Linux offers versatile options for handling PDF documents, evolving from beginner-friendly distributions to advanced command-line tools.

Exploring Linux’s capabilities reveals a robust ecosystem for viewing, managing, and interacting with portable document format files.

PDF accessibility on Linux is enhanced by various viewers and utilities, catering to diverse user preferences and technical expertise.

Beginner courses and online resources, like Linux.orgs, provide introductory guidance, while platforms like DistroSea enable online testing.

Linux distributions, such as Linux Mint and Ubuntu, offer seamless PDF integration, alongside specialized tools for advanced operations.

The operating system’s flexibility extends to dual-booting with Windows and even emulating Windows interfaces, like WindowsFX, running Ubuntu.

What is a PDF and Why Use Linux to Open Them?

PDF, or Portable Document Format, is a file format developed by Adobe to present documents consistently across various platforms. Its primary strength lies in preserving formatting, fonts, and images, ensuring the document appears as intended, regardless of the operating system or software used to view it. This makes PDFs ideal for sharing documents that need to maintain a specific appearance.

But why choose Linux to open these ubiquitous files? Linux provides a wealth of robust and often free PDF viewers, offering a compelling alternative to commercial software. Distributions like Ubuntu and Mint come pre-installed with excellent viewers, and many more are readily available through package managers. The open-source nature of Linux fosters a community-driven development process, resulting in frequent updates and improvements.

Furthermore, Linux offers command-line tools for PDF manipulation, appealing to power users and those seeking automation; Resources like Linux.orgs’ beginner courses demonstrate the accessibility of the operating system, while platforms like DistroSea allow for easy testing of different distributions. Linux’s inherent security features also provide an added layer of protection when handling sensitive PDF documents.

Common PDF Viewers for Linux

Linux boasts diverse PDF viewers, including Evince, Okular, and Xpdf, alongside browser-based options like Firefox and Chromium.

These tools offer varying features, catering to different user needs and preferences within the Linux ecosystem.

Evince (Document Viewer)

Evince, also known as the Document Viewer, is a popular and commonly pre-installed PDF viewer in many Linux distributions, particularly those utilizing the GNOME desktop environment.

It provides a clean and straightforward interface for opening and viewing PDF files, offering essential functionalities like zooming, searching, and navigating through pages.

Evince supports various document formats beyond PDFs, including PostScript, DjVu, TIFF, and XPS, making it a versatile choice for general document viewing.

Users can easily print documents, copy text, and select images directly from within Evince.

While Evince excels in basic viewing and navigation, it lacks advanced editing capabilities found in more specialized PDF editors.

However, its simplicity, speed, and integration with the GNOME desktop make it an excellent default option for most Linux users needing to open and read PDF documents.

It’s a reliable and efficient tool for everyday PDF viewing tasks.

Okular

Okular is a powerful and feature-rich PDF viewer developed by KDE, offering a comprehensive set of tools for working with PDF documents on Linux systems.

Beyond basic viewing, Okular supports annotations, form filling, and digital signatures, making it suitable for more advanced PDF workflows.

It boasts excellent rendering quality and supports a wide range of document formats, including PDF, PostScript, DjVu, CHM, and more.

Okular’s user interface is highly customizable, allowing users to tailor the appearance and functionality to their preferences.

The application integrates seamlessly with the KDE desktop environment but is also available for other Linux desktops.

It provides features like text selection, copy-paste, and printing, alongside advanced options like OCR (Optical Character Recognition) for scanned documents.

Okular is a robust and versatile PDF solution for Linux users.

Xpdf

Xpdf is a lightweight and efficient PDF viewer for Linux, known for its speed and minimal resource usage. It’s a foundational tool in the Linux PDF viewing landscape.

Originally designed as a command-line application, Xpdf also offers a graphical user interface (GUI) for easier interaction.

While it may lack some of the advanced features found in more modern viewers like Okular or Evince, Xpdf excels at quickly and reliably displaying PDF content.

It’s particularly useful on older hardware or systems with limited resources where performance is critical.

Xpdf supports basic PDF functionalities such as zooming, searching, and printing.

Its command-line interface allows for scripting and automation, making it suitable for batch processing of PDF files.

Xpdf remains a valuable option for users seeking a simple, fast, and dependable PDF viewer on Linux;

Firefox and Chromium-Based Browsers

Firefox and Chromium-based browsers, like Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge, offer built-in PDF viewing capabilities on Linux systems, eliminating the need for dedicated PDF reader software.

These browsers utilize their internal PDF plugins to directly render PDF files within the browser window.

This provides a convenient and seamless experience for viewing PDFs without downloading or installing additional applications.

Users can simply drag and drop a PDF file into an open browser tab or use the browser’s “Open File” option.

Browser-based PDF viewers typically support essential features like zooming, printing, and searching.

However, advanced editing or annotation features may be limited compared to dedicated PDF editors.

The integration of PDF viewing within web browsers streamlines workflow and enhances accessibility for Linux users.

Opening PDFs from the Command Line

Linux empowers users to open PDF files directly from the terminal, utilizing commands associated with installed PDF viewers.

This method provides efficiency and scripting possibilities, integrating PDF handling into automated workflows and shell scripts.

Using `evince` from the Terminal

Evince, also known as the Document Viewer, is a popular choice for opening PDFs on Linux systems, and it can be readily launched from the command line.

To open a PDF file using Evince, simply type evince followed by the path to the PDF file in your terminal and press Enter.

For example, to open a file named “document.pdf” located in your Documents directory, you would use the command evince ~/Documents/document.pdf.

Evince offers several command-line options for controlling its behavior, such as specifying a particular page to open or displaying the document in full-screen mode.

You can view these options by typing evince --help in the terminal, which will display a comprehensive list of available parameters.

This direct access from the command line makes Evince a versatile tool for both casual users and those who prefer a text-based interface.

It’s a fundamental method for integrating PDF viewing into scripts and automated tasks within a Linux environment.

Using `okular` from the Terminal

Okular, a powerful and feature-rich PDF viewer, can also be efficiently utilized from the Linux terminal, providing a command-line interface for document access.

To open a PDF file with Okular, type okular followed by the file path in your terminal and execute the command.

For instance, to open “report.pdf” in your Downloads folder, use okular ~/Downloads/report.pdf.

Okular supports numerous command-line options, allowing customization of the viewing experience, such as specifying a starting page or enabling presentation mode.

Typing okular --help in the terminal reveals a detailed list of these options, offering granular control over the application’s behavior.

This terminal access is particularly useful for scripting and automating PDF-related tasks within a Linux workflow.

Okular’s robust capabilities, combined with command-line accessibility, make it a valuable tool for power users and developers alike.

Using `xpdf` from the Terminal

Xpdf, a lightweight and versatile PDF viewer, offers a straightforward command-line interface for opening and interacting with PDF documents in Linux.

To launch Xpdf from the terminal, simply type xpdf followed by the path to the PDF file you wish to view and press Enter.

For example, to open a file named “document.pdf” located in your current directory, use the command xpdf document.pdf.

Xpdf provides a range of command-line options for customizing the viewing experience, including specifying page numbers and zoom levels.

Typing xpdf -help in the terminal displays a comprehensive list of available options, enabling precise control over the application’s functionality.

Its simplicity and efficiency make Xpdf an excellent choice for users who prefer a minimal and fast PDF viewer.

This command-line access is particularly beneficial for scripting and automating PDF handling tasks within a Linux environment.

Troubleshooting PDF Opening Issues

PDF opening problems in Linux often stem from file corruption, permission restrictions, or missing software dependencies.

Addressing these issues requires verifying file integrity, adjusting access rights, and ensuring necessary packages are installed.

PDF File is Corrupted

PDF file corruption presents a common obstacle when attempting to open documents in Linux, manifesting as errors or incomplete rendering.

Several factors can contribute to this, including incomplete downloads, storage media errors, or issues during file creation or transfer.

If a PDF appears corrupted, initially attempt re-downloading the file from its original source to ensure data integrity.

Alternatively, try opening the PDF with a different viewer – Evince, Okular, or even a web browser like Firefox – to isolate whether the problem lies with the file itself or a specific application.

Online PDF repair tools can sometimes recover damaged files, though success isn’t guaranteed, especially with severely corrupted documents.

Consider the source of the PDF; if it originated from an unreliable source, the file may have been inherently flawed from the beginning.

Regularly backing up important PDF files can mitigate data loss due to corruption.

Incorrect Permissions

Linux’s robust permission system can inadvertently prevent access to PDF files, resulting in “permission denied” errors when attempting to open them.

File permissions dictate which users or groups have read, write, and execute access; if a user lacks the necessary read permissions, the PDF won’t open.

To rectify this, utilize the command line to modify permissions using the `chmod` command. For example, `chmod +r filename.pdf` grants read permission to all users.

Alternatively, `chmod 755 filename.pdf` sets more specific permissions, allowing the owner full access, and others read and execute access.

Ensure the user attempting to open the PDF is part of the group that owns the file, or adjust group permissions accordingly with `chgrp`.

Incorrect ownership can also cause issues; use `chown` to change the file’s owner if necessary.

Understanding Linux file permissions is crucial for resolving access problems and ensuring smooth PDF viewing.

Missing Dependencies

PDF viewers in Linux rely on specific software libraries, known as dependencies, to function correctly; a missing dependency can prevent a PDF from opening.

When a dependency is absent, the viewer may display an error message or fail to launch altogether, hindering your ability to access the document.

Resolving this involves identifying and installing the missing packages using your distribution’s package manager, such as `apt` (Debian/Ubuntu) or `yum` (Fedora/CentOS).

Common dependencies include `libpoppler-glib`, `libpdf-tools`, and related graphical libraries, depending on the viewer used.

Run commands like `sudo apt install libpoppler-glib` or `sudo yum install libpdf-tools` to install the necessary components.

Consult your distribution’s documentation or online forums for specific dependency requirements for your chosen PDF viewer.

Keeping your system updated ensures dependencies are met, preventing future issues with PDF viewing.

Advanced PDF Operations in Linux

Linux empowers users with tools for PDF editing, conversion, and security, extending beyond simple viewing capabilities.

LibreOffice Draw facilitates PDF modifications, while conversion utilities support various formats, enhancing document versatility.

Password protection and removal features offer control over document access, ensuring data confidentiality and security;

PDF Editing with LibreOffice Draw

LibreOffice Draw provides a surprisingly robust solution for editing PDF files directly within a Linux environment, offering capabilities beyond simple viewing.

Unlike many PDF viewers focused solely on display, Draw allows for direct manipulation of content, including text, images, and vector graphics.

Users can modify existing text, add new elements, and adjust the layout of PDF pages, making it suitable for minor corrections or enhancements.

However, it’s important to note that Draw treats PDFs as collections of objects, so complex formatting might not always be perfectly preserved.

