Zinger Key Points
- China's policy moves are closely watched given it has emerged as a dominant economy in the world.
- Fed watchers are resigned to a quarter-point increment at March meeting but one economist has a different take.
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Former President Donald Trump took the spotlight this weekend with a video released on social media platform Rumble and his address to the Conservative Political Action Committee conference on Sunday.
Here's a recap of a few major headlines that hit the wire over the weekend.
China’s GDP Target: After struggling with COVID-19 recurrences in 2022, China seems to be on the mend. The National Working Report presented by Premier Li Keqiang at the National People’s Congress opening session showed that the country now targets 5% GDP growth and 3% consumer price inflation for 2023. Importantly. a draft budget presented by the Ministry of Finance, also during the weekend, showed a slightly faster pace of increase in defense spending.
Summers Raises Prospect Of Bigger Rate Hike: Former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers told Bloomberg News he wants the Fed to keep the door open for a 50 basis-point hike at the March meeting. The central bank tempered the pace of rate hikes from 50 basis points to 25 basis points in each of the past two meetings. He apparently views that the Fed is now behind the curve with respect to rate hikes.
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Major Update Coming For Project Shibarium? Lead Shiba Inu SHIB/USD developer, who goes by the pseudonym Shytoshi Kusama, created a buzz when he hinted through his Twitter bio update that ShibaSwap is the official decentralized exchange for the Shiba Inu and Shibarium ecosystem. The project’s White Paper indicates that ShibaSwap will provide a safe place for traders to crypto assets in a decentralized environment.
O’Leary Says Quit Job, Start Business: Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary faced backlash after he suggested on Twitter that the most notable thing to do in one’s life was to quit one’s job and start a business. Shortly after, Dogecoin founder Billy Markus chimed in, taking potshots at O’Leary’s comments and Markus’ view was promptly endorsed by Elon Musk.
Apple Supplier Sees February Setback: Apple, Inc. AAPL iPhone assembler Hon Hai Manufacturing Company Limited HNHPF reported February revenue that fell year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter. The Taiwanese company blamed the softness on customer pull-ins amid caution.
What Else: Apple could launch a new iMac as early as the second half of this year, Bloomberg columnist Mark Gurman said. The machine is reportedly in the advanced stages of engineering testing.
Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman shared a chart compiled by the St. Louis Federal Reserve, which showed a divergence between housing starts and employment numbers. He called it the “most puzzling economic” chart.
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