Baltic
Dry Index. 2666 +01 Brent Crude 109.87
Spot Gold 4661 Spot Silver 73.80
US 2 Year Yield 3.78 unch.
US Federal Debt. 39.173 trillion
US GDP 31.366 trillion.
'Emergencies' have always been the pretext on which the safeguards of individual liberty have been eroded.
Friedrich August von Hayek
More stock casino disconnect. More rigging?
On a global fiat currency system trapped in an Israeli/US war crashing global supply chains, have the central banks taken to propping up global stock casinos and if so, how does that end?
Look away from that oil price now.
CNBC Daily Open: Investors look past warning signs
to send stock markets soaring
Published Mon, Apr 27 2026 9:27 PM EDT
Hello, this is Hui Jie writing to you from
Singapore. Welcome to another edition of CNBC’s Daily Open.
From stagflation warnings and stalled Iran
talks to rising oil prices, red flags are everywhere.
But investors continue to push markets in
the U.S. (and some in Asia) to new highs — is that misplaced optimism or the
AI-driven tech gains are going to sustain this rally amid geopolitical worries?
What you need to know today
Warning signs are flashing for the Trump
administration like red lights on a stalled F1 driver’s car.
There’s geopolitical strain from stalled
Iran peace talks, growing worries of an extended Mideast conflict, and
billionaire investor Ray Dalio has
warned the U.S. economy was in a “stagflationary period.”
That’s the kind of scenario that
usually spooks investors as it usually means that central banks cannot cut or
raise rates to combat inflation or stimulate growth.
But not this time around. The S&P
500 and the Nasdaq
Composite rose to fresh
highs overnight, clearly underlining that investors are looking past
the warning signs. While Asia markets opened mixed Tuesday, South
Korea’s Kospi briefly
touched a new record high.
Dalio also said that it would be a mistake
for the potential Federal Reserve chair successor Kevin Warsh to lower interest
rates, a key demand of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Oil prices continued to rise as Iran-U.S.
peace talks stalled, further stoking energy supply worries, with global Brent
futures advancing 2.75% to close at $108.23 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate futures
up 0.39% to trade at $96.77 per barrel. They were trading higher during early
Asia hours Tuesday.
Iran has reportedly
offered a new proposal to the U.S. for reopening the Strait of Hormuz
and ending the war while suggesting that nuclear talks be deferred. White House
press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Monday that Trump and his national
security team discussed
Iran’s proposal.
Meanwhile, just weeks ahead planned talks between Trump and Chinese President
Xi Jinping, Beijing
has moved to block Meta’s $2
billion acquisition of
Manus, a Singaporean artificial intelligence startup with Chinese roots. The
acquisition was completed last December and Meta said in March “the transaction
complied fully with applicable law.”
Looking ahead, Asian investors will be
watching the Hong Kong market debut of Chinese optical-computing provider
Lightelligence, after it raised 2.5 billion Hong Kong dollars ($323 million) in
its IPO.
CNBC
Daily Open: Investors look past warning signs to send stock markets soaring
Stock futures little changed after the S&P 500
posts another record, Wall Street awaits earnings: Live updates
Updated Tue, Apr 28 2026 1:23 AM EDT
U.S. stock futures were little changed
early Tuesday after the S&P
500 and Nasdaq
Composite closed the regular session with new records.
S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq Composite futures remained
flat. Futures tied to the Dow
Jones Industrial Average gained 64 points, or 0.13%.
During the day’s regular trading, both the
S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq hit new intraday and closing highs. The broad
market index rose 0.12%, while the Nasdaq added 0.20%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lagged
behind, slipping 62.92 points, or 0.13%.
The market’s gains were kept in check as
peace talks between the U.S. and Iran appeared to come to a standstill.
Over the weekend, President Donald Trump canceled
plans to send U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to
Pakistan to discuss the ceasefire in Iran. In a Truth Social post, the
president said that negotiations could happen over the phone. Esmaeil Baqaei,
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, said that no meetings are currently
planned between Tehran and Washington.
In a bit of positive news, White House
press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed on Monday that Trump and his
national security team have discussed Iran’s
offer to reopen the Strait of Hormuz if the war ends and the U.S.
lifts its blockade.
The news comes during a major earnings
week for the stock market, with five of the “Magnificent Seven” tech titans
slated to report. Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms and Microsoft are due
Wednesday, while Apple’s results are set for Thursday.
“I do think some strength in the first
quarter has been pre-traded,” said John Belton, growth equities portfolio
manager at Gabelli Funds on CNBC’s “Closing Bell: Overtime”
on Monday afternoon. “But these are strong fundamentals, high expectations —
hard to say how stocks respond on day of earnings against that setup. Still,
looking longer term, I think these are pretty interesting.”
