The U.S. recession touched off by the coronavirus lasted only two months, ending with a low point reached in April 2020. Indeed, the resumption of growth was so rapid the U.S. Business Cycle Dating Committee said it was only "the unprecedented magnitude of the decline" that led members to consider what happened to be a recession in the first place, with a downturn typically requiring "depth, duration and diffusion" to qualify for the label.

 

Investors are looking to a mounting pile of cash at U.S. companies to provide support for the stock market in coming months, as executives announce plans to increase share buybacks, boost dividends or pour money back into their businesses.

 

General Motors Co said Wednesday it will cut some truck production in North America because of the ongoing global semiconductor shortage.

 

Commercial crude oil inventories in the US rose for the first time in nine weeks, increasing by 2.1 million barrels for the week ended July 16, the US Energy Information Administration reported Wednesday.

 

The International Monetary Fund is estimating this month that global growth for 2021 will be about 6%, the same as forecast in April.

 

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State will visit China on July 25-26, the State Department said on Wednesday, as the world's two largest economies seek to navigate a deeply troubled bilateral relationship.

 

A beating in world equity markets and a huge flight to safety into U.S. Treasuries this week suggests investors now doubt that a much-anticipated return to post-COVID normality is feasible any time soon.

 

Rainfall last week in key growing areas failed to improve crop conditions much in the Midwest, with some regions still facing a severe shortage of moisture, according to a report from Commerzbank.

 

U.S. homebuilding increased more than expected in June but permits for future home construction fell to an eight-month low.

 

An IMF official on Tuesday called on countries to pivot from saving their economies from collapse to reviving growth-oriented policy reforms to boost their recovery prospects and make them more sustainable.

 

Initial jobless claims for the week ended July 17 were 419,000, up 51,000 from the previous week's level of 368,000, which had been revised up by 8,000. Analysts polled by Econoday were expecting initial jobless claims of 350,000.

 

The Kansas City Fed monthly manufacturing index rose to a reading of 30 in July from 27 in June, above expectations for a decline to a 25 in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

Friday Recap: Dow Hits 35000 as Stocks Rise to Records

All three major U.S. stock indexes finished Friday at new all-time highs after each posted solid weekly gains of at least 1%.  This, after a rocky week in which investors fretted over rising COVID-19 cases, spurred by the more contagious Delta variant, while U.S. Treasury yields and the dollar both rose before a Federal Reserve meeting next week.

 

After recording its steepest one-day drop since May on Monday, the S&P 500 stock index went on to post the biggest one-day jump since March a day later. Currency, bond and commodities markets have seen similar volatility.

 

Positive corporate earnings helped the stock market. American Express jumped 1.7% after posting second-quarter profit that beat expectations.

U.S. business activity grew at a moderate pace for a second straight month in July amid supply constraints, suggesting a cooling in economic activity after what was expected to have been a robust second quarter.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen urged lawmakers on Friday to increase or suspend the nation's debt limit as soon as possible and warned that if Congress does not act by Aug. 2, the Treasury Department will need to take "extraordinary measures" to prevent a U.S. default.

 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6% to 35,021.04, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.9%. Communication services, healthcare and consumer staples stocks led the way with energy the only sector in the red after midday.

 

Manufacturing conditions accelerated further, with the flash PMI estimate hitting 63.1, up from the previous record of 62.1 in June.

 

In the oil market, Brent-crude futures, the international benchmark, gained 0.4% for the day, rising to $74.10 a barrel. In the metals’ markets, gold was down 0.1% to $1,804.10 an ounce, silver fell 0.4% to $25.28 an ounce but copper was up 1.1% to $4.39 per pound.

 

The rally on Wall Street faces a fresh test next week with a flood of earnings reports from major U.S. companies, including the tech and internet behemoths that have recently retaken leadership of the market. More than one third of the S&P 500 is set to report quarterly results next week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 238.20 points, or 0.68% to 35,061.55, the S&P 500 gained 44.31 points, or 1.01%, to 4,411.79, and the Nasdaq Composite was up 152.394 points, or 1.04%, to close at 14,836.99.

