Daily Archives: July 5, 2021

Tesla won't sit by the wayside as electric trucks like the Hummer EV and Rivian R1T lure customers with special features. Elon Musk has revealed that Tesla is adding rear-wheel steering to the Cybertruck to help the EV maneuver with "high agility." It's a rough answer to the Hummer's "Crab Mode" and R1T's tank turns, in other words. You might not have much trouble with a tight U-turn or tricky off-road scenario.

Musk also reiterated that the Cybertruck's design will be "almost exactly" what you saw at the introduction in November 2019, although he teased that there were many "other great things" in the pipeline. The pickup is still due to enter production in late 2021.

Rear-wheel steering may be virtually necessary. The Cybertruck is large even by truck standards it might be a tough sell if it's difficult to steer out of a parking lot. Moreover, rivals like GMC, Rivian and Ford are all launching electric trucks that might match or sometimes beat Tesla's feature set. The category has changed since the Cybertruck introduction, and Tesla risks losing some business if it doesn't update its technology.

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Tesla Cybertruck will have an answer to the Hummer EV's 'Crab Mode' - Yahoo Tech

(Bloomberg) -- Video gaming entrepreneur Carlos Ocelote Rodriguez is turning to the U.S. entertainment market after building one of Europes biggest esport franchises.

Rodriguez is in talks with several streaming platforms there to develop and sell content based on his Berlin-based G2 Esports teams, their star athletes and Samurai warrior brand, the former professional gamer told Bloomberg.

Hes joining a growing band of competitive gaming businesses that are pushing beyond tournaments live-streamed on platforms like Twitch into TV shows, social media videos and even films.

I can clearly see our Samurai, a few years from now, featuring in a Hollywood movie, said Rodriguez. A biography of my own life -- I promise you that will happen at some point.

Rodriguez, 31, was a star gamer for Deutsche Telekom AG-backed SK Gaming before he founded G2 in 2015. The Spaniard was one of the first pro players to live-stream his games about a decade ago, building a loyal fan base and selling his own merchandise.

Hes made himself the star of G2s marketing videos, filling them with jokes, banter and pop-culture references. In January, Rodriguez introduced a multi-year deal with Adidas AG with a series of clips that riffed off Anchorman, The Matrix, The Lord of the Rings and 2001: A Space Odyssey.

People want to root for or against us, he said. If 50% of the population loves you and 50% of the population hates you -- thats the best position to be in.

G2 has dominated recent European League of Legends championships and successfully competed against teams from Asia and North America. It employs about 85 people and works with a further 80 esports players, coaches and content creators. The company has millions of followers on social media and has earned more than $8.3 million in prize money, placing it in the global top 20 teams, according to esportsearnings.com.

The U.S. pivot will test whether foreign teams can gain traction in an industry that tends to be dominated by local players. It will compete for attention with plenty of established and well-funded organizations including Los Angeles-based TSM, FaZe Clan and NRG Esports, backed by former NBA player Shaquille ONeal.

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Last month G2 announced another series of its gaming reality-TV show Making the Squad. The company has sponsorship deals with Adidas, Ralph Lauren and online bookmaker Betway, and last month said it will offer non-fungible tokens in partnership with NFT platform Bondly.

Viewers Double

Esports has grown from a narrow community of enthusiasts into a global business. Major sponsors including Coca Cola Co., LVMH and BMW AG have piled in to try to reach younger audiences that have turned away from traditional media.

Fans use Amazon.com Inc.s Twitch and rival services such as Googles YouTube to watch professional gamers. The easing of the pandemic and return of outdoor sports in many regions hasnt arrested the industrys growth: Average viewer numbers on Twitch roughly doubled in June from two years ago.

While G2 already has a U.S. following, theres more money to be made by establishing a stronger local presence. Asia is the biggest esports market in terms of its fan base, but the U.S. tends to come top in prize money, brand partnerships and merchandise sales. Its also where the industry is pushing hardest to monetize media rights.

U.S. company Allied Esports has set up a production studio to develop a library of content for video-on-demand platforms, drawing on repackaged live-tournament play, the stories of different esports teams and the lives of their top players.

