, and promoting Twitter) to be deep in the weeds on a project as novel as Bitcoin,” Lopp tells Magazine. 

Common sense says that Dorsey wouldn’t have had the time to work to grow Bitcoin, argues Lopp. While Dorsey was indeed fired as Twitter’s CEO in 2008, just before Nakamoto released the Bitcoin white paper, Dorsey remained chairman of the board.

Then a year later, Dorsey founded Square, a company that allows anyone to accept credit card payments on a mobile device. It would be pretty challenging for Dorsey to have assembled a brand new company while steering the Bitcoin ship.

2014: "We found Satoshi. Turns out he was hiding in plain sight and was listed in the phone book."

2025: "We found Satoshi. Turns out he was hiding in plain sight and appearing on national television wearing a Satoshi shirt." pic.twitter.com/Vs7suPUCZI

— Jameson Lopp (@lopp) February 18, 2025

“It’s quite clear that he was an extremely busy person not only overseeing multiple companies, but traveling around the world meeting important people, doing press interviews, speaking at conferences, promoting philanthropic causes, and more,” argues Lopp. 

His activities do not fit the profile of someone who had the time and mental bandwidth to also be building a completely new financial system from scratch while maintaining perfect anonymity.”

But Murray argues that this is precisely why Nakamoto complained about being “really busy” on several occasions between 2009 and 2011, eventually leaving the Bitcoin project, posting on April 23, 2011 that “I’ve moved on to other things. It’s in good hands with Gavin and everyone.”

2. Satoshi wary of government, Dorsey worked with them

Another piece of evidence that suggests Dorsey is not Nakamoto is that the creator of Bitcoin comes across almost as a cautious recluse and wasn’t a fan of the government or government control.

Lopp argues that, in contrast, Dorsey is a highly public figure. 

“The funny thing about Jack is that, unlike most cypherpunks, he was an extremely public individual who posted what he was up to on nearly an hourly basis,” he explains.  

Dorsey also reportedly spent 2008 and 2015 engaged with the US State Department as part of several delegations to Iraq, Iran and Russia with other representatives from the tech sector, which would appear to be out of character for Nakamoto. 

3. Satoshi Nakamoto had regular PT posting patterns

Lopp also noted that Satoshi’s online activity suggests a consistent sleeping pattern in the Pacific timezone. Cities in this timezone include Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Vancouver and Tijuana. 

In contrast, Dorsey’s tweets were far more erratic — consistent with someone who is constantly travelling between different time zones. However, it is worth noting that Dorsey was based in San Francisco around the time Bitcoin was created. 

Satoshi Nakamoto and Jack Dorsey had different online activity patterns (Jameson Lopp)

4. Dorsey and Nakamoto had conflicting activities

A related point is that Lopp argues that there are specific event conflicts that make it doubtful that Dorsey and Nakamoto are the same person. 

For example, in November 2009, Dorsey tweeted he was having a “late lunch” with venture capitalist Fred Wilson, but only five minutes later, Nakamoto committed code to the SourceForge repository. 

In another instance, Jack said he was walking to meet the mayor of Paris at City Hall on Dec. 9, 2009, and only 18 minutes later, Satoshi posted several responses to a technical suggestion thread about Bitcoin. 

Satoshi Nakamoto’s post to BitcoinTalk, as Jack Dorsey was set to meet the mayor of Paris  (Jameson Lopp)

Another potential conflict arose in July 2010, when Jack tweeted that he was getting ready to go on stage to present at the Square headquarters, and posted “Boom” around 28 minutes later, presumably when he had finished the presentation. 

During this time, Satoshi posted to the Bitcoin talk forum.

Of course, if you can design an entirely new monetary system in your spare time, you can probably schedule in a few posts to throw people off the scent.

Lopp acknowledges that it’s not impossible that Dorsey pre-timed certain posts on Bitcointalk or posted with his mobile phone while on the go, but argues that if that was the case, Dorsey would have picked much more public events and settings to set his pre-timed posts as Nakamoto. 

5. Coincidental dates are meaningless

Lopp also argues the so-called “numerology” — like Nakamoto signing up for BitcoinTalk on the same day as Dorsey’s birthday is “absolute junk.” 

“You can find patterns in anything,” Lopp tells Magazine. “It preys upon our monkey brain’s innate desire to find patterns in random noise and try to make sense of them.”

There’s actually a scientific term for this called “Apophenia” — the psychological phenomenon of perceiving meaningful patterns or connections between unrelated or random things. It’s seen as one of the key reasons why humans can navigate the world in the way we do. 

Apophenia could be why people keep accidentally finding Jesus Christ in their grilled cheese toast (YouTube)

Famed physicist Neil deGrasse Tyson once made a similar observation. 