For intricate PDF editing, dedicated PDF editors might be preferable, but LibreOffice Draw offers a convenient, free, and readily available option.

The software’s integration with the LibreOffice suite also allows for seamless conversion between PDF and other document formats, expanding its utility.

This makes LibreOffice Draw a valuable tool for users seeking basic to intermediate PDF editing functionality on their Linux systems.

It’s a practical choice when a full-fledged PDF editor isn’t necessary or available.

PDF Conversion to Other Formats

Linux offers numerous tools for converting PDF files into various other formats, extending their usability beyond simple viewing and editing.

LibreOffice, as previously mentioned, seamlessly converts PDFs to editable formats like .odt, .docx, and .rtf, facilitating content repurposing.

Command-line utilities like pdftotext extract text content, while pdfimages retrieves embedded images, providing granular control over conversion.

ImageMagick, a powerful image manipulation suite, can convert PDF pages into image formats such as .jpg, .png, or .tiff.

Online conversion services, accessible through Linux web browsers, offer another convenient option, though privacy considerations apply.

These conversions are valuable for archiving, sharing content with users lacking PDF viewers, or integrating PDF data into other applications.

The flexibility of Linux ensures a solution for nearly any PDF conversion requirement, from simple text extraction to complex format transformations.

Choosing the right tool depends on the desired output format and the complexity of the PDF document.

PDF Password Protection and Removal

Linux provides tools for both securing PDF documents with passwords and removing existing protection, offering control over document access.

PDFtk, a command-line utility, is frequently used to add password protection to PDF files, restricting opening or editing.

Similarly, PDFtk can remove passwords from protected PDFs, granting unrestricted access, though ethical considerations apply.

LibreOffice Draw also allows password protection during the PDF export process, providing a graphical interface option.

Qpdf is another powerful command-line tool capable of manipulating PDF security settings, including password removal and encryption.

It’s crucial to remember that circumventing password protection without authorization is illegal and unethical.

These tools are best used for managing documents you own or have explicit permission to modify.

Understanding the legal and ethical implications is paramount when dealing with password-protected PDFs on Linux.

Integrating PDF Viewers with File Managers

Linux file managers, like Nautilus and Dolphin, seamlessly integrate PDF viewers for quick document access and previewing capabilities.

This integration streamlines workflow, allowing users to open PDFs directly from the file manager with a single click or right-click option.

Configuration options within each file manager enable users to specify their preferred PDF viewer for default handling.

Nautilus (GNOME Files)

Nautilus, the default file manager in the GNOME desktop environment, provides a straightforward method for opening PDF files. Typically, double-clicking a PDF document will automatically launch your system’s default PDF viewer, such as Evince; However, users can customize this behavior to utilize alternative viewers like Okular or even browser-based options.

To modify the default application, right-click on a PDF file, select “Properties,” navigate to the “Open With” tab, and choose your preferred viewer from the list. You can also set this application as the default for all PDF files. Nautilus also supports previewing PDFs directly within the file manager itself, offering a quick glance at the document’s content without fully opening it.

This preview functionality is enabled by the GNOME desktop’s document handling capabilities, providing a convenient way to browse PDFs efficiently. Furthermore, Linux distributions like Linux Mint, utilizing Nautilus, benefit from this seamless integration, enhancing the user experience for PDF document management.

Dolphin (KDE)

Dolphin, the powerful file manager for the KDE Plasma desktop, offers robust functionality for handling PDF files. Similar to Nautilus, double-clicking a PDF typically opens it with the system’s default viewer, commonly Okular, a KDE-native PDF application. Dolphin provides extensive customization options, allowing users to easily associate PDF files with alternative viewers like Evince or web browsers.

To change the default application, right-click a PDF, select “Properties,” then the “File Type Options” tab. Here, you can specify your preferred viewer and set it as the default. Dolphin also features a preview pane, enabling quick viewing of PDF content directly within the file manager, streamlining workflow.

KDE’s integration with Okular ensures a smooth and feature-rich PDF experience. Distributions like Linux Mint, even with Cinnamon, can leverage Dolphin’s capabilities for efficient PDF management, showcasing Linux’s flexibility.

The post opening pdf in linux appeared first on Every Task, Every Guide: The Instruction Portal
.

 

This week, I speak with A. Lange & Söhne CEO Wilhelm Schmid at the Audrain Newport Concours & Motor Week for a special edition of Masters in Business. Barry and Wilhelm compare watch and car design. They also discuss A. Lange & Söhne’s philosophy on watchmaking. In addition, they cover innovations in watch mechanics and watch collecting.

A. Lange & Sohne makes watches by hand, and Wilhelm discusses the production process. We also discuss the release of the new Saxonia Thin Onyx.

You can stream and download our full conversation, including any podcast extras, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and Bloomberg. All of our earlier podcasts on your favorite pod hosts can be found here.

 

 

 

The post MiB: A. Lange & Söhne CEO Wilhelm Schmid appeared first on The Big Picture.

Wall Street Warns Of A Deepening Oil Glut In 2026

Authored by Charles Kennedy via OilPrice.com,

• Reuters’ monthly poll shows analysts expect WTI to average $59 in 2026 and Brent $62.23 amid persistent oversupply.

• Executives warn U.S. shale will stagnate or decline if WTI stays in the $50–$60 range.

• Goldman Sachs forecasts even lower prices and says the oil market won’t rebalance until 2027 after a final major supply wave.

Oversupplied markets will keep oil prices under pressure next year, and the U.S. benchmark will average below $60 per barrel, the monthly Reuters poll of analysts and economists showed on Friday.

The U.S. benchmark, WTI Crude, is expected to average $59 per barrel in 2026, according to the poll of 35 analysts and economists. That’s lower compared to the $60.23 per barrel forecast in last month’s survey.

The analysts expect Brent Crude, the international benchmark, to average $62.23 per barrel next year, down from $63.15 forecast in the Reuters poll in October.

Most experts cited rising supply from both OPEC+ and non-OPEC+ as the key bearish factor for oil prices next year. But lingering geopolitical risks could put a floor under prices, the analysts reckon. 

At the current price of WTI oil, shale will stagnate or start to decline, industry executives say, while shale producers look to do more with less by raising efficiency in production and capital allocation.

Ryan Lance, chairman and CEO of ConocoPhillips, said that “At $60-$65 a barrel WTI oil prices, the US is probably plateau-ish.”

“But if prices stay at $60 or go into the $50s, you probably are plateauing or slightly declining,” the executive added.  

Earlier this month, Goldman Sachs said that oil prices are set to further drop into next year from current levels amid a large surplus on the market, with WTI Crude expected to average $53 per barrel in 2026.  

The oil market is set to rebalance in 2027 as 2026 will see “the last big oil supply wave the market has to work through,” Daan Struyven, co-head of global commodities research at Goldman Sachs, told CNBC last week. 

In the long term, supply growth will mostly come from OPEC, which has spare capacity and is investing in capacity expansion, according to Struyven.

Some modest growth could come from the U.S. shale patch, but this would require Brent at around $80 per barrel or so toward the end of the decade, according to Goldman Sachs.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 14:30

From J.D. Power: November New-Vehicle Retail Sales Decline 4.8% as Effects of EV Pull-Ahead Persist Brief excerpt:

Total new-vehicle sales for November 2025, including retail and non-retail transactions, are projected to reach 1,255,900, a 5.2% decrease year over year, according to a joint forecast from J.D. Power and GlobalData. November 2025 has 25 selling days, one fewer than November 2024.

The seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) for total new-vehicle sales is expected to be 15.4 million units, down 1.2 million units from November 2024.
...
Thomas King, president of the data and analytics division at J.D. Power:

"November’s results reflect another notable—yet anticipated—decline in the new-vehicle sales pace, driven largely by the pull-ahead of electric vehicle (EV) purchases prior to the expiration of federal EV tax credits on Sept. 30. That expiration prompted many shoppers to accelerate buying decisions, resulting in a surge in EV sales that temporarily inflated the overall industry sales pace. Now, two months after the credit expired, the industry continues to feel the effect of those accelerated purchases. In November, EVs are expected to account for just 6.0% of new-vehicle retail sales, consistent with October but well below the 12.9% recorded in September.
emphasis added

From Haig Stoddard at Omdia (pay site): US Light Vehicle Sales Declining Again in November; Falling Inventory Lowers Chance for a December Rebound

Tighter inventory, tanking deliveries of battery-electric vehicles, and an overall rise in prices for what is available are capping demand, with expectations the October-November slowdown continues in December.

Click on graph for larger image.

This graph shows actual sales from the BEA (Blue), and J.D. Power's forecast for November(Red).

On a seasonally adjusted annual rate basis, the J.D. Power forecast of 154 million SAAR would be up slightly from last month, and down 7.6% from a year ago.
All of Q4 will likely be difficult for vehicle sales.

Coup-Coup Birds: The DC Blob Is Cornered

Authored by James Howard Kunstler,

“Literally everything the left did, every line they crossed and rule they broke, all came back to slap them in the face.”

- Insurrection Barbie on “X”

Indeed, you have a lot to be thankful for this week of humble national gratitude — for instance, the explosive new revelations as to just exactly how US elections have been rigged, and how, it now appears, Mr. Trump and his people, are prepared to go mad-dog on the sinister forces behind it.

It all unspooled this Thanksgiving week, which is always a kind of a time-out from the urgent realities of the moment. And yet, while you basted your turkey (not a good practice by the way, but that’s another matter), rumors of a mysterious coup (as in coup d’é·tat) were flying all over alt media and social media.

Something or someone (a bunch of someones) have got a very dark op underway, the rumor goes. . . fault lines are opening in the US government. . . we’re in a danger zone.

This supposedly was behind last week’s “Seditionist Six” prank, the slickly produced video arranged by Senator (former CIA official) Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) and sidekick Sen. Mark (“the Astronaut”) Kelly (D-AZ) advising US military personnel about the option to disobey “illegal orders” from the command structure (that is, from President Trump on down). What illegal orders? They did not specify. . . suggesting, perhaps, orders that had not yet been issued, for an emergency as yet also unspecified.

Accept, for now, the uncomfortable fact that our country has entered a miasma of uncertainty.

That is, you don’t know what’s going on. . . but something surely is going on, and it seems sort of, I dunno, momentous. . . something with the odor and flavor of a. . .“color revolution.”

By the way, everybody’s attention got focused instantly the night before Thanksgiving when one Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan brought to to the US with the 2021 Afghanistan evacuation under Operation Allies Welcome, ambushed two National Guard troops a few blocks from the White House. Specialist Sarah M. Beckstrom, age 24, died from a head wound and Staff Sgt. Andrew J. Wolfe, age 31, remains hospitalized. There was nothing else on the TV news that night except the shooting.

