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Stocks Tumble, Dollar Climbs With Traders on Edge

This article from Bloomberg may be of interest. Here is a section:  

“Investors are beginning to realize that a ‘higher for longer’ interest rate environment is a likely outcome and are slowly adjusting to the ‘new normal,’” Paul Nolte, a senior wealth manager at Murphy & Sylvest Wealth Management, wrote in a note. “Higher-for-longer has been the mantra of the Fed for a few months. It is only recently that the markets have been taking them at their word.”



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Volkswagen Cuts EV Output at German Sites as Demand Craters

This article from Bloomberg may be of interest to subscribers. Here is a section:

The appetite for EVs in Europe has been held back in recent months by higher energy, living and borrowing costs, as well as lingering consumer concerns about charging infrastructure and battery range. The German government’s decision to end subsidies for electric cars in company fleets this month led to a 171% increase in new EV registrations in August compared to the previous year, according to Germany’s VDA auto lobby. 

Against that backdrop, Germany has led a months-long crusade to extend the use of internal combustion engines under the European Union’s climate plans through the use of so-called e-fuels.



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Saudis Didn't Secure Tesla, Will They Keep Funding Rival Lucid?

This note from Bloomberg may be of interest. Here it is in full:

Lucid's liquidity clock was wound until late 2024 with its $3 billion stock sale in June, yet further large injections, perhaps as soon as late 2024, could help stem the cash burn while the company scales operations. Stiff competition in the luxury-end of the auto industry from peers like Mercedes, Tesla, Audi and BMW, and the potential for an economic downturn, add substantial risk to Lucid's journey toward profitability. A takeover by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (60% stake in Lucid via the Public Investment Fund) is possible, yet the timing is questionable relative to the company's convertible bonds' 2026 maturity. The potential of such an action makes our view of event risk favorable -- and a consideration given the country's Vision 2030 plan - but it does make the bonds more of a lottery ticket than well-defined credit.



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AI Accelerates Ability to Program Biology Like Software

This article from the Wall Street Journal may be of interest. Here is a section:

“Synthetic biology in its broadest form encompasses a large part of the work that’s being done in biomedicine. That is, how we first understand organisms, but then use that understanding to program them or direct them to do different things,” said Dr. Lloyd Minor, dean of the School of Medicine and vice president for medical affairs at Stanford University. “And I do think that it offers a huge amount of potential across the board,” he said.

“The challenge in biology is that it is not terribly difficult to engineer organisms, to engineer living systems, to do things that can potentially be very harmful. So how do we think about monitoring, regulation, safe oversight in the biology world,” he said.

“It is collapsing time and expanding the aperture by which we are able to run experiments on a broader set of designs that scientists want to test on.” — Jennifer Lum, co-founder of Biospring Partners

Synthetic biology companies see opportunities for artificial intelligence throughout the product-development life cycle from initial design, where scientists can examine and factor in a greater number of variables and options, to the build phase to testing, where scientists can leverage the predictive nature of AI to quickly determine results.  



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Fed Leaves Rates Unchanged, Signals Another Hike This Year

This article from Bloomberg may be of interest. Here is a section:

“We are committed to achieving and sustaining a stance of monetary policy that is sufficiently restrictive to bring inflation down to our 2% goal over time,” Powell said at a press conference following the decision.

He emphasized the Fed will “proceed carefully” as it assesses incoming data and the evolving outlook and risks, echoing remarks he made at the Fed’s annual symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming last month.

After raising rates rapidly last year, “now we’re fairly close, we think, to where we need to get,” Powell said.



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US-China War Would Be Economic Disaster for Both

Thanks to a subscriber for this article by Niall Ferguson. Here is a section:

It is impossible to say how far the Chinese would prepare for a full-scale war with the US in the scenario of a blockade. It’s estimated by Western experts that that it would need a minimum of four months to be ready for prime time. The dilemma for Chinese strategists is that, if there is to be a war with the US, they would be better off striking the first blow, probably by attacking American naval assets in the Indo-Pacific, exploiting the classic vulnerability of ships in port.



