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The prequel will add "emotional context that reframes [Richie and Michael's] story from the very beginning."

The prequel will add "emotional context that reframes [Richie and Michael's] story from the very beginning."

"We had a cocktail menu, which we call Coke-tails. The idea was to bring fans together," said 25-year-old marketing executive Ishika Gupta, who calls herself a "big Diet ​Coke fan.”

Trump Admin Working To Ease Memory Chip Crunch And Soaring Prices With Supply Chain Coalition

In a world where high commodity prices are the cure for high commodity prices, it was only a matter of time before we saw a surge in oil output in response to near-record oil prices, as Diamondback did ovenright. The same logic applies to memory chips, another commodity, whose prices have exploded in recent months due to soaring demand by data centers.

And while markets expect prices to drop once more supply comes on line, the proposed timline - which spans well into 2027 - is unacceptable, meanwhile the raging memory prices are translating into higher prices for virtually all electronics at a time when inflation is already set to explode higher. 

Which is why the US is working to address the global memory chip shortage through a supply chain coalition with allies in Asia, Europe and the Middle East, Nikkei Asia reported citing a US official. 

The State Department unveiled the Pax Silica initiative in December, a coalition with allies to secure supply chains involving semiconductors, artificial intelligence and critical minerals while reducing dependence on China.

Fourteen countries including India, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and the Philippines have joined the coalition, with Norway set to do so this week, Jacob Helberg, undersecretary of state for economic affairs, told Nikkei Asia on the sidelines of the 2026 Milken Institute Global Conference.

Jacob Helberg, U.S. undersecretary of state for economic affairs, speaks at the 2026 Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles on May 5.

The global memory chip supply shortage continues to worsen as the industry struggles to keep pace with skyrocketing demand boosted by artificial intelligence, weighing on tech companies big and small from AI chipmakers to Apple.

The Trump administration is looking to address the memory chip crunch by leveraging the supply chain coalition, particularly with Asian allies such as South Korea.

"Addressing the memory shortage is, for us, a key priority to advance through the Pax Silica initiative," Helberg said. "It's possible for us to partner in a bilateral and plurilateral way with an excellent framework to actually spin up projects that help us move the needle."

One example of that partnership, Helberg said, is the 4,000-acre industrial hub being set up on the Philippine island of Luzon by Washington and Manila. Helberg will lead a delegation of U.S. officials and business leaders to the Philippines later this month to discuss details of the use of the massive industrial park.

It remains to be decided how much of the land will be used for chip manufacturing, mineral refining or some other key manufacturing, he said.

"What we do know is we want memory to be in the mix in our strategy, and so if we don't end up partnering with the Philippines for memory, we'll easily partner with someone else for the memory piece," Helberg said, adding that the U.S. "would very much like to partner with companies like Samsung and SK Hynix" on addressing the memory chip crunch. It isn't clear how such a partnership would change the status quo since both companies are booked solid well into the future. 

Meanwhile, President Trump is expected to visit Beijing on May 14-15, and supply chain issues including semiconductor and rare-earth export controls could be discussed when he meets Chinese President Xi Jinping.

"President Trump will be heading to Beijing with the American delegation with maximum optionality and leverage because he has really positioned the United States to enhance its position at many different layers of the supply chain," Helberg said.

Regardless of the outcome of the meeting, initiatives such as Pax Silica that support supply chain de-risking from China will continue, Helberg said.

"The president can actually have a very productive and fruitful trip to China, while at the same time continuing to make progress on all of our supply chain security initiatives," he said.

Tyler Durden Tue, 05/05/2026 - 13:25

Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt has a secret Instagram account, “Vando Vault,” filled with hilarious memes, funny videos, and locker room moments featuring Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, LeBron James and teammates.

Ever wondered what California's last nuclear power plant looks like?

Hormuz "Deserted" As Iran Expands Area Of Control; Hundreds Of Ships Cluster Near Dubai

The Strait of Hormuz has become a ghost town, er strait, with traffic grinding to a complete halt as no new commercial ship crossings were recorded despite a US effort to guide vessels through the waterway, according to Bloomberg.

While Maersk confirmed that its vessel Alliance Fairfax transited the strait on Monday under US military protection, Tuesday saw zero traffic following a day of violence that included attacks on vessels and missile strikes targeting the United Arab Emirates.

Confusion was rampant after Washington maintained that a safe passage exists, with two US destroyers reportedly entering the Gulf, but the heightened tensions kept commercial shipping at bay.