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, turns out, had worked for nine years as a GPS tracker specialist in Unit 03 of the Kandahar Strike Force (aka “Scorpion Forces”), initially under CIA oversight via its Special Activities Division, with some JSOC training, before transitioning to Afghan intelligence. In other words, he was not just some mook with a donkey. He had lately been taken in by a sympathetic American family in Bellingham, WA — a roughly three-thousand-mile journey to Washington DC — where he did his deed. If he flew on an airplane to get there, just how did he manage to smuggle a handgun through airport security? Or did someone, maybe, give him one on arrival in DC? Was he still, one way or another, in the employ of the CIA? I guess we’ll find out.

Now, with the nation’s attention split this week between the DC ambush story and the culinary difficulties of Thanksgiving, the election fraud story unspooled in alt media.

Surprise, surprise! Turns out to be our auld acquaintance, the Kraken? Remember that monster? Eminent DC attorney Sidney Powell, had conniptions over the Kraken in the months after the 2020 election that ushered senile (let’s just say it) “Joe Biden” into the Oval Office for four disastrous years. (After which, Sidney Powell was methodically defamed and prosecuted by mysterious forces.)

Ms. Powell threatened to “release the Kraken,” meaning: a malign combine out of Venezuela had managed to foist Dominion vote tabulation machines all over the USA, but especially in swing vote states, along with Smartmatic software. And all this janky machinery was connected by the Internet through Serbia to the CCP, or something like that. And that this machinery, plus massive voter fraud operations run by Lawfare ninjas Norm Eisen, Marc Elias, and Mary McCord, with help from Mark Zuckerberg’s $400-million Center for Tech and Civic Life org, prestidigitated millions of extra votes needed to push “Joe Biden” into the winner’s circle.

Those of you who stayed up late the November night in 2020 also probably witnessed some impressive magic tricks in the election returns — for instance, the mom-and-daughter team of Ruby Freeman and Wandrea “Shaye” Moss pulling a switcheroo in the Fulton County (Atlanta) election HQ, captured on closed-circuit TV, while vote-counting was shut down for several hours due to a “broken toilet”...

Fulton County, GA, Election HQ, Nov 3, 2020 — the Night of the Broken Toilet.

...and the wondrous vote flipperooski in Michigan...

Michigan Vote Flipperooski, Election Night, 2020

...and the panel trucks delivering bales of extra ballots in the wee hours of morning to the main Philadelphia election HQ...

...and presto-change-o, you got a senile president.

This voter fraud business is evidently a global operation, involving elections in many other countries over several election cycles, carried out by a broad network of NGOs and government agencies, such as the now dismantled USAID, which acted as a money-laundering service for all these ops. A good place to start your own research is independent reporter Emerald Robinson’s “X” account.

Mr. Trump, for one, has always been adamant that the 2020 election was a fraud, but it has taken all year, apparently, to convince White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles that this is so, and now, we’re told, Mr. Trump is about to go after the perps. The hard evidence is there, rumor has it, the receipts, and that is why the Democratic Party is freaking out...

...including that “Seditionist Six” message about refusing orders from the Commander-in-Chief.

The kernel of all this (maybe paranoid, maybe not) is that the DC blob is cornered and that its only hope to escape prosecution, punishment, loss of power and perqs, and possible extinction, is to pull off a coup to bum-rush Mr. Trump out of office by main force.

Meaning, our country might be at war with itself right now. Are perp walks in the offing?

*  *  * BLACK FRIDAY IS HERE

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 13:30

The advance release of Q3 GDP has been cancelled, and the 2nd release has not been scheduled.

From BofA:

On net, given the higher weighting of the months of Jul and Aug in quarterly consumer spending as compared to Sep, our 3Q PCE tracking is down a tenth to 3.1% q/q saar. This along with higher-than-expected Aug business inventories left our 3Q GDP tracking at 2.8% q/q saar. [November 26th estimate]
emphasis added

From Goldman:

We boosted our Q3 GDP tracking estimate by 0.1pp to +3.8% (quarter-over-quarter annualized). Our Q3 domestic final sales estimate stands at +2.7%. [November 19th estimate]

And from the Atlanta Fed: GDPNow

The GDPNow model estimate for real GDP growth (seasonally adjusted annual rate) in the third quarter of 2025 is 3.9 percent on November 26, down from 4.0 percent on November 25. After this morning’s advance durable manufacturing report from the US Census Bureau, the nowcast of third-quarter real gross private domestic investment growth decreased from 4.4 percent to 3.5 percent. [November 26th estimate]

Zelensky's Closest, Most-Powerful Aide Resigns After Office Raided By Anti-Corruption Agents

Zelensky's chief of staff, Andrii Yermak, has submitted his resignation - the highest level official to fall amid the massive graft probe which has brought rare international embarrassment on the Zelensky government.

As a reminder, Andrew Korybko recently opined that Yermak's removal could prompt some progress in peace talks:

He’s Zelensky’s powerbroker so his downfall could undo the already shaky alliance between the armed forces, the oligarchs, the secret police, and parliament that keeps Zelensky in power, thus pressuring him into peace, especially if his warmongering grey cardinal is no longer pushing him to keep fighting.

Earlier The Associated Post reported Friday: "Anti-corruption units have raided the home, and reportedly also the office, of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, Andrii Yermak." Zelensky now says he will hold consultations on replacing Yermak.

This is a huge and very high level development in the country's ongoing graft investigation scandal as Yermak is essentially the closest one can get to Zelensky, given the top presidential aide was made by Zelensky chief negotiator in talks with the United States. Some speculate this appointment was made precisely to protect Yermak from criminal charges.

AFP/Getty Images

Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies, NABU and SAP, confirmed they had officially sanctioned searches at the office of President Zelensky's top aide, again emphasizing the probe has extended all the way to the top. Could this be the beginning of the end for Zelensky himself?

The $100 million energy sector corruption scandal has already embroiled and resulted in the dismissals of several top ministers and officials.

Soros and the 2nd most corrupt man in Ukraine pic.twitter.com/UIupC9lPk2

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) November 28, 2025

Yermak had earlier deneid wrongdoing, and is vowing personal transparency as the investigation unfolds. "The investigators are facing no obstacles," Yermak wrote on Telegram. He said his lawyers were present for the searches, and that he's cooperating fully.

Zelensky makes the televised, 'shocking' announcement of Yermak being ousted dismissed:

Breaking news: Andriy Yermak has resigned from his longtime post of head of the Ukrainian presidential office, President Zelenskyy says in a statement. pic.twitter.com/seGDBbWJbh

— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) November 28, 2025

It's as yet unknown and unclear precisely what Yermak is being accused of in terms a potential role in the energy kickback and graft scandal, but the growing pressure which has entered the heart of the presidential office has huge political repercussions:

Although Yermak has not been accused of any wrongdoing, several senior lawmakers in Zelenskyy's party said Yermak should take responsibility for the energy sector scandal in order to restore public trust. Some said that if Zelenskyy didn't fire him, the party could split, threatening the president's parliamentary majority. But Zelenskyy defied them.

Interesting timing, Yermak swears “no concessions” while NABU is raiding his office.
Nothing sounds tougher than a man negotiating peace with handcuffs warming in the background

— Irony Man (@IronyManHQ) November 28, 2025

But local critics of the anti-corruption action say this is an attempt to bring unprecedented pressure on Zelensky. Reports say that 10 NABU and SAPO officers were on premise to search Yermak's office, which is just a few dozen meters from the president’s office.

One Ukrainian lawmaker, Yaroslav Zheleznyak of the Holos party, wrote that segments of parliament stand ready to defend the anti-corruption agencies should they find anything at this highest level of government. "NABU and SAPO are conducting searches at [the home of] Andriy Yermak this morning. If anything, get ready to defend NABU/SAPO if necessary," Zheleznyak wrote.

What hard evidence involves Yermak? If there's not enough, political retaliation could follow...

Yermak so far denying any wrongdoing. Key question: will his voice appear on compromising tapes. If the "rebels" fail a second time, retaliation will likely follow https://t.co/jFslHZDVjN

— Jakub Parusinski (@j_parus) November 28, 2025

As chief negotiator, Yermak has presented Zelensky's hard line on the Trump-proposed peace plan to end the war. Yermak was for example just cited in The Atlantic as saying, "No sane person would sign away territory." He has argued that the national constitution forbids it and thus Zelensky "will not" agree to territorial concessions.

And, if the Zelensky administration keeps losing public and international trust amid the massive corruption probe, which has already proven highly embarrassing, Kiev's 'firm line' on the negotiations could indeed quickly soften.

*  *  * BLACK FRIDAY SALE IS HERE AT ZeroHedge Store!

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 12:45

What Is Going On With The Economy?

Authored by Ben Shapiro via The Epoch Times,

The fate of the Trump administration - and perhaps Republicans in Congress - is tethered to how Americans feel about the economy.

And right now, it’s hard to find anyone who can say with confidence what the hell is going on.

Nov. 20 offered a fresh reminder of the chaos. As The Wall Street Journal noted, “Stocks surrendered gains and closed sharply lower after a whirlwind day of trading that began after Nvidia posted strong results. The Nasdaq composite led indexes lower after being up on the day more than 2 percent. It closed 2.2 percent lower. Nvidia gave up an even bigger gain and finished the day down 3.2 percent.”

Why the reversal? Because investors suspect there is, in fact, an artificial intelligence bubble.

It’s not an unreasonable fear.

History shows that every transformative technology—from automobiles to the internet—inspires waves of speculation. The presence of a bubble doesn’t mean the technology isn’t revolutionary; it simply means that early hype tends to sweep up both the winners and the doomed. For every Henry Ford, there were dozens of forgotten carmakers. The same was true of the dot-com era: Pets.com vanished, but the internet went on to reorganize modern life.

Artificial intelligence is inspiring the same mix of excitement and dread.

Some companies may never produce the margins to justify today’s investment frenzy. OpenAI, though not publicly traded, sits at the center of countless partnerships with massive firms like Oracle and Nvidia. If it stumbles, the shock could reverberate across the market.

The numbers fueling today’s optimism are staggering. As The New York Times reported, “It would not be a stretch to describe this period of hyperactive growth in the tech industry as a historic moment. Nvidia, which makes computer chips that are essential to building artificial intelligence, said on Wednesday that its quarterly profit had jumped to nearly $32 billion, up 65 percent from a year earlier and 245 percent from the year before that. Just three weeks ago, Nvidia became the first publicly traded company to be worth $5 trillion.” That’s more than Germany’s entire economy.

But even this explosion of wealth comes with a caveat. Much of the demand for Nvidia’s chips doesn’t mean consumers want AI right now—it means companies are racing to build massive AI systems in the hope that demand will materialize later. To some insiders, it looks less like a revolution and more like a house of cards.

