- Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion to start your day informed.
In Mississippi
Two cases of sickness from cyclosporiasis reported in MS
WJTV reports that “the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) confirmed that two cases of the parasite-based sickness cyclosporiasis have been reported in Mississippi.”
“The agency did not state which counties the cases were linked to. However, MSDH said one case was reported in the Pine Belt area, and the second was reported on the Mississippi Coast,” WJTV reported. “The produce-linked parasite can cause uncomfortable (and at times dangerous) bouts of “explosive” diarrhea.”
WJTV noted, “People who consume produce tainted with the parasite may get stuck with weeks of watery diarrhea as well as “frequent and sometimes explosive bowel movements,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).”
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Trump talks election vulnerabilities
As reported by Politico, “President Donald Trump on Thursday announced his administration is declassifying documents that he says outline vulnerabilities in U.S. election systems.”
“In his 25-minute speech from the White House, Trump described efforts by China to access U.S. voter rolls and offered details about long-studied risks with electronic voting machines,” Politico said. “But none of the information Trump described appears to support his long-running claims that the 2020 election was stolen or that ballots and vote totals were manipulated.”
Politico continued, “Instead, Trump issued a range of vague directives on election oversight to the FBI, the director of national intelligence and other agencies headed by controversial loyalists, calling on them to investigate ‘how and why such crucial information was hidden’ from him and prosecute the people responsible for the alleged cover up.”
2. Burnham new U.K. Prime Minister
The New York Times reports that “Andy Burnham will be installed on Friday as the leader of Britain’s Labour Party, the final step before King Charles III asks him on Monday to form a government and become the country’s 59th prime minister.”
“In a speech at a special conference of Labour Party members, Mr. Burnham is expected to promise more public control of essential services, a shift of power toward local governments and a push for economic growth by increasing the country’s industrial base, according to excerpts released by Labour Party officials,” NYT reported. “The former mayor of Greater Manchester faces many of the same structural problems that have caused the country to churn through prime ministers every few years since 2016: slow economic growth, high government debt, a struggling national health service and deep political divisions.”
NYT added, “Mr. Burnham, who will replace outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer, has offered few details about how he would confront those.”
Sports
1. MSU Athletics receives $1 million donation
Mississippi State announced that longtime supporters Ray and Deborah Dillon have given $1 million to Mississippi State Athletics.
The Dillons’ generosity serves as the most recent key contribution to help elevate MSU in the current landscape of college athletics.
“We’re so grateful for Ray and Deborah,” Director of Athletics Zac Selmon said. “Their love for Mississippi State is evident, and we can’t say, ‘Thank you’ enough for this selfless gift that will help us keep pushing forward and reaching new heights at State. Ray and Deborah are not only generous supporters of our community, institution and state, they are great friends to me and my family and trusted partners who care deeply for Mississippi State and have been running shoulder to shoulder with us in advancing Mississippi State Athletics forward from day one.”
2. Southern Miss hires Horner as men’s tennis coach
Southern Miss Director of Athletics Jeremy McClain has announced Nathan Horner as the 10th head men’s tennis coach.
“First and foremost, I want to thank Jeremy McClain and Shawn Jones for entrusting me to lead this program into its next chapter,” Horner said. “From the moment I started this process and came to Hattiesburg, it all just felt so welcoming.
Horner most recently served as the director of tennis at Marist, garnering several program records. This past season, Horner was named the MAAC Men’s Tennis Coach of the Year after leading the Red Foxes to a regular season championship and a 15-6 mark. Marist went 8-0 in league play, making it the first time in over 10 seasons that the feat was accomplished. He also led the women’s program to an 11-6 mark.
Markets & Business
1. Gas prices could remain high longer
According to the Wall Street Journal, “President Trump has succeeded at times in calming crude-oil markets even as the Iran war rages on. But he doesn’t have the same sway over gasoline prices, which ultimately matter more to consumers.”
“Despite the resumption of U.S.-Iran hostilities, U.S. benchmark crude prices are hovering around $80 a barrel. That is about 18% above where they were before the Iran war began. By contrast, gasoline prices remain 32% higher at $3.94 a gallon, according to energy data firm OPIS,” WSJ reported. “So-called gasoline crack spreads, which measure the difference between gasoline and crude-oil prices, are averaging 90 cents a gallon so far this month. That is the highest level in four years, according to data from Novi Labs.”
WSJ further reported, “Why are fuel prices so much higher? One reason: fuel markets didn’t have the buffers that crude oil had. This means that even if there’s another ceasefire that allows oil to again flow, gasoline and diesel prices are likely to stay higher for longer.”
2. Futures down as jitters over AI spending mount
CNBC reports that “Nasdaq 100 futures fell sharply on Friday, as mounting jitters over artificial intelligence spending weighed on sentiment and dragged global tech stocks lower.”
“Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipped 335 points, or 0.6%. S&P 500 futures lost 0.9%, while Nasdaq-100 futures dropped 1.9% as tech stocks came under scrutiny,” CNBC reported. “Global chip stocks extended declines on Friday, with U.S.-listed shares of chipmakers and adjacent companies falling in pre-market trading. At 5:50 a.m. ET, the iShares Semiconductor ETF was down by 3.7%, while the semiconductor ETF issued by VanEck had fallen by 3.4%.”
CNBC added, “Meanwhile, shares of Applied Materials and LAM Research both shed around 5%. Intel and KLA Corporation were more than 4% lower, while Arm and Micron each lost 4%. Nvidia shares were 3% lower.”
