There is no fear on Wall Street. Only greed

New York (CNN Business) – The current mood on Wall Street can only be described in one way: euphoric.

All the major stock market indexes are at record highs. The Nasdaq is on an eleven-day winning streak. Bond yields remain relatively low. And cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ethereum are at all-time highs too.

It’s no wonder then that the CNN Business Fear & Greed Index, which looks at seven gauges of market sentiment, is showing levels of Extreme Greed in the market.  —read more— 

Short squeezes are pushing these stocks to the moon

  New York (CNN Business) – The individual investor army on Reddit that helped push GameStop and AMC to unprecedented heights earlier this year has found some more companies to rally around.

Several stocks that have enjoyed extraordinary pops lately, such as Avis Budget (CAR) and Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY), have become so-called meme stocks that many professional investors have bet against … and have gotten burned for because of what’s known as a short squeeze.  —read more— 

Avis stock more than doubles after strong earnings show no end to rental car boom

  New York (CNN Business) – Avis Budget investors didn’t really need to try harder to make any money from the stock on Tuesday. The rental car company’s shares more than doubled after Avis Budget reported strong earnings Monday evening that easily topped Wall Street’s forecasts.

The stock was up as much as 218% at one point and was up “only” 110% in late afternoon trading Tuesday. It was halted several times because of volatility. Avis Budget (CAR) is now up about 875% this year.  —read more— 

CNN BUSINESS | Zillow’s home-buying debacle shows how hard it is to use AI to value real estate

(CNN) – In February, Zillow appeared so confident in its ability to use artificial intelligence to estimate the value of homes that it announced a new option: for certain homes, its so-called “Zestimate” would also represent an initial cash offer from the company to purchase the property.

The move, touted by a company exec at the time as “an exciting advancement,” was intended to streamline the process for homeowners considering selling to Zillow as part of its home-flipping business. Zillow promoted this option as a way to make it convenient to sell a home while minimizing interactions with others during the pandemic. Just eight months later, however, the company is shutting down that business, Zillow Offers, entirely.  —read more— 

CNN politics | Hackers have breached organizations in defense and other sensitive sectors, security firm says

(CNN) – Suspected foreign hackers have breached nine organizations in the defense, energy, health care, technology and education sectors — and at least one of those organizations is in the US, according to findings that security firm Palo Alto Networks shared exclusively with CNN.

With the help of the National Security Agency, cybersecurity researchers are exposing an ongoing effort by these unidentified hackers to steal key data from US defense contractors and other sensitive targets.

It’s the type of cyber espionage that security agencies in both the Biden and Trump administrations have aggressively sought to expose before it does too much damage. The goal in going public with the information is to warn other corporations that might be targeted and to burn the hackers’ tools in the process.  —read more—  

F1 | Verstappen extends championship lead after jumping both Mercedes at the start to win in Mexico

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen cruised to a record third career Mexico City Grand Prix victory ahead of Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull team mate Sergio Perez – who became the first Mexican driver to take a Formula 1 podium at their home race.

The joy of Valtteri Bottas’s shock pole position was short-lived as Verstappen swept around the outside of the two Mercedes into the first corner on the opening lap. Bottas was then tipped into a spin by McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo into Turn 2 to leave Verstappen leading Hamilton then Perez behind the Safety Car, which was called back for a Lap 5 race restart, as Bottas dropped to the back of the field.  —read more— 

watch: Race Highlights | 2021 Mexico City Grand Prix

F1 | QUALIFYING: Mercedes shock Red Bull as Bottas takes pole ahead of Hamilton in Mexico

Valtteri Bottas soaked up the pressure and ripped up the formbook to take a sensational pole position for the Mexico City Grand Prix, as his Mercedes team upset the odds and outpaced favourites Red Bull.

The Finn was positioned on track to give championship contender and team mate Lewis Hamilton a tow on both runs in qualifying, but it was the Alfa Romeo-bound driver who was the fastest Silver Arrows car on Saturday.  —read more—  

watch: Qualifying Highlights | 2021 Mexico City Grand Prix

CNN health | One habit could reduce your fears of public speaking, criticism, failure and more

(CNN) – As a lawyer whose job involves lots of talking and being the center of attention, Jeena Cho’s fear of socializing was debilitating.

“I would constantly mentally critique my own performance,” said Cho, who is also a mindfulness instructor and coauthor of “The Anxious Lawyer: An 8-Week Guide to a Joyful and Satisfying Law Practice Through Mindfulness and Meditation.”

“If I had to go into a hearing and I can feel my face was getting red, my palms are sweaty … I would think, ‘Oh, my gosh, everyone in the courtroom is going to know that you’re super anxious. And you’re going to freeze and you’re going to forget what you’re going to say,'” Cho said. “Of course, all of those thoughts would then retrigger all the physiological reactions, then my heart would race even faster.”  —read more— 

CNN BUSINESS | There could be a seismic shift in the labor market. Here’s why

London (CNN Business)  – America’s job market is showing signs of strength — welcome news after a choppy summer.

What’s happening: The US economy added 531,000 jobs in October, according to government data released Friday. That’s stronger than in August and September, though gains for both months have been revised higher.

Still, economists are increasingly starting to wonder: As shortfalls of workers persist, has the labor market changed for good? If the answer is yes, the ramifications for policymakers could be huge.  —read more— 

CNN style Architecture | Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz open the doors to their art-filled California mansion

In the mountains north of San Diego, a modernist mansion made of white concrete and glass rises from the cliffside. The property, nicknamed “Razor House” after the nearby Razor Point Trail, is now home to two famous inhabitants: singer Alicia Keys and her music producer husband Kasseem Dean, better known as Swizz Beatz, alongside their children Genesis and Egypt.

The duo have since given the residence their own name, “Dreamland,” filling it with artworks by Black artists, a fleet of Ferraris, an infinity pool and a recording studio tucked away in a space Dean calls “the grown up floor.” Boasting views over the Pacific Ocean, the home is said to have inspired Tony Stark’s mansion in the “Iron Man” franchise, according to Architectural Digest, which is dedicating the cover story of its December issue to the property.  —read more—  

CNN style Design | World’s largest 3D-printed neighborhood to break ground in Texas

A new property development in Austin, Texas, is set to become the world’s largest community of 3D-printed homes.

Scheduled to break ground next year, the project will feature 100 single-story houses “printed” on-site using advanced robotic construction and a concrete-based building material.

Digital renderings of the neighborhood, unveiled last week, show rows of properties with their roofs covered in solar cells. The homes will each take approximately a week to build, according to firms behind the development.  —read more—  

CNN entertainment | Ronnie Wilson, founding member of The Gap Band, dead at 73

(CNN) – Ronnie Wilson, founding member of R&B group The Gap Band, has died at the age of 73.

His passing was confirmed by his wife, Linda Boulware-Wilson, in a Facebook post published Tuesday.

“The love of my life was called home this morning, at 10:01am. Please continue to pray for The Wilson, Boulware, and Collins family, while we mourn his passing,” she wrote.  —read more—