Beijing’s secret plan to divide Russia after Putin’s defeat in Ukraine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qj33kXfxReo
Citigroup beats second-quarter estimates as markets and banking revenues jump
-Citigroup reported total markets revenue that was higher by 16% versus the same period a year ago.
-Banking was another bright spot, with revenue up 18% over the second quarter of 2024.
-“Volatility is going to, I suspect, be a feature not a bug of the new world order, and we will benefit from that,” CEO Jane Fraser said.
Citigroug reported second-quarter results on Tuesday that topped analyst expectations, helping to boost a stock that has already been outperforming the broader market.
Citigroup’s net income of $4.02 billion climbed 25% from the same quarter last year. Here’s how the bank’s results compared with Wall Street expectations:
-Earnings: $1.96 per share vs $1.60 per estimate from LSEG
-Revenue: $21.67 billion vs $20.98 billion estimate
Shares of Citigroup rose 3.7% after the report.
The firm’s revenue rose 8% from $20 billion a year earlier as it saw growth across its major business groups. Citigroup reported total markets revenue that was higher by 16% versus the same period a year ago. Equity revenue alone rose 6% year over year, and was up 7% from the first quarter.
Banking was another bright spot, with revenue up 18% over the second quarter of 2024, even with losses on loan hedges.
“We’re improving the performance of each of our businesses to take share and drive higher returns,” CEO Jane Fraser said in a statement. “With revenue up 8%, Services continues to show why this high-return business is our crown jewel. Markets had its best second quarter performance since 2020 with a record second quarter for Equities. Banking revenues were up 18% and we continue to be at the center of some of the most significant transactions.”
The latest results reported Tuesday included the turbulent market period that began in early April. That type of volatility can help boost profits in equity and fixed income trading at major banks, including Citigroup.
“Volatility is going to, I suspect, be a feature not a bug of the new world order, and we will benefit from that,” Fraser said on an analyst call Tuesday.
More negatively, Citigroup reported 16% growth in cost of credit, fueled in part by a higher net build in the allowance for credit losses. The bank cited “deterioration” in the economic outlook relative to last year as a reason for the move.
Fraser added that the overall environment has “proven to be more resilient than expected,” but the bank is seeing slowdowns in hiring and capital expenditures by clients.
The CEO also said the bank has made “significant progress” in its transformation plan. Citigroup has been pulling back from international markets, and the bank announced layoffs in China in June. However, Fraser said there was no update about the timeline for an initial public offering of the bank’s Mexico unit.
Looking forward, Citigroup said in a presentation published Tuesday that it now expects $84 billion in revenue for the full year, the high end of the bank’s previous guidance. Fraser also indicated the bank is looking into the use of stablecoins.
The June quarter results come after a first half when Citigroup’s stock outperformed the broader market and several of its universal bank peers. As of Monday’s close, Citi shares were ahead 24% year to date, and up 38% since April 14, the day before the bank’s first-quarter earnings report.
Citigroup raised its quarterly dividend to 60 cents per share from 56 cents earlier this month, after the latest Federal Reserve stress tests.
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/15/citigroup-c-earnings-q2-2025.html
JPMorgan Chase tops estimates on stronger-than-expected trading, investment banking
-Here’s what the company reported: Earnings of $5.24 a share
-Revenue of $45.68 billion vs $44.06 billion estimate
JPMorgan Chase on Tuesday topped analysts’ estimates on better-than-expected revenue from fixed income trading and investment banking.
Here’s what the company reported:
-Earnings: $5.24 a share, may not compare with $4.48 a share LSEG estimate
-Revenue: $45.68 billion vs $44.06 billion estimate
The bank said that second-quarter earnings fell 17% to $14.9 billion, or $5.24 a share, from the year-earlier period, when it had a $7.9 billion gain on Visa shares. But even when backing out a $774 million income tax benefit that boosted per share earnings by 28 cents, JPMorgan topped estimates for the quarter.
Revenue fell 10% to $45.68 billion, though the comparison with a year ago was also impacted by the bank’s Visa stake.
