Zero Rss

Samsung, Union Resume Talks After Labor Action Scare; Goldman Says "Korea: Buy"

Downward momentum in South Korean stocks was halted on Monday as optimism returned to Samsung Electronics after the company and its union reopened talks to resolve contract disputes and avert a strike that could begin as soon as Thursday.

Bloomberg reported that the union's leader would "sincerely engage" with Samsung executives. The world's most important memory chip maker was also granted several requests by a Korean court, including orders to block the union from occupying company facilities.

The union is still threatening an 18-day walkout beginning Thursday unless its contract demands are met, but both sides signaled earlier today a willingness to resolve the labor dispute.

On Saturday, Samsung also made a concession by replacing its lead negotiator, while Prime Minister Kim Min-seok and Chairman Jay Y. Lee publicly urged compromise.

Shares of Samsung in South Korea closed up 3.5%, helping lift the country's main equity index, KOSPI, after it had slid late last week on labor action fears.

Goldman analyst Christy Park told clients, "By now, one would know: any correction on Hynix & Samsung = Buy (*note Hynix shares corrected >1% only 5x times since April out of 30+ sessions in which at ALL times regained more than its losses immediately within the following 1~3 days)."

Park listed the catalysts for Samsung & Hynix:

• Resolution to the labor union strike removing overhang (Samsung; co replaced its entire negotiation team)

• Continued conventional memory pricing strength acting as a tailwind (Samsung has higher exposure vs. Hynix) 2027 HBM pricing upside given HBM now sold at a discount vs. conventional DRAM (both Samsung & Hynix)

• Upside in shareholder return given the substantial growth in FCF (Samsung: 2024-2026 shareholder return policy of paying back 50% of this)

• Potential ADR listing of Kioxia could be positive for Hynix sentiment (as Hynix owns a meaningful stake in Kioxia through a consortium) ADR listing of SK HYNIX (anticipated in July)

• We see Agentic AI driving a 24x jump in token consumption by 2030 (120 quadrillion tokens per month) (both Samsung & Hynix)

In a separate note, Tom Kang, director at Counterpoint Research, said, "There is a clear need for both sides to reach an agreement," adding that both sides have relatively little experience because Samsung has historically lacked a strong union culture.

"The gap may seem large, but the issues are workable," Kang said. "I believe the differences can be resolved without a strike."

Taiwan-based market intelligence and research firm TrendForce pointed out:

Samsung's strike is set to formally begin on May 21. Because the company's semiconductor fabs are already highly automated, the impact on production is expected to be limited.

However, there will likely be noticeable disruptions to packaging and logistics, R&D and design, and customer relations. In terms of unionization, about half of all employees across the Samsung Group are union members, most of whom work in the semiconductor division. Internally, management has already extended an olive branch to the DRAM division, but has not yet reached an agreement with union members in the Foundry and LSI divisions.

Samsung’s strike is set to formally begin on May 21. Because the company’s semiconductor fabs are already highly automated, the impact on production is expected to be limited. However, there will likely be noticeable disruptions to packaging and logistics, R&D and design, as well… https://t.co/l2ibgeXEIL

— TrendForce (@trendforce) May 15, 2026

Professional subscribers can read the full "[GS] KOREA: Buy" here at our new Marketdesk.ai portal. 

Tyler Durden Mon, 05/18/2026 - 06:55

Canada Rethinks Selling Its Crown Jewel Pipeline

Authored by Charles Kennedy via OilPrice.com,

• The Canadian federal government may reconsider a plan to privatize the Trans Mountain oil pipeline.

• Since the expanded TMX pipeline launched in 2024, exports to Asia—especially China—have surged, with up to 70% of shipments from British Columbia heading to Asian buyers by late 2025.

• Officials now see TMX as a highly profitable “strategically important asset,” with potential for further expansion

The Canadian federal government may reconsider a plan to privatize the Trans Mountain oil pipeline and keep it state-owned amid a surge in appetite for Canadian crude to replace lost Middle Eastern barrels.

“The prior narrative had been that this should be returning to private hands,” the head of the government entity that owns Trans Mountain said at an event this week, as quoted by the Financial Post.

“That was in a different market and that was in a different time,” Elizabeth Wademan also said.

Indeed, this is a very different market from what it was when the government in Ottawa had to step in and buy Trans Mountain from Kinder Morgan, which quit the project under relentless pressure from climate activists who used environmental regulations to strangle the expansion project. The price tag for the nationalization deal, which took place in 2018, was about $3.3 billion, and the Trudeau government quickly signaled it would start looking for buyers as soon as possible.

By 2024, the cost of the pipeline expansion project had swelled to about $23 billion, but the project, somewhat surprisingly, was completed, and the expanded pipeline launched in May of that year, running at three times its original capacity or a total of 890,000 barrels daily.

The destination for these barrels was the vast Asian market, as a way to diversify away from the U.S., which has for decades been pretty much the only foreign market for Canadian crude—and an export conduit, with the oil transported from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast, and from there, to markets overseas. With the new TMX, Canadian crude producers got a new, more convenient channel to Asian energy buyers.

It did not take long for the effect to be felt: between the launch of the expanded pipe and spring 2025, the average flow rates for shipment to China reached 207,000 barrels daily. That compares with an average of 173,000 barrels daily pumped to the United States. Since spring, the shift has become even more marked. By October 2025, as much as 70% of Canadian crude exported from the British Columbia coast was going to China. Now, everyone else in Asia is also interested.

The Trans Mountain pipeline is a “strategically important asset”, Trans Mountain Corp.’s Wademan said this week, suggesting the project could be expanded further, with more “energy corridors” that would add value for Canadians, the Financial Post reported.

“Let’s look where we are, and look how important energy security is, and look how incredibly profitable this asset is; there’s a lot,” Wademan said.

“There’s a lot of merit to holding onto it and realizing that full value.”

Indeed, it would be profitable for the federal government to hold on to the infrastructure as the price of Canadian crude inches closer to $90 per barrel—a level hardly seen as possible just five years ago, and even more recently. TMX has turned into a game-changer for the Canadian oil industry and it will be in the center of the “golden opportunity” that Canada has to become a bigger global player in both oil and gas.

Canada has a “golden opportunity” to become a major global oil player as the war in the Middle East limits sources of crude and natural gas, the head of the International Energy Agency, Fatih Birol, said earlier this month, adding that “The cost of missing this train will be incredible.” It seems the Canadian government is acutely aware of that risk and plans to avoid it and make the best of the country’s resources in a fascinating departure from the previous government’s focus on emission reduction and alternative energy.

Tyler Durden Mon, 05/18/2026 - 06:30

Behind Turkey's Gold Sales: The Biggest Ever Plunge In Foreign Reserves

Shortly after the Iran war started, with gold unexpectedly tumbling, we showed that the reason behind gold's paradoxical move - after all, the precious metal has traditionally been a store of value in times of geopolitical stress - was the furious liquidation of gold by emerging markets, in this case Turkey, scrambling to obtain reserve dry powder so Ankara could cover soaring costs of energy imports.

And indeed, the latest central bank data showed that Turkey’s foreign reserves had their biggest monthly decline on record in March, as the Iran war triggered global selloffs in emerging market assets and strained the lira.

According to balance-of-payments data released on Wednesday, Turkey's official reserves cratered by $43.4 billion in March. Part of the decline reflected state intervention to offset portfolio outflows. The current-account deficit, meanwhile, widened to $9.7 billion in March from $7.3 billion in February as a result of soaring commodity prices.

A major energy importer, Turkey has been hit hard by higher oil and gas prices caused by the effective closing of the Strait of Hormuz and the resulting disruptions to world supplies of crude and refined products. Meanwhile, global banks have started changing their formerly favorable outlook on the lira, citing the exploding current-account deficit. Should inflation pressures persist, Turkey will have no choice but to pursue another accelerated devaluation of the Turkish lira. 

“As international institutions continue to raise their average oil price forecasts for 2026, disruptions in supply chains and ongoing regional tensions — and their potential negative impact on transportation and tourism revenues — keep upward risks alive in year-end projections” for Turkey, said Istanbul-based economist Haluk Burumcekci.

Turkish central bank Governor Fatih Karahan said last week that the ratio between the current-account deficit and gross domestic product would be “below historical averages” this year while acknowledging the upside risks.

Since President Erdogan’s reelection in 2023, a new economic team has sought to stabilize Turkey’s external finances by cooling demand through conventional tools such as higher interest rates and restrictions on credit growth.

The central bank has kept its benchmark rate at 37% for two straight meetings but has effectively lended from a costlier rate of 40% since the outbreak of the Iran war — a technical measure to tighten liquidity without instituting a formal rate hike.

Inflationary pressures persist, however, with annual price growth picking up to 32.4% in April, a number that is set to rise higher in the coming months. 

Tyler Durden Mon, 05/18/2026 - 05:45

Trump Tells Iran 'Clock Is Ticking, Move Fast' After New Peace Proposal As Analysts Predict Likely Return To War

Update(1410ET): President Trump has warned Iran on Sunday that the "clock is ticking" as Pakistani-mediated talks have not only stalled, but show no signs at all of restarting anytime soon. "They better get moving, FAST, or there won't be anything left of them," he wrote on Truth Social. "TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!"

He spoke the same day with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who along with Lindsey Graham has been calling for resumption of robust anti-Tehran action to ensure Iran can never go nuclear. Trump's words have been somewhat of a familiar refrain going back several weeks. 

As we detailed below, Iran says it received a counter proposal of '5 conditions' for peace from the White House. In many ways they are directly opposite the 5 conditions Iran sent to the US last week, which Trump had rejected as "garbage".

But as yet there's been no indicator that the US side has attached a timeline to its latest demands. Trump is perhaps pushing this new "clock is ticking" as a timeline threat of sorts. But again, there was no specific date included in the fresh warning.

Last week Bloomberg Intelligence circulated a report titled, Iran Rejects Trump's Offer - Return to War Likely. It concluded:

The diplomatic dance continues: the US and Iran exchanged offers yet again. But they remain far apart, shooting maximalist demands at each other. A comprehensive peace deal is unlikely to materialize. We think the US and Iran will likely return to strikes. But we expect an intense exchange of fire to be temporary and reduce to lower-levels of fighting – what we call the new normal in this protracted conflict. 

More from the Bloomberg Intelligence analysis: 

Short but Intense... and Costly

Trump doesn’t want long war. His popularity is taking a hit as its economic impact is being felt.

We think Trump will likely revert to a short air and missile strike campaign on Iranian infrastructure, military positions, and energy assets while simultaneously continuing the blockade. Tehran will likely respond with strikes of its own, both on US military assets and America’s regional partners. But we expect this to be a short bombardment, rather than the sustained, high-intensity strike campaign that marked the beginning of the war.

The war has already imposed a heavy economic cost. Oil markets flipped from an expected record surplus to historic supply disruption. Major central banks, facing fresh inflation risks, are turning more hawkish. Consumers now pay more for energy, while their borrowing costs also rise, and the future grows more uncertain.

The longer the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, the more it will drain the oil stockpiles cushioning governments, companies, and consumers today. Once inventories run thin, prices need to do the hard work: rising high enough to curb demand back in line with available supply.

Since that report was issued, nothing has changed, and both sides seem to have dug in their heels even more.

*  *  *

According to a Sunday report from Iran's semi-official Fars news agency, the United States has laid down a firm, take-it-or-leave-it ultimatum to Tehran. Both sides are still trying to patiently wait out the Hormuz crisis, hoping to inflict more economic pain on the other until they blink.

At the top of the list, the US is demanding a near-total dismantling of Iran's atomic ambitions, "allowing only one Iranian nuclear facility to remain operational." 

Anadolu Agency

The list includes direct rejections in response to Iran's own five conditions from a week ago, which President Trump said were "unacceptable" and "garbage".

For example the US is refusing to pay compensation for damage caused during strikes on Iranian territory - a 'maximalist' sticking point which Tehran had demanded previously.

Washington is also reportedly insists that 400 kilograms of enriched uranium be transferred from Iran to the US, while only one active nuclear facility would remain operational inside the Islamic Republic.

Iran for its part has recently vowed to never transfer its nuclear material out of the Islamic Republic, calling the issue a matter of national sovereignty and energy security which it alone has say over. This after even Russia offered to take it.

The newly reported five conditions by the US side further states that the US does not intend to release more than 25% of frozen Iranian assets. Tehran has demanded the dropping of all US sanctions as a key basis for lasting settlement.

Here are the five newly proposed Washington conditions, which some pundits have called 'wishful thinking':

1. No war compensation from US
2. Give up 400kg of Highly Enriched Uranium to US 
3. Iran can only have on nuclear facility to remain active
4. Not more than 25% of frozen assets to be unfreezed 
5. Halting war on all fronts depends on negotiations

So this leaves a huge distance between the Washington list and Tehran's list, as the seemingly unbridgeable gulf remains, also as Iran is digging in its heels.

As a reminder, the below is the Islamic Republic's list, which it hasn't backed down from. It has offered the following as the only basis on which to restart talks:

1. Ending the war on all fronts, including Lebanon
2. Lifting all sanctions
3. Releasing frozen Iranian assets
4. Compensation for war damages and losses
5. Recognition of Iran’s sovereign rights over the Strait of Hormuz

US response to #Iran includes zero compensation, not even 25% of frozen assets released, keeping only one #nuclear facility active, handing over 400kg of highly enriched uranium to the US, and ending the war on all fronts dependent on the negotiations. https://t.co/riS7M4fEeF

— Abas Aslani (@AbasAslani) May 17, 2026

While a Pakistani-mediated ceasefire managed to take effect on April 8, subsequent talks in Islamabad completely collapsed, but then President Trump later extended the truce indefinitely, likely to buy time and to figure out "what's next" - while seeking a complete blockade of Iranian oil exports, and of all vessels entering or exiting Iranian ports.

With Washington demanding total disarmament and Iran demanding control over the world's most critical oil transit choke point, the stage is set for a likely coming renewal of direct clashes, given the zero sum demands of each side now on the table.

Tyler Durden Mon, 05/18/2026 - 05:10

So Where Does Wokeism Come From? (Spoiler Alert: The French, Of Course!)

Authored by Monica Showalter via AmericanThinker.org,

How did wokeism happen?

A French intellectual, who goes by Brivael Le Pogam on X, has written a tightly focused and brief explanation of it worthy of Eric Hoffer, putting his finger on the thinking of French philospher-historian Michel Foucault, French philosopher Jacques Derrida, and French philospher-literary critic Gilles Deleuze, the first of whom claimed there was  no such thing as truth, just power relationships, the second of whom claimed truth was malleable, and the third of whom made the really weird claim that seeds were greater than fully developed trees because becoming was more important than being, poor romantic devil.

Married to guilt-tripping academics of the U.S., he explains how wokery was the result.

His tweet is in French, but Grok translate kicks in on my site, so I will post the translation below the tweet.

Grok translate, (with censorship from me of one cuss word that means merde): (emphasis ours)

I want to offer my apologies, on behalf of the French, for giving birth to French Theory (which in turn gave birth to the worst of all ideological monstrosities: wokism).

We gave the world Descartes, Pascal, Tocqueville. And then, in the intellectual ruins of post-1968, we gave Foucault, Derrida, Deleuze. Three brilliant men who forged, in the elegance of our language, the ideological weapon that today paralyzes the West.

We must understand what they did.

Foucault taught that truth does not exist, that there are only power relations disguised as knowledge. That science, reason, justice, the medical institution, the school, the prison, sexuality—everything is merely a staging of domination.

Derrida taught that texts have no stable meaning, that every signifier slips away, that every reading is a betrayal, that the author is dead and the reader reigns supreme.

