The S&P 500 fell less than 0.1% after spending the day wavering between small gains and losses. The tiny loss ended the benchmark index’s three-day winning streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.1% and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.1%. Trading volume was lighter than usual as US markets reopened following the Christmas holiday. Semiconductor giant Nvidia, whose enormous valuation gives it an outsize influence on indexes, slipped 0.2%. Meta Platforms fell 0.7%, and Amazon and Netflix each fell 0.9%. Tesla was among the biggest decliners in the S&P 500, finishing 1.8% lower. Some tech companies fared better. Chip company Broadcom rose 2.4%, Micron Technology added 0.6% and Adobe gained 0.5%. Health care stocks were a bright spot. CVS Health rose 1.5% and Walgreens Boots Alliance added 5.3% for the biggest gain among S&P 500 stocks. Several retailers also gained ground. Target rose 3%, Ross Stores added 2.3%, Best Buy rose 2.9% and Dollar Tree gained 3.8%. Traders are watching to see whether retailers have a strong holiday season. The day after Christmas traditionally ranks among the top 10 biggest shopping days of the year, as consumers go online or rush to stores to cash in gift cards and raid bargain bins. US-listed shares in Honda and Nissan rose 4.1% and 16.4% respectively. The Japanese car makers announced earlier this week that the two companies are in talks to combine. All told, the S&P 500 fell 2.45 points to 6,037.59. The Dow added 28.77 points to 43,325.80. The Nasdaq fell 10.77 points to close at 20,020.36. Wall Street also got a labour market update. US applications for unemployment benefits held steady last week, though continuing claims rose to the highest level in three years, the Labour Department reported. Treasury yields mostly fell in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped to 4.58% from 4.59% late on Tuesday. Major European markets were closed, as well as Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia. Trading was expected to be subdued this week with a thin slate of economic data on the calendar.
The newly approved draft Cyber Protection Ordinance retains many of the clauses of its predecessors that drew flak from across the world for stifling freedom of expression. The ordinance, approved by the interim government's advisory council on December 24, replaces the Cyber Security Act (CSA), and its more draconian precursor, the Digital Security Act (DSA). The DSA had gained notoriety for having been used as a tool by the Awami League government to muzzle dissent and journalists by arresting and incarcerating them. The DSA's watered-down version, the CSA, kept clauses that criminalised free speech and just removed stringent and non-bailable jail terms. Much like its antecedents, the newly drafted ordinance limits free speech online and disregards the right to freedom of expression as a universal right. The draft penalises "hurting religious sentiment" with a jail term of two years and a fine of Tk 10 lakh. Both CSA and DSA had this provision. The Daily Star obtained data from Centre for Governance Studies' DSA Tracker and found that 44 percent of the cases filed under the DSA for "hurting religious sentiment" were against the religious minorities, particularly the Hindus. Last year, the United Nations Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression Irene Khan wrote to the then Awami League government, criticising this clause. "International human rights law protects individuals from intolerance, violence and discriminations based on their religion or belief, but it does not allow restriction of criticism of religious belief or sentiment," she wrote. A clause criminalising defamation, which was heavily used for incarcerating journalists and politicians, has been removed in the draft and replaced with a "cyber-bullying" clause. The section states that it is a criminal offence to use any website or any electronic medium to insult, harass, blackmail or humiliate a person. The offence carries jail terms of up to two years and a fine of Tk 10 lakh. Use of slurs and offensive words is deemed a violation under this section. It states that the content that defames someone or causes mental trauma would be under the purview of this law. The data from Centre for Governance Studies shows that of the over 5,000 accused under the DSA, nearly half were prosecuted for social media posts deemed critical of the government, officeholders, or elected representatives. One in three accused under the DSA and one in four sued under the CSA were journalists, the data shows. Saimum Reza Talukder, a prosecutor at the International Crimes Tribunal who specialises in digital rights and cyber laws, said, "The vague wording of 'cyberbullying' and the broad scope of the definition might also be abused in future, because the notion of defamation is also there. Therefore, this needs to be elaborated. "... Journalistic freedom might be hampered or affected in this draft." He added, "I understand the importance of curbing hate speech or harmful speech against religion. Hate speech must be well-defined in the law so that it does