“Over centuries of evolution, humans’ pattern recognition skills determined natural selection. Hunters skilled at spotting prey and predator and telling poisonous plants from healthy ones offered them a better chance of survival than those blind to the patterns. It enabled the survivors to pass on those pattern-friendly genes to future generations.” 

The debate goes on

The evidence pointing to Dorsey is certainly fascinating, but is far from irrefutable. Murray remains convinced that Dorsey is Nakamoto. 

“I believe that the Satoshi character is a Jack Dorsey story, that the circumstantial evidence, skillset, timeline, background, and modus operandi are a perfect match,” he tells Magazine. 

“Prior to my research, there were very few people, if any, that were even aware Jack was one of the original cypherpunks or that he was obsessed with cryptography as a youth, that he knew of Adam Back and Hal Finney and DigiCash by name.”

The pieces were intentionally put there to be found, even if we may never be afforded the satisfaction of him directly coming out and saying it’s him.”

Lopp thinks it’s more likely to be someone other than Dorsey — but argues that for the sake of Bitcoin, we would be better off not looking. 

“I find the aggregate of all the evidence to provide so much doubt that a reasonable person would conclude that it’s far more likely that Satoshi was someone else,” says Lopp in a blog post. 

Bitcoin is better off with Satoshi’s identity remaining unknown. A human can be criticized and politically attacked. A myth will withstand the test of time.

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 06:30

The UK Dominates The Most Damaging Tax Havens

A new analysis from the Tax Justice Network (TJN) has revealed the United Kingdom to be the biggest enabler of corporate tax dodging in the world.

As Statista's Anna Fleck shows in this infographic, British overseas territories and crown dependencies dominate the top eight roundup of places allowing multinationals to avoid paying tax on their profits.

You will find more infographics at Statista

Overall, this makes the UK responsible for about one third of global tax avoidance risk.

Ireland remained in ninth place for a second consecutive year in 2025, with an index value of 1,432.

It is followed by Luxembourg (1,399) and then the Bahamas (1,283), the latter of which is an independent member of the British commonwealth but not an OT or CD. In position 12 comes the Isle of Man (1,189) and in 13 comes Guernsey (1,145), both Crown Dependencies. The United Kingdom places in 19th position with a value of 865.

The index evaluates jurisdiction laws and monitors the volume of corporate financial activity entering and leaving jurisdictions. A Haven Score is determined by more than 70 questions under 18 indicators to find the extent to which a jurisdiction’s laws and regulations allow for corporate tax abuse. The outcome of these indicators are then combined with global scale weights, which are based on IMF data on foreign direct investments. The final figure is a measure of the contribution of each jurisdiction to the global problem of corporate tax abuse.

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 05:45

Washington's F-35 Sale To Saudi Arabia Might Be Part Of Trump's Ultimate Plan To Revive IMEC

Authored by Andrew Korybko via Substack,

This could make it easier for Saudi Arabia to normalize relations with Israel even in the absence of Palestinian independence and thus restore the political viability of this geo-economic megaproject.

The announcement that the US will sell F-35s to Saudi Arabia is a monumental development. Israel is the only country in West Asia to field these cutting-edge fighter jets so its “qualitative military edge” could be eroded as a result, ergo why the IDF officially objected to this. 

Axios reported that Israel wants the sale conditional on Saudi Arabia normalizing their relations, ideally through the Abraham Accords, or at least the US guaranteeing that the F-35s won’t be deployed in Saudi Arabia’s western regions near Israel.

It remains unclear whether the US will comply with these requests, but what’s much clearer is that Saudi Arabia will occupy a greater role in the US’ regional strategy, which brings the Kingdom back into the US’ orbit after it diversified its partnerships in recent years by expanding ties with Russia and China. Saudi Arabia was already moving towards a rapprochement with the US after the last four years of troubled ties under Biden, however, as proven by its reluctance to formally join BRICS after being invited in 2023.

The latest Gaza War that broke out shortly afterwards, which evolved into the first West Asian War between Israel and the Iranian-led Resistance Axis and ended in the latter’s defeat, derailed progress on the “India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor” (IMEC) from that year’s G20. IMEC’s geo-economic scope importantly necessitates the normalization of Israeli-Saudi ties for facilitating this, which the US might now try to broker after ending the Gaza War that disrupted this previously fast-moving process.

Saudi Arabia’s commitment to invest nearly $1 trillion in the US economy, up from the $600 billion that it agreed to during Trump’s visit in May, can be interpreted as a bribe for obtaining the best terms possible. Trump might therefore try to coerce Bibi into at least making superficial concessions on Palestinian sovereignty in the West Bank so that Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman (MBS) doesn’t “lose face” by agreeing to the normalization of their countries’ relations without Palestine first becoming independent.