Deleuze taught that we should prefer the rhizome to the tree, the nomad to the sedentary, desire to the law, becoming to being, difference to identity.

Taken individually, these are debatable theses. Combined, exported, and popularized, they form a system. And that system is a poison.

For here’s what happened.

These texts, unreadable in France, crossed the Atlantic. The departments of Yale, Berkeley, and Columbia absorbed them in the 1980s. They found there a soil that did not exist among us: American Puritanism, its racial guilt, its obsession with identity. French Theory married this substratum, and the child of that union is called wokism.

Judith Butler reads Foucault and invents performative gender. Edward Said reads Foucault and invents academic postcolonialism. Kimberlé Crenshaw inherits the framework and invents intersectionality. At every step, the matrix is French: there is no truth, there is only power, so every hierarchy is suspect, every institution is oppressive, every norm is violence, every identity is constructed and thus negotiable, every majority is guilty.

That’s how three Parisian philosophers, who probably never imagined their practical consequences, provided the operating software to an entire generation of activists, university bureaucrats, HR managers, journalists, and legislators. That’s how we ended up with a civilization that no longer knows how to say whether a woman is a woman, whether its own history is worth defending, whether merit exists, whether truth can be distinguished from opinion.

It’s sh** for one simple reason, and it must be stated calmly.

A civilization stands on three pillars: the belief that there exists a truth accessible to reason, the belief that there exists a good distinct from evil, the belief that there exists a heritage to be transmitted.

French Theory set out to dynamite all three. Not out of malice. Out of intellectual play, fascination with suspicion, hatred of the bourgeoisie that had nurtured them. But the result is there. An entire generation learned to deconstruct and never learned to build. An entire generation knows how to suspect and no longer knows how to admire. An entire generation sees power everywhere and beauty nowhere.

I apologize because we French bear a particular responsibility. It’s our language, our universities, our publishers, our prestige that gave this nihilism its chic packaging. Without the legitimacy of the Sorbonne and Vincennes, these ideas would never have crossed the ocean. We exported doubt the way others export weapons.

What is being built now, in Silicon Valley, in AI labs, in startups, in workshops, in all the places where people still make things instead of deconstructing them—that is the response. A civilization is rebuilt by builders, not by commentators. By those who believe that truth exists and is worth devoting oneself to. By those who embrace a hierarchy of the beautiful, the true, the good, and are not ashamed to transmit it.

So, forgive us. And back to work.

His viral tweet has been retweeted by Elon Musk, Javier Milei, and 20,000 other people on X, multiplied many more times by Musk and others. 

Eric Hoffer used to write about these guys in the '50s and '60s, the earlier wave of them, French and German intellectuals, plus numerous academics in the states, often noting that they have never having done a day of work in their lives. He linked their relativist and nihilist radicalism to antisemitism, too. Hoffer knew who they were and he  had their number.

So does this guy.

His tweet advances to the recent wave of them, which created an unholy fusion with U.S. academics to produce wokesterism, the reason we see in our culture the inability to define what a woman is, the collective racism charge that never, ever can be ended, and more rubbish that a whole industry has been built around.

Eric Hoffer, who died in 1983, loved those who could express ideas concisely. Since I knew him personally as a high school and college student, I think he would have enjoyed X.

I hope we hear more from this French guy, because knowledge of this kind is power -- that is why this tweet went viral. It's why, when I first discovered Eric Hoffer's True Believer book as a 12-year-old kid, I hid the book under my bed, because to a kid like me, it felt like it contained all the secrets of the universe. Hoffer has never been out of print, because what he tells is the truth. Truth like this French tweet is the same kind of truth, and the gives me the same kind of feeling: Exposes the liars is the strongest way to stamp the wokeism out. It's a reminder that Western Civilization must win this war on ideas.

Tyler Durden Mon, 05/18/2026 - 05:00

Net Zero Fearmongering In Tatters After Climate Report 'Implausibility' Ruling

Authored by Chris Morrison via DailySceptic.org,

The fallout from the recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) ruling that computer model high emissions pathway RCP8.5 is “implausible” is only just beginning. Most mainstream media fearmongering stories over the last 15 years need to be moved into the junk file, as do the increasingly shrill sandwich-board pronouncements of King Charles and Sir David Attenborough.

But the rot goes much deeper than ill-informed public comment, although that alone has been enormously influential in promoting the Net Zero fantasy. Activist-ridden science bodies such as the UK Met Office have brazenly used RCP8.5 to flam up weather predictions which in turn has led to onerous requirements being placed on British industry and finance. Politicians have been convinced by patently ridiculous claims and Net Zero rules and regulations have cascaded through the economy and society.

All the politicised predictions need to be junked and all the resulting regulations reconsidered with a view to abolition. They are all based on assumptions that many at the time said were ridiculous and have now been officially marked as not wanted on voyage. Those inclined to be uncharitable might suggest it was all a hoax from start to finish.

In 2022, the Met Office published its latest ‘UK Climate Projections Report‘ (UKCP18) and claimed it provided users “with the most recent scientific evidence on projected climate change with which to plan”. Many words come to mind to describe the output of computer models, none of which include ‘evidence’. In fact, the Met Office made a feature of its deliberate use of RCP8.5, highlighting its findings in bold type and describing them as “plausible”. These plausible projections, a more accurate description might be laughable, suggested summers and winters in the UK by 2070 could be up to 5.1°C and 3.8°C warmer respectively. More bold claims suggested summer rainfall could decrease by up to 45%, with winter precipitation increasing by 39%. Severe droughts and floods would inevitably follow.

The Met Office concludes: “Governments will make use of UKCP18 to inform its adaption and mitigation planning and decision-making.” Unfortunately, they probably did.

The science writer Roger Pielke Jr. was the first to spot the IPCC’s rejection of RCP8.5, calling it “the most significant development in climate research in decades”. He said that the scenario described “impossible futures”, although the results have dominated climate research, headlines and policy for the best part of two decades. Helped also by the reporting in the Daily Sceptic which went viral across social media, the IPCC finding is firmly established in the public domain. But, notes Pielke, remarkably there has not been a peep from major US or international English language mainstream media outlets.

The New York Times is said to be perhaps the most prominent home for promoting news stories based on studies that rely on RCP8.5. It has said nothing, likewise the BBC and the Guardian. Green Blob-funded Climate Brief has covered RCP8.5 more than perhaps any other English language publication, but again silence reigns. Pielke is led to observe: “The outlets most invested in their longstanding promotion of RCP8.5 have the most to lose from a clear-eyed accounting of what its retirement means for science, policy and their own coverage.”

Nevertheless, there have been some rare sightings of mainstream coverage. The Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant published a front page story headed ‘UN Climate Panel Drops Doomsday Scenario’. The writer of the story Maarten Keulemans later posted on X:

Also in Europe, the Berliner Zeitung ran an article suggesting that “extreme climate scenarios played too large a role in public debate for too long”. Another German publication Die Welt also picked up the story, observing: “A lobby made RCP8.5 famous: the most sensationalist of all climate scenarios has determined scientific studies, media and politics – yet it is unrealistic. Now it is actually being phased out”.

Two members of that ‘lobby’ are the main science publications Nature and Science. In recent years it has sometimes been suggested that climate scientists have moved on from RCP8.5 but the evidence suggests the popular climate crackpipe is difficult to put down. Pielke notes that so far in 2026, more than 2,600 studies have been published using the high emission scenarios, and tens of thousands before that. Both Nature and Science have thrived on publishing RCP8.5 drivel – it will be interesting to see how they spin the passing of an attention-seeking, grant-manufacturing old friend.

The implications of RCP8.5’s demise are vast. Science and journalism careers will be affected, trust in another branch of politicised science will be diminished, rules and regulations imposing unnecessary financial climate costs will need to be re-written (don’t hold your breath), while the promoters of Net Zero will lose a vital fearmongering weapon propping up their Great Reset fantasy. Watch this space.

Tyler Durden Mon, 05/18/2026 - 03:30

Japanese Company Simplifies Ketchup Packaging Amid Ink Shortage Tied To Middle East Conflict

Kagome is revamping the packaging of several ketchup products after supply disruptions made white printing ink harder to source, according to Japan Today. The shortage stems from raw material constraints tied to the conflict in the Middle East.

Under the redesign, bottles of Kagome Tomato Ketchup will no longer feature the brand’s usual full white-and-red label. Instead, part of the bottle will be left clear, creating a more minimal look. Kagome said switching to a different ink is not a practical option because of technical printing limitations.

Japan Today writes that the updated packaging will be introduced gradually later this month for 500-gram, 300-gram, and 180-gram bottles.

The change reflects broader supply strain across Japan’s food industry. Earlier this week, Calbee Inc. said it would temporarily sell 14 potato chip varieties in monochrome packaging as shortages of naphtha — a petroleum-based material used in production — continue to disrupt operations.

Calbee’s affected products include popular flavors such as Lightly Salted, Consomme Punch, and Seaweed Salt. The company also said it will raise prices on 25 snack items starting Sept. 1, including potato chips and Jagarico. Chip prices are set to increase by 5% to 10%, while Jagarico products will rise by 3% to 10%.

The back-to-back announcements highlight how geopolitical tensions are rippling into everyday consumer goods, affecting everything from packaging materials to retail prices. For shoppers, the most visible impact may be simpler packaging now — and higher grocery bills later.

Tyler Durden Mon, 05/18/2026 - 02:45

Poland Is Now The Last Country Standing In The Way Of A Federalized Europe

Authored by Andrew Korybko via Substack,

Its conservative president is totally against this project and can veto related legislation tabled by the liberal prime minister since the latter’s ruling coalition doesn’t have the two-thirds majority to overrule him, thus enabling Poland to play the role that Hungary did prior to Orban’s downfall.

Politico earlier reported that “European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen waited less than a day after Hungary voted Viktor Orbán out of office to call for the EU to get more power over national governments to force through foreign policy decisions.” In particular, she wants qualified majority voting on foreign policy matters whereby at least 55% of member states vote in favor and they represent at least 65% of the EU’s population, which hasn’t yet happened in order to safeguard state sovereignty.

Spanish journalist and analyst Javier Villamor published a piece at The European Conservative that same day about how “Hungary’s Fall Clears Path for a More Centralized EU”.

In brief, “The removal of Brussels’ most persistent opponent is set to accelerate plans to curb national vetoes, expand EU borrowing, and tighten control over member states.” The combined effect would amount to furthering the plan to federalize Europe in alignment with what the EU elites have wanted for some time already.

Von der Leyen’s plan in summer 2024 to “build a veritable union of defense” as well as Germany’s “two-speed Europe” proposal earlier this year and the proposal to fast-track Ukraine’s EU membership are all complementary means to this end that’ll now be easier to implement after Orban’s downfall. If progress is made on any of what was mentioned thus far, then states will lose even more sovereignty than they already have, and this could have disastrous implications for their national identity and social cohesion.

Many of the EU elites pushing this agenda are German, which is why Polish opposition leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski said before the election that Orban’s win would help prevent the EU from becoming a tool for “German neo-imperialism”. He also accused Germany in late 2021 of building a “Fourth Reich” through the EU. Polish President Karol Nawrocki, who’s an independent in alliance with Kaczynski’s conservatives, alluded last December to this significant non-military threat that the German-led EU poses to Poland.

One month prior, he shared his “vision of the direction in which the European Union should go”, which advocates reforming the bloc in order to restore states’ sovereignty, while last month he presented Poland and implicitly himself personally at CPAC as Europe’s conservative champions. With all this in mind, Poland is now the last country standing in the way of a federalized Europe since Nawrocki can veto related legislation and the ruling liberals don’t have the two-thirds majority to overrule him.

The next parliamentary elections aren’t till fall 2027, and given how close they’re expected to be, liberal Prime Minister Tusk isn’t expected to risk the public’s wrath by tabling doomed-to-fail federalization-related legislation. Accordingly, von der Leyen and her ilk’s plot won’t prospectively make any progress despite Orban’s downfall due to these Polish domestic political reasons, and the conservatives’ potential retaking of parliament could then doom it for another four years after that.

In Christian eschatology, the katechon is the one who prevents the arrival of the anti-Christ, so a political comparison among critics of the EU would be the one who prevents the bloc’s federalization. That was Orban up until last year, but then this role was shared with Nawrocki and is now exclusively held by him, with their Czech and Slovak counterparts being considered too susceptible to EU pressure. This is a huge responsibility, an historic one in fact, and his legacy will be determined by whether he stands strong.

Tyler Durden Mon, 05/18/2026 - 02:00

A Deadly Day In Butler

The following is an excerpt from the newly published book “The Trump Assassination Plots: What the Investigations Missed, and Why it Matters.” The book, which can be found here, attempts to provide the most complete account to date of the attempts on Donald Trump’s life (emphasis ours),

A Deadly Day in Butler

*CRACK* *CRACK* *CRACK*

Three shots rang throughout the Butler Farm Show - causing Trump to grab his ear and fall on the ground, his security detail piling on top of him moments later. Numerous rallygoers later said that they thought they were hearing fireworks at first, but there was a shooter on the AGR rooftop. His first three shots were aimed at Trump, but then he started spraying seemingly indiscriminately.

*CRACK* *CRACK* *CRACK* *CRACK* *CRACK*

As Crooks fired, Butler ESU operator Aaron Zaliponi, who was on the ground, could see his head peeking over the rooftop. Zaliponi had been one of the Butler ESU operators deployed seconds before Crooks started firing. When the shooting began, he was between Trump’s podium and the AGR building - by the fence that separated the Farm Show from the company’s property.

Keeping calm despite the bullets whizzing by, Zaliponi focused on Crooks through the EOTECH red-dot sight on his M4 AR platform SWAT rifle.

*CRACK*

Zaliponi returned fire with a single 5.56mm NATO 62 grain TAP Barrier projectile.

“I can see the gas emit from his barrel, his muzzle. Then right after that I hear the snap of his fifth shot go off. Then immediately after that, I press one off, and that’s whenever he immediately goes down. When I say he goes down, it wasn’t like he was ducking to get out of the way. I mean, like, I know I hit him. Like there’s no doubt about it,” Zaliponi later recounted. “He goes down. He kind of jerks to the right, and then he kind of slumps over slowly and then kind of slowly rolls backwards out of my field of view.”

For the next 10 seconds, the crowd seemed to be under a spell. Some in the stands ducked down, some turned toward the AGR building, and some looked with concern at Trump.

“What are we doing? What are we doing?” one of Trump’s security agents could be heard saying frantically.

At the bottom of a body-bunker of agents who piled onto Trump, the second-in-command of his detail could see that he was bleeding.

“Sir, are you okay?” said Nick Menster, the Assistant Special Agent in Charge (ASAC).

“I think so,” Trump said.

Menster said that he used a white cloth that Trump had at the podium to apply pressure on his ear - the left one.

“No, it’s my right ear,” Trump corrected the agent.

Counter-Snipers in Disarray

On the barn rooftops behind Trump, the Secret Service counter-snipers were in similar disarray. Though they had reoriented their weapons toward the AGR building at 6:10 P.M. and were aware that local police were pursuing someone in that vicinity, they were still caught flat-footed when the shooting began.

A tree was blocking the northern barn counter-sniper team’s view of the rooftop gunman, and video shows them seemingly flinching at the first shots. One of them later told congressional investigators that he and his partner believed they took fire.

“I’m telling you, I could have reached out and smacked these projectiles out of the air with my hand. They were that close. I could feel the air, the pressure difference in my eardrum as these rounds passed,” said a Secret Service counter-sniper, who has not been publicly identified.

While the Secret Service counter-snipers were scrambling, Sgt. Zaliponi kept a watchful eye on the rooftop. He saw Crooks slowly crawl back up and into his sights. But just as the local cop was about to put another bullet into the would-be assassin, Secret Service counter-sniper David King fired a final, 10th shot — a .300 Winchester Magnum bullet. King’s shot, fired from the southern barn behind Trump, came 15 seconds after shooting began and 10 seconds after it had stopped.

