As DB’s Jim Reid tallies overnight, it has now been 73 days since the war in Iran began, with the past 32 marked by a stalemate characterized by a mix of truce and ongoing ceasefire. The absence of any meaningful kinetic activity for over a month suggests a firm US preference for reaching a deal. However, a counterpoint is that uncertainty over who holds negotiating authority in Iran may be complicating progress and delaying more difficult times ahead. It remains an unusual conflict with little action now for a month. In simple terms though, as long as the Strait of Hormuz stays closed, markets remain on a knife edge. Polymarket currently assigns a 39% probability to it fully reopening by 30 June.

The latest is that oil and yields are up again this morning as President Trump has posted that “I have just read the response from Iran’s so called ‘Representatives'” which he went on to call “TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE”. This was based on a WSJ report that suggested Iran was offering to transfer some of highly enriched uranium to another country but wouldn’t dismantle its nuclear facilities. Iran’s official news agency has disputed the report anyway. Brent is up +4.23% and 10yr US yields are up +3.5bps. However, US and European equity futures are largely flat and Asian equities are largely higher on the AI trade. The KOSPI is on fire again with the index up +4.0% as semiconductors surge again. The index has crossed +85% YTD.

This comes ahead of the planned mid-to end week meeting between US President Donald Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping in Beijing. It’ll be interesting to see whether this meeting does anything to shape negotiations in the war. Both leaders would clearly like to show their influence on the world stage. So certainly the biggest headline event of the week (full preview here).

Before that, the new week arrives with markets still processing last Friday’s US payrolls report, which came in broadly firm and reinforced the view that labor market conditions remain resilient. While not strong enough to decisively alter the policy outlook, the release did little to ease concerns that underlying inflation pressures could persist, especially given still-solid wage dynamics. Against this backdrop, outside of the Iran War developments which will of course take center stage, the coming week will remain centered on the US, with a dense run of data and policy developments.

This week’s focal point will be tomorrow’s April CPI report. DB economists expect headline inflation to rise by +0.58% month-on-month, moderating from March’s +0.9%, but still relatively firm. In contrast, the core measure is projected to accelerate to +0.39% MoM from +0.2%, suggesting underlying price pressures remain sticky even as energy-related effects fade. The YoY rates would move from 3.3% to 3.8% for the former and from 2.6% to 2.8% for the latter.

Producer price data follows on Wednesday and then the remainder of the week shifts towards activity indicators. DB economists expect retail sales to decline by -0.3% MoM after March’s strong +1.7% increase, pointing to some payback in consumer spending. Meanwhile, industrial production is forecast to rise modestly by +0.2% MoM following a -0.5% drop previously, suggesting a tentative stabilization in manufacturing output.

Policy and politics will also be important. A Senate vote on Kevin Warsh’s nomination as Fed Chair is scheduled for today, just days before Jerome Powell’s term is set to expire at the end of the week. It’s possible the vote could get pushed back a day or so due to other Senate business but by the end of the week you would expect Warsh to have taken Miran’s seat on the board with Powell staying on the committee.

In Europe, inflation readings from Denmark and Norway today are followed with Germany’s ZEW survey tomorrow with sentiment darkening even with the nation’s extraordinary fiscal package. Later in the week, the ECB’s economic bulletin may offer additional context on the central bank’s assessment of inflation and activity trends.

In the UK, attention will be split between politics and macro. The State Opening of Parliament and the King’s Speech on Wednesday will outline the government’s legislative agenda for the year ahead. With PM Starmer under tremendous pressure following the very poor (but broadly as expected) local election results on Thursday there is talk of a leadership challenge as soon as today. Backbench MP Catherine West has said she will stand, which would be a stalking horse nomination. However, many left-wing MPs (as she is) have urged her not to as their preferred candidate Andy Burnham is not currently an MP. They fear an election now might be a bit too early and may allow a more moderate candidate like Wes Streeting to prevail. So timing tactics could prolong Starmer’s reign. A reminder that in September last year, Mr Burnham said that the UK should no longer be “in hock to the bond markets”. This caused a spike in Gilt yields and although he subsequently downplayed the remarks, this is something to watch carefully as we navigate the politics of the next few days and weeks. On the data side, Q1 UK GDP on Thursday will offer up the latest state of play growth wise.

In Asia, Japan’s schedule includes household spending data tomorrow, alongside the Economy Watchers survey and bank lending figures on Wednesday. In addition, the Bank of Japan will publish its summary of opinions from the April meeting, which should provide greater insight into policymakers’ thinking and any emerging shifts in the policy stance.

There are multiple appearances from Fed, ECB, BoE and BoJ officials throughout the week, and on the corporate front, earnings continue at a steadier pace. In the US, Cisco and Applied Materials are among the key names, while internationally the focus includes major firms such as Tencent, Alibaba, Siemens and Bayer. See the day-by-day calendar at the end as usual for a fuller week ahead preview.