Wednesday will also be the conclusion of
what could be current Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s final Federal Reserve meeting.
Policymakers will roll out their rate decision that afternoon.
UPS, General Motors, Coca-Cola, Hilton Worldwide, JetBlue and Corning are just some of the
companies on the docket to report earnings Tuesday before the bell. Traders
will also watch for April’s consumer confidence reading.
Stock
market today: Live updates
Up next, what most Brits, Europeans and most of the world are thinking. Trump was sucker punched by Netanyahu to doing Israel’s dirty work in Iran. Is there any exit short of unthinkable nuclear war?
Germany's Merz says Iran is humiliating US as
talks stall
27 April 2026
BERLIN, April 27 (Reuters) - German
Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Monday Iran's leadership was humiliating the
United States and getting U.S. officials to travel to Pakistan and then leave
without results, in an unusually abrupt rebuke over the conflict.
Merz also said he not see what exit
strategy the U.S. was pursuing in the Iran war - comments that underlined deep
divisions between Washington and its European NATO allies, which had already
been festering over Ukraine and other issues.
"The Iranians are obviously very
skilled at negotiating, or rather, very skilful at not negotiating, letting the
Americans travel to Islamabad and then leave again without any result," he
said during a talk to students in the town of Marsberg.
"An entire nation is being humiliated
by the Iranian leadership, especially by these so-called Revolutionary Guards.
And so I hope that this ends as quickly as possible," he added at the
venue in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
U.S. President Donald Trump has harshly
criticized NATO allies for not sending their navies to help open the Strait of
Hormuz during the conflict. The waterway has remained virtually shut, causing
market turmoil and unprecedented disruption in energy supplies.
Merz reiterated that Germans and Europeans
were not consulted before the U.S. and Israel started attacking Iran on
February 28, and that he had conveyed his scepticism directly to Trump
afterwards.
"If I had known that it would
continue like this for five or six weeks and get progressively worse, I would
have told him even more emphatically," Merz said, comparing it to previous
U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Hopes of reviving peace efforts have
receded since Trump scrapped a visit on Saturday by his envoys Steve Witkoff
and Jared Kushner to Islamabad, the Pakistani capital.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi
travelled to Russia on Monday after failed talks in Pakistan and Oman.
Merz said it was evident the Strait of
Hormuz had been at least partially mined. "We have offered, also as
Europeans, to send German minesweepers to clear the strait, which has obviously
been mined in part," he said.
He said the conflict was costing Germany
"a lot of money, a lot of taxpayers' money and a lot of economic
strength."
Germany's Merz
says Iran is humiliating US as talks stall
Israel’s President, Putting Off Decision on Pardon
for Netanyahu, Will Push for Plea Deal
President Isaac Herzog of Israel has
decided not to issue a pardon to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his
corruption case at this time, and instead will seek mediation, officials say.
April 26, 2026
For months, President Isaac Herzog of
Israel has deliberated over the politically fraught question of whether to
grant Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a pardon in his long-running corruption
trial. It’s a highly contentious issue that has divided Israelis and drawn
pressure from President Trump, who has aggressively intervened on Mr.
Netanyahu’s behalf.
But Mr. Herzog does not plan to give Mr.
Netanyahu a pardon anytime soon. Instead he will first try to initiate a
mediation process to reach a plea deal, according to two senior Israeli
officials with direct knowledge of Mr. Herzog’s thinking.
Mr. Herzog, the officials said, believes
that there are many options beyond the binary pardon-or-no-pardon choice, and
that the main role of Israel’s president is to foster unity. So he does not
plan to say yes or no to Mr. Netanyahu’s request for a pardon at this stage,
the officials said, preferring to try to resolve the issue through
negotiations.
The officials spoke on the condition of
anonymity because the issue is so politically sensitive.
More
In other news.
Renewable energy will boost national security and
protect UK from sabotage, minister says
Widely dispersed wind farms and solar
panels are harder to target than fossil fuel power stations, Michael Shanks
says
Mon 27 Apr 2026 00.01 BST
Renewable energy will boost the UK’s
national security and make the country more resilient against potential
aggression or sabotage, the government’s energy minister has said.
Michael Shanks said widely dispersed wind
farms and solar panels were much harder to target than large-scale fossil fuel
power stations. They are also not vulnerable to supply shocks, such as the
current oil crisis caused
by the US-Israel war on
Iran and the soaring gas prices that
followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
“We are dealing with a far more complex
threat landscape than we’ve ever dealt with before. That’s true in the UK, it’s
true across Europe,” Shanks said. “Building a decentralised power system with a
whole series of assets is less of a risk of physical attack than large-scale
power stations. Moving towards
clean power is
the best way to deliver our energy security in an increasingly uncertain
world.”