At the same time, selling F-35s to Saudi Arabia and bestowing it “Major Non-NATO Ally” status might suffice for MBS abandoning even the minimal aforesaid implied demand, especially since IMEC is indispensable to his Kingdom’s post-oil future and associated “Vision 2030” development program. If the US brokers an Israeli-Saudi deal that leads to swift progress being made on implementing IMEC, then it can push IMEC as a replacement for India’s North-South Transport Corridor (NSTC) with Iran and Russia.

The US already revoked India’s Chabahar sanctions waiver before reinstating it, correspondingly as a form of pressure amidst their trade talks and then as a goodwill gesture therein as they made progress, but it arguably aims to redirect India from the NSTC to IMEC as a means of containing Russia. After all, the NSTC enables India to help Russia counterbalance the expansion of Turkish influence in Central Asia via TRIPP, so an indefinite waiver is extremely unlikely even in the event of an Indo-US trade deal.

It would be easier for India to accept this geo-economic concession, which might be reciprocated by tariff concessions on the US’ part, if IMEC is once again viable and could thus replace the NSTC. For that to happen, the US must first mediate the normalization of Israeli-Saudi ties, which it might now prioritize after brokering an end to the Gaza War and reaching its latest series of agreements with the Kingdom. The US’ F-35 deal with Saudi Arabia might therefore be part of Trump’s ultimate plan to revive IMEC.

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 05:00

Zelensky's Jet Reportedly In Near-Miss With Military Grade Drones In Ireland

Various major publications including The Telegraph and Newsweek are reporting claims that military-grade drones threatened Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's plane shortly before it landed at Dublin Airport on Monday.

The mystery drones reportedly reached the coordinates where the Ukrainian president's plane had been expected, but Zelensky is said to have arrived a little earlier than scheduled, touching down at around 11 pm, thus missing the drones.

Irish security officials believe the drones were intended to interfere with Zelensky's arrival, noting that they were flying with their lights on, also given the UAVs were military-spec. The episode is being presented in Irish and UK press reports as a form of hybrid warfare.

Source: PA Wire/The Sun

Afterward, the unidentified aircraft circled above an Irish Navy vessel that had been covertly positioned in the Irish Sea and which was patrolling there related to providing security for Zelensky's visit.

In all the drones were reportedly airborne for roughly two hours - which again would suggest are more sophisticated or even military drone technology, and the drone operators are unknown, amid an investigation.

Conflicting reports have suggested that four or up to five drones were involved in the incursion. Their operators and current whereabouts remain unknown.

According to more details via The Daily Mail:

The Dublin intrusion occurred inside a no-fly zone ordered by the Irish Aviation Authority for the duration of Zelenskyy's visit. Ahead of the visit, Irish MEP Barry Andrews posted a graphic on social media showing the no-fly zone which was imposed.

The drones then entered Irish-controlled waters and circled above the LÉ William Butler Yeats, which did not have air-search radar and was unable to disable them. An Irish Air Corps aircraft was airborne at the time but did not engage. 

One security official has been cited in press reports as describing of the UAVs, "They had their lights on. They wanted to be seen. They had both the capability and the intent. They could have acted at any time."

Western officials have suspected that this is an extension of alleged Russia-backed 'hybrid warfare' targeting Europe's skies.

However, there is cause for skepticism to these 'Russia did it!' allegations and mystery incursions...

Well colour me shocked. The Dutch magazine Trouw analysed 60 drone incidents throughout Europe and found “hardly any evidence of Russian involvement”. The most obvious NATO psy-op ever.

Link to article: https://t.co/7jPA8tzWJE pic.twitter.com/I7nc6kHEok

— Thomas Fazi (@battleforeurope) December 1, 2025

Suspicious drone sightings have of late disrupted air traffic at key hubs in places like Denmark, Germany, and other places in northern Europe. EU officials are pushing forward with plans to invest in a collective 'drone wall' defense.

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 04:15

WHO–Gates Unveils Blueprint For Global Digital ID, AI-Driven Surveillance, & Life-Long Vaccine Tracking For Everyone

Authored by Jon Fleetwood via Substack,

In a document published in the October Bulletin of the World Health Organization and funded by the Gates Foundation, the World Health Organization (WHO) is proposing a globally interoperable digital-identity infrastructure that permanently tracks every individual’s vaccination status from birth.

The dystopian proposal raises far more than privacy and autonomy concerns: it establishes the architecture for government overreach, cross-domain profiling, AI-driven behavioral targeting, conditional access to services, and a globally interoperable surveillance grid tracking individuals.

It also creates unprecedented risks in data security, accountability, and mission creep, enabling a digital control system that reaches into every sector of life.

The proposed system:

• integrates personally identifiable information with socioeconomic data such as “household income, ethnicity and religion,”

• deploys artificial intelligence for “identifying and targeting the unreached” and “combating misinformation,”

• and enables governments to use vaccination records as prerequisites for education, travel, and other services.