Courtesy of DB, here is a day-by-day calendar of events

Monday May 11

• Data: US April existing home sales, China April CPI, PPI, Denmark April CPI, Norway April CPI
• Earnings: Petroleo Brasileiro, Constellation Energy, Barrick Mining, Compass, AST SpaceMobile
• Auctions: US 3-yr Notes ($58bn)
• Other: US Senate vote on Kevin Warsh’s nomination for Fed Chair

Tuesday May 12

• Data: US April CPI, federal budget balance, NFIB small business optimism, Japan March household spending, leading index, coincident index, Germany May Zew survey, Italy March industrial production, Eurozone May Zew survey
• Central banks: Fed’s Goolsbee speaks, ECB’s Dolenc speaks, BoJ Summary of Opinions April MPM
• Earnings: Siemens Energy, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, MunichRe, Bayer, Vodafone, Venture Global, On Holding, thyssenkrupp
• Auctions: US 10-yr Notes ($42bn)

Wednesday May 13

• Data: US April PPI, Japan April bank lending, Economy Watchers survey, March BoP current account balance, BoP trade balance, Germany April wholesale price index, March current account balance, Eurozone March industrial production, Q1 employment
• Central banks: Fed’s Collins and Kashkari speak, ECB’s Lagarde, Lane and Radev speak, BoE’s Mann speaks
• Earnings: Tencent, Cisco, Alibaba, Siemens, SoftBank, Allianz, Deutsche Telekom, E.ON, RWE, Alstom
• Auctions: US 30-yr Bonds ($25bn)
• Other: UK King’s Speech and the State Opening of Parliament

Thursday May 14

• Data: US April retail sales, import price index, export price index, March business inventories, initial jobless claims, UK April RICS house price balance, Q1 GDP, Japan April M2, M3, Canada April existing home sales, March wholesale sales ex petroleum
• Central banks: Fed’s Hammack and Barr speak, BoJ’s Masu speaks, BoE’s Pill speaks
• Earnings: Applied Materials, National Grid, Figma
• Other: US President Trump travels to China (through May 15)

Friday May 15

• Data: US May Empire manufacturing index, April industrial production, capacity utilisation, Japan April PPI, April machine tool orders, Italy March general government debt, Canada April housing starts, March international securities transactions, manufacturing sales
• Central banks: Fed Chair Powell’s term ends, ECB’s economic bulletin

Finally, looking at just the US, the key economic data releases this week are the CPI report on Tuesday and the retail sales report on Thursday. There are several speaking engagements by Fed officials this week, including events with Presidents Williams, Goolsbee, Collins, Kashkari, Schmid, and Hammack and Governor Barr on Thursday.

Monday, May 11 

• 10:00 AM Existing home sales, April (GS +3.0%, consensus +2.0%, last -3.6%)

Tuesday, May 12 

• 03:15 AM New York Fed President Williams (FOMC voter) speaks: New York Fed President John Williams will participate in a monetary policy panel at a conference jointly organized by the Swiss National Bank and the International Monetary Fund in Zurich, Switzerland. A Q&A session is expected. On May 4, Williams said, “The elevated levels of inflation, mixed signals from the labor market, and heightened uncertainty from the Middle East conflict present an unusual set of circumstances, but the current stance of monetary policy is well positioned to balance the risks to our maximum employment and price stability goals.”
• 08:30 AM CPI (MoM), April (GS +0.58%, consensus +0.6%, last +0.9%); Core CPI (MoM), April (GS +0.31%, consensus +0.3%, last +0.2%); CPI (YoY), April (GS +3.68%, consensus +3.7%, last +3.3%); Core CPI (YoY), April (GS +2.67%, consensus +2.7%, last +2.6%): We estimate a 0.31% increase in April core CPI (month-over-month SA), which would raise the year-over-year rate to 2.67%. We expect mixed autos inflation, reflecting a 0.4% decline in used car prices, a 0.1% increase in new car prices, and a 0.4% increase in the car insurance category. We forecast a jump in the shelter categories—a 0.50% increase in the OER category and a 0.44% increase in the rent category—reflecting the unwind of the downward bias in the index level from missed data collection during the government shutdown. The panel group that should have been sampled in October will be sampled in April and compared to prices from twelve months prior (i.e. April will effectively show two months’ worth of increases). We expect mixed readings for the travel services categories (airfares: +3%; hotels: flat), reflecting signals from alternative price data. We expect diminishing upward pressure from tariffs on categories that are particularly exposed (such as recreation) worth +0.04pp. We estimate a 0.58% rise in headline CPI—reflecting higher food prices (+0.3%) and sharply higher energy prices (+4.6%)—which would raise the year-over-year rate to +3.68% from +3.26%. Our forecast consists of a 0.26% monthly increase in the core PCE price index in April.
• 01:00 PM Chicago Fed President Goolsbee (FOMC non-voter) speaks: Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee will speak at the Greater Rockford Chamber of Commerce Luncheon in Rockford, Illinois. A Q&A session is expected. On May 8, during an interview in which he was asked whether inflation is the main danger now given that the labor market appears to have stabilized, Goolsbee responded, “I am optimistic that rates can go down, if we get some progress on inflation, [showing] we are headed back to the 2% inflation, [but] we just haven’t had [progress on inflation] for some time, and that makes me less optimistic.” When asked about the easing bias in the April FOMC statement, Goolsbee responded, “I was always skeptical of the value and appropriateness of using forward guidance [on things] that the committee doesn’t think it is going to do for some number of months or committing to actions well in the future.” 