If you want U.S.-based dollars, you need to activate in the U.S. said Allied Esports Chief Executive Officer Jud Hannigan. If you cut a deal here with Coca Cola, youre not going to be activating that deal in Europe -- thats not the way brands typically spend.

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One of Europes Biggest Esports Startups Is Targeting the U.S. - Yahoo Finance

LOS ANGELES Chris Paul was feeling it. He couldnt be stopped. The Phoenix Suns kept feeding him.

Teammate Jae Crowder kept asking him in the fourth quarter if he could taste it yet, referring to sweet victory. Pauls replies were no.

That was bad news for the Los Angeles Clippers.

Midway in that final frame with Los Angeles up 23, Clippers pesky guard Patrick Beverley was hounding the star guard defensively. Paul asked for a pick from Deandre Ayton and got the switch he wanted in Marcus Morris.

He slowly dribbled him down and then elevated at the top of the arc, finding nothing but the bottom of the net over the outstretched arms of Morris. That was the dagger. The Clippers immediately called timeout.

Patrick Beverley pushes Chris Paul during Game 6 of the Western Conference finals at Staples Center on June 30, 2021. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

As both teams were walking to their respective huddles, Paul and Beverley passed by each other and the future Hall of Famer gave Beverley a side glance Beverley obviously couldnt handle.

In the epitome of a bush-league move, Beverley shoved Paul in the lower back, prompting him to spill over. Fortunately, there was no escalation and Beverley was ejected from the game.

It hurts. It stings, Paul said of what Beverley must have felt after that dagger triple signaled the end of their postseason run.

I just think it built up on Pat, C.J. Paul, Chris' older brother, told Yahoo Sports. Thats not a way to end it. I dont know why he did that. Ive looked at the play a few times and all Chris did was look at him, and that look was everything. Thats when you knew he took his heart. Its crazy.

[Beverley] has dictated certain outcomes with the way he plays by diving at Russ [Westbrooks knee], leading to a meniscus tear, breaking Devin Bookers nose and undercutting Chris. Its not cool. Im sure the league will step in and do something, but what he does is not how the game should be played.

Beverley will face a suspension to start next season for that dangerous behind-the-back push, sources told Yahoo Sports.

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Pauls 41-point outburst of pure offensive dominance shoved the Suns back to the NBA Finals for the first time in 28 years, and its the first time the 16-year veteran has advanced to this stage.

Its a long time coming, and Im finally happy he has a chance to win a title. But its great to see all the hard work paying off to get to this point, C.J. Paul told Yahoo Sports. Daryl Morey said he wasnt going to trade Chris. Think about that. And now hes going to the Finals on a team that three and four years ago he never would have played at. We thought Houston was going to be the last stop, and now its been two more stops. Were just enjoying this, and Im just happy for Chris.

Phoenix won Game 6, 130-103 Wednesday night at Staples Center, and await the winner of the Eastern Conference finals between the Milwaukee Bucks and Atlanta Hawks.

Paul was 16-of-24 from the field, 7-of-8 from behind the arc and dished out eight assists in 35 minutes.

Paul may not have retaliated when it came to that push, but he was willing to do it in the context of the game.

Hes always been the little guy everywhere. He had the small-guy complex growing up. He was always angry. He knew he always had to do more than everyone else. He does so much and plays so hard and passionate, C.J. Paul told Yahoo Sports. I tell people we couldnt play on the same team. Hes not the easiest guy to play with. Hes two different people: A butthole on the court, and off the court, hes chill. But that small-guy mentally is why hes the player he is today.

Chris Paul holds the Western Conference championship trophy after the Phoenix Suns defeated the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 6 of the Western Conference finals on June 30, 2021 in Los Angeles. (Harry How/Getty Images)

The Clippers bench, particularly DeMarcus Cousins, continued jawing at Paul after the Beverley shove. At one point, Cousins shouted: Thats why nobody f*** with your ass.

Phoenix was up a comfortable 24 points with 2:07 remaining in the game when Devin Booker grabbed a defensive rebound. Paul adamantly demanded the ball while simultaneously jawing back with Cousins. He received the ball and was determined to add to his point total to run up the score, but that plan was halted when official Marc Davis whistled him for a taunting technical.

Paul didnt argue, and he was subsequently subbed out for the night.