CEO Jamie Dimon touted his bank’s results and ability to boost dividends and repurchase shares. Shares of JPMorgan, the largest U.S. bank by several measures including assets and deposits, have climbed 19% this year as it navigated the opening months of President Donald Trump’s administration.
Still, Dimon also repeated his frequent warnings about the risks from U.S. trade policy, overseas conflict and rising fiscal deficits.
“The U.S. economy remained resilient in the quarter,” Dimon said in a release. “The finalization of tax reform and potential deregulation are positive for the economic outlook. However, significant risks persist – including from tariffs and trade uncertainty, worsening geopolitical conditions, high fiscal deficits and elevated asset prices.”
JPMorgan’s trading operations benefited from the turbulent conditions in the quarter as Trump roiled markets with his push to overhaul global trade agreements.
The bank said fixed income trading revenue jumped 14% to $5.7 billion, topping the StreetAccount estimate by roughly $500 million, thanks to activity in currencies, rates and commodities. Equities trading revenue jumped 15% to $3.2 billion, matching the estimate.
''IB rebound''
Investment banking fees rose 7% to $2.5 billion on higher debt underwriting and advisory activity, roughly $450 million higher than the StreetAccount estimate.
While investment banking activity “started slow” in the quarter amid the confusion of Trump’s April 2 trade announcements, activity gained as the quarter went on and markets recovered, Dimon said.
That explains how investment banking results improved so much from guidance given at the bank’s annual investor conference in May, when it said that revenue there was headed for a “mid-teens” percentage decline.
JPMorgan’s results in the quarter were also helped by its $2.8 billion provision for credit losses, which is better than the $3.14 billion expected by analysts.
The bank also boosted its guidance around net interest income for the full year to roughly $95.5 billion, or about $1 billion more than an earlier forecast. NII is a key measure of bank profitability that is the difference between what a bank pays for deposits and what it earns on investments and loans.
Citigroup and Wells Fargo also topped analyst estimates on Tuesday, while Goldman Sachs, Bank of America and Morgan Stanley are scheduled to report Wednesday.
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/15/jpmorgan-chase-jpm-earnings-q2-2025.html
'NO ONE IS REPORTING THIS': Larry Kudlow debunks tariff inflation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRRGDzFAM5s
Google to invest $25 billion in data centers and AI infrastructure across largest U.S. electric grid
-Google will spend $25 billion on data centers and artificial intelligence infrastructure in the PJM electric grid region over the next two years.
-PJM is the biggest electric grid in the nation, covering 13 states across the mid-Atlantic and parts of the Midwest and South.
-Google also signed a framework agreement to purchase hydroelectric power from Brookfield Asset Management.
Alphabet
’s Google will invest $25 billion in data center and artificial intelligence infrastructure over the next two years in states across the biggest electric grid in the U.S., the technology company said Tuesday.
Google will also spend $3 billion to modernize two hydropower plants in Pennsylvania to help meet the growing power demand from data centers and AI in the region, according to the company.
The refurbishment of the Pennsylvania plants is part of broader a framework agreement that Google signed with Brookfield Asset Management to purchase 3,000 megawatts of hydroelectric power across the U.S.
Google’s investments in the region come as the PJM Interconnection is struggling to keep up with rising electricity demand from data centers and industry. PJM is the biggest electric grid in the nation, covering 13 states across the mid-Atlantic and parts of the Midwest and South. It includes the world’s largest data center market in northern Virginia.
President Donald Trump, White House Cabinet officials, tech and energy executives are meeting at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh on Tuesday to discuss AI investment in Pennsylvania. Executives in attendance include Ruth Porat, president and chief investment officer at Alphabet and Google.
Companies announced more than $90 billion of investment in data centers, energy, power infrastructure, and AI training projects at the conference, according to the office of Sen. Dave McCormick, who organized the event.