Wednesday, May 13 

• 08:30 AM PPI final demand, April (GS +0.6%, consensus +0.5%, last +0.5%); PPI ex-food and energy, April (GS +0.5%, consensus +0.3%, last +0.1%); PPI ex-food, energy, and trade, April (GS +0.3%, consensus +0.3%, last +0.2%);
• 11:30 AM Boston Fed President Collins (FOMC non-voter) speaks: Boston Fed President Susan Collins will give remarks and participate in a fireside chat at the Boston Economic Club. Speech text and Q&A are expected. On May 7, Collins said she preferred to adjust the text of the post-meeting statement to “not be as closely aligned with language that has been associated with the presumption that the next move will be a cut.” She also added, “I do think that there are scenarios in which it would be important to strongly consider a hike.”
• 01:15 PM Minneapolis Fed President Kashkari (FOMC voter) speaks: Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari will participate in a moderated discussion at a St. Paul Area Chamber event. A Q&A session is expected. On May 7, Kashkari said, “We voted against the forward guidance because we just didn’t want to signal that the next move was likely down.” He also added, “We cannot let elevated inflation be the new normal.”

 
Thursday, May 14 

• 08:30 AM Import price index, April (consensus +1.0%, last +0.8%); Export price index, April (consensus +1.1%, last +1.6%)
• 08:30 AM Initial jobless claims, week ended May 9 (GS 205k, consensus 205k, last 200k); Continuing jobless claims, week ended May 2 (consensus 1,785k, last 1,766k)
• 08:30 AM Retail sales, April (GS +0.2%, consensus +0.6%, last +1.7%); Retail sales ex-auto, April (GS +0.3%, consensus +0.6%, last +1.9%); Retail sales ex-auto & gas, April (GS +0.1%, consensus +0.4%, last +0.6%); Core retail sales, April (GS +0.2%, consensus +0.4%, last +0.7%): We estimate core retail sales increased 0.2% in April (ex-autos, gasoline, and building materials; month-over-month SA), reflecting mixed alternative data and a headwind from potential residual seasonality. We estimate headline retail sales increased 0.2%, reflecting higher gasoline prices but lower auto and food services sales.
• 10:15 AM Kansas City Fed President Schmid (FOMC non-voter) speaks: Kansas City Fed President Jeff Schmid will speak on payments innovation and community banking at the Future of Banking Conference hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. Speech text and Q&A are expected. On April 1, Schmid said, “With inflation already running hot, now is not the time to assume that the inflation from higher oil prices will be transitory.” He also added, “We must remain focused on our headline inflation objective, otherwise, I believe there is a real risk that inflation will get stuck closer to 3 percent than 2 percent in the long run.”
• 01:00 PM Cleveland Fed President Hammack (FOMC voter) speaks: Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack will deliver opening remarks at the Cleveland Fed Conversations on Central Banking event. On May 7, Hammack said, “The statement that we put out is that interest rates were on hold, but we have the signal in there that it’s more likely that the next move will be down, [and] I thought that was a little bit misleading, just given my view of where the economy is.” She also added that her “baseline outlook is that interest rates will be on hold for quite some time.”
• 05:30 PM Fed Governor Barr speaks: Fed Governor Michael Barr will deliver remarks at an event organized by the Money Marketeers of New York University. Speech text and Q&A are expected. On May 5, Barr said, “The duration of the conflict matters a lot, and the longer it goes on, the greater the risk that the inflation we are seeing in these prices becomes embedded in the economy.”
• 05:45 PM New York Fed President Williams (FOMC voter) speaks: New York Fed President John Williams will participate in a moderated discussion at a conference organized by Moody’s. A Q&A session is expected.

Friday, May 15 

• 08:30 AM Empire State manufacturing index, April (consensus +7.5, last +11.0)
• 09:15 AM Industrial production, April (GS +0.4%, consensus +0.2%, last -0.5%); Manufacturing production, April (GS +0.1%, consensus +0.2%, last -0.1%); Capacity utilization, April (GS 75.8%, consensus 75.8%, last 75.7%): We estimate industrial production increased 0.4% in April, largely reflecting strong natural gas and oil production. We estimate capacity utilization edged up to 75.8%.

Source: DB, Goldman

Via The Cradle

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has ordered the country’s forces to continue military operations against the US and Israel, according to a report by Iranian public broadcaster IRIB released Sunday. 

The order came during a meeting between Khamenei and Major General Ali Abdollahi, the commander of the Iranian army’s Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters. “During this meeting, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, His Eminence Ayatollah Sayyed Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei, while expressing appreciation for the brave and valiant fighters and the country’s powerful armed forces, issued new directives and guidance for continuing operations and confronting enemies decisively,” the report said. 

Abdollahi also “presented a report on the readiness of the armed forces” during the meeting, IRIB added. The report comes after two months of speculation and unverified media claims about the Supreme Leader’s status. 

Western news outlets like The Guardian and The Times had claimed earlier in the war that Khamenei was in a coma following the US-Israeli strikes that assassinated his father. Reports also claimed that he fled to Russia. 

