Category Archives: Yahoo

(Bloomberg) -- Deutsche Bank AG and its asset management unit had their Frankfurt offices raided by police, adding to the legal headaches facing Germanys largest lender.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Law enforcement officials on Tuesday morning entered the twin towers where Germanys largest lender is headquartered, as well as the nearby premises of DWS Group, according to a statement from the prosecutor that confirmed an earlier Bloomberg report. The search is related to accusations of greenwashing against the asset manager.

We have continuously cooperated fully with all relevant regulators and authorities on this matter and will continue to do so, said a spokesman for DWS. Deutsche Bank said that the measures are directed against unknown people in connection with greenwashing allegations against DWS.

DWS has faced regulatory probes in the US and Germany after its former chief sustainability officer, Desiree Fixler, alleged last year that the company inflated its ESG credentials. As well as adding to the list of regulatory and legal issues for Deutsche Bank Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewing, the raid is a high-profile early example of lenders facing legal consequences for greenwashing.

DWS shares fell more than 5% on the news and Deutsche Bank declined as much as 2.6%. While DWS is publicly listed, Deutsche Bank owns an almost 80% stake.

Fixler has said that DWSs claims that hundreds of billions of its assets under management were ESG integrated were misleading because the label didnt translate into meaningful action by relevant fund managers. DWS has since stopped using the label.

The Frankfurt prosecutor said it started its investigation in January, triggered by reports on Fixlers claims. It since found sufficient indications that contrary to the statements in the sales prospectuses of DWS funds, ESG factors actually only played a role in a minority of investments.

Story continues

The raid involved about 50 people including staff from watchdog BaFin, one person said. Its targeting as-yet-unidentified DWS staff and executives.

DWS CEO Asoka Woehrmann fired Fixler in March last year, saying in a memo to staff that her unit hadnt made enough progress. She sued for unfair dismissal but lost the case before a Frankfurt labor court in January.

German police are doing are very good and thorough job, Fixler said by phone. I am pleased to see this investigation is deepening to obtain further evidence.

Deutsche Banks top echelon has been drawn into the greenwashing affair as well. Regulators probing the issue have asked the lender about the role of deputy CEO Karl von Rohr, who is also the chairman of DWSs supervisory board. He was the main recipient of Fixlers email when she first flagged her ESG concerns to DWS shortly after she was fired. Von Rohr helped arrange an external audit into her claims that cleared DWS, people familiar with the matter have said.

For Woehrmann, the raid is another blow after he faced scrutiny over his use of personal email for business purposes and the role his relationship with a German businessman played in deals. Sewing has backed Woehrmann so far, not least because DWS has been performing well under him. But the negative news flow has frustrated the lenders leadership, Bloomberg has reported.

The latest raid comes about a month after Deutsche Banks headquarters were searched over suspicions that it was too late in reporting potential money laundering. While Sewing has long sought to shake off Deutsche Banks past of heavy fines and mend relationships with regulators, a number of new issues have popped up since he took office four years ago.

The bank recently was found in breach of a deferred prosecution agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice, and it received a scathing letter from the U.S. Federal Reserve over deficient controls last year. BaFin has initiated a probe of Deutsche Bank over private communications and the lender is facing a similar investigation in the US, Bloomberg has reported.

(Updates with Fixler statement in 10th paragraph.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2022 Bloomberg L.P.

Read more:

Deutsche Bank, DWS Raided Over Allegations of Greenwashing - Yahoo Finance

The war between Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant and the NBA media continued this week in a series of tweets stemming from, of course, something Stephen A. Smith said on ESPN's "First Take."

Durant took offense when Smith said Michael Jordan changed the game of basketball for the worse because of how he "individualization the sport." Smith argued the NBA focused more on players rather than teams after Jordan's ascension which negatively changed the dynamic of the game.

"Michael Jordan is responsible as much as anybody for changing the game for worse," Smith said. "He was so phenominal that the NBA marketed the individual, the audience gravitated towards the individual and the game became a bit more individualized. ... What I'm saying is you were thinking 'team' until Jordan elevated it to another level. And from Jordan then you had the Kobes and the Vince Carters and others that came along thereafter and the individualization of the sport particularly because of the money that came with it became more of a focal point.

Durant refuted that idea and instead suggested in a tweet on Thursday that media personalities like Smith, Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe actually changed the game for the worse. Not the players.