 

For the week, the DJIA gained 373.7 points, or 1.08%, to close at 35,061.55; the S&P 500 rose 84.63 points, or 1.96%, to 4,411.79; the NASDAQ was up 409.75 points, or 2.84%, to finish at 14,836.99.

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The highly controversial “For the People Act,” otherwise known as H.R. 1 which aims to completely redo U.S. voting with more federal government control and other means, found itself D.O.A. in the Senate thanks to aggressive opposition from GOP lawmakers. However, this hasn’t stopped the zealous attitude from left-leaning politicians to pass massive overhaul bills such as H.R. 1 through both houses of Congress.

 

Now Congress has turned to the “John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act,” which was introduced in the House of Representatives back in 2019. When it passed there and moved to the Senate, which at that point was controlled by Republicans, it was never…(READ/WATCH MORE)

Recently, JPMorgan’s CEO, Jamie Dimon, indicated concern that loan volume continues to be dramatically lower than before. The state-run media, analysts, and even many CEOs remain loyal to a promising narrative of recovery. Yet if you pay attention to their actions instead of their words, you will hear another message.

 

There is continual talk about a return to our pre-pandemic economy. Is recovery on the horizon? Yes. Is a revisit to pre-pandemic numbers plausible? Maybe. Is a sustainable return to it imminent? Absolutely not.

 

It doesn’t take a Ph.D. in economics to recognize all indicators pointing the other way. One example of this is business loan sentiment. Rates are low and money is plentiful. Interest rates are extremely low for a big business. So why are healthy, strong, solid businesses not choosing to borrow cheap money that…(READ MORE)

In the fiercest clash yet; Dr. Anthony Fauci and Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) accused one another of lying in a heated exchange.

 

“Dr. Fauci, as you are aware, it is a crime to lie to Congress,” Paul said in the opening exchange with Fauci. The senator noted that during their previous exchange Fauci had contended that “the NIH (National Institute of Health) has not ever and does not now fund gain-of-function research in the Wuhan Institute of Virology.” Paul then referenced a paper by a researcher at the Wuhan Virology Lab that said NIH funded coronavirus research. He then offered Fauci a retraction.

 

“I have never lied before the Congress, and I do not retract…(READ/WATCH MORE)

 

READ UPDATE: Rand Paul to Ask DOJ for Criminal Referral Against Fauci

If the NFL was ever trying to be subtle in its push for players to receive the COVID-19 shot, it just slaughtered subtlety in the street with a new announcement. The league released a statement Thursday that it plans to punish teams who experience COVID-19 outbreaks in the 2021 season among unvaccinated players. If an outbreak occurs among unvaccinated players and it impacts the playability of a game, the league will now demand the team with the outbreak forfeit the game, thus handing them an automatic loss, while also withholding game checks from all players.

 

This outrageous rule blatantly targets, and one could argue even discriminates against, players who freely to choose to decline…(READ MORE)

Psychokinetic powers may no longer be reserved to super hero comics. UC San Francisco (UCSF) neurosurgeon, Edward Chang, has led a team of researchers for over a decade in an attempt to develop a technology whereby paralyzed people may be able to speak simply by thinking. Their efforts have turned out to be successful as they were able to develop a process whereby a computer system based on complex artificial intelligence and mapping of the human brain was able to assist a man completely paralyzed in speaking simply by thinking of the words he wished to use.

 

The UCSF research group published their study recounting their efforts in the New England Journal of Medicine…(READ MORE)

As tensions between China and the US continue to rise, the Air Force is sending at least 25 F-22 Raptor fighter jets to the Pacific region. This move is part of Operation Pacific Iron 2021 which is meant to shore up the US presence throughout the Pacific. It is also a direct message to China that the US does not plan on ceding any ground in the Pacific region.