What the WHO Document Admits, in Their Own Words

To establish the framework, the authors define the program as nothing less than a restructuring of how governments govern:

“Digital transformation is the intentional, systematic implementation of integrated digital applications that change how governments plan, execute, measure and monitor programmes.”

They openly state the purpose:

“This transformation can accelerate progress towards the Immunization agenda 2030, which aims to ensure that everyone, everywhere, at every age, fully benefits from vaccines.”

This is the context for every policy recommendation that follows: a global vaccination compliance system, digitally enforced.

1. Birth-Registered Digital Identity & Life-Long Tracking

The document describes a system in which a newborn is automatically added to a national digital vaccine-tracking registry the moment their birth is recorded.

“When birth notification triggers the set-up of a personal digital immunization record, health workers know who to vaccinate before the child’s first contact with services.”

They specify that this digital identity contains personal identifiers:

“A newborn whose electronic immunization record is populated with personally identifiable information benefits because health workers can retrieve their records through unique identifiers or demographic details, generate lists of unvaccinated children and remind parents to bring them for vaccination.”

This is automated, cradle-to-grave traceability.

The system also enables surveillance across all locations:

“[W]ith a national electronic immunization record, a child can be followed up anywhere within the country and referred electronically from one health facility to another.”

This is mobility tracking tied to medical compliance.

2. Linking Vaccine Records to Income, Ethnicity, Religion, & Social Programs

The document explicitly endorses merging vaccine status with socioeconomic data.

“Registers that record household asset data for social protection programmes enable monitoring of vaccination coverage by socioeconomic status such as household income, ethnicity and religion.”

This is demographic stratification attached to a compliance database.

3. Conditioning Access to Schooling, Travel, & Services on Digital Vaccine Proof

The WHO acknowledges and encourages systems that require vaccine passes for core civil functions:

“Some countries require proof of vaccination for children to access daycare and education, and evidence of other vaccinations is often required for international travel.”

They then underline why digital formats are preferred:

“Digital records and certificates are traceable and shareable.”

Digital traceability means enforceability.

4. Using Digital Systems to Prevent ‘Wasting Vaccine on Already Immune Children’

The authors describe a key rationale:

“Children’s vaccination status is not checked during campaigns, a practice that wastes vaccine on already immune children and exposes them to the risk of adverse events.”

Their solution is automated verification to maximize vaccination throughput.

The digital system is positioned as both a logistical enhancer and a compliance enforcer:

“National electronic immunization records could transform how measles campaigns and supplementary immunization activities are conducted by enabling on-site confirmation of vaccination status.”

5. AI Systems to Target Individuals, Identify ‘Unreached,’ & Combat ‘Misinformation’

The WHO document openly promotes artificial intelligence to shape public behavior:

“AI… demonstrate[s] its utility in identifying and targeting the unreached, identifying critical service bottlenecks, combating misinformation and optimizing task management.”

They explain additional planned uses:

“Additional strategic applications include analysing population-level data, predicting service needs and spread of disease, identifying barriers to immunization, and enhancing nutrition and health status assessments via mobile technology.”

This is predictive analytics paired with influence operations.

6. Global Interoperability Standards for International Data Exchange

The authors call for a unified international data standard:

“Recognize fast healthcare interoperability resources… as the global standard for exchange of health data.”

Translated: vaccine-linked personal identity data must be globally shareable.

They describe the need for “digital public infrastructure”:

“Digital public infrastructure is a foundation and catalyst for the digital transformation of primary health care.”

This is the architecture of a global vaccination-compliance network.

7. Surveillance Expansion Into Everyday Interactions

The WHO outlines a surveillance model that activates whenever a child interacts with any health or community service:

“CHWs who identify children during home visits and other community activities can refer them for vaccination through an electronic immunization registry or electronic child health record.”

This means non-clinical community actors participating in vaccination-compliance identification.

The authors also describe cross-service integration:

“Under-vaccinated children can be reached when CHWs and facility-based providers providing other services collaborate and communicate around individual children in the same electronic child health records.”

Every point of contact becomes a checkpoint.

8. Behavior-Shaping Through Alerts, Reminders, & Social Monitoring

The WHO endorses using digital messaging to overcome “intention–action gaps”:

“Direct communication with parents in the form of alerts, reminders and information helps overcome the intention–action gap.”

They also prescribe digital surveillance of public sentiment:

“Active detection and response to misinformation in social media build trust and demand.”

This is official justification for monitoring and countering speech.

9. Acknowledgment of Global Donor Control—Including Gates Foundation

At the very end of the article, the financial architect is stated plainly:

“This work was supported by the Gates Foundation [INV-016137].”

This confirms the alignment with Gates-backed global ID and vaccine-registry initiatives operating through Gavi, the World Bank, UNICEF, and WHO.

Bottom Line

In the WHO’s own words:

“Digital transformation is a unique opportunity to address many longstanding challenges in immunization… now is the time for bold, new approaches.”