Mazaher Hosseini, head of protocol in the office of Iran’s supreme leader, recently stated that Khamenei was healing from minor injuries he sustained and “is now in complete health.”

“Thank God, he is in good health. The enemy is spreading all kinds of rumors and false claims. They want to see him and find him, but people should be patient and not rush. He will speak to you when the time is right,” the Iranian official stated.

The IRIB report came a day after CNN cited US intelligence as saying that Khamenei “is playing a critical role in shaping war strategy alongside senior Iranian officials.“

It also comes days after Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said he met with the supreme leader. “What struck me most during this meeting was the vision and the humble and sincere approach of the supreme leader of the Islamic Revolution,” he said. 

Tehran has sent out its response to a new US proposal for a ceasefire via Pakistan, according to state media. The US has maintained an illegal blockade of Iranian ports since the ceasefire began.

Washington violated the truce days ago by bombing Iran’s coast and attacking two vessels. Iranian forces targeted two US military vessels in response. The next day, skirmishes broke out between Iranian and US forces in the Strait of Hormuz.

Spokesperson for the Iranian parliament’s Foreign Policy and National Security Committee, Ebrahim Rezaei, said on Sunday that Tehran will strike US military bases and vessels in response to any new violations from Washington – stressing that “restraint has come to an end.”

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed this morning to fight any bid to topple him, insisting he is “not going to walk away” and claiming that the country would never forgive Labour if it indulged in the “chaos” of a leadership contest.

“I know that people are frustrated by the state of Britain, frustrated by politics, and some people frustrated with me,” Starmer said in London on Monday.

“I know I have my doubters, and I know I need to prove them wrong.”

Starmer is fighting to stay in 10 Downing St. after a drubbing in local election results triggered a wave of Labour MPs to call for his departure.

He had a brief moment of respite on Monday when a former minister, Catherine West, withdrew her threat to force an immediate leadership contest, though she said she’d still push for a timetable for Starmer’s exit.

“I have listened to the prime minister’s speech this morning,” she told the BBC.

“I welcome the renewed energy and ideas. However, I have reluctantly concluded that this morning’s speech was too little too late.”

Starmer’s speech was light on new policy. The prime minister announced the government would legislate to take full ownership of British Steel, which is already under temporary government control. He also announced more investment in education programs like apprenticeships, technical colleges and in special educational needs.

Starmer sharpened his rhetoric against the populist parties who made strong gains at last week’s elections, warning that the country risks going down a “dark path,” as he stood behind a podium that read “Stronger Fairer Britain.”

“We are not just facing dangerous times but dangerous opponents,” he said, name-checking both Reform UK leader Nigel Farage and the Greens’ Zack Polanski.

“If we don’t get this right our country will go down a very dark path.”

Gilts fell, with the 10-year yield rising as much as 8 basis points to the day’s high of 5.00%, while the pound eased against the dollar and the euro.

Meanwhile, despite his vows, Polymarket odds of Starmer being gone by year-end are on the rise…

The call for a September leadership election, which would put it around the same time as Labour’s annual conference in Liverpool, puts pressure on Starmer’s health secretary, Wes Streeting, to decide whether to challenge his boss for the job before other candidates emerge.

Streeting, who is seen as a standard-bearer for the right of the party, is said to be weighing his options. 

Starmer explicitly said he would fight to remain in office if a Labour colleague sparks a leadership contest, vowing: “I’m not going to walk away.”

Asked if he would stand if a race was triggered, he said: “Yes.” 

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

Pennsylvania Democrat Sen. John Fetterman has reiterated that he is done with the insanity gripping his party. In a series of raw appearances on Bill Maher’s show and a new Washington Post op-ed, Fetterman is torching the reflexive anti-Trump obsession, the normalization of radical left ideas once dismissed as smears, and the sloppy 24-hour news cycle that turns opinions into “news.”

Fetterman made clear he refuses to play along with the extremes. “My colleagues and people that are running, whether for the Senate where the House, they are literally running on f*ck Trump,” he said. 

“I mean, that’s literally—they have campaign commercials with that. It’s absurd,” he noted, adding “And we are getting to that point and I refuse to engage in that extreme, those terms. And we have to find a better way forward.”

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA): “My colleagues and people that are running, whether for the Senate where the House, they are literally running on f*ck Trump.”

“I mean, that’s literally—they have campaign commercials with that. It’s absurd.”

“And we are getting to that point and I… pic.twitter.com/A0MselRgIS

— RedWave Press (@RedWavePress) May 9, 2026

Fetterman repeated the sentiments in an op-ed in The Washington Post, titled “I Haven’t Changed. Here’s What Has,” writing “My party cannot simply be the opposite of whatever President Donald Trump says.”

He stresses, “Working across the aisle is the only way forward” and calls “pointless pile-ons and attacks” unproductive. Fetterman highlights once-mainstream Democratic positions on border security, support for Israel, and avoiding government shutdowns that have now become “toxic” to the party’s fringe base. 

He declares, “Someone who comes here illegally and commits a violent crime should be deported. Full stop.” 

