Unusual Whales

congress

After the Penny, Congress Is Coming for the Nickel

The penny is dead, and now Congress has its sights set on the nickel. A new bill would let the Treasury test a cheaper metal mix for the 5-cent coin, because making one costs nearly 13 cents. It cost 13.31 cents to produce a single nickel in fiscal

peter schiff

Peter Schiff Says the 10-Year Treasury Will Top 5.5%, Mortgage Rates Will Pass 8%

Peter Schiff is sounding the alarm on bonds again. The economist says the 10-year Treasury yield will soon break 5.5%, and if it does, mortgage rates will climb above 8%. The 10-year is already near 5.3%, its highest level since 2002. The 30-year Treasury has

treasury

10-Year Treasury Yield Hits Highest Level Since 2002 as Global Bond Selloff Deepens

5.34% and climbing as traders brace for a key bond sale The 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 5.34% on Thursday, its highest level since 2002, as a global bond selloff pushed borrowing costs to multidecade highs across the U.S., France, Britain and Japan. The move marked

tariffs

Tariffs Are on the Ballot: 75% of Voters Say They Will Shape the Midterm Vote, per Cato Poll

Three in four voters say tariffs decide their vote Tariffs are on the ballot, per the Cato Institute. A new Cato/Morning Consult poll of 4,150 registered voters finds 75% say tariffs will matter to their midterm vote, including 35% who say the issue is very important. The survey,

cdc

America's Fatigue Epidemic: 71.5% of Adults Say They Are Exhausted, per CDC

Nearly three in four adults are running on empty About 71.5% of U.S. adults say they experienced fatigue on at least some days over the past three months, making exhaustion one of the most common health complaints in the country. The findings come from the CDC's

iran

The Iran Conflict Has Already Cost Every American Household $1,760, per Moody's

A $1,760 bill nobody itemized The total bill per household since the U.S.-Iran conflict began is around $1,760, according to an analysis from Moody's Analytics as of September 11. "Consumers are under a lot of financial pressure," said Mark Zandi, chief economist

measles

US Measles Cases Hit Worst Year in 35 Years, per CDC

Cases top 3,200 as 2026 shatters last year's record The CDC has confirmed 3,294 measles cases so far this year, making 2026 the worst year for the disease in the United States since 1991. The total easily surpassed the 2,289 cases logged during all of

erebor

Palmer Luckey's Erebor Bank Tops $7 Billion in Deposits

Palmer Luckey's bank is on a tear. Erebor, the tech-focused bank founded by the Oculus creator and Anduril co-founder, has surged to more than $7 billion in deposits since launching in February, adding over $3 billion and more than 500 new customers in just the past

russia

US Strongly Advises Against Travel to Russia Amid Suspected Plague Scare

The United States is strongly advising Americans against traveling to Russia as Washington monitors reports of a suspected pneumonic plague case in the Siberian region of Irkutsk. The case centers on Darya Shipilova, a 28-year-old laboratory worker at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute. Independent outlet Lyudi Baikala reported

commercial real estate

Rising Rates Are Blowing Up Commercial Real-Estate Deals

A growing number of commercial real-estate buyers are threatening to walk away from recent transactions unless sellers offer better terms. Rapidly rising interest rates are to blame, and investors who agreed to a purchase price earlier this year when financing was cheaper are now demanding price cuts or other

Oil

Americans Have Spent Over $100 Billion More on Fuel During the Iran War

The war with Iran is sticking Americans with a 12-figure bill at the pump. U.S. consumers have collectively spent about $107 billion more on gasoline and diesel during the Iran conflict than they would have without the war, according to estimates by the Climate Solutions Lab at Brown

trade

U.S. Trade Deficit Balloons to $105.6 Billion in August

The U.S. trade deficit just got bigger. The gap in goods and services trade grew 13.7% from the prior month to $105.6 billion in August, Commerce Department data showed Oct. 6. That missed expectations: economists projected a $102.1 billion shortfall, based on the median estimate in