All that woofing. It aint nothing, Paul said of Cousins. I just kept thinking if we do what were supposed to do, Ill get the last laugh. You stay the course long enough, and youll break them. And thats what we did.

Known more for his table-setting, no one expected this type of a performance from Paul.

There were questions about his production before tonight, and in my heart, I felt like it was a matter of time. I didn't know it was going to be like that, but that's who Chris is, Suns coach Monty Williams said. He was tired and he was still making those kinds of plays getting to the basket, the threes, orchestrating everything. I'm grateful that I get to coach him again.

The knocks on Paul were that he was a regular-season performer who would flame out in the postseason. Having endured multiple series of being up only to falter led some onlookers to cast doubt on the legitimacy of his legacy.

I would say the pivotal moment of his career was not being able to help Houston when he pulled his hamstring in the conference finals against Golden State. You think youve done everything and your body just let you down, C.J. Paul told Yahoo Sports. And then in December, it happened again. That changed his mindset. We changed trainers, he switched up his diet and hes pretty much been durable ever since. But before, he was always rehabbing to make himself better.

Paul is stamped regardless, Booker said of Pauls merit. Anything else from here is extra. It's extra, just to solidify. I know he wants it bad. I know he's happy about this for his first time, but I know what he's on the pursuit of and we have that same understanding. We don't talk about it much, but we know what we're trying to get to. But as far as he needs a ring to be considered he's one of the best point guards to ever play the game, and that's a fact. And everybody knows that. Arguably the best.

Most of the Suns have never been here, coach included. Its been an improbable run that marches on and theyre doing it with poise and class, something you wouldnt expect from a young group.

What were seeing right now is what we would have saw if Chris got the chance to play with Kobe [Bryant]. I feel like Dev [Booker] is the closest to Kobe that we have in this league, and Im not trying to put pressure on him, C.J. Paul told Yahoo Sports. Chris is playing with a younger Kobe Bryant. Those two have the same mentality, both being dogs. Were seeing a Chris and a younger Kobe.

Theyve got the right leadership in place in Williams and Paul.

People wrote him off. When you put him with guys he can lead, the skys the limit, C.J. Paul told Yahoo Sports. Oklahoma City and Phoenix allowed him to be himself and lead. When he played football growing up, he was the leader. Thats what he does. This was a great situation for him.

They may not be the fanciest team with their style of play, but theyre shoving excellence down the throat of the opponent and are now four wins away from the ultimate prize.

Thats the push that drives Paul and the Suns.

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Chris Paul doesn't react to Patrick Beverley, DeMarcus Cousins and gets 'last laugh' in shoving Suns to NBA Finals - Yahoo Sports

Conservatives claim that schools are indoctrinating students in critical race theory. Liberals argue that conservatives dont even know what critical race theory is and that if they did, theyd realize teachers arent actually exposing kids to it.

But a new Yahoo News/YouGov poll suggests that the roiling culture war over so-called CRT isnt about whether todays schoolchildren are suddenly probing the complexities of an academic approach to race that originated among legal scholars in the mid-1970s.

Rather, the clash over CRT aside from whatever the term now connotes in the public imagination appears to be a supercharged spinoff of a deeper dispute between conservatives and pretty much every other group in the United States.

A protest against critical race theory outside Loudoun County School Board headquarters in Ashburn, Va., on June 22. (Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters)

According to the poll, the right largely believes that racism is personal the product of one individual discriminating against another. The rest of the country mostly agrees that racism is systemic a force that continues to harm people of color, regardless of how isolated individuals treat them.

And therein lies the disagreement over what kids should learn in school.

The survey of 1,592 U.S. adults, which was conducted from June 22 to 24, set out to determine how closely the publics opinion of the term critical race theory aligns with a central idea behind it. To do that, Yahoo News and YouGov asked respondents whether theyd heard of critical race theory and followed up with the ones who had heard of it by asking if critical race theory is something students should be exposed to in school.

It turns out only about half of Americans (52 percent) are even familiar with the term "critical race theory," according to the poll, and political engagement is likely to account for that exposure. As Time magazine reported in a recent cover story, conservative advocacy groups, legal organizations and state legislatures have mounted a campaign to weaponize the term because they believe that fighting it will be a winning electoral message.