“It doesn’t matter if my colleague is in my party or across the aisle,” Sen. @JohnFetterman writes.

“My focus remains on working together to find wins and deliver for my constituents.” https://t.co/d0g5KorSXj

— Washington Post Opinions (@PostOpinions) May 7, 2026

Fetterman also backed practical security measures that even some on the left are now acknowledging make sense. Discussing President Trump’s plans for a new White House ballroom, Fetterman revealed he had a clear view of the latest assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. 

“I was two tables away at the White House Correspondent’s Dinner. I witnessed this,” he said. When Maher asked if he meant two tables from the attempt, Fetterman replied, “Yeah. I had to see that. Like the entire line of succession was right there and realized that we’ve put, there’s real danger there. We got really lucky there, for a lot of reasons. We need to have a more secure place to do these kinds of events.”

He added bluntly, “I don’t care about the ballroom.” Maher agreed, telling his audience, “I don’t either. Yeah. I mean, it’s like so stupid. It’s such a Rorschach test of whether you just hate. We saw with the assassination attempt a couple of weeks ago. America probably does need [it]… This is America and we don’t want people sitting in tents to have dinner.” The liberal crowd actually applauded.

Even Bill Maher’s liberal audience is now APPLAUDING after he says Trump’s ballroom plans actually make sense.

John Fetterman was two tables away from the latest assassination attempt, and he says he saw the “entire line of succession” flashing before his eyes.

FETTERMAN: “I… pic.twitter.com/AZT0OIELVm

— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) May 9, 2026

Fetterman didn’t stop there. He went after the left’s embrace of ideas that were once political poison. “People who are proud to be labeled as a socialist, that was like a smear… They are MORONS if they think that socialism is the answer,” he declared. 

Maher noted that even “communist” is no longer viewed as a dirty word on the left, pointing to a New York official tweeting “elect more communists” and referencing Graham Platner. 

Fetterman concurred, “Yeah, it’s not a slur if I refer to him as a communist. That’s his own term that he used for himself.” Maher called it “a watershed mark, a moment in American history where we should pay attention.”

Bill Maher and John Fetterman share growing concerns that “communist” is no longer viewed as a smear on the left.

FETTERMAN: “People who are proud to be labeled as a socialist, that was like a smear… They are MORONS if they think that socialism is the answer.”

MAHER: “You said… pic.twitter.com/AXfZoICyRP

— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) May 9, 2026

The senator saved some of his sharpest fire for the media itself. Fired up in a way viewers rarely see from him, Fetterman ripped the 24-hour news cycle for turning opinions into facts. “Opinions have become actual real news [now]… Opinions are NOT NEWS,” he said. 

“There are so many shitty takes out there in the world now. Like, why? Why are people still talking about Tucker Carlson or any of these people? Even Alex Jones is back. I have to see that asshole my feed. You know why? Because they are criticizing Trump.”

“I’m so tired opinions have become news, and now there’s countless, countless ones, and it’s all become sloppy,” he urged.

Maher also noted the legacy of CNN co-founder Ted Turner and the rise of nonstop “breaking news” even when there is none.

John Fetterman gets surprisingly passionate as he criticizes the 24-hour news cycle turning opinions into “news.”

It’s not often you see Fetterman this fired up. You can tell Fetterman had been holding this in for a while.

MAHER: “What is the legacy of [CNN co-founder] Ted… pic.twitter.com/3hXlMWZfU1

— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) May 9, 2026

Fetterman remains a Democrat who says he is “strongly pro-choice, pro-weed, pro-LGBT, pro-SNAP, pro-labor” and would make a “terrible Republican” who still votes overwhelmingly with his party. Yet he keeps delivering bipartisan results—backing a border bill to stop an “influx the size of Pittsburgh,” the Laken Riley Act, infrastructure deals, and efforts against fentanyl and for Israel. His willingness to call out the party’s shift toward the fringe shows how far some Democrats have drifted from what used to be common sense.

Even as the left doubles down on rage and radicalism, Fetterman’s blunt admissions reveal the growing cracks. Americans are tired of the circus. They want secure borders, and real results.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Authored by Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times,

More than 110 people aboard the Caribbean Princess cruise ship have fallen ill due to a norovirus outbreak, a common cause of gastrointestinal illnesses, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Caribbean Princess, owned by Princess Cruises, departed from the port of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on April 28 and is currently sailing in the North Atlantic Ocean, according to CruiseMapper.

The voyage dates were April 28 to May 11. The ship is carrying 3,116 passengers and 1,131 crew members and is expected to arrive in Port Canaveral, Florida, on May 11.

The norovirus outbreak was reported on the ship on May 7, affecting 102 passengers and 13 crew members, with diarrhea and vomiting identified as the predominant symptoms, the CDC said in an update.

Princess Cruises and the crew have increased cleaning and disinfection procedures in response to the outbreak, the CDC stated. Other measures include collecting stool samples from patients with gastrointestinal illness for testing and isolating passengers and crew members who have fallen ill.

The crew also consulted with the CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP) regarding sanitation cleaning procedures and reporting of sick individuals, the agency said.

“VSP is conducting a field response for an environmental assessment and outbreak investigation to assist the ship in controlling the outbreak,” it stated.