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Private-Equity Giant Blackstone Joins Coveted S&P 500 Club

This article from the Wall Street Journal may be of interest. Here is a section: 

Earlier this month, analysts at Goldman Sachs estimated that Blackstone could attain a 0.19% weighting, implying about $15 billion of demand from index-tracking funds. Some of that buying may have already taken place: Blackstone stock has risen 9% since its inclusion was announced on Sept. 5.

Blackstone is joining after S&P Dow Jones Indices in April relented on a previous ban for new index entrants with multiple share classes.



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Advances Bipartisan Nuclear Energy Bill from Capito, Carper, Whitehouse

This press release is the primary reason uranium prices are jumping this week. Here is a section:

The ADVANCE Act would:

Facilitate American Nuclear Leadership by:
Empowering the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to lead in international forums to develop regulations for advanced nuclear reactors.
Establishing a joint Commerce Department and Energy Department initiative to facilitate outreach to nations that are seeking to develop advanced nuclear energy programs.

 Develop and Deploy New Nuclear Technologies by:

Reducing regulatory costs for companies seeking to license advanced nuclear reactor technologies.
Creating a prize to incentivize the successful deployment of next-generation nuclear reactor technologies.
Requiring the NRC to develop a pathway to enable the timely licensing of nuclear facilities at brownfield sites.

 Preserve Existing Nuclear Energy by:

Modernizing outdated rules that restrict international investment.
Extending a long-established, indemnification policy necessary to enable the continued operation of today’s reactors and give certainty for capital investments in building new reactors.

 Strengthen America’s Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Supply Chain Infrastructure by:

Directing the NRC to establish an initiative to enhance preparedness to qualify and license advanced nuclear fuels.
The bill identifies modern manufacturing techniques to build nuclear reactors better, faster, cheaper, and smarter. 



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Unity has changed its pricing model, and game developers are pissed off

This article from the Verge may be of interest. Here is a section:

“Unity Plus is being retired for new subscribers effective today, September 12, 2023, to simplify the number of plans we offer,” Unity wrote. “Existing subscribers do not need to take immediate action and will receive an email mid-October with an offer to upgrade to Unity Pro, for one year, at the current Unity Plus price.”

A Unity Plus subscription was about $400 per year. After that one year, however, it stands to reason that those former Plus users will have to pay the new Pro rate, which is currently over $2,000 per year.

Developers are also concerned these new fees could impact digital preservation efforts as now game makers are seemingly incentivized to delist older games so they aren’t charged for them. There’s also the question of how Unity plans on tracking installs and whether or not such tools run afoul of government privacy laws. Here’s a tweet from the official Unity account explaining how it intends to monitor a game’s installs.



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Nuclear power could see its biggest expansion in decades, leading to increased demand for uranium

This article from MarketWatch may be of interest. Here is a section:

"Growing interest in nuclear energy is being seen around the world," said Freebairn, noting this his company has been highlighting events in Eastern Europe and North America.

For now, nuclear power provides around 10% of the world's electricity, according to the International Energy Agency.

It comes from roughly 440 reactors in 31 countries with about 390 gigawatt electrical (GWe) capacity, according to UxC's Hinze. If total power demand grows by 2% to 3% as agencies like the IEA predicts over the next 10 to 20 years, and nuclear power keeps it share of the total in the 8% to 10% range, then Hinze expects nuclear power should reach at least 500 GWe by 2040 and as high as 550 GWe.

That would represent a roughly 40% growth over the current market size, he said.

There are potential downside risks to nuclear power growth, including competition from fossil fuels and renewables, but since nuclear power is "already not a huge share of the market, it would make sense that its growth can continue regardless of how the other energy fuels fare," Hinze said.



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