 

These F-22 jets are the newest fifth generation of this specific model. They are unrivaled by any aircraft in the world and boast the latest technology in weapons systems and stealth…(READ MORE)

An investigation from 17 media organizations alleges that a spyware licensed by Israeli-based cyber company NSO Group hacked multiple smartphones belonging to journalists, government officials, and human rights activists around the world. The spyware from NSO in question is known as Pegasus.

 

The investigation was a collaborative effort organized by Forbidden Stories, a non-profit organization based in France whose mission is “to protect, pursue and publish the work of other journalists facing threats, prison, or murder.” In an article Forbidden Stories explains how the so-called “Pegasus Project” began:

 

This investigation began with enormous leak of documents that Forbidden Stories and Amnesty International had access to. In this list of more than 50,000 selected as targets by clients of NSO Group…(READ MORE) 

The most recent weekly unemployment claims increased last week despite the growing desperation by employers for new employees. Approximately 419,000 new individuals filed for unemployment insurance for the week ending on July 17, which sits at almost 100,000 claims higher than the week’s estimate. In the meantime, employers, especially in the service and retail industries, are becoming increasingly desperate for employees as they hope to re-open and increase business.

 

Experts have said that this phenomenon is deeply complex given the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is evident that the pandemic stimulus measures that boosted unemployment pay and benefits have significantly disincentivized potential workers…(READ MORE)

In the last year, the COVID-19 drug has certainly caused much confusion and frustration among well-meaning Americans seeking to make informed medical decisions. There is no doubt that politicians and celebrities in the far left, including the President himself, have ferociously pushed the American population to receive the jab without regard to any possible negative side effects.

 

This past week, Attorney Thomas Renz announced that he is filing a lawsuit against the state of Alabama claiming that there is substantial evidence to prove that the U.S. government has covered up thousands of deaths related to the COVID-19 experimental drug. According to the suit, an anonymous whistleblower under the name "Jane Doe" is testifying under penalty of perjury that she has inside information to prove…(READ MORE)

Former Trump campaign advisor Thomas Joseph Barrack was arrested on charges of lobbying for foreign nations, specifically the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Two other individuals associated with Barrack were also arrested on this same charge.

 

A seven-count indictment revealed on July 20 in a New York federal court claims that these individuals were acting “as agents of the UAE between April 2016 and April 2018,” according to a report from the Department of Justice. The report further states that Barrack was also charged with “obstruction of justice and making multiple false statements during a June 20, 2019 interview…(READ MORE)

In another fascinating discovery from the biblical era, last week archeologists in Israel uncovered a 3,100 year-old jug from the pre-kingdom age of ancient Israel. On the jug is inscribed the name “Jerubbaal,” leading biblical scholars and historians to conclude that this jug could very well have belonged to Gideon, the famous biblical leader of Israel from the Old Testament book of Judges. Of course, Gideon is referred to as “Jerub-Baal” several times in the book of Judges, including Judges 7.

 

Judges 7 refers to Gideon’s most famous act of his life. He led a tiny Israelite army of 300 men to a miraculous victory against a mighty Midianite army of 30,000. Of course, the historical testimony of the Bible tells us…(READ MORE)

In a statement given on Monday, the extremely progressive ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s said they will discontinue sales of their products in “Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT).” OPT has previously been used to mean the entirety of the nation of Israel, and the company did announce that they will not renew a license with their Israeli distributor.

 

 

The company also mentioned that they will remain in Israel “through a different arrangement,” and to keep waiting for an announcement…(READ MORE)

In April 2021, FISM News reported a legal battle for the freedom of religion between the English city of Blackpool and American pastor Franklin Graham. Graham won a lawsuit over the city earlier this year after the city of Blackpool stripped advertisements for Graham’s “Festival of Hope” in Lancashire in 2018, criticizing the pastor’s stance against the LGBTQ revolution. Last week, reparations were paid to Graham’s ministry for this outright violation of the freedom of religion.

