April 16, 2021
"Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again
with a yoke of bondage." 
Galatians 5:1
Market Recap


For the week, the S&P rose 1.4% to close at $4,185.47, the Dow added 1.2% to $34,200.67 and the Nasdaq gained 1.1% to $14,052.34.

Market participants this week staked out their positions on how to fix systemic risks in the $4.9 trillion U.S. money market fund industry, in what is shaping up to be the first big fight for U.S. President Joe Biden's financial regulators.
 
Top executives of more than three dozen Michigan-based companies, including General Motors Co and Ford on Tuesday issued a joint statement opposing Republican-backed legislation on voting limits.
 
Apple Inc (AAPL) on Tuesday called for the SEC to require companies to disclose far-reading emissions information such as how customers use their products.
 
Texas-based SolarWinds Corp (SWI) said the sprawling breach stemming from the compromise of its flagship software product has cost the company at least $18 million in the first three months of 2021.
 
Coinbase Global's (COIN) initial public offering on Wednesday is a major turning point for the cryptocurrency industry and the Street will be keeping a close watch to see how investors will react following an 11% jump in early trading a day after going public.
 
After Tuesday morning's stronger-than-expected March Consumer Price Index report, it appears that inflation pressures are building, but factors that have kept inflation under control over the last several years remain, according to Richmond Federal Reserve President Thomas Barkin.
 
As the coronavirus pandemic spurs a migration of skilled workers out of pricey metro areas, a growing number of cities and states are recruiting new homeowners and even renters by offering bounties.
 
The top cybersecurity official in the White House on Tuesday directed all government agencies to urgently apply new patches for Microsoft Corp Exchange email servers to head off exploitation by hackers after several flaws were discovered.
 
U.S. consumer prices rose by the most in more than 8-1/2 years in March as increased vaccinations and massive fiscal stimulus unleashed pent-up demand.
 
US stocks rallied to fresh record highs Thursday as US retail sales jumped a stronger-than-expected 9.8% in March.
 
The level of initial jobless claims fell by 193,000 to 576,000 in the week ended April 10 after increases in the previous two weeks, trimming the four-week moving average by 47,250.
 
U.S. import prices increased more than expected in March, lifted by higher costs for petroleum products and tight supply chains.
 
A sharp drop in Treasury yields in the face of strong U.S. economic data is surprising market participants who expected the reflation-driven bond selloff of the first quarter to continue.
 
US Industrial Production Rises in March as Most Segments Recover From Weather-Driven Decline in February.
 
The U.S. government posted a March budget deficit of $660 billion, a record high for the month, as direct payments to Americans under Biden's stimulus package were distributed, the Treasury Department said on Monday.
 
In its monthly Oil Market Report, OPEC said it expects oil demand to rise by 6-million barrels per day in 2021 from 90.5 million bpd in 2020.
 
Good economic data Tuesday came out of the US NFIB which is the confidence index of small businesses…the largest employer in America; it was up to 98.5 for the month of March, getting close to the 100 mark.
 
Novavax (NVAX) shares are up significantly since Monday's close on the prospect that its Covid-19 vaccine will get greater use, if authorized, in light of the blood-clot risk tied to Johnson & Johnson's Covid-19 vaccine.
 
Oil prices dipped in early trade on Friday but were on course for a weekly gain of more than 6% with an improved oil demand outlook and strong economic recoveries in China and the United States offsetting concerns about spikes in COVID-19 infections.

***

Friday Recap: Wall Street closes with weekly gains, S&P 500, Dow hit record highs.


The three main Wall Street indexes ended Friday higher for the day and week, with the S&P 500 and the Dow breaking closing records, as investors took strong economic data and bank earnings as signs of momentum in the U.S. pandemic rebound.
 
US consumer sentiment improved to the highest level in a year in early April, driven by gains in views of current conditions amid stepped up federal spending and COVID-19 vaccinations as well as rising expectations for a better jobs market
 
Fewer than 200,000 businesses in the United States may have failed during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, a lighter toll than initially feared and thus a lesser impact on unemployment.
 
