POLITICS 🏛️

New York Attorney General says Trump Supreme Court ruling won’t affect her investigation

• NY Attorney General Letitia James has stated that she will continue actively investigating the Trump Organization’s supposed inflation and deflation of property values to avoid taxes and receive other financial incentives
• The US Supreme Court’s ruling to allow the Manhattan District Attorney’s office to investigate 8 years of Trump’s tax returns and financial records will not affect her civil probe according to James
• The two ongoing investigations are studying how the Trump Organization valued real estate assets for various transactions

WORLD 🌎

EU to sanction four Russians over Navalny arrest

• EU foreign ministers have agreed to place sanctions on four senior Russian officials close to President Putin as a response to Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny’s jailing
• The agreement, which is planned for formal approval by the EU in early March, was brought forward after France, Germany, Poland, and the Baltic states convinced the EU to make a statement on allowing debate and protest in Russia
• Navalny was arrested on his return to Moscow last month after returning from Germany where he was recovering from a near-fatal poisoning

BUSINESS 💰

Jay-Z sells half of his Champagne brand to LVMH

• LVMH has purchased a 50% stake in Jay-Z’s Champagne brand Armand de Brignac, aka ‘Ace of Spades’
• The partnership is a move by LVMH to appeal to a more diverse client base as the luxury section has been criticized for cultural appropriation, racist gaffes, and a lack of runway diversity
• LVMH recently announced tennis superstar Naomi Osaka as its new brand ambassador, who was recently praised for supporting the Black Lives Matter protests

TECH 📱

Tesla stock drops 8%

• Tesla shares dropped 8.55% on Monday after investors pulled out of Big Tech and invested in cyclical stocks
• The drop was Tesla’s biggest since Sept. 23, 2020, at which point the stock was down 10.34% for the day
• Shares of other Big Tech companies also dropped on Monday as the overall Nasdaq Composite fell 2.5%

US 🦅

Texans hit by massive electric bills await details of Gov. Greg Abbott's promised relief

• Texas lawmakers have promised aid for Texans hit with huge electric bills following a winter storm that overloaded the state’s power grid
• The exact details of how the state will help those impacted remains unclear as the state’s deregulated electricity market allows for price spikes
• Some Texans are on a “fixed rate” electricity plan, but others pay rates tied to the spot price of wholesale electricity which saw a huge spike during the storm

CORONAVIRUS 😷

The US has lost 500,000 lives to Covid-19

• The US Covid-19 death toll has crossed 500,000, which is more than the number of Americans killed during WWII
• President Biden spoke at a candle lighting ceremony to emphasize the grim statistic
• The flag atop the White House along with flags at the US Capitol were lower to half-staff on Monday

EXTRA BLING ✨

• Government 🏛️. Dissent by Justice Thomas in election case draws criticism
• Celebrity ⭐. Kim Kardashian’s first post since filing for divorce
• Space 🌠. First video, audio, and new images from Mars Perseverance rover 
• Uplifting 😊. Meghan Markle and Prince Harry surprise Texas women's shelter damaged in winter storm
• Interesting 🔎. Texas refineries used storm to mask release of tons of pollutants

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