And:

“Stakeholders… should embrace digital transformation as an enabler for achieving the ambitious Immunization agenda 2030 goals.”

This is a comprehensive proposal for a global digital-identity system, permanently linked to vaccine status, integrated with demographic and socioeconomic data, enforced through AI-driven surveillance, and designed for international interoperability.

It is not speculative, but written in plain language, funded by the Gates Foundation, and published in the World Health Organization’s own journal.

Tyler Durden Fri, 12/05/2025 - 03:30

China Seeks Long-Term Vulnerabilities In US Energy Systems: House Panelists

By Ethan Howland of UtilityDive

While there don’t appear to be any specific, imminent cyber or physical threats to the U.S. power grid, China has been seeking vulnerabilities in network systems to be used in future attacks, panelists said during a U.S. House of Representatives hearing Tuesday on threats to the U.S. energy system.

Volt Typhoon — a group believed to be run by the People’s Republic of China’s state security service — is focused on maintaining ongoing access to U.S. network systems for future potential disruptions, according to Michael Ball, CEO of the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center and senior vice president at the North American Electric Reliability Corp.

Michael Ball, CEO of the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center and senior vice president at the North American Electric Reliability Corp., speaks at a hearing held by the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s energy subcommittee in Washington D.C. on Dec. 2, 2025

China is preparing for conflict over Taiwan, potentially in the “very near term,” and its strategy depends on preventing the United States from mounting a successful rescue mission, Harry Krejsa, director of Studies for the Carnegie Mellon Institute for Strategy & Technology, said during the hearing held by the Energy and Commerce Committee’s energy subcommittee.

Part of China’s plan is to target U.S. civilian infrastructure to create panic and chaos, Krejsa said.

“Our aging infrastructure makes these threats easier, including in our energy ecosystem,” he said. “Today’s electricity grid is too often a hodgepodge of digital tools sitting atop an analog foundation, creating seams where adversaries can slip in.”

China is the most persistent cyber threat to the U.S., according to Zach Tudor, associate laboratory director for national and homeland security at the Idaho National Laboratory.

“Through Volt Typhoon, Salt Typhoon [and] Flax Typhoon, the Chinese Communist Party has embedded itself in our energy communications and water systems to set conditions for destructive attacks during the Pacific conflict over Taiwan,” he said. “They’re winning without fighting, attempting to undermine our infrastructure.”

Although no U.S. blackouts have been attributed to a cyberattack, “the threat landscape is dynamic and requires continuous vigilance,” Ball said.

Panelists called on Congress to expand programs and funding for cyber defense.

Congress should continue to fund information sharing collaboration initiatives, like the Energy Threat Analysis Center, a pilot initiative led by the Department of Energy that brings together power sector and federal officials, according to Sharla Artz, vice president for security and resilience policy at Xcel Energy.

“Expanding programs like [the Cybersecurity Risk Information Sharing Program] enhances industry and government understanding of the threat landscape and thus needs additional government funding to accomplish that expansion,” said Artz, who represented the Edison Electric Institute at the hearing.

Tim Lindahl, president and CEO of Kenergy, a cooperative utility based in Henderson, Kentucky, urged Congress to reauthorize the $250 million Rural and Municipal Utility Cybersecurity Program, which runs through fiscal year 2026.

Lindahl called on DOE to disburse $80 million in RMUC awards that were announced last fall. 

“With continued partnership and targeted federal investment, we can strengthen our defenses and ensure the security of the energy infrastructure that powers our nation,” said Lindahl, who spoke on behalf of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.

NERC’s Ball urged Congress to reauthorize the expired Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 to support information sharing between the private sector and government.

During the hearing, Rep. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., said the Trump administration was undermining U.S. infrastructure protection efforts by cutting $5.6 billion in funding for state and local grid hardening and resiliency programs.

The administration also fired more than 1,000 cybersecurity and infrastructure agency staff, according to Menendez. It also moved Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency staff to other agencies, like Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which has “no connectivity to what their work has been,” he said.

“Does that make our country safer and more able to respond to these increasing cybersecurity attacks?” Menendez said.

Tyler Durden Thu, 12/04/2025 - 23:25

Jacques Poitras of the CBC reports N.B. pension fund managers accused of costing tech investors millions:

The company that manages billions of dollars in pension funds for thousands of New Brunswick public sector employees and retirees is being accused of causing financial losses for hundreds of investors across Canada.

Fredericton-based Vestcor Inc. and one of its senior executives are the targets of a petition filed in British Columbia that is seeking court approval for a class-action lawsuit.

The company is accused of falsely inflating the value of a corporate merger between two technology companies.

Vestcor invests the pension contributions of New Brunswick civil servants and other public sector employees in various investment vehicles, including stocks.

