Welcome to the Trading Day blog for Friday, December 13. The ASX 200 is down 0.7 per cent to 8276 points at 1.30pm AEDT with the miners the worst performers. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 closed 0.5 per cent per lower, with the technology-focused Nasdaq index down 0.7 per cent and the Dow Jones index shedding 0.5 per cent. Bitcoin's just above $US99,600. The Aussie dollar is trading around US63.64c. More Coverage Hidden data that will make or break rate cut call in Feb David Rogers Originally published as ASX 200 live: DigiCo's weak debut; Insignia jumps on Bain bid; Iress gains; Rio to spend $US2.5bn on Rincon Read related topics: Donald Trump Companies Don't miss out on the headlines from Companies. Followed categories will be added to My News. Join the conversation Add your comment to this story To join the conversation, please log in. Don't have an account? Register Join the conversation, you are commenting as Logout More related stories Retail Popular toy poses ‘lethal’ threat to kids Parents are being urged to return the product immediately, with authorities warning of “serious injury or death”. Read more Business Breaking News Virgin, Qatar drop huge sale for Aussies The holiday season has started early for Australians, who now have more options for international travel after two major airlines joined forces. Read moreLabour Asians Society Hosts Landmark Event: 'Bridging the Future: British Asians and the Labour Party' at the House of CommonsCHARLOTTE, N.C. — Front Row Motorsports, one of two teams suing NASCAR in federal court, accused the stock car series Thursday of rejecting the planned purchase of a valuable charter unless the lawsuit was dropped. Front Row made the claim in a court filing and said it involved its proposed purchase of the charter from Stewart-Haas Racing. Front Row said the series would only approve it if Front Row and 23XI Racing dropped their court case. "Specifically, NASCAR informed us that it would not approve the (charter) transfer unless we agreed to drop our current antitrust lawsuit against them," Jerry Freeze, general manager of Front Row, said in an affidavit filed in the U.S. District Court of Western North Carolina. The two teams in September refused to sign NASCAR's "take-it-or-leave-it" final offer on a new revenue sharing agreement. All other 13 teams signed the deal. Front Row and 23XI balked and are now in court. 23XI co-owner Michael Jordan has said he took the fight to court on behalf of all teams competing in the top motorsports series in the United States. NASCAR has argued that the two teams simply do not like the terms of the final charter agreement and asked for the lawsuit be dismissed. Earlier this week, the suit was transferred to a different judge than the one who heard the first round of arguments and ruled against the two teams in their request for a temporary injunction to be recognized in 2025 as chartered teams as the case proceeds. The latest filing is heavily redacted as it lays out alleged retaliatory actions by NASCAR the teams say have caused irreparable harm. Both Front Row and 23XI want to expand from two full-time cars to three, and have agreements with SHR to purchase one charter each as SHR goes from four cars to one for 2025. The teams can still compete next season but would have to do so as "open" teams that don't have the same protections or financial gains that come from holding a charter. Freeze claimed in the affidavit that Front Row signed a purchase agreement with SHR in April and NASCAR President Steve Phelps told Freeze in September the deal had been approved. But when Front Row submitted the paperwork last month, NASCAR began asking for additional information. A Dec. 4 request from NASCAR was "primarily related to our ongoing lawsuit with NASCAR," Freeze said. "NASCAR informed us on December 5, 2024, that it objected to the transfer and would not approve it, in contrast to the previous oral approval for the transfer confirmed by Phelps before we filed the lawsuit," Freeze said. "NASCAR made it clear that the reason it was now changing course and objecting to the transfer is because NASCAR is insisting that we drop the lawsuit and antitrust claims against it as a condition of being approved." A second affidavit from Steve Lauletta, the president of 23XI Racing, claims NASCAR accused 23XI and Front Row of manufacturing "new circumstances" in a renewed motion for an injunction and of a "coordinated effort behind the scenes." "This is completely false," Lauletta said. Front Row is owned by businessman Bob Jenkins, while 23XI is owned by retired NBA Hall of Famer Jordan, three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin and longtime Jordan adviser Curtis Polk. NASCAR had been operating with 36 chartered teams and four open spots since the charter agreement began in 2016. NASCAR now says it will move forward in 2025 with 32 chartered teams and eight open spots, with offers on charters for Front Row and 23XI rescinded and the SHR charters in limbo. The teams contend they must be chartered under some of their contractual agreements with current sponsors and drivers, and competing next year as open teams will cause significant losses. "23XI exists to compete at the highest level of stock car racing, striving to become the best team it can be. But that ambition can only be pursued within NASCAR, which has monopolized the market as the sole top-tier circuit for stock car racing," Lauletta said. "Our efforts to expand – purchasing more cars and increasing our presence on the track – are integral to achieving this goal. "It is not hypocritical to operate within the only system available while striving for excellence and contending for championships," he continued. "It is a necessity because NASCAR's monopoly leaves 23XI no alternative circuit, no different terms, and no other viable avenue to compete at this level." Get local news delivered to your inbox!
