My back-to-work morning plane reads:
• What If Things Are Better Than They Seem? I’ve always been a glass-is-half-full kind of person. I don’t worry too much about things outside of my control. I try not to get stuck in the gloom-and-doom vortex so many people have been sucked into since the 2008 financial crisis and the advent of social media. (A Wealth of Common Sense)
• Buffett goes quiet: The Berkshiew Hathaway founder cut his workload back to an annual Thanksgiving letter — and giving away his billions… (Berkshiew Hathaway) see also Warren Buffett on luck and not beating yourself up over mistakes: “Over the years, I have made many mistakes,” he wrote. “Our satisfactory results have been the product of about a dozen truly good decisions — that would be about one every five years.“ (TKer by Sam Ro)
• ‘Take Money Out of Wall Street’: The Debate Animating the Fed Chair Race Top contenders to lead the Federal Reserve under Trump are lining up around a policy that doesn’t seem Trump-like. (Politico)
• Wall Street Blows Past Bubble Worries to Supercharge AI Spending Frenzy: Firms such as Blue Owl Capital have raised trillions in investing firepower. The artificial-intelligence build-out is a perfect match, though warning signs are flashing. (Wall Street Journal)
• Concierge Medicine Is Booming. Should You Join the VIP Club? The membership clubs charge annual fees for access to doctors, extra testing, and perks like an Oura ring. Are they worth the cost? (Barron’s)
• Why car insurance costs have soared (and what drivers are doing about it): On average, premiums are up 55% since February 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Almost all of that increase came between 2022 and 2024. (NPR) see also Trump’s Hatred of EVs Is Making Gas Cars More Expensive: Trump’s anti-climate agenda is making it more expensive to own a car, period. (Wired)
• Major US broadcasters sit out Cop30 climate talks: ‘They’re missing a lot’ Figures show none of US ‘big four’ – CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox – appear to have sent teams to cover summit in Belém. (The Guardian)
• Epstein’s Library: The disgraced financier’s emails reveal the unusual collection of books he bought prior to his arrest on sex-trafficking charges in 2019. From Trump to power and sex, the titles offer an unusual insight into his interests and mindset. (Bloomberg) free
• Has the Watch World Found Its Anthony Bourdain? A new show called Man of the Hour gives the watch world—and its most exciting independent makers—a long overdue close-up. (GQ)
• How American and Chinese Drone Arsenals Stack Up: A head-to-head comparison of unmanned aircraft shows the global rivals in a close race. (Wall Street Journal)
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business interview this weekend with Bankim “Binky” Chadha, Chief US Equity & Global Strategist and Head of Asset Allocation at Deutsche Bank Securities, a role he has held since 2004.
The late 1990’s also produced ebullient sentiment, as one would expect during a bubble. I would characterize today’s sentiment backdrop as “enthusiastic” but not much more than that.
Source: Jurrien Timmer, Fidelity Investments
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