*CRACK*

“I got him,” King said.

It’s unclear exactly how long King had the rooftop gunman in his sights.

According to notes King took immediately after the shooting, he saw Crooks “crawling” into position before firing.

“I and my teammates positioned ourselves to observe that area that everyone was moving to. I noticed an individual, white male, white or gray shirt, low crawling on the roof. I noticed an AR-style weapon in his hands. As I moved to observe through my rifle scope I heard weapon fire,” King’s notes said.

“I looked up to see my engagement scope, looked back through the scope, observed the individual shooting, and engaged. At that time, the shooter dropped out of my sight in the scope. I continued to observe the area, as there were reports of another individual on the water tower at four o’clock,” his notes said.

However, King later told congressional investigators that he didn’t actually see Crooks crawling. In fact, he didn’t see Crooks until after he stopped firing, King said.

“I was observing the rooftops, didn’t see anything… When the first shot rang out, I identified the location that Crooks was at, put my binos down, got my rifle. At the time that I was getting into my rifle and getting the [view] of Crooks, that’s when I assumed that three rounds and then five went off,” King told House investigators.

King’s partner, team leader John Marciniak, claimed he didn’t see Crooks until he was dead.

Marciniak indicated that he was discombobulated after a bullet ruptured a hydraulic line on a nearby speaker tower, spraying him with fluid. At first, Marciniak thought that he was having a heat stroke. Another thought flashed through his head: “Am I seeing snow right now?”

Unlike his counterparts on the north barn, Marciniak and King didn’t think they were under fire — though Marciniak may have had second thoughts after speaking to federal investigators.

“At the time, I had no reason to believe shots were fired at us until speaking to the FBI… I guess a round — it was in the air, in our [general] direction, but not close to us.”

Excerpt from “The Trump Assassination Plots: What the Investigations Missed, and Why it Matters.”

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 23:20

Pro-Israel Forces Throw Kitchen Sink At Massie Ahead Of Tuesday Primary

Eleven months after President Trump launched an all-out political war on Rep. Thomas Massie, the Tuesday, May 19 Kentucky GOP primary is almost here. With polls showing the race going down to the wire, the anti-Massie forces -- whose animus is largely driven by Massie's refusal to vote in accordance with the Israel lobby's wishes -- have been throwing everything they can at him, from vague 11th-hour allegations of inappropriate conduct with a woman, to AI ads showing Massie entering a hotel room with progressive congresswomen, to a new round of Trump social media rants and enough money to make the contest the most expensive House primary in US history. Massie's challenger is former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein. 

In just the past few days, various anti-Massie PACs have filed disclosures indicating another huge load of cash showering down on the race. The Republican Jewish Coalition is spending another $470,000. The misleadingly-named United Democracy Project, which is a PAC affiliated with the formidable American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), revealed more than $950,000 in additional spending. The MAGA Kentucky PAC -- which was created solely to oust Massie and funded by non-Kentuckian Jewish billionaires Miriam Adelson, Paul Singer and John Paulsen -- disclosed more than $1.6 million since May 7.

UPDATE: AIPAC and the Israel lobby have now spent >$15 MILLION boosting Ed Gallrein and attacking Rep. Thomas Massie in #KY04. pic.twitter.com/Znmtc4GEXz

— AIPAC Tracker (@TrackAIPAC) May 16, 2026

As large as those sums sound, they're just a fresh coating atop a mountain of money: The race has now seen more than $20 million dollars in "outside spending" -- that is, money spent by PACs and other entities that are not part of the candidates' campaigns or political parties. Not coincidentally, the next two most-expensive-ever primary races also featured quests by pro-Israel PACs and individuals to oust incumbents who failed to heed the Israel lobby's voting directives. In 2024, AIPAC alone spent $14.5 million and $9 million, respectively, to successfully dislodge New York Democrat Jamaal Bowman and Missouri Democrat Cori Bush. 

On Tuesday -- exactly one week before the primary -- Massie was hit by oddly-vague allegations of wrongdoing by an ex-girlfriend, Cynthia West, who said Massie paid her $5,000 in "hush money" after the two had dated following Massie becoming a widower in 2024. Massie denies the characterization of the money, saying he gave it to her to help her move to Washington, and that she even repaid some of the money. What's more, he said she's never been under any restriction from him about speaking about anything. Among others, the sensationalist, pro-Israel attack-dog Laura Loomer has been running wild with the non-story on X, with characteristic long posts heavy on innuendo and light on details or evidence. (For a deep dive, check out Robby Soave's thorough dissection of the fuzzy allegations at Reason.)

There's more where that came from. Earlier this month, the Adelson-Singer-Paulsen-funded MAGA KY PAC rolled out an anti-Massie ad that used AI video showing him cavorting on the town with Democratic Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar. The ad starts by displaying "Thomas Massie caught in a throuple!" on the screen. It concludes by showing the three holding hands and checking into a hotel room together:

#KYPol: "Thomas Massie, caught in a throuple in Washington. He's cheating with the Squad on the America First movement...it's a complete and total betrayal of President Trump."

MAGA KY is up with a new #KY04 ad featuring AI-generated content. pic.twitter.com/MEUmsPdH5W

— AdImpact Politics (@AdImpact_Pol) May 4, 2026

While the video has a brief, smaller-print disclosure calling it a "satirical ad created with artificial intelligence," some people, including Massie, say that notification may go overlooked, particularly by those in the older crowd where Gallrein draws the most support. "Older voters who don't know that AI exists [are] going to look at that and think that's actually me going on a date with AOC and Ilhan Omar and checking into a hotel together. It's so ridiculous,” said Massie at a "debate" that, along with all the other debates, Gallrein refused to participate in. Gallrein has skipped eight debate opportunities, which is an extraordinary choice for someone challenging an incumbent who's spent most of the race leading the polls, albeit by decreasing margins. 

In one of the most eyebrow-raising ads on Massie's behalf, Restore Freedom PAC recently launched this one that attacks Gallrein over this sponsorship by billionaire Paul Singer, who has donated to LGBT causes, imploring voters to "say 'no' to Woke Eddie Gallrein and his billionaire club of LGBT weirdos."   

NEW: Take a look at this #KY04 ad called "LGBTQ Mafia" from a PAC affiliated w/ Jan. 6 rioter Derrick Evans.

It depicts Jewish donor Paul Singer with an unexplained rainbow Star of David.

More on this insane, now record-breaking $25 million primary: https://t.co/iT3YN8wYEz pic.twitter.com/0YIRYmaJwL

— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) May 11, 2026

In a Big Data poll published Friday, Massie was up by just 1.2%, leading Gallrein 50.6% to 49.4%. Like other polls,  Big Data's showed enormous differences across age groups. At the extremes, 82% of voters under age 30 support Massie, while 61% of voters over age 64 support Gallrein. 

After long having Massie out in front by often-large percentages, prediction markets have shifted mightily in Gallrein's direction in the closing weeks of the primary, to an extent that some have accused anti-Massie individuals of manipulating the markets to create headlines and optimism for Gallrein. As of Saturday night, Polymarket participants gave Gallrein a 53% chance of winning, while Kalshi's gave him a 54% chance. Massie's odds, meanwhile, have been... well... 

//--> //-->

Will Thomas Massie be the Republican nominee for KY-04?
Yes 48% · No 53%
View full market & trade on Polymarket

With early voting having ended Saturday and the election happening Tuesday, various political figures have been flying into Kentucky to boost Massie or Gallrein. In an unusual move, the sitting Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, will campaign with Gallrein on Monday. Over the weekend, former Congressman Matt Gaetz and current Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert made appearances with Massie.

The latter appearance triggered Trump's wrath, which was manifested in the latest of his dozens and dozens of Truth Social posts excoriating Massie and his supporters. Much as he did with MAGA-centric Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green (MTG), Trump is now excommunicating long-time supporter Boebert from the movement, and seeking a primary challenger for her (though he may not have realized it's too late for this cycle.) On Saturday night, Trump let loose on the "weak-minded" and "dumb" Boebert: 

It should be noted that, while Boebert has almost uniformly backed Trump's agenda, she was one of a small handful of Republicans -- including MTG, who defied Trump and joined Massie in demanding the release of the Epstein files. Trump's vilification of Boebert was one of three Massie-centric rants Trump posted on Saturday. In them, he called Massie a "major sleazebag," a "loser," an "insult to our nation," and an "disloyal, ungracious and sanctimonious FOOL." 

Massie gets high marks from right-wing evaluators of his voting record, but has refused to support several Trump undertakings. In Trump's first term, Massie tried to thwart the $2 trillion Covid-19 "relief" package. Last May, Massie was one of only two Republicans to vote against the "Big Beautiful Bill." The last straw was Massie's condemnation of Trump's June 2025 decision to join Israel in waging war on Iran, and Massie's introduction of a war powers resolution to prohibit further military action without congressional consent. Within days, the PAC funded by three pro-Israel billionaires was launched. 

Asked if he would change his party affiliation to Democrat, Thomas Massie replied:

"I vote with Republicans 91% of the time, and the 9% I don't, they're taking up for pedophiles, starting another war, or bankrupting our country." 🔥 pic.twitter.com/5UOfWYSEvh

— Wide Awake Media (@wideawake_media) April 23, 2026

Massie has repeatedly put a spotlight on the fact that Gallrein's campaign is being turbocharged by pro-Israel forces. In a "debate" on public TV that Gallrein opted out of, Massie told the audience: 

“This is another reason I’m in trouble with the swamp, why they want me gone. 95% of my opponent’s donations come from the Israeli lobby. This comes from Miriam Adelson, Paul Singer, John Paulson, AIPAC. They put millions of dollars into this race for one simple reason: I’ve never voted for foreign aid, not to Ukraine, not to Egypt and not to Israel."

The Massie campaign has countered the Israel lobby's enormous monetary onslaught to some extent via small-dollar donations from thousands of supporters from across the country, achieving particular success with three "moneybomb" campaigns. The "Finish the Fight Moneybomb" raked in more than $2.4 million, and a "Final Countdown Moneybomb" that started on Saturday had $31,000 in the early-Sunday hours. 

Tuesday will also bring primary elections in Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Oregon and Pennsylvania. However, on both sides of the aisle, all across the country -- and in Israel -- none will be more closely-watched than the Kentucky 4th Congressional District race in which Trump and his pro-Israel allies have gone all-in to remove Massie. 

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 22:45

Are There Really 'No Bad Ideas' When It Comes To 'Saving Our Democracy'?

Authored by Eric Utter via AmericanThinker.com,

Former Vice President Kamala (hic!) Harris recently opined that there are “no bad ideas” when it comes to brainstorming ways to reinvigorate the Democrat party.

During a May 13th livestream on something called the "Win with Black Women" podcast, Hic! Harris suggested that the Democrat party prepare an "expanded playbook" of ideas to help it retake power after the 2026 midterm elections.

Harris opined:

"And in that no bad ideas brainstorm, we talk about what we need to do and think about doing around the Electoral College. We talk about the idea of Supreme Court reform, which includes expanding the Supreme Court. We invite a conversation about multi-member districts."

The old sot suggested that, when Democrats retake the Senate, the Senate Judiciary Committee should quickly establish rules to "penalize people for lying" for Supreme Court justices and nominees.

It is always hilarious when Democrats speak of their dislike for lying … and always lie.

They are to prevarication as Kamala is to drinking, as retrievers are to … retrieving things. They can’t help themselves.

The Tipsy One added,

“Let's talk about statehood for Puerto Rico and D.C. These are the things I think that we've got to do.”

She concluded by saying of Democrats:

"We gotta fight fire with fire. We gotta be ruthless, too."

Democrats start fires. (They don’t always put them out, as clearly demonstrated in Los Angeles County last year.) And Democrats have always been ruthless, whether they were plantation owners or, more recently, possessed by Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS) and the rabid desire to dispense, by any means necessary, with those with whom they disagree.

As for the notion that there are no bad ideas? How about “Let’s kill all the Jews” or “Islam is totally compatible with a free, democratic republic?” Or even, “I’ve only had 10 rum and cokes, I think I’ll take a nice drive in my car?” And let’s be honest, Kamala doesn’t have brainstorms, she has perhaps a mild squall or minor dust-up on occasion, maybe even a moderate gust of wind, but no brainstorms.

So, Democrats, just continue to call conservatives Nazis. Keep trying to imprison all your political opponents. An assassination or two might be needed here and there to, you know, “save our democracy.” (The problem is that Democrats actually think the country is their democracy, and that no one else has a right to govern it.)

Kamala may still have her mind set on Running for President Under the Influence (RPUI), but it is hard to see any current likely Democrat heading a ticket the equal of Vance-Rubio or vice-versa. As sure as water is wet, Democrats will resort to their time-tested tactics of slander, libel, lies, gas-lighting, projection, and cheating.

Maybe they should just, hic!, forcibly take power via a good, old-fashioned insurrection?

Anything to save their our democracy, right? 

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 22:10

By Targeting Dairy Farmers, ESG Wants To Decide Your Milk

Authored by Samantha Fillmore via RealClearMarkets,

It starts with a letter in the mail.

A dairy farmer opens it to find new requirements from their milk processing plant.

Herd data, energy usage, emissions figures. The letter calls it voluntary but if you don't comply, the plant can't take your milk. And if the plant can't take your milk, you're out of business.

That's 'Pathways to Dairy Net Zero' in practice...

Pathways to Dairy Net Zero (P2DNZ) is presented as a voluntary, science-based initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from dairy producers. In practice, however, it functions as yet another sector-specific implementation of global ESG and net-zero governance.

In the case of P2DNZ, this governance model is applied to large-scale milk producers. The result is the downward transfer of climate-compliance costs and onerous ESG restrictions on farmers. Especially mid-sized and small farms, while offering no plausible pathway to detectable global emissions reductions. In short, this is the latest attack on American farmers from globalist board rooms seeking to control what you consume.

P2DNZ may be presented as a voluntary, science-based initiative but in reality, it's the same ESG playbook we've seen used to squeeze entire industries into net-zero compliance without a single vote being cast. The pressure doesn't come from government. It comes from the giant food corporations at the top of the supply chain. It comes from the boardrooms of companies like Nestlé and Danone and filters down through processors until it lands on the farmer who has no real choice but to comply.

What begins as “guidance” quickly becomes obligation.

For dairy farmers, especially the ones that make up the lifeblood of the American Heartland, that obligation carries a heavy cost. P2DNZ effectively embeds climate compliance into the financial and commercial conduits of the industry. It deeply impacts how farmers access credit, who processes their milk, who buys their milk, and under what conditions they can continue operating. The burden doesn’t fall on distant institutions or multinational coalitions. It falls squarely on the people milking cows before sunrise, managing tight margins, and trying to pass their family farms on to the next generation.

And for what measurable gain?

Even under the most aggressive assumptions, eliminating all emissions from U.S. dairy production would have no detectable impact on global climate trends. That’s not a political statement; it’s a matter of scale. Yet the economic consequences are anything but theoretical. Farmers face rising compliance costs. Consumers face higher prices at the grocery store. And the industry itself faces increasing consolidation, as smaller producers struggle to keep up with mandates they had zero role in shaping.

This is the uncomfortable truth at the heart of P2DNZ: it is less about environmental outcomes and more about control. It’s about shifting decision-making power away from independent producers and toward a network of globalist financial and corporate actors.