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As a result, awareness is much higher among white Americans who identify as conservative (71 percent) or liberal (70 percent) than it is among white moderates (48 percent), African Americans (42 percent) or Latino Americans (39 percent).

A protester in Leesburg, Va., on June 12. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

Given the sharply polarized, cable-news-driven nature of the current feud, its little surprise, then, that the people who say theyre familiar with the term also tend to say they dont want it in schools. Overall, 49 percent of those who have heard of CRT are against exposing students to it; 37 percent favor exposure.

Some groups disagree, of course, including Democrats (by a 76 percent to 9 percent margin), Black Americans (62 percent to 23 percent) and 18- to 29-year-olds (53 percent to 23 percent). But within most demographics, those whove heard of CRT including people 45 or older as well as independents (who oppose exposing students to it by a 55 percent to 29 percent margin) do not.

The interesting thing is what happens and, more to the point, what doesnt happen when you dissociate one of CRTs main tenets from the hot-button term.

To do that, Yahoo News and YouGov also asked before ever mentioning critical race theory, so as not to influence the answers whether respondents agreed or disagreed with the concept that racism is not merely the product of individual bias or prejudice, but also something embedded in legal systems and policies. We then asked if that concept is something students should be exposed to in schools.

That particular wording, its worth noting, wasnt chosen at random. Heres how the Florida Department of Educations new policy prohibiting the teaching of Critical Race Theory in public schools one of dozens of similar measures introduced in Republican-controlled states this spring, and one of at least six that have been enacted defines the term: the theory that racism is not merely the product of prejudice, but that racism is embedded in American society and its legal systems.

Protesters at a packed school board meeting in Ashburn, Va., on June 22, at which two people were detained. (Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters)

So what do Americans think of the idea that Florida just banned, absent the CRT label? A full 54 percent agree with it; just 27 percent disagree. And similar (or larger) margins of agreement show up pretty much across the board, including among 45- to 64-year-olds (53 percent to 31 percent), white Americans (49 percent to 34 percent), Americans making less than $50,000 a year (52 percent to 31 percent) and independents (50 percent to 28 percent).

In fact, a majority or plurality of every single group surveyed by Yahoo News and YouGov agrees that racism is not merely the product of individual bias or prejudice, but also something embedded in legal systems and policies.

Except one: Republicans. By a more than 2-to-1 margin 57 percent to 27 percent they disagree that racism is systemic and embedded in the United States. And those who voted for Donald Trump in 2020 are even more likely to disagree (65 percent to 20 percent).

The dynamics around exposing students to the idea of systemic racism are the same. A plurality of Americans 47 percent yes, 31 percent no, 22 percent unsure say students should be exposed. Independents who opposed teaching critical race theory by 26 points favor teaching the existence of systemic racism by 12 points. Nearly every other group agrees by similar or larger margins.

But there remains one clear outlier: Republicans, who oppose student exposure by a three-to-one margin (60 percent to 19 percent). Again, Trump voters are even more vehemently opposed (67 percent to 14 percent).

Protesters against the teaching of critical race theory in schools confront a counterprotester at the Leesburg rally. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

The gap between Republicans and everyone else on this issue appears to be widening. Last June, in the wake of George Floyds murder, Yahoo News and YouGov asked Americans if there was a problem with systemic racism in America. Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) said yes; just a quarter said no. Strikingly, the share of Republicans who considered systemic racism a problem at the time (39 percent) wasnt much smaller than the share who didnt (45 percent).

One year later, however, thats no longer the case. Today, just 27 percent of Republicans say theres a problem with systemic racism in the United States, while a full 59 percent say there isnt a net shift of 26 points.

The upshot is clear. Teaching about the United States history of racism is fine with 53 percent of Republicans, according to the poll; teaching about its history of slavery is OK with even more of them (84 percent).

But teaching that racism is still embedded in U.S. legal systems and policies even today and that all Americans are part of that system, regardless of how they treat others is not.

This represents a more fundamental divide than what critical race theory is or isnt, and who is or isnt teaching it and one less likely to fade after a few overheated news cycles.