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MHA promotes Gilani (IPS) to DGP rankSecret Service acting Director Ronald Rowe and Rep. Pat Fallon (R-Texas) got into a yelling match about the July assassination attempt on President-elect Donald Trump. When Fallon began asking Rowe — who was the Secret Service’s deputy director when Trump was shot July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania — questions about security failures that day, the two men remained relatively calm. Holy shit -- acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe and Rep. Pat Fallon just had a huge, angry blow up during a hearing, screaming and yelling at each other — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) The exchange became heated when Fallon presented a photo of Rowe at the 9/11 remembrance in New York earlier this year and asked him if he was the special agent in charge of the president’s protective detail that day. Rowe told Fallon that the special agent in charge in September was not in the photo. His voice rising, he said he “actually responded to Ground Zero” on Sept. 11, 2001 and “was there going through the ashes of the World Trade Center.” He was at the 2024 remembrance, he said, to “show respect for our Secret Service members that died on 9/11.” Fallon yelled at Rowe, “I’m not asking you that. I’m asking you if you were the special agent in charge.” “Do not invoke 9/11 for political purposes,” Rowe shouted back. “Don’t try bullying me,” Fallon said, pointing his finger at Rowe as the two men began talking over each other. “I am elected member of Congress,” he said, “and I am asking you a serious question. ... Were you the special agent in charge that day?” Rowe said he wasn’t. “You know why you were there,” Fallon said. “Because you wanted to be visible because you were auditioning for this job.” Fallon said Rowe should have been on duty during the remembrance and because he wasn’t, he was effectively putting President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in danger. Fallon’s questioning time was up, but he said to Rowe, “You’re a bully.” Rowe became the interim Secret Service director on July 24, one day after then-Director Kimberly Cheatle stepped down. She had been heavily criticized for her agency’s response to Trump’s assassination attempt. In a comment to HuffPost, Anthony Guglielmi, the Secret Service chief of communications, said that all detail personnel were at the 9/11 memorial ceremony and “had complete access to their protectees during the memorial.” Fallon’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Related...What's New Israeli Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara ordered an investigation on Thursday into Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu 's wife, Sara Netanyahu, over allegedly harassing political opponents and a witness in her husband's corruption trial. Newsweek reached out to the prime minister's office via online form for comment Thursday afternoon. Why It Matters The Netanyahu family has already been swimming in legal troubles. The controversial Israeli leader is currently the subject of a long-running corruption trial after he was indicted in 2019 on charges of fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes. Benjamin Netanyahu has denied all charges, claiming to be the victim of a "witch hunt." Sara Netanyahu, meanwhile, has previously been accused of abusive behavior toward her personal staff and of excessive spending and using public money for her own luxurious lifestyle. What To Know The Israeli Justice Ministry announced Thursday that an investigation into Sara Netanyahu would focus on the findings from a recent investigative report by Israel's Channel 12 Uvda program. The announcement did not mention Sara Netanyahu by name. The Justice Ministry declined to comment further, according to The Associated Press. What Did The Report About Sara Netanyahu Say? The report includes WhatsApp messages that appear to show Sara Netanyahu instructing a former aide to organize protests against political opponents and to intimidate Hadas Klein, a key witness in her husband's corruption trial. Klein is an aide to Israeli billionaire film producer Arnon Milchan who testified in Netanyahu's corruption case about her role in delivering tens of thousands of dollars worth of champagne, cigars and gifts to the prime minister for Milchan. Sara Netanyahu appeared to encourage police to crack down on anti-government protesters using violence and ordered Hanni Bleiweiss, a former aide to her husband, to organize protests against the prime minister's critics. She also told Bleiweiss to persuade activists in her husband's right-wing Likud party to publish attacks on Klein. Bleiweiss, who died of cancer in 2023, was allegedly mistreated by Sara Netanyahu, prompting her to share the message with a reporter shortly before her death, according to the Uvda report. Benjamin Netanyahu Denies Report The prime minister called the Uvda report "lies" in a video released earlier Thursday. "My opponents on the left and in the media found a new-old target. They mercilessly attack my wife, Sara," Netanyahu said. He called the program "false propaganda, nasty propaganda that brings up lies from the darkness," while painting Sara Netanyahu in a good light by detailing what he said were the many kind and charitable acts by his wife. What People Have Said National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir , who has repeatedly called for Baharav Miara to be fired over multiple grievances against her, said the Justice Ministry's Thursday announcement was another reason for her to be dismissed. "Someone who politically persecutes government ministers and their families cannot continue to serve as the attorney general," he said. Justice Minister Yariv Levin , another ally of the prime minister and critic of Baharav Miara, accused the attorney general of focusing on "television gossip" in a statement that also said, "Selective enforcement is a crime!" What Happens Next The Netanyahus will now have to balance Benjamin Netanyahu's corruption trial and the potential new probe into Sara Netanyahu amid mounting criticism of the prime minister's handling of the Israeli-Hamas war. The International Criminal Court (ICC) is seeking an arrest warrant for Netanyahu on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity for the war in Gaza. Netanyahu has called the charges "absurd and false." This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
The first guest invited to ring the bell to open trading at the New York Stock Exchange in 1956 wasn’t a company executive, a politician or a celebrity. It was a 10-year-old boy, Leonard Ross, who received the honor by winning a television quiz show. Since then, business titans, political giants and global film stars have all been among those ringing the opening bell at the NYSE. Ronald Reagan rang the bell as president in 1985. Billionaire businessman and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Hollywood star Robert Downey Jr. have also rung the bell. The list even includes famous Muppets: Miss Piggy was once a bell ringer. President-elect Donald Trump joined that list Thursday when he opened trading at the famous stock exchange on Wall Street. He was accompanied by his wife, Melania, who interestingly enough received the honor before her husband. As first lady, she rang the bell in 2019 as part of her “Be Best” program. Bell-ringers are more commonly founders and executives chosen primarily from the exchange's more than 2,300 listed companies. Over the last few months, the guests have included executives from Alaska Air Group, Bath & Body Works, and Ally Financial. Stock trading around the location of the NYSE's current home has deep roots that trace back to the Dutch founding of New Amsterdam and when Wall Street had an actual wall. The NYSE traces its direct roots to the “Buttonwood Agreement” signed in 1792, which set rules for stock trading and commissions. The NYSE moved into its first permanent home in 1865. The first bell in use was actually a gong. The exchange moved into its current iconic building in 1903 and started using an electronically operated brass bell. That has evolved into synchronized bells in each of the NYSE’s four trading areas.