not get combined with any other issues, and it does not get abused." The draft also enables a supervisory body, National Security Agency, to block any content that poses a threat to national solidarity, the nation's economic activities, national security, defence, religious values, public order, or incites racial hatred or animosity. Law enforcers can also request the agency to block such information. Shahed Alam, chief corporate and regulatory officer at Robi Axiata Ltd, said, "It is unfortunate to observe that several recommendations from the industry stakeholders have not been accommodated in the draft. Expanding the capacity of content blocking through organisations under the ICT division will create the scope for misuse of power." Under the proposed law, a National Cyber Security Council led by the chief of the government is to be formed. The council will include relevant ministers and law enforcement agency heads as its members. The council can directly issue instructions to the agency to take action. Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb, the policy adviser of the Information Communication Technology Division, and one of the authors of the ordinance, said, "The risk of such clauses being misused or abused remains. "It is very important for the political settlement to be such that the implementation of the law happens based on civility and human rights." Sabhanaz Rashid Diya, executive director of Tech Global Institute, said, "... These provisions legitimise surveillance and transnational repression, both of which were disproportionately abused by the Awami League government for extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances. "The ordinance fails to address any structural issues around censorship, surveillance, consolidation of state powers, and discretionary powers given to law enforcement and intelligence agencies." Taiyeb argues that the draft includes checks and balances to ensure that overreaches are challenged. "The ordinance allows search and arrests without warrants, but they [accused] have to be produced before a court within 24 hours. This is to protect against enforced disappearance." As per the draft, the accused can go to court and declare their lack of trust or confidence in an investigating officer. In addition, the draft mandates that it is up to a magistrate to decide if a case has the merit for a judicial process. This is a departure from the previous two laws under which cases could be filed against individuals and arrests made without the involvement of a magistrate, and all cases would end up at court. The draft recognises that women and children are particularly vulnerable in cyberspace and proposes harsh penalties for those perpetrating crimes against them. Sexual harassment in cyberspace now carries a jail term of three years and a fine of Tk 20 lakh. Taiyeb said, "We have also included a provision allowing aggrieved persons to seek compensation from the person who has harmed them. There is no upper ceiling on the compensation that can be sought, and the cyber tribunal can decide on the amount depending on the severity of the harm caused." The draft includes a section that penalises e-commerce websites for extorting money from customers and defrauding them. This offence is non-bailable. Bail would be denied in cases filed in connection with hacking, data theft, or destroying critical infrastructure. The draft ordinance defines "cyber-terrorism" as illegal access to any system that threatens the country's diplomatic relations with another state, acts intended for espionage or for serving the interests of any particular group or individual. This offence is non-bailable. Cryptocurrencies remain outlawed. Critics pointed out that no real stakeholder engagement happened before this draft was approved. Sabhanaz said that allowing only three days to comment on the draft, not holding any meaningful dialogue with stakeholders, and not ensuring transparency on decision-making reflect poorly on the government the mandate of which is to make critical reforms. The newly approved draft Cyber Protection Ordinance retains many of the clauses of its predecessors that drew flak from across the world for stifling freedom of expression. The ordinance, approved by the interim government's advisory council on December 24, replaces the Cyber Security Act (CSA), and its more draconian precursor, the Digital Security Act (DSA). The DSA had gained notoriety for having been used as a tool by the Awami League government to muzzle dissent and journalists by arresting and incarcerating them. The DSA's watered-down version, the CSA, kept clauses that criminalised free speech and just removed stringent and non-bailable jail terms. Much like its antecedents, the newly drafted ordinance limits free speech online and disregards the right to freedom of expression as a universal right. The draft penalises "hurting religious sentiment" with a jail term of two years and a fine of Tk 10 lakh. Both CSA and DSA had this provision. The Daily Star obtained data from Centre for Governance Studies' DSA Tracker and found that 44 percent of the cases filed under the DSA for "hurting religious sentiment" were against the religious minorities, particularly the Hindus. Last year, the United Nations Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression Irene Khan wrote to the then Awami League government, criticising this clause. "International human rights law protects individuals from intolerance, violence and discriminations based on their religion or belief, but it does not allow restriction of criticism of religious belief or sentiment," she wrote. A clause criminalising defamation, which was heavily used for incarcerating journalists and politicians, has been removed in the draft and replaced with a "cyber-bullying" clause. The section states that it is a criminal offence to use any website or any electronic medium to insult, harass, blackmail or humiliate a person. The offence carries jail terms of up to two years and a fine of Tk 10 lakh. Use of slurs and offensive words is deemed a violation under this section. It states that the content that defames someone or causes mental trauma would be under the purview of this law. The data from Centre for Governance Studies shows that of the over 5,000 accused under the DSA, nearly half were prosecuted for social media posts deemed critical of the government, officeholders, or elected representatives. One in three accused under the DSA and one in four sued under the CSA were journalists, the data shows. Saimum Reza Talukder, a prosecutor at the International Crimes Tribunal who specialises in digital rights and cyber laws, said, "The vague wording of 'cyberbullying' and the broad scope of the definition might also be abused in future, because the notion of defamation is also there. Therefore, this needs to be elaborated. "... Journalistic freedom might be hampered or affected in this draft." He added, "I understand the importance of curbing hate speech or harmful speech against religion. Hate speech must be well-defined in the law so that it does not get combined with any other issues, and it does not get abused." The draft also enables a supervisory body, National Security Agency, to block any content that poses a threat to national solidarity, the nation's economic activities, national security, defence, religious values, public order, or incites racial hatred or animosity. Law enforcers can also request the agency to block such information. Shahed Alam, chief corporate and regulatory officer at Robi Axiata Ltd, said, "It is unfortunate to observe that several recommendations from the industry stakeholders have not been accommodated in the draft. Expanding the capacity of content blocking through organisations under the ICT division will create the scope for misuse of power." Under the proposed law, a National Cyber Security Council led by the chief of the government is to be formed. The council will include relevant ministers and law enforcement agency heads as its members. The council can directly issue instructions to the agency to take action. Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb, the policy adviser of the Information Communication Technology Division, and one of the authors of the ordinance, said, "The risk of such clauses being misused or abused remains. "It is very important for the political settlement to be such that the implementation of the law happens based on civility and human rights." Sabhanaz Rashid Diya, executive director of Tech Global Institute, said, "... These provisions legitimise surveillance and transnational repression, both of which were disproportionately abused by the Awami League government for extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances. "The ordinance fails to address any structural issues around censorship, surveillance, consolidation of state powers, and discretionary powers given to law enforcement and intelligence agencies." Taiyeb argues that the draft includes checks and balances to ensure that overreaches are challenged. "The ordinance allows search and arrests without warrants, but they [accused] have to be produced before a court within 24 hours. This is to protect against enforced disappearance." As per the draft, the accused can go to court and declare their lack of trust or confidence in an investigating officer. In addition, the draft mandates that it is up to a magistrate to decide if a case has the merit for a judicial process. This is a departure from the previous two laws under which cases could be filed against individuals and arrests made without the involvement of a magistrate, and all cases would end up at court. The draft recognises that women and children are particularly vulnerable in cyberspace and proposes harsh penalties for those perpetrating crimes against them. Sexual harassment in cyberspace now carries a jail term of three years and a fine of Tk 20 lakh. Taiyeb said, "We have also included a provision allowing aggrieved persons to seek compensation from the person who has harmed them. There is no upper ceiling on the compensation that can be sought, and the cyber tribunal can decide on the amount depending on the severity of the harm caused." The draft includes a section that penalises e-commerce websites