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/15/google-to-invest-25-billion-in-data-centers-ai-infrastructure-in-pjm.html
Matt Gaetz endorses AG Pam Bondi
https://x.com/OANN/status/1944928652170551813
Pentagon awards multiple companies $200M contracts for AI tools
The Defense Department’s Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office on Monday awarded four tech companies individual contracts valued at up to $200 million to provide advanced AI capabilities to address national security challenges.
The awards were issued to Anthropic, Google, OpenAI and xAI.
“The adoption of AI is transforming the Department’s ability to support our warfighters and maintain strategic advantage over our adversaries,” Chief Digital and AI Officer Dr. Doug Matty said in a statement. “Leveraging commercially available solutions into an integrated capabilities approach will accelerate the use of advanced AI as part of our Joint mission essential tasks in our warfighting domain as well as intelligence, business, and enterprise information systems.”
Under the contract, the Defense Department can deploy the latest AI offerings, agentic AI workflows, large language models and technologies developed by these firms.
“These advanced AI solutions will enable the DoD to effectively address defense challenges and scale the adoption of agentic AI across enterprise systems to drive innovation and efficiency with agile, proven technology,” Jim Kelly, VP of Federal Sales for Google Public Sector, said in a blog post immediately following the Pentagon’s award notices.
Broadly, the Pentagon’s AI awards exemplify how important the technology is to the Pentagon. In June, the Defense Department awarded a similar contract to OpenAI for Government to develop AI prototypes, months after Microsoft’s OpenAI-enabled Azure offerings were approved for use at the highest security classification level. Meanwhile, other AI firms like Anthropic have forged partnerships with cloud service providers and built out public sector teams to serve national security missions.
A key driver behind this momentum could be the larger pool of money the Pentagon is aiming to get for AI. The Defense Department’s latest budget request seeks billions of dollars for AI and autonomous systems for everything from autonomous “wingman” fighter drones to AI research and development, robotics development and other emerging technologies.
''New government partnerships for xAI''
xAI, Elon Musk’s company focused on AI and accelerating human discovery, announced the Defense Department contract Monday and promptly made headlines with another announcement: its ‘Grok for Government’ offering. In a post on X, the company billed Grok for Government as “a suite of products that make our frontier models available to United States” government customers.
In addition, xAI said its products will be available for government purchase through the General Services Administration schedule, which allows every federal agency to make purchases against it. In short, xAI now has tools available for purchase by “every federal government department, agency, or office.”
“GSA is proud to support the DoD to harness the full potential of innovation in service to the federal government,” said GSA Federal Acquisition Service Commissioner Josh Gruenbaum. “Together, we are advancing our shared mission to deliver cutting-edge technology solutions that empower agencies, strengthen national security, and meet the evolving needs of the American people. By combining expertise and vision, we are creating a new federal enterprise prepared to meet the challenges of today and the opportunities of tomorrow.”
''Google’s momentum continues''
In April, Google Public Sector negotiated a temporary 71% discount on pricing for its Workspace software suite to all government customers through GSA’s DOGE-approved OneGov initiative, promoting several other companies to follow suit. In June, the company’s cloud platform, Google Distributed Cloud, achieved a major milestone in meeting the Defense Department’s Impact Level 6 security accreditation, meaning even the most sensitive national security customers can run workloads on Google Cloud.
''OpenAI, Anthropic beef up government business''
In recent months, tech firms OpenAI and Anthropic — which have both developed the incredibly popular large language models, ChatGPT and Claude, respectively — have launched business divisions targeting the increasingly lucrative government market.
While both companies are nontraditional government contractors, they’ve each managed to win direct awards from the Pentagon while strategically partnering with other traditional providers to make their technology available to federal agencies.
https://www.nextgov.com/acquisition/2025/07/pentagon-awards-multiple-companies-200m-contracts-ai-tools/406698/?oref=ng-homepage-river
CEO of Home Depot, Ken Langone, reverses stance on, sees the light in Trump
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgjOkYhQTAw
Americans already use the name football for American football so might have to change the name to Battle Ball.