___________

The Yahoo News survey was conducted by YouGov using a nationally representative sample of 1,592 U.S. adults interviewed online from June 22 to 24, 2021. This sample was weighted according to gender, age, race and education based on the American Community Survey, conducted by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, as well as 2020 presidential vote (or non-vote), and voter registration status. Respondents were selected from YouGovs opt-in panel to be representative of all U.S. adults. The margin of error is 2.7 percent.

____

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Poll: The real reason Republicans are so riled up about 'critical race theory' - Yahoo News

The 1971 classic Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factoryfeatured a case of life imitating art when it came to the behind-the-scenes antics of one of the film's young stars.

Peter Ostrum (Charlie Bucket), Julie Dawn Cole (Veruca Salt), Michael Bollner (Augustus Gloop), Paris Themmen (Mike Teevee) and Denise Nickerson (Violet Beauregarde) co-starred as the lucky kids whose golden tickets granted access to the magical candy land run by eccentric confectionist Willy Wonka. And as child actors, here they were being whisked off to Bavarian Germany to explore the whimsical film sets and work with budding comic genius Gene Wilder in Mel Stuarts highly anticipated adaptation of Roald Dahls popular novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

That doesnt mean Wilder and Wonka shared all that much in common.

I think people kind of want us to tell you that he was like Willy Wonka off set, but he wasnt, Cole told Yahoo Entertainment during a virtual reunion with Ostrum, Bollner and Themmen commemorating this weeks 50th anniversary of the film, as well as a new 4K UHD Blu-ray release (watch above). He was such a lovely, kind man, very unassuming.

He was just down to earth, not pretentious, he was just a wonderful person to be around and to work with, says Ostrum of Wilder, who died in 2016 at the age of 83.

'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory' turns 50 this week (Warner Bros.)

All four Wonka performers we spoke with had nothing but warm memories of Wilder, whose blockbuster rsum also included Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein; however, Wilder didnt exactly share the warm feelings when it came to one of the former actors (only Cole continued to work in entertainment beyond the 70s).

In the years since the films release, Themmen has been labeled a notorious troublemaker on the set, with Wilder calling him a handful.

I can corroborate that, Themmen smiles. I was younger than the others. I was 11, they were 13, and was naturally just sort of more high spirited and rambunctious.

As a grownup, Themmen had one brief but memorable reunion with Wilder in which the Wonka actor confirmed his feelings. Themmen attended a fund-raising screening of Wilders 1976 hit Silver Streak at the Avon Theatre in Stamford, Conn., the city where Wilder spent most of his adult life.

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I sat at the back of the room and he gave his commentary and then I went up to the front of the room afterwards with my poster in hand, recalls Themmen. I said, Hi, Gene, how you doing? Im Paris Themmen, I was Mike Teevee in Willy Wonka.

And he said, Oh you were a brat! And I flashed all the way back 50 years, or 40 years at that time, and said, Well, Im 50-something now and maybe not as much of a brat. And he signed my poster, To my favorite brat.

Dahls novel was adapted again 2005 with Tim Burton directing and Johnny Depp playing Wonka. The character will soon return to screens in a buzzed-about origin story starring popular 25-year-old actor Timothe Chalamet (Call My by Your Name, Dune) as a young Wonka, from Harry Potter producer David Heyman.

And original Wonka stars are perfectly fine with that.

One nice thing for them is they dont have to do a direct comparison because its a prequel rather than a remake, Themmen says. So he doesnt necessarily have to be as good as Gene was, which obviously is a hugely difficult thing to do. But talented actor. I dont know if he has the wild eyes that Gene has, but hes kind of got the hair. And a general look thats kind of similar.

You cant kill Wonka, Ostrum says. It just gets played over and over again, whether the original or the remake with Johnny Depp. And that brought attention back to our film. Kids saw Johnny Depps version, their parents said, You need to see the original. Anything that talks about Wonka is good for the Wonka story. Its a great story and it needs to be retold, regardless of whos producing it or whos making it.

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is now available on 4K UHD Blu-ray from retailers including Amazon. Wonka will also return to movie theaters Aug. 15 and Aug. 18 via Fathom Events.

