Toyota CEO goes Full MAGA in support of billion dollar tariff deal
Toyota’s billionaire CEO Akio Toyoda stunned spectators Sunday by donning a red MAGA hat and Trump-Vance T-shirt at a high-octane NASCAR event in Japan, signaling an alliance amid trade tensions, just as the automaker announced a $912 million U.S. manufacturing boost to fuel hybrid production and add 252 jobs.
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Trade-savvy CEO diplomacy: Toyoda has sidestepped tariff debates, advocating customer wins in U.S.-Japan talks, as baseline auto import duties hold at 15% post-agreement.
Massive hybrid engine expansion: Toyota allocates $657 million across West Virginia and Kentucky plants to surge four-cylinder hybrid engine assembly, targeting surging American demand for electrified vehicles.
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Corolla production hybrid pivot: $125 million infusion into Mississippi factory enhances Corolla output while introducing hybrid variants, bolstering Toyota’s dominant 51% U.S. hybrid market share.
Southern footprint job surge: Investments totaling $128.5 million in Tennessee and Missouri facilities create 252 positions, aligning with Toyota’s “build where we sell” mantra through 2027.
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Wall Street is starting to get skeptical about Nvidia’s “murky” partner deals
In a whirlwind of AI fervor, Nvidia has poured $24 billion into startups this year alone, sparking Wall Street alarms over “circular” deals where the chip giant funds customers who promptly buy its GPUs—potentially fueling a risky hype bubble as tech stocks tumble.
Blitz of Massive Investments: Nvidia committed $23.7 billion across 59 AI deals in 2025, surging from $22.8 billion in 54 deals last year, targeting firms like OpenAI and xAI to lock in chip dominance.
Anthropic’s Landmark Partnership: Nvidia and Microsoft pledged up to $15 billion combined in Anthropic, which vows $30 billion in Azure compute buys and joint engineering with Nvidia for advanced AI models.
OpenAI’s Gigawatt-Scale Commitment: Beyond a $6.6 billion direct stake, Nvidia’s up-to-$100 billion OpenAI pact mandates at least 10 gigawatts of its AI systems, intertwining funding with enormous hardware purchases.
Analyst Flags Bubble Risks: Seaport’s Jay Goldberg deems these loops “very murky,” warning they obscure true demand amid AI hype, as Nvidia’s stock plunged 2.81% to $181.36 on November 18.
In a bold pivot from its OpenAI alliance, Microsoft unveiled a $5 billion investment in AI rival Anthropic on Monday, joined by Nvidia’s $10 billion stake, catapulting the Claude creator’s valuation to a staggering $350 billion amid intensifying tech arms race.
Microsoft Ditches OpenAI Grip: The tech giant’s invest $5 billion is to secure Azure as Anthropic’s key cloud partner, signaling diversification after pouring billions into rival OpenAI since 2019.
Nvidia Fuels AI Powerhouse: The undisputed chip leader committed $10 billion for collaboration, providing up to 1 gigawatt of Grace Blackwell compute power to supercharge Anthropic’s Claude models.
Valuation Skyrockets Dramatically: From $183 billion in September, Anthropic’s worth has surged to $350 billion via combined stakes, underscoring explosive demand for AI innovation.
Epstein email fallout continues as Summers quits OpenAI’s board
Former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers resigned from OpenAI’s board Wednesday amid backlash from newly released emails linking him to Jeffrey Epstein, as Congress pushes a bipartisan bill to expose more of the sex offender’s elite ties, intensifying scrutiny on powerful figures.
Epstein Emails Surface Publicly: House Oversight Committee unveiled over 20,000 subpoenaed documents last week, exposing Summers’ communications with Epstein, prompting his immediate accountability.
Summers Admits Deep Shame: On Monday, Summers confessed full responsibility for “misguided” post-conviction contact with Epstein, vowing to retreat from public roles except Harvard teaching.
Trump Demands Wider Probe: President Trump urged Justice Department investigation on November 14 into Epstein’s networks, targeting Summers, Clinton, JPMorgan, and Hoffman amid his own past associations.
Harvard Faces Severance Calls: Sen. Elizabeth Warren demanded the university cut ties with Summers on Sunday, highlighting reputational risks for academia and AI firms from Epstein scandals.
Bitcoin’s sharp plunge in recent days has sparked record outflows from U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs as jittery investors fled amid escalating economic uncertainty.
Record Outflows Surge: Investors yanked $1.1 billion from Bitcoin ETFs over the past week, dwarfing prior drops and signaling deep market unease.
Price Plunge Accelerates: BTC tumbled to under $89,000 today, erasing all of 2025’s gains and heightening volatility tied to global tensions.
Expert Warnings Issued: Analysts predict further downside risks, urging diversification as ETF assets shrink and institutional confidence wanes.
Private Credit company walks back fund merger after stock plunge and customer fury
In a stunning reversal, Blue Owl Capital abruptly terminated its proposed merger of two private-credit funds Wednesday, just days after its announcement sparked a 6% stock plunge amid investor fury over locked redemptions and looming 20% paper losses.
Merger Targeted Massive Consolidation: Blue Owl aimed to fold $1.7 billion non-traded OBDC II into $17.1 billion publicly traded OBDC, streamlining operations in a volatile private credit markets.
Redemptions Sparked Investor Backlash: The Deal would have frozen OBDC II withdrawals until closing, fueling outrage and broader fears about private credit’s role in funding hyped AI datacenter ventures.
Boards Deemed Risks Too High: Directors concluded the merger’s volatility and bad press outweighed benefits, opting to preserve independent paths for both funds amid shaky market dynamics.
Liquidity Restored for Shareholders: OBDC II redemptions resume in Q1, with CEO Craig Packer affirming strong fundamentals and future standalone returns potential.
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