U.S. homebuilding surged to nearly a 15-year high in March, up by 19.4% to a 1.739 million annual rate. At the same time, building permits rose by 2.7% to 1.766 million. But soaring lumber prices amid supply constraints could limit builders' capacity to boost production and ease a shortage of homes.
 
U.S. business inventories increased solidly in February, suggesting restocking could again contribute to economic growth in the first quarter.
 
U.S. retail sales rebounded sharply in March as Americans received additional pandemic relief checks from the government and increased vaccinations allowed broader economic re-engagement.
 
State-level data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics show the unemployment rate fell in 20 states in March and held steady in the rest. Non-farm payrolls increased in 29 states in March and were virtually unchanged in the rest of the states.
 
General Motors Co. and LG Energy Solution on Friday said they will build a second U.S. battery cell manufacturing plant in Tennessee.
 
WTI Crude Oil Edges Down Despite China and the United States posting positive economic data. Oil prices slipped, with West Texas Intermediate crude futures down $0.33 to $63.13 and Brent off $0.21 to $66.73.
 
Gold rose 0.5% to $1,776.20 an ounce and Silver gained 0.3% to $26.03 an ounce, while Copper fell 1.2%.
 
After a recent slide, domestic grain shipments posted a gain for the week ended April 3, according to the USDA's latest grains transportation report released Thursday.
 
Scientists at a leading global grains research institute expect to sharply ramp up new wheat varieties enriched with zinc boosting the essential mineral for millions of people with deficient diets.
 
Retail giant Walmart (WMT) is among the worst offenders in a new ranking of companies in Latin America that sell eggs from caged chickens, part of a new list of firms from Mexico to Argentina that aims to encourage more humane supply practices.
 
Lamb Weston Holdings Inc. on Thursday said it would introduce packaging made with corn and potato starch, two sustainable bio-materials, beginning this month.
 
The Consumer and Health Care Sectors were both higher on Friday afternoon as well as the Financial Sector, Utilities, and Real Estate; whereas Energy stocks were down.
 
U.S. Treasury yields rose on Friday, pulling back from multi-week lows. U.S bond funds attracted a massive amount of money in the week ended April 14 as bond yields dropped on easing worries over higher inflation.
 
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 164.68 points, or 0.48%, to 34,200.67; the S&P 500 gained 15.05 points, or 0.36%, at 4,185.47; and the Nasdaq Composite added 13.58 points, or 0.1%, at 14,052.34.
 
For the week, the S&P rose 1.4%, the Dow added 1.2% and the Nasdaq gained 1.1%.



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Twila Brase: COVID Treatments and Government Incompetence
“Would you risk this if you knew that you wouldn’t die?”

Dan Celia, President & CEO of FISM Inc.
This past week, FISM’s Dan Celia interviewed Twila Brase, founder of the Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom, who discussed existing COVID treatments, the federal government’s failure to understand the virus, and where to find helpful information.
 
Visit cchfreedom.org for more information about the work that Twila and her organization are doing to secure health freedom for Americans. (WATCH VIDEO)
Fallout from Daunte Wright Shooting Continues, Officer Who Shot Jacob Blake is Back on the Job
At the time of incident Blake had a warrant out for his arrest.

Samuel Case, FISM News
Unrest continues to plague Brooklyn Center, Minnesota after a police involved shooting on Sunday, while video evidence now suggests the death of Daunte Wright was accidental.
Brooklyn Center Police Chief Tim Gannon said upon reviewing the body cam footage, he believed the officer meant to draw her taser, but in the heat of the moment accidentally drew her gun instead, resulting in the death of Wright. In the video the officer shouts “taser taser,” before firing her gun. Immediately afterward, she can be heard crying “Holy [expletive], I just shot him!”
The officer and Chief Gannon have both stepped down. Despite their resignations rioting continued…(READ MORE)
(See also “Riot Ensues After Police Shooting Outside Minneapolis” for initial report.)
Biden Establishes Supreme Court Review Commission
…those that lean towards the political left argue that the Commission’s job will be to “balance the conservative majority”

