China making moves. Elon gets his crown back and reversal of fortunes.

March is just ahead - rates could spoil the party.

Baby Bonds are back on the menu...

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Warm Up

- Lots of News - same old...

- China making moves

- Elon gets the crown back

- Jamie Dimon Speaks Up

- Cool Update From Apple

- And Baby Bonds ....

Market Update

- A down month - short and out

- Large Cap Growth - Beating Large Cap Value this year (small caps tied)

- S&P 500 up ~ 4% for 2023 NASDAQ 100 up 10%!

- Bonds - taking back some of the last month gains

- Gold, Silver walking back on higher USD - Switcheroo

***NO SHOW NEXT WEEK****

Inflation - Not Giving Up

- - The U.S. Federal Reserve may hike interest rates to nearly 6%, BofA Global Research said, as strong U.S. consumer demand and a tight labor market would force the central bank to battle inflation for longer.

- PPI, CPI and PCE come in hot...

- Don't think this is all over, but clearly not moving as fast - looks like we will settle in this area for a while

Vape Wars

- Altria Group Inc. is in discussions to acquire vaping startup Njoy Holdings Inc. for at least $2.75 billion in cash, according to people with knowledge of the situation.

- A deal could be announced as soon as this week, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private. There is also $500 million in follow-up payments if Njoy hits certain regulatory milestones, the people said.

- Altria recently wrote down the value of its investment in Juul to $450 million. The decision to end the noncompete “maximizes our flexibility to compete in the e-vapor space while maintaining our economic interest in Juul,” Altria said in a statement.

- BUT - original investment was $13 billion

- GENIUS PLAN - kill the vaping industry so cigarettes are back in vogue

China Area

- Great slow play for markets...

- Turn from ZERO-Covid to 100% - then keep rolling out more and more

- Hong Kong will drop its COVID-19 mask mandate, chief executive John Lee said on Tuesday, in a move to lure back visitors and business and restore normal life more than three years after stringent rules were first imposed in the financial hub. (945 days)

- ---- Egg Freezing - A member of China's top political advisory body said she would propose allowing unmarried women to access egg freezing as a measure to preserve their fertility after the country's population fell last year for the first time in six decades.

----------- Lu's recommendations come as authorities try to bolster a faltering birth rate with incentives including expanding maternity leave, financial and tax benefits for having children as well as housing subsidies.

More China

- China Renaissance Holdings said in an exchange filing on Sunday that its missing chairman and star dealmaker Bao Fan was currently cooperating with relevant Chinese authorities conducting an investigation.

- Reuters previously reported, citing sources, that authorities took Bao away earlier this month to assist in an investigation into a former colleague, Cong Lin, the company's former president.

Even More China

- Chinese authorities have urged state-owned firms to phase out using the four biggest international accounting firms, signaling continued concerns about data security even after Beijing reached a landmark deal to allow US audit inspections on hundreds of Chinese firms listed in New York.

Target Earnings

- Target (TGT) reported a quarter similar to Walmart's (WMT) last week with a solid Q4 beat on the top and bottom line offset by weak guidance for Q1 and FY23. Q4 adj. EPS fell 41% from an impossible comp while comp sales grew 0.