This is the central question: At what point will AI’s promised productivity gains begin to match the scale of the investment poured into it? Until there’s clarity, markets will continue to swing wildly—and so will public confidence.

Workers, meanwhile, face their own concerns. Even if AI succeeds, technological progress has always brought job dislocation. Old roles disappear, new industries emerge, and the economy ultimately becomes more productive. People enjoy better goods at lower costs and work fewer hours than their grandparents did. But the transition is rarely painless.

Both truths can coexist: The United States may be on the cusp of a remarkable economic transformation, and the anxiety surrounding it may be entirely justified.

For now, Americans are left watching markets fluctuate, industries reorganize, and fortunes rise and fall... all while wondering what exactly the future will bring.

And no government policy can fully soothe that uncertainty.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 12:40

Holiday Spending To Hit Record High Despite Economic Doubts In The US

While the holiday season just started with Thanksgiving this Thursday, American consumer spending for the end of the year is set to reach a record high.

As Statista's Tristan Gaudiat reports, according to data from the National Retail Federation, the average per capita budget for the 2025 winter holidays (Nov. 1 - Dec. 31) is expected to exceed $1,000, a 4 percent increase from 2024 ($976).

As the infographic shows, consumer spending during other major seasonal events was also on the rise this year, from a 2 percent increase (Mother's Day, Valentine's Day) to a 10 percent increase (Halloween), according to estimates.

You will find more infographics at Statista

Yet, those eye-catching averages hide national disparities: while affluent households are expected to splurge even more than in previous years, many lower-income families face stagnant (or even shrinking) holiday budgets, amid economic uncertainty and persistent inflation.

In its outlook published last September, the Federal Reserve maintained its forecast of a 3 percent inflation rate in the United States in 2025, signaling "ongoing caution about price pressures and labor market stability".

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 12:20

AI Gospel Ghost Tops Charts: 'Solomon Ray' Unmasked As Another Fake

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

A “Mississippi-made soul singer” named Solomon Ray has stormed to No. 1 on gospel charts—only to be quickly exposed as a fully AI-generated phantom, sparking outrage from Christian artists who decry the “spiritless” impostor as a crutch robbing music of divine inspiration. 

Ray’s ascent—hitting No. 1 on iTunes and Billboard gospel charts—prompted swift backlash from flesh-and-blood artists. 

Christian music artist Forrest Frank lamented, “At minimum, AI does not have the Holy Spirit inside of it. So I think that’s really weird to be opening up your spirit to something that has no spirit.” 

NEW: "Mississippi-made soul singer" Christian artist "Solomon Ray" hits the number one spot for gospel music, is not a real person.

Christian artists are speaking out after the AI singer hit the No. 1 spot on the iTunes and Billboard charts.

"At minimum, AI does not have the… pic.twitter.com/7weh7XgJFd

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) November 26, 2025

Singer-songwriter Phil Wickham echoed the peril, “It’s difficult to envision a future where we look back and think creating AI was a net positive for our world. At most it should be a tool for humans, not a replacement for them.” 

Singer Colton Dixon urged “I’m honestly still wrestling with the whole AI music thing. Can it be a tool to speed up a rather long tedious process – yes. But can it also be used as a crutch instead of finding inspiration and direction from Holy Spirit – also yes. I’m believing God will be magnified regardless.”

As we’ve previously detailed, this gospel ghost isn’t isolated, rather it is a symptom of AI’s broader sonic siege. 

Streaming service Deezer conducted a recent poll where respondents heard two AI tracks and one human made song, with a whopping 97% failing to spot the fakes.

The findings underscore how machine-made melodies are infiltrating genres like gospel, threatening to relegate authentic expression to an algorithmic afterthought.

The vast majority of respondents to the survey also said they want to see AI music clearly labelled or even prevented from appearing on streaming platforms.

CEO Alexis Lanternier noted “The survey results clearly show that people care about music and want to know if they’re listening to AI or human made tracks or not.” 

Deezer’s data reveals the AI creep. In January, one in ten daily streams was fully AI; by October, one in three—about 40,000 tracks daily. 

Ray’s phantom hit mirrors the AI country anthem “Walk My Walk” by fabricated Breaking Rust, topping Billboard’s Country Digital Sales, credited to enigmatic ‘artist’ Aubierre Rivaldo Taylor, amassing 1.6 million streams.

These incursions span genres, often cloaked in anonymity, their origins as opaque as the algorithms birthing them. If unchecked, we risk a future where most music isn’t human-made.

Music, once a direct expression of human experience and skill built over years of practice, risks relegation to a series of droll Clichéd prompts.

Veterans like Randy Travis and Martina McBride have decried unauthorized AI voices, and hundreds of musicians from Billie Eilish to Stevie Wonder have urged tech curbs on human-replacing tools.

Ray’s soulful facade, AI crooning gospel hymns, strikes at a sacred core. Creative work thrives on authenticity, emotion, the slow, often messy process, rather than AI’s speed and convenience.

Replacing years of practice honing a creative skill with AI doesn’t merely threaten livelihoods; it risks diminishing what makes art matter.

We’re outsourcing culture to machines and without transparency, we are surely soon to be trapped in a world where everything seems real, but very little actually is.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

*  *  * BLACK FRIDAY IS HERE

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 12:00

Trump And House GOP Are Headed For A Clash Over Obamacare Subsidies

Obamacare subsidies expire at the end of December, and it now looks like the big battle over their future won’t be between Democrats and the GOP, but between the White House and House Republicans.

Trump has said that while he doesn’t want to make the subsidies permanent, that "some kind of an extension may be necessary to get something else done because the unaffordable care act has been a disaster. It's a disaster."

The White House proposal caps eligibility at 700% of the federal poverty line and kills off zero-premium plans that have become a magnet for fraud. But House Speaker Mike Johnson has made it clear this idea hits a wall with the GOP. Even with these anti-fraud provisions attached, Trump's plan still pours billions into the same broken system, and does nothing to address the key problem created by Obamacare: the skyrocketing costs of subsidies.

The obvious problem here going into midterms is optics... with millions of Americans - including a ton of lower income red state residents, forced to suddenly come up with potentially thousands of dollars more per month after already adjusting to the inflationary 'new normal' thanks to the egregious overreaction to the economy-killing pandemic shutdown that never should have happened in the first place.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Johnson “cautioned the White House that most House Republicans don’t have an appetite for extending enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies, according to people familiar with the matter, showing how hard it will be politically to stave off sharp increases in healthcare costs next year for many Americans.”

The message from Johnson, in a phone call with administration officials, came as President Trump’s advisers were drafting a healthcare plan that extended the subsidies for two years.

The warning underscores the hurdles facing any deal in coming weeks. Lawmakers have a mid-December deadline for healthcare votes promised as a condition for Democrats voting to end the government shutdown earlier this month. The enhanced subsidies expire at the end of the year, affecting more than 20 million people who benefit from the tax credits. 

While the White House and GOP leadership circle each other, a bipartisan group of lawmakers has worked out a separate solution. However, their proposal still relies on extending the subsidies.

The Bipartisan Healthcare Optimization Protection Extension (HOPE) Act extends the enhanced premium tax credit for two years. It includes a lower income cap for enrollees, about $200,000 for a family of four, and phases out for those making above that (currently the subsidy is capped based on what percent of a family’s income it spends on health care). The bill would also try to crack down on fraud.

“We don't want to see premiums skyrocket, but we probably need a deeper plan for the longer term to deal with the high cost of healthcare,” said Rep. Don Bacon (R-Nebr.). “What we're proposing is a bridge. Let's help keep people's premiums down — that's important — and it’ll give us time to work on it, maybe something better over the next year or two.”

“People are freaking out. I mean, I get phone calls from people about seeing their premiums go up by a thousand dollars a month,” Rep. Tom Suozzi, a New York Democrat, said. “That's why we felt it was very important for us to get together as a bipartisan team to say, let's work together and let's force something to happen here that we can try and build consensus on.”

These solutions don’t solve the problem for millions who never qualified for subsidies, who will see their premiums soar regardless. Extending subsidies deepens the distortion and accelerates the problem. 

The subsidy fight puts Republicans in a tough spot. Johnson has already shown he will not bless another round of Obamacare cash, and most of the conference stands with him. Trump’s team is floating the idea of a temporary extension, and that puts the party on a collision course as January approaches. The CR runs out at the end of January, and nothing suggests the White House and House Republicans will bridge this gap before then.

Meanwhile, Democrats see an easy opening. They are unified, they want this fight, and they know the GOP’s internal split hands them the leverage they lacked during the last shutdown. Washington is drifting toward another stalemate, and the setup looks far worse for Republicans this time around. The stage is set for a January showdown that could break wide open once the subsidies expire.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 11:45

"Oh!...K"

By Michael Every of Rabobank

As Bloomberg puts it, the latest Fed Beige Book underlined a ‘deepening K-shaped split’. The very wealthy are still spending; everyone else is struggling. That split is now evident all over. AI firms are booming; most aren’t. Moreover, a day after the Financial Times spoke of people looking for “crumbs” in parts of the US, it happily reports ‘Megadeals hit new record as Wall Street’s animal spirits roar back.’ That will please the crumb-seekers.

It’s there in budgets too. Brussels just rebuked Finland for breaching EU budget rules: if even the Scandies are naughty, as they rearm aggressively, then who isn’t? The UK saw what the Telegraph calls ‘A Budget of chaos, contradiction and falsehoods’, as the Guardian noted “Rachel Reeves targets UK’s wealthiest in £26bn tax-raising budget”, and the FT said it ”raises the UK tax take to an all-time high.” Our Stefan Koopman argues it has little aimed at boosting growth, encouraging investment, restoring confidence, or reforming the tax system, and is instead “a Survival Budget instead of a Growth Budget, crafted to appease both backbench MPs and financial markets.” Yet fiddling with CPI may be enough for a divided BOE to cut a little more.

A K-shape is evident in the Fed as well. Miran makes clear he wants to do things very differently. So does Bessent. Cook’s fate is in the balance. Powell’s Miran-esque replacement may be named in weeks. This goes beyond Fed Funds. Potentially, it’s also about US (geo)political economy.

Even the FT just had to admit global trade is also now a ‘K’. Its op-ed , ‘China is making trade impossible’, argues, “There is nothing that China wants to import, nothing it does not believe it can make better and cheaper, nothing for which it wants to rely on foreigners a single day longer than it has to.” It adds what China imports, because it must, it also intends to make soon and dominate global supply of. In short, Ricardian comparative advantage is gone; China makes ‘port’ and ‘cloth’, and China will eventually dominate all key global industries. Those who read Ricardo, Chinese history, Marxism-Leninism, and neomercantilism warned about this years ago, and how it would lead to the collapse of the (neo)liberal world order - as a US commission warns China seeks an "alternative world order.” Yet ‘because markets’ types were all ‘O’-shaped: mouths agape, intellectually in a closed loop. So, here we are.