The attacks on American agriculture have taken on many forms. From discriminating against the use of diesel- and gasoline-powered farming equipment in the lending market, to corporate shareholder resolutions calling on food companies to “reduce greenhouse gas emissions” by cutting beef production, to utter demands to adopt plant-based alternatives to actual meat, and even outright litigation designed to bankrupt American businesses and farmers. Regardless of the tactic, they share a common objective. To create a world in which every single human is under the thumb of a global set of rules that would ensure more pain and misery than anyone should entertain. 

The good news is that the current federal administration seems to be sticking up for small- and mid-sized American farms and dairy producers. Yesterday, the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Brooke Rollins, shared a post on X highlighting the Pathways to Dairy Net Zero Problem. “Dairy farmers are vital in rural America, but now face radical ESG mandates disguised as “sustainability.” As (@Heartland Impact) notes, Pathways to Dairy Net Zero will burden small farms with costly compliance.”

P2DNZ is not an isolated initiative. It is the agricultural, and diary centered, expression of a broader ESG governance model that substitutes accounting targets for physical outcomes and private coordination for public accountability.

Hopefully, in the months and years to follow, more Americans and policymakers will become aware of the harms associated with incorporating ESG metrics into farming. American famers feed the nation, and they deserve better.

Samantha Fillmore (sfillmore@heartland.org) is the senior state government relations manager at The Heartland Institute.

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 21:00

Social Security Recipients Could See Larger Payment Adjustment In 2027 Amid Higher Inflation

Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A senior citizens group has forecast that the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for Social Security payments will increase by 3.9 percent next year, more than 1 percentage point higher than last month’s prediction.

Blank U.S. Treasury checks are run through a printer at the U.S. Treasury printing facility in Philadelphia, on July 18, 2011. William Thomas Cain/Getty Images

The Senior Citizens League, which issues monthly projections on the COLA for Social Security, said in a statement Tuesday the 3.9 percent for 2027 is already higher than the 2.8 percent increase that went into effect in 2026. The group in April had forecast a 2.8 percent increase for next year’s payments.

“Fast-rising oil prices could have downstream effects on the economy and push inflation even higher,” potentially leading to a higher COLA projection, the group said, adding that research has show that higher gas prices can lead to higher prices across the board.

The COLA for next year is usually announced by the Social Security Administration in October and is based on Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) reports issued by the Labor Department for the months of July, August, and September.

The group’s forecast Tuesday came as the department released its monthly CPI report, which found that inflation in April increased by 0.6 percent month over month, along with a 3.8 percent annual increase.

According to the Labor Department’s report, the rise in inflation was in part caused by higher gasoline, energy, and fuel prices. The gasoline index rose 5.4 percent over the past month while gas prices increased 11.1 percent in April, and the fuel index increased by 5.8 percent, it found.

Data released by the American Automobile Association (AAA) showed that as of Thursday, the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline rose by 2 cents to $4.53 nationwide. Diesel rose by 1 cent to $5.66 per gallon, according to the data.

Just two days before the U.S.–Iran war started in late February, regular gasoline cost around $2.98 per gallon on average nationwide, according to AAA.

After the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, Tehran effectively closed off access to the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas passes. The choking off of the strait has sent energy prices higher and has rattled world markets.

The oil shock shows no sign of letting up as the International Energy Agency warned Wednesday that the “mounting supply losses from the Strait of Hormuz are depleting global oil inventories at a record pace.’’

Meanwhile, the producer price index, another measure of inflation that tracks prices before they reach consumers, rose 6 percent from a year earlier, the highest point in more than three years, the Labor Department reported Wednesday.

“Many seniors are telling us the same thing: As inflation picks back up, life still does not feel affordable. The average senior already lives on much less than younger Americans, according to the Census Bureau, and our supporters constantly tell us they feel like they’re falling farther and farther behind,” Shannon Benton, the president of the Senior Citizens League, said in a statement on Tuesday.

She added that retirees living on fixed incomes are seeing prices on health care, housing, utilities, and insurance “continue to rise faster than prices in the rest of the economy, silently wrenching seniors dry.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 19:50

Complete Q1 13-F Summary: The Fireworks In Berkshire's Post-Buffett Portfolio, And Everything Else

Friday was the 15th of the month 45 days after quarter end, which means we got a flood of 13F reports indicating what asset managers were long as of March 31. We will do a summary recap below of all the biggest names, but as usual we start with Berkshire due to its traditional lack of turnover and corresponding price impact of the stock of new positions or liquidations. And we should underline "traditional" because in Berkshire's first full quarter under Warren Buffett replacement Greg Abel, who took the reins at Berkshire this year after Buffett stepped down following six decades at the helm, the new CEO took a machete to no less than 14 existing position which he dumped unceremoniously. 

But first, let's look at the additions of which there were two: one big one and a much smaller one.

Starting with the former, Berkshire unveiled a new $2.6 billion stake in Delta Airlines, reigniting the conglomerate’s complicated relationship with the airline industry. The Omaha-based hedge fund-cum-conglomerate said it had purchased 39.8 million shares in the airline as of the end of March, according to its latest 13F. The move - which amounted to a 6.1% stake - sent shares of the carrier up more than 3% in late trading.

It's not the first time Berkshire has been involved with the name: Under the recently departed former CEO Warren Buffett, Berkshire had a tense relationship with the airline industry over the decades. After a troublesome investment in USAir, Buffett once joked in 2001 that he would call an 800 number to declare he was an “air-o-holic” if he ever got the urge to invest in airlines again. Then in 2016, Berkshire dove into the industry again, amassing stakes in the four largest U.S. airlines.  But Buffett reversed course again in 2020, when he exited his airline holdings in Delta, Southwest, American Airlines and United as the sector was grappling with the fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic. Fast forward 6 years and the company is once again building up a stake in airlines, only at much higher prices. 

Berkshire also revealed it has amassed a small stake in retailer Macy’s. A stronger-than-expected sales outlook had boosted Macy’s stock earlier this year. Shares of the department store operator jumped more than 6% in late trading on Friday in response to the Berkshire filing.

During the quarter, Berkshire also boosted its holding in star AI performer Alphabet, adding 36.4 million shares in Google’s parent company. Berkshire also added modestly to its stake in Lennar. 

But while Abel added to Google, it dumped all its holdings of Amazon.com, some 2.276 million shares as of Dec 31, 2025. 

There was much more: Berkshire also exited its sizable positions in credit card companies Visa and Mastercard (combined over $5 billion as of Dec 31), and liquidated holdings in UnitedHealth Group, which proved to be a brief flirt for the conglomerate; UnitedHealth had been trying to rebuild confidence with investors after struggling to adapt to changing US government payment policies. The stock dropped roughly 2.5% in post-market trading on Friday. Berkshire also sold out all its holdings in Diageo plc, Pool Corp, Charter Communications, Domino’s Pizza, Heico, Lamar Advertising, Allegion, AON, and Liberty Latin America. 

Why the mass dump? According to the WSJ, Abel offloaded all the equity holdings that were previously managed by Todd Combs, Berkshire’s former stock-picker. Combs left Berkshire and joined JPMorgan in December for a broad investing advisory role. 

Finally, Berkshire reduced its holdings in Bank of America, Chevron, Davita, Liberty Live Holdings, Nucor and Constellation Brands.  The full breakdown of Berkshire's 13F is in the table below.

Beksrhire, aside 

Senator Investment Group disclosed yesterday its updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New RIOT PFE RKT HAL C V ALKS COP AVGO positions, Added to NU AS holdings, Exited LTH CMCSA SSNC; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: RIOT (1.5 mln shares), PFE (1.25 mln), RKT(1.25 mln), HAL (847K), EEM (570K), C (330K), V(255K), ALKS (235K), COP (219K), AVGO (188K), CVS (175K) , HAS (175K), SATS (103K), AEIS (100K), LHX (90K), KNTK (76K), AMAT (65K) Increased: NU (2.45 mln shares from 2.2 mln shares),AS (1.3 mln from 0.93 mln), NVDA (825K from 505K), DHR (433K from 169K), BA (441K from 28K), AMZN(610K from 430K), SN (554K from 400K), WRBY(500K from 377K), ETHA (243K from 134K), ULS(400K from 300K), VST (197K from 110K), MSFT(268K from 188K), META (134K from 74K), WULF(139K from 85K), VIK (523K from 475K), GOOG (13K from 11K) 
• Maintained: WBD (3 mln shares), PRM (2.4 mln), APH (200K)  Exited: LTH (from 1.3 mln shares), CMCSA (1.2 mln), SSNC (1.04 mln), IMSR (900K), BILL (693K), COF(472K), MEOH (375K), PFSI (287K), UNP (275K), GE(150K), KWEB (103K), LPLA (100K), XLI (61K), FBTC(33K), PLTR (12K), COIN (7K)
• Decreased: UAL (1.4 mln shares from 3.1 mln shares), BKD (2.5 mln from 3.4 mln), TECK (0.77 mln from 1.66 mln), JHX (1.1 mln from 1.8 mln), ATRO(22K from 459K), HOOD (141K from 405K), MT (341K from 580K), WWD (227K from 452K), APO (340K from 537K), ATI (145K from 325K), CVNA (185K from 260K), TSM (263K from 325K), HWM (42K from 98K),UNH (35K from 75K), VRT (260K from 274K)

Lansdowne Partners discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New SLB BKR positions, Added to AMZN SW ARM ADI UAL DAL TECK LIN IONQ; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: SLB (2.96 mln), BKR (40K)
• Increased: SW (1.9 mln from 257K), ARM (936K from 472K), UAL (1.5 mln from 1.2 mln), TECK (2 mln from 1.8 mln), LIN (449K from 227K), IONQ (796K from 643K), RAL (195K from 100K), B (343K from 266K),DAL (2.5 mln from 2.4 mln), MDT (89K from 31K), AMZN (78K from 47K), ADI (664K from 635K), ETN(130K from 110K), TXN (92K from 78K)
• Maintained: TSM (1.3 mln)
• Exited: CRH (308K), FTV (48K), FLUT (2K)
• Decreased: ROK (14K from 31K)

Meritage Group discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New TOST CSGP AON positions, Exited QSR SGI; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: TOST (3.4 mln shares), CSGP (3.3 mln), AON(680K), SPGI (504K), SPY (52K)
• Maintained: PCOR (2.68 mln shares), AMZN (1.86 mln), WDAY (1.62 mln), MSFT (1.27 mln)
• Exited: QSR (from 3.2 mln shares), SGI (2.4 mln)
• Decreased: TRU (3.6 mln shares from 5.3 mln shares), COF (1.3 mln from 1.8 mln), MSCI (406K from 467K), EFX (154K from 165K)

Baupost Group (Seth Klarman) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New NCLH DNOW TFX PCVX V positions, Added to COLD AMZN FERG GOOG AERO, Exited FIS FISV LBTYA; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: NCLH (3.6 mln shares), DNOW (3.6 mln), TFX(1.6 mln), PCVX (800K), AON (769K), V (701K)
• Increased: COLD (7.8 mln shares from 3.5 mln shares), AERO (4.88 mln from 4.86 mln), AMZN (3.1 mln from 2.1 mln), FERG (1.4 mln from 1.1 mln), GOOG (1.18 mln from 1.09 mln), MOH (634K from 625K) 
• Maintained: HLF (9.3 mln shares), QSR (8.1 mln), GDS (3.0 mln), GPC (1.5 mln), WCC (1.4 mln), ELV(1.3 mln)
• Exited: FIS (from 4.5 mln shares), FISV (2.2 mln), LBTYA (2.1 mln), DG (2.06 mln), CRH (1.07 mln), TBN(257K)
• Decreased: LBTYK (13.4 mln shares from 20.9 mln shares), WTW (893K from 1.36 mln), EXP (893K from 1.19 mln), UNP (1.5 mln from 1.6 mln)

Softbank discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New LIFE position, maintained INTC SYM WBTN KLAR TEM TSM, Exited LMND, Cut TMUS (18.49); Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: LIFE (3.13 mln shares)
• Maintained: XXI (89.11 mln shares), INTC (86.96 mln), INTR (60.51 mln), SYM (39.83 mln), VTEX (38.43 mln), WBTN (31.43 mln), NU (17.84 mln), KLAR (15.4 mln), TEM (5.41 mln),
• Exited: LMND (from 0.93 mln shares), CRCL (0.1 mln), UBER (0.02 mln)
• Decreased: TMUS (10 mln shares from 28.5 mln shares), NMRA (6.09 mln from 6.43 mln)

Marathon Partners discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New FLEX CRCL positions; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: FLEX (13K), CRCL (3K)
• Increased: CNS (115K from 75K), TPB (31K from 18K)
• Maintained: XMTR (115K), GOOG (6K)
• Decreased: RELY (1270K from 1338K), LION (220K from 275K), HSIC (13K from 48K), SXT (5K from 23K),TKO (73K from 84K), UBER (140K from 150K), FLUT(10K from 17K), ATMU (75K from 80K), META (25K from 28K), ATI (18K from 20K)

TCI Fund (Chris Hohn) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New GOOGL position (and adds to GOOG holding), Boosted V SPGI MCO holdings, Cut MSFT; positions Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: GOOGL (2.46 mln shares)
• Increased: V (30.47 mln shares from 27.72 mln shares), SPGI (14.04 mln from 11.79 mln), GOOG(8.85 mln from 7.6 mln), MCO (14.33 mln from 13.31mln)
• Maintained: GE (47.51 mln shares), CP (46.52 mln), FER (20.74 mln), CNI (9.85 mln)
• Decreased: MSFT (2.73 mln shares from 16.78 mln shares)

Eminence Capital (Ricky Sandler) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New U MTN EL DHR TSM positions, Added to AMZN VVV CPNG SE Z SGI PFGC holdings, Exited PTON GPK DKNG GTLB PINS JEF CF CRM; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: U (725K), MTN (714K), EL (698K), DHR (561K), TSM (422K), MRSH (320K), MNDY (248K), AON(17 9K)
• Increased: CPNG (15.5 mln from 12.6 mln), SE (4.1 mln from 2.6 mln), Z (3.5 mln from 2.1 mln), SGI (1.5 mln from 314K), PFGC (3.72 mln from 2.65 mln), DT(5.3 mln from 4.5 mln), MDLN (2.28 mln from 1.5 mln),FLUT (484K from 79K), VVV (4.4 mln from 4.2 mln), AMD (1.2 mln from 968K), SNPS (449K from 249K), THC (790K from 614K), FERG (646K from 500K),FWONK (1.98 mln from 1.9 mln), AMZN (1.54 mln from 1.48 mln), BABA (861K from 826K), ABG (956K from 926K), MDB (163K from 156K) 
• Exited: PTON (18.2 mln), GPK (12.8 mln), DKNG (8.4 mln), GTLB (7.7 mln), PINS (4.5 mln), JEF (3.8 mln),CF (1.28 mln), CRM (1.0 mln), SYY (897K), ELV(487K), LPLA (442K), UNH (378K), UNP (352K), META (62K) 
• Decreased: ATMU (1.28 mln shares from 3.83 mln shares), LPX (2.53 mln from 4.05 mln), RRR (0.41 mln from 1.6 mln), WK (2.52 mln from 3.71 mln), MGRC(806K from 950K)