Ian Patrick, FISM News
On Friday April 9, President Biden signed another executive order which established a Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States. A statement released before the official executive order details what this Commission will do:
 
“The Commission’s purpose is to provide an analysis of the principal argument in the contemporary public debate for and against Supreme Court reform, including an appraisal of the merits and legality of particular reform proposals. The topics it will examine include the genesis of the reform debate; the Court’s role in the Constitutional system; the length of service and turnover of justices on the Court; the membership and size of the Court; and the Court’s case selection, rules, and practices.”
 
It will be composed of 36 members appointed by the President, which include…(READ MORE)
Protestors and Law Enforcement Clash Over Barricade at GraceLife Church in Canada
GraceLife Church released a statement Sunday evening that neither the church nor Pastor Coates had any part in organizing the protest.

Seth Udinski, FISM News
Over the past few months, FISM News has covered the shocking events surrounding GraceLife Church in Edmonton, Canada, home of Pastor James Coates. To recap, Coates was arrested and jailed in February for continuing to hold in-person worship services despite COVID-19 lockdown restrictions. He was released after 35 days in March and resumed preaching at the church before a full congregation during Holy Week. Last week, health officials and local law enforcement barricaded the church’s entrance and built a fence around the property, which did not succeed in preventing GraceLife from still gathering, even outdoors. However, it did cause public outrage in an ever-growing tension between religious freedom and COVID-19 restrictions.
 
On Sunday, hundreds of protesters gathered…(READ MORE)
Iran Blames Israel of Nuclear Terrorism; Netanyahu Calls Iran Israel’s Largest Threat
…implying that an American return to the deal could have dire consequences for the consistently targeted nation.

Michael Cardinal, FISM News
On Monday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told corporate America that they had better steer clear of partisan political fights or suffer the consequences. McConnell said in a news conference, “My advice to the corporate CEOs of America is to stay out of politics. Don’t pick sides in these big fights.” He warned, “corporations will invite serious consequences if they become a vehicle for far-left mobs to hijack our country from outside the constitutional order.”
 
These comments were made following Major League Baseball’s decision to pull their All-Star Game from Atlanta, Georgia…(READ MORE)
FDA and CDC Recommend Pausing J&J Candidate
This comes shortly after Europe wrestled with possibility of blood clots developing from the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine candidate. 

Samuel Case, FISM News
On Tuesday, the country’s top federal health agencies recommended pausing the use of Johnson & Johnson‘s COVID-19 vaccine after six patients developed “a rare and severe type of blood clot” after taking the shot.
 
The FDA explained:
 
“As of 4/12, 6.8m+ doses of the J&J vaccine have been administered in the U.S. CDC & FCA are reviewing data involving 6 reported U.S. cases of a rare & severe type of blood clot in individuals after receiving the vaccine. Right now, these adverse events appear to be extremely rare.”
 
These six cases were all women between the ages of 18 and 48. They developed symptoms between 6 to13 days after they received the jab. One woman has died and…(READ MORE)
Biden’s Proposed Budget Boosts Big Government
As President Joe Biden looks to secure $2 trillion for an infrastructure plan known as “The American Jobs Plan,” he also announced his proposal for a government budget which amounts to $1.5 trillion. The budget overall provides a small increase to the 2020 defense budget while cushioning multiple non-defense government programs and organizations.
 
This proposed budget is $118 billion more than the 2020 allotted budget, increasing defense spending by $12.3 billion and non-defense spending by $105.7 billion. According to The Hill, budget watchers figured that the defense budget would “stay flat in the proposal.”
 
For the non-defense spending, multiple agencies received significant…(READ MORE)
Infamous Ponzi-Schemer Bernie Madoff Dies At 82
He was sentenced to 150 years in federal prison.

