18Feb2019 Market Close: NYSE Was Closed Today, Futures Are Flat, WTI Up At 56.04, US Dollar At 96.77 Almost Unchanged

Auto industry lines up against possible U.S. tariffs

The U.S. auto industry urged President Donald Trump’s administration on Monday not to saddle imported cars and auto parts with steep tariffs, after the U.S. Commerce Department sent a confidential report to the White House late on Sunday with its recommendations for how to proceed.

Britain does not support total Huawei network ban: sources

British security officials do not support a full ban of Huawei from national telecoms networks despite U.S. allegations the Chinese firm and its products could be used by Beijing for spying, people with knowledge of the matter said.

Honda to close UK car plant with the loss of 3,500 jobs

Japanese carmaker Honda is set to announce the closure of its only British car plant in 2022 with the loss of 3,500 jobs, a lawmaker told Reuters, in the latest blow to the UK car industry as Brexit approaches.

U.S. agency submits auto tariff probe report to White House

The U.S. Commerce Department sent a report on Sunday to U.S. President Donald Trump that could unleash steep tariffs on imported cars and auto parts, provoking a sharp backlash from the industry even before it is unveiled, the agency confirmed.

EU’s Juncker expects Trump to refrain from imposing higher tariffs on cars

U.S. President Donald Trump has promised European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker that he will not impose additional import tariffs on European cars for the time being, Juncker was quoted in a published interview as saying on Monday.

U.S. tariffs on EU cars could mean EU buying less U.S. soya beans and gas: Juncker

United States tariffs on imports of European cars could mean that Europe would buy less soya beans and liquid gas from the U.S., the head of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker said on Monday.

Papa John’s founder Schnatter says he welcomes hedge fund Starboard

Papa John’s International Inc founder John Schnatter welcomes hedge fund Starboard Value LP’s investment in the pizza restaurant chain, his lawyer said, even as he filed an updated lawsuit on Monday against the company.

Germany bans Wirecard ‘shorting’ as prosecutors probe FT journalist

Germany’s financial watchdog has banned “short” selling of Wirecard shares due to volatility in the payments firm’s stock following reports in the Financial Times which are now the subject of an investigation by German authorities.

FAA investigates Southwest over baggage weight discrepancies: WSJ

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration is investigating Southwest Airlines Co for widespread failure to accurately track the combined weight of checked bags loaded onto its jets, according to a Wall Street Journal report on Monday.

China Car Sales Plunge Most In 7 Years Amid Global Auto Industry Meltdown

Car sales in China continued their relentless descent in January, falling 17.7%, as we recently expected would happen when discussing Europe’s tumbling January auto sales. This follows the country’s first full year slump (2018) in more than two decades and it puts further pressure on the state of the global automotive market.

The drop marked the eighth monthly retail sales decline in a row and was the biggest one-month drop in seven years.

Gu Yatao, a Beijing-based auto analyst with Roland Berger, confirmed to Bloomberg that the “downward pressure is still there. The government isn’t adopting stimulating policies to give the market a shot in the arm.”

The contraction in China comes at the same time that auto markets in Europe and North America continue to shrink as a result of car sharing services and slowing economies. As we have been reporting for months, the slowdown in China continues to be a result of the country’s slowing economy, coupled with the …

One-Third Of Millennials Believe They Have A Better Chance Of Dating An A-Lister Than Owning A Home

There isn’t a lot American millennials wouldn’t do to have a chance at owning a home some day.

According to a survey of 500 millennials conducted by OnePoll, nearly half of millennials would swear off Instagram forever, and one in four would be willing to spend a week in jail, if it would help them one day achieve the American dream of owning their own home. One in four survey respondents said they would have attended the Fyre Festival – the doomed festival on a Bahamanian island that led to millions of dollars in lawsuits and a jail sentence for its organizer.

In a sign of how desperately out of reach most millennials consider homeownership to be, some 30% of respondents said they felt they had a better chance of dating an A-list celebrity than ever owning their own home. Meanwhile, 40% of respondents said they felt homeownership is “completely out of the question” unless they inherit property from their parents, and 42% said they would like to buy a home, but they simply can’t afford it. Nearly half of respondents believe (correctly) that buying a home would be more difficult now than it was 30 years ago. In a similar vein, only 8% of millennials disagreed with the belief that life is harder now than it was for Baby Boomers.

Here’s a complete rundown of the survey responses, courtesy of the New York Post.

Motive Revealed In Smollett Case: Actor Concocted Hate Crime After Racist Letter Failed To Impress

Actor Jussie Smollett appears to have concocted a hate-crime hoax because he was upset that a racist letter sent to the Empire studio didn’t get a “bigger reaction,” reports CBS 2 Chicago. As a result, Smollett allegedly paid two men $3,500 each to rehearse and then attack him a week later in an attempt to frame Trump supporters as violent racists.

“When the letter didn’t get enough attention, he concocted the staged attack,” a source told CBS 2 Investigator Brad Edwards. Other sources corroborated that information.

The blockbuster revelation into at least part of Smollett’s potential motive comes two days after CBS 2’s Charlie De Mar reported Smollett and two brothers — Ola and Abel Osundairo — staged the attack on Jan. 29 in Streeterville. -CBS 2 Chicago

CBS 2 reporter Charlie De Mar spoke on the phone with the Osundario brothers Monday afternoon, who said in a joint statement: “We are not racist. …

“The Future Ain’t What It Used To Be”

Authored by MN Gordon via EconomicPrism.com,

Something rather distressing with the political economy’s going on…

The populace, through a long sequence of self-inflicted economic and social depravities, has a bazillion and one fire ants up its pantaloons. What’s more, they don’t like the uneven mix of pain and panic this provokes. But they aren’t quite sure how to put a stop to it.

By their estimation, the main problem, on surface, is that general incomes do not cover general expenses and debt obligations. There’s even data to support this. For example, just this week it was reported that a record seven million Americans are 90 days behind on car loan payments.

Indeed, incomes aren’t cutting it. But why aren’t they? What has reduced the aggregate value of labor so far below the aggregate price of goods and services? What’s the real source of the working stiff’s grave economic discomfort?

A scratch below the surface reveals something rather fantastical. Though scarcely a soul cares to look. Of those who bother, only a small and peculiar subset will dirty their hands and dig for an answer.

To the general populace, the primary concern can be boiled down to its crystalline essence as follows: Last year JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon made approximately $31 million while the average wage earner made approximately squat. The universal feeling is that Dimon must be a crook. Thus, no further explanation’s warranted.

Yet contempt prior to investigation results in conclusions without facts. Is Dimon really a crook? Or is he merely a beneficiary of a financial system that’s been rigged to his benefit …

Key Words: Berkshire’s Charlie Munger has a very blunt response to those ‘driving rich people away’ as Amazon scraps HQ2

Munger’s comments come after Amazon announced on Thursday that it was canceling plans to build its New York City headquarters in Long Island City, and wouldn’t be seeking a replacement venue.

Market Extra: Presidents Day: Everything you need to know about market closures on Washington’s Birthday

U.S. financial markets will take a break on Monday in observance of Presidents Day.

Europe Markets: European stocks hold onto 4-month highs; Wirecard soars

European markets were mostly down on Monday, after last week’s highs, as investor continue to watch trade negotiations between the U.S. and China unfold