Author: Global Desk

California’s Proposition 40, which would impose a one-time 5% tax on the net worth of the state’s billionaire residents, could end up costing California $39 billion in today’s dollars rather than raising the revenue its supporters promise, according to a new Stanford University analysis.Supporters of the measure have claimed it could raise as much as $100 billion, with 90% of the proceeds directed toward health care funding. But Stanford researchers Benjamin Jaros and Joshua Rauh ran 100,000 simulations of the policy’s likely outcomes and found a net negative revenue impact in 85% of plausible scenarios.The study estimates the tax would…

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has emerged as one of the world’s most in-demand figures on the diplomatic circuit, with President Trump expressing interest in meeting him during a planned Asia trip next month, alongside separate interest from South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.The surge in interest follows Kim’s appearance alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin at a major military parade in Beijing last year, a show of alignment that underscored North Korea’s deepening ties with both powers. Kim also holds an outstanding invitation to visit Russia.Much of the…

The chief investment officer overseeing New York City’s $326 billion pension system has publicly criticized the growing list of expenses private equity firms are passing on to their investors, including one case where a firm reportedly sought to charge limited partners for employees’ private jet travel.Monte Tarbox, chief investment officer of the New York City Retirement Systems, said the jet expense should have been covered by the management fees investors already pay, calling it emblematic of a broader trend of general partners shifting costs onto limited partners.Speaking at the FT Future of Asset Management North America conference in Boston, Tarbox…

Elon Musk said he plans to give one of his SpaceX shares to every American child next year, a pledge posted on X that, based on current valuations, would amount to a giveaway worth more than $10 billion.Musk’s post read, in full, “Next year, I will give one of my SpaceX shares to every kid in America. This will be the first of many.” Based on SpaceX’s October 16 closing valuation of $146.03 per share and roughly 73 million minors living in the United States, the pledge represents more than $10 billion in stock.Musk’s announcement did not specify how the…

President Trump signed an executive order Friday waiving a sweeping new sanctions package on Russia just two days before it was set to take effect, a move that drew criticism from Ukraine and was welcomed by Moscow.The sanctions stemmed from the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, which Trump himself signed into law last month. The legislation would have imposed tariffs of up to 500% on Russian goods and up to 100% on imports from countries that knowingly continued purchasing Russian crude oil and gas 30 days after the law took effect.Trump’s executive order suspends those…

Cooperation will connect renewable energy planning, project preparation, competitive tendering and access to international finance through the SPONSOR platform. DUSHANBE, Tajikistan, October 16, 2026…

Frank Sorrentino III, chairman and CEO of ConnectOne Bank, is pointing to Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s communication style as a model worth studying for corporate executives navigating their own uncertain environments.In a recent commentary, Sorrentino argued that Warsh’s approach, laying out the Fed’s decision-making framework, the facts as he sees them, and his read on the underlying strength of the economy, then letting markets draw their own conclusions, offers a more honest and ultimately more useful form of leadership communication than attempting to forecast specific future outcomes.Central to Sorrentino’s argument is a sharp distinction between “certainty,” which he says…

Bank of America says Beijing could roll out additional economic support measures if China’s growth over the past three months came in weaker than policymakers are willing to tolerate, with quarterly data due Monday expected to shape the government’s next move.Helen Qiao, chief economist for greater China at BofA Global Research, said the upcoming data will help Chinese policymakers decide whether further action is warranted following a “targeted stimulus” package the government delivered in September. Qiao recently traveled to Beijing for discussions, a reflection of how regularly Chinese officials consult foreign banks, BofA among them, on the state of the…

President Trump announced a deal with Russia to substantially increase diesel exports to the United States and global markets, a move that drew an angry response from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and reopened tensions over how far Washington should go to ease sanctions pressure on Moscow.Under the arrangement, Russia is set to immediately supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel, followed by another 500,000 tons in November, a further 1 million tons shortly after, and an additional 3 million tons beyond that. The US Treasury Department has temporarily waived sanctions on Russian diesel through April 2027 to accommodate the increased…

The air crackled with a distinct energy, a palpable sense of shared purpose that transcended borders and professional disciplines. It wasn’t just another industry gathering; it was, by all accounts, a foundational moment for OBS Global, an organization charting an ambitious course to redefine how business leaders, entrepreneurs, investors, and professionals connect across the globe. This inaugural core members’ event, described by Dr. MAC Munir Ahmad Chaudhry, Chief Business Savior at OBS Global, as a “warm-up” for the forthcoming 100-day One Business Season, clearly set a high bar, transforming abstract vision into tangible collective commitment. Attendees, a diverse group of…