My back to work morning train WFH reads:
• The Stock Market is Heartless It seems odd to worry about the stock market at a time of war when people are dying, losing their homes and potentially the country they love. The point here is the stock market is heartless. It often goes up in the face of godawful events when it almost doesn’t seem right. (A Wealth of Common Sense) see also How Geopolitics Impacts Markets (1941-2021) From Pearl Harbor forward, we learn the overall impact on stocks and bonds is modest. Markets wobble a bit, before returning to their prior trends. On average, the impact of these events is a one-day loss of about 1.1%. The total drawdown from geopolitical events averages -4.8%; and it takes about 19.7 days to bottom and 43.2 days to recover. (The Big Picture)
• The big sanctions: A quick explainer Western countries are now pulling out all the stops in terms of sanctions. The latest round includes: Cutting some Russian banks out of the SWIFT messaging system, Freezing the Russian central bank’s access to its foreign currency reserves held in the West, Increased sanctions on Russian banks in general, Establishing an international task force to hunt down and freeze the assets of Russian companies and Russian oligarchs Just a couple of days ago, these sanctions were almost unthinkable. But the moral clarity of the unprovoked and brutal Russian assault has changed minds (Noahpinion)
• Cryptocurrency Is a Potential New Tool for Billionaires to Avoid Sanctions Individuals and other entities targeted in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine may circumvent penalties if they choose to use crypto. (Bloomberg)
• Berkshire Hathaway Rebounds From the Pandemic In announcing the company’s $90 billion profit in 2021, Warren Buffett noted the role that Berkshire plays in the American economy. (Dealbook)
• The anatomy of doom & gloom real estate articles The market is going to crash. This time it’s going to be even worse. Have you been seeing more doom and gloom housing headlines? I sure have. This week I’ve had quite a few articles emailed to me. What do you think of this one? What do stats actually show? What do I say to my buyer who feels concerned? Let’s chat about this. (Sacramento Appraisal Blog)
• The West Weaponizes Russia’s Central Bank Against Putin The sanctions have the potential to devastate the country’s economy and sow the seeds of Putin’s downfall. (Bloomberg) see also Big Tech’s Russia problem Social media companies are in a standoff with Russia on censorship and there’s no easy solution. (Recode)
• Sorry, Bosses: Workers Are Just Not That Into You American workers are going back to bars, movies, sports arenas and weddings—pretty much everywhere but their offices. (Wall Street Journal)
• Inside Facebook’s $10 Billion Breakup With Advertisers Privacy features prompt e-commerce businesses to slash ad spending; ‘Apple has changed the game’ (Wall Street Journal)
• A pair of gut enzymes in the microbiome could be key to universal organ donation One of the major factors preventing recipients from receiving available organs is blood type. Patients need organs from someone with their blood type or type O blood (the universal blood donor). In a proof-of-concept study published Wednesday in Science Translational Medicine, researchers say they’ve found a way to make organs compatible for any recipient. (Inverse)
• Space is turning into a dangerous junkyard Defunct rockets, satellites and other debris litter the skies. Giant nets, harpoons and robot claws might be part of the solution. (Grid)
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business next week with Sebastien Mallaby, whom we previously had on as a guest (MiB is here) discussed “More Money Than God: Hedge Funds and the Making of a New Elite.” His new book is a must-read, a powerful tour de force on the history of the VC: “The Power Law: Venture Capital and the Making of the New Future.”
More European nations ban Russian flights from their airspace — including the entire E.U.
Source: Washington Post
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