That ignited a series of reply tweets from other fans and journalists. The first being, of course, Smith himself. The ESPN analyst played the "we are legion" card by claiming there are "thousands more" media personalities like himself who are "not going away."

Eddie Johnson, a color analyst for the Phoenix Suns, disagreed with Smith's argument but responded to Durant's tweet by calling today's athletes "too dam (sic) sensitive." To that Durant responded that media members are actually the ones who are too sensitive and "can't take what ya'll dish out."

This isn't the first time Durant clashed with the media. His social media fights have been the stuff of legend online, and he's gone after just about everyone fans and journalists alike.

Story continues

He called out Shannon Sharpe of "Undisputed" in 2021 for talking about a fake quote and then posted a photo showing Sharpe blocked Durant on Twitter. He clapped back at Chris Broussard in 2019 for suggesting a Warriors title without him would be Durant's "worst nightmare." He even called C.J. McCollum a "snake in the grass" in 2018 after the then-Blazers guard called Durant's decision to play for the Warriors "soft" on his podcast. Back in 2015, Durant called NBA writer Chris Palmer a "dumba**."

Durant eventually publically spoke about his frustrations with how he was represented by the media during his tenure with the Golden State Warriors earlier this year with the Ringer. He said he felt isolated from the rest of the coverage of the team and subject of more scrutiny for his actions than his teammates.

I just think I deserved a little bit more respect than that. I came out here and gave back money, sacrificed my name, and went out here and sacrificed my body every night to be the best that I can be. I just asked for a little bit more respect to wait until after the season than to badger me every day, all year with questions like that [about free agency]. I thought it was unfair to me and the whole group to even think about anything that was going to happen after the year. It was unprofessional, in my opinion.

This certainly won't be the last of Durant's Twitter feuds, so long as people like Smith have his attention with their fiery takes.

Read the original post:

Kevin Durant says Stephen A. Smith, other media members, ruined the NBA - Yahoo Sports

The housing market is starting to show signs of a slowdown. If the trend persists, the U.S could see an impact in other sectors of the economy starting with big-ticket items that go into furnishing a new home.

"The housing market is very much a leading indicator of the economy because of the knock on effects through the various sectors, like consumption of durable goods," Eric Basmajian, founder of EPB Macro Research, told Yahoo Finance.

He predicts durable goods such as large appliances that go into a home could cool off as fewer homes are sold.

Were going to see a cooling of new orders, and then we're going to see a pullback in industrial production or the manufacturing sector more broadly," said the researcher.

New orders for durable goods in March were up .4%, a slowdown from .6% in the prior month. Retail foot traffic compiled by SafeGraph and analyzed by Bloomberg for the 3rd week of May showed the sector with the biggest decline was home improvement and home furnishings, down 24.6% year over year.

The housing industry has already seen a substantial decline in number of sales and loan applications as 30-year mortgage rates shot up from around 3% at the end of last year, to current levels north of 5.25%.

If we see several more months of declines in housing data, including building permits and housing starts, that would be a very clear sign that the housing market is undergoing a slow down in volumes and that risks employment in the construction sector, said Basmajian.

I'd very much be on the lookout for employment in the construction sector, which would be a clear warning sign that a recession is right around the corner, he added.

As for the argument of not enough homes for buyers Basmajians viewpoint differs.

Most of the supply arguments are focused on single family homes, and that's sort of fighting the last battle. In 2005 and 2006, we had a significant overbuilding in single family homes. This economic cycle, we didn't overbuild single family homes, but we made a substantial new high in terms of the construction of multi-family, five-plus units, he said.

Story continues

People that are arguing tight supply are generally focused on single family homes. But when you look at total housing units, which would include, multifamily apartments and single family homes, the inventory numbers are actually quite high, he added.

How much the housing market could contract will depend "largely on how long and how forcefully the Federal Reserve tightens" monetary policy, says Basmajian.

This year the Federal Reserve began hiking interest rates and telegraphing quantitative tightening in an effort to combat red hot inflation.

If the Federal Reserve pivots in the next three months, we could maybe have a softer decline in the housing market. But if the Federal Reserve continues to tighten policy through the end of the year and into the middle of 2023 persistently contracting real money supply, then the probability of a severe decline in the housing market is likely. he added.