The FT op-ed concludes the EU must embrace protectionism if it wants to retain any industry as, “Europe has nothing to offer and difficult decisions to make”. It’s already heading in that direction slowly, grudgingly, blaming Trump, and still thinking it will be able to remain a net exporter as it happens, which it likely won’t. It goes without saying that Europe is K-shaped on that key front, within lobby groups in each member state, and between them - and Brussels.

In other geoeconomics, Nikkei Asia reports ‘Japan Inc.’ is trying to reduce reliance on China; the US is negotiating a trade deal with Taiwan that could help train US workers; pro-‘free-trade’ Canada announced further limits on steel imports and promised more money for its lumber mills; the Israeli army is moving away from Chinese cars to avoid tech spying; and Trump won’t invite South Africa to the Miami G-20 - maybe that global institution is at a fork in the road too.

The ECB also has a plan ‘to boost Europe’s global influence’ - making the Euro available for those worried about access to dollars. Yet the Euro’s global role is small, commodities are priced in dollars, Russia’s pushing for barter, China for CNY-invoicing, and US stablecoins about to be unleashed: so, some worry about the ECB’s access to dollars more than others’ access to Euros.

In the political realm things are always K-shaped – but now it’s a huge capital letter. The Georgia election interference case against Trump was just dropped, as was the court case against its instigator, Letitia James, on a legal technicality; but Axios notes, ‘Supreme Court poised to reshape next 3 election cycles.’ That may matter more than what it says on tariffs ahead.

It’s not just courts: every US institution is K-shaped, even the army. The White House is floating sedition charges against six Democratic politicians, including Senator Kelly, for calling for the armed forces not to obey illegal orders --without stating which ones are-- as social media shows billboards encouraging troops to do so. It’s also floated on MSNBC that anyone helping that legal process would face Nuremberg-style charges if Republicans lose the 2028 election. That’s the backdrop to two US national guard soldiers being shot near the White House, following two assassination attempts against President Trump and the murder of Charlie Kirk.

Naturally, international relations are not OK, just ‘K’. China is demanding clarity from Japan on its one-China principle as the Wall Street Journal’s Ling Ling Wei reports following the Trump-Xi call, the White House told Japan to “lower the volume” on Taiwan, which Tokyo “found worrying.” Yet media are always K-shaped, so in no (Ling Ling) way does that mean this is gospel, just a view. Meanwhile, Taiwan pledged to boost defence spending by $40bn to “defend democracy” – and whom will it buying those arms from?

Regarding Russia-Ukraine, on one hand Moscow is pursuing a deal on its terms and called the leak of a Witkoff call with its team “hybrid warfare”: true, but it takes one to know one. Moreover, the US is reportedly demanding Kyiv signs a peace deal before it underlines the details of its security guarantees for it – talk about caveat emptor! On the other hand, Europe is trying to find a plan B for Kyiv if they can’t agree on using Moscow’s frozen state assets - which could blow up any peace deal; France and the UK are LARPing the 1950s, forgetting in 1956 the US was already showing them who did and didn’t have ‘strategic autonomy’ in the Suez Crisis; and the EU’s top diplomat, Kallas, is saying a peace deal should insist the Russian military’s size is capped – worryingly, there seems a K-shaped divergence between that idea and a nuclear-armed reality.

In the Middle East, ‘Scions of Iran’s revolution call for reset with the world’, claims the FT, as a “New generation of political elites seek overhaul of ties with west and Arab states.” Then again, there also intel reports that Iran is considering a major strike against Israel, which runs the other way.

And in Africa, Nigeria’s President has declared a security emergency and ordered the mass recruitment of police and army, having been warned by Trump about the need to protect the country’s Christian communities. So, over to a US military focus on Venezuela then? Newsweek has it that ‘Defiant Maduro rallies Venezuela for US war.’

The important point here is that the average of any K-shape looks like Ͱ rather than a letter of the alphabet: it has no meaning. In the same way, there is no useful mean to the conflating developments above, just uncomfortable up- or -down-legs. Nor is there a comfortable median to assume some kind of return to.

"Oh!...K" indeed.

*  *  * BLACK FRIDAY IS HERE

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 11:20

Fentanyl Trafficking Rings Run By Illegal Immigrants Dismantled Across Washington

In his Nov. 24 op-ed, Seattle conservative commentator Jason Rantz puts a sharp spotlight on what he frames as the overlooked reality of Washington’s fentanyl pipeline: that major trafficking networks are increasingly being run or staffed by illegal immigrants.

Rantz reports that federal agents dismantled two international drug rings in October—one tied to Ecuador, the other to Mexico—resulting in more than 18 arrests and the seizure of millions of lethal fentanyl doses, narcotics, illegal firearms, and even an improvised explosive device.

Rantz writes that the central revelation is that “many of the suspects… are in this country illegally,” a detail he says federal officials had not previously made public. U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd confirmed to The Jason Rantz Show that not all suspects are U.S. citizens and that investigators routinely discover unlawful status during arrests.

Floyd argued that the public deserves clarity about who is behind these crimes, even as investigations themselves are not driven by immigration status. As he told Rantz, “It’s fair for the public to know… the Trump administration is not wrong about the fact that many of the people that are here illegally are committing crimes, and very serious crimes.”

The Ecuador-linked Gutama Escandon network pushing fentanyl and meth across the Puget Sound region, and the Mexico-connected ring in rural Lewis County tied to 105,000 fentanyl pills and 34 kilograms of powder—amounts the DEA equates to more than 3 million potentially deadly doses, according to 770AM.

For Rantz, the takeaway is blunt. These cases show that Washington’s fentanyl crisis cannot be separated from immigration realities, despite political narratives that portray illegal immigrants as uniformly harmless.

By surfacing details federal authorities acknowledge but often do not publicize, Rantz argues the public can better understand the forces driving the drug epidemic devastating communities across the state.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 11:00

Harvard Report Warns Of 'Damaging' Grade Inflation, 60% Of Grades Are A's

Authored by Cecilia Jones via TheCollegeFix.com,

Harvard University’s Office of Undergraduate Education is raising concerns about mounting grade inflation, reporting that the school’s grading system is “damaging the academic culture of the College.”

The office sent a 25-page report to faculty and students, stating that 60 percent of all undergraduate grades are now A’s. This is a 35 percent increase compared to 20 years ago, according to The Harvard Crimson.

Veronica Bryant, academic affairs fellow at the American Council of Trustees and Alumni, told The Fix that if Harvard allows grade inflation to skyrocket, the problem will worsen at other schools.

“‘As goes Harvard, so goes the nation’ is a phrase for a reason. If other schools see America’s oldest and most prestigious university as weakening standards, why should they keep high standards, especially as they compete for fewer and fewer students?” she said.

Bryant told The Fix that Harvard’s reputation has taken a hit in recent years with stories such as the resignation of President Claudine Gay and a 2023 New Yorker article in which a Harvard administrator stated that Harvard students struggled to identify the subjects and verbs within The Scarlet Letter. 

Furthermore, the question of academic rigor extends beyond grade inflation, with many voicing concerns about a general lowering of expectations, she said.

“Harvard students receive only the smallest educational foundation. It only requires one subject of all students: a writing course, according to ACTA’s What Will They Learn?(R) project,” Bryant told The Fix.

However, she also said it is a good sign that Harvard appears to be taking the issue seriously.

“Gen Z values authenticity. We hope they will take steps to ensure grades actually reflect student performance, not just reduce the number of A’s,” she said.

“If Harvard makes this bold move, others may follow their lead,” Bryant said.

The report itself underscores the severity of the problem.

Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Amanda Claybaugh wrote in the report that “Nearly all faculty expressed serious concern.”

They believe the grades students receive no longer reflect the actual quality of their work, she wrote.

Further, the dean stated that “grading is … also too inconsistent, as students have observed. More importantly, our grading no longer performs its primary functions and is undermining our academic mission.”

Claybaugh’s report also recommends several steps to curb this issue.

It urges instructors to clearly define what level of work merits each grade and to reintroduce in-person, sit-down exams, arguing they are vital in the age of AI.

It also calls for more consistent grading across different sections of the same course, noting that students are often frustrated by disparities among teaching fellows.

Moreover, the report notes that a faculty committee is considering allowing instructors to award a small number of A+ grades to distinguish exceptional work. The committee is additionally weighing whether to list each course’s median grade on student transcripts as another way to reduce grade inflation.

Harvey Mansfield, a retired Harvard professor, wrote in The Crimson, “The principle of merit used to get into Harvard is abandoned once there.”

He wrote that students seek to distinguish themselves through extracurriculars, creating an environment where academics are put on the back burner.

Mansfield added that a measure implemented in 2008, which required faculty to participate in course evaluations, led professors to inflate students’ grades.

The Crimson published a series of student editorials that present a wide range of responses. Some students praised the report for encouraging higher standards, while others suggested eliminating general education requirements.

Harvard students Jack Flanigan, Edward Hall, and Ari Kohn, who lead the university’s Intellectual Vitality Initiative, stated that the academic culture has eroded, as “faculty maintain low expectations for students’ effort, while students expect little of their professors in return.”

Though many students criticized the proposed solutions within the report, all acknowledged that grade inflation was negatively impacting the student experience.

The Fix reached out to Harvard media relations and Amanda Claybaugh for comments, but did not receive a response.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 10:20

UPS Indefinitely Grounds All Its MD-11's - 9% Of Firm's Fleet Out For Peak Delivery Season

UPS will have to manage the peak package delivery season of the year with 9% of its air fleet sitting idle, after the firm announced it will indefinitely ground all its McDonnell Douglas MD-11 cargo jets in the wake of a spectacular disaster in Louisville on Nov. 4 that took 14 lives. 

This photo published by the National Transportation Safety Board shows a UPS MD-11 losing its left engine upon taking off in Louisville on Nov 4

“Regarding the MD-11 fleet, Boeing’s ongoing evaluation shows that inspections and potential repairs will be more extensive than initially expected,” wrote UPS Airlines President Bill Moore in a memo to employees obtained by AP. Boeing became the manufacturer of the three-engine MD-11 cargo jets after a 1997 merger with McDonnell Douglas. The move follows a catastrophic failure that saw the left engine detach from the wing of a UPS MD-11 taking off in Louisville. 

There are 109 MD-11 still in service -- all of them with package carriers. They comprise 9% of the UPS fleet compared to 4% of FedEx's. Anticipating an FAA directive, UPS, Fedex and other companies grounded their MD-11's after the horrific crash in Louisville earlier this month. A UPS spokesperson said the firm will compensate for the the lost idle resources by activating contingency plans, adding that UPS “will take the time needed to ensure that every aircraft is safe.”  It was originally hoped that the FAA-mandated inspection-and-repair process would take weeks, but now it's expected to consume months. 