Two US 🇺🇸 destroyers confirmed to be inside Persian Gulf after transiting Strait of Hormuz by satellite image TODAY 👇

Spotted doing UAE 🇦🇪 ship anchorages missile defense at

25.4042, 54.7606
25.4562, 54.7382 https://t.co/BDXi9njOR1 pic.twitter.com/2ticpJ3ptH

— Tom Bike (@tom_bike) May 5, 2026

On Monday, two US vessels, one of them a vehicle carrier, moved out of the Persian Gulf under military escort while keeping their tracking signals off. Visible outbound activity during the same period was limited to an Iran-linked liquefied petroleum gas carrier, a small feeder containership, and a tiny regional cargo ship.

Ships transiting Hormuz with active AIS signals over the past day were confined to the narrow northern lane approved by Tehran. Also, widespread AIS spoofing has further clouded the picture, making independent verification of ship traffic virtually impossible

As reported previously, most of the recent Iran-linked departures have stalled in the Gulf of Oman; it remains unclear whether these vessels are following regional trading patterns or are being held up by a US naval blockade positioned further east. Only one containership entered the Persian Gulf on Monday before the flare-up in regional hostilities; there were no inbound transits on Tuesday.

While the fragile ceasefire held, about five dozen vessels moved toward Dubai in just one day, joining a growing cluster of at least 363 ships currently off the emirate in the Persian Gulf as Iran signaled it is expanding the area around Hormuz it now controls.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) unveiled on Monday a new map showing expanded areas around the critical chokepoint that Iran now claims to have under control. The area extends from a line between Kuh-e Mobarak in Iran and south of Fujairah in the UAE, and from another line between the end of Iran’s Qeshm Island and Umm Al Quwain in the UAE, according to the IRGC Navy.

Dubai, one of the seven emirates of the UAE, is just outside this new expanded area under Iranian control. Since Monday, nearly 60 vessels of all types have moved toward Dubai to an area of a large cluster of ships monitored by Bloomberg News. At least 363 vessels are in this area off Dubai, at least according to their tracking signals, which have become increasingly difficult to monitor and read since the war began and the Strait of Hormuz was closed.

The tensions in the area re-escalated on Monday, after the announcement by U.S. President Donald Trump of an operation dubbed “Project Freedom”, to guide ships stuck in the Strait of Hormuz out of the waterway. Iran responded to the announcement with a warning that U.S. forces “will be attacked if they intend to approach and enter the Strait of Hormuz”.

Iran on Monday attacked the port of Fujairah, a vital oil hub that sits right outside the Strait of Hormuz, and which saw several attacks before the U.S.-Iran ceasefire was announced in early April.

As the ceasefire looks increasingly fragile as of Tuesday, while dark oil loadings and transit activity from Iran continues.

“Kharg Island is operating under a near-total dark posture,” maritime intelligence firm Windward said on Monday, adding that Iranian oil cargo routes to Asia start to shift via Indonesia’s Lombok Strait, avoiding the more visible Strait of Malacca.

Tyler Durden Tue, 05/05/2026 - 12:50

Last Thursday, Congress ended the longest Department of Homeland Security shutdown in American history. For 75 days, tens of thousands of TSA officers worked unpaid. More than 1,100 of them quit. Airport security lines stretched for hours. The immediate fight is over. The next one is already on the calendar: this appropriation expires Sept. 30....

The "Gossip Girl" actress walked the red carpet hours after she settled her legal war with "It Ends With Us" co-star Justin Baldoni.

The "Gossip Girl" actress walked the red carpet hours after she settled her legal war with "It Ends With Us" co-star Justin Baldoni.

The new US threat toward China ‌comes just days before President Donald Trump's planned May 14-15 visit to Beijing.

Ingrid Honkala, a former NASA scientist, claims she is intimately familiar with death after allegedly flatlining a staggering three times.

Sheets' body was discovered on April 22 with an apparent gunshot wound to the head.

Sheets' body was discovered on April 22 with an apparent gunshot wound to the head.

Positioning himself as an outsider, the billionaire candidate promises to make California more affordable—but his wealth, and how he built it, is under increasing scrutiny.

Dramatic video shows a passenger plane violently swaying side to side on the runway as it struggles to land at an airport in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Stablecoin Proposal Still 'Falls Short' Of Protecting Bank Deposits: US Banks Say

Authored by Brayden Lindrea via CoinTelegraph,.com,

America’s largest banking groups said they remain dissatisfied with the CLARITY Act’s newly proposed language on stablecoin yield, arguing that it fails to protect bank deposits.