The Epoch Times has reached out to Princess Cruises for comment, but did not receive a response by publication time.

Norovirus is the leading cause of foodborne illness in the United States, accounting for 58 percent of such infections each year, according to the CDC.

Apart from vomiting and diarrhea, other frequently reported symptoms include muscle aches, headaches, abdominal cramps, and fever.

In March, a norovirus outbreak was reported aboard the Star Princess, also owned by Princess Cruises, affecting 104 passengers and 49 crew members. Last December, a norovirus outbreak on an Aida Cruises ship sickened more than 100 people.

Cruise ships are required to report cases of gastrointestinal illness to the CDC. The agency said that reporting symptoms to the medical center onboard can help health officials detect gastrointestinal outbreaks quickly and take steps to limit the spread of illness.

Medical staff would then evaluate symptoms to determine whether they meet the case definition for the illness, including three or more loose stools within a 24-hour period or vomiting along with another symptom such as diarrhea, aching muscles, or fever.

On average, norovirus causes around 900 deaths, mainly in adults aged 65 and older, 109,000 hospitalizations, 465,000 emergency room visits, and 19 million to 21 million illnesses in the United States each year, according to the CDC.

Authored by Luke Coha via BondVigilantes.com,

As the world grapples with how AI will shape and change our lives going forward from the mundane, like automated homes or more clever apps, to more existential threats (opportunities?) leading to job and possibly sector obsolescence and related, broader social implications, it’s definitely well accepted that the demand for AI computing power is enormous and growing.

Estimates vary, but they are all astronomical, ranging from $5 trillion to $7 trillion in capital investment needed to fund the global data centre and AI buildout, including adding 122 GW of power capacity between now and 2030 (according to JP Morgan). This scale of investment will require involvement from virtually all sources of funding, including public capital markets, private credit, governments and asset-backed securitisation funding.

While not nearly on the same scale as investment grade markets, high yield markets have been playing, and will continue to play, a role in this buildout financing mostly via the funding of data centres. This has important implications for the asset class. In very short order, AI related and data centre issuance has exploded from effectively nothing just over a year ago to nearly $40 billion today, with close to $30 billion issued since the start of the year.

This sheer quantum of issuance is huge and effectively amounts to an entirely new subsector created nearly overnight within the high yield market. The vast majority of this issuance is index eligible and currently represents approximately 1.6% of the Global High Yield Bond Index (and 2.6% of the U.S. High Yield Bond Index). What’s more, from estimates we’ve seen, expectations are for total high yield, AI related issuance to reach $100 billion to $120 billion over the next few years.

Should this manifest, it would represent close to 4% to 5% of the global index and 6% to 7% of the U.S. index, of similar scale as long existing and well established retail and capital goods subsectors. This scale, coupled with mostly above index level yields, makes it difficult, if not impossible, for active managers that are benchmark-aware to ignore. It will be imperative to understand the broader narrative as well as the idiosyncratic characteristics of the individual issuers. As stated, this is effectively a new sector to the market and participants, such as analysts, strategists and fund managers, need to, if they haven’t already done so, get up to speed quickly.

At the time of writing there are now 15 high yield data centre bonds totalling $39 billion (including neocloud provider CoreWeave). High yield data centre bond issuance has coalesced around similar, project-finance-like features but with important variations.

Source: Bloomberg, Barclays Research. Note: excludes issuance by neocloud CoreWeave, which has $6.5bn of regular-way HY bonds outstanding

Generally, bonds are being issued with five-year non call two-year structures and mostly amortising. By definition these issuers will have more leverage than traditional IG issuers but some will have financial backstops from the likes of Google, while others will not. Most will have high-quality tenants like Nvidia, and hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft and Meta, while others will have a variety of tenants. Some are single asset facilities while others are multi-site and multijurisdictional. Some will be well advanced in their construction timeline while others will have yet to have broken ground. Some will have contracted power supply including back up power, and some are still negotiating power supply agreements… you get the idea. And that’s leaving aside the complexities around lease terms, cost overrun provisions, covenants etc.

There are already rumblings in the high yield market surrounding concerns that the explosion in issuance has bubble-like characteristics similar to that of telecoms in the early 2000s or energy in 2015 to 2017, when investor enthusiasm outweighed a sober assessment of risk. These same critics also worry about the potential for overbuild or overcapacity, i.e. the massive demand fails to materialise, or that despite the strong tenant base, these contracts have yet to be tested.

Conversely, proponents of the nascent space point to the undeniable demand for more compute capacity and expectations that any individual project disruptions or failures would be tolerated by their well-heeled tenants who, with strong demand for capacity, would support any centres that came into difficulty; and if not, demand is so great, other well capitalised tenants would simply step in. Further, regardless of long term dynamics, there is massive demand now and any project that is up and running, or close to, has a first mover advantage and any capacity concerns etc. are for projects well down the development pipeline.

Further, some view this as an attractive ‘yield to call’ play, inferring that as these projects are up and running and generating more cash, the issuer will have the capacity to refinance their high coupon, high yield issues at more attractive terms, arguably creating a potential short term opportunity for high yield investors.