for extorting money from customers and defrauding them. This offence is non-bailable. Bail would be denied in cases filed in connection with hacking, data theft, or destroying critical infrastructure. The draft ordinance defines "cyber-terrorism" as illegal access to any system that threatens the country's diplomatic relations with another state, acts intended for espionage or for serving the interests of any particular group or individual. This offence is non-bailable. Cryptocurrencies remain outlawed. Critics pointed out that no real stakeholder engagement happened before this draft was approved. Sabhanaz said that allowing only three days to comment on the draft, not holding any meaningful dialogue with stakeholders, and not ensuring transparency on decision-making reflect poorly on the government the mandate of which is to make critical reforms.Bad Bunny announces a new album, 'Debí Tirar Más Fotos'
Medical Equipment Maintenance Market to Grow by USD 51.21 Billion (2024-2028), Driven by Focus on Preventive Maintenance, AI Redefining Market Landscape - Technavio
NoneQuestions to ask your home inspector
Arne Slot celebrated Liverpool's against by saying the Spanish giants had become a "pain in the a--" for the club after ending a 15-year winless run against the reigning European champions. Second-half goals from and -- and both failed to score from the penalty spot in the second half -- sealed a the win for that maintained their 100% winning start to the Champions League and moved Slot's side two points clear of second-placed . With Liverpool failing to beat Madrid in their last six meetings, including Champions League finals in 2018 and 2022, Slot said it was important to finally beat the 15-time Champions League winners. "You know how special it is to play against a team that has won the Champions League so many times," Slot said. "They were a pain in the a-- for Liverpool for many years too. It is a big week and it is pleasing to see. "I think it is always good to win a game and especially a big game like this, you know you face so many quality players. "But this is such a strange and different set up in the Champions League and it is difficult to judge how important these wins are. "If we meet them [Madrid] in the last 16 and then we are able to beat them it would be a bigger statement." Despite now having a five-point cushion in the top eight, which will guarantee a place in the round of 16, Slot said it is too soon to know whether Liverpool have done enough to seal qualification. "I didn't have schedule in terms of amount of points I wanted," he said. "You want to implement the playing style as soon as possible. That is not difficult because it wasn't that different to Jürgen's [Klopp, his predecessor]. It is great to see not only the starters but the players coming on are doing as we expect. "If before the season I had counted points for this point in the season I wouldn't have done as much as we have now." Liverpool face in a crucial clash at Anfield on Sunday with Slot saying it is "too soon" to assess the extent of injuries to and . And the Liverpool manager said he will be backed by his family for the City clash after a visit from the Netherlands following his summer arrival from Feyenoord. "They took a few days off school to be here," Slot said. "They will here for Man City but it will not influence the game! "To have family around, it is always a good thing, because you don't have to be focused for 24 hours ... 18 hours maybe!"The crypto party seems to be getting restarted. Bitcoin is surging and big players are celebrating amid expectations that President-elect Donald Trump will make the U.S., as he put it, “the crypto capital of the world.” Lest this experiment go awry, regulators need to keep some guardrails in place. In its current incarnation, crypto has at best an indirect potential to benefit society. Most of its enterprises — such as the Trump-promoted World Liberty Financial — have little or nothing to do with the technology’s capacity to, say, improve cross-border payments or securities settlement. The most popular digital tokens tend to be purely speculative instruments, with no connection to the real-world cash flows from which financial assets derive their value. They’re traded on platforms rife with scammers, manipulation and conflicts of interest, enriching primarily the kind of intermediaries that crypto was supposed to eliminate. Under President Joe Biden, the Securities and Exchange Commission has sought to shut crypto down rather than introduce rules to accommodate and civilize it (as Europe, for example, is attempting). SEC Chair Gary Gensler sued two of the world’s largest trading platforms, Binance Holdings Ltd. and Coinbase Global Inc., for various violations of securities laws — an effort that, if successful, could’ve forced them out of the country or even out of business. Things have changed. Trump has pledged to fire Gensler and even establish a “strategic national Bitcoin stockpile,” to the delight of crypto advocates who pumped more than $200 million into his campaign and those of dozens of successful congressional candidates. Industry-sponsored