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Portland weighs tweaking public campaign finance program to allow larger donations

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Portland weighs tweaking public campaign finance program to allow larger donations

Less than five months from a historic election, Portland may tweak campaign finance rules to stretch the city’s cash-strapped public financing program.

On Friday, city candidates were emailed a survey asking whether the city’s Small Donor Elections program should loosen its rules around the amount and type of in-kind donations nonprofits and other political organizations can give candidates.

The proposal, first reported by Willamette Week, has drawn both praise and alarm from those involved in city campaigns.

“We don’t need more money in politics,” said Marie Glickman, a candidate running to represent Portland’s new District 2, which spans North and Northeast Portland. “The ideas being discussed are anti-democratic.”

The small donor program rewards candidates who don’t accept individual donations over $350 by matching those contributions with public funds 9-to-1. The program was created to level the playing field for candidates who may have fewer deep-pocketed supporters than others — potentially hampering their ability to fund a competitive campaign.

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This year’s general election has attracted a uniquely large pool of candidates, due to voter-approved changes that scrapped primary elections and set the stage for 14 city elected offices to be open all at once. Nearly 80 candidates have applied to participate in the program so far.

Due to the large number of participants and limited amount of available funding, the Portland Elections Commission in January chose to lower the amount of total funds council candidates can receive from the city through the program to $120,000 from the previous $300,000 cap.

Through the program, candidates are limited to receiving no more than $10,000 worth of in-kind donations from political committees and non-profits. Those organizations must receive at least 90% of their annual funds from contributions of $250 or less per donor, a rule meant to exclude committees fueled by wealthy donors. Those donations are limited to paying staff to canvas or run a phone bank, sharing donor lists, and assisting with general campaign planning.

The Friday survey asked candidates if contributing organizations should be able to spend more than $10,000 on in-kind donations and to broaden the donations included — like allowing organizations to donate space to host campaign events, fundraisers, and print and distribute for campaigns. It also asked whether organizations can still participate in the small donor program if they receive 90% of their funding from contributions of $350 or less — instead of $250.

Jake Weigler, a political consultant with Praxis Political, said this would allow political committees with wealthier donors to contribute.

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“If your goal was to reduce the influence of large organizations in the campaign process, this undercuts that by giving them a larger role,” said Weigler, who is working on several City Council campaigns.

Susan Mottet oversees the Small Donor Election program and distributed the survey on behalf of the Portland Elections Commission, which makes recommendations on city election rules. She said these proposed changes could help campaigns stretch limited funds a bit further.

“With no ability to increase campaign matching caps, we have to look at options,” she said. “The Portland Elections Commission is trying to figure out if there is anything they have power to do to get candidates more support without making changes that undercut the intent of the program.”

She knows the spotlight is on her office this election.

“Obviously, the program succeeds or fails based on if a campaign is viable,” Mottet said.

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Weigler said the proposed changes to the program reflect this pressure.

“I get the urgency that they don’t don’t want to fumble this, during such a critical election,” he said. “But it creates inherent tension. It makes it much easier for organizations to put their thumb on the scale and elevate a class of candidates they prefer.”

Some political insiders say these changes are vital for upholding the program’s intent.

“The theory of the original program is to limit the amount of money that organizations can give, and to mitigate that shortfall with city funding,” said Laurie Wimmer, the head of NW Oregon Labor Council, who has convened a group of labor leaders to endorse council candidates this year. “But if that money wanes, like it has this year, it’s only fair that something has to give on the other side of the equation to run a credible campaign.”

Wimmer, who led an unsuccessful campaign for state representative in 2020, said that the cost of sending out one piece of campaign mail could cost over $10,000, the current in-kind limit.

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Doug Moore, the former head of the Oregon League of Conservation Voters, now leads United for Portland, a political action committee that represents business and industry groups. He called the current small donor program “disingenuous” because it potentially limits candidates from running what he considers successful campaigns.

“Not being able to fully match funds — that’s bad for democracy in general,” Moore said. “I appreciate the effort to try and help candidates be a little more flexible and able to run campaigns.”

He does worry that the more complex the election’s rules are, the more at-risk candidates are for breaking them, especially if the rules change in the middle of campaign season.

“It’s like they’re trying to build the plane as they’re flying it,” Moore said.

Council candidate Glickman said her campaign hasn’t been hampered by the limited public matching caps. She agrees that the timing of the proposed change is a problem.

