China leads with 1st place in hypersonic technology

China leads the global race in hypersonic weapons, while the US, after spending US$12 billion, still does not operate any, exposing challenges in defending against modern threats

China leads the world in developing, testing and deploying hypersonic weapons, surpassing Russia, while the US, which has already spent $12 billion, has yet to put any into operation. These weapons can travel at five times the speed of sound, making interception by existing defensive systems difficult at best.

China, US senior defense intelligence analyst Jeffery McCormick told Congress on Tuesday, has the “world’s leading hypersonic arsenal” thanks to Beijing’s two-decade effort to “dramatically advance the development of technologies and conventional and nuclear armed capabilities through intense and focused investment, development, testing and deployment.”

Here are today’s top stories

The roller coaster didn’t stop — not by far. Yesterday, we wrote about how investors were salivating at the prospect of lower interest rates by the summer and all the good news that brings for Wall Street (but not for savers, remember). Well, it’s a new day, and the data has thrown a new curve for the markets. Underlying U.S. inflation surpassed forecasts in February, with prices jumping for used cars, air travel and clothing. The so-called core consumer price index, which excludes food and energy costs, rose 0.4% from January. Aside from the imminent release of the producer price index, this is the last major inflation report before the Federal Reserve meeting next week. It was already expected that the central bank would maintain its policy this month — with today’s data, it could further extend the deadline for any cut. Even so, many investors were already expecting the “hot reading” and thought it could be worse. Here is the summary of the markets.

Ken Griffin on interest rates

Citadel founder Ken Griffin said he believes the Fed should be slow to lower interest rates to avoid the possibility of having to reverse course later. “Pausing and then quickly ramping back up would, in my opinion, be the most devastating course of action,” Griffin said Tuesday. “So I think they’re going to be a little slower than people were expecting.”

Mike Wilson is still skeptical. As a flurry of analysts raise their optimism about U.S. stocks, the Morgan Stanley strategist isn’t relenting, saying he sees no justification for improving his outlook. Wilson maintained his year-end forecast for the S&P 500 index at 4,500, even as a growing list of peers at firms including Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and UBS raised projections for the benchmark index. “A lot of people raised their price targets because of higher multiples,” Wilson said. “We’re not willing to do that.” Here’s why.

Meanwhile, John Rogers, founder of Ariel Investments, one of the few who predicted the U.S. wouldn’t have a recession last year, says the stock market is ripe for a correction. Historically, growth stocks of big companies like Nvidia are overvalued, with earnings expectations ahead of reality, Rogers said. He also sees the market’s recent rise to record levels, driven by investor enthusiasm for artificial intelligence, as reminiscent of the bursting of the internet bubble in 2000.

Terrorist threats

Terrorist threats to the United States have reached “another level” since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the war that followed, FBI Director Christopher Wray told lawmakers. Israel said Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis when militants crossed into its territory from Gaza. The attack was followed by a bombing campaign and an Israeli ground attack that, according to the Hamas Ministry of Health, killed more than 30,000 Palestinians. US President Joe Biden has maintained his support for Israel in its stated effort to destroy Hamas, although he warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that his response was “over the top”. On Tuesday, Wray told the House Intelligence Committee that “you’ve seen a veritable gallery of foreign terrorist organizations calling for terrorist attacks against us in a way that we haven’t seen in a long, long time.” The United Nations has said most of Gaza’s 2.2 million residents have been displaced by the five-month conflict, while the World Health Organization warns of malnutrition and hunger.

Boeing faces criticism

United Airlines has ordered troubled planemaker Boeing to stop building 737 Max 10 jets for the company, opting to switch to a smaller variant and the competing Airbus A321 until Boeing can pass the elongated, single-aisle model through certification. , already long overdue. United CEO Scott Kirby has been one of Boeing’s most vocal critics after a fuselage panel detached from a 737 Max 9 operated by Alaska Airlines in early January. United, the variant’s largest operator, temporarily removed dozens of planes from service while federal investigators examined the crash. The National Transportation Safety Board concluded that Boeing workers did not properly secure four screws holding the door plug in place. The constant stream of bad news for the company has not escaped the eyes of Wall Street. Boeing is falling further behind its biggest competitor, Airbus. After a 29% drop in its share price so far this year, Boeing’s market valuation now trails its rival by the largest margin ever.

Urban transformation in San Francisco

San Francisco is making it easier to convert empty office buildings into housing in a bid to alleviate the city’s housing crisis and revitalize its crumbling downtown. Voters approved Proposition C, which offers tax breaks for developers to convert up to 5 million square feet of commercial space by 2030, according to a tally of election results from last week. Mayor London Breed, who championed the proposal, said it would help the city meet a state requirement to create tens of thousands of new homes and diversify downtown.

Robots designing sustainable homes

Giant robots from Texas startup Icon began 3D printing an entire neighborhood of suburban homes in late 2022; on Tuesday, the company introduced an AI architect to design them. It’s a technological leap that Icon says could one day bring an end to suburban monotony, ushering in an era of low-cost, low-carbon, climate-resilient homes in entirely new forms. This is the promise of a set of new technologies revealed to the Bloomberg Green as machines finish construction of the world’s largest 3D-printed neighborhood — a 100-home subdivision in Austin.

With information from Bloomberg*