09Jan2017 Market Update: Wall Street Mixed, Crude Prices Keep Falling, US Dollar Firming Higher, Trump Effect May End On January 20

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

North and South American markets are mixed. The Bovespa is higher by 0.32%, while the IPC is leading the S&P 500 lower. They are down 1.28% and 0.18% respectively.

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Oil drop stymies Dow’s march to 20,000; techs send Nasdaq to record

(Reuters) – Declines in financial and energy companies weighed on Wall Street on Monday, stalling the Dow’s pursuit of 20,000, while the Nasdaq hit a record intraday high on gains in technology stocks and a string of deals in the health sector.

Alibaba tells Trump about U.S. store plan for China e-shoppers

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Alibaba Executive Chairman Jack Ma met U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Monday and laid out the Chinese e-commerce company’s new plan to bring a million small U.S. businesses onto its platform to sell to Chinese consumers over the next five year, an Alibaba spokesman said.

Supreme Court rejects Dow over $1 billion tax deduction claim

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear Dow Chemical Co’s bid to revive its claim to more than $1 billion in tax deductions based on partnerships the company entered into that lower courts said were created primarily to avoid tax liability and had no legitimate business purpose.

Mars to buy pet healthcare provider VCA for $7.7 billion

(Reuters) – Candy and pet food conglomerate Mars Inc is buying veterinary hospital operator VCA Inc for $7.7 billion in a deal that will give the maker of Pedigree pet food an even bigger share of the $4 billion global pet healthcare market.

Fiat Chrysler may end Mexico output if Trump tariff too high: CEO

DETROIT (Reuters) – Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne said on Monday that if tariffs set in a Trump administration on vehicles made in Mexico and imported to the United States are too high, the company may end Mexican production.

Trump praises Ford, Fiat Chrysler for U.S. investments

DETROIT (Reuters) – President-elect Donald Trump praised Ford Motor Co and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV on Monday for announcing new investments in the United States after he made U.S. auto production a key part of his campaign.

Volkswagen executives concealed diesel cheating: FBI court filing

DETROIT (Reuters) – Volkswagen (VW) executives decided to cover up cheating of U.S. emissions tests when they were told about it almost two months before the matter became a public scandal in 2015, according to a court filing by U.S. law enforcers seen by Reuters.

Bitcoin exchange operator pleads guilty in U.S. case tied to JPMorgan hack

NEW YORK (Reuters) – A Florida man pleaded guilty on Monday to charges that he conspired to operate an illegal bitcoin exchange, which prosecutors said was owned by an Israeli who oversaw a massive scheme to hack companies, including JPMorgan Chase & Co.

St. Jude release cyber updates for heart devices after government probe

(Reuters) – Abbott Laboratories said on Monday it has begun releasing cyber security updates for its St. Jude heart devices some five months after the U.S. government launched a probe into allegations they were vulnerable to potentially life-threatening hacks.

Obama “Gifts” Iran With Massive Uranium Shipment From Russia Sufficient “For More Than 10 Nuclear Bombs”

In what amounts to an 11th hour “gift” by the outgoing Obama administration to Tehran’s leadership to keep the country, which on Sunday was involved in yet another shooting incident with a US destroyer, content and compliant with Obama’s landmark “Nuclear deal”, the AP reported that Iran is to receive a huge shipment of natural uranium from Russia to compensate it for exporting tons of reactor coolant. The move was approved by the outgoing U.S. administration and other governments “seeking to keep Tehran committed to a landmark nuclear pact.”

AP cites two senior diplomats who said that the transfer which was recently agreed by the U.S. and five other world powers that negotiated the nuclear deal with Iran, foresees delivery of 116 metric tons (nearly 130 tons) of natural uranium. U.N. Security Council approval is needed but a formality, considering five of those powers are permanent Security Council members, they said.

The swap is in compensation for the approximately 40 metric tons (44 tons) of heavy water exported by Iran to Russia since the nuclear agreement went into effect. Another 30 metric tons have gone to the U.S. and Oman.

While Uranium can be enriched to levels ranging from reactor fuel or medical and research purposes to the core of an atomic bomb, Iran has claimed it has no interest in such weapons and its activities are being closely monitored under the nuclear pact to make sure they remain peaceful. As we reported at the time, Tehran previously received a similar amount of natural uranium in 2015 as part of negotiations leading up to the nuclear deal, in a swap for enriched uranium it sent to Russia. But the new shipment w …

$140,000 Raised For Mentally-Ill Victim Of ‘Facebook-Four’ Hate Crime

A GoFundMe campaign to raise money for the developmentally challenged victim of the brutal attack broadcast on Facebook Live, on January 5, has raised almost $140,000 in three days.