Ines is a markets reporter covering equities. Follow her on Twitter at @ines_ferre

Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance

Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Flipboard, and LinkedIn

See the original post here:

How a housing downturn could impact other sectors of the economy - Yahoo Finance

Nowhere else to go but up Jim Cramer likes these 3 mega-cap tech stocks that have been soundly shellacked in 2022

With the Nasdaq Composite down 24% year to date, sentiment towards tech stocks is far from bullish.

Its hard to predict when the market will bottom, but CNBCs Jim Cramer sees big opportunities in the tech space.

While they may stay losers, the bottom line is theyve fallen so darn far that I think theyve become metaphors for a whole host of stocks that are now ready to rally because theyve got nowhere else to go but up, he said on Tuesday.

The Mad Money host points to three big-name tech stocks that are down substantially in 2022.

Heres a look at each one of them.

Cramer began by talking about Amazon, which despite its dominance in the e-commerce industry, is down 28% year to date.

He believes that Amazon remains a growth stock, but for the company to increase its investor appeal, it needs to take its medicine.

They got to cut back on warehouses that are no longer needed, cut back on workers who can get new jobs quickly if they let them go to this environment, and get more aggressive on the advertising side of retail while maintaining a big lead in the cloud with Amazon Web Services.

Cramer points out that Amazon could earn $82 a share in 2024, but after taking those initiatives, that $82 of EPS in 2024 could become $100.

And you're buying Amazon stock for close to market multiples in those numbers.

Even mega-cap stocks can plunge violently.

Owning some of the largest social media and messaging apps in the world Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger Meta is a tech gorilla commanding hundreds of billions of dollars of market cap.

Yet shares have fallen 44% year to date.

The companys ambition in the metaverse was once considered a big catalyst for the stock. But that enthusiasm doesnt seem to apply to todays market as most metaverse-related stocks are deep in the red.

Cramer, however, continues to believe in the concept.

The stocks trading like the whole metaverse thing is just one big joke being played on Mark Zuckerberg, which seems pretty unlikely to me given his track record.

Story continues

Cramer adds that Zuckerberg is not alone in this endeavor. Some of the smartest guys in the industry like Nvidias co-founder and CEO Jensen Huang are betting big on the metaverse as well.

Note that Meta Platforms will start trading under a new ticker META on Jun. 9.

The third one on Cramers list of colossal losers is Google parent company Alphabet.

Despite being down 21% year to date, Alphabet is still a tech behemoth valued at $1.5 trillion.

Cramer likes Alphabet for a very simple reason: Google remains the best way to advertise.

In Q1, Google advertising brought in $54.7 billion of revenue, up 22.3% from a year ago. Revenue grew 23.0% year over year to $68.0 billion for the entire company.

While there have been some concerns about corporations ad spending in this economic climate, Cramer thinks Alphabet will be fine.

We all know if you're cutting back on advertising, you're not cutting back on Google, you're cutting back on everything else, he says. Google is the way you move product that you can't move on Amazon or Instagram.

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.

The rest is here:

Nowhere else to go but up Jim Cramer likes these 3 mega-cap tech stocks that have been soundly shellacked in 2022 - Yahoo Finance

Kim Kardashian is reflecting on her personal life and career as she celebrates a major career milestone.

The reality star and SKIMS mogul, 41, appeared on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue this month, which marks her first time ever appearing in the magazine. In a video promoting the new issue, Kardashian opened up about the things that bring her joy, including parenting her four children with her ex-husband Kanye West.

Kim Kardashian shared the parenting moment she finds the most stressful. (Photo: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)

"I'd say that the most rewarding part is that, unless you're a parent, you really don't get how challenging it is," she explained. "There are nights where you just are like, 'I don't want to do this, I dont want to adult anymore, this is really hard.' Every kid is crying, and no one will go to bed."

She also said that the "most stressful time" with her kids is when she does a photoshoot with all four children.

"Every time after I attempt a Christmas card, I'm just like, I'm never doing this again," she said. "I'll individually do a shot with each kid and have to Photoshop it together. I say that every year, and then every year I attempt it. I'm like, 'No, they're a year older, we've got this, we're not going to fight, we're going to get through it, no one's going to cry today. And then it's a nightmare, and I'm like, 'I'm never doing that again.'"

As for her own photoshoot, Kardashian told the magazine that the Sports Illustrated cover was a surprising milestone for her.