Video produced by Jen Kucsak and edited by Steve Michel

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The Compound decentralized finance (DeFi) lending platform has announced a treasury product for businesses and institutions.

The DeFi lending pioneer made the announcement in a blog post on June 29, adding that the new Compound Treasury has been designed for non-crypto native businesses and financial institutions to access the benefits of the protocol.

Compound stated that the protocol has performed flawlessly throughout the market volatility and has secured itself as a pillar of the DeFi ecosystem. It wants to bring this security and reliability to institutional investors by expanding its suite of products.

Compound Finance will be working with crypto custody firm Fireblocks, which partnered with BadgerDAO in April, and the company behind the USDC stablecoin, Circle. It added that the new product will enable Neobanks, fintech startups, and other large holders of USD to access the interest rates available in the USDC market on the protocol.

It will be removing the complexities associated with DeFi such as crypto wallet management and private key storage and simplifying the entire process.

Clients will need to simply transfer USD into their Compound Treasury account and instantly gain access to interest rates of 4% per annum. This is orders of magnitude higher than any high street bank can offer on dollar savings accounts, it added.

Funds and withdrawals can be made at any time with a 24-hour turnaround, and there are low minimums, no maximums, and no fixed terms or durations. It added that the product launch follows many months of customer and regulatory compliance research. Compound has begun onboarding customers, and plans to expand access to treasury accounts significantly over the coming months.

Our vision is that Compound Treasury becomes the bridge for non-crypto financial institutions to deliver the core benefits of DeFi to the next billion users, and we are extremely excited to work with our customers to navigate this enormous opportunity.

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In March, Compound announced a prototype called Gateway which has been built on the Substrate platform to provide cross-chain interest rates and collateral markets.

The DeFi protocols native COMP token has surged 26.5% in the past 24 hours. At the time of press, COMP was trading at $317, up 42% over the past week. Like most DeFi tokens, however, COMP is still down 65% from its mid-May all-time high of $910.

According to DappRadar, protocol total value locked is currently $5.7 billion, down from a peak of $9.4 billion in mid-May.

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Compound Finance to Launch DeFi Treasury for Institutions - Yahoo Finance

Meme stock traders are once again showing their love for new bestie Bed Bath & Beyond.

Shares of Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) exploded more than 30% at one point in Wednesday's session as traders digested the retailer's first quarter earnings. To be sure, there were a lot of positives for the meme traders which sent the stock surging 40% out of the blue in a session earlier this month to hang their hats on from Bed Bath & Beyond's latest results.

First, CEO Mark Tritton made mention of "reclaiming" lost market share. That certainly showed up in the company's same-store sales in the key categories of bedding, bath, food preparation, home decor and home organization rising 7% from the first quarter of 2019 (aka pre-pandemic numbers). Secondarily, the company's gross profit margins rose 820 basis points year-over-year on an adjusted basis as Bed Bath & Beyond sold more private label merchandise.

And lastly, the company struck an upbeat tone with its full-year outlook. Tritton raised his outlook for adjusted operating profits to $520 to $540 million from $500 million previously. The company forecasts adjusted EPS for the full year above consensus, too.

Here is how Bed Bath & Beyond performed compared to Wall Street estimates.

Net Sales: $1.95 billion vs. $1.87 billion

Adjusted Diluted EPS: $0.05 vs. $0.08

Full Year EPS Outlook: $1.40 to $1.55 vs. $1.47 estimate

Bed Bath & Beyond gave back some of the gains by early afternoon trading, with the stock last up 9% to $32.50 as of 1:00 p.m. ET. Still, the stock's ticker page was one of the most visited on the Yahoo Finance platform, according to our internal analysis.

LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 28: A Bed, Bath & Beyond is photographed in Pasadena on Thursday, Jan. 28, 2021 in Los Angeles, CA. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

In light of the big move in Bed Bath & Beyond's stock, some analysts are voicing a bit of caution even as they acknowledge the ongoing turnaround of the retailer.

"Company initiatives are showing promise, but we're not sure 1Q results and the upwardly revised annual EPS guidance (essentially brackets current Street estimates) warrant the 30% pop in shares earlier this morning. We don't have clear conviction in market share gains, and thus remain Hold-rated as we monitor the turnaround," said Jefferies retail analyst Jonathan Matuszewski in a flash note to clients.

