And, we’re off and running in 2018 . . . . Welcome back.
An overview of last Friday’s jobs report, which saw the US adding fewer jobs than expected but also tracked a welcomed increase in wages for the least-educated workers – NYTimes and WSJ and Bloomberg
The still-strong economy has helped drive the 10-year inflation break-even rate over 2% last week for the first time in 9 months – WSJ
A pair of major security issues with Intel’s chips (dubbed Meltdown and Spectre) that “could have implications for nearly everyone touched by computing” [as well as an ill-timed CEO stock sale] means a PR crisis for the chip company not seen since the mid ‘90s and serious questions about the security of its chips – NYTimes and WSJ
It appears that the anticipated slow-and-steady continuity from the Yellen Fed to the Powell Fed is getting the nod from the White House chief economist – Bloomberg
More changes for the DOL, which announced Friday that it’s endorsing a new test for evaluating whether interns “qualify as employees under the [FLSA], aligning itself with the so-called primary beneficiary standard that several appellate courts have adopted and rescinding agency guidance from 2010” – Law360
Your first bitcoin roundup of the year features a look at the surprising strength of interest in the cryptocurrency in German, a company generally known for its love of cold hard cash [WSJ] and the big guy vs. little guy (and long vs. short) battle being waged every day in the bitcoin futures market – WSJ
Bank of America has agreed to settle for $5 million a False Claims Act lawsuit over alleged improper foreclosure-related practices. The settlement came just days after the Florida federal court allowed the US government to intervene for settlement purposes – Law360
Uber shareholders—Kalanick, included—have decided to go along with SoftBank’s major investment in the ride-hailing company by agreeing to sell a healthy chunk of their shares in the privately-held company – NYTimes
Huge securities class-action news last week, with Brazil’s Petrobras announcing that it would pony up nearly $3 billion to resolve a shareholder class action over its alleged corruption scandal – Law360
Toyota Motor Corp. is mourning the loss of Tatsuro Toyoda, the “American-educated son of the founder” who served as Toyota’s 7th president and, through the company’s “unprecedented collaboration with General Motors,” helped spur Toyota’s international growth – NYTimes
This is a few days late, but well worth it. Please enjoy this piece tracking Moonlight-director Barry Jenkins’ on-plane, someone-else’s screen, no-volume live-tweeting of Notting Hill. Just priceless – Vulture