"Every time I would see magazines, especially in the 90s when I was growing up, it's always these perfect, tall, thin women, and I just have never been that," she shared. "I vividly remember Tyra Banks on the cover, and women with curves, and I remember just thinking that was so cool, that was so cool. But I still didn't think that I would. I thought you had to be a professional model and a runway model. And it's always really young girls. I don't want to date myself, or sound old, but in my 40s? That's crazy. I never thought in a million years that I would be shooting one myself."

Story continues

While Kardashian's cover has been met with some controversy, MJ Day, the magazine's editor in chief, explained in an interview with Yahoo Life that there were many reasons why The Kardashians star was the right choice for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit.

"She failed a bunch of times. She could have quit, but she didn't. And it was very public, her failure," Day said. "When you're that famous, there's gonna be a lot of people that say a lot of things about you, but her persistence and her unwillingness to limit herself in all these other ways that doesn't necessarily get as much attention as like what she wears to the Met Gala, unfortunately. She just continues to do it, even in light of any type of negativity. I just really stand for that, like, I really applaud that."

Want lifestyle and wellness news delivered to your inbox? Sign up here for Yahoo Lifes newsletter.

More:

Kim Kardashian says it's 'crazy' she is on the cover of Sports Illustrated in her 40s - Yahoo Life

What is a DINK? Some couples are embracing a childfree life where they have more control over what their income covers. (Photo: Carly Caramanna)

We've all seen the memes ... and even the bumper stickers. Colorful displays proclaiming "I'm a FUNCLE," or celebrating being mom to "fur babies" only. There are countless ways some share that they're enthusiastically certain they are living their best life thanks to being childfree. And once these happy souls, of which, I am one, find a partner, there's another term that comes into play: DINK.

What's a DINK? It's an acronym that stands for "dual income, no kids," and is widely interpreted as two people living together as partners with no children of their own (and no plans to have kids) who are thriving in their careers and personal lives.

The origins of the clever acronym aren't clear and it's not a term frequently mentioned in popular culture, but, like The Goonies, G.I. Joe figurines and the Walkman, the phrase is said to have been coined in the 80s, particularly during the rise of yuppie (young urban professional) culture.

If you were a fan of the 90s animated television series, Doug, you may even remember the Funnies' lovable neighbors, Bud and Tippi Dink. Yes, their surname is a reference to that DINK: The series creator, Jim Jinkins, even confirmed it in a 2016 Decider interview.

The stigma placed around one's very personal decision about whether or not to have children is likely why the term floats so far below the radar but the DINK community is a proud one complete with their very own symbol emblazoned on bumper stickers.

My husband and I do not consider ourselves to be selfish individuals, but instead, we are selfish with the time we have together for the sake of our relationship. For us, that means not having children. (Photo: Carly Caramanna)

I would know. I'm a proud DINK. My husband and I are both in our late 30s and have chosen the DINK life and no, we aren't those "married to our career" types. While we both enjoy success in our fields, we enjoy a deep bond that I can't imagine would be possible if I had to give so much of myself to caring for a child. We are not selfish individuals, but instead, selfish with the time we have together for the sake of our relationship.

Don't get me wrong, we love children and have great relationships with our many younger extended family members and the children of close friends. In fact, with the extra time (and money) we have from not having children of our own, we have the ability to forge extra-special bonds with these children in our lives.

Story continues

My husband and I share a love of travel and are able to explore for a good chunk of the year, including several trips a month and at least one long-term international trip a year all on our own dime (no trust funds here). With our jobs, we also typically spend a few months a year living in Los Angeles to work on our creative endeavors. Simply put: We love the lives we have proudly designed for ourselves and have a darn good time along the way. Most importantly, we feel fulfilled in every sense of the word.

In recent times, I've discovered that we're not alone. In addition to circles of friends that share this similar mindset, there's an entire online community dedicated to removing the pressures and stigmatism surrounding the subject.

Dania Casellas, a 33-year-old microbiologist and online fitness coach, resides in Florida with her partner. Together, they have created a safe and inspiring space on Instagram for others like them to share the daily humorous (and often reluctant) encounters they face as DINKS.

"I knew in my early 20s that I for sure had no desire to have kids," Casellas tells Yahoo Life. "I don't get excited over babies but I'm good with kids. I have a silly personality and enjoy being around them but taking on the huge responsibility of raising someone just doesn't appeal to me. I was told I was crazy, selfish and that I would regret it. I'm now 33, childfree and living my best life."

That best life she speaks of? Casellas spent years living in New York City on a journey of self discovery and she and her partner now enjoy the spontaneity that DINK life brings, like making last-minute dinner plans, playing in soccer leagues and taking trips to Universal Studios Orlando.

