Here are the latest key news updates that investors should take note of before beginning their trading day:
1. Dow(n):
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended its three-day winning streak by dropping over 130 points on Thursday. The 30-stock index closed 0.35% lower due to higher-than-expected inflation data impacting market performance.
2. In charge:
Morgan Stanley has appointed a head of firm-wide artificial intelligence, Jeff McMillan, who led a project introducing an AI solution for employees using OpenAI’s GPT-4 technology. This move signifies Wall Street’s increasing focus on artificial intelligence with other major banks like JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs also identifying AI leads.
3. Third time’s the charm:
SpaceX’s Starship rocket achieved significant milestones during its third test flight. Despite falling short of its splashdown target and breaking apart over the Indian Ocean, the rocket successfully reached space and flew for about an hour, showcasing substantial progress towards boosting Elon Musk’s space endeavors.
4. Refund fraud:
Retailers are facing substantial losses from organized refund fraud schemes. Fraudsters exploit lenient refund policies by tricking companies like Amazon into issuing refunds without returning the purchased items. These fraudulent activities are promoted on social media platforms and often involve insiders within the retail companies. Amazon is actively cooperating with law enforcement to combat such fraudulent operations.
5. Mega-donors:
A recent report by Altrata shows that an increasing proportion of individual charitable donations originate from ultra-high-net-worth individuals worth $30 million or more. In 2022, this group accounted for 38% of total charitable contributions, with only 400,000 individuals making up more than a third of the world’s charitable giving.
Source (CNBC)