Miller Value Partners (Bill Miller) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New BLMN CRGY positions, Added to CNDT JELD GTN holdings, Exited STLA; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: BLMN (2.0 mln shares), CRGY (2 mln), ABR(604K), PTLO (129K), MBC (105K), FIGR (91K), REZI(70K), ZD (68K), CPNG (63K), PINS (60K), VRM(58K), CTRN (54K), CART (46K), PRDO (40K), CROX(39K), SPY (30K), FOUR (30K), BLDR (19K), A BNB(16K) Increased: CNDT (10.0 mln shares from 5.6 mln shares), JELD (6.6 mln from 4.1 mln), GTN (5.4 mln from 4 mln), CTO (556K from 434K), VTRS (732K from 619K), MRP (181K from 83K), LNC (571K from 505K),ARLP (185K from 132K), UPBD (120K from 70K), UPS (119K from 87K), MSTR (52K from 25K), BBW(104K from 78K), CHRD (69K from 58K) 
• Maintained: OMF (83K), CALM (62K)
• Exited: STLA (0.43 mln shares) 
• Decreased: TDAY (2 mln shares from 3.4 mln shares),FOSL (2.4 mln from 3.2 mln), DCH (1.4 mln from 1.7mln), QUAD (2.65 mln from 2.74 mln), NBR (444K from 603K), UGI (121K from 262K), BMY (70K from 108K), VZ (168K from 198K), ITRN (204K from 215K), WAL (55K from 64K), BFH (194K from 201K), UNFI(5K from 13K), JXN (81K from 86K), FTI (3K from 8K), TPC (3K from 7K)

Scopia Capital discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New VISN position, Exited BRZE TRU TREX LPX SGI; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: VISN (664K)
• Maintained: MNKD (695K)
• Exited: BRZE (293K), TRU (236K), TREX (209K), LPX(200K), SGI (107K), CVNA (8K),
• Decreased: CC (562K from 1.9 mln), HLIT (644K from 1.9 mln), VSTS (453K from 1.4 mln), VVV (203K from 1.1 mln), PTON (1.8 mln from 2.3 mln), CTVA (148K from 600K), LIVN (186K from 538K), AZTA (236K from 567K), PRMB (466K from 780K), GOOS (391K from 667K), KKR (90K from 277K), RRX (43K from 217K), AER (28K from 199K), BATRK (78K from 239K), ENS(30K from 154K), AMZN (43K from 146K), JBHT (38K from 115K)

Kerrisdale Advisors discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New ADTN DV NOK PAYO SWKS MRVL positions; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: ADTN (552K), DV (398K), NOK (284K), PAYO(163K), LNSR (139K), SWKS (127K), MRVL (114K), C VE (111K), ACVA (91K), CNQ (73K), FTRE (73K),ADEA (71K), FRSH (62K), INTC (61K), LBTYA (61K), FL O (56K), MOS (40K), OI (40K), PYPL (37K), FVRR(36K), SMCI (35K), AMTM (29K), KHC (29K), WHD(28K) , BAC (27K) 
• Increased: SNAP (283K from 39K), UHAL.B (127K from 55K), SHC (608K from 557K), LGN (106K from 61K), GTLB (69K from 26K), CPNG (150K from 109K), CART (94K from 73K), RICK (27K from 9K), AMZN(59K from 41K), AMRZ (62K from 47K), MSFT (12K from 1K), V (50K from 39K), GFF (17K from 7K), ZM(47K from 38K), APPF (22K from 16K), UNP (20K from 16K), DEO (34K from 31K)
• Exited: GTM (348K), RTO (69K), LBRT (64K), VAL(50K), LESL (24K), KNX (23K)
• Decreased: TDS (298K from 506K), KVUE (171K from 344K), NE (14K from 148K), SYY (83K from 211K),WMG (9K from 67K), CIB (40K from 91K), ACMR(224K from 263K), FOXF (51K from 83K), PERI (49K from 76K), NXE (30K from 51K)

Public Investment Fund (sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia) discloses updated Q1 2026 portfolio positions in 13F filing: Maintained LCID UBER EA positions, Exited ALUR warrants; Maintained: LCID (177.09 mln shares), UBER (72.84 mln), EA (24.81 mln), CTEV (1.2 mln).

Leon Cooperman discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New COF AMZN positions, Added to OMF PLGO STKL LAD holdings, Exited AMRZ OXY RRX; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: COF (370K), AMZN (170K)
• Increased: OMF (2.01 mln shares from 0.7 mln shares), PLGO (7.98 mln from 7.04 mln), STKL (9.3 mln from 9.05 mln), LAD (0.34 mln from 0.32 mln),EWJ (0.02 mln from 0.01 mln)
• Maintained: RKT (21.02 mln shares), ET (13.32 mln), VRT (2.16 mln)
• Exited: AMRZ (880K), OXY (700K), RRX (690K)
• Decreased: AESI (4.08 mln shares from 5.05 mln shares), ELV (0.23 mln from 0.34 mln)

D1 Capital discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New NU CPNG SGI U DASH TMO LYV CVNA CLS GOOGL positions, Added to AMZN NVDA JHX DHR TXN AFRM holdings, Exited CNM ENTG APG SATS GEHC BAC; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: NU (25.89 mln shares), CPNG (11.61 mln), SGI(4.69 mln), U (3.26 mln), DASH (1.44 mln), TMO(725K), LYV (674K), CVNA (668K), CLS (542K), GOOGL (469K), FERG (349K), TSM (329K), M LM(323K), ADI (292K), BLD (213K), ASML (7K) 
• Increased: JHX (28.3 mln shares from 24.4 mln shares), DHR (2.3 mln from 0.56 mln), TXN (1.75 mln from 0.49 mln), AFRM (1.94 mln from 0.82 mln), KRC(11.28 mln from 10.4 mln), AVGO (0.98 mln from 0.36mln), SE (4.05 mln from 3.49 mln), AMZN (1.81 mln from 1.34 mln), NVDA (1.57 mln from 1.15 mln), RDDT(2.46 mln from 2.12 mln), COF (1.12 mln from 828K),MELI (374K from 224K), DIS (2.36 mln from 2.22 mln)
• Maintained: CART (22.56 mln shares), LINE (7.4 mln), USFD (4.28 mln), APO (1.16 mln), APP (0.67 mln)
• Exited: CNM (from 2.65 mln shares), ENTG (2.49 mln), APG (2.2 mln), SATS (1.86 mln), GEHC (1.76 mln), BAC (1.25 mln), NI (1.21 mln), ANET (962K), Q (937K), LIN (484K), SNPS (378K), MDLN (377K), META (376K), AEP (344K) 
• Decreased: KNX (5.49 mln from 7.72 mln), FLS (5.87 mln from 7.66 mln), CLH (1.34 mln from 2.78 mln), SCHW (2.36 mln from 3.15 mln), XPO (1.29 mln from 2.04 mln), SHW (474K from 962K), ADSK (309K from 456K), JCI (1.22 mln from 1.35 mln), SPOT (340K from 396K)

Soros Capital discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New EIKN AMT TXN positions, Added to PUMP ALC, Exited NBIS EWZ AEO GM CZR; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: EIKN (485K), AMT (53K), TXN (25K), AS (21K), GEV (18K), ADI (16K), SKYW (15K)
• Increased: PUMP (1.09 mln from 685K), ALC (94K from 76K), CAT (17K from 8K), MSI (14K from 7K), NFLX (31K from 25K), DHR (33K from 27K), FIX (12K from 6K), TJX (19K from 14K), AMZN (35K from 32K), VRSN (21K from 18K), NVDA (12K from 9K), LOW(19K from 17K), IUSB (6K from 5K), CPAY (13K from 12K)
• Maintained: PACK (4.63 mln), WULF (713K), CP(69K), NKE (69K)
• Exited: NBIS (229K), EWZ (150K), AEO (143K), GM (131K), CZR (100K), ON (90K), GAP (74K), BSX(55K), EWY (53K), CHDN (50K), SEI (44K), TM (23K), TRU (22K)
• Decreased: GOOGL (6K from 247K), TSM (5K from 83K), AVGO (7K from 81K), FLUT (3K from 34K), GDDY (16K from 42K), ICE (15K from 34K), BE (38K from 57K), V (22K from 31K), TPR (4K from 9K), SBUX (47K from 51K), EME (6K from 9K), UNP (18K from 21K), HD (13K from 15K)

Engaged Capital (Glenn Welling) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: Added to PTLO BL, Exited FRPT, Trimmed VFC CGNX YETI; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• Increased: PTLO (3.4 mln shares from 1.5 mln shares), BL (1.4 mln from 1.1 mln)
• Maintained: BRCC (13.94 mln shares), EVH (5.56 mln), GXO (822K)
• Exited: FRPT (401K)
• Decreased: VFC (4.68 mln shares from 5.31 mln shares), CGNX (484K from 933K), YETI (1784K from 2033K)

Tiger Global discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New EQPT INTC XNDU PAYP RVI LITE MELI positions, Added to CPNG TSM Z NVDA AMAT AVGO META SPOT holdings, Exited GRAB FLUT VEEV HNGE ESTC WDAY CRCL; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: EQPT (4.6 mln shares), INTC (1.6 mln), XNDU(500K), PAYP (400K), RVI (400K), LITE (137K), MELI(135K) 
• Increased: CPNG (34.6 mln shares from 26.3 mln shares), TSM (5.6 mln from 3.7 mln), Z (7.4 mln from 6.1 mln), NVDA (12.0 mln from 11.0 mln), AMAT (1.7 mln from 0.9 mln), AVGO (3.6 mln from 2.9 mln), META (3.1 mln from 2.8 mln), SPOT (1.6 mln from 1.3 mln)
• Maintained: SE (15.4 mln shares), GOOGL (10.6 mln), AMZN (10 mln), LRCX (3.9 mln), NFLX (2.4 mln), CPAY (1.8 mln), GEV (973K)
• Exited: GRAB (from 92.9 mln shares), FLUT (4 mln), VEEV (2.4 mln), HNGE (1.8 mln), ESTC (1.69 mln),WDAY (1 mln), CRCL (500K)
• Decreased: TTWO (2 mln shares from 5.8 mln shares), CHYM (11.1 mln from 14.2 mln), MSFT (2.5 mln from 5.5 mln), APO (3.3 mln from 6.2 mln), XYZ (4 mln from 6.4 mln), RDDT (2.5 mln from 3.8 mln), CSGP (1.5 mln from 2.3 mln), NOW (1.5 mln from 2.1mln), APP (1 mln from 1.3 mln), UNH (350K from 420K)

Discovery Capital (Rob Citrone) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New ON JMIA CAR HUYA WOLF INFQ FPS MDLN SNDK NVDA positions, Added to GENI CX AMX GEO AMZN, Exited AMKR GDS SNAP, Trimmed IREN CLF; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: ON (1.4 mln), IFS (1.1 mln), VLRS (964K), RKT(884K), JMIA (697K), CAR (549K), HUYA (467K), WOLF (425K), INFQ (396K), FP S (275K), MDLN(250K), SNDK (184K), CMPS (180K), ONMD (112K), ARE (100K), VLO (85K), ROST (72K ), LNG (67K), NVDA (57K), TER (52K), CRM (50K), BRRR (48K), ULTA (47K), SOXX (44K), FSLR (42K), I NTU (21K), IYM (12K)
• Increased: GENI (7.5 mln shares from 4.2 mln shares), QXO (1.38 mln from 1.35 mln), NU (2.2 mln from 0.4 mln), TV (22.4 mln from 21.8 mln), BBAR (1.0 mln from 448K), JBS (3.4 mln from 3 mln), CX (3.5 mln from 3.1 mln), YPF (538K from 270K), SATS (412K from 173K), GGAL (869K from 641K), MU (276K from 105K), AMX (4.44 mln from 4.29 mln), PINS (773K from 621K), LRCX (298K from 152K), GEO (1.43 mln from 1.31 mln), AMZN (124K from 43K), GLNG (267K from 192K), AGRO (1.27 mln from 1.2 mln), BAP(141K from 83K), FISV (310K from 259K), SHY (57K from 8K), COF (269K from 232K), APP (51K from 37K), IBIT (644K from 7K)
• Maintained: METC (5.5 mln shares), PPTA (1.3 mln), PSN (0.5 mln)
• Exited: ORBS (from 14.9 mln shares), AMKR (2.6 mln), GDS (1.4 mln), SNAP (1.0 mln), GDLC (423K),COHR (329K), ACMR (296K), EAT (250K), GSIT(184K), DAL (167K), FRO (160K), ES TA (155K), SOLV(147K), TTWO (137K), AMD (131K), AWI (118K), SLM(111K), EWW (105K), UAL (105K), GLXY (100K), AVGO (83K), DDOG (83K), BA (77K), BIDU (76K),KRMN (75K), LOAR (75K), LITE (62K), VIK (50K), BMA (49K), NVT (44K), META (42K), ADBE (38K), MCD (37K), BE (25K), SN (25K), DPZ (24K)
• Decreased: IREN (1.8 mln shares from 2.6 mln shares), CLF (1.5 mln from 2 mln), PRMB (1.4 mln from 1.7 mln), VNET (6.0 mln from 6.3 mln), JPM(155K from 227K), CHDN (160K from 169K), AEM(43K from 50K), HDB (183K from 756K)

Impactive Capital discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New GTLB CART LRN ICLR positions, Added to SLM, Exited CLVT ETSY; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: GTLB (3.91 mln shares), CART (1.57 mln), LRN(1.11 mln), ICLR (0.45 mln)
• Increased: SLM (7.82 mln shares from 7.23 mln shares), IWM (0.25 mln from 0.08 mln)
• Maintained: VAC (4.13 mln shares)
• Exited: CLVT (from 36.41 mln shares), ETSY (3.04 mln)
• Decreased: WMS (0.86 mln shares from 1.46 mln shares), WEX (1.71 mln from 2.2 mln), ABG (1.07 mln from 1.25 mln)

Stadium Capital discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: Trimmed LCII BC GTLB holdings; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• Maintained: SNBR (2.62 mln), BLDR (159K), DKS(35K)
• Decreased: LCII (42K from 168K), BC (134K from 233K), GTLB (45K from 85K)

Duquesne (Stanley Druckenmiller) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New NUVB CAI JBS GSG INTC ARGT positions, Added to YPF STM ADMA CLF NTRA TBBB holdings, Exited XLF COGT AEVA DOCU GOOGL; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: NUVB (4.5 mln shares), CAI (1.9 mln), OLMA (987K), JBS (656K), GSG(643K), INTC (411K), ARGT (387K), DBVT (383K), RV MD (316K), XENE(239K), TWST (206K), AVGO (196K), TWLO (182K), HUM (138K), VIST( 135K), LYB (131K), Q (126K), ARM(107K), BLTE (106K), JBL (82K), SOLS(63K), NET (53K), STX (51K), LIN(41K), COHR (40K), SNDK (38K), CLS(33K), MU (23K), WLK (21K)
• Increased: YPF (3.2 mln shares from 0.6 mln shares), STM (2.6 mln from 0.77 mln), ADMA (1.55 mln from 0.25 mln), CLF (2.3 mln from 1.75 mln), NTRA (3.1 mln from 2.5 mln), TBBB(3.1 mln from 2.7 mln), U (739K from 410K), ROKU (750K from 583K), SE(1.1 mln from 944K), OPCH (1.87 mln from 1.75 mln), AA (1.49 mln from 1.38 mln)
• Maintained: NAMS (3.1 mln shares)  
• Exited: XLF (from 5.5 mln shares), COGT (2.2 mln), AEVA (1.8 mln), DOCU (1.02 mln), EEM (903K), ENTG(844K), DAL (651K), AAL (640K), ON(536K), CMG (392K), GO OGL (385K), PGNY (295K), Z (193K), WOLF (187K), FLUT (115K), RH (88K), PM (67K), DASH (36K), AGX (30K), GS (28K), NP(20K) 
• Decreased: CPNG (2.7 mln shares from 6.8 mln shares), TEVA (2.4 mln from 5.9 mln), PCT (1 mln from 2.9 mln), STUB (1.4 mln from 2.3 mln), QSR (454K from 1.2 mln), BE (136K from 741K), LSCC (323K from 926K), FIGR (1.2 mln from 1.5 mln), WWD(211K from 591K), INSM (1.15 mln from 1.48 mln), DAKT (563K from 853K), WAB (95K from 300K), CRH(378K from 475K), UAL (262K from 348K), TSM (495K from 543K), MELI(3K from 47K) 