"I think having kids would limit us in the activities we enjoy and the quiet living space we love," Casellas adds. "We hope to be homeowners soon. With the way things are right now, I'm not sure we could afford a home and kids. Adulting is expensive."

As today's society continues to see a growing number of issues on the rise overall uncertainty, crippling debt, a poor housing and job market and even climate change financial, cultural and biological issues come into play when considering parenthood.

Still, arriving at the decision to not have children wasn't easy given the social pressures she faced. "I'm basically the only childfree-by-choice person I know outside of social media," Casellas shares. "Friends and family around me were starting families and honestly I almost started to doubt my choice. I needed support so I started listening to books about being childfree by choice." She credits books like A Childfree Happily Ever After: Why More Women are Choosing Not to Have Childrenby Tanya Williams with making peace with her decisions, as well as the discovery of social media communities.

"When I discovered people sharing their childfree lives on Instagram, I felt like I was going to therapy," she says. "Childfree people absolutely live healthy, fulfilling and purposeful lives. It's an amazing and supportive community to be a part of."

Childfree Millennial is another Instagram-based DINK support system, run by partners Marcela and Michael, ages 26 and 31 respectively, who live in Kansas City, Missouri and prefer to keep their last names anonymous.

"It was about three years ago that I came to the realization and had a light bulb moment that kids weren't a mandatory thing in life," Marcela says. "Crazy, I know I just didn't grow up being told this or having any examples of people who didn't have kids in their 20s and 30s."

"When I had this epiphany," she continues, "I couldn't contain my excitement because of how relieved I was. I wasn't going to have to do something that I had been dreading my entire teenage and adult years."

Today, Marcella says she wakes up every day with a smile on her face knowing she can confidently accomplish all that she sets out to do. "I find myself investing more in creativity, exploring the world and becoming a better person," she says.

She uses her platform as a way to let others know it's OK. "Three years ago, I wish I had someone to look up to like me in the childfree space," she explains. "Someone who was open in talking about their childfree journey and how amazing and inspiring your life can be, regardless of what others are saying about it."

If you see a decal like this on a nearby car, you're probably encountering a DINK. (Photo: Rachel Wiedmayer)

As many work toward removing the stigma of going childfree, proud DINKS are not shy when it comes to displaying their status. One way of letting the world know where you stand in the child department is the popular trend of displaying a bumper sticker outlining your "family." On a DINK's car, those stick figure children are are depicted as little money bags.

Rachel Wiedmayer is one of the top-rated sellers of DINK bumper stickers on her Etsy store, WiedMakers. "I am half of a DINK couple," Wiedmayer says. "My husband and I do not (and will not ever) have children of the human variety. We have two dogs and a cat. I decided to start selling these decals because I look for designs that align with my views and interests."

And there are obvious financial benefits along the way to not having children. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, it is projected that it will cost parents, on average, $233,610 to raise a child born in 2015.

Jay Zigmont is founder of financial planning service Childfree Wealth and author of Portraits of Childfree Wealth. Zigmont focuses his client base almost exclusively on childfree couples, a trend he believes we can expect to see more of since, as the number of childfree families grows, so does the need for financial plans that aren't tailored towards those with children.

Jay Zigmont works as a financial planner for childfree couples, a trend he says is growing. (Photo: Jay Zigmont)

"Financial planning for childfree individuals is different," Zigmont explains. "Most financial rules of thumb or general plans assume you have children. With 11% of the U.S. population over age 55 being childfree (and that number growing in younger generations), we as financial planners need to be sure to adjust to this growing need."

It's not all yachts and spontaneous international travels for this growing number of individuals. "Being childfree does not automatically mean you are rich," adds Zigmont. "The difference is that if a childfree person is barely keeping their head above water, if they had a kid they would drown."

Want lifestyle and wellness news delivered to your inbox? Sign up here for Yahoo Lifes newsletter.

Originally posted here:

What's a DINK? Here's what its like to be a couple that revels in having 'dual income, no kids' - Yahoo Life

Jada Pinkett Smith directly addressed "the slap" for the first time and said she hopes Will Smith and Chris Rock eventually "reconcile."

Wednesday's new Red Table Talk is about the devastating impact of alopecia, the hair loss condition in which Pinkett Smith suffers, so the Girls Trip star had to acknowledge the incident at the 2022 Oscars. (Smith slapped Rock after the comedian made a joke about his wife's bald head.)