Markets

Fewer Americans Want CEOs Sounding Off on Politics, Bloomberg Reports

Fewer Americans are interested in hearing CEOs' opinions on political or social issues, especially if it has nothing to do with the company's business, according to a new study from Stanford University reported by Bloomberg. Just 55% of Americans said CEOs of large companies should advocate for

bonds

The Bond Sell-Off Is Coming for Corporate America

Corporate America is feeling the bond sell-off as rising Treasury yields force companies to rethink their borrowing plans. As U.S. Treasury yields rise, some companies are being forced to rethink how and when they borrow. If yields stay this high, investors say we might start seeing more defaults,

Economy

U.S. Economy Hits 78 Straight Months Without a Recession

The U.S. economy just keeps expanding. The economy has now gone 78 straight months without a recession, the sixth-longest expansion since 1854, per NBER data. That's well above the long-term average of about 49 months, and the median of about 38 months. The record still

energy

Trump Signs Executive Order Opening Tax-Free Red Diesel to Cut Record Fuel Prices

President Donald Trump signed an executive order late Monday aimed at bringing down near-record diesel prices by waiving restrictions on cheaper red-dyed diesel. The order, unveiled at a campaign event in Nebraska, amounts to a pre-election tax holiday. Red-dyed diesel is the same as regular diesel.

Politics

Trump Calls Iran War Costs "a Small Price to Pay," Says Iran Could "Take Out" LA and San Diego

President Donald Trump told supporters in Nebraska that the economic fallout from the war with Iran is "just artificial" and "a small price to pay," adding that Iran could "take out" a major American city like Los Angeles or San Diego. "And again,

bank of america

Bank of America Says the Easy Money From the AI Trade Is Over

The era of effortless gains from riding the AI spending wave is ending, according to Bank of America. Investors are likely to find it increasingly hard to make "easy money" by betting on outsized returns from artificial intelligence-linked capital expenditures compared with consumer-driven spending, according to

Michael Burry

Michael Burry: The Market Is in Denial, and Denial Lasts 6 to 9 Months

Michael Burry says the stock market is in its first stage of grief, denial, a phase that lasted six to nine months in both 2000 and 2008. The "Big Short" investor posted the warning on X on Tuesday, writing: "The stock market is quite obviously in its

Politics

Trump Approves Firing Squad Execution for Fort Hood Shooter Nidal Hasan

President Donald Trump has approved the use of a firing squad for the execution of Nidal Hasan, who was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 others in the 2009 mass shooting at Fort Hood in Texas. The Pentagon announced Monday night that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recommended death

healthcare

Trump Says "Nearly $100" Checks Headed to 20 Million Seniors

On Friday, Trump announced the payments in a Truth Social post, saying the money will come from the Medicare Improvement Fund. His post: "I am pleased to announce that my Administration will, immediately, begin sending 'Checks' of nearly $100 to over 20 MILLION wonderful Seniors to help

Macro

Texas Economy Hits $2.9 Trillion, Bigger Than Canada and Italy

Texas produced roughly $2.9 trillion of economic output in 2025. That is per preliminary U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis estimates, and Governor Abbott's April 17, 2026 press release called it a record high. In the Texas Comptroller's comparison with national economies, that places Texas

AI

Musk to Rename SpaceXAI to SpaceXSI After Trump's "Superintelligence" Order

SpaceXAI itself was created only a few months ago in July, after SpaceX acquired xAI in a $1.25 trillion deal that consolidated the two companies. Now it is getting a new name. Elon Musk confirmed on X that SpaceXAI will be renamed SpaceXSI, replying "Yes, we will make

AI

Bill Gates: AI Is "The Most Dangerous Thing Humans Have Ever Gone Near"

"A.I. has crossed the threshold that its ability to empower a bioterrorist to kill hundreds of millions—that exists today," he said. Bill Gates made the remarks on the New York Times' Ezra Klein Show, published September 29. Two days earlier, on NBC's Meet

Geopolitics

White House Monitoring Suspected Plague Case in Russia

A Trump administration official told Axios that the White House is aware of the situation in Russia's Irkutsk region in Siberia. "The administration is aware, monitoring the outbreak, and assessing options," the official said Sunday. The case: Daria Shipilova, 28, a lab technician at the Irkutsk