My snowbound morning train WFH reads:
• Hedge Funds Are Back on Top After a Long ‘Alpha Winter’ Nearly half of investors plan to increase exposure to hedge funds, Goldman Sachs survey finds. (Wall Street Journal)
• 24-hour trading? Log off: Treasury vigilantes, garbage stocks, JGBs, prediction markets, reverse centaurs, pensions reform and wooden furniture. (FT Alphaville) see also Betting on Prediction Markets Is Their Job. They Make Millions. Welcome to the era of the Polymarket sharp. (New York Times)
• New Rules for 401(k) ‘Catch-Up’ Contributions in 2026: Older high-income workers who make contributions beyond the standard amount will have to put that extra money into a Roth 401(k). That may lower their take-home pay. (New York Times)
• A better CAPE ratio Statistically speaking. CAPE paints US stock valuations close to one-hundred and fifty year highs. And anyone who insists there’s some iron law that Shiller CAPE must mean-revert to its long-term average anytime soon will also be looking for a more than halving of large-cap US stock prices. (Financial Times)
• Yes, you’re paying for Trump’s tariffs, and the price is going up: But verdicts on the tariffs are flowing in from elsewhere, and from the standpoint of American consumers, they’re ugly in the extreme. (Los Angeles Times) see also Is the US economy as hot as Donald Trump thinks? Risks from inflation and a precarious AI boom hover over stellar growth figures. (Financial Times)
• Hochul’s Proposal Could Ease New York’s Housing Crisis: The governor’s environmental-review reforms will speed up new construction—if the state legislature cooperates. (City Journal)
• Trump officials continue to push lies after fatal shooting of Alex Pretti: Trump and team seem to prioritize vilifying victims of their immigration operations, regardless of conflicting evidence. (The Guardian) see also Was This a Murder Too Far? The execution of Alex Pretti has made even some MAGA loyalists waver. (Paul Krugman) see alsoAlex Pretti: Analysing Footage of Minneapolis CBP Shooting: Twenty-five seconds after Pretti is first sprayed, a shot is heard followed by nine more shots in the span of about six seconds. Additional video from the scene shows Pretti lying motionless on the ground. (bellingcat)
• The Best and Worst Airlines of 2025: The winner has spent billions improving its operations—while navigating a corporate shake-up and revising its strategy. (Wall Street Journal)
• I Got a Shocking Diagnosis in My Forties. It Explained Everything. I laughed when a clinical psychologist first told me she suspected I had the disorder. Once I understood it better, my life made more sense. (Wall Street Journal)
• Feds Create Drone No Fly Zone That Would Stop People Filming ICE: The FAA has altered a no-fly zone designation that was originally created for US military bases to apply to DHS units. (404) see also ICE is forcing a reckoning among America’s religious leaders: Many view this moment as a time for moral clarity and resistance. But not every congregation or denomination is responding in the same way. (Vox)
• ‘Every time I look at one, I smile!’: how axolotls took over the world: Our passion for these cute-looking salamanders means they are everywhere – except in the wild, where the species is under increasing threat. (The Guardian)
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business with Zach Buchwald, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Russell Investments. The global investment firm was founded in 1936, and today has ~$370 billion in AUM. Previously, he had a 15-year tenure at BlackRock, where he served as the head of its $2 trillion Institutional Business, leading the company’s Financial Institutions Group and helping establish its Retirement Solutions and Financial Markets Advisory platforms.
Will there be another US government shutdown by January 31?
Source: Polymarket
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