Land & Buildings discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New INVH LAMR DLR positions, Exited NSA AMH CSR; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: INVH (1.97 mln), LAMR (134K),DLR (114K), SBAC (60K) 
• Increased: CURB (905K from 217K),NHI (587K from 413K), RHP (288K from 204K), CBRE (185K from 128K),SPG (217K from 168K), PLD (169K from 134K) 
• Exited: NSA (1.31 mln), AMH (1.08 mln), CSR (828K) 
• Decreased: FUN (642K from 1743K), OUT (854K from 1242K), VTR (367K from 505K), GLPI (445K from 570K),FR (864K from 913K), AHR (1011K from 1053K), SKT (799K from 827K),EQIX (47K from 58K), SUI (276K from 285K), MAR (60K from 64K)

Jana Partners (Barry Rosenstein) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: Added to FISV ALKT, Exited FRPT, Trimmed MRCY SPY MKL holdings; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• Increased: FISV (4.44 mln shares from 2.25 mln shares), ALKT (5.43 mln from 4.89 mln) 
• Maintained: RPD (6.74 mln shares), LW (5.01 mln), FUN (4.12 mln), COO (3.57 mln), EHAB (2.09 mln) 
• Exited: FRPT (0.56 mln) 
• Decreased: MRCY (4.11 mln shares from 4.96 mln shares), SPY (0.34 mln from 0.39 mln), MKL (0.08 mln from 0.08 mln)

Berkshire Hathaway (Warren Buffett) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New DAL GOOG M positions, Added to GOOGL NYT LEN holdings, Exited V UNH MA AON DPZ POOL AMZN LAMR CHTR positions, Cut CVX STZ NUE DVA (482.30 -1.36); Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: DAL (39.81 mln shares), GOOG (3.59 mln), M(3.04 mln)
• Increased: GOOGL (54.25 mln shares from 17.85 mln shares), NYT (15.15 mln from 5.07 mln), LEN (10.1 mln from 7.05 mln), LEN.B (0.24 mln from 0.18 mln)
• Maintained: BAC (513.62 mln shares), KO (400 mln), KHC (325.63 mln), OXY (264.94 mln), AAPL (227.92 mln), AXP (151.61 mln), SIRI (124.81 mln), KR (50 mln), CB (34.25 mln),
• Exited: V (8.3 mln), UNH (5.04 mln), MA (3.99 mln), AON (3.6 mln), DPZ (3.35 mln), POOL (3.07 mln),FWONK (3.02 mln), LILA (2.4 mln), AMZN (2.28 mln), HEI.A (1.29 mln), LILAK (1.28 mln), LAMR (1.2 mln), CHTR (1.06 mln), ALLE (780K), DEO (228K), BATRK(115K)
• Decreased: CVX (84.38 mln shares from 130.16 mln shares), STZ (0.63 mln from 13 mln), NUE (3.91 mln from 6.41 mln), DVA (30.1 mln from 31.76 mln),LLYVK (10.59 mln from 10.92 mln)

ValueAct (Jeffrey Ubben and Bradley Singer) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New KKR WIX SPOT positions, Added to TOST V holdings, Exited NSIT, Lowered RKT DIS AMZN MDB LYV BLK META holdings; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: KKR (3.28 mln shares), WIX (1.1 mln), SPOT(0.36 mln)
• Increased: TOST (12.9 mln shares from 8.02 mln shares), V (2.32 mln from 1.72 mln)
• Maintained: CRM (2.99 mln shares)
• Exited: NSIT (1.22 mln shares)
• Decreased: RKT (28.21 mln shares from 39.38 mln shares), DIS (0.4 mln from 3.08 mln), AMZN (2.88 mln from 3.39 mln), MDB (1.04 mln from 1.41 mln), LYV(0.62 mln from 0.82 mln), BLK (0.55 mln from 0.7 mln), LLYVK (3.56 mln from 3.6 mln) LLYVA (1.78 mln from 1.8 mln), RBLX (5.85 mln from 5.98 mln), META(916K from 1.05 mln), SSD (1.4 mln from 1.47 mln)

Carl Icahn discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: Added to CVI position, Exited SWX, Lowered SATS holding; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• Increased: CVI (71.2 mln shares from 70.42 mln shares)
• Maintained: IEP (549.4 mln shares) JBLU (33.62 mln), CTRI (14.34 mln), IFF (4.28 mln), UAN (4.16 mln), AEP (1.21 mln)
• Exited: SWX (6.03 mln shares)
• Decreased: SATS (1.4 mln shares from 3.35 mln shares)

Himalaya Capital discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New TME HRB SPGI MCO MSCI positions; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: TME (6.59 mln), HRB (1.63 mln), SPGI (121K), MCO (118K), MSCI (19K)
• Increased: CROX (887K from 628K)
• Maintained: PDD (4.61 mln), EWBC (2.78 mln), GOOGL (2.54 mln), GOOG (2.45 mln), OXY (1.47 mln), BRK.B (898K)
• Decreased: BAC (2998K from 10431K)

DME / Greenlight Capital (David Einhorn) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New DCH STUB PSKY SLM VTRS REZI TRIP positions, Added to PTON ACHC SHC BKV GPK SLDE VSCO holdings, Exited KD WBD PRKS GPN; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: DCH (6.31 mln shares), STUB (4.23 mln), PSKY(3.93 mln), VSNT (3.03 mln), SLM (2.1 mln), VTRS(1.82 mln), REZI (1.57 mln), TRIP (1.56 mln), CROX(0.67 mln), ZIM (0.35 mln)
• Increased: PTON (10.11 mln shares from 0.25 mln shares), SHC (2.07 mln from 0.46 mln), BKV (2.7 mln from 1.29 mln), GPK (9.1 mln from 8.42 mln), SLDE(1.69 mln from 1.15 mln), VSCO (2.26 mln from 1.74 mln), SNX (0.48 mln from 0.06 mln), ACHC (4.52 mln from 4.12 mln), COYA (2.34 mln from 2.03 mln), BHF(2.84 mln from 2.79 mln), DECK (481K from 299K),CPRI (4.93 mln from 4.77 mln), HSIC (599K from 469K), CNC (2.73 mln from 2.64 mln), ROIV (2.15 mln from 2.07 mln)
• Maintained: GRBK (9.47 mln shares), PENN (6.04 mln)
• Exited: KD (from 3.82 mln shares), WBD (1.53 mln),PRKS (575K), GPN (453K), KWEB (132K), GDX (65K)
• Decreased: DHT (5.27 mln shares from 7.37 mln shares), CNH (4.19 mln from 5.77 mln), PCG (6.63 mln from 7.78 mln), FLR (4.75 mln from 5.56 mln), WFRD(0.15 mln from 0.74 mln), CNR (1.86 mln from 2.1mln), AR (0.81 mln from 1.01 mln), TEVA (2.91 mln from 3.06 mln), SPB (0.65 mln from 0.66 mln), LBTYA(4.96 mln from 5 mln), GLD (100K from 171K), CI(88K from 94K)

Long Pond John Koury) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New JAN DOC NCLH JHX AMH KRC positions, Added to JBGS IRT KREF PRKS WH, Exited; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: JAN (3.3 mln shares), DOC (2.5 mln), NCLH (1.7 mln), JHX (1.16 mln), AMH (1.11 mln), KRC (1.04 mln), FUN (750K), SMA (613K), WYNN (529K), TMHC(174K)
• Increased: IRT (5.7 mln shares from 1 mln shares),KREF (5.73 mln from 1.56 mln), PRKS (1.68 mln from 0.86 mln), JBGS (4.4 mln from 4.2 mln), PRKS (1681K from 855K), WH (702K from 338K), CPT (401K from 54K), LINE (411K from 184K), CUBE (435K from 347K), H (224K from 203K)
• Maintained: INN (9.4 mln shares), TRTX (7.03 mln)
• Exited: NSA (from 2.59 mln shares), CZR (1.48 mln), GLPI (994K), SHO (485K), TREX (484K), ARE(479K), PLD (350K), VRE (150K), AVB (140K)
• Decreased: COLD (4.5 mln shares from 5.8 mln shares), SAFE (554K from 945K), NXRT (453K from 843K), CSR (190K from 444K), HGV (485K from 732K), MHO (48K from 71K), SLG (130K from 138K)

Altimeter Capital (Brad Gerstner) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New ARM AXON positions, Added to UBER CRWV NVDA TSM META AVGO holdings; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: ARM (1.72 mln shares), AXON(149K) 
• Increased: UBER (7.97 mln shares from 5.59 mln shares), CRWV (4.5 mln from 3.21 mln), NVDA (9.34 mln from 8.1 mln), TSM (1.37 mln from 1.22 mln), META (1.95 mln from 1.85 mln), AVGO (0.07 mln from 0.03 mln) 
• Exited: CPNG (from 15.68 mln shares), CFLT (6.93 mln), Z (2.19 mln), SHOP(0.57 mln), GOOGL (0.52 mln), BE(0.26 mln), MELI (0.07 mln) 
• Decreased: HOOD (0.9 mln shares from 1.29 mln shares), AMZN (2.09 mln from 2.22 mln), SNOW (1.93 mln from 2.03 mln), MSFT (1.18 mln from 1.28 mln)

Soros Capital discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New EIKN AMT TXN positions, Added to PUMP ALC, Exited NBIS EWZ AEO GM CZR; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: EIKN (485K), AMT (53K), TXN(25K), AS (21K), GEV (18K), ADI(16K), SKYW (15K) 
• Increased: PUMP (1.09 mln from 685K), ALC (94K from 76K), CAT (17K from 8K), MSI (14K from 7K), NFLX(31K from 25K), DHR (33K from 27K), FIX (12K from 6K), TJX (19K from 14K), AMZN (35K from 32K), VRSN(21K from 18K), NVDA (12K from 9K), LOW (19K from 17K), IUSB (6K from 5K), CPAY (13K from 12K) 
• Maintained: PACK (4.63 mln), WULF(713K), CP (69K), NKE (69K) 
• Exited: NBIS (229K), EWZ (150K), AEO (143K), GM (131K), CZR (100K), ON (90K), GAP (74K), BSX (55K), EWY(53K), CHDN (50K), SEI (44K), TM(23K), TRU (22K) 
• Decreased: GOOGL (6K from 247K), TSM (5K from 83K), AVGO (7K from 81K), FLUT (3K from 34K), GDDY (16K from 42K), ICE (15K from 34K), BE(38K from 57K), V (22K from 31K), TPR(4K from 9K), SBUX (47K from 51K), EME (6K from 9K), UNP (1

Soros Fund (George Soros) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New CX TALK OBDC MFIC SEM AES VRE positions, Exited DBRG INDV JHG ONB CADE TRIP; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: CX (2.99 mln), TALK (2.77 mln), OBDC (2.45 mln), MFIC (1.94 mln), SEM (1.83 mln), AES (1.56 mln), VRE (1.53 mln), HTO (1.23 mln), OTF (1.01 mln), BXSL (868K), NATL (730K), WBS (712K), SUNB(546K), POR (506K), THR (448K), GFS (444K), ING M(400K), STLA (379K), NSA (317K), KWEB (300K), SVAC (295K), SHLS (289K), ARRY (275K), LIN(260K ), HYG (250K), WIX (250K), CG (245K), KKR(245K), VST (244K), JAN (229K), ETSY (215K), PEN(203K), MDA (200K), ARES (196K), COF (180K), BX(173K), TPG (173K), NOW (154K), KO (151K), EQPT(150K), OFRM (150K), MWH (141K), BRK.B (133K),APO (131K), LBRDK (127K), MCD (124K)
• Increased: CCO (5.41 mln from 680K), BGC (4.2 mln from 2.11 mln), KVUE (3.16 mln from 1.25 mln), EVGO(6.04 mln from 4.5 mln), WBD (1.09 mln from 150K),OWL (2.02 mln from 1.19 mln), EA (966K from 428K), WEC (513K from 96K), NVDA (1.07 mln from 666K), CORZ (329K from 5K), HON (358K from 71K), SARO(700K from 425K), TEAM (536K from 287K), SEMR (1.48 mln from 1.29 mln), GTLS (470K from 286K), VSEC (157K from 7K), SW (2.52 mln from 2.4 mln),JPM (118K from 2K), FWONK (247K from 140K), AAPL (501K from 416K), LCID (173K from 96K), BHF(847K from 774K), CRBG (2.13 mln from 2.07 mln)
• Exited: DBRG (2.4 mln), INDV (1.15 mln), JHG(997K), ONB (856K), CADE (597K), TRIP (520K), FUN (440K), SAIL (425K), LION (401K), ENP H(400K), CSGS (377K), FXI (325K)
• Decreased: RUN (20K from 2.23 mln), FIGR (1 mln from 2.1 mln), ALLY (725K from 1.69 mln), EXC (105K from 623K), STUB (125K from 487K), XLF (12K from 312K), MDLN (1.29 mln from 1.58 mln), SRE (109K from 397K), DDOG (101K from 380K), ITT (90K from 329K), GFL (530K from 733K), CNM (232K from 434K), CORZW (874K from 1.06 mln), ULS (395K from 581K), AMRZ (89K from 267K), CRM (361K from 519K), RDNT (438K from 575K), IBKR (645K from 771K), GO (37K from 137K), CODI (25K from 125K), BKU (31K from 130K), AAMI (649K from 737K), GL(60K from 146K), CRH (115K from 200K), WWD (100K from 181K), SMR (70K from 150K), ETR (77K from 156K)

Paulson & Co (John Paulson) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New FOLD position, Added to THM THRY holdings, Exited SOLS; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: FOLD (0.03 mln shares)
• Increased: THM (99.57 mln shares from 70.24 mln shares), THRY (8.44 mln from 4.35 mln)
• Maintained: BHC (73.26 mln shares), PPTA (32.35 mln), NG (27.24 mln), AAMI (7.74 mln), AEM (0.78 mln)
• Exited: SOLS (1.4 mln shares)
• Decreased: MDGL (1.39 mln shares from 1.71 mln shares)

Trian Fund (Nelson Peltz) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New MICC position, Maintained JHG WEN SOLV GE IVZ FERG holdings; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: MICC (241K)
• Maintained: JHG (31.87 mln shares), WEN (30.45 mln), SOLV (8.24 mln), GE (4.03 mln), IVZ (2.97 mln), FERG (1.09 mln)

Third Point (Dan Loeb) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New HUT GOOGL GLD META LRCX AVGO positions, Exited PCG RKT BN CMG KVUE CSGP VST, Cut NVDA UNP LYV SGI SN APG holdings; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: HUT (870K), GOOGL (175K), GLD (95K), META(90K), LRCX (75K), AVGO (50K), SMH (40K), TDG( 25K), ASML (12K), KLAC (11K)
• Increased: SPRY (1 mln from 556K)
• Maintained: SRTA (5 mln)
• Exited: PCG (34.3 mln), RKT (9.52 mln), BN (6.2 mln), CMG (4.73 mln), KVUE (3.25 mln), CSGP (3.17 mln),VST (1.01 mln), MSFT (925K), BABA (825K), LPLA(510K), CSX (500K), CEG (475K), CASY (455K), BHC(350K), WI X (225K), PGR (220K), FIX (105K), SPOT(100K), TMO (50K)
• Decreased: NVDA (190K from 2.95 mln), UNP (100K from 1.81 mln), LYV (465K from 1.73 mln), SGI (2.27 mln from 3.4 mln), SN (131K from 1.2 mln), APG (2.03 mln from 3 mln), COF (140K from 1.1 mln), NSC (100K from 975K), CRH (1.9 mln from 2.6 mln), MTZ (320K from 925K), CRS (310K from 785K), AMZN (1.94 mln from 2.17 mln), TSM (275K from 425K), CTEV (44K from 145K), DHR  (525K from 600K), TDS (6.6 mln from 6.68 mln)