"Now about Oscar night. My deepest hope is that these two intelligent, capable men have an opportunity to heal, talk this out and reconcile. With the state of the world today, we need 'em both, and we all actually need one another more than ever," Pinkett Smith, 50, said at the beginning of the Facebook Watch show.

"Until then, Will and I are continuing to do what we have done for the last 28 years and that's keep figuring out this thing called life together. Thank you for listening," she concluded.

The mother of 12-year-old Rio Allred, who suffered from alopecia and took her own life after being bullied, was a guest on the episode. Pinkett Smith also spoke about her personal experience.

"I think the part that makes it most difficult for me is that it comes and goes," the actress explained. "It's stressful. A patch grows then another patch comes out. That gives me a lot of anxiety 'Oh, well what's my hair going to look like today.'"

While presenting an award at the Oscars, Rock made an impromptu joke about Pinkett Smith: "Jada, I love ya. G.I. Jane 2 can't wait to see it, all right?" Smith, who later took home his first Oscar for King Richard, stormed the stage and hit Rock in the face.

Jada Pinkett Smith finally addresses Will Smith slapping Chris Rock. (Photo: Getty Images)

Smith issued a public apology to Rock the next day, after neglecting to do so during his Best Actor acceptance speech. As for Pinkett Smith, she shared a cryptic post about "healing," but shied away from discussing the situation directly. When RTT premiered in April, there was a cryptic acknowledgment of the scandal.

"Considering all that has happened in the last few weeks, the Smith family has been focusing on deep healing," a caption read across the screen at the top of the show. "Some of the discoveries around our healing will be shared at the table when the time calls. Until then the table will continue offering itself to powerful, inspiring and healing testimonies like that of our incredibly impressive first guest."

Story continues

Smith has been banned from the Academy and Oscar events for 10 years. As for Rock, he's started to address the incident during stand-up shows.

"Im OK, if anybody was wondering," Rock said earlier this month. "I got most of my hearing back."

If you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts, call 911, or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741.

Read more here:

Jada Pinkett Smith hopes Will Smith and Chris Rock 'heal' and 'reconcile' after Oscars slap: 'We need 'em both' - Yahoo Entertainment

Yahoo Fantasy analysts Scott Pianowski and Dalton Del Don identify some fantasy surprises and flop after a quarter of the MLB season.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

SCOTT PIANOWSKI: We're into June. We're over a quarter of the way through the fantasy baseball season. The standings have merit. The statistics have meaning. And we need to try to figure out what's going on. Dalton Del Don, who's one of the biggest surprises so far of the fantasy baseball season?

DALTON DEL DON: Well, my guy Taylor Ward. Been banged up a little bit lately, but he's easily been the biggest surprise for me. He went undrafted in most Yahoo-- or all Yahoo leagues. His ADP was outside 700 in the deeper NFBC formats. He's been a top-25 fantasy player this season, and some players have like 70 more at-bats than him among the leaderboard too.

His OPS is almost 100 points higher than the next most. He even has the ability to add some steals moving forward. Ward is not this good, Hall of Fame level, but I'm also not quite rushing to trade him. He's been the biggest fantasy surprise to open this season.

SCOTT PIANOWSKI: Yeah, my fantasy surprise is going to be Julio Rodrguez in Seattle. We knew they had a couple of hot prospects there in Rodrguez and Kelenic. Kelenic hasn't done a thing right. He's been sent down to the minors. Rodrguez leads the league in steals. He's showing power.

He actually has a decent average, although umpires have given him almost no respect. It's a joke some of the strikes that they've called against Rodrguez. I think he could be a first or second round player as early as next season. He's somebody I wish I had on all of my fantasy rosters. I have him on none of my fantasy rosters.

I also will give honorable mention to LA Dodgers' rotation. The cheaper options have been better than the stars. Buehler and Urias have been a mild disappointment. Guys like Gonsolin and Anderson have been really nice additions. And if you believed in Martn Prez, man, he's been unbelievable. He's doing it with soft stuff. He's doing with a fastball that couldn't get stopped for speeding in a school zone. But he's been a big surprise through the first quarter of the season.

Story continues

Who's been disappointing us, Dalton? Give us one of your fantasy fades for the first quarter, somebody who's been breaking your heart.