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“We shouldn’t change rules mid-game,” said Glickman, who is one of more than 20 candidates for District 2 who are participating in the small donor program thus far.

She said that allowing wealthier organizations to support low-cost campaigns is an even bigger concern. The fact that these possible tweaks may be needed, she said, is entirely the city’s fault.

“The city of Portland needs to be more consistent in its planning its programs, funding its programs, and implementing its programs in a responsible and transparent way,” Glickman said.

Not all candidates agree. Steph Routh, a candidate in East Portland’s District 1, was one of the first candidates to qualify for the small donor program. She said she’s been impressed with the level of transparency from the city’s elections program. However, she is cautious to fully endorse the proposed funding changes to the small donor program.

“We created a budget early on assuming we would have limited resources, and we’ve made it work,” Routh said. “I think the fundamental question before us is, ‘How do we create pathways to support a grassroots-based campaign to ensure no single actor or donor creates an advantage after election?’”

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The Portland Elections Commission will discuss the survey responses at its Wednesday meeting and potentially propose a policy change. Any new administration policy requires four weeks of public feedback before going into effect, but they don’t require a sign-off from the City Council.

That means the earliest any changes could come to the small donor program could be late July, less than four months from election day.

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Finance

Ex-health minister Katsunobu Kato set to be named Ishiba's finance minister

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Ex-health minister Katsunobu Kato set to be named Ishiba's finance minister

TOKYO – New ruling Liberal Democratic Party leader Shigeru Ishiba, set to soon become Japan’s next prime minister, is considering naming former Chief Cabinet Secretary and health minister Katsunobu Kato as finance minister, sources close to the matter said Saturday.

Former Defense Minister Ishiba, the winner of the LDP’s presidential race on Friday, also plans to appoint former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi as its election campaign chief, the sources said, as lawmakers brace for the possibility of a general election by the end of this year.

Ishiba, meanwhile, has decided to retain Yoshimasa Hayashi, known as a right-hand man to outgoing Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, as chief Cabinet secretary and the top government spokesperson. Hayashi previously served as foreign minister.

Former Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato, a candidate contesting the upcoming leadership race of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, speaks during a debate at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on Sept. 14, 2024. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

 

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Kato, a former Finance Ministry bureaucrat, Hayashi and Koizumi were among the record nine candidates in the leadership race to choose the successor to Kishida, who did not seek reelection following a slush fund scandal that has hit the party.

Ishiba plans to launch the new LDP leadership on Monday. He is expected to become prime minister on Tuesday, as both houses of parliament are controlled by the LDP and its coalition partner, the Komeito party. He will then form a Cabinet on Tuesday.

The new president has decided to appoint Hiroshi Moriyama, the head of the LDP’s decision-making general council, as its secretary general, the party’s No. 2 position, while tapping former Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera as its policy chief, the sources said.

In his fifth presidential bid, Ishiba, who also served as the party’s secretary general, won 215 of the 409 valid votes cast by LDP lawmakers and rank-and-file members in a runoff vote on Friday, while economic security minister Sanae Takaichi secured 194.

Regarding the Cabinet lineup, senior vice finance minister Ryosei Akazawa, a close aide to Ishiba, is set to be given a ministerial post and transport minister Tetsuo Saito, a lawmaker of Komeito, is certain to be retained, the sources said.

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Ishiba said at a press conference after he was elected LDP chief, “I will ask each of them (the other leadership candidates) to take the position that suits them best.” But Takaichi, who was narrowly defeated by 21 votes in the runoff, said, “I will support” Ishiba “as a member of parliament.”

Amid mounting speculation that Ishiba may dissolve the House of Representatives for a snap election in the near future, he apparently accelerated preparations on Saturday by having photos taken for campaign posters.


Related coverage:

U.S. expresses hope to foster even closer ties with Japan’s next PM

Public urges incoming Japan leader Ishiba to improve cost of living

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FOCUS:New Japan ruling LDP chief Ishiba may face make-or-break moment as PM


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LInda Chapman retires as Florence Finance Director after 21 years, looks forward to 'nexts' – NKyTribune

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LInda Chapman retires as Florence Finance Director after 21 years, looks forward to 'nexts' – NKyTribune

By Patricia A. Scheyer
NKyTribune reporter

Linda Chapman is about to close a chapter on her life as Finance Director in the city of Florence, a position she has held for the last 21 years.

She finished her last week, and though she is a little sad about leaving, a part of her is looking forward to the freedom that comes with not having to report to work at a certain time of the morning.