According to the petition application, Vestcor was the majority shareholder in Exro Technologies, and “orchestrated and significantly influenced” Exro’s 2024 merger with SEA Electric Inc., in which Vestcor also owned shares.

Exro paid $300 million to acquire SEA Electric after telling its shareholders that SEA would make $200 million in profits in 2024 — a figure that proved “delusional,” the court filing says.

“These facts and circumstances reflected within those representations were the basis of the grossly inflated valuation assigned to SEA Electric,” it says.

“Those purported facts and circumstances did not exist, or the manner of their representation in the material change report was false or misleading.”

It alleges Vestcor and its vice-president of equities Mark Holleran “did so in order to manage, or salvage, their significant investment in SEA Electric.”

The assertions in the petition have not been proven in court and Vestcor has yet to file a response.

“Our legal team is currently evaluating the merits of this lawsuit,” CEO Sean Hewitt said in an emailed statement.

“The claims have not been tested in court,” he added. “We have no reason to believe in their veracity.”

Sage Nematollahi, the lawyer who filed the petition on behalf of two shareholders, told CBC News that Vestcor “has lost a lot of money” as Exro’s majority shareholder, tying up “significant funds from pensioners in New Brunswick [with] this investment that has not done great.” 

But in Hewitt's statement, he said the impact was “negligible” to the overall performance of Vestcor’s investment portfolios, estimating it at a fraction of one per cent of the total.

“Given the robust funded positions of our clients’ pension plans, and continued strong investment performance, there is no impact to the monthly income of pensioners,” he said.

The company managed a total of $23 billion in 2024 — an increase of $2 billion over 2023.

Vestcor, owned by the province’s two largest pension plans for civil servants and teachers, was created in 2016, replacing a government-owned agency.

It handles retirement plans for hospital workers, nurses, Crown corporation employees, provincial court judges, MLAs and others. It also manages other investment funds, including the University of New Brunswick’s endowment. 

Exro was delisted by the Toronto Stock Exchange in October.

The company revealed in November 2024 that its revenue projections would fall far short of what it had claimed, recording a loss of $226 million, including a $211 million loss to the value of SEA Electric’s assets.

The losses led to “the complete collapse” of Exro, the filing says.

The petition alleges that Vestcor and Holleran “acted in bad faith and/or conflicts of interest” as “de facto directors and/or officers” of Exro.

The petition was filed by two shareholders, British Columbia resident Bryan Irwin, who held  27,500 common shares worth $22,000 at the time of the merger, and Ontario investor Mike Zienchuk, who had 900,000 shares worth an amount not disclosed in the court filing.

Nematollahi told CBC News that about 500 other shareholders have contacted his office about joining the lawsuit if it is certified as a class action case.

“There could be thousands of shareholders out there,” he said.

Zienchuk and another investor, Allan Crosier, have also filed a lawsuit in Alberta against Exro, two former company officials, the company’s financial advisors and its insurance underwriters.

Exro billed itself as a clean tech company that would design and build power electronics to improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of electric vehicles and energy storage systems. 

Vestcor was a majority shareholder in Exro at the time of the merger and also held 14.3 per cent of preferred stock in SEA, meaning Vestcor was “acting both as a seller and a buyer,” the filing says. 

I read this earlier this week and to be honest, I didn't contact Jon Spinney, CIO at Vestcor who I know because the allegations in the article are absurd.

What do I mean? Vestcor "orchestrated" Exro Technologies'  buyout of SEA Electric Inc to save it on its book? It just seems like such nonsense. 

The only thing leading to this accusation was this:

Vestcor was a majority shareholder in Exro at the time of the merger and also held 14.3 per cent of preferred stock in SEA, meaning Vestcor was “acting both as a seller and a buyer,” the filing says.  

To which I say so what? It's not like Vescro forced Exro to merge with SEA.

But this is the part that really caught my BS detector:

Sage Nematollahi, the lawyer who filed the petition on behalf of two shareholders, told CBC News that Vestcor “has lost a lot of money” as Exro’s majority shareholder, tying up “significant funds from pensioners in New Brunswick [with] this investment that has not done great.” 

But in Hewitt's statement, he said the impact was “negligible” to the overall performance of Vestcor’s investment portfolios, estimating it at a fraction of one per cent of the total.

“Given the robust funded positions of our clients’ pension plans, and continued strong investment performance, there is no impact to the monthly income of pensioners,” he said. 

I categorically refute claims that Vestcor is losing or has lost a lot of money. Complete and utter nonsense!

Back in April,  I went over Vestcor's solid 2024 results with CIO Jon Spinney and they were truly excellent on all fronts. You can read that comment here.

Moreover, as CEO Sean Hewitt notes, the loss from Exro's implosion was negligible so this story is much ado about nothing.