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Matuszewski raised his price target on Bed Bath & Beyond shares to $30 from $26.

Brian Sozzi is an editor-at-large and anchor at Yahoo Finance. Follow Sozzi on Twitter @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn.

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The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) wants to be the platform for trading crypto assets when the countrys regulators issue long-awaited rules governing the practice, according to a report from CNN Philippines.

PSE President and CEO Ramon Monzon told CNN that management first discussed the idea of setting up a domestic crypto exchange two weeks ago. The PSE has both the trading infrastructure and investor protection safeguards that Monzon said are necessary to trade cryptocurrencies.

Monzon told CNN that mounting interest in cryptocurrencies means the Philippines cannot ignore them anymore. The PSE is currently awaiting guidelines from the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which began seeking comments from banks, investors, and the public in 2019 on whether the country should begin building a domestic crypto exchange.

Related: Are We on the Verge of a New Regulatory Era in Crypto?

The countrys government has historically been friendly toward digital assets. The Philippine Central Bank, though it has been outspoken about not considering the development of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) anytime soon, has licensed over a dozen crypto exchanges to operate in the country. And many Filipinos have become interested in crypto as a way to make money in the countrys struggling economy, with play-to-earn crypto mobile games like Axie Infinity becoming a popular way to earn extra income.

Monzon told CNN that he believes the volatility of cryptocurrencies is what makes them attractive, which is why trading should happen under the watch of the PSE.

Instant riches could be instant poverty too, said Monzon.

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Philippine Stock Exchange Wants to Be the Site for Crypto Trading When Its Approved: Report - Yahoo Finance

For years, numerous pundits have insisted that bipartisanship is effectively dead in Washington, with the parties too polarized and the disincentives too steep for most lawmakers to cross the aisle on big legislation.

But now, according to a new Yahoo News/YouGov poll, 6 in 10 Republican voters say they favor the new $1.2 trillion infrastructure package negotiated by a bipartisan group of senators and endorsed by the Biden White House.

Its an auspicious sign, after years of lip service, that Congress might finally come together to pass the first major increase in public works spending since 2009.

The survey, which was conducted from June 22 to 24, found that a full 60 percent of self-identified Republicans approve of the compromise infrastructure plan recently put forward by Republican and Democratic senators that would rebuild roads, bridges and other traditional infrastructure and cost $1.2 trillion while just 17 percent of self-identified Republicans oppose it.

At a time when trillions of dollars have already been spent on COVID relief, that level of rank-and-file Republican support for yet another gargantuan bill represents a remarkable shift in a party that has long fought federal spending, and it suggests that GOP lawmakers have permission from their voters to strike a deal with Democrats.

Overall, most Americans (51 percent) also favor the compromise infrastructure package, including 48 percent of Democrats and 54 percent of independents. Across the board, just 17 percent of each group say they are opposed.

The road ahead for infrastructure remains precarious. For one thing, President Biden did not explicitly endorse the bipartisan infrastructure deal until June 24, the last day the Yahoo News/YouGov poll was in the field and though Biden has long expressed openness to compromise, putting his name on a specific package could trigger some polarization in response, making it less attractive to Republican voters but more so to Democrats.

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President Biden after stepping off Marine One on Sunday. (Patrick Semansky/AP)

Meanwhile, several centrist GOP senators underscored the delicate political dynamics at work when they threatened over the weekend to withdraw their support after Biden told reporters he would not sign the bipartisan deal unless Congress also passed a much larger bill that would raise taxes on corporations and wealthy Americans and pour trillions more into health care, child care, higher education access and climate change programs.

If this is the only thing that comes to me, Im not signing it, Biden said Thursday.

After the president worked the phones in an attempt to salvage the negotiations and after he issued a lengthy statement Saturday walking back his earlier caveat Republicans appeared to get back on board, and the process of drafting a bill seems to be proceeding, at least for now.

Yet Congressional Democrats still hope to enact Bidens larger soft infrastructure plan via the complicated process known as budget reconciliation, which allows Senate bills related to spending and revenue such as Bidens COVID relief package and President Trumps 2017 tax cuts to pass with 51 votes rather than the 60 votes typically required to overcome a filibuster threat.