Lone Pine (Stephen Mandel) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New WULF HUT PFGC USFD GLW TER MTZ positions, Added to NU VST APP TLN CRS holdings, Exited AFRM PM DASH AMZN AVGO WING MSFT; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: WULF (19.92 mln shares), HUT (6.08 mln),PFGC (3.98 mln), USFD (3.8 mln), GLW (3.72 mln), TER (1.87 mln), MTZ (1.53 mln), CIEN (810K), AGX(393K), MCK (392K), GOOGL (188K)
• Increased: NU (38.01 mln shares from 29.63 mln shares), VST (6.19 mln from 5.21 mln), APP (1.46 mln from 0.78 mln), TLN (1.82 mln from 1.29 mln), CRS(1.82 mln from 1.31 mln), THC (2.26 mln from 1.79 mln), CLH (1.75 mln from 1.38 mln), V (93K from 15K),SPOT (69K from 18K), ASML (655K from 605K), HLT(89K from 58K), TDG (36K from 19K) 
• Maintained: MDLN (11.79 mln shares), ENTG (3.12 mln), COF (2.27 mln), LPLA (2.05 mln), CVNA (1.75 mln)
• Exited: AFRM (from 3.82 mln shares), PM (2.64 mln), DASH (2.53 mln), AMZN (2.41 mln), AVGO (1.73 mln),WING (1.6 mln), MSFT (1.23 mln)
• Decreased: KKR (0.18 mln shares from 5 mln shares),BN (11.21 mln from 15.92 mln), APH (223K from 2.81 mln), TSM (1.39 mln from 3.05 mln), VMC (144K from 1.68 mln), BSX (105K from 202K), MA (57K from 96K),BKNG (2K from 5K)

Starboard Value (Jeffrey Smith) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New KMX LW GPGI positions, Added to TRIP, Exited ADSK CRM; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: KMX (6.2 mln shares), LW (6.1 mln), GPGI (5.0 mln)
• Increased: TRIP (10.8 mln shares from 9.6 mln shares), IJH (5.8 mln from 5.3 mln)
• Maintained: ACTG (61.1 mln shares), KVUE (27.3 mln), MTCH (11.4 mln), QRVO (7.5 mln), BILL (7.0 mln)
• Exited: ADSK (from 1 mln shares), CRM (0.94 mln)
• Decreased: AQN (57.2 mln shares from 63.5 mln shares), HR (6.8 mln from 12.6 mln), CWAN (5.46 mln from 9.96 mln), GEN (7.81 mln from 10.59 mln), FLR(2.89 mln from 5.19 mln), NWS (2.59 mln from 4.44mln), ROG (0.58 mln from 1.2 mln), BDX (0.64 mln from 0.93 mln), NWSA (5.6 mln from 5.9 mln)

Elliott Management (Paul Singer) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New RIG NCLH positions, Added to HPE SDRL, Exited ST BILL positions, Cut LUV holding; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: RIG (15.63 mln shares), NCLH (13.19 mln)
• Increased: HPE (27.42 mln shares from 18.63 mln shares), SDRL (4.72 mln from 4.56 mln), HDB (797K from 217K)
• Maintained: TFPM (133.25 mln shares), UNIT (59.01 mln), SU (52.67 mln), PINS (28 mln), PSX (19.25 mln)
• Exited: ST (from 3.25 mln shares), BILL (3 mln), FSK(265K)
• Decreased: LUV (30.35 mln shares from 51.13 mln shares) 

NVDA; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: COHR (7.79 mln shares), GENB (0.83 mln)
• Increased: CRWV (47.21 mln shares from 24.28 mln shares)
• Maintained: INTC (214.78 mln shares),NOK (166.39 mln), SNPS (4.82 mln)

Pershing Square (Bill Ackman) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New MSFT position, Added to AMZN holding, Exited HLT; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• New: MSFT (5.65 mln shares)
• Increased: AMZN (11.45 mln shares from 9.61 mln shares)
• Maintained: HHH (18.85 mln shares)
• Exited: HLT (3.03 mln shares)
• Decreased: GOOG (312K shares from 6.16 mln shares), BN (59.7 mln from 61.4 mln), GOOGL (32K from 678K), UBER (29.96 mln from 30.21 mln), QSR(22.65 mln from 22.87 mln), META (2.66 mln from 2.67 mln)

Gates Foundation discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: Exited MSFT, Trimmed BRK.B WM; Highlights from Q1 2026 filing as compared to Q4 2025 (all amounts are approximate):

• Maintained: CNI (51.83 mln shares), WMT (8.39 mln), CAT (6.35 mln), KOF (6.21 mln), ECL (5.22 mln), DE(3.56 mln), FDX (2.38 mln), WCN (2.04 mln)
• Exited: MSFT (7.69 mln shares)
• Decreased: BRK.B (17.05 mln shares from 19.41 mln shares), WM (27.64 mln from 28.93 mln)

Full 13F breakdown in pdf format available to pro subs

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 19:15

Trump Secures $17 Billion Annual Chinese Commitment For U.S. Farm Goods

Summary: 

• White House Says China Agreed To $17 Billion Annual Commitment To Purchase Agri Goods 

• China, U.S. Agree To Cut Levies On Select Products, Expand Agri Trade

• China, U.S. Reach Boeing Jet Purchase Agreement

• U.S. And China Agree To Establish Trade And Investment Boards

• Trump-Xi Summit Delivers Modest Trade Wins

White House Releases Fact Sheet

The White House has released more details about the agricultural deal it secured with China following President Trump's visit to Beijing last week to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

According to a White House fact sheet released on Sunday, China has agreed to buy at least $17 billion in U.S. agricultural products annually through 2028.

The commitment would add to previous soybean purchase pledges, though Beijing's own readout offered limited details.

The announcement may provide some relief to U.S. farmers.

Beyond agriculture, China has renewed access for more than 400 U.S. beef facilities, agreed to work toward restoring American poultry imports, and pledged to address Washington's concerns over rare-earth and critical-mineral supply restrictions.

Here's what the White House said:

DELIVERING FOR AMERICAN WORKERS, FARMERS, AND INDUSTRY: President Trump negotiated a sweeping package of commitments that will drive high-paying American jobs and open new markets for U.S. goods.

• China will purchase at least $17 billion per year of U.S. agricultural products in 2026 (prorated), 2027, and 2028, in addition to the soybean purchase commitments that it made in October 2025.

• China restored market access for U.S. beef by renewing expired listings of more than 400 U.S. beef facilities and adding new listings.  China will work with U.S. regulators to lift all suspensions of U.S. beef facilities.

• China resumed imports of poultry from U.S. states determined by the USDA to be free of highly pathogenic avian influenza.

• China will address U.S. concerns regarding supply chain shortages related to rare earths and other critical minerals, including yttrium, scandium, neodymium, and indium. China will also address U.S. concerns regarding prohibitions or restrictions on the sale of rare earth production and processing equipment and technologies.

• China approved an initial purchase of 200 American-made Boeing aircraft for Chinese airlines. This tranche of aircraft – China's first commitment to purchase American-made Boeing aircraft since 2017 – will drive high-paying, high-skilled U.S. manufacturing jobs and enable the Chinese people to fly on American-made planes for decades to come.

"Historically speaking, a $17 billion non-soybean ag commitment from China would move the US back at or near post- Phase One trade values," No Bull Ag analyst Susan Stroud told Bloomberg, referring to the agreement reached during Trump’s first term.

Stroud said, "The market has been desperate for any signs China may finally return for additional business — whether that’s corn, sorghum, cotton, beef, or beans."

China Responds With Agreements To Purchase Jets, Cut Levies, Expand Trade 

One day after President Trump left Beijing, following his multi-day summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, China's Commerce Ministry released new details about agreements it had reached to purchaseU.S.. planes and farm goods.

• CHINA, US REACH ARRANGEMENTS ON BUYING US PLANES

The exact wording "reach arrangements"s in the Bloomberg headline is important because it suggests a framework, a commitment, or a negotiated understanding, not necessarily a finalized purchase contract for Boeing commercial jets.

Based on earlier reports, Trump said China agreed to buy 200 Boeing planes, with the total potentially rising to 750 aircraft.

The next set of headlines shows that the Trump team and Beijing have reached a partial trade de-escalation package following the summit:

• CHINA, US AGREE TO REDUCE LEVIES ON A CERTAIN RANGE OF PRODUCTS

• CHINA TO EXPAND BILATERAL TRADE W/ US ON AGR AND OTHER PRODUCTS

• CHINA VOWS TO EXPAND BILATERAL AGRI TRADE WITH US

The headlines point to a U.S.-China trade détente that is constructive for American industry, exporters, and U.S. farmers.

Now the larger question is what Trump and Xi agreed to behind closed doors regarding Tehran and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. and China Agree To Establish Trade And Investment Boards As Trump-Xi Summit Delivers Modest Wins

U.S. and Chinese leaders agreed to establish a new "Board of Trade" and a parallel "Board of Investment" during President DonaldTrump'ss two-day visit to Beijing - a summit that ended much as it began: with significant pageantry, warm personal rapport between the leaders, and modest, incremental progress on trade. The new boards aim to oversee bilateral purchases, manage trade differences, facilitate deals in non-sensitive sectors (with roughly $30 billion in goods identified), and provide a standing channel to prevent future escalations without constant high-level intervention.

President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Alex Wong/Getty Images

The boards were a pre-summit priority pushed by U.S. officials, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. They build on preparatory talks in South Korea that produced what both sides described as "generally balanced and positive outcomes." Chinese state media, including Xinhua, highlighted the agreements as part of efforts to expand practical cooperation and maintain stable economic ties.

This development aligns with XiJinping's broader push to reframe the bilateral relationship as one of "constructive strategic stability" - a new guiding vision intended to provide predictability for the next three years and beyond, emphasizing cooperation as the mainstay while allowing for "moderate competition" and "manageable differences." Xi described it as a positive, sound, constant, and enduring stability that should translate into concrete actions.

Trade and Economic Deliverables

• Boeing Aircraft: China committed to purchasing 200 Boeing jets, with Trump indicating the order could potentially grow to 750 based on performance. This was the most visible commercial headline, though it fell short of earlier speculation around larger volumes and drew a muted market reaction.

• Agriculture and Energy: Progress on expanded U.S. farm product sales (soybeans, beef, and other goods, with reports of commitments up to $10–50 billion in some readouts) and potential energy deals. Xi told accompanying U.S. CEOs that China'ss door will only open wider" to American businesses, signaling greater market access in mutually beneficial areas.

• Investment Outlook: Discussions included pathways for Chinese investment into non-sensitive U.S. sectors, with the Board of Investment intended to provide clearer guidelines and reduce uncertainty from national security reviews.

Trump touted "fantastic trade deals" upon departure, while Xi emphasized win-win outcomes and the importance of sustaining momentum in economic ties.

And hey, America apparently needs 500,000 Chinese students in the US, and China should be able to purchase US farmland so that colleges and farm prices don't collapse, or something. 

NOW - Trump says it's good to have 500,000 foreign Chinese students in the U.S. and for China to purchase U.S. farmland; otherwise, colleges and farm prices would collapse: "I frankly think that it's good that people come from other countries and they learn our culture." pic.twitter.com/3vQDXpjchz

— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) May 15, 2026 Areas Without Breakthroughs

Despite the institutional progress, several high-priority issues saw limited or no resolution:

• Nvidia H200 AI Chips: No major summit agreement on advanced AI chip exports. While some U.S. licensing approvals for sales to select Chinese firms occurred around the visit (with Jensen Huang joining the delegation), export controls remained a sticking point and were not centrally resolved in leader-level talks.

• Rare Earths: No announced extension of the existing truce or easing of Chinese export controls, which continue to affect U.S. chipmakers and aerospace firms. This remains a lingering vulnerability from prior tariff exchanges.

• Iran Conflict: Both leaders expressed a shared desire for stability and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, with Xi showing interest in greater U.S. oil purchases to reduce Middle East dependence. However, China offered no concrete commitments to leverage its influence with Tehran. Beijing’s foreign ministry reiterated support for peace efforts without pledging active intervention.

Taiwan And Competing Narratives

Competing narratives quickly emerged from the summit - highlighting the persistent gap in how Washington and Beijing frame their relationship. Chinese state media, including Xinhua, emphasized Taiwan as "the most important issue" in bilateral ties, with Xi warning Trump that mishandling it could lead to confrontation or even conflict while reiterating opposition to “Taiwan independence.” (U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, reaffirmed that American policy on Taiwan remains unchanged.) In contrast, the White House readout and Trump’s public comments focused heavily on international issues such as Iran, reopening the Strait of Hormuz, global energy security, and economic cooperation - including Xi’s reported interest in buying more U.S. oil to reduce Middle East dependence, fentanyl precursor controls, and increased agricultural purchases. Trump described the relationship as one that is “going to be better than ever before,” while Xi suggested that "cooperation benefits both, while conflict hurts both." Analysts noted that Beijing’s spotlight on Taiwan may serve to shape domestic and international perception and divert attention from other sensitive topics like trade imbalances, nuclear issues, and Iran. Meanwhile, the strong U.S. business delegation - including NVIDIA’s Jensen Huang - underscored Washington’s priority of securing concrete commercial wins. These divergent readouts reflect each side’s strategic messaging priorities: China seeking to reinforce red lines and stability on its terms, and the U.S. highlighting transactional progress and geopolitical alignment.

As Rabobank notes;

While markets kept a watchful eye on any headlines about the war in Iran, palates were left dry as only tepid announcements dripped out, such as that China “offered help” on Iran and “pledged not to send weapons.” What they did not manage to evade was a conversation about Taiwan. During the two and a half hour conversation with Trump, Xi underscored that US intervention in Taiwan could trigger a “highly dangerous situation.” While Rubio underscored that the topic of American arms sales to Taiwan wasn’t a major focus of discussion, it likely will be when Congress’ approved USD 14bn arms sale to Taiwan lands on Trump’s desk, and again when Xi visits the White House in September.

* * *

Overall Assessment: The summit went a long way in stabilizing ties through new dialogue mechanisms and modest commercial wins rather than grand bargains. Trump returned with a few modest wins he can highlight domestically ahead of midterms - though the whole 'Chinese students and farms' might be a tough pitch to MAGA, while Xi secured a narrative of strategic predictability and time for China to address its economic challenges.

Underlying rivalries in technology, supply chains, Taiwan, and global influence persist, but the relationship now has a more structured channel for management. Future progress is likely to remain incremental and transactional, with the newly agreed boards playing a central role in testing whether this stability proves durable.

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 18:35

Iran Launches Crypto-Based "Hormuz Safe" Insurance Platform For Ships Crossing Strait

Via The Cradle

The Islamic Republic of Iran has launched a digital insurance platform, titled Hormuz Safe, in order to guarantee safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz and provide coverage for commercial vessels. 

The platform will rely on cryptocurrency payments from vessels and is being advanced by the Iranian Economy Ministry, according to a Saturday report by Fars News Agency.  "The Ministry of Economy is advancing a plan that would make the management of the Strait of Hormuz possible through insurance - a model that would be acceptable to other countries during peacetime while still allowing Iran to exercise control over the Strait," the agency’s correspondent reported, citing a government document. 

via Associated Press

"Under this plan, Iran would achieve informational dominance and be able to distinguish between the transit of vessels from different countries," the report added. 