In a statement Monday, the bankers acknowledged that US Senators Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks are “seeking to achieve the correct policy goal” in prohibiting stablecoin yield but noted that the CLARITY Act’s “proposed language” currently “falls short of that goal.”

“It is imperative that Congress get this right,” the American Bankers Association said in a joint statement with the Bank Policy Institute, Consumer Bankers Association, Financial Services Forum and Independent Community Bankers of America.

The dispute between bankers and the crypto industry over stablecoin yield has stalled the bipartisan bill, which passed the House of Representatives in July by a 294-134 vote.

There are concerns that the CLARITY Act may not pass before the US midterm elections in November 2026, which could further hinder its progress.

Banking groups have previously cited studies suggesting that widespread stablecoin adoption could lead to trillions in outflows from the US banking system, particularly from community banks, which may not have enough balance-sheet flexibility to absorb these outflows without resorting to higher-cost wholesale borrowing. 

In the Monday statement, the bankers also cited an article by Stanford-trained economist Andrew Nigrinis to argue that stablecoin yields driving bank deposit outflows “could reduce all consumer, small-business, and farm loans by one-fifth or more, making it essential for the prohibition to be clear and transparent.”

However, White House economists reported in April that banning stablecoin yield may increase bank lending by only $2.1 billion, a marginal net increase of about 0.02%. 

Bankers want “loophole” closed

The bankers contested the language of Section 404, arguing that it allows crypto platforms to pay users bank-like interest or yield outside traditional rules. 

Extract of the “SEC 404. Prohibiting interest and yield on payment stablecoins” document. Source: Alex Thorn

“This is a significant loophole that must be addressed,” the bankers said, adding that they will be sharing “detailed suggestions for strengthening the proposed language with lawmakers in the coming days.”

However, Tillis said the current text of the CLARITY Act strikes a compromise by prohibiting stablecoin rewards on idle balances while allowing crypto platforms to “offer other forms of customer rewards.”

“Most importantly, it helps put us on a bipartisan path to pass the CLARITY Act, providing the regulatory certainty needed to foster innovation. Some in the banking industry may not want either of these things to happen, and we respectfully agree to disagree.”

The current text of the CLARITY Act was made public on Friday, with Coinbase and other members of the crypto industry pushing for a Senate markup next week.

Tyler Durden Tue, 05/05/2026 - 12:35

Trump is returning the Presidential Fitness Test to schools across the country as part of his “Make America Healthy Again” movement.

Reality Steve claims Paul's Bachelorette season will air, despite ABC pulling it in March.

"Moderate" Democrat Abigail Spanberger Considers Tax On Gym Memberships And Streaming Services, Among Other Ideas

Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger is facing backlash after refusing to rule out new taxes on everyday services like gym memberships and streaming subscriptions, according to the Daily Mail.

During an interview with 8News, the Virginia governor was asked whether she would sign legislation expanding the state’s sales tax to cover a long list of services. Rather than rejecting the idea outright, Spanberger said any proposal that seems “reasonable” should at least be part of the conversation as lawmakers search for new sources of revenue.

"I think every idea, as long as it's reasonable and makes some amount of sense, should be entertained should be discussed," she said.

"You mentioned the one on streaming services, you used to buy a DVD, there was a sales tax. Streaming is different," she added. "I recognize there is value in having these conversations, but whether I'd ever sign a bill is wholly predicated on what is actually in the bill, and how it is outlined."

"I think there are worthy conversations to be had about what revenue generation looks like into the future as our economy changes in so many ways."

The Daily Mail writes that the proposals floated in Richmond this year would have expanded taxes to services that have traditionally been exempt, including self-storage units, dry cleaning, vehicle repairs, counseling, website design, cloud storage, and digital subscriptions.

One measure, HB978, would have specifically added sales taxes to fitness memberships and athletic clubs. None of the bills cleared the General Assembly before lawmakers adjourned in March, so Spanberger hasn’t had to make a final decision yet.

Critics argue the proposals are a preview of where Virginia’s tax policy could be heading under its new Democratic leadership.

Spanberger campaigned as a moderate but has already drawn criticism from conservatives over several early policy moves, and her comments are likely to add fuel to that debate. And for anyone hoping their gym membership or Netflix bill might be safe — Virginia lawmakers appear to be eyeing both your workout routine and your weekend binge-watch. Because apparently paying taxes on your paycheck, groceries, and utilities just wasn’t ambitious enough.

Tyler Durden Tue, 05/05/2026 - 12:15