Updated throughout the day
September 1
Good evening,
China continues to roil the markets: U.S. markets closed about 3% lower all around. The Dow lost 2.8%, after falling 2% right at the open. The S&P 500 fell 3% and the Nasdaq dropped 2.9%. Oil slid about 8%, but continues to float just above $45/barrel. Car sales are bit more robust than expected and are likely to maintain their 17 million annualized pace for the fourth month in a row. The manufacturing orders report was a disappointment, still expanding but less than expected at 51.1%.
Here’s what else you need to know:
Police officer fatally shot near Chicago. The Lake County officer was killed Tuesday morning while pursuing three suspects on foot. Police are currently looking for the suspects. CNN
Kentucky clerk continues to defy court. Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis is refusing to issue marriage licences to same-sex couples, citing “God’s authority” over the U.S. Supreme Court. Two gay and two straight couples filed a federal lawsuit against Davis in July after she refused to issue any marriage licenses. Davis may face fines if held in contempt of court. Reuters
Pope Francis wants to forgive abortions. The pope announced Tuesday that all priests can absolve Catholics of the sin of abortion during the upcoming Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy. The holy year, beginning December 8, is meant to focus on spiritual renewal. Only bishops have traditionally held the authority to forgive the gravest sins, including abortion, but in the past they have sometimes shared that power with priests. The pope’s announcement doesn’t give a pass on abortion for Catholics, but instead offers the opportunity of forgiveness and a change of heart in the Church. TIME
Netflix ends relationship with Epix. The streaming service decided not to renew a deal with film distributor Epix, effecting pulling top movies including Hunger Games and Transformers. Netflix says it wants to focus more on exclusive content. Hulu is snapping up the Epix films for its subscribers instead. BBC
Calpers, Calstrs want to separate Bank of America’s CEO and Chairman roles. The two giant California pensions announced Monday that they would join shareholders in opposing the bylaw change that would allow Brian Moynihan to hold both roles in the company. Calpers and Calstrs, the two largest U.S. public pensions, hold a total of 63.6 million Bank of America shares, less than 1% of the total shares outstanding. Wall Street Journal
U.S. to sanction Chinese hackers. The White House is reportedly creating sanctions against Chinese individuals and companies as U.S. tech firms – and the government itself – worry about the growing threat of China’s cyber-espionage. Financial Times
UN confirms Palmyra temple destruction. A satellite image has confirmed that the main temple in the ancient city of Palmyra in northern Syria has been destroyed, the United Nations says. This follows reports of an explosion at the Temple of Bel which is held by militants from the Islamic State. BBC
Greek PMI…climbs? First we had the U.S. dictating oil prices, then we had China leading the stock markets, and now this? Joking aside, Greek manufacturing posted some pretty good gains in August, climbing to 39.1 from 30.2 reading the previous month. It still has a long way to go to hit the 50 mark though. Financial Times
You won’t believe this…
Google has a new logo. The still colorful logo has straightened out some of the letters in its name. Google, which now operates under the umbrella Alphabet, says that the logo change was necessary because people are viewing the logo on many different mobile devices. BBC
September 1 is the worst day for suicides in Japan. More than 18,000 children under the age of 18 committed suicide in Japan between 1972 and 2013. Suicides spike on September 1, the day children head back to school. Japan has one of the highest suicide rates in the world, and suicide is the leading cause of death for people between the ages of 15 and 39 in the country. CNN
Lucky lottery winner not so lucky after all. Danny Chasteen and his girlfriend, Susan Rick, won $250,000 in last month’s lottery. Unfortunately for them, they won it in cash-strapped Illinois, so they only got an IOU. Incensed, Chasteen told the Tribune: “You know what’s funny? If we owed the state money, they’d come take it, and they don’t care whether we have a roof over our head.” Poor dude. MarketWatch
Photo: Jamie McCaffrey