WATCH: Dash cam video shows UPS plane crash in Louisville, Kentucky pic.twitter.com/dZdpus1fxu

— BNO News Live (@BNODesk) November 5, 2025

Depending on mounting expenses of that undertaking, the disaster may well seal the fate of the jets, which were first unveiled in 1984, initially serving as passenger liners. The jets' service record in that capacity includes a terrible disaster that's disturbingly similar to what just unfolded in Louisville: In 1979, an American Airlines MD-11 crashed after taking off from Chicago O'Hare. Just like the plane that crashed on Nov. 4, the American Airlines MD-11 lost its left engine during takeoff. All 271 people aboard the plane were killed, along with two on the ground.

Last week, investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board released frame-by-frame images showing the left engine of the UPS MD-11F freighter separating from the aircraft in Louisville. NTSB's preliminary report showed the left engine (No. 1) and entire pylon assembly tore away from the wing immediately after rotation -- the act of raising the nose of the jet at takeoff -- igniting into a massive fireball.

With the wing on fire, the air freighter managed only about 30 feet above ground level before losing lift. It cleared the blast fence on Runway 17 Right at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport, but struck the roof of a UPS warehouse with its left main gear, then crashed into a nearby industrial park. All three crew members were killed, along with 11 people on the ground. 

 

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 10:00

Trump Says South Africa Won't Be Invited To 2026 Miami G20 Summit

U.S. President Donald Trump said South Africa won’t be invited to the 2026 G20 summit in Florida, after the United States boycotted this year’s gathering in Johannesburg.

“At the conclusion of the G20, South Africa refused to hand off the G20 Presidency to a Senior Representative from our U.S. Embassy, who attended the Closing Ceremony,” Trump said in a Nov. 26 post on Truth Social.

“Therefore, at my direction, South Africa will NOT be receiving an invitation to the 2026 G20, which will be hosted in the Great City of Miami, Florida next year.”

In the post, Trump also accused the South African government of “killing white people” and “randomly allowing their farms to be taken from them,” which he said was the reason Washington boycotted this year’s summit.

“South Africa has demonstrated to the World they are not a country worthy of Membership anywhere, and we are going to stop all payments and subsidies to them, effective immediately,” he added.

As Guy Birchall details below for The Epoch Times, the presidency of the G20 rotates.

South Africa assumed it in December 2024 and will hold it through November, after which the United States will assume the role.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office described Trump’s missive as a “regrettable statement,” and said that not inviting his country to next year’s summit was a punitive measure. The office said the U.S. president was spreading “misinformation and distortions” about South Africa.

“As the United States was not present at the summit, instruments of the G20 Presidency were duly handover [sic] to a US Embassy official at the Headquarters of South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation,” Ramaphosa’s office said in the statement.

The office said South Africa “is a member of the G20 in its own name and right” and that its membership of the group “is at the behest of all other members.”

“South Africa is a sovereign constitutional democratic country and does not appreciate insults from another country about its worth in participating in global platforms,” his office added, saying that it will “never insult another country.”

During the G20 meeting in Johannesburg, leaders adopted a declaration on Nov. 22 to address climate concerns and other global issues despite U.S. objections.

The declaration, drafted without input from the United States, “can’t be renegotiated,” Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, told reporters at the time.

(Front row, L–R) Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Angolan President and Chairperson of the African Union João Lourenço, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney pose for a group photo on the opening day of the Group of 20 leaders' summit, in Johannesburg on Nov. 22, 2025. Gianluigi Guercia/AP

The White House said in response that South Africa had “weaponized” its leadership of the group.

G20 declarations are usually made by unanimous consent. The United States had offered to send the U.S. chargé d'affaires for the handover. South Africa rejected that offer.

Magwenya said that the South African president “will not hand over to a junior embassy official the presidency of the G20.”

“It’s a breach of protocol that is not going to be accommodated,” Magwenya added.

Trump had announced that he would not be attending the G20 event this year on Nov. 7, repeating accusations of human rights abuses against white South Africans.

“It is a total disgrace that the G20 will be held in South Africa,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social at the time. “Afrikaners (People who are descended from Dutch settlers, and also French and German immigrants) are being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated. No U.S. Government Official will attend as long as these Human Rights abuses continue.”

South African officials at the time called the president’s remarks regrettable and denied allegations of persecution.

“The characterisation of Afrikaners as an exclusively white group is ahistorical,” South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation said in a Nov. 8 statement. “Furthermore, the claim that this community faces persecution, is not substantiated by fact.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the State Dining Room at the White House on Oct. 8, 2025. Evan Vucci/AP Photo

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also boycotted a meeting of G20 foreign ministers held in South Africa in February.

Since taking office, Trump has criticized South Africa’s domestic and foreign policies, including its land expropriation law and its accusations that Israel committed genocide in the Gaza Strip. Israel denies the accusations.

Since the end of apartheid, Pretoria has implemented what it calls affirmative action and Black Economic Empowerment policies, but the South African government has denied seizing land belonging to white citizens.

The next G20 summit will take place at the Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami, Florida, in December 2026.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 08:55

Today, in the Calculated Risk Real Estate Newsletter: Fannie Mae Multi-Family Delinquency Rate Highest Since Housing Bust (ex-pandemic)

Excerpt:

Fannie and Freddie: Single Family Delinquency Rate Mostly Unchanged in October

Freddie Mac reported that the Single-Family serious delinquency rate in October was 0.56%, down from 0.57% September. Freddie's rate is up year-over-year from 0.55% in October 2024, however, this is below the pre-pandemic level of 0.60%.

Freddie's serious delinquency rate peaked in February 2010 at 4.20% following the housing bubble and peaked at 3.17% in August 2020 during the pandemic.

Fannie Mae reported that the Single-Family serious delinquency rate in October was 0.54%, unchanged from 0.54% in September. The serious delinquency rate is up year-over-year from 0.52% in October 2024, however, this is below the pre-pandemic lows of 0.65%.

The Fannie Mae serious delinquency rate peaked in February 2010 at 5.59% following the housing bubble and peaked at 3.32% in August 2020 during the pandemic.

There is much more in the article.

Nearly 200 Million Shoppers Expected To Hit Stores Thanksgiving Weekend

Authored by Jill McLaughlin via The Epoch Times,

Retail experts predict that 187 million people will shop between Thanksgiving Day and Cyber Monday, based on a consumer survey released on Nov. 20.

The survey by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights and Analytics showed this year’s prediction topping last year’s, when 183.4 million people were expected. Federation data from December 2024 show that 197 million actually turned out.

“The holidays are an important part of many consumers’ budgets, and that trend is especially true this season,” Katherine Cullen, the federation’s vice president of industry and consumer insights, said in a statement.

Gifts from the 1960s are making a comeback this season, as toy buyers are expected to focus on Lego, Barbie, Hot Wheels, and dolls. These vintage classics will be the top toys for consumers this year, according to the survey.

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, is still the most popular day to shop; 70 percent of shoppers plan to seek out discounts that day.

The second biggest retail day is expected on Cyber Monday; 40 percent of consumers surveyed said they planned to buy online on Dec. 1.

Another big shopping day is expected on Nov. 29, when 67 million people are expected to shop local and support small businesses, according to the survey.

“Many Americans consider shopping to be an important part of their Thanksgiving holiday and one of the best ways to get deals on gifts,” Phil Rist, Prosper Insights and Analytics executive vice president of strategy, said in a statement.

More than half of those surveyed who are planning to take advantage of the sales say it was because the deals “are too good to pass up,” Rist said.

Shopping has started early for nearly 60 percent of consumers, according to the survey.

Shoppers are expecting to spend an average of $890 on gifts and other seasonal items. Families with kids plan to spend $33 more on average on gifts, the survey revealed.

The retail federation’s survey asked 8,000 adult consumers about their holiday shopping plans. It was conducted from Oct. 31 to Nov. 6 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.1 percentage points.

Long exposure photo with people shopping on Black Friday at a mall in Hanover, Md., on Nov. 29, 2024. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Another survey by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) released on Nov. 17 predicts Americans will spend $127 billion on Thanksgiving weekend—an increase of $2 billion from last year.

“Younger generations are steadily growing in their spending power, and we expect to see that reflected during Thanksgiving Weekend,” ICSC President Tom McGee said. “Every year there’s a question about whether the long holiday weekend still matters. And every year, the answer from consumers is the same: It does.”

Nearly two-thirds of shoppers surveyed by ICSC said they plan to do all or most of their seasonal purchasing between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, including 76 percent of Gen Z shoppers and 71 percent of millennials.

Eighty percent of Thanksgiving weekend shoppers plan to visit a retail center during the holiday, according to the organization’s survey.

The ICSC survey was conducted online from Nov. 10 to Nov. 12 and is a demographically representative sample of 1,015 respondents, according to the organization.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 08:30

CME Reopens After Chicago Data Center "Cooling Issue"

Update (0830ET): CME Globex Futures & Options markets have officially reopened after their overnight 'cooling issue'. For now, Nasdaq futs are rallying...

*  *  *

Update (0820ET): Headlines crossing over the Terminal show that CME Globex Futures & Options Markets will open at 08:30 ET after hours of being offline due to a "cooling issue" at data centers operated by CyrusOne in Chicago.

Here are the headlines:

• CME GLOBEX FUTURES & OPTIONS MARKETS TO OPEN 7:30 CENTRAL TIME

• CME: ALL GTCS THAT HAVE BEEN ACKNOWLEDGED WILL REMAIN WORKING

• CME GLOBEX FUTURES & OPTIONS MARKETS TO PRE-OPEN 07:00 CENTRAL

• CME Partially Restores Operations as Forex Platform Restarts

What a mess for this shortened post-Thanksgiving session to end the week.

* * *

A major "cooling issue" at data centers operated by CyrusOne forced the Chicago Mercantile Exchange to halt futures and options trading early Friday morning, disrupting activity across equities, FX, Treasuries, energy, and agricultural markets.  

"Due to a cooling issue at CyrusOne data centers, our markets are currently halted. Support is working to resolve the issue in the near term and will advise clients of Pre-Open details as soon as they are available," CME wrote on X late Thursday night. 

Due to a cooling issue at CyrusOne data centers, our markets are currently halted. Support is working to resolve the issue in the near term and will advise clients of Pre-Open details as soon as they are available.

— CME Group (@CMEGroup) November 28, 2025

CME provided an update around 0500 ET, indicating, "BrokerTec EU markets are open and trading. All other CME Group markets remain halted due to a data center cooling issue at CyrusOne. We will provide updates as they are available." 

BrokerTec EU markets are open and trading. All other CME Group markets remain halted due to a data center cooling issue at CyrusOne. We will provide updates as they are available.

