March 22 2024
Trustbusting
1 Stock market rips on prospect of rate cuts
2 DOJ sues Apple for monopolistic practices
3 Only 32% of U.S. military families recommend military service
4 Indicted Sen Menendez (D-NJ) will not seek reelection as Dem, may run as indy
5 Trump stands to make $3.5B from Truth Social IPO
3/22/1933 FDR legalizes sale of beer and wine
see ad astra on x @greg_loving
1 Stock market rips on prospect of rate cuts
The stock market rose to new highs Wednesday when a narrow majority of Federal Reserve officials reaffirmed projections to cut interest rates three times this year despite firmer-than-anticipated inflation in recent months. While the latest data hadn’t given officials the confidence they would need to begin rate cuts, Chair Jerome Powell said his outlook for inflation to continue declining hadn’t changed substantially in recent weeks. The projections released Wednesday were little changed from December and showed most of his colleagues expect two or three cuts this year. The central bank held steady its benchmark federal-funds rate in a range between 5.25% and 5.5%, a 23-year high. Some investors had braced for the Fed to dial back expectations of rate cuts and cheered the more optimistic scenario laid out by policymakers. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite all closed at a record high for the first time since November 2021, shortly before the Fed pivoted toward much tighter policy.
WSJ
2 DOJ sues Apple for monopolistic practices
The US is suing Apple for allegedly using its power in the smartphone sector to quash competition from rivals and limit consumer choice, in the latest broadside against the dominant Big Tech companies from Joe Biden’s administration. The move comes as Apple faces pressure from regulators, courts and rivals around the world over the way it runs the iPhone, putting its $85bn a year services revenue at risk. Apple shares were down 4 per cent. The landmark lawsuit filed on Thursday in federal court in New Jersey by the US Department of Justice, along with a bipartisan group of 16 state and district attorneys, accuses the group of imposing contractual limitations on developers while making it more difficult for users to switch devices.
The complaint accuses the company of abusing its market power in a variety of ways: to squash the growth of innovative apps and messaging services, reduce the appeal of rival smartwatches, keep rival tap-and-pay apps from its devices and block the development of game streaming apps. Apple changed its policy that prohibited game streaming apps on its App Store earlier this year.
Apple has other problems too
Tim Cook, boss of Apple, is having a rough start to 2024. In the past month his company has faced an unusual barrage of unpleasantness. A patent dispute forced it to remove features from two of its smartwatches. It found out that America’s Department of Justice (doj) would be suing it over antitrust transgressions. And it reported that it was losing market share in China, its second-biggest smartphone market. Adding insult to injury, a few Wall Street analysts said something unthinkable until recently—that Apple’s shares were overvalued. On January 11th Microsoft, a rival tech titan, duly dethroned the iPhone-maker, temporarily, as the world’s most valuable company. The run of bad news may continue on February 1st, when Apple reports its latest quarterly earnings. Equity researchers estimate that its revenues barely grew in the last quarter of 2023, if at all. Then, on February 2nd, Apple will be tested once again. It will start shipping the Vision Pro, an augmented-reality (ar) headset that it has been working on—and talking up—for a few years. The high-end gadget, which will sell for $3,499, represents a big bet on a new technology “platform” that, Apple may be hoping, could one day replace the smartphone as the core of consumers’ digital experience—and the iPhone as the source of its maker’s riches. Early indications hint that Apple should worry about the device’s prospects. Netflix, Spotify and YouTube have announced that they will not make their popular streaming apps work on the headset. None said why. But it could be because they all compete with Apple’s own streaming services, and developing an ar app is likely to be costly.
Apple’s boss would be unwise to dismiss the new year’s niggles. For they point to larger challenges for the company. These fall into three broad categories: antitrust and legal issues; slowing iPhone sales; and growing geopolitical tensions. None of these is existential right now. But each carries with it a risk of causing a big upset. Could they cost Apple its position as the world’s most valuable company for longer than a week or so?
Economist
https://www.economist.com/business/2024/01/24/what-could-bring-apple-down
Ed note: I used to update my iPhone annually, but have since spaced out upgrades. Anyone else?
3 32% of U.S. military families recommend military service
Only 32% of U.S. military families would still recommend military service, citing poor job opportunities for spouses, poor mental and physical health care services, and housing concerns, among other issues, according to a survey conducted by Blue Star Families. The likelihood of active-duty families recommending military service dropped from 55% in 2016 to just 32% in 2023, according to the survey. Furthermore, the proportion who were unlikely to recommend service has more than doubled from 15% in 2016 to 31% in 2023.
News Items, Blue Star Families
https://bluestarfam.org/research/mfls-survey-release-2024/
4 Indicted Sen Menendez (D-NJ) will not seek reelection as Dem, may run as independent
Indicted Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) announced Thursday he will not file to run for reelection in the Democratic primary but said he hopes to still seek another term as an independent later this year. “I will not file for the Democratic primary this June," Menendez said in a video posted to social media. "I am hopeful that my exoneration will take place this summer and allow me to pursue my candidacy as an independent Democrat in a general election.”
Menendez, who is fighting federal corruption charges, faced a Monday deadline to decide whether to run in his party’s primary. The filing deadline for independent candidates is not until June. Menendez and his wife were charged last year with taking bribes from three business executives, including gold bars, in exchange for legislative favors. He has pleaded not guilty to the initial indictment, as well as to additional charges since then, including obstruction of justice.
WaPo
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/03/21/bob-menendez-reelection-decision/
5 Trump stands to make $3.5B from Truth Social IPO
Donald Trump’s supporters are pushing to hand him a nearly $3.5 billion windfall by driving up the value of his also-ran social-media platform, which is on the cusp of getting approval to list on the stock market. Trump’s winning lottery ticket would come from Truth Social, the social-media platform he launched in 2021. After a twisted path that included tens of millions of dollars in losses and insider-trading convictions, the shell company taking Truth Social public became the market’s latest meme stock. Trump’s supporters banded together to push up the stock, valuing Truth Social to a staggering $6 billion. Truth Social could go public as soon as next week, but the deal still needs to be approved by shareholders. Even if that happens, Trump must hold his shares for six months. Truth Social was created by Trump when he was bounced from the major social-media platforms. Since the presidential candidate was reinstated by Facebook and X, formerly known as Twitter, Truth Social has instead become a potential huge paycheck.
WSJ
3/22/1933 FDR legalizes sale of beer and wine
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