Seth Udinski, FISM News


Bernie Madoff, one of the most notorious ponzi-schemers of the modern era, died from natural causes Wednesday morning at the Federal Medical Center in Butler, North Carolina. He was 82 years old.
 
Madoff was born in 1938 in the New York City neighborhood of Queens. Madoff grew into prominence on the financial scene in the 1970s, and according to Reuters was one of the five original investors in the Nasdaq trading system. His financial corruption most likely began around the same time, although Madoff claimed he did not begin his fraudulent practices until decades later.
 
Madoff became famous for swindling several high profile…(READ MORE)
Biden’s Immigration Policies Leading to Dangerous Conditions
Despite the numbers, the Biden administration is refusing to call the issues at the border a “crisis”

Michael Cardinal, FISM News
Alarming numbers from America’s southern border show that the border crisis is worse than even President Biden’s strongest critics could have expected.
 
In the month of March, 172,000 immigrants attempted to cross the border. This number is the highest single month total since modern data collection was implemented. This is up 71% from the month of February and eclipses the next highest monthly total by 28,000 (May 2019).
 
Of those trying to cross the border 18,890 were unaccompanied children, which is up 100% since February and up…(READ MORE)
Republican Governors Refuse to Sign Bills Curbing Transgender Radicalism
State bills designed to curb the agendas of the transgender movement are leading to the political suicides of Republican governors who, for one reason or another, cannot bring themselves to sign the legislation.
 
Last month South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem (R), a darling of the right for her pro-liberty approach throughout the pandemic, refused to sign the Fairness in Women’s Act. The bill would effectively ban transgender females (biological males) from competing in women’s sports from the college level down. She said in a letter to the legislator that the bill was “unrealistic in the context of collegiate athletics.”
 
Noem sent the bill back to the legislation for “style and form” changes, requesting tweaks that critics said took the teeth out…(READ MORE)
Regardless of Political Stance, Americans Agree: Keep “Woke Politics” Out of Sports
NBA commissioner Adam Silver said last fall that there seems to be a return to a general separation of sports and politics… 

Seth Udinski, FISM News
In light of many recent intersections between sports and leftist politics, most recently highlighted in the MLB’s relocation of the 2021 All-Star Game, many Americans are asking the question: “Do politics (specifically liberal politics) belong in sports or corporations?” According to a recent poll commissioned by national news outlet The Daily Wire, the answer is “No.”
 
The Daily Wire released the findings last week, in which they commissioned SurveyMonkey to poll over 1,000 Americans on the topic of political involvement in sports and business. To uphold integrity in the results, the surveyed group consisted of 31% Republicans, 34% Democrats, and 35% unaffiliated. The results affirmed…(READ MORE)
2021 U.S. Threat Assessment Includes Climate Change, Migration, and “Emerging Tech”
The border crisis is also given a mention, although it is not specified as a “crisis.” 

Ian Patrick, FISM News


On April 9, U.S. Intelligence released its annual assessment on national threats that America faces. Coming from the Office of the Director for National Intelligence, Avril Haines, the report says that it “focuses on the most direct, serious threats to the United States during the next year.”
 
“In the coming year, the United States and its allies will face a diverse array of threats that are playing out amidst the global disruption resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and against the backdrop of great power competition, the disruptive effects of ecological degradation and a changing climate, an increasing number of empowered non-state actors, and rapidly evolving technology. The complexity of the threats, their intersections, and the potential for cascading events in an increasingly interconnected in mobile world create new challenges for the IC.”
 
The report focuses first on four countries who “have demonstrated the capability and intent to advance their interests at the expense of the United States and its allies, despite the pandemic.” These countries are…(READ MORE)
Self-Governance, COVID Facts, and the Christian Response to Lockdowns: Interview with Todd Erzen, Co-Author of ‘Faucian Bargain’
“People are so tired of being lied to...” 

