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The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has said it will give the subjects of investigations more time at the outset to respond to notices of potential charges and an opportunity to meet with staff within four weeks, as the agency moves to update its internal enforcement protocols, which were last published in 2017. The updated enforcement manual will ensure "greater uniformity," SEC enforcement director Margaret Ryan said. "We're trying to be more efficient. This gives [subjects of probes] enough time to focus on legal or factual issues and to respond in a meaningful way," Ryan added. "We're hoping to underscore the importance of open, informed dialogue." Robert Frenchman, a defense lawyer with Dynamis, said: "More predictability is a good thing here. In the past, the process was very ad hoc and informal."

 

Reuters

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Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee have announced the launch of an investigation about whether the Justice Department purposefully withheld materials in its release of the Jeffrey Epstein files that included sexual assault claims against President Donald Trump. Ranking member Robert Garcia, D-Calif., wants Attorney General Pam Bondi to explain why what appear to be dozens of pages of interviews and interview notes related to allegations of sexual abuse against Trump were not among three million pages released in recent months. “Under the oversight committee’s subpoena and the Epstein Files Transparency Act, these records must immediately be shared with Congress and the American public,” Garcia said. “Covering up direct evidence of a potential assault by the president of the United States is the most serious possible crime in this White House cover-up.” When asked for comment, the White House referred to a recent X post which denies any wrongdoing in the way the files are being handled. 

 

NPR

Politico

The Guardian

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) anticipates a robust U.S. economy over the coming year, forecasting a 2.4% growth in GDP for the fourth quarter of 2026, up from 2.2% the previous year. Unemployment is expected to decrease from 4.5% in late 2025 to 4.1% in 2026, with inflation projected to meet the Federal Reserve's 2% target by 2027. However, IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva cautioned that rising federal debts, projected to reach nearly 110% of GDP by 2031, pose a significant risk to stability. Georgieva noted that trade policies could hinder economic performance, describing them as "a headwind to even stronger growth."

 

Bloomberg

Financial Times

US News and World Report

Wall Street Journal

U.S. home-price growth cooled in December to its slowest annual rate in more than a decade, as high mortgage rates and persistent inflation continued to pressure buyers. The S&P Cotality Case-Shiller National Home Price Index rose 1.3% in the 12 months through December, down slightly from November’s 1.4% increase. It marked the weakest full-year gain since 2011. According to S&P Dow Jones Indices, inflation has outpaced home-price appreciation since mid-2025, eroding real home values and reversing a long-standing trend of positive real returns. Elevated borrowing costs have also weighed on the market, with the 30-year mortgage rate ending 2025 at 6.2%, well above its 10-year average of 4.8%. At the metro level, Chicago, New York, Cleveland and Minneapolis posted the strongest annual gains, while Tampa, Denver, Phoenix, Dallas and Miami recorded the steepest declines.

 

Barron's

Wall Street Journal

A full federal appeals court is exploring the Trump administration's efforts to fire most employees at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Judges at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia appeared skeptical of White House claims that federal courts do not have the power to block the government from firing 90% of workers at the consumer financial watchdog.  Deputy Assistant Attorney General Eric McArthur told the full bench of 11 judges that a specialized labor panel known as the Merit Systems Protection Board was the place for workers to challenge their firings and acknowledged that the administration did not have the power to shut the CFPB down entirely because Congress mandated that it exist.

 

Bloomberg Law

Reuters

A group of 14 law firms representing nearly 20,000 plaintiffs is seeking to intervene in Bayer’s proposed class action settlement over alleged injuries from its Roundup weedkiller. They have urged a Missouri judge to delay reviewing the German agrochemical company’s proposed $7.25bn nationwide settlement, saying the deal will not be fair to cancer sufferers and their families. “It is hard to escape the impression that the proposed settlement would give Monsanto everything it desires – a near-complete release of liability for Monsanto and its parent company, Bayer AG – while giving inadequate consideration to many putative class members, who would surrender their substantive rights in exchange for settlement offers that may never result in payment,” the law firms said.

 

Reuters

The Guardian

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is suing a Coca-Cola bottling company for discrimination over a networking event it held for female employees at a casino resort, as the Trump administration cracks down on corporate diversity initiatives. The agency claims the company violated civil rights laws by not inviting male staff to the event, which included a social reception, team-building activities and recreational events, while excusing female attendees from work on full pay. Around 250 women attended the overnight gathering. The EEOC is seeking compensation and punitive damages for male employees, arguing the company acted with “malicious and/or reckless indifference”. The company’s lawyer said the event complied with existing EEOC regulations and expressed confidence the company would be vindicated in court. Coca-Cola Beverages Northeast, owned by Japan’s Kirin Holdings, is the defendant; Coca-Cola itself is not involved.

 

Financial Times

Jefferson City News Journal

The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) has said that a lack of standard procedures at Pemex's Deer Park refinery led to a gas leak that killed two workers. On October 10, 2024, workers opened a flange on a pipe, releasing 27,000 pounds of hydrogen sulfide. The gas concentration reached 500 parts per million, prompting shelter-in-place orders in nearby areas. The CSB noted that clearer markings for line opening activities could have prevented the incident. 

 

U.S. News

A study reveals that nearly 90% of trading in leveraged single-stock ETFs in the U.S. is conducted by retail investors. The number of these ETFs has increased by 318% since January 2025, highlighting the growing attraction of speculative investments among individual traders. Despite this surge, the SEC has resisted requests from asset managers to expand the availability of leveraged products.

 

Reuters

Apple is to shift some production of its Mac Mini desktop computer to the U.S. from Asia. A new manufacturing effort is set to begin later this year at a Foxconn facility in north Houston, said Sabih Khan, Apple’s chief operating officer. The company is also expanding the Houston facility to include a new training center for advanced manufacturing.

 

Wall Street Journal

CME Group has resumed trading in U.S. natural gas and metals futures following a technical glitch that caused a halt of over 30 minutes on Wednesday, marking the second significant interruption within a month in the heavily traded commodities market. The disruptions affected trading on the Globex electronic platform, raising concerns about the reliability of the trading infrastructure. The company confirmed that services for gas futures and options have now restarted.

 

Bloomberg

The governor of Italy's southern ⁠Calabria region is rebuffing Washington's ​effort to halt the recruitment of medics from Cuba. Doctors from the Caribbean island are seen as essential to ⁠keeping ⁠local hospitals running, and Roberto Occhiuto said he had ‌told Mike Hammer, the U.S. charge ‌d'affaires to Cuba, he would review plans to hire even more Cuban doctors this year. In January, the US said that Cuba posed an "unusual and extraordinary ​threat" to national security. "We discussed the urgent ⁠needs ⁠of Calabria's health system and ⁠the complexities surrounding ​the Cuban doctors' mission," Occhiuto said after the talks with Hammer. "The Cuban doctors who are allowing us ​to keep hospitals and emergency rooms ⁠open are still a necessity for our region," he added.

 

U.S. News