Sam Bankman-Fried said that he didn't intend to commit any fraud or use customer funds to back leveraged bets that went wrong at Alameda Research, a cryptocurrency hedge fund attached to FTX that pushed the exchange to bankruptcy.
Mr. Bankman-Fried, speaking at the New York Times DealBook Summit in New York, denied knowingly commingling customer funds to back his crypto trading operation and tried to deflect some of the blame for FTX's collapse away from himself, saying he was surprised at the size of Alameda's bets that went wrong.
Spending Report to Offer Clues About Consumers' Strength This Holiday Season
An October household spending report will show how consumers fared as the holiday season approached, with high inflation and rising interest rates weighing on the economy.
The Commerce Department will release spending, income and inflation figures at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time on Thursday. The report will offer a broad picture of consumer health, with spending trends on services such as travel, housing and utilities.
Some Retailers Are Learning to Love Bulked-Up Inventories
While many retailers are discounting, canceling orders and otherwise scrambling to get rid of a glut of goods filling their stores and warehouses, some are embracing their higher inventory levels.
Merchants including Dick's Sporting Goods Inc., Lowe's Cos. and Walmart Inc. say the rising stocks signal a recovery from last year's shortages driven by supply-chain disruptions and put them in a strong position to take advantage of consumer demand this holiday shopping period.
Rising Tether Loans Add Risk to Stablecoin, Crypto World
The company behind the tether stablecoin has increasingly been lending its own coins to customers rather than selling them for hard currency upfront. The shift adds to risks that the company may not have enough liquid assets to pay redemptions in a crisis.
Tether Holdings Ltd. says it lends only to eligible customers and requires that borrowers post lots of "extremely liquid" collateral, which could be sold for dollars if borrowers default.
China Caixin Manufacturing PMI Marks Fourth Straight Month of Contraction
A private gauge of activity in China's manufacturing sector remained in contractionary territory for a fourth straight month in November, as the government's stringent Covid restrictions continued to weigh on both output and demand.
The China Caixin manufacturing purchasing managers index slightly improved to 49.4 in November from 49.2 in October, according to data released Thursday by Caixin Media Co. and S&P Global.
FTX Collapse Draws Senate Hearing Scrutiny as Crypto Oversight in Focus
WASHINGTON-Senators with a plan to regulate cryptocurrencies are due to question the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's chairman about the failure of the digital-asset exchange FTX and on legislation that would give that agency more power over the volatile market.
CFTC Chairman Rostin Behnam is scheduled to testify at Thursday's hearing of the Senate Agriculture Committee. The panel's chairwoman, Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D., Mich.), and its ranking member, Sen. John Boozman (R., Ark.), introduced a bill that would regulate trading in bitcoin, ether and some other cryptocurrencies through the commission. Giving the CFTC, a relatively small agency, authority to police trading in the most valuable crypto assets would mark a substantial expansion of its authority.
Democrats to Reshape Presidential Primary Calendar as Joe Biden Mulls 2024 Bid
WASHINGTON-Democratic National Committee members are struggling to reach consensus on what would be the first major change since 2006 in the party's early-state lineup for presidential primaries, as they await input from the White House.
The national party organization's Rules and Bylaws Committee is set to meet in Washington over two days starting Friday to try to approve a slate of early contests that would offer greater diversity and union representation. The effort has echoes from 16 years ago, when Nevada and South Carolina were selected to join Iowa and New Hampshire to open the 2008 nomination race. The full DNC is expected to ratify changes early next year.
House Approves Imposing Railroad Labor Deal, Paid Sick Leave Measure
The House approved a measure Wednesday to end a long-running railroad labor dispute while also backing a proposal to impose seven days of paid sick leave, as President Biden urged lawmakers to work quickly to head off a possible strike.
House lawmakers voted 290 to 137 on legislation that would force the adoption of a tentative labor agreement by rail workers, using the power of a 1926 law that allows Congress to intervene in railroad disputes that threaten to disrupt the U.S. economy. On paid leave, lawmakers voted 221-207 to approve the proposal, with Democrats in favor and almost all Republicans opposed.