City officials paid the Festival of Hope team roughly $150,000 and... (READ MORE)

The WHO has plans to launch a second phase of the investigation into the origins of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China and further explore the possibility of the lab leak theory.

 

In March the WHO released a 400-page investigative report into coronavirus origins that was criticized, including by members of the WHO, for the amount of influence China had over the findings. The original report asserted that it was “extremely unlikely” COVID-19 leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, and that it jumped to bats to another unknown animal, and then spread to humans.

 

Following the criticism, WHO Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, in his opening remarks at the Member State Information Session on Origin said…(READ MORE)

New data from U.S. border patrol shows that last month saw the highest total of June encounters in 20 years, stopping more than 188,000 people, making for an increase of 450% since last June. Of this group 34% were individuals who had previously stopped by the border portal within the last 12 months. Data also shows that border patrol have had more than 1 million encounters in this fiscal year, the highest since 2005.

 

Additional data shows that the number of unaccompanied minors at the border continues to rise. In May the border patrol encountered 14,137 of such minors; that number jumped by 8% in June to 15,253.

 

However, incentive for minors to make the dangerous journey to the border may be lessened now that…(READ MORE)

One of the most newsworthy topics in the Christian Church in the last several months has been the fate of the United Methodist Church, one of the largest Protestant denominations in the United States. The denomination is barreling down the path towards an inevitable split over the biblical definition of gender and sexuality. If not for the lockdowns from the COVID-19 pandemic, the church would likely already be severed. The UMC’s General Conference, where many believe the denomination will formally split, has been postponed several times, with a target date of August 2022.

 

According to a report by Christianity Today, many Methodists on both sides of the theological and political debate are leaving the denomination before the split. FISM News previously covered the case of the Global Methodist Church, a group of conservative Methodists...(READ MORE)

According to preliminary data released from the CDC, deaths attributed to drug overdoses soared in the United States in the year 2020. The likely reasons for the increase include the pandemic lockdowns and dealers lacing “more drugs with a powerful synthetic opioid” according to Reuters.

 

CDC data shows that the overdose deaths rose by about 20,000 within the year, or about 30%, within the United States alone. There are just above 72,751 deaths in January 2020, and 93,331 deaths in December of that year. The absolute total in December 2020 is the highest recorded total…(READ HERE)

 

READ UPDATE: $26 Billion Settlement Expected in Pharmaceutical Opioid Crisis Litigation

Approximately two dozen US officials staffed in Vienna, Austria have experienced systems of a mysterious disease referred to as Havana Syndrome since the beginning of the year. The Austrian government has announced that they will be assisting the US as they investigate the disease and its source. The US Senate has already expressed that they have been working closely with US intelligence agencies in investigating the disease and have reportedly held top secret hearings in order to review findings and direct the investigation.

Austria’s Foreign Ministry released a short statement saying…(READ MORE)

On Thursday California’s lawmakers approved the creation of a state-funded guaranteed-income plan that will cost $35 million dollars of the state budget. The plan will be entirely taxpayer funded, and is the first of its kind in the U.S. It passed both chambers with no opposition, as final counts showed 36-0 votes in the state’s Senate and 64-0 votes in the state’s Assembly.

 

The plan is intended to provide financial assistance specifically to pregnant women of a certain economic status and foster children who recently aged out of the foster care system. Local governments and other programs can apply for the funding and dole it out to those who meet the requirements set by California’s Department of Social Services. The plan is expected to provide monthly payments to…(READ MORE)

The weapon acquisition, sustainment, and development offices at the Pentagon are facing significant vacancies in the first year of the Biden administration. These offices constitute 58 Senate approved officials and so far only six individuals have been appointed. The Biden administration has nominated an additional 20 officials to fill some of the remaining offices but these have not yet be confirmed by the Senate. In addition, another 27 positions do not have a nominee yet at all.

 

In the midst of all of this, the acting undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, Stacy Cummings, is leaving the Pentagon in order to accept a position with NATO. To make matters worse…(READ MORE)

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