Good morning. US stock futures moved lower in Friday morning trading as investors looked to upcoming jobs data for clues into how the Federal Reserve may move forward.

"The challenge I grew and remain fascinated by is that of building a portfolio which is robust to ignorance"

Dylan Grice

Top News

Bank wipeout

• SVB Financial Group sought to reassure its venture capital clients that their funds were secure, following a capital raise that caused its stock to plummet by 60% and contributed to the loss of over $80 billion in value from bank shares.

• A crucial lender for early stage businesses, SVB is the banking partner for nearly half of US venture-backed technology and healthcare companies that listed on the stock market in 2022.

Biden budget takes aim at China's influence

• US President Joe Biden's budget plan seeks billions of dollars in funding to back US allies in the Indo-Pacific region through infrastructure spending, a move seen as a counter-offensive to China's influence in the region.

• The budget proposal for 2024 includes $400 million for a fund to "counter specific problematic PRC behavior globally," according to a State department fact sheet.

Crypto crackdown continues

• New York attorney general Letitia James sued crypto platform KuCoin for failing to register with the state before allowing cryptocurrency investors to trade on its platform, as part of her effort to rein in "shadowy" cryptocurrency companies.

• James said the platform violated the Martin Act, a powerful state securities law, by transacting in cryptocurrencies, selling the product "KuCoin Earn" to generate income for itself and investors, and wrongfully calling itself an exchange.

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In Other News

TikTok wins in court

• A federal jury in Los Angeles ruled in favor of TikTok stating that its "Stitch" feature does not infringe upon the trademark rights of British video-editing company Stitch Editing Ltd.

• TikTok successfully argued that Stitch Editing's trademark in its name does not give it a "global monopoly on use of the word 'Stitch' to refer to the process of combining video clips together"

Pilot pay takes off

• The CEO of American Airlines said he is prepared to offer pilots raises and higher retirement contributions averaging about 40% over 4 years to match contracts recently approved by Delta Airlines for their pilots.

• American Airlines CEO Robert Isom in a video sent to pilots said that they and other employees would "be paid well and paid competitively."

Mitsubishi sets 2035 date to be fully electric

• Mitsubishi Motors said it intends to achieve complete electrification of its fleet by 2035 by actively incorporating hybrid and electric vehicles.

• Mitsubishi had previously said it would have 50% of its fleet electrified by 2035, but has emphasized it intends to push aggressively ahead with electrification over the next 5 years.

Key Economic Events

• Friday - US Unemployment Rate

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