Write to paul.larkins@dowjones.com TODAY IN CANADA
Earnings:
Bank of Montreal 4Q
Canadn Imperial Bank 4Q
Toronto-Dominion Bank 4Q
Economic Indicators (ET):
0830 3Q Labour productivity, hourly compensation & unit labour cost
0930 Nov Canada Manufacturing PMI
Stocks to Watch:
Birks Group Mid-Yr Fiscal 2023 Comparable Store Sales Increased 8.2%
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Interfor Completes Acquisition Of Chaleur Forest Products; Prices $200M in Long-Term Debt Financing With Prudential Private Capital
Expected Major Events for Thursday
00:30/JPN: Nov Japan Manufacturing PMI
05:00/JPN: Nov Auto sales
05:00/JPN: Nov Consumer Confidence Survey
06:00/RUS: Nov Russian Manufacturing PMI
07:00/GER: Oct Retail Trade
07:00/UK: Nov Nationwide House Price Index
08:45/ITA: Nov Italy Manufacturing PMI
08:50/FRA: Nov France Manufacturing PMI
08:55/GER: Nov Germany Manufacturing PMI
09:00/ITA: Oct Unemployment
09:30/UK: Nov S&P Global / CIPS UK Manufacturing PMI
12:30/US: Nov Challenger Job-Cut Report
13:00/RUS: Weekly International Reserves
13:30/US: Oct Personal Income & Outlays
13:30/US: 11/26 Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report - Initial Claims
13:30/US: U.S. Weekly Export Sales
13:30/CAN: 3Q Labour productivity, hourly compensation & unit labour cost
14:30/CAN: Nov Canada Manufacturing PMI
14:45/US: Nov US Manufacturing PMI
15:00/US: Nov ISM Report On Business Manufacturing PMI
15:00/US: Oct Construction Spending - Construction Put in Place
15:00/US: Oct Metropolitan Area Employment & Unemployment
15:30/US: 11/25 EIA Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report
16:00/US: Nov Global Manufacturing PMI
17:00/US: Nov Monthly U.S. Retail Chain Store Sales Index
21:00/US: Nov Domestic Auto Industry Sales
21:30/US: Foreign Central Bank Holdings
21:30/US: Federal Discount Window Borrowings
23:50/JPN: Nov Monetary Base
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Expected Earnings for Thursday
Ambarella Inc (AMBA) is expected to report $-0.47 for 3Q.
American Outdoor Brands Inc (AOUT) is expected to report for 2Q.
Asana Inc (ASAN) is expected to report for 3Q.
Bank of Montreal (BMO,BMO.T) is expected to report $3.08 for 4Q.
Big Lots (BIG) is expected to report $-2.90 for 3Q.
Buckle Inc (BKE) is expected to report.
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM,CM.T) is expected to report $1.73 for 4Q.
ChargePoint Holdings Inc (CHPT) is expected to report for 3Q.
ClearSign Technologies Corp (CLIR) is expected to report for 3Q.
Designer Brands Inc (DBI) is expected to report for 3Q.
Dollar General (DG) is expected to report $2.54 for 3Q.
Duluth Holdings Inc (DLTH) is expected to report $-0.03 for 3Q.
FP Newspapers (FP.V) is expected to report for 3Q.
G-III Apparel (GIII) is expected to report $1.81 for 3Q.
Inspirato Inc (ISPO) is expected to report for 3Q.
JOANN Inc (JOAN) is expected to report for 3Q.
Kroger Co (KR) is expected to report $0.84 for 3Q.
Lands' End Inc (LE) is expected to report for 3Q.
Methode Electronics (MEI) is expected to report $0.64 for 2Q.
PagerDuty Inc (PD) is expected to report for 3Q.
Patterson Companies (PDCO) is expected to report $0.49 for 2Q.
Provident Bancorp Inc (PVBC) is expected to report for 3Q.
Rex American (REX) is expected to report for 3Q.
Samsara Inc (IOT) is expected to report for 3Q.
SecureWorks Corp (SCWX) is expected to report $-0.37 for 3Q.
Smartsheet Inc (SMAR) is expected to report $-0.53 for 3Q.
Tilly's (TLYS) is expected to report $0.07 for 3Q.
Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD,TD.T) is expected to report $2.08 for 4Q.
UiPath Inc (PATH) is expected to report for 3Q.
Ulta Beauty Inc (ULTA) is expected to report $4.20 for 3Q.
Veeva Systems (VEEV) is expected to report $0.68 for 3Q.
Zscaler Inc (ZS) is expected to report $-0.57 for 1Q.
Zumiez (ZUMZ) is expected to report $0.18 for 3Q.
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ANALYST RATINGS ACTIONS
American Homes 4 Rent Cut to Peer Perform From Outperform by Wolfe Research
Antero Resources Cut to Hold From Buy by Tudor Pickering
Apollo Endosurgery Cut to Hold From Buy by Lake Street
Carvana Cut to Neutral From Buy by B of A Securities
Consolidated Edison Raised to Neutral From Underperform by B of A Securities
Cooper Cos Raised to Outperform From Neutral by Baird
Coterra Energy Cut to Hold From Buy by Tudor Pickering
CrowdStrike Holdings Cut to Hold From Buy by Stifel
EQT Corp Cut to Hold From Buy by Tudor Pickering
Invitation Homes Cut to Peer Perform From Outperform by Wolfe Research
LPL Financial Holdings Cut to Equal-Weight From Overweight by Morgan Stanley
MillerKnoll Cut to Hold From Buy by Benchmark
PennyMac Mtg Invt Tr Cut to Hold From Buy by JonesTrading
Solid Power Cut to Neutral From Buy by DA Davidson
SoundHound AI Raised to Overweight From Neutral by Cantor Fitzgerald
Southwest Gas Cut to Neutral From Buy by B of A Securities
Steelcase Cut to Hold From Buy by Benchmark
This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.
(MORE TO FOLLOW) Dow Jones Newswires
12-01-22 0613ET