Ultimately, being completely short the space due to uncertainties requires a high degree of conviction that the sector is mispriced and even vulnerable. Conversely, going overweight the sector is an acceptance of a broader narrative that has only recently manifested itself. All of which highlights that careful credit work on individual issuers and a broader understanding of these dynamics is paramount.

Source: Meta

Bottom line, balancing this supply, index and yield dynamic versus fully understanding the fundamental, technical and issuer risks and rewards is a real challenge for high yield markets. And with all things AI related, we need to understand if this dynamic potentially represents – and if so, how to adapt to – to paraphrase Aldous Huxley, a Brave New World.

Your passport shapes how much of the world you can access. In 2026, the gap between the strongest and weakest passports spans nearly 170 destinations.

This graphic, via Visual Capitalists’ Gabriel Cohen, ranks global passport strength using data from the Henley Passport Index, based on how many destinations citizens can enter without a visa.

Singapore leads with access to 192 destinations. That’s nearly five times the access available to citizens of the lowest-ranked countries. Meanwhile, the weakest passports allow entry to fewer than 50 destinations. The disparity highlights how geography, diplomacy, and stability influence global mobility.

The Top Passports of Asia and Europe

Following Singapore, there is a three-way tie for the second-strongest passports, with Japan, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates each offering access to 187 destinations without a visa.

The UAE has the strongest passport outside of East or Southeast Asia, though with a notable caveat: Emiratis lack visa-free access to the United States, unlike their peers in Singapore, Japan, or South Korea.

From there, Europeans hold many of the strongest passports by visa-free access, led by Northern and Western European countries like Norway and Switzerland (both 185).

While the 27-member European Union has a unified passport system, individual member countries still vary in visa-free access, ranging from 177 destinations for Bulgaria and Romania to 186 for Sweden.

Taking the average across this range, the EU’s overall passport strength stands at 183 visa-free destinations, tied with countries like Malaysia and the United Kingdom and slightly ahead of North American counterparts like Canada (182) and the United States (179).

The World’s Weakest Passports

At the bottom of the ranking, mobility drops off dramatically. The weakest passports offer access to fewer than 50 destinations, less than a quarter of what top-ranked countries enjoy.

These countries often face political instability, high emigration, or recent conflict, which can limit access to many developed regions.

African countries like Nigeria (44), Somalia (32), and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (43) also rank low. Fast-growing populations and large diasporas have contributed to tighter visa restrictions for these nationalities.

A Tale of Two Passports

Taken together, passport rankings reveal more than travel convenience—they map global inequality. Where you’re born can shape where you’re allowed to go, making passport power one of the clearest indicators of opportunity in a connected world.

African, Middle Eastern, and South Asian passports tend to rank lower than their European or Western Hemisphere counterparts. Even higher-ranking exceptions like Malaysia or the UAE can still face limits on visa-free access to major destinations, particularly the United States.

If you enjoyed today’s post, check out The United Arab Emirates has the World’s Most Affordable Passport on Voronoi.

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

A trans Tamil immigrant on a temporary student visa has just been ELECTED as a Green Party MSP to Holyrood in Scotland – despite having no British citizenship, no permanent residency and no right to full-time work.

Where else would this be allowed to happen? It’s insane.

The candidate, Dr Q Manivannan (they/them), arrived in the UK a few years ago as a PhD student and was selected for the Green list in Edinburgh and the Lothians East. Scotland’s rules – relaxed under the SNP – explicitly allow non-citizens to stand for election and take office.

A trans Indian migrant who arrived in the UK a few years ago and is not a citizen or permanent resident was elected to the Scottish parliament as a member of the woke Green Party. Scotland allows non-citizens to become elected to office.

“Q Mannivannan” is set to earn over… pic.twitter.com/3ePA6B0le1

— Andy Ngo (@MrAndyNgo) May 9, 2026

Trans Green Party candidate with no permanent British visa is elected to Holyrood https://t.co/KCSmyt3YuE

— Daily Mail (@DailyMail) May 10, 2026

Manivannan’s own victory remarks left nothing to the imagination. “My name is Dr Q Manivannan, I am a transgender Tamil immigrant, my pronouns are they/them.” And later: “I am, to some in this country, everything that the hateful despise, and I’m standing here as your MSP now with care.”

Q Manivannan, transgender Indian migrant now Scottish Greens MSP, arguing for ‘trans pride’.

“Transness is Blackness. Transness is womanhood. Transness is disability. Transness is everything the world wants you to believe that is unlovable.”

He goes on to defend Mridul Wadhwa,… pic.twitter.com/HJOQ6bXqBQ

— ‘New Scots’ Profiles (@NewScotProfiles) May 10, 2026

The individual is clearly not OK mentally.

He’s also racist against White people and suffers extreme mental sickness according to his many posts about it all pic.twitter.com/GrEIiMqZu2

— ddsnorth ™ (@ddsnorth) May 10, 2026

This is not an isolated stunt. The Green Party has become a conduit for an unholy alliance of islamists and gender ideology obsessives.

Deputy leader Mothin Ali was pictured alongside a trans candidate, the awkward expression speaking volumes.

