Unusual Whales

Beer and wine sales in Canada fall to an all-time low

Beer and wine sales in Canada fall to an all-time low, per BBC. From 2021-22, volume of beer sold per person in Canada slumped drastically. The volume in wine sales slid by its largest margin since 1949. Although overall alcohol sales based on volume decreased, total sales were up 2.

AI

UBS Global Wealth Management expects AI to become a $90 billion industry by 2025

Per Business Insider UBS Global Wealth Management shares its bullish sentiments on AI amid the popularity of ChatGPT. It estimates that the artificial intelligence industry will reach $90 billion by 2025. The group estimates that there will be a 20% compound annual growth rate for AI hardware and services. The

amazon

Amazon employees get the option to use stock as equity to finance homes with Better.com

Per Tech Crunch Amid employees' struggles with buying property, Amazon has provided a solution that lets employees use their vested equity as collateral to buy a home. The retailer achieved this through a partnership with Better.com, an online mortgage lender. This comes at a time when housing has

twitter

Twitter encrypted DMs along the pipeline of Elon Musk's aims this month

Per Tech Crunch Elon Musk has long discussed adding new features to Twitter, including a longer character count and another evident feature, the view count. Now, the CEO says that other features he aims to roll out this month include the ability to reply to individual DMs with reaction emojis

amazon go

Amazon plans to close eight cashier-less Go convenience stores: Seattle, New York City, and San Francisco locations affected

Per USA Today Amazon has disclosed that it will be closing eight out of its over 20 cashier-less Go convenience stores. The company will close "two in Seattle, two in New York, and four in San Diego." The affected stores will shut down on April 1, but they

housing crisis

Housing is now at almost four-decade-high unaffordable levels, with first-time buyers needing to earn as much as $90,000 in 2022

Per Bloomberg The average American buyer faces one of the most unaffordable housing markets, where first-time buyers would need to earn as much as $90,000 in 2022. Now, housing prices sit at an almost four-decade-high unaffordable level. In 2019, first-time buyers needed to earn about $70,000, but in

1/3 of investors say they need $3 million to retire comfortably

1/3 of investors say they need $3 million to retire comfortably, with another 1/3 say they need $5 million, per Bloomberg: Meanwhile, a report by TransAmerica Center for Retirement studies dove into the average savings of different age groups, namely Gen Z, Gen Y (millennials), Gen X, and

OpenAI could replace numerous jobs

ChatGPT will replace these jobs, per BI: - Software engineers - Data analysts - Advertising - Journalism - Paralegals - Market Research analysts - Teachers - Financial analysts - Graphic designers - Accountants - Customer service agents The creator of ChatGPT, OpenAI, is also hiring additional contractors to help with

Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway has said: The world is full of foolish gamblers, and they will not do as well as the patient investor.

Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway has said: The world is full of foolish gamblers, and they will not do as well as the patient investor. The 99-year-old Munger also gave a statement regarding crypto in a piece in The Wall Street Journal. The op-ed piece included his thoughts on cryptocurrency,

Newton's lost fortune

This is funny. If you thought you had difficulty in the market, Isaac Newton lost all his fortune. The chart below shows how: "I can calculate the movement of stars, but not the madness of men," Newton apparently said after he lost his fortune. This is a chart

Rail unions tell Biden officials workers have fallen ill at Norfolk Southern, $NSC, derailment site where toxic chemicals were spilled

Rail unions tell Biden officials workers have fallen ill at Norfolk Southern, $NSC, derailment site where toxic chemicals were spilled. “My hope is the stakeholders in this industry can work towards the same goals related to safety when transporting hazardous materials by rail,” said Mike Baldwin, president of the Brotherhood

Another Norfolk Southern, NSC, train has derailed in Ohio

Another Norfolk Southern, $NSC, train has derailed in Ohio, per Reuters. Currently the local officials have asked the residents to shelter in place. Norfolk Southern said the train that derailed near Springfield, Ohio was not carrying any hazardous materials and that no one was hurt. "No hazardous materials are

California is weighing on $360,000 in reparations to eligible black residents

California is weighing on $360,000 in reparations to eligible black residents, per Bloomberg. One of the models under consideration suggests the state would owe a total of almost $640 billion to 1.8 million Black Californians with an ancestor enslaved in the US, per Bloomberg. California’s task force

The Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission are hunting for a new type of insider-trading case

The Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission are hunting for a new type of insider-trading case, specifically prearranged trading plans, per WSJ. The SEC first permitted such plans through a regulation passed in 2000 and known as Rule 10b5-1. The 10b5-1 regulation had loopholes, such as the ability

Costco, $COST, is keeping the price of its hotdog at $1.50

Costco, $COST, is keeping the price of its hotdog at $1.50, despite inflation. The wholesale retailer saw a slight miss in quarterly revenue, coming in at $55.27 billion, but up 6.5% from a year ago. Meanwhile net sales saw a 6.5% increase, to $54.24 billion,

crypto.com

Crypto.com sues a woman for using the $10.5 million accidentally sent to her after she asked for a $100 refund

Per Decrypt An Australian woman asked Crypto.com for a $100 refund, and instead of being sent the exact amount, $10.5 million was sent to her account. Now, the company is suing her after she bought a luxury house and went on a spending spree. 7news shared how Crypto.

morgan stanley

Morgan Stanley warns that the 2023 stock rally is a "bull trap"

Per Business Insider Morgan Stanley warns against investors getting too positive in the recent stock rally. The company is saying that this could just be a "bull trap" and that investors have to brace themselves for what's to come. Mike Wilson gave a statement sharing how

openai

Walmart blocked ChatGPT with new guidelines barring employees from sharing customer info with the AI tool

Per Business Insider Walmart Global Tech has decided to take a strong stance against using ChatGPT by employees. The company has decided to block the use of the AI bot with new guidelines saying employees shouldn't share any customer info with the tool. An internal memo to employees

cash

Cash trumps stock-bond portfolios for the first time since 2001

For the first time since 2001, cash has outperformed having a stock-bond portfolio. This meant that individuals could get more out of cash instead of the regular stock-bond portfolio. Specifically, the stock-bond portfolio referred to the classic 60/40 of having short-term bonds in the portfolio. Since 2008, the returns

retirement

Q4 2022 average individual retirement account balance at $104,000 after a 20% drop

Per CNBC Americans' average individual retirement account savings have dropped significantly in the fourth quarter of 2022. After a 20% drop year-over-year, Americans have just $104,000 in their retirement savings accounts. Fidelity's president of workspace investing, Kevin Barry, gave a statement regarding how Americans were affected

Apple, AAPL, iPhone maker Foxconn plans $700 million plant in India, in shift away from China

Apple, $AAPL, iPhone maker Foxconn plans $700 million plant in India, in shift away from China, per Bloomberg. Taiwan’s Foxconn is already making latest iPhones in India. Apple suppliers look to lower reliance on China production, per Bloomberg. In January, Apple is making its presence known in India as

The Federal Reserve's Christopher Waller speech was scrapped after a participant hijacked the feed and displayed pornographic content that was visible to viewers

The Federal Reserve's Christopher Waller  speech was scrapped after a participant hijacked the feed and displayed pornographic content that was visible to viewers, per Bloomberg. “We were a victim of a teleconference or Zoom hijacking and we are trying to understand what we need to do going forward

US to announce new military aid package for Ukraine

US to announce new military aid package for Ukraine, per Reuters. This is worth roughly $400 million and comprised mainly of ammunition. On Feb 20, Biden was in Ukraine in a surprise visit. He pledged another $460 million in Ukraine assistance. "One year later, Kyiv stands,” Biden said. “And

Mortgage applications for home purchases fall to a 28-year low

Mortgage applications for home purchases fall to a 28-year low, per Michael Kantro. Meanwhile, the average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage jumped back over 7%, rising to 7.1%, per CNBC. “Rates continue to move at the suggestion of economic data, and the data hasn’t been friendly. This

Existing condos have worst year on year drop since 2000 in January

Existing condo sales in January undercut their pandemic low, -43.1% year/year drop is worst on record going back to 2000, per Liz Ann Sonders. Meanwhile, the average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage jumped back over 7%, rising to 7.1%, per CNBC. “Rates continue to move at