“This is the first time in years that I haven’t had to plan anything,” she said, looking over her desk full of papers, and computers with three screens. “From January to August things are really busy with taxes and the budget, then we have the property taxes in October, so I always took my vacation in November or December. I felt like this was the best time to retire, too.”

Chapman is from the west side of Cincinnati and she said the roots are strong there — “you never leave the west side.”

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Linda Chapman is finished with the city’s paperwork — she has retired after 21 years a Finance Director.

She attended McCauley high school and the University of Cincinnati and then became an accountant.

“I didn’t know what I wanted to do until my senior year in high school,” she said. “I always thought I would go into a dental or nursing field and I took classes that would help with those fields, but there were things I didn’t like about those fields. So I decided to go with numbers.”

She eventually found her way to Rankin and Rankin, where she worked for ten years, doing audits for different cities in the Northern Kentucky area.

It was while she was doing the June 30, 2002 audit for the city of Florence that she discovered a problem on the books.

“Things just didn’t add up,” she explained. “The numbers weren’t right.”

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Ron Epling had been the Finance Director for ten years at Florence, and Chapman knew him, so she worked the numbers over and over before she turned the evidence over to her boss at Rankin and Rankin, and the police brought charges against Epling for embezzling $4.9 million from the city.

Linda Chapman was hired as Finance Director in March of 2003.

“The embezzlement meant I started with a big mess,” she said. “The city was able to recover everything. It was bad, but it was up to me to come up with programs to install so that it never happened again. I put several safeguards in, and had to change all the systems over. It took about two years. So even though it was a big mess, it was a challenge for me, and I really like challenges.”

She said that the embezzlement was definitely the worst thing she had to deal with, but the result was the greatest satisfaction of her job, because she met the challenge and she fixed it. Governmental accounting is a special niche, she commented. Chapman said the people who work with her are very great to work with, the five ladies who work up front and her right hand man, Jason Cobb.

Through the years, she said she has had ups and downs, but her attitude is equanimical— most things ‘are what they are’ and she handles them with ease. Her philosophy is ‘one day at a time’, and she said she would come into work each day with the expectation of something good happening, something different, to make her smile.

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Without the job to come into, what does she want to do as the next step in her life?

“I have no clue,” Chapman said with a smile.

Her first idea is that she has yard work to do, as well as some gardening chores to take care of.

Gardening is one of her passions. Chapman has a large garden, the length of the side of her house, and garden boxes in the back of her house.

“I grow green beans, tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, cucumbers, and a lot more,” she said. “Gardening is my stress relief.”

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She is not a person who travels a lot. She likes to take her annual vacation to Pigeon Forge, an area she loves, but she has no sites she wants to see, like Mount Rushmore, or Hawaii.

“I don’t want to spend that much time in the air,” she explained about visiting Hawaii. “And I don’t want to go on a cruise. I can just picture me on a boat that becomes Titanic number two.”

Chapman has plans to go to Opryland for their Christmas extravaganza. Another passion she enjoys is Christmas.

“I am a big Christmas person,” she said, pointing to pictures of her decorated yard. “My yard isn’t that big, but I squeeze it all in.”

The lights and inflatables cover every available inch of yard, and she said it is such a glorious site people stop in front of the house to take it all in. It does take awhile to put it all up and take it all down, but she doesn’t mind.

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“Inside, I put up my tree at Halloween, and during the time while I hand out candy, I also decorate the tree,” she said, laughing. “I love my Christmas decorations!”

She also decorates her office, and her co-workers like to decorate, so that tradition will continue.

Chapman loves to do jigsaw puzzles, and she said her minimum puzzle is 1000 pieces. She showed pictures of her special setup for puzzles so she can concentrate on them and not lose any of the tiny pieces.

“I do a lot of puzzles, and one of the worst ones I have done was candy canes,” she pointed to a picture that showed a massive amount of striped candy canes. “Another one that was challenging was one with pictures of rolls of toilet paper. I finished it, though, even though it took about a month, and I had to get new lighting. I haven’t met a puzzle I haven’t finished yet.”

Chapman feels she has enough to keep her busy through the end of the year, but she understands that when January gets here, she might reach a point where she looks around and there is nothing to do.

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“I will still take it one day at a time, but I will be looking for different challenges, different things to fulfill me,” she said. “I have no doubt I will find things. I would like to get a better exercise regimen, to add to my walking.”