The Conservatives and Reform UK have pushed for more
drilling in the North Sea, rather than renewables. But those arguments received
a heavy blow last week when the Guardian revealed that Fatih Birol, the
executive director of the International Energy Agency and the world’s leading
energy economist, advised against new exploration licences on a commercial
basis and said potential new fields already within the licensing system, such
as Rosebank and Jackdaw, would make little difference
to the UK’s energy security or energy prices.
Military experts have also called for
investment in wind farms and solar panels to bolster the UK’s national security
against potential aggression or sabotage. Several former military chiefs
have written to
governments to urge them to pursue renewables. Retired Lt Gen Richard Nugee has
previously said investing in renewable energy would make the UK more resilient.
“To have a strong military deterrence, we need a resilient homeland. If we want
to build a resilient country, low-carbon energy is a very important component,”
he said.
More
Global Inflation/Stagflation/Recession
Watch.
Given
our Magic Money Tree central banksters and our spendthrift politicians.
The
$50 Movie Ticket Has Arrived
Theaters
raising prices for most avid moviegoers despite complaints from Hollywood
studios
April
27, 2026 5:30 am ET
One
of the best selling points of a night out at the movies has long been how cheap
it was for two hours-plus of entertainment. Not so much when it costs $50 a
ticket.
That
is how much Regal Cinemas
recently charged for opening night seats in the best theaters to see December’s
“Dune: Part Three.”
Eye-popping
prices for the most in-demand movies on the best screens are becoming
increasingly common as the cinema industry copies the audience-segmentation
playbooks of airlines and hotels. Theaters are getting people who love movies
and have discretionary income to pay substantially more.
Some
17% of film tickets sold last year were for premium-format theaters with bigger
screens and better sound, compared with 13% in 2021. They cost an average of
$18 nationally, according to research firm EntTelligence, and as much as $30 in
big cities such as New York and Los Angeles.
Welcome
to the new box office reality. Die-hards are paying top dollar while the rest
of the country rarely goes to the theater and gets most of their entertainment
from Netflix, YouTube and
TikTok. Despite recent hits such as “Michael,” “Project
Hail Mary” and “The
Super Mario Galaxy Movie,” the annual number of tickets sold is down more
than one-third from before the pandemic.
More
The $50 Movie
Ticket Has Arrived - WSJ
UK
retail sales tumble by most in over 40 years, CBI survey shows
27
April 2026
LONDON,
April 27 (Reuters) - British retailers reported the sharpest year-on-year
decline in sales in more than 40 years as the Iran war raised households'
inflation fears, a survey from the Confederation of British Industry showed on
Monday.
The
CBI's monthly retail sales volume measure dropped to -68 in April from -52 in
March, its lowest reading since the series started in 1983.
Expectations
for May also darkened, dropping to -60 from -49, the gloomiest outlook since
March 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"With
the economic impact of the Iran conflict becoming clearer, firms will be
looking to government to recognise that easing cost of living pressures depends
on tackling the cost of doing business," CBI economist Martin Sartorius
said.
The
CBI called on the government to stop new employee rights legislation from
boosting employers' costs too much, reduce their property taxes and lower
electricity bills.
"Some
retailers reported that weak consumer confidence was weighing on spending in
April," the employer organisation added.
The
survey was based on response from 61 retail chains collected between March 26
and April 14.
UK retail sales
tumble by most in over 40 years, CBI survey shows
Price hikes due to Iran war will be felt for at least eight months after
conflict ends, minister warns
Mon, 27 April 2026 at 5:47 am BST
Price hikes as a result of
the Iran war will be felt for at least
eight months after the conflict ends, a government minister has warned.
The chief secretary to
the prime minister, Darren Jones, warned people will see higher energy, food and
flight prices “as a consequence of what Donald Trump has done in the Middle
East” and said there will be a “long tail from this”.
The government has
stepped up planning for how to offset potential shortages sparked by the conflict, following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a
key shipping lane crucial for the supply of a fifth of global oil and gas,
which sent oil prices soaring.
Meanwhile, peace talks
planned for this weekend have stalled, with Iran insisting no direct talks
would take place and Donald Trump calling off a trip for US
negotiators to visit mediators
in Pakistan.
The prime minister will
chair another meeting of the Cabinet committee set up to deal with the fallout
on Tuesday, after the so-called Middle East Response Committee met last week.