Samuel Case, FISM News
FISM News sat down with Todd Erzen, co-author of the best selling book Faucian Bargain and co-host of the Steve Deace Show on the Blaze Radio Network. Todd discussed how the U.S. found itself under the virtual rule of an unelected health official, the information that’s been overshadowed by Dr. Fauci’s presence, and what Christians need to learn from the coronavirus era. (WATCH VIDEO)
Project Veritas Probes into CNN’s Efforts to Remove President Trump
In another video, Chester declared CNN practices the “art of manipulation.” 

Seth Udinski, FISM News


Project Veritas, a national conservative news agency focused on exposing fake news and journalistic corruption, released a video on Tuesday exposing CNN’s involvement in the 2020 presidential election. CNN, a self-proclaimed purveyor of true and unbiased news, is in reality one of the most powerful leftist news-machines in the world. According to Project Veritas’s findings, CNN’s sinister motives during the 2020 presidential election may have just been exposed – to remove former President Donald Trump from office.
 
The footage showed several conversations between an undercover Project Veritas journalist and Charlie Chester, CNN’s Technical Director. In the footage, Chester confirmed CNN’s apparent goal in its coverage of the 2020 presidential election. According to Chester, CNN’s ulterior motive in its coverage was to skew the image of President Trump in such a way…(READ MORE/WATCH VIDEO)
Project Veritas CEO, James O’Keefe, Suspended from Twitter After Posting Undercover CNN Videos
The tweet in question contained a video of Veritas Senior Journalist Christian Harstock questioning Facebook’s VP of Integrity, Guy Rosen... 

Samuel Case, FISM News
This week, Project Veritas CEO James O’Keefe unleashed a flurry of undercover videos allegedly exposing CNN’s motive to oust Trump in the 2020 presidential election. Today, O’Keefe’s account has been suspended. The reason for the suspension is unknown, but is presumably related to these videos.
 
FISM News previously reported on the undercover clips (see article above)…(READ MORE)
Christian Celebrities React to The Shooting of Daunte Wright
Since the death of George Floyd, the evangelical church has struggled to determine an appropriate biblical response to these sensitive issues.

Seth Udinski, FISM News


In the aftermath of the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright on Sunday by former Minneapolis police officer Kim Potter, many celebrities have taken to social media to voice their anger over what they believe is another crime of racial injustice by a police officer against an African American. This it is not isolated to the secular world; many high-profile Christians also voiced their anger over Wright’s death.
 
The rapper Lecrae, a chart-topping performer on both the Christian and secular scene and something of a political activist, posted a painting of Wright with his one-year-old son on Instagram. He said…(READ MORE)
Nancy Pelosi Rejects Proposed Bill on SCOTUS Expansion
However, she does “support the President’s commission to study such a proposal.

Ian Patrick, FISM News
With the fear of court “packing” entering political rhetoric on both sides of the aisle, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that she will not be bringing legislation which aims to expand the Supreme Court to the floor of the House. She did, however, support President Biden’s executive order establishing a commission which looks into potential changes and reforms to the Court.
 
During her April 15 weekly news conference, Pelosi was asked about the bill which would expand the amount of Supreme Court justices from nine to thirteen. This bill, called the “Judiciary Act of 2021,” was originally proposed by Representative Jerry Nadler (D-NY), Senator Edward Markey (D-MA), Representative Hank Johnson (D-GA), and Representative Mondaire Jones (D-NY). The bill says…(READ MORE)
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Events


Olive Branch, MS
Sunday, May 2, 2021
6:30-8:30pm
Brookside Church in Barton, MS
4993 HWY 302 East
Barton, MS 38654
NO REGISTRATION REQUIRED

***

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May 20, 2021
6:30-8:30pm
Sheraton Jacksonville
10605 Deerwood Park Blvd.
Jacksonville, FL 32256
Deerwood Ballroom


Please visit our website for a complete listing of all upcoming events with details. 

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The FISM (Financial Issues Stewardship Ministries) is the home of the program Financial Issues with Dan Celia. Celia focuses on financial headlines, investing, politics and encourages people to be thoughtful stewards of the money God has entrusted to them. Financial Issues is a live call-in radio and TV program heard and watched internationally.

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