Chapman said her mom and dad live in the same area, and she has two brothers and a sister who live relatively close, so she knows she will be getting together with family a lot.

She always thought she might like to have a dog, but she hasn’t had one since she was a child, largely because she didn’t feel that she had the time that a dog requires, but she is now thinking about pet ownership.

“I figure I will take a breather, and then keep on keeping on, stay busy and keep my mind fresh,” she ventured. “I think it’s kind of exciting to see what’s going to develop out there. If something comes up, I can take advantage of being spontaneous. I am looking forward to it.”

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Stock market today: Dow hits fresh record, stocks close out strong week as inflation cools

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Stock market today: Dow hits fresh record, stocks close out strong week as inflation cools

Stocks traded mixed on Friday but closed the week on a high as investors embraced an inflation report seen as crucial to the Federal Reserve’s next decision on interest rate cuts.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained 0.3% and finished with a fresh record. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) lost 0.1%, but is coming off a record-high close from the prior session. Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) sank about 0.4%.

Despite the mixed trading on Friday, the stock gauges all recorded wins for the week after confidence in the economy returned to the market. The Dow and the S&P added about 0.7%, while the Nasdaq rose 1%.

A solid GDP reading, combined with continued cooling in inflation, has cemented growing conviction that the Fed can nail a “soft landing” as it embarks on a rate-cutting campaign.

The August reading of the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, the inflation metric favored by the Fed, showed continued cooling in price pressures. The “core” PCE index, which is most closely watched by policymakers, rose 0.1% month over month, lower than Wall Street forecasts.

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The PCE reading appeared to goose up bets on another jumbo-sized rate cut from the Fed next month. More than half of traders — around 52% — now expect a 50 basis point cut.

Read more: What the Fed rate cut means for bank accounts, CDs, loans, and credit cards

Elsewhere, China added to its stream of stimulus measures, boosting markets once again. Mainland stocks scored their biggest weekly win since 2008, and luxury stocks are set for their best week in years as hopes for Chinese demand rise. Meanwhile, shares of Alibaba (BABA, 9988.HK), JD.com (JD, 9618.HK), and Meituan (3690.HK, MPNGY) surged amid the buying spree.

Live13 updates

  • Dow closes with new record

    Mixed trading on Friday still came with weekly wins as all three major gauges were in the green for the week. Investors appeared to welcome the latest inflation report that showed price pressures continuing to sink towards the Federal Reserve’s 2% target.

    The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained 0.3% or more than 100 points to clinch a record close. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) lost 0.1%, but is only coming down from a fresh record of its own. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) sank about 0.4%, but led the weekly wins overall, gaining 1%, compared to the S&P and the Dow’s 0.6%.

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  • Chip stocks close lower despite earlier gains

    US chip stocks fell Friday after a week of ups and downs. The PHLX Semiconductor Index (^SOX) dropped nearly 1.8%, but remains up 4.3% from last week.

    Micron (MU) fell down around 2.2% after skyrocketing Wednesday on its raised outlook for the upcoming quarter, fueled by AI demand. Micron was the first chipmaker to report financial results this earnings season, and its positive report raised fellow chip stocks such as Advanced Micro Devices (AMD).

    Some negative news for Nvidia (NVDA) came when AI server maker Super Micro Computer (SMCI), one of Nvidia’s biggest customers, saw shares plummet Thursday after reports of a DOJ probe into alleged accounting violations. Bloomberg also reported Friday that the Chinese government is pressuring companies to buy AI chips within its borders rather than from Nvidia. Nvidia fell 2.2%, though analysts said there was no singular reason for the stock’s drop.

    Daniel Newman, CEO of the Futurum Group, noted that semiconductors are a volatile industry. Nvidia stock has also been more volatile since its 10-for-1 stock split in June, Newman noted.

    Bob O’Donnell, founder of TECHnalysis Research, said Nvidia and other chip companies still display strong fundamentals and will likely continue to perform at high levels. Newman noted that there is “strong optimism right now from the top leaders across the industry.”

  • A look at the week ahead

    As a momentous September gives way to October, new jobs numbers will play a huge role in setting expectations for the days ahead.

    The September jobs report, which is scheduled to arrive on Friday, will offer the latest snapshot of the labor market. Should unemployment come in line with expectations, that will likely paint the Fed in a favorable light, as central bankers decided to cut interest rates by 50 basis points. Their efforts to ease back a restrictive monetary policy were designed in part to protect a labor market that has cooled somewhat. If, however, jobs numbers come in worse than expected, the data will offer fuel to critics who have argued that the Fed acted too slowly in cutting rates.

