Wednesday AM reads
- MetaX Integrated Circuits Shanghai Co. jumped as much as 755% in Shanghai after raising $585.8 million in an initial public offering. The company makes graphics processing units for artificial intelligence developers, a red-hot industry that’s growing at a rapid clip as consumers and businesses adopt AI services. MetaX’s market capitalization reached more than 300 billion yuan, with its price-to-sales ratio standing at 56.4, compared with an average of 127.4 for peers such as Cambricon Technologies Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. BB
- President Donald Trump said he was ordering a blockade of sanctioned oil tankers going into and leaving Venezuela, ratcheting up pressure on Caracas amid a US military buildup in the region and the threat of land strikes. The move represents an escalation of the Trump administration’s pressure on Maduro, whom it has accused of presiding over a narco-trafficking operation. Oil prices rose following the US president’s post. West Texas Intermediate climbed as much as 1.7%, rallying from the lowest level in almost five years. BB
- President Trump is set to interview another candidate for Federal Reserve chair, Fed governor Christopher Waller, on Wednesday, according to people familiar with the matter. Trump last week interviewed former Fed governor Kevin Warsh, who he said is at the top of his list for the job along with Kevin Hassett, the director of the National Economic Council. Waller is viewed favorably on Wall Street because he has laid out some of the most intellectually consistent arguments for rate cuts this year and is seen as someone who might be able to navigate internal divisions. Several of his arguments for cutting rates have been adopted by Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who has faced unusually broad internal opposition from other officials more concerned about inflation risks. But Waller is seen as a heavy underdog because he lacks the personal relationship with Trump that both Warsh and Hassett enjoy, and because some people close to Trump are upset that Waller voted for a half-point rate cut in September 2024—before Trump became president—which they viewed as disloyal. WSJ
- Victor Wembanyama, the San Antonio Spurs’ 7-foot-4 phenom, left no stone unturned last summer in his quest to become the most dominant player in the NBA. He worked out with Hall-of-Famers. He packed on pounds of muscle. He trekked to China to meditate with monks at a Shaolin temple. When you can create any shot you like at any time, how do you decide on the most efficient use of your skills? Wembanyama spent the summer trying to answer that very question. “It starts with every shot being reviewed,” Wembanyama said. “Every season, every game—just a relentless focus.” So this season, Wembanyama has started chowing down in the paint. He has cut his 3-point attempt average nearly in half, from 8.8 to 4.5 a game, and has committed himself to punishing smaller opponents—that is, every other player in the NBA—near the rim with a barrage of ferocious dunks and close-range shots. WSJ
- Warner Bros Discovery is planning to recommend to its shareholders as soon as Wednesday that they reject Paramount’s $108bn hostile bid, with the Hollywood group sceptical that Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison will backstop the deal. WBD was close to finalising a response to Paramount’s tender offer after the business run by David Ellison went directly to shareholders last week with its all-cash, $30-per-share takeover offer, after losing out to Netflix in an auction for the studio and streaming company, said people familiar with the matter. WBD is expected to outline four central criticisms of Paramount’s offer in its filing, which argues that its value, financing and terms are deficient compared with Netflix’s deal agreed earlier this month. FT