The guy on the left is the Green Party’s deputy leader, Mothin Ali; the woman on the right is one of his party’s trans candidates. The look on his face says it all. Is there a future for this marriage of convenience between Islamist extremism and woke crankery? I doubt it. pic.twitter.com/v9JJWOkRR9

— Never Again (@Never_Again2020) May 9, 2026

Other recent Green candidates reinforce the pattern. In Preston, new councillor “Tina” Balmer declared: “I want to help the city I love.”

? “I want to help the city I love” – Meet Preston’s first ever Green Party councillor, Tina Balmer.??

Tina ffs! ?

Is it Tina but pronounced Trevor? ? pic.twitter.com/GkTmz9zJ4K

— Matt Casey ??????? ?? (@MattCas04807118) May 9, 2026

Here are more Green candidates that stood for election:

Wow these are Green Party Candidates ?

How would you describe this look? pic.twitter.com/FzA29MK4JT

— Benonwine (@benonwine) May 1, 2026

A small compendium of Green Party candidates, make up your own mind about what this says about the state of British politics. pic.twitter.com/9X4nDULsJg

— Kevin Lister (@KevsTribulation) May 8, 2026

“What’s interesting about these Green Party candidates is that they are actually men” pic.twitter.com/DkdTIuL4Ty

— Barry Robson (@barryrobson) May 8, 2026

And here’s the support they’re drawing…

Say hello to ‘Kate’, from the Redbridge Green Party. Not mental at all… pic.twitter.com/xkVGaXBqXI

— RagingDissident_ (@JustRaging01) February 27, 2026

They’ll lecture you all day long about ‘hate’, meanwhile…

How many Green Party Candidates investigated over antisemitic hate:

Just the thirty. pic.twitter.com/Nuftw4gVnz

— Tom Hawklin Jr (@TomHawklin10558) May 7, 2026

Many of them simply don’t bother to speak English:

GB News host Martin Daubney can’t understand the Green Party and neither can we!

Political candidates in Britain should speak English. pic.twitter.com/au6CkSRdVp

— Turning Point UK ?? (@TPointUK) May 8, 2026

Meanwhile, UK Deputy Green Party leader had a meltdown when Piers Morgan asked if in her view women can have penises:

UK Deputy Green Party leader has meltdown after Piers Morgan asked if she thinks women can have “penises.”

“That’s a weird question. Piers it’s a weird question. The answer is the trans community in this country are treated appallingly.” pic.twitter.com/qWVPRg0fdU

— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) May 9, 2026

He asked that question because during a previous exchange, Party leader Zack Polanski went full gender-ideologue, claiming women can have penises and dismissed biological reality.

The party is also pushing to teach schoolchildren they should have a “moral obligation” to accept mass immigration.

The Greens aren’t just pushing open borders and gender ideology – they are the vehicle that fuses the two into one destructive package.

Scotland’s sovereignty is now being exercised by people who aren’t even British citizens, while taxpayers foot the bill for six-figure salaries and the erosion of women’s rights, free speech and national identity.

This isn’t democracy. It’s demographic replacement dressed up as progress – and the Green Party is leading the parade.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

A recent report in Financial Times indicates the European Union is preparing for “potential” future talks with Russia and President Vladimir Putin at a moment of extreme doubts over both US military commitments and Russia’s intentions in Ukraine.

Putin himself during his V-Day speech Saturday hinted for the first time that the conflict may be ‘coming to an end’:

“I ⁠⁠think that the matter is coming to an end,” Putin told reporters of the Russia-Ukraine war, Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II.

The Russian leader, however, added he would be willing to meet Zelensky only after the terms of a peace agreement had already been settled. The Kremlin had rejected US President Donald Trump’s August 2025 offer to hold a trilateral meeting with Zelenskyy, Putin and Trump.

“This should be the final point, not the negotiations themselves,” Putin said after the Victory Day, which marks Russia’s victory over Nazi Germany in 1945 in World War II.

Also on Saturday, António Costa, the president of the European Council, said to a press conference the EU will only talk to Putin at the “right moment”. Costa ultimately sees “potential” for direct EU engagement with Putin

“We need in the right moment to have talks with Russia to address our common issues with security,” the EU president had said.

“We don’t want to disturb the initiative led by President Trump,” said Costa at a ‘Europe Day’ celebration in Brussels. He also spoke of preparations aimed at being “ready to do what we need to do” regarding Europe’s security.

And separately an EU official said: “There will be a moment when the EU will need to speak to Russia because it’s an existential issue for Europe. Now it’s not the time.”

President Trump has recently blasted NATO as a “paper tiger” (though it wasn’t the first time) and has said the US is withdrawing 5,000 American troops from Germany.

In response, European governments have accelerated discussions on deeper EU military coordination, including joint defense initiatives which bypass US protection.

Currently, the three-day Ukraine ceasefire announced and backed by President Trump appears to have held throughout the weekend, as no drone attacks have been registered on Moscow or other parts of the country. 

Trump had presented this as a window and opportunity to achieve a more permanent truce, and Putin is without doubt seizing on the initiative, but surely wants a final settlement in line with Kremlin aims in Ukraine.