Meanwhile, a contingency
planning group of ministers led by Mr Jones is meeting twice a week. They are
focusing on live monitoring of stock levels and seeing what plans are in place
to address supply chain disruption.
But Mr Jones told the BBC
that consumers are more likely to see prices go up rather than gaps on
supermarket shelves as a consequence of the conflict.
“Quite frankly, that's
probably going to come online, not just in the next few weeks, but the next few
months. There's going to be a long tail from this”, he said.
Pressed on how long
people will see economic disruption, Mr Jones said: "I think our best
guess is eight-plus months from the point of resolution that you'll see
economic impacts coming through the system.
"So people will see
higher energy prices, food prices and those types of issues, flight ticket
prices, as a consequence of what Donald Trump has done in the Middle East.
“The government here in
the UK, the work that I'm doing with the prime minister is looking at all of
those things and saying, ‘what can we do within our power to help people to get
through those difficult times?’”
More
Brits
given supermarket price rise warning as horror 'Trumpflation' to hit 4 crucial
foods
27
April 2026
Experts
have warned the price of four fresh foods could be hardest hit by the war in
the Middle East as energy costs skyrocket. The price
of tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce and asparagus are tipped to soar in the coming
weeks.
This
is reportedly because they are grown in heated greenhouses and have small
supply chains. The Iran war has sent economic shockwaves
across the world, with surging prices associated with the conflict dubbed
'Trumpinflation'. Sir Keir Starmer is set to chair
a meeting of the emergency Cobra committee on Tuesday, as he warned the impact
of the war could continue "for some time"
Oil prices hit a near
three-week high on Monday as progress on US-Iran peace talks hit another set back after Donald Trump cancelled plans to send a
negotiating team to Pakistan.
Karen Betts, the Food
& Drink Federation (FDF)'s chief executive, told The Times "anything grown in a greenhouse"
would be among the first products to see price rises.
More
Brits
given supermarket price rise warning as horror 'Trumpflation' to hit 4 crucial
foods
Technology
Update.
With events happening fast in the
development of solar power and graphene, among other things, I’ve added this
section Updates as they get reported.
Fire officials offer safety tips after several lithium-ion battery
fires in NH
April 27, 2026
Several fires have broken out across New
Hampshire in the past week after lithium-ion battery malfunctions.
Lithium-ion battery fires typically burn
hotter and longer than standard fires. Fire crews often place burning batteries
into a barrel and pack them with a granular material to neutralize them.
The latest incident occurred at a
Manchester apartment, where investigators said an electric scooter plugged into
a wall caught fire while charging.
"You want to make sure you use the
charger that's supplied with the device. You want to make sure you're present
when you're charging. You don't want to charge overnight. We don't recommend
charging them in your home," said Gary Ducharme, assistant fire marshal
with the Manchester Fire Department.
A lithium-ion battery-powered portable
jump starter was also blamed for a fire that destroyed a mobile home in Littleton on Friday.
The batteries come in many shapes and
sizes and are found in e-bikes, electric tools and everyday electronics.
Fire officials say lithium-ion batteries
should be treated like a burning candle, with constant supervision.
Anyone who smells an odor or sees smoke
coming from a battery should take it as a sign that it may be failing.
"Unplug your device, get it
outside, away from the home or business or whatever you're at, and then call,
obviously call 911," Ducharme said.
Officials said problems can stem from
improper storage, extreme temperature changes or improper charging equipment.
Lithium-ion batteries should never be
thrown in the trash or placed with recyclables. Instead, contact a local
transfer station for proper disposal.
Fire officials offer safety tips after several lithium-ion battery fires
in NH
Months
of bin disruption after battery fire to end
27 April 2026
Months of disruption caused by a fire at a waste transfer station
likely started by an electric battery is set to come to an end.
The Veolia site in Worksop has been out
of use since August, which has delayed bin collections and contributed to
problems at tips, according to local authorities.
Veolia said it will fully reopen the
site on Friday after months of rebuilding.
Darrell Pulk, the councillor responsible
for waste collection on Bassetlaw District Council, said it will then take time
for them to clear the backlog and get fully back to normal, but they will make
it happen "as soon as possible".
More than 165 firefighters took two days
to bring the blaze at the Veolia site off Claylands Avenue under control after
being called just before 01:00 BST on 20 August.
The fire service deemed it an accident
and Veolia said it had been "almost definitely" caused by a
lithium-ion battery, because of the speed it spread and the heat of the flames.
More
Months of bin disruption after battery fire to end - BBC News
Next, the
world global debt clock. Nations debts to GDP compared.
World Debt Clocks
(usdebtclock.org)
If socialists understood economics, they wouldn't be socialist.
Friedrich August von Hayek
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