On Sunday, Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, the key Democratic swing vote and a lead negotiator of the bipartisan package, said he was all for passing Bidens bigger human infrastructure bill as well and for using the reconciliation process to circumvent Republican opposition if necessary.

Weve worked on the one track. Were going to work on the second track, Manchin told ABC. Theres an awful lot of need.

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., greets Dr. Kathleen Hogan, acting undersecretary for science and energy on June 24. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images)

Frankly, we really need to understand that this is our one big shot, not just in terms of family, child care, Medicare, but on climate change, said leading progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on NBCs Meet the Press.

Given the far more polarized response to Bidens larger infrastructure plan, however, its possible that Democrats continuing two-track push will eventually imperil the fragile consensus that has formed around its smaller bipartisan counterpart.

According to the new Yahoo News/YouGov survey, nearly all Democrats (84 percent) favor Bidens initial $4 trillion proposal to rebuild roads, bridges and other traditional infrastructure with an eye toward fighting climate change while also supporting working families with childcare subsidies, national paid family leave and universal pre-K. Just 6 percent are opposed.

But among independents, support for the original Biden plan is lower (46 percent) than for the compromise (54 percent), and opposition is much higher (32 percent vs. 17 percent). More than two-thirds of Republicans, meanwhile, oppose the larger Biden plan (67 percent).

One thing both Republicans (57 percent) and Democrats (74 percent) can agree on, though, is that infrastructure improvements should be subsidized by closing loopholes that allow multinational corporations to avoid paying U.S. taxes, which is part of both plans; a full 70 percent of Americans say the same. Also popular is Bidens proposal to fund public-works investments by raising taxes on corporations and Americans making more than $400,000, which 59 percent of Americans including 78 percent of Democrats and 60 percent of independents favor.

The public is much less enthusiastic about the GOPs preferred pay-fors: requiring Americans who benefit from the proposals to pay user fees such as gas taxes (15 percent) and repurposing money set aside for COVID-19 relief (29 percent). In fact, only a minority of Republicans just 13 percent and 49 percent, respectively support these funding mechanisms.

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The Yahoo News survey was conducted by YouGov using a nationally representative sample of 1,592 U.S. adults interviewed online from June 22 to 24, 2021. This sample was weighted according to gender, age, race and education based on the American Community Survey, conducted by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, as well as 2020 presidential vote (or non-vote), and voter registration status. Respondents were selected from YouGovs opt-in panel to be representative of all U.S. adults. The margin of error is 2.7 percent.

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Poll: 6 in 10 GOP voters favor new $1.2 trillion infrastructure plan, boosting Bidens hopes of a big bipartisan win - Yahoo News

The Delta variant is threatening to cause surges in some pockets of the U.S. and could disrupt back-to-school plans for fall of this year.

That's according to Dr. Paul Offit, Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) director of the Vaccine Education Center and professor of pediatrics in the Division of Infectious Diseases.

Offit told Yahoo Finance Friday that he believes this year could be a repeat, in some areas, of last year with mitigation strategies required once again especially if a vaccine is not yet authorized for the youngest of the population.

"I think the recommendation should be, come winter, that children should do what they did last winter and mask and social distance to the degree possible," Offit said.

Vaccines are currently authorized for children ages 12 and older, and trials are ongoing to test in younger groups.

But vaccinating all kids, who account for just over 20% of the U.S. population, is a key to reaching herd immunity, Offit said.

In the early days of the pandemic, kids were thought to be unlikely to get very sick or die from the virus because the protein on the surface of cells that the virus clings to in order to infect the body are less prevalent in kids.

While that has largely held true, there have been cases of children suffering from the virus.

"Children can suffer, can be hospitalized and can die from this virus," Offit said.

It's why in addition to unvaccinated pockets of America, kids could also be spreaders come the fall.

"This is a winter virus," Offit said. "Kids are going to go back to school, they're not likely to be masking, they're not likely to be social distancing, and I think you're going to see again an outbreak of this virus come late fall and winter."

That is, unless, more eligible teens and adults get vaccinated, he said.

Little boy going to school with protective mask

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Delta variant threatens return to school this year: Offit - Yahoo Finance