— CME Group (@CMEGroup) November 28, 2025

The disruption, now longer than a similar 2019 outage, paralyzed CME's Globex platform, prompting traders to describe conditions as "flying dark" as liquidity, price discovery, and market signaling disappeared in seconds.

Exchanges connected to CME, including CBOT, NYMEX, COMEX, and even the Gulf Mercantile Exchange, also experienced disruptions. CME has not provided a reopening time.

Thomas Helaine, head of equity sales at TP ICAP Europe in Paris, told Bloomberg the outage is "a bit like flying dark," adding, "When you're trading cash equity like us, US futures give you an indication of where the market is going before the open. I can only imagine how complicated it must be for derivatives desks."

UBS equity trader Ed Abraham told clients, "Liquidity has reduced even more after the CME halted trading of commodities futures and options due to a cooling issue at a data center, providing no timeline for when the issue would be fixed. APAC." 

"Traders sitting with a position are certainly quite angry," said Gnanasekar Thiagarajan, head of trading and hedging strategies at Kaleesuwari Intercontinental.

Nick Twidale, chief analyst at AT Global Markets in Sydney, noted that traders "will be switching to alternative liquidity tools where they can. We've lost one of the market's major liquidity sources. This heightens the risk of exacerbated moves if a big event occurs."

The outage creates headaches for traders as they roll monthly contracts, leaving positions frozen. With US markets reopening for a shortened post-Thanksgiving session, broader equity markets in Europe and Asia were rather muted. 

Also, the outage highlights the extent to which CME serves as a backbone of global markets, where one data center cooling issue can ripple across exchanges worldwide.

Silver had to get cooled off

— marc friedrich (@marcfriedrich7) November 28, 2025

German analyst Marc Friedrich joked at CME's X post, "Silver had to get cooled off." 

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 08:30

Global Chaos As CME Outage Halts Futures Trading, Markets Set For Monthly Loss

Normally, this is where we would tell you where US index futures are trading early in the morning, we can't because at 9:45pm ET on Thursday, the CME experienced a catastrophic "glitch" and all equities, treasuries, FX and commodities futures went dark as a result of a what the Chicago Merc Exchange said was a cooling system malfunction at its Chicago data center operated by CyrusOne. While the CME since restarted its EBS market, a platform used in foreign exchange, at noon London time, its major global futures markets from equities to bonds and commodities are still down. When the cash market opens, both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 will look to extend a four-day winning streak driven by growing confidence that the Fed will cut interest rates next month. Elsewhere, European bourses are mostly flat, with the FTSE 100 (+0.1%) the only major index posting gains. Overall market action is muted amid light news flow, reflecting both Thanksgiving and the CME issues. The Dollar is firmer within a 99.50–99.75 range, having found support at the half-round figure and pushed above Thursday’s 99.71 peak. European bonds are a little softer post-data; the EUR dipped during the releases but has since bounced off lows. Crude oil traded modestly higher, extending the prior session’s gains, although WTI trading was later halted due to the CME outage. Looking ahead, highlights Canadian GDP (Q3), German Nationwide HICP, Credit Review for France. Today is a shortened US session, with markets set to close just after noon ET.

Single stocks traded without incident in the premarket. Alphabet Inc. rose more than 1%, while Amazon.com Inc. also firmed as Black Friday shopping moved into full swing.  Individual stocks are trading, and all Mag 7 names are in the green:Alphabet (GOOGL +0.9%, Amazon +0.9%, Microsoft +0.8%, Tesla +0.6%, Meta +0.5%, Nvidia +0.4%, Apple +0.3%). Here are some other notable premarket movers:

• CNH Industrial (CNH) is down 1.2% after JPMorgan analyst Tami Zakaria cut the recommendation on the agricultural equipment maker to underweight from neutral, citing an industry outlook from Deere.
• Tilray Brands (TLRY) is down 13% after the cannabis company announced that it will implement a one-for-ten reverse stock split of its common stock.
• Shares in CME Group Inc. (CME), NYSE owner Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (ICE) and Nasdaq Inc. (NDAQ) are in focus after the CME glitch

In corporate news, a fleet of planes that UPS grounded after a deadly crash isn’t expected to be back in service during the peak holiday season due to inspections and possible repairs.

After a volatile start to November, the S&P 500 narrowed its loss to about 0.4% before the Thanksgiving break. Expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates faster than first anticipated fueled a late-month rebound. The gauge had been down as much as 4.7% in November barely more than a week ago, as worries over stretched technology valuations rattled traders. Money markets were assigning roughly an 80% chance of a Fed cut in December before the CME disruption hit.

For markets still affected by the outage - which is most of them - the impact was significant. Trading of US Treasury futures remained halted, while cash bonds saw limited activity. European and UK bond markets that trade on a different exchange were unaffected. 

"Some market participants will take advantage of possible differences in prices,” said Guillermo Hernandez Sampere, head of trading at asset manager MPPM. “The majority will pause trading for risk reasons until the issues are resolved, otherwise losses are possible.”

For some, the timing of the disruption on Friday could cause particular inconvenience if it lasts, due to the need to roll positions from one contract to another. Friday is the expiry day for gasoline and diesel futures that can be settled with delivery of the actual physical fuel, adding a further potential complication for some traders. 

“The spillover from the Thanksgiving holiday and the fact there is no US data may on the face of it lessen the impact,” said Daniel Noorian, head of execution and quantitative services at Liquidnet. “Big concerns will be month-end flows and options expiry today in the weekly products.”

Gold saw erratic moves in early London trading, with the gap between bids and offers about 20 times wider than normal. US crude and palm oil on the Bursa Malaysia exchange were also affected.

According to an update, futures markets should reopen shortly...

• *CME GLOBEX FUTURES & OPTIONS MARKETS TO OPEN 7:30 CENTRAL TIME

Elsewhere, money markets are pricing in a more than 80% chance of a quarter-point rate cut in December, up substantially from about 30% before Williams' speech last Friday, and leaning toward three more in 2026. That’s helping ease concerns about AI spending and stretched valuations, which sparked a selloff earlier this month. The theme of intensifying AI competition continues to play out. Nvidia has fallen nearly 13% in under a month, while SoftBank - a major investor in OpenAI - is down almost 40% from its October peak. Conversely, tie-ups and new software are helping Google catch up in the global AI race.

Turning to the sad state of the US consumer, this Black Friday, bargains may be tougher to find. Retailers are trying to rein in discounting to mitigate Trump’s tariffs. Stores may struggle to keep shelves stocked with children’s gifts still overwhelmingly made in China as tariff-hit imports fall. 

In geopolitics, Putin signaled openness to talks about ending the war in Ukraine, saying Trump’s proposals could be the basis for future agreements. Efforts to end Russia’s war there are weighing on oil prices, set to fall for a fourth month running, the longest monthly losing streak in more than two years, ahead of a meeting of OPEC and its allies this weekend.

Europe Trading: European stocks were little-changed with steady with gains in the FTSE 100 and CAC 40. The Stoxx 600 is little changed as it heads for a 5th monthly gain. Delivery Hero shares rally as it’s said to be facing pressure from investors to sell at least parts of its business. Energy shares outperform, while the travel and leisure sector is among the laggards. Here are some of the biggest movers on Friday:

• Delivery Hero shares rally as much as 8.5% as it is said to be facing pressure from several large shareholders to conduct a strategic review amid increasing consolidation in the food-delivery industry.
• Mowi shares gain as much as 2.8%, the most in more than a month, after Berenberg raised its recommendation to buy from hold.
• Knorr-Bremse shares rise as much as 2.3%, the most since August, after Goldman Sachs initiated coverage with a recommendation of buy.
• EasyJet shares climb as much as 3.1% to a six-week high after Bernstein upgraded the stock to outperform from market-perform.
• Mitchells & Butlers shares gain as much as 8.2% on Friday, the most since May 2024, after the pub operator reported strong full-year results and robust current trading.
• Softwareone shares surge as much as 11% to their highest level in over a year on Friday, after Berenberg initiated coverage with a recommendation of buy.
• Whitbread shares slide as much as 9.2% to a seven-month low after Bernstein double-downgrades the stock following Wednesday’s UK budget.
• Sunrise Communications shares drop as much as 3.4% after JPMorgan cut its recommendation to underweight from neutral.
• Burberry shares fall as much as 4.6% after JPMorgan cut its recommendation to underweight from neutral.

Asian stocks fell for the first time this week, hampered by losses in high-flying South Korean tech names. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 0.3%, weighed down by the likes

In FX, the dollar is stronger versus major peers with the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index up 0.2%. Kiwi lags but is on track for a 1.7% weekly gain versus the dollar following a hawkish RBNZ cut earlier in the week. The euro is lower after regional euro-zone inflation metrics.

In commodities, oil was on track for a fourth monthly decline as traders looked ahead to this weekend’s OPEC+ meeting and assessed how a possible Ukraine peace agreement might influence an already oversupplied market. Brent held above $63 a barrel after a modest rise on Thursday. Spot gold is higher but saw a $20 move lower in early European trade, which could be linked to the lack of CME trade. 

Market Snapshot

• none as there are no futures actively traded

Top Overnight News

• CME Group (CME) says BrokerTec EU markets are open and trading, all other CME group markets remain halted amid the data center cooling issue at CyrusOne.
• CME announced that CME Globex futures and options markets were halted due to technical issues, and Cboe halted trading on C1 due to ongoing issues at CME. CME later announced that markets were halted due to a cooling issue at CyrusOne data centres, while it is working to resolve the outage issue and will advise clients of pre-open details as soon as available.
• US President Trump said that they may be cutting income tax almost completely because of tariff proceeds.
• US President Trump posted that he will permanently pause migration from all third-world countries to allow the US system to fully recover and will terminate all of the millions of Biden's illegal admissions, while he will end all federal benefits and subsidies to non-citizens.
• US President Trump ordered a review of all green card holders from countries "of concern" after the attack on National Guards in Washington DC, according to Axios.

Trade/Tariffs

• Nexperia issued an open letter to the leadership of Nexperia’s entities in China and noted that it continues to seek constructive collaboration with its entities in China, and has been requesting an open dialogue to find a path forward. Furthermore, it urged the leadership of Co.’s entities in China to take immediate steps towards structured negotiations to address the restoration of the supply chain, but added that it did not receive any meaningful response.
• Indonesia is reportedly resisting attempts by US President Trump to force it to accept a so-called “poison pill” and other coercive clauses in its “reciprocal tariff” trade deal with the US, according to FT.
• India expects to have a deal with the US before year-end as most issues are resolved, according to the Indian Trade Secretary
• EU Commission receives notifications from Apple (AAPL) under the Digital Market Act: Notifications from Apple (AAPL) indicated that its core platform services like Apple ads and maps meets the digital market thresholds.