Basically, Sage Nematollahi (featured above), the lawyer representing plaintiffs used some contacts of his at CBC to make a big stink about Exro's implosion trying to tie it to Vestcor, making all sorts of unfounded and in some cases completely false accusations.

These lawyers are a dime a dozen in the securities field, typically they make all the money and recover little to no funds for their clients who subscribe to a class action lawsuit after a stock collapses.

Anyways, Vestcor will fight these allegations in court and if they are proven guilty of any wrongdoing, I will let my readers know.

I think this article is a bunch of nonsense that Jacques Poitras of the CBC got suckered into reporting (warning to all reporters, if unsure, before publishing contact yours truly, I will set the record straight).

More importantly, I want civil servants and teachers in New Brunswick to know that Vescor is doing an excellent job managing the assets of their pension plans.

Don't let this negative CBC article lead you to conclude otherwise.

Below, learn more about Vestcor and what it does. It's the most important pension fund in that region of the country and they are doing great work in my opinion. 

Also, Keystone Financial made a clip on whether Exro has a chance at recovery. Take the time to watch this, he covers all the details well.

Note: Mortgage rates are from MortgageNewsDaily.com and are for top tier scenarios.

Thursday:
• At 10:00 AM ET, Personal Income and Outlays for September. The consensus is for a 0.4% increase in personal income, and for a 0.4% increase in personal spending. And for the Core PCE price index to increase 0.2% (up 2.9% YoY).

• Also at 10:00 AM, University of Michigan's Consumer sentiment index (Preliminary for December).

ICE Arrests (Another) Afghan National Accused Of Supporting ISIS

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times,

Federal authorities on Wednesday arrested an Afghan national on suspicion of providing support to the ISIS terrorist group, the third such arrest in a week, according to a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) statement.

Jaan Shah Safi was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Waynesboro, Virginia. Safi is an “illegal alien terrorist who entered the U.S. on Sept. 8, 2021, in Philadelphia” under President Joe Biden’s Operation Allies Welcome program, the statement said.

He had applied for Temporary Protected Status, but his application was terminated once DHS Secretary Kristi Noem ended TPS for Afghans.

The TPS was terminated in May as Afghanistan no longer met the requirements for the designation, and “DHS records indicate that there are recipients who have been under investigation for fraud and threatening our public safety and national security,” Noem said at the time.

The DHS said that Safi was also found to provide weapons to his father, a commander of a militia group back in Afghanistan.

The Epoch Times could not ascertain whether Safi was given any legal representation.

This is the third arrest of a suspected Afghan terrorist in about a week.

The first case was that of Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who was arrested Nov. 26 on suspicion of shooting two National Guard members in Washington. One of the victims, Sarah Beckstrom, died afterward, and the other, Andrew Wolfe, remains in serious condition.

Lakanwal had worked with the CIA during the war in Afghanistan. Authorities charged him with first-degree murder and two counts of assault with intent to kill, among other charges.

Noem said in a media interview that authorities believe Lakanwal became radicalized after he arrived in the United States through connections in his community and state.

A day before the attack and in a separate incident, Mohammad Dawood Alokozay was arrested and charged with making bomb threats.

Alokozay had posted social media videos threatening to blow up a target in Fort Worth, Texas.

The three are among 190,000 Afghan nationals who were resettled in the United States as part of Operation Allies Welcome, later renamed Enduring Welcome.

Regarding Safi, Noem said, “This terrorist was arrested miles from our nation’s capital where our brave National Guard heroes ... were shot just days ago by another unvetted Afghan terrorist brought into our country.”

On Dec. 2, the Trump administration suspended the processing of immigration applications from 19 countries, including Afghanistan and Somalia, citing national security and public safety concerns.

The Epoch Times reached out to Afghan Support Network, a nonprofit that focuses on the welfare of Afghan refugees, for comment and did not receive a response by publication time.

Overhauling Vetting Process

When the United States withdrew from Afghanistan in August 2021, the Biden administration initiated the Operation Allies Welcome program to resettle thousands of Afghan nationals in the United States, including those who worked alongside U.S. authorities in the war-torn nation over the previous two decades.

“It’s the biggest national security failure in the history of the nation,” border czar Tom Homan said in a media interview on Sunday, noting that the DHS inspector general came out with a report at the time stating multiple failures in the vetting process.

“People need to understand, in these third world nations, they don’t have systems like we do. So a lot of these Afghans, who did get here to get better, they had no identification at all. Not a single travel document, not one piece of identification. And we’re going to count on the people that run Afghanistan, the Taliban, to provide us any information who the bad guys were or who the good guys are? Certainly not.”

Noem said in a Dec. 1 post on X that many Afghan nationals brought into the country were “military-aged men” who were not vetted for security clearance.

Homeland Security is currently overhauling the vetting process for aliens, requiring the country of origin to cross-reference biometric data and criminal history, screening social media accounts, and directing individuals to check in every year, Noem said.

