“There is something terribly wrong with this country, isn’t there?”— V for Vendetta
ECONOMIC UPDATE
Despite the sharp stock market decline last week which accelerated because President Trump’s Republican Party got smashed in the midterm elections, U.S. stocks spiked Monday.
AFTER THE ELECTION, WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE U.S. AI INDUSTRY?
American voters soundly thumped the AI industry in the 3 November election, supporting 40 of 41 proposals across the country proposing controls, restrictions, or outright bans on AI models and data center development.
LIKE CHINA’S EVs, CHINESE MOTORCYCLES HAVE INVADED EUROPE
China has followed its EV success in Europe with an array of low-cost, high-performance motorcycles that are stealing attention from European standards BMW and Italy’s century-old Ducati.
THE U.S. TREASURY IS VASTLY EXPANDING ITS DEBT ISSUANCE AND BUYBACK PROGRAM ON A PLANETARY SCALE
The Treasury is dramatically expanding its debt buyback program AND raising its planned “liquidity support purchases” from a maximum of $38 billion in the previous quarter to as much as $70 BILLION in the upcoming quarter…
GULF COUNTRIES BRACE THEMSELVES AMID THE RISK OF A RAMPED-UP WAR BETWEEN U.S. AND IRAN
Gulf countries have yet to fully recover from the first round of war that the U.S. and Israel launched against Iran on 28 February, and there is an uneasy feeling in the region that a new round of fighting could lead to even more destruction.
TRUMPTY DUMBTY: WHERE MIDTERM ELECTIONS WENT WRONG FOR TRUMP
Despite President Trump insisting last week that his name was not on the ballot and that he would’ve emerged successful if he was up for reelection, the facts began to emerge on why Republicans saw their control of Congress slip away to the Democrats.
Global Economy
HUGO BOSS CUTS ITS 2026 REVENUE AND PROFIT FORECAST
German fashion house Hugo Boss blames weak demand for its clothing and accessories as well as a depreciation charge on its IT assets for a reduction in its 2026 outlook.
WHAT TECH ROUT? APOLLO SHOVELS MONEY INTO AI
In this year’s third quarter, Apollo Global Management loaned a record $114 billion to AI-related companies and projects, largely using the premiums paid by clients of Athene, Apollo’s in-house insurance firm, the Financial Times reported.
U.S. Economy
U.S. CONSUMER OUTLOOK BRIGHTENED SLIGHTLY THIS MONTH
U.S. households feel slightly more confident about the economy but are uncomfortable about the prospects of an AI bubble bursting, according to the early November survey of consumer sentiment by the University of Michigan.
U.S. ECONOMY SPROUTS 165,000 NONFARM JOBS IN OCTOBER
In October, employers expanded their nonfarm payrolls by 165,000, nearly three times as much as the 59,000 economists had expected in a Dow Jones poll, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported.
The Iran War
IRAN CALLS OUT GERMANY’S HYPOCRISY OVER WAR
Iran’s foreign ministry called out the hypocrisy from Berlin regarding the U.S. and Israel’s illegal war of aggression against Iran and mocked Germany for accusing the victim.
RUSSIA PROVIDED IRAN WITH WEAPONS, EVEN AS UKRAINE WAR RAGED
A report last week accused Russia of providing Iran with weaponry as the two countries have grown closer since the start of the Ukraine War.
The Israel War
IDF HAS BEEN CHANGING THE FACE OF SOUTHERN LEBANON BY CONSTRUCTING NEW ROADS
The Israeli military has been busy building infrastructure in southern Lebanon, including a network of 90 kilometers of new roads in the region that bypass destroyed towns and accommodate IDF troops, according to a report in Al Jazeera.
TRUMP SAYS U.S. WILL END ROUGHLY $4 BILLION IN ANNUAL AID FOR ISRAEL
President Donald Trump announced before the midterm elections that the U.S. will be winding down its annual military support for Israel, which amounts to about $4 billion a year, because he said the country no longer needs the support.