A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk

APAC stocks were rangebound in the absence of a lead from Wall Street due to Thanksgiving Day and as participants digest a deluge of data at month-end. ASX 200 lacked direction as strength in the tech, mining and the consumer sectors is counterbalanced by losses in financials, real estate and telecoms. Nikkei 225 traded indecisively amid a slew of data in which Industrial Production and Retail Sales topped forecasts, while Unemployment rose and Tokyo CPI printed mostly in line with estimates, aside from the firmer-than-expected core reading. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were mixed, albeit with trade confined to within relatively tight parameters, while China Vanke shares and bonds were volatile and initially continued to slump with its H shares hitting a record low amid the ongoing default concerns, before staging a notable recovery.

Top Asian News

• BoJ decided to increase the upper limit on the consecutive-day purchases of the same issue under the Securities Lending Facility (SLF) for 10-year JGBs from Dec 1st.
• Japan finalised JPY 18.3tln extra budget to fund stimulus package
• Samsung Electronics (005930 KS) appoints new CEO, Tae-Moon Roh.
• Meituan (3690 HK) Q3 (CNY): Revenue 95.5bln (exp. 97.5bln), Adj Net -16bln (exp. -13.96bln); sees operating loss trend to continue in Q4; market competition remained overheated recently.

European bourses are mostly flat, with the FTSE 100 (+0.1%) marginally higher this morning. Overall market action is muted amid light news flow, reflecting both Thanksgiving and the CME issues. European sectors are largely in the red. Basic Resources (+0.2%) and Energy (+0.3%) are marginal outperformers, supported by underlying moves in metals and energy. Laggards include Travel & Leisure (-0.7%), Autos (-0.4%) and Insurance (-0.4%). Ongoing Nexperia concerns continue to pressure Autos, as the company warns of imminent production halts.

Top European News

• S&P said UK public finances remain constrained and it expects fiscal pressures in the UK to persist over the medium term despite revenue-raising measures announced in the Autumn Budget, while it added that general government deficits are forecast to moderate through to 2028 and there are risks to the UK’s fiscal consolidation plan, especially toward the end of the forecast horizon.
• Moody's says UK budget affirms commitment to fiscal consolidation however, they highlight execution risk.
• ECB Consumer Expectations Survey results (October 2025); 12-month inflation expectations raised, 3- and 5-year expectations unchanged.

FX

• DXY is firmer within a 99.50–99.76 range, having found support at the half-round figure and pushed above Thursday’s 99.71 peak. Fresh catalysts have been limited overnight and through the European morning, with FX futures on CME halted due to an exchange issue. Comments from US President Trump noted they may be cutting income tax almost completely using tariff proceeds.
• EUR and GBP are subdued against the USD but flat versus each other, leaving downside in the USD pairs driven by the Dollar rather than EZ- or UK-specific developments.
• JPY is flat and uneventful amid thin conditions and few catalysts, with USD/JPY holding a 155.65–157.18 range, comfortably inside Thursday’s 154.37–157.89 span.
• NZD is pulling back after recent post-RBNZ outperformance, while AUD/NZ D remains near weekly lows (1.1400) after sliding from a 1.1536 pre-RBNZ high.

Fixed Income

• EGBs are ultimately a little softer post-data; the EUR dipped during the releases but has since bounced off lows.
• Bunds briefly pushed above 129.00 on cooler French HICP before fading, slipping back below 129.00 and extending losses to ~128.84 despite broadly softer German state CPI prints.
• Gilts contained overall, but have traversed a relatively wide range of just under 40 ticks as traders digest what appears to be another manifesto U-turn, by PM Starmer; markets now await the verdict from Chancellor Reeves on the matter.
• UK DMO to sell GBP 1bln 4.25% 2039 Gilt via tender on Dec 4th.

Commodities

• WTI and Brent traded with a positive bias overnight, extending the prior session’s gains. WTI trading was later halted due to the CME outage. Since then, Brent Feb ’26 has slipped from its overnight highs and is now moving within a USD 62.72–63.26/bbl range.
• Precious metals are firmer, though with limited catalysts this morning. Spot gold is confined to a narrow USD 4,147.92/oz–4,193.20/oz range, with geopolitics remaining the main focus.
• Base metals retain a strong positive tone, with 3M LME Copper trading near the top of its USD 10,940.56–11,008.40/t range. The current upside looks mainly like a modest rebound from recent pressure.
• Ukraine's military says it hit Russia's Saratov oil refinery.

Geopolitics

• Ukrainian President Zelensky said Ukrainian and US delegations will meet this week to work out a formula for peace and security discussed in the Geneva talks.
• Russia's Kremlin says Russia wants to try move towards peace in Ukraine despite its belief that Ukrainian President Zelensky is not legitimate.
• Ukrainian Presidential top aide said should not count on them giving up territory as long as Zelensky is President.
• Belgium warned that using frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine will endanger a peace deal, according to FT.
• US President Trump said regarding Venezuela that they will begin to stop drug cartels on land soon.
• Russian President Putin to visit India between December 4th-5th, according to IFX.
• Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to visit Russia between December 1st-2nd.

DB's Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap

Morning from Holland which was the last place I wanted to go yesterday after Liverpool were destroyed 4-1 at home to Dutch side PSV the previous evening. Staying with sport, today is the day where I been cleared to putt for 10 minutes a day maximum after recent back surgery. Tough to do that in a hotel room in Amsterdam as I type this so I'll wait for the weekend where I'll likely force my kids to spend 3 hours on the putting green with me tomorrow.  

Whilst our 2026 outlook might be called “Anything but dull”, the last 24 hours have been "everything dull" with the US out for Thanksgiving, and few headlines elsewhere. Even an overnight outage at the CME, which means many futures contracts (including US equity futures) haven't traded since around 2.45am London time, hasn't really been noticed! The problem seems to be a "cooling issue" at a data centre. Given the exponential surge in data centres for other reasons in recent quarters that's an interesting development!
When there was trading in the last 24 hours, you could just about squint your eyes and argue that the risk-on tone generally continued, with Europe’s STOXX 600 (+0.14%) just about posting a 4th consecutive gain. And to be fair, there were some other signs that sentiment was recovering, with Bitcoin (+1.35%) closing at a one-week high of $91,410. Today some life will be breathed into markets with CPI in Germany, France and Italy and later we'll start hearing the first snippets of news around Black Friday sales - a key barometer of the health of the consumer and the companies that rely on them.   

That pattern of modest equity advances played out across Europe, with little divergence across sectors or countries. Indeed, none of the big sector groups in the STOXX 600 posted any sharp moves yesterday, and the other major indices also posted small advances. So the DAX (+0.18%), the CAC 40 (+0.04%) and the FTSE MIB (+0.21%) each only rose slightly. Similarly for sovereign bonds, there was a modest uptick in yields across Europe, with those on 10yr bunds (+0.8bps), OATs (+1.3bps) and BTPs (+1.2bps) all a bit higher.  

Yet despite that modest recovery in sentiment, UK markets struggled after Wednesday’s budget, paring back some of their outperformance immediately after the statement. That was driven by a sense that lots of the structural issues hadn’t gone away, particularly as most of the tax rises had been backloaded into the later years of the forecast. So the FTSE 100 (+0.02%) was one of the weaker performers among the big European indices, and gilt yields rose across the curve, with the 10yr yield (+2.6bps) up to 4.45%. Now admittedly, gilt yields are still beneath their pre-budget levels on Wednesday morning, but the partial reversal fed into wider concerns that the budget had only bought the UK time on its fiscal position, rather than putting things on a permanently sustainable path.  

Otherwise, there were a few more headlines on the Ukraine peace talks, although nothing that was particularly market moving. The original Thanksgiving deadline for peace is now looking a touch optimistic with hindsight! However there is progress, but whether this can translate into a deal is a big question. For instance, President Putin commented on the US proposals, saying that “In general, we agree that this can form the basis for future agreements”. However, he also said that “it would be impolite of me to talk about any final versions now. There are none.” So there remains a general scepticism that we’re on the verge of an imminent breakthrough, and the Polymarket odds still only suggest a 27% chance that a Russia-Ukraine ceasefire will be reached by the end of March. Against that backdrop, both oil prices and European defence stocks rose a bit, with Brent crude (+0.33%) up to $63.34/bbl. However, the moves were in line with the broader risk-on tone, rather than obviously driven by any developments on the peace talks.

Meanwhile in the US, both equity and bond markets were closed for Thanksgiving, but the futures markets that were opened showed barely any movement either. So around the time of the European close, futures on the S&P 500 were completely flat, and Treasury futures indicated that yields would only rise by up to a basis point across the curve. On the topic of holidays, remember as well that today will have an earlier close than usual in the US, with the New York Stock Exchange closing at 1pm Eastern time.  

Asian equity markets are mostly lower this morning as the rebound in technology shares has lost some momentum. Across the region, the KOSPI (-1.51%) stands out as the largest underperformer, with the index down nearly -4.0% for November, while the Nikkei is flat as a series of robust economic data drummed up expectations that the BOJ will have enough headroom to raise interest rates soon (details below). Elsewhere, Chinese stocks are a little mixed, with the Hang Seng (-0.28%) recording slight losses, whereas the Shanghai Composite (+0.10%) is slightly higher. US equity futures haven't traded since around 2.45am London time due to the CME glitch discussed at the top. When they last did the S&P 500 (+0.11%) and NASDAQ 100 (+0.18%) were higher.  

Turning back to Japan, the core CPI in Tokyo increased by +2.8% year-on-year in November. This figure was slightly above the anticipated 2.7% and remained consistent with the previous month’s reading. Moreover, the headline Tokyo CPI inflation held steady at 2.7% year-on-year. In a separate report, industrial production rose by 1.4% month-on-month in October, contrasting with expectations of a -0.6% decline, and a slowdown from a +2.6% increase in September, thus providing a tentative indication that manufacturing activity is stabilising after several months of inconsistent factory output. Meanwhile, retail sales surged by +1.6% month-on-month in October (compared to the +0.8% expected), rebounding on the anticipation of tax cuts and more expansionary policies under the new administration. 10yr JGBs are up another +2.2bps this morning.  

Finally yesterday, the ECB published the account from their last meeting in October, where they kept their deposit rate at 2%. It said that keeping rates “at their current levels would allow for more information to become available to assess the risk factors that the Governing Council had discussed.” Later on however, there was an interesting discussion on “possible strategies for future monetary policy”. It said that one view was expressed “that the rate-cutting cycle had come to an end”, but another view argued “that it was important to remain entirely open-minded on the possible need for a further rate cut”.

To the day ahead now, and data releases include the November flash CPI prints from Germany, France and Italy, as well as German unemployment for November, and Canada’s Q3 GDP. Then from central banks, we’ll hear from Bundesbank President Nagel.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/28/2025 - 08:21