"From an international law perspective, while imposing tolls on ships in the post-war period may be possible, it would carry political costs. Management of the Strait would then be limited to selling services, which, under the best circumstances, would generate up to $2 billion in revenue for Iran. Under the Economy Ministry's plan, managing the strait through an insurance framework would enable the issuance of various marine insurance policies as well as certificates of financial responsibility," it explained. 

According to the document, the plan will start with insurance covering inspection, detention, and confiscation. Damage from military attacks would not be covered.

The ministry estimates that "this approach, while assuming low risk, would generate over $10 billion in revenue" for Iran. Since the start of the unprovoked US-Israeli war on Iran, the Strait of Hormuz has been closed to Washington and Tel Aviv. 

Chinese ships and vessels belonging to other nations, which have coordinated with Iran, including France and India, have at times crossed throughout the war and the so-called ceasefire period.

The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) network reported on May 16 that several European governments have opened direct channels with Tehran to discuss safe passage through the waterway. 

The Fars News Agency report comes weeks after Bloomberg said Iran has set up a "toll booth" in the strait, requiring ships to undergo vetting and pay fees for safe passage. 

One of Tehran’s main terms is a new global system that would grant authority over the Strait of Hormuz, in coordination with Oman and potentially other regional states. 

Iran’s Economy Ministry Proposes Insurance-Based Model to Manage Strait of Hormuzhttps://t.co/40dZnoQg1M pic.twitter.com/Qlg1ME4zGL

— Fars News Agency (@EnglishFars) May 16, 2026

Iranian media said days ago that Iranian and Omani officials convened a legal-technical meeting in Muscat to discuss the Strait of Hormuz, arrangements for the secure passage of ships, and the sovereign rights of both nations over the waterway. The US has maintained an 'illegal' blockade of Iranian ports since the ceasefire began, while repeatedly threatening to renew bombardment. Israel has also said it is awaiting US approval to renew attacks against Iran.

Washington violated the truce earlier this month by attacking several vessels and bombing Iran’s coast. Iranian forces targeted two US military vessels in response (while the Pentagon maintains it was the other way around). The next day, skirmishes broke out between Iranian and US forces in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian officials are warning that "restraint has ended" and that renewal of the war will result in "crushing" responses. 

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 17:30

Big Pharma RINO Bill Cassidy Smoked By Trump-Endorsed Candidate In Louisiana Senate Primary

Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA) came in third in Louisiana's Republican Senate primary on Saturday - marking the first time in nearly 15 years that a sitting US Senator has lost a primary in a regularly scheduled election. 

Instead, Trump-endorsed Rep. Julia Letlow led with ~45% of the vote, while state Treasurer John Fleming came in second at 28%.

Letlow and Fleming will now face off in a June 27 runoff. 

Cassidy was a notable fan of Obamacare, and voted to convict Trump during impeachment over the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot. He also helped sink Casey Means' nomination for surgeon general, which drew sharp criticism from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, and his MAHA movement. He's been labeled a big pharma shill by opponents. 

With Bill Cassidy's primary defeat last night, @PeterKolchinsky has one less Big Pharma puppet to play with in Congress. https://t.co/NLmnYVaIXQ

— Jason Poulos (@jasonvpoulos) May 17, 2026

Of note...

• Over $1.2 million in career contributions from the pharmaceutical and health products industry, according to OpenSecrets data, with hundreds of thousands received in recent cycles.
• Pharma executives showered him with donations shortly after he became the top Republican on the Senate HELP Committee in 2023, including $5,800 from Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, $5,000 from Eli Lilly CEO David Ricks, and contributions from other PhRMA board members.
• Opposed key drug pricing reforms aimed at lowering prescription costs, while taking substantial industry money during those periods.
• Received nearly $330,000 from the pharma/health industry in the 2023-2024 cycle alone, ranking him among the top Senate recipients.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, the biggest obstacle to medical freedom and reforming the vaccine cartel got crushed yesterday in the Louisiana GOP primary. Cassidy has stood in the way of every reform proposed by RFKJ, opposed the appointment of anybody who would change the current corrupt… pic.twitter.com/pfJFr22cB0

— Autism Action Network (@AutismActionNet) May 17, 2026

The last time a sitting US Senator lost their seat in a primary was in 2012, when longtime Sen. Dick Lugar (R-IN) lost his Republican primary to Richard Mourdock. 

🚨 HOLY CRAP! RINO Sen. Bill Cassidy just got completely SHUT OUT of his Senate seat — not only getting pummeled by Trump-backed Julia Letlow, but also losing to John Fleming, who got 2nd

This is the first time in nearly 15 YEARS a sitting US Senator lost their primary in a… https://t.co/1zvNKA5K7v pic.twitter.com/OxBTYO6dNq

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 17, 2026

Letlow, meanwhile, is your standard issue conservative. The Louisiana congresswoman has a solidly right-leaning congressional record. She earned Trump’s full backing after Cassidy voted to convict him, and she campaigned on core America First priorities including border security, energy production, and opposition to woke policies.

While critics on the right point to her membership in the more moderate Main Street Caucus, slightly softer Club for Growth scores on spending, and past academic work involving DEI language, these are relatively minor compared to her overall alignment with Republican and MAGA priorities. In the context of Louisiana’s deep-red politics, Letlow represents a clear shift away from Cassidy-style establishment Republicanism toward a more Trump-aligned Senate candidate heading into the June runoff.

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 16:55

Largest Ukrainian Drone Attack On Moscow In Over A Year Leaves Four Dead

The Russian capital has just suffered possibly its single biggest and deadliest Ukrainian drone attack of the war - and certainly the largest attack wave on Moscow in the last year. It ironically comes exactly a week after President Zelensky signed on to a three day Russian 'Victory Day' ceasefire at the behest of President Trump. It also comes after several days of major Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukraine.

At least four people have been killed in the overnight large-scale assault wave, with dozens more wounded. Regional airports have been shut down, and there's been a sense of panic as the threat lingered into the daylight hours Sunday, with onlookers filming drones flying uncontested over Moscow airspace. 

via Telegram

"A woman died in Khimki, north of Moscow, and a person was trapped under rubble, regional governor Andrei Vorobiev said. A man and a woman were killed in the village of Pogorelki," BBC reports, citing local authorities.

Additionally, "A male Indian citizen was killed and three others injured, India's Moscow embassy said, but it was not clear whether these casualties were included in Vorobiev's tally. Another person died in Belgorod region bordering Ukraine."

The regional governor said that residences were on fire, with a home in the village of Subbotino, southwest of Moscow, being one of them. 

Reports say the attack marks the first time of the entire 4+ year long war that Ukraine directly struck a Moscow oil refinery, considered to be the most protected energy facility in the country, with multiple strikes landing on target.

Moment of attack on Moscow refinery:

For the first time, Ukraine has managed to hit the Moscow oil refinery, the most protected facility in the country - multiple strikes. pic.twitter.com/0CE3rYACwJ

— Jay in Kyiv (@JayinKyiv) May 17, 2026

Hours-long fire at the key refinery...

Among other burning Russian things across Moscow today, fires at Moscow's massive Solnechnogorsk oil facility continue to spread, 8 hours after Ukraine's strikes. pic.twitter.com/RDFOS8zMm6

— Jay in Kyiv (@JayinKyiv) May 17, 2026

Some eyewitness accounts said at one point drones were seen flying in formation over Moscow, as if to make a mockery of Russian anti-air defense.

Ukraine's drone swarms have long proven a major problem for Russia's military, being small and low to the ground, able to evade expensive air defenses which were designed to intercept larger, faster inbound projectiles like rockets or aircraft.

Overnight, Russia's defense ministry said 556 drones were intercepted around the country. Some 130 of them were intercepted in the Moscow region alone, but clearly at least dozens still made it through.

Ukriane hitting Moscow today… multiple times pic.twitter.com/iDu4rBqHct

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) May 17, 2026

Amid the suicide UAV attack mayhem, Sheremetyevo - Russia's busiest airport that serves Moscow - suffered drone damage and falling debris, but there were no reports of injury at the airport.

"The situation in the passenger terminals is calm. Sheremetyevo Airport is providing stable passenger and aircraft services," airport officials said.

There have also been dramatic scenes of massive fires just underneath busy highways, causing panicked drivers to try and get past the flames quickly and safely, and watching the skies above.

Damage at Sheremetyevo airport...

via X

Ukrainian President Zelensky later owned up to authorizing the attack, saying the strikes were an "entirely justified" response to the last several days of Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities, including Kiev. This past week saw massive Russian attacks, which killed seven bystanders and wounded many more, including children.

Rare moment of chaos and fear over Moscow...

Moscow. Drone attack continues right now. Our local correspondent reports air defense activity directly above him. https://t.co/1Y7rrdEsjB pic.twitter.com/bMgFm6NCpT

— WarTranslated (@wartranslated) May 17, 2026

The tit-for-tat drone hits have increasingly expanded to include civilian neighborhoods on either side of the border, sadly. The ground war has lately been largely stale-mated, with Russia having the clear edge, but the air war has been heating up - with both sides suffering serious damage, particularly at energy sites.

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 15:45

YouTube, Snap, And TikTok Settle Kentucky School District's Social Media Addiction Claims

Authored by Kimberly Hayek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

YouTube, Snap, and TikTok have settled a Kentucky school district’s claims that the platforms fueled a youth mental health crisis that the school district said it was forced to manage.

The Breathitt County School District in rural eastern Kentucky still plans to take Meta Platforms, parent of Facebook and Instagram, to trial on June 15.

The agreements, detailed in federal court filings on Friday, are among the first set for trial in more than 1,200 similar lawsuits filed by school districts nationwide.

“This matter has been amicably resolved and our focus remains on building age-appropriate products and parental controls that deliver on that promise,” a YouTube spokesperson said in a statement.

Snap and TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The district had sought more than $60 million to cover costs of countering social media’s effects on students and to fund a 15-year mental health program. It also asked the court to order changes to reduce addictive features on the platforms. Terms of the agreements were not disclosed.

More than 3,300 addiction-related lawsuits are pending in California state courts. Another 2,400 cases filed by individuals, cities, states, and school districts have been filed in the California federal court.

The companies have denied the allegations. They say they already take extensive steps to protect teens and young users.

The settlements come weeks after a landmark verdict in a related individual case.

In March, a jury found Meta and Google’s YouTube negligent and awarded $6 million to a 20-year-old woman identified in court records as K.G.M. or Kaley G.M., who argued she suffered depression, body dysmorphia, anxiety, and suicidal ideation as a result of being addicted to the social media apps.

K.G.M.’s case focused narrowly on how design and function—including features such as notifications, “infinite scroll,” and the companies’ proprietary algorithms—rather than third-party content, may have led to alleged psychological harms.

Meta and YouTube executives testified that they do not design their platforms to be addictive.

K.G.M.’s attorneys said the evidence clearly shows that leadership at both Meta and YouTube knew of the harms associated with preteen use, that young people with other co-stressors were particularly vulnerable, and that they went after that demographic anyway, introducing features such as vertical video feeds to compete with rivals such as Snapchat.

Like K.G.M.’s case, the Breathitt County School District’s agreement is one of a handful of bellwether trials expected to have a profound bearing on thousands of related, consolidated civil injury lawsuits brought by parents, children, school districts, and district attorneys.

Reuters and Beige Luciano-Adams contributed to this report.

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 15:10

DOJ Probes BlackRock Private Credit Fund Valuations After Dramatic Repricings

It all started in late January, just before the Blue Owl debacle and the SAAS-palcypse sparked a historic crash in private credit. 

It was then that in a rare off-cycle disclosure, BlackRock TCP Capital Corp., a publicly traded private-credit fund structured as a business development company (BDC), disclosed a 19% markdown in net asset value as troubled loans weighed on performance. The news not only sent shares of the fund plunging 13% on Jan. 26, the most since March 2020 but market one of the first major private credit signal woes of the new year; it certainly wouldn't be the last. 

The credit fund told investors that NAV fell from $8.71 as of Sept. 30 to $7.05 to $7.09, or about a 19% markdown. "This decline is primarily driven by issuer-specific developments during the quarter," the fund said.

Two months later, in early March, it went from bad to worse for Blackrock's private credit fund when the asset manager slashed the value of a private loan in its portfolio to zero just three months after assessing it at 100 cents on the dollar, marking the second sudden wipeout to recently hit its private-credit division.

The $25 million loan to Infinite Commerce Holdings, an Amazon aggregator that buys up online sellers of products from spa treatments to light bulbs, was suddenly worthless, BlackRock TCP Capital Corp reported in fourth-quarter filings released last week. The fund had marked the junior debt at 100 cents on the dollar in the third quarter. In other words, total wipeout in 3 months.

The write-off came just months after Infinite Commerce merged with another aggregator (and BlackRock debtor), Razor Group, in August, creating the new debt structure valued at par. Previously, BlackRock had valued loans to Razor at a deeply distressed level. Because financial engineering. 

As a result of these bizarre quantized "repricing events" a number of class-action lawsuits were filed on behalf of investors that claim it made “materially false” statements and that Blackrock didn’t properly value its loans.

The final step in this particular lack-of-redemption arc came n Friday when Bloomberg reported that federal prosecutors are scrutinizing valuation practices at a BlackRock's private credit fund. 

The Manhattan US Attorney’s office in recent months has been seeking information about BlackRock TCP Capital Corp., while executives of the BDC have been questioned as part of the probe.

Jay Clayton, who runs the SDNY and was previously SEC commissioner under Trump 1.0, said in November he was concerned about how firms value private assets - and that “people should know that the financial regulators and the department are looking at those.”

Blackrock's Janauary portfolio markdown was among the starkest examples of how quickly valuations can change in the $1.8 trillion private credit market. Investors in BDCs rely on the values ascribed to the loans, since there is no active market where the assets trade. Marks are therefore a key factor in determining at what price investors can enter or exit the fund, and they also impact the fees managers collect from the vehicles. 

Funds like BlackRock’s TCPC typically only report quarterly. That’s what made the January disclosure, stating a preliminary net asset value per share of between $7.05 and $7.09, so unusual.  About a month later it officially calculated the fourth-quarter figure at $7.07, sharply down from $8.71 at the end of the prior period.

BlackRock acquired TCP from Tennenbaum Capital Partners in 2018. Since its acquisition of HPS Investment Partners last year, HPS executives have come in to help manage the embattled vehicle, taking three spots on the fund’s seven-member investment committee.

In response to investor outrage over mismarked loans, private equity giant Apollo Global has stepped up efforts to provide liquidity and price transparency in the private-credit market, where assets don’t typically change hands. Two weeks ago, the firm said more than $830 billion of its credit assets will be priced daily by the end of September.

However, that sparked an angry response from other industry players such as PIMCO, whose strategist Lotfi Karoui wrote that more frequently marking assets does little to improve transparency or accuracy in the $1.8 trillion private credit market: “The debate over daily pricing in private credit portfolios has evolved from a narrow accounting question into a proposed remedy for the market’s dispersed — and often stale — valuations."

“Attempts to increase liquidity — the ability to buy or sell an asset quickly, in size, and at prices reflecting fundamental values — are welcome developments,” Karoui wrote Yet until these efforts address the market’s inherent structural constraints, including a lack of true price discovery, they will only increase the perception of liquidity without truly improving liquidity.”

Pimco, an early critic of the private credit industry, has been vocal about the risks in direct-lending markets and has taken the other side of the bet by hunting for emerging problems in private-credit-backed companies.

“Price-mark dispersion for loans held across multiple business development company portfolios has widened sharply in recent quarters,” Karoui wrote. By the end of last year, “marks for the same instrument were, on average, about five points apart,” he added. “These gaps are difficult to reconcile with the notion of arm’s-length fair value determinations for identical assets.”

And that's precisely why the DOJ is now involved.

Tyler Durden Sun, 05/17/2026 - 14:35