According to the State Department’s travel advisory, Afghanistan’s security situation remains extremely unstable, with the highest critical-level threat to U.S. citizens.

All Afghanistan provinces are dangerous for travel, with targeted or random hostile acts perpetrated by the country’s citizens. “U.S. citizens and other foreign nationals are primary targets of terrorist organizations,“ warned the advisory.

Tyler Durden Thu, 12/04/2025 - 20:05

Federal Watchdog Reveals Rampant Obamacare Fraud; 90% Of Bad-Doc Applicants Approved In Undercover Test

A new bombshell report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) details a long-running vulnerability in the Affordable Care Act exchanges, showing that weak verification controls continue to expose federal subsidies to significant fraud and abuse. 

“Preliminary results from GAO's ongoing covert testing suggest fraud risks in the advance premium tax credit (APTC) persist,” the report reads. “The federal Marketplace approved coverage for nearly all of GAO's fictitious applicants in plan years 2024 and 2025, generally consistent with similar GAO testing in plan years 2014 through 2016.”

According to the report, GAO conducted undercover tests by creating fictitious applicants with fake identities and fraudulent or never-issued Social Security numbers to see how the federal Marketplace would respond. Over the past two years, 90% of those fake applicants were approved for subsidized coverage despite lacking required documentation. In plan year 2024, all four of GAO’s fabricated applicants were approved and received about $2,350 per month in subsidies paid to insurers, even though they failed to provide proof of Social Security numbers, citizenship, or income. GAO scaled up the test for 2025 to 20 fake applicants; 18 were still enrolled as of September 2025, generating more than $10,000 per month in subsidies

More broadly, GAO's preliminary analyses identified vulnerabilities related to potential SSN misuse and likely unauthorized enrollment changes in federal Marketplace data for plan years 2023 and 2024. Such issues can contribute to APTC that is not reconciled through enrollees' tax filings to determine the amount of premium tax credit for which enrollees were ultimately eligible. GAO's preliminary analysis of data from tax year 2023 could not identify evidence of reconciliation for over $21 billion in APTC for enrollees who provided SSNs to the federal Marketplace for plan year 2023. Unreconciled APTC may not necessarily represent overpayments, as enrollees who did not reconcile may have been eligible for the subsidy. However, it may include overpayments for enrollees who were not eligible for APTC.

A big problem with reconciling these Obamacare subsidies is when someone uses a Social Security number that doesn’t actually belong to the person getting the insurance. GAO’s early look at federal Marketplace data found more than 29,000 Social Security numbers in 2023 that showed over a full year of subsidized coverage. One number was used so many times that it totaled more than 26,000 days of insurance across more than 125 plans - the equivalent of more than 71 years of coverage tied to a single number.

The pattern continued in 2024, with nearly 66,000 Social Security numbers being linked to more than a year of subsidized coverage. This can result from identity theft, fake identities, or simple typing errors. According to the GAO, determining the true owner of a Social Security number can be complicated, so it’s examining these cases and other examples of overlapping coverage more closely.

CMS officials say the federal Marketplace lets people sign up even when a Social Security number is already in use. They claim this helps the real owner of the number get coverage in cases of identity theft or simple typing mistakes. The system uses a model that analyzes various pieces of personal information to distinguish applicants, and CMS runs this check monthly to clear out duplicate accounts. They also say applications with repeated Social Security numbers are supposed to go through a data-matching process in which people send in documents to verify their identities. However, even with those explanations, the setup makes it far too easy for fake applicants to slip through, and clearly, they do. The way the system works gives fraudsters plenty of room to abuse Social Security numbers long before anyone notices.

GAO notes that its “covert testing is illustrative and cannot be generalized to the enrollee population.”

This report lands in the middle of an active policy fight on Capitol Hill over whether to extend enhanced Obamacare subsidies, giving Republicans fresh evidence for their arguments about the program’s structural problem, validating their long-standing criticisms of Obamacare. House Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) called the report a “smoking gun” showing how a flawed system, protected by Democrat policies, has pushed tens of billions of taxpayer dollars to insurers through identity fraud. 

Energy and Commerce Chair Brett Guthrie (R-KY) argued that Democrats’ temporary expansion of subsidies worsened fraud, harmed patients, and hid deeper affordability problems. “Republicans have sounded the alarm on the flawed structural integrity of Obamacare and how Democrats’ failed policies to temporarily prop up the program have exacerbated fraud, hurt patients, increased the burden on American taxpayers, and artificially masked the true health care affordability crisis plaguing Americans today,” Guthrie said. “The concerning findings from GAO’s report further confirm that Republican efforts to strengthen, secure, and sustain our federal health programs are critical and necessary to ensure access to quality health care at prices Americans can afford.”

Tyler Durden Thu, 12/04/2025 - 19:40