Rapid Response 47
@RapidResponse47
🚨 U.S. Border Patrol agents arrest admitted MS-13 gang member and murderer in Michigan.
https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1944797773779370217
President Trump strikes major trade deal with Indonesia
Donald J. Trump
@realDonaldTrump
This morning I finalized an important Deal with the Republic of Indonesia after speaking with their Highly Respected President Prabowo Subianto. This landmark Deal opens up Indonesia’s ENTIRE MARKET to the United States for the first time in History. As part of the Agreement, Indonesia has committed to purchasing $15 Billion Dollars in U.S. Energy, $4.5 Billion Dollars in American Agricultural Products, and 50 Boeing Jets, many of them 777’s. For the first time ever, our Ranchers, Farmers, and Fishermen will have Complete and Total Access to the Indonesian Market of over 280 million people. In addition, Indonesia will pay the United States a 19% Tariff on all Goods they export to us, while U.S. Exports to Indonesia are to be Tariff and Non Tariff Barrier FREE. If there is any Transshipment from a higher Tariff Country, then that Tariff will be added on to the Tariff that Indonesia is paying. Thank you to the People of Indonesia for your friendship and commitment to balancing our Trade Deficit. We will keep DELIVERING for the American People, and the People of Indonesia!
https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114858589029028619
Tesla’s long-time head of sales in North America is out
Tesla’s longtime North American sales chief, Troy Jones, has exited the company after 15 years. His departure marks another major leadership shakeup as Tesla grapples with declining sales and internal instability. Jones had been a key figure in Tesla’s retail operations, especially in the U.S., and his exit follows the firing of Omead Afshar, Elon Musk’s former top aide who oversaw sales and manufacturing in North America and Europe. Musk has now taken direct control of sales in those regions.
Tesla’s sales dropped 13% in the first half of 2025, despite global EV sales surging by 30%. The company has also seen a wave of executive departures, including heads of HR, engineering, design, software, and the Optimus robot program. Analysts suggest that Musk’s emphasis on autonomous driving and his political involvement may be contributing to Tesla’s brand challenges and weakening consumer confidence.
https://electrek.co/2025/07/15/tesls-long-time-head-sales-north-america-out/
18 States Are Still Letting Dudes Dominate Girls’ Sports, Compliance Tracker Shows
Eighteen states are still allowing biological males to compete in girls’ sports, according to a compliance tracker cited by The Federalist. This defiance comes despite President Trump’s February 2025 executive order titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” which ties federal funding to adherence with sex-based athletic divisions under Title IX.
The article highlights that states like California, Minnesota, and Maine are under investigation by the Department of Education for noncompliance. Attorney General Pam Bondi has issued warnings to these states, emphasizing that federal law will be enforced.
https://thefederalist.com/2025/07/15/exclusive-18-states-are-still-letting-dudes-dominate-girls-sports-compliance-tracker-shows/
Trump: Epstein files were created by Obama and Comey
https://x.com/CitizenFreePres/status/1945317132448743766
British school sparks outrage after removing pupil for wearing Union Jack dress to 'cultural diversity day'
A 12-year-old student at Bilton School in Rugby, Warwickshire was removed from class and placed in isolation after wearing a Union Jack dress on the school’s Culture Celebration Day. The event encouraged students to wear attire reflecting their heritage, and Courtney Wright chose the dress to express pride in British culture. She had also prepared a speech celebrating British traditions like tea, Shakespeare, and the royal family.
However, staff reportedly told her the day was “not for her,” and she was sent to reception until her father picked her up. Other students wearing burkas, niqabs, and traditional Nigerian clothing were allowed to participate, while those with St George’s or Welsh flags were also turned away.
The incident sparked public outrage and political commentary, with critics accusing the school of excluding British identity from a day meant to celebrate diversity. Bilton School and the Stowe Valley Trust later issued an apology, acknowledging the distress caused and pledging to review policies and improve staff training.
https://www.gbnews.com/news/rugby-school-sparks-outrage-removing-pupil-union-jack-culture-day
Speaker Johnson Delivers Remarks at House Leadership Press Conference
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGEofa8GLYU