As ABC reports, the GoFundMe campaign called “Let’s show the Chicago victim love” had a goal of $10,000. As of today the account has reached almost $140,000.

Four black suspects (the ‘Facebook-Four’) are facing charges of battery, kidnapping and hate crimes in connection with the attack on the 18-year-old victim. The suspects — two men and two women — are black and the victim is white.

Authorities say the victim was tied up for several hours. Video footage shows the assailants taunting him with profanities against white people and President-elect Donald Trump.

A GoFundMe spokesman confirmed the victim’s family is working with the company on the campaign.

The family, through a spokesman, has declined to comment on the attack, but gave a quick update of thanks on the GoFundMe page…

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Toyota To Invest $10 Billion In America As Jack Ma Meets Trump To Discuss Creation Of 1 Million US Jobs

While there are many questions about the sincerity, not to mention underlying viability of his company (which many skeptical investors have accused of being an accounting shell whose operations raise many questions), moments ago Alibaba’s Jack Ma appeared at the Trump Tower for a meeting with Donald Trump, where according to CNBC, he will discuss plans to create 1 million new U.S. jobs over the next five years. The Monday meeting will focus on the Chinese e-commerce company’s U.S. expansion plans, according to spokespeople for both Alibaba and Trump.

It is unclear why Beijig would be ok with Ma creating 1 million jobs in the US and not China, but let’s ignore that for now.

While the meeting comes amid tensions between China and the Trump administration as a result of the proposed steep tariffs on trade with China, Trump has shown more tolerance at the micro level in his discussions with prominent Asian businessmen and investors, like SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son, who recently assured Trump he would create 50,000 jobs in the US.

Ma previously told CNBC that he wasn’t worried about anti-China sentiment on the presidential campaign trail. “Somebody has to stand up and say hey, we should not be anti-trade,” said Ma. Alibaba’s wide-ranging set of international businesses, from financial services to e-commerce to logistics, have managed to dominate many of America’s tech companies in China.

A deal with Ma could be adverse news for one of his bigger competitors, Jeff Bezos. Trump also repeatedly been critical of Bezos (who owns the Washington Post) and his internet retail giant Amazon, which like Alibaba, offers cloud services and a marketplace for third-party sellers. Trump has said Amazon will have “such problems” during his presidency, because of their tax structure.

Tha …

Google’s Self-Driving Minivans Arrive This Month

Submitted by Mike Shedlock via MishTalk.com,

It’s been such a hoot reading comments from people telling me that self-driving vehicles are decades away if ever.

The nay-sayers have been proven laughably wrong given Google’s New Self-Driving Minivans Will Hit the Road by the End of January 2017.

Waymo, the self-driving car startup spun-off from Google late last year, will be deploying its fleet of self-driving Chrysler Pacifica minivans onto public roads for the first time later this month, the company announced at the North American International Auto Show today.

The minivans will be hitting the roads in Mountain View, California and Phoenix, Arizona, where the company’s self-driving Lexus SUVs have already driven thousands of miles over the past few years. Also today, Waymo gave the public its first look at the self-driving Pacificas, which have been under wraps since the deal between Google and Fiat Chrysler was first announced bac …

How the Auto Makers Can Survive the Self-Driving Car

The auto industry is on the cusp of two great changes. Electric vehicles are a technological and financial challenge that will roil the industry’s established order. Self-driving cars may blow it up.

McDonald’s Shakes Up Its China Approach

The fast-food giant’s sale of its China business to a state-owned company could be more profitable in the long run.

Regeneron Is Down, Not Out

Biotech stock Regeneron should recover from a surprise injunction over a new cholesterol drug.

Prince, lover of purple, also had a thing for gold

Court documents show the musician had 67 10-ounce gold bars and plenty of cash at the time of his death, but zero investments in stocks and bonds.

Is Chase Sapphire Reserve card still a good value — even with the new terms?

The bank has cut the tempting sign-up bonus in half

Market Extra: Goldman Sachs’s chief economist warns of 3 key risks in 2017

Growth has finally started to pick up globally, but there are still key risks on the horizon in 2017 that could shatter the newfound optimism in the world economy, warns Goldman’s chief economist.