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    Fed Chair Jerome Powell is set to offer remarks ahead of the jobs report, on Monday, as investors look for signals on the central bank’s next move

    On the corporate front, major names scheduled to report include Nike (NKE), Carnival (CCL) and Constellation Brands (STZ).

    Yahoo Finance’s Brent Sanchez has a graphical breakdown of what to watch next week:

  • Zuckerberg faces deposition in AI copyright lawsuit from Sarah Silverman and other authors

    One of the most important debates sparked over the sudden rise of generative AI tools is whether the process of training large language models using existing artistic works is a new form of copyright infringement.

    An array of authors, media outlets and other creative professionals have sued to stop AI companies from using their content on the internet, arguing that their works are being used without compensation in order to advance a new technology and market opportunities.

    Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg will soon play a direct role in one of the most important lawsuits tackling this subject. Earlier this week a US District Court judge overseeing a suit brought by authors including Sarah Silverman and Ta-Nehisi Coates rejected Meta’s bid to prevent the deposition of Zuckerberg, the Associated Press reported Friday.

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    Meta had tried to block Zuckerberg’s deposition by arguing that he does not have unique knowledge of the company’s AI operations and other Meta employees could provide the same information. Zuckerberg’s participation will likely draw even more attention to the legal matter, similar to his high-profile appearances on Capitol Hill during Congressional hearings on the role of social media in society.

  • New PCE reading supports case for smaller Fed rate cut in November

    Change in core PCE since 2018Change in core PCE since 2018

    Change in core PCE since 2018

    A fresh reading on inflation Friday keeps the Federal Reserve on track to continue cutting interest rates this fall, likely in 25 basis point increments, reports Yahoo Finance’s Jennifer Schonberger.

    The result means that a bigger 50 basis point cut may be hard to justify at the Fed’s next meeting in November, according to some Fed watchers.

    The fact that core inflation year-over-year is holding the level of the last two months, and not dropping, lines up more with a scenario for a smaller cut — lest the job market substantially weaken between now and November.

    “The core year-over-year at 2.7% suggests that another round of 50 basis points needs to come under careful scrutiny unless the labor market suggests weakness,” said Quincy Krosby, chief global strategist for LPL Financial.

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    The consensus among Fed officials outlined last week is for two more 25 basis point rate cuts in 2024.

    Read more here

  • Proposed Biden Chinese car tech ban could cut US auto sales

    Escalating economic tensions between the US and China could have further ramifications for the domestic auto industry.

    On Friday the Commerce Department said a new proposal from the Biden administration to ban connected vehicles from China and key Chinese software in American cars could eat into US auto sales by more than 250,000 vehicles per year, as well as put pressure on prices to rise, Reuters reported.

    US automakers and other companies selling to American consumers others “may be less competitive in the global market because of the relatively higher prices of their vehicles,” the department said.

    As many as 25,841 fewer vehicles would be sold annually if the rule takes effect, the Commerce Department said, adding that $1.5 billion to $2.3 billion in vehicle inputs from Chinese or Russian companies would also be impacted by the proposal.

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    The proposal would also require that American automakers eventually remove certain Chinese software and hardware from vehicles in the US.

  • Dow rises 250 points in afternoon trading

    Stocks traded mixed on Friday after investors were greeted with a fresh inflation report that showed prices continue to cool. In another economics update, consumer sentiment slightly beat expectations in September, with a reading of 70.1 surpassing the 69.4 that economists had projected.

    The S&P 500 (^GSPC) ticked just above the flatline after eking out a third record-high close this week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained 0.7%, or more than 250 points while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) sank about 0.3%.

  • Stocks trending on Friday

    Here are some of the stocks leading Yahoo Finance’s trending tickers page during morning trading on Friday:

    Costco (COST): Shares of the warehouse retailer sank more than 1% Friday morning after the company posted a mixed fourth-quarter earnings report. Revenue came in at $79.70 billion, falling slightly below the expected $79.96 billion. Meanwhile, US comparable sales, ex-gasoline and currency impacts, were better than analysts were expecting.

