🎄🎅🏼 Hump Days Christmas Edition!!

Happy Thursday all,

I hope you have been having a great holiday time. I’m personally thinking about one yearly-defining goal for next year - and so far I have a couple in mind like: Run a marathon, post a short video per day, cook a meal for friends once a month, or do one long interview video per month. I’ll likely take this week to settle on it for next year.

In news, the biggest names in banking are taking the Federal Reserve to court over its stress-testing process, calling for greater transparency and accountability. Meanwhile, the Biden administration’s probe into Chinese-made chips could set the stage for President-elect Trump to impose new tariffs, escalating tensions in the tech and trade arenas.

From delayed flights to porch pirates affecting your checkout prices, this week’s headlines touch on everything from global policy to the small frustrations shaping our daily lives. Dive into the stories driving markets, technology, and international relations as we unpack their implications for the weeks ahead.

Enjoy this week’s Hump Days!

- Humphrey & Rickie

👀 Eye-Catching Headlines

Biggest banks sue the Federal Reserve over annual stress tests (CNBC)

Hundreds of American Airlines flights delayed after glitch briefly grounded planes (CNBC)

Porch Pirates Are Now Raising the Price You Pay at Checkout (WSJ)

A Credit-Score Hangover Is Hitting America’s Riskiest Borrowers (WSJ)

Russia Attacks Ukraine Energy Network in Christmas Assault (BBG)

Why Companies Like OpenAI and SpaceX Are Staying Private Longer (BBG)

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The Weekly Brief

Banks Sue Federal Reserve Over ‘Lack of Transparency’ in Stress Testing

• A group of major bank trade organizations and business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, filed a lawsuit against the Federal Reserve.

  • The lawsuit challenges the Fed's stress testing process, arguing that it lacks transparency and appropriate public input. While not seeking to eliminate the annual stress tests, the plaintiffs are demanding that the Fed open up its scenario design and models to public comment and input through a formal rulemaking process.

• The legal action comes just a day after the Federal Reserve announced plans to make significant changes to its stress testing framework.

• Bank stress tests are simulations or analyses designed to assess how financial institutions would fare under adverse economic conditions. These tests evaluate a bank's ability to withstand hypothetical scenarios such as deep recessions, financial market crashes, or other economic shocks.

Biden Team to Probe Chinese Chips, Setting Up Trump for Tariffs

• The Biden administration recently initiated an investigation into Chinese-made legacy semiconductor chips, setting the stage for potential new tariffs under the incoming Trump administration.

  • This investigation focuses on older, widely-used chips found in various applications such as automobiles, medical devices, and telecommunications.

• The investigation aims to determine if China's actions in the semiconductor industry have been unfair or discriminatory, potentially burdening US commerce. If found to be so, the future administration could impose retaliatory measures, including tariffs or import restrictions.

• This decision will ultimately fall to President-elect Donald Trump's administration, as the probe is expected to take several months to complete. China has responded by calling on the US to cease these "wrong practices" and has stated it will take necessary measures to defend its interests.

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