👨🏽‍🏭 Who's Questioning What Being An "Employee" Means?

Good morning. US stock futures rose in Wednesday morning trading as investors await testimony from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell before the US House Financial Services Committee.

🧑🏽‍💼 US trade group sues Biden admin over “gig work” rule

📝 Our report: Looks like the big shots of U.S. business are bringing out the legal cannons! They've fired off the latest lawsuit taking aim at a Biden administration rule that's making it harder for companies to play the "independent contractor" card instead of ponying up for full-fledged employees. The groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the country's largest business lobby, said in a complaint filed in federal court in Texas that the U.S. Department of Labor rule violated federal wage law by adopting too broad a definition of who counts as a company's employee.  

 🔑 Key points:

• The rule, which takes effect March 11, is expected to have a broad impact on an array of industries including app-based services that rely heavily on "gig" workers to contain costs.

• The business groups had sued the department in 2021 when it first attempted to repeal the Trump-era rule. A judge blocked the repeal, saying the agency had not adequately explained its decision.

• The Labor Department has said that the rule is designed to clarify the standard for determining worker classification and crack down on industries where misclassification is common, such as construction, healthcare, retail sales and security and janitorial services.

💡 So what: Properly classifying gig workers versus employed workers is essential for businesses to uphold legal compliance, protect workers' rights, and promote fair competition. Accurate classification ensures that businesses fulfill their legal obligations towards employees, including providing benefits such as minimum wage, overtime pay, and health insurance. It also safeguards workers' rights and protections, preventing exploitation and ensuring fair treatment in the workplace.

Wednesday - Fed Chair Jerome Powell Testifies To Congress, Federal Reserve Beige Book

Thursday - U.S. Trade Balance, Consumer Credit

Friday - New York Fed President John Williams Speaks

 📈 Do you know your investing time horizon?

🏢 Here are 5 steps to a successful corporate career 

💲 US lottery jackpot keeps rising!

 📈 Get 5.1% APY For Your Extra Cash

Many of you ask where we’re putting our extra cash to earn the highest interest while still having access to it.

I’ve looked through plenty of high yield options and my top pick is Moomoo. It’s offering one of the highest yields available today at 5.1% APY.

And the best part? No minimum deposits, no cap on interests, and you can withdraw your cash at anytime.

Moomoo is offering Daily Market Briefs subscribers a limited-time deal: earn 5.1% APY on your cash and get up to 15 free stocks.

PS: Despite the funny name, Moomoo is a registered broker dealer with the SEC and is a member of SIPC meaning you’re insured up to $500,000.

🚀 Bitcoin touches all-time high

WHAT: Bitcoin just hit the jackpot, soaring to an all-time high and kicking up a new crypto frenzy that's giving 2021 a run for its money. The record was set as bitcoin briefly climbed to $68,978, exceeding the previous high of $68,789 established on Nov. 10, 2021.

WHY: That last apex came six months before a spectacular crash in 2022 that created huge losses for investors and triggered the downfall of several big industry players, including cryptocurrency exchange FTX and its founder, Sam Bankman-Fried.

🎵 ByteDance under pressure to divest TikTok in US

WHAT: Buckle up, ByteDance! A group of bipartisan lawmakers is cooking up a proposal that gives the brain behind TikTok a six-month ultimatum to do a divestment dance or face the music – a U.S. ban.

WHY: The bill would give ByteDance 165 days to divest TikTok, which is used by more than 170 million Americans, or it would be unlawful for app stores operated by Apple, Google and others to offer TikTok or to provide web hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications.

📱 Apple loses ground in Chinese market

WHAT: Looks like Apple's iPhone sales in China took a bit of a nosedive, plunging 24% compared to last year's high-flying numbers, according to research firm Counterpoint. The U.S. tech giant's chief competitor in China in premium smartphones, Huawei, saw unit sales rise by 64% in the period, according to the report.

WHY: Counterpoint's report said Apple's share of the Chinese smartphone market dropped to 15.7%, putting it in fourth place, compared with second place in the year-ago period when it had 19% market share.

✏️ DMB Insider Quiz ✏️

🧑‍💻 We read your emails and poll replies daily.

Hit reply and let us know what you want more of!

See ya next time, Daily Market Briefs