legislation would largely neutralize the SEC, facilitating a proliferation of issuance and trading with minimal oversight — particularly given the president-elect’s likely appointments to the relevant regulators. In the 10 days following Trump’s election, Bitcoin jumped more than 30 percent. Dogecoin, created as a joke, nearly doubled. Without being alarmist or unduly meddlesome, it’s worth pondering some of the ways in which things could go wrong. What becomes of Trump’s Bitcoin reserve idea remains to be seen: It might be limited to tokens the government has already confiscated in criminal cases and hence not much to worry about. Likewise, if crypto remains a realm of rip-offs, self-dealing and zero-sum speculation, the victims will mainly be people who have been amply warned and should’ve known better, as happened with the implosion of FTX in 2022. Unfortunately, that’s not all. If traditional financial institutions are allowed to lend against the collateral of tokens conjured out of thin air, trouble in crypto could well spread. If issuers of so-called stablecoins — tokens purporting to represent dollars and other currencies — amass enough traditional assets, a crypto panic could destabilize financial markets. And if stablecoins keep acting as uncontrolled conduits for moving money, the U.S.’s ability to fight terrorism and impose sanctions could be significantly weakened. Hundreds of billions of dollars a month move in and out of Tether, the most popular stablecoin. Authorities need to stay alert. Financial regulators have so far done a good job of limiting lending against crypto, particularly by banks. They should keep it up. The Treasury Department has ample power to influence stablecoin issuers, which can’t function properly without access to dollars. It should demand that they assiduously police transactions, report suspicious activity and freeze holdings when necessary. And their investments should be limited to the safest, most liquid securities. Crypto is poised for a comeback. Basic firewalls can at least prevent it from posing a threat to the millions of people who reasonably want nothing to do with it. Beyond that, buyer beware.
NoneA judge on Monday rejected a request to block a San Jose State women’s volleyball team member from playing in a conference tournament on grounds that she is transgender. Monday’s ruling by U.S. Magistrate Judge S. Kato Crews in Denver will allow the player, who has played all season, to continue competing in the Mountain West Conference women’s championship scheduled for later this week in Las Vegas. The ruling comes after a lawsuit was filed by nine current players who are suing the Mountain West Conference to challenge the league’s policies for allowing transgender players to participate. The players argued that letting her compete was a safety risk and unfair. While some media have reported those and other details, neither San Jose State nor the forfeiting teams have confirmed the school has a trans women’s volleyball player. The Associated Press is withholding the player’s name because she has not publicly commented on her gender identity. School officials also have declined an interview request with the player. Judge Crews referred to the athlete as an “alleged transgender” player in his ruling and noted that no defendant disputed that San Jose State rosters a transgender woman volleyball player. He said the players who filed the complaint could have sought relief much earlier, noting that the individual universities had acknowledged that not playing their games against San Jose State this season would result in a forfeit in league standings. He also said injunctions are meant to preserve the status quo. The conference policy regarding forfeiting for refusing to play against a team with a transgender player had been in effect since 2022 and the San Jose State player has been on the roster since 2022 – making that the status quo. The player competed at the college level three previous seasons, including two for San Jose State, drawing little attention. This season’s awareness of her identity led to an uproar among some players, pundits, parents and politicians in a political campaign year. The tournament starts Wednesday and continues Friday and Saturday. San Jose State is seeded second. The judge's order maintains the seedings and pairings for the tournament. Several teams refused to play against San Jose State during the season, earning losses in the official standings. Boise State and Wyoming each had two forfeits while Utah State and Nevada both had one. Southern Utah, a member of the Western Athletic Conference, was first to cancel against San Jose State this year. Nevada’s players stated they “refuse to participate in any match that advances injustice against female athletes,” without providing further details. Crews served as a magistrate judge in Colorado’s U.S. District Court for more than five years before President Joe Biden appointed him to serve as a federal judge in January of this year. ____ Gruver reported from Cheyenne, Wyoming, and Hanson from Helena, Montana. Mead Gruver And Amy Beth Hanson (), The Associated Press