STOCKS TUMBLE AGAIN: The Dow Jones dipped 550 points at its worst today but pared down the loss to just 249 points: http://on.wsj.com/1RTxA82.
LEW CALLS FOR PUERTO RICO BANKRUPTCY POWER: Treasury Secretary Jack Lew called on Congress to give Puerto Rico the ability to declare bankruptcy on some of its massive debt burden. The commonwealth has struggled for years with economic issues, and Lew met with Puerto Rican leaders today to discuss how the federal government can help. The Hill’s Peter Schroeder takes us there: http://bit.ly/1S4Vvzm.
{mosads}CONGRESS TURNS TO FLOOD RELIEF: With last December’s deadly floods still fresh on their minds, lawmakers with personal stakes in the damage feel a new urgency to reform the debt-riddled National Flood Insurance Program. The prescription could be more help from the private sector. I took a look at what the House Financial Services Committee is doing to fix flood insurance: http://bit.ly/1RAbk2D.
HAPPY WEDNESDAY and welcome to Overnight Finance, where we’re on our way to stock up on bread and peanut butter. I’m Sylvan Lane, and here’s your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line.
Tonight’s highlights include scheduled Capitol Hill testimony from Janet Yellen, a possible swipe at Bernie Sanders from Joe Biden, a local push for international trade and an Overnight Finance exclusive.
See something I missed? Let me know at slane@digital-staging.thehill.com or tweet me @SylvanLane. And if you like your newsletter, you can subscribe to it here: http://www.digital-staging.thehill.com/signup/48.
YELLEN VISITS CONGRESS FEB. 10: TheFederal Reserve chairwoman will testify before the House Financial Services Committee on how the central bank plans to handle tumultuous financial markets, the panel announced today. It’ll be her first congressional testimony since the Fed raised interest rates in December, and Peter Schroeder tells us why that’s important: http://bit.ly/1QeVOpD.
“When the Fed raised rates for the first time in nearly a decade, Yellen argued the economy was strong enough to withstand the increase and cautioned that waiting too long to act could subject the economy to additional risks. But since the Fed acted, financial markets have taken a significant turn for the worse. Investors fretting about the strength of China’s economy, rapidly falling oil prices and other economic questions have renewed talk of another potential recession.
“When House Financial Services Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) announced Yellen would testify, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down about 400 points.”
BIDEN: WE DON’T NEED SOCIALISM: Speaking to the World Economic Forum today in Davos, Switzerland, Vice President Joe Biden took what could be shot at Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Biden, who recently said he regretted not running for president in 2016, called for “a more progressive tax code — not confiscatory policy. Not socialism. A tax code.” Given that Sanders is a self-described democratic socialist, one can only wonder… http://bit.ly/1PieW9e.
CHAMBER SCALES BACK SPENDING: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce cut back on political spending in 2015, a non-election year, by roughly 30 percent. The business lobbying behemoth spent $62.4 million last year, compared to $90 million in 2014. http://bit.ly/1Kru0d4.
U.S. TRADE REP RALLIES MAYORS: Michael Froman, the U.S. government’s chief trade negotiator, called on American mayors to press federal lawmakers to support the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Froman praised mayors for their help passing legislation to speed the process along, but asked for more help moving the deal in an election year. The Hill’s Vicki Needham tells us about the pitch: http://bit.ly/1OGLNih.
“With this historic agreement in hand, the question isn’t whether America should lead on trade, but why wait?” Froman said to the U.S. Conference of Mayors. “Why wait on cutting thousands of foreign taxes on American exports? Why wait on supporting additional high-paying middle class jobs here in the United States? Why wait on helping our small businesses succeed overseas?”
EXCLUSIVE: ENTREPRENEUR GROUP LAUNCHES POLICY COUNCIL: The Economic Innovation Group (EIG) is launching an external policy council Here’s the roster:
- Chris Camacho, President and CEO of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council
- Sarah Chamberlain, President of the Republican Main Street Partnership
- Debbie Cox Bultan, Executive Director of NewDEAL Leaders
- John Dearie, Acting CEO of the Financial Services Forum
- Adrian Fenty, former Mayor of Washington D.C.
- John Fernandez, former head of the U.S. Economic Development Administration
- Donna Harris, Cofounder of 1776, Founding Member of K Street Capital and
- Ian Hathaway, Manager of Frontier Economics,
- Jimmy Kemp, President of the Jack Kemp Foundation
- Ron Klain, Executive Vice President and General Counsel at Revolution;
- Andrew Yang, Founder and CEO of Venture for America.
NIGHTCAP: Despite their middling 21-22 record, the New York Knicks are the most valuable team in the National Basketball League at $3 billion, according to Forbes valuations. The least valuable is the New Orleans Pelicans, worth $650 million.
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