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Today's Summary

Episode exposes Epstein scandal, elite pedophilia networks, FBI cover-ups, government corruption. Big money is quietly sneaking into energy and oil stocks. Boomers are leaving behind a much worse world than the one they were born into. Retail sales spiked by $80 billion in December from November, biggest-ever November-to-December increase, to $817 billion. Long-defaulted federal student loans whack delinquency rates. 30-day delinquency rate spiked to 16.3% in Q4, the worst ever, up from around 1% during the forbearance era. QVC is weighing bankruptcy after years of declining viewership and big debts, worsened by weak sales and tariffs. Lower bond yields mean higher bond prices, and leveraged bond traders make a lot of money. Wolf Richter: Military industrial complex forces the world to stay on the dollar. Chicago leads all cities for a second consecutive month with a 5.7% year-over-year price increase, followed by New York at 5.0% and Cleveland at 3.4%. Housing affordability reached its best level since early 2022, but remains stretched by historical standards. Immigration may not be zero sum, over the whole economy, but it sure feels zero sum locally sometimes sometimes sometimes. FHA loans reached a delinquency rate of 11.52 percent in Q4. Two top military leaders in China are being investigated. Bitcoin BTC (24h) $67,818.44 -1.71% Bitcoin dropped to about $60,000 was the kind of single-day panic people will remember as a bottom. Robinhoods earnings line that records whether people are clicking, trading, and paying spreads again. As casual users disengage and polarized partisans remain vocal, the online public sphere grows smaller, sharper, and more ideologically extreme. Brazil could join a small group of countries actively holding Bitcoin at a national level. Bitcoin BTC (24h) $67,818.44 -1.71%. BlackRock: Bitcoin has historically shown sensitivity to USD real rates. Japans finance minister endorsed deeper crypto integration, including lower taxes. Free, easy-to-use tools have lowered the barrier to AI poisoning for non-technical marketers. Bitcoin is flashing signals that have marked major turning points in past cycles, but not yet the kind that typically accompany a durable bottom. Bitcoin has been stuck trading between the $62,000 and $71,000 range since early February. Animoca Brands received a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) Licence from Dubais Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority. Nexo agreed to a cease-and-desist order without admitting or denying that its EIP was an unregistered security. Harvards reduced its stake in the iShares Bitcoin Trust. U.S. sanctions on Russian producers Rosneft and Lukoil have dragged discounts for Russian crudes to the widest in years. Marco Rubio has emphasized a diplomatic approach to Iran.