    Cassava Sciences (SAVA): Shares of the biopharmaceutical company fell more than 10% after reaching a settlement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission over allegations that it advanced misleading claims about an Alzheimer’s clinical trial. The settlement amounts to over over $40 million

    Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY): The pharmaceutical company rose 3% following news that the FDA approved its schizophrenia drug, making it the first new drug-related approach for patients of the disease in 30 years.

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    Acadia (ACHC): Shares of the behavioral health facilities chain fell roughly 18% Friday after settling with the US Justice Department to resolve allegations it knowingly billed patients for medically unnecessary inpatient behavioral health services. The agreed to pay nearly $20 million.

     

  • Market bets rise for another jumbo rate cut

    The latest encouraging reading of the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge has shifted market forecasts for the likelihood of another 50-basis-point interest-rate cut.

    On Friday, the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index showed that prices in August increased at a slower pace than expected on a monthly basis. That impacted the debate over the Fed’s next policy rate decision, as central bankers move forward on winding down their tightening cycle.

    After Friday’s inflation release, investors were pricing in a 54% chance of a 50-basis-point rate cut at the Fed’s November policy meeting. That compares with the 50% chance seen a week ago, per the CME FedWatch Tool.

    If inflation continues to show signs of easing, that will likely pressure Fed officials to accelerate their plans to bring interest rates down, since elevated rates threaten the labor market and may lead to an economic slowdown that officials have thus far avoided.

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  • Costco’s stock slips, but its gold bars are selling like hot cakes

    Costco (COST) is slinging a lot of gold bars as prices for the precious metal continue to surge, report Yahoo Finance’s Brooke DiPalma and Brian Sozzi.

    Sales of gold were up “double digits” in the most recent quarter, the wholesale giant’s CFO Gary Millerchip told analysts on an earnings call Thursday evening. Millerchip added that gold was a “meaningful tailwind” to e-commerce sales in the quarter.

    Costco began selling gold bars in the fall of 2023. Wells Fargo analysts have estimated the company is moving bars worth $100 million to $200 million each month.

    On its website, Costco sells its 1 oz gold bar for $2,679.99. You have to be a member to buy the bullion. It’s also non-refundable, and there’s a limit of five total units per membership.

    Despite the hefty sales of gold, Costco’s bread and butter is still hawking products like, well, bread and butter to cost-conscious shoppers.

    Its fiscal fourth quarter, same-store sales growth came in at 6.9%, compared with estimates of 6.4% on Wall Street. E-commerce sales jumped 19.5%, slightly lower than the 19.63% growth rate analysts projected.

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    Read more here

  • Stocks open higher as inflation measure shows more cooling

    Stocks continued to build positive momentum on Friday morning as investors welcomed another update that showed price pressures easing. The encouraging inflation report spurred market expectations that the Federal Reserve may make another jumbo rate cut at its next policy meeting in November.

    The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.1% after eking out a third record-high close this week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) each gained around 0.2%.

  • Intel stock edges up on news of CHIPS Act funding talks, reports of Arm offer

    Intel (INTC) stock rose 1.8% in early trading Friday after the Financial Times reported that the chipmaker and the US government are on track to finalize $8.5 billion in CHIPS Act funding for the company by the end of the year.

    Separately, Bloomberg reported that Arm Holdings (ARM) expressed interest in buying Intel’s product business.

    The potential offer from Arm, the British chip designer with high-profile partners including Google (GOOG) and Apple (APPL), was rebuked by Intel, unnamed sources told Bloomberg.

    Intel has also reportedly been approached by Qualcomm (QCOM) and investment manager Apollo to buy the company in its entirety. Intel shares have climbed on the news over the past week, but are still down more than 50% from the beginning of the year. (Disclosure: Yahoo Finance is owned by Apollo Global Management.)

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    Rival Qualcomm floated a friendly takeover, according to the Wall Street Journal, but such a deal could face blowback from antitrust regulators. Analysts have also cast doubt on whether a Qualcomm takeover would make sense for Qualcomm or Intel financially.

  • Fed’s preferred inflation gauge shows prices increased less than Wall Street expected in August

    The latest reading of the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge showed prices increased at a slower pace than expected on a monthly basis in August.

    The “core” Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, which strips out the cost of food and energy, rose 0.1% from the prior month during August. The reading, which is closely watched by the Federal Reserve, came in below the 0.2% expected by Wall Street and the 0.2% seen in July.

    Over the prior year, prices rose 2.7% in August, matching Wall Street’s expectations and topping the 2.6% rate seen in July.

    Read more here.

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