DALTON DEL DON: First off, I have Julio Rodrguez as a top-10 pick in next year's drafts. Book it now. I think it's going to happen. Marcus Semien is my biggest flop to open the season, a third or fourth round fantasy pick in most leagues. Had 45 homers last season. It took him almost 45 games to hit his first homer this year.

Coming off a career year at his age, then signing a huge offseason contract in which he saw a big downgrade in home parks, it's not exactly a shock that Semien isn't living up to his ADP. But, man, even his biggest detractors couldn't have seen a .500 OPS coming. He will get better. He's started to show signs of life at the plate recently. But Marcus Semien has been an absolute flop so far.

SCOTT PIANOWSKI: Man, I need him to come back. He's on a bunch of my teams. My feeling was that the ADP price was putting in too much regression, and it's almost like he's forgotten how to play baseball now. At least the contract will keep him at the top of the lineup. He's still running. I don't know that the power is going to come back. But I'm worried that may take a big ADP bath on Semien this year.

My disappointment is Teoscar Hernndez, but it really could be several of the Blue Jays. Vlad Jr. has been a disappointment. Springer's been OK. Bo Bichette's been a little bit of a disappointment. But I'm focusing Hernndez, right around the Mendoza Line, only a couple of home runs. He's not running. Maybe these guys, they pine for Buffalo or they pine for the Florida park they were in for a while. Maybe just being in Toronto all year has been an adjustment period.

Dalton, are things going to get better in Toronto? Or is it time to get really nervous about some of these guys? Again, Teoscar is my guy, but we know Vlad Jr. has been a disappointment and Bichette as well. What's your take on the Toronto situation?

DALTON DEL DON: Oh, too much talent. Bound to bounce back. The summer months will heat up. The offensive stats will come. Yes, a slight downgrade of home parks based off last year, but Toronto's still a nice place to hit. They'll get it going.

SCOTT PIANOWSKI: Hey, still have three quarters of the season to get going in fantasy baseball. Make some good trades. Make some good pickups. And it's a marathon, not a sprint. You've heard that before. We'll be with you all summer.

Continue reading here:

Look to the AL West for early-season fantasy surprises - Yahoo Sports

Tech companies such as Facebook parent Meta (FB) and Microsoft (MSFT) are plowing money into their plans for the metaverse, the 3-D virtual world that tech executives are obsessed with. But so far, the experiences that users can get their hands on are nowhere near Silicon Valleys promises of hyper-realistic avatars and seamless interactions with the real world. And it could be turning consumers off.

People have kind of lost interest in the metaverse, because characters look like cartoons with no legs, Marc Petit, Epic Games VP and general manager of Unreal Engine, told Yahoo Finance. I mean, who wants to be that? This is not attractive.

Petits critique is a not-so-thinly veiled reference to Metas Horizon Worlds platform. The companys primary metaverse experience, Horizon Worlds features avatars without legs and graphics that are far from those found in modern big-budget video games.

And that kind of overpromising could push users away in the long run.

The concept of the metaverse was first popularized by Neal Stephenson's 1992 novel Snow Crash. Technology companies have chased the idea of 3-D virtual worlds could visit for even longer, though.

It's going to take years for the metaverse to reach its potential. (Photo by SERGIO FLORES/AFP via Getty Images)

Meta even changed its name to signal its focus on the metaverse, while Microsoft is exploring ways of using it for both entertainment and work. Google has also expressed interested in the concept, and Apple is reportedly working on its own augmented reality headset that could debut later this year.

But the way the metaverse has been marketed to consumers so far has been both vague and full of far-off technologies. During an October presentation, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg showed off a world where you can talk to realistic projections of your friends via augmented reality glasses and have the ability to play games with friends in Ready Player One-style worlds.

But what we have now is a far cry from that. Rather than a boundless online world, Metas Horizon Worlds is more of a small gathering space for early adopters.

Story continues

What's more, there are signs that even young people have a fuzzy understanding of the metaverse. According to Piper Sandlers latest Taking Stock With Teens survey, while 26% of teens have some kind of VR device, just 5% use it daily and 17% use it weekly. Whats more, 50% of teens are either unsure of the metaverse or have no intention of buying a VR device.

Epic Games' 'Fortnite' offers an early glimpse at the potential for the metaverse without the need for things like headsets. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier

Of course, Epic Games produces the incredibly popular game Fortnite, which is, itself, an early form of the metaverse. Gamers can participate in the games "Battle Royale" or watch Ariana Grande concerts or discussions on race with Killer Mike and Jemele Hill.

While Fortnite is considered a kind of way into the metaverse, Epic isnt banking its entire future on the prospect.

To reach the level where consumers across the board will fall in love with the metaverse, companies will need to offer photorealistic graphics and ensure their experiences are worth diving into.

The metaverse needs to be about places and content that consumers will want to consume, Petit said. That should not look like 1980s graphics, like a lot of things we see even today.

Reaching a level of photorealism is going to take years of continued development and invention if the metaverse is ever going to pan out the way Silicon Valley companies hope.

We have to pace ourselves, Petit said. The pandemic kind of forced that awareness around the metaverse upon us, those social experiences. But it took us 30 years already to get where we areIn my mind, we haven't seen anything yet about the metaverse.

For companies like Meta, the wait might be too long. The social media company spent $10.2 billion on its vision for the metaverse in 2021 alone, including building virtual and augmented reality headsets and the software users will need to access virtual worlds. According to Zuckerberg, that wont pay off for another 15 years.

That spending also comes as the company is experiencing a slowdown in ad sales related to inflation, the war in Ukraine, and Apples iOS privacy changes.

As for Petit, his vision of the metaverse includes more than just headsets. According to the VP, the metaverse will allow for consumers to view content and information on everything from their glasses to car windshields.

Thats a concept shared by others in the field who say the metaverse will be less about virtual worlds that you step into, and more about bringing data and information out of the real world.

For now, consumers like you and me will have to sit back and wait for the metaverse to continue to take shape. But one things for certain we havent seen anything yet.

Sign up for Yahoo Finance Tech newsletter

More from Dan

Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, LinkedIn, YouTube, and reddit

Got a tip? Email Daniel Howley at dhowley@yahoofinance.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanielHowley.

See original here:

Epic Games VP: People have lost interest in the metaverse - Yahoo Finance

Salesforce co-founder and co-CEO Marc Benioff.NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images

Salesforce employees signed an open letter urging company leadership to drop the NRA as a customer.

It's "unconscionable" that the NRA can use their software for marketing and fundraising, the employees said.

Marc Benioff, the co-CEO of Salesforce, has previously voiced support for gun control.

More than 4,000 Salesforce employees have urged their company's leadership to drop the National Rifle Association (NRA) as a customer.

The employees made their request in an open letter addressed to company leaders including co-CEOs Marc Benioff and Bret Taylor, SFGate first reported, citing a copy of the letter it viewed. The employees delivered the letter a day after a teenager went on a shooting rampage in Uvalde, Texas, on May 24, killing at least 19 students and two adults.

"It's not in our power to get background checks or other gun control measures passed by Congress but we can effect change by ending our commercial relationship with our customer, the National Rifle Association," the Salesforce employees wrote in their letter.

The letter's signatories expressed concern the NRA would rely on Marketing Cloud even more after the Uvalde massacre, according to a copy of the letter published by Protocol. Marketing Cloud is a Salesforce software that helps users plan and analyze digital marketing campaigns.

The signatories said the NRA would ramp up its marketing efforts "not to prevent future tragedies from happening, but to sow fear, sell guns, and abet future atrocities," the letter continued.

"It is unconscionable to consider their use of Marketing Cloud to capitalize on mass shootings," the letter continued.

The NRA has continued its advertising activity in the aftermath of the shooting. It started running Facebook ads about two weeks ago that urged gun owners to not let Congress limit gun ownership, and those remained active after the Uvalde shooting, per CNBC. The weekend after the massacre, the NRA held its annual convention in Houston, just 300 miles from Uvalde. The group showcased "14 acres" of guns and gear at the convention.

Story continues

Some Salesforce employees, however, were cautious about urging the company to end its commercial relationship with the NRA, especially if what it was doing was not illegal, SFGate reported.

Salesforce has taken action against gun ownership before. In 2019, it banned customers from using its software to sell certain types of firearms. After the Uvalde massacre, Benioff showed his support for gun control. In a May 25 CNBC interview, he said "we need to take direct action" against gun violence.

Salesforce hasn't responded to the open letter, an unnamed employee told Protocol. Employees are expected to attend an all-hands meeting with leadership next week, per Protocol.

Salesforce did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Read more here:

More than 4,000 Salesforce employees have signed